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September 09, 2002
It's beginning to feel like home here.
Well, it's beginning to feel like home here. The craziness of the transition to life in Hungary and teaching is well under way. As you know when we got here, we could not move into our apartment because it was under construction. We finally got to move into our place last Saturday. But we didn't get to move in because the place was finished, far from it, but rather because we were living in the student dormitory, and the students moved in and kicked us out. Most of that construction is finished now. Everything in the apartment is usable now and the workers were supposed to come late last week to finish everything up. All that remains to fix is a verrrrrrry leaky sink, a bundle of loose wires hanging out of the power outlets in the bathroom, and the removal of a pile of old furniture. Even without everything finished, the place is significantly better than it was last year. When (if) it all gets finished, it will be a palace. (with a microwave!!!) You should come visit. See it in person. (We've got a microwave!!)
It's amazing the difference a year can make. This year feels so different from last year. Living here is a breeze now. I know where things are. I know enough language to get everything I need. Most of the habits of my daily routine from last year have come back quickly. It all seems so...normal. Planning lessons is very different for me now. After last year, I now know a lot of things not to do. Rather than spending hours on the details of each individual lesson, I find my self planning for weeks at a time. Rather than just trying to come up with enough material to fill the lessons, I'm creating more general layouts that achieve specific pedigocical goals. I really feel like I almost know what I'm doing. I don't know if I'm a good teacher yet, but I know I'm already a lot better than I was last year. This makes me feel good and reassured that I'm still where I'm supposed to be.
Posted by neal on September 9, 2002 07:21 AM