Hallowe'en TreatsChangsha, China Changsha, China “You celebrate Hallowe’en in Changsha?” I asked Claudia last weekend, my attention attracted by an advertisement at the bottom of an escalator in a downtown mall. “Yes!” she said, scanning the ad’s QR code with her phone, and peering at the results. “And there are going to be some activities. …
You've never seen the likes of me before,have you?Changsha, China Changsha, China On any sidewalk in North America, a blonde, 5’6″, middle-aged woman, and a 6′ 2″ man with a grey moustache, attract very little attention from passersby. We not only blend in – we’re mostly invisible. But here in Changsha, where few foreigners visit, …
Our gracious, gregarious, grad student guidesChangsha, China Changsha, China Faster than any speeding texter, more powerful than any language barrier, able to leap tall orders in a single bound… Look! Right by our sides! Is it a concierge? Is it an angel? No! It’s our Changsha grad student guides. Yes, folks, it’s the graciously renamed …
One order of Changsha-style motivation, pleaseChangsha, China Changsha, China Yesterday, I told my students that today, I would not be introducing much new information. It is the last day of our 13.5 hour course on how to motivate and engage students in higher education. “We’ve talked about so many things already,” I said, “so now …
'In China, learning is suffering'Changsha, China Changsha, China “Walter! Walter! Hello! Hello!” My teaching partner and I scan the crowd waiting to meet passengers at the Changsha Airport. Two women and a man are waving enthusiastically in our direction from behind the barrier. To say that we’re glad to see our colleagues from the National …
Plane languageChangsha, China Changsha, China My seat mate on the 11 hour flight from Vancouver to Beijing was returning to China from visiting her daughter in Edmonton. She loved the time she spent in my home city. “I feel very comfortable there. The air so fresh, and I can see a long way.” Her daughter …
Leuven Sep 15, 2014Leuven, Belgium Leuven, Belgium
Brussels Sep 15, 2014Brussels, Belgium Brussels, Belgium
Bouillon Sep 15, 2014Bouillon, Belgium Bouillon, Belgium
Black screen. Nada. Rien de rien. “Lorne,” I say, “I’ve got no power in my notebook.” “Try rebooting,” he says, absently, not looking up from his book. “No, I mean I’ve got nothing, no lights on at all.” The diagnosis? A failed power supply. No way to charge the battery. And no way to replace …
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