Cell Phones and English Clubs

23:30 15 October 2009

Well, I have some good news and some bad news. I bought a new cell phone this last weekend that should theoretically allow me to access the internet from home. This has had a negative impact on my budget for the rest of the month though… Looks like my diet will consist mainly of potatoes, bread, and tomatoes for the rest of the month but it will all be worth it if I can start accessing internet from my house!

So the good news is that probably by the time you are reading this I have obtained internet at home but the bad news is it isn’t today. I bought the phone last weekend but they did not have any USB cables left to sell so I have been waiting anxiously to be able to go back to Karakol to get one. Today was the day as I was in Karakol to cover an English club for a friend that is in the States at the moment and was able to pick up the cable! Hoorah! But it’s not working :o(. Anyhow, something is messed up with my computer so I think I will have to wipe my hard drive and see if I can get it working then.

About the English club though… I have taught a whole lot of English clubs since my service started here, probably somewhere of an average of three a week (so well over a hundred I believe) but this one today I believe was the most successful and most fun one I have ever given. Overall the schools in Karakol are better (urban flight is not the problem here that it is in the States) and the club was given only to very interested students. This meant they were already pretty advanced and SUPER motivated. I used a lesson plan I had written before but it was so much more fun when the kids where as into learning it as I was! It really gave me hope and showed me how much fun teaching English can be at its best. I’m currently applying to the Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship program which would, if I am successful, provide me with an opportunity to teach in Russia for a year. Having classes like the one today make me excited at that prospect!