Disruptions

I've moved back to Intermediate Class 2 until my exams (which take place in two weeks), mainly because the exams are all based around the books and vocab we have been learning, and if I take Intermediate Class 1's exams I will surely fail, having been in that class a mere three weeks or so. If I stay in Class 1 and take Class 2's exams I will have to do double work at home. Ergo, I've moved myself temporarily back into Class 2, so I at least stand a reasonable chance on these papers (except listening, I really think I am going to fail listening, and this worries me).

I headed along to room 417, where we used to have class, only to find we've now moved to 511. No problem, I nip up the stairs and after a couple of attempts in which I walked right past it, I find this new classroom. It's tiny. Maybe some of the class dropped out or were moved, and this meant room 417 (which really was quite big, easily seating 50 I would guess) became obsolete for the remaining few. I don't know. Either way, we're now in this small room. A couple of things happen when you downsize your classroom - it's warmer (yay, don't want to be cold in Urumqi), and it's noisier because things are so much closer. Allow me to paint a picture. This classroom has two columns of desks in it, two desks wide, so each row is 4 desks, and there are maybe five rows. A total of 20 desks. An aisle space about one and a half people wide, if that. There's a small space at the front for the teacher, and a whiteboard propped up against the window. There is no extra space; this is SMALL.

So what happens when there are eight students in the room, and one person comes in late (door at the back by the way) - anything this person does to change the atmosphere becomes immediately noticeable, that's what. Joy of joys the latecomer (seriously, why do you turn up half an hour late, and just barge your way in? It's not cool, clever, funny, and it certainly isn't mature), is the annoying kid (I refuse to call anyone who barely looks 18 an adult here) who doesnt bring any books and thinks he can just chat to his neighbour. Except there's a problem. This isn't the big room in which your piddling chat sort of murmured away in the corner. And your "mate" (who is actually hardworking and should have the balls to tell this idiot to piss off) isn't next to you, he's across this aisle. Oh, and you're not being discreet at all, in fact the sound of your voice is in direct competition with the teacher (who, bless her, is a really good teacher, but not so hot on the discipline and just tries to talk over this dick). Well, after about 10 minutes of this, I'd had enough. Actually I've had enough for a few weeks now, because so many of these damn Kazakhs are rude and discourteous, and I've wanted to just turn around and give them a mouthful. (One guy I know, an American in the Higher Class, told me in his first year here he actually got in fistfights with a couple of them over similar behaviour).

I turned around in my seat and, looking straight at him, said: "Will you close your mouth?" only it wasnt a question, it was a statement. I turned back. There was an audible silence. I'm the guy that sits quiet in class and speaks only when it's to answer a question. Then he speaks, in heavily accented (and by the sound of it, shaped by too much American gangsta music) English - "What you say to me?" ... on the second prompt I turn around again, and put it a little more forcefully, "Will you SHUT UP" and in return I get "Woah, what he say? [To me] Heeeeeeey, this is not America, this is Wulumuqi" - two things to note here, first of all I am NOT AMERICAN. DON'T GET IT WRONG, ESPECIALLY IF YOU KNOW I AM BRITISH. I can take it as a misconception, but this fool knows I'm not from that side of the pond. And secondly, I don't care if this is Urumqi, we're in a school situation, not in your back yard, homie, and I'm here to learn not smoke dope with you and your smacked-up crew. Oh and thirdly, with his manner of speaking he reminded me of someone I used to know (Mum, you know exactly who I'm talking about), and this just doesnt go down well. Seconds from making my next move (a response in Chinese, to make sure he understood, and failing that a response from my fists), and with the classroom quiet as anything now, save for this squirt's goads in whatever he thought was English, and something changed.

Nargiz, one of the bubbliest girls, bright too, and a friend of mine brought about by her younger brother speaking reasonable English and thus we have lunch together most days, turns around in her seat and starts giving this kid an earful. In Kazakh. Fast, loud, to the point. He starts arguing back, perhaps he figures she's just a girl. But then she gets up, and she's easily as tall as, if not taller than him, she comes out from her desk and goes round to him, and argues him right back into whatever cave he crawled out of (because I sure as hell wouldn't want to think people like that come from wombs), just in time for break. The bell goes, he leaves (and didnt come back for the remaining three lessons) and I am totally indebted. After that, she and a couple of the others told the teacher they didn't care much for this guy, that his first impression is bad, and that he's always smoking weed (why does this not surprise me?) - and when I said thanks, she said not to mention it because if I dealt with him there'd be trouble (I think she could see where it was going to go) but if she handled it there wouldn't be ... local knowledge I guess. The next three lessons were silent, it was awesome.

All I can say is, he'd better not be coming back to those classes until I'm back in Class 1, where, to put things fully in perspective, there are a lot more students (anywhere between 25 and 40 depending on the class), and in an average class there is no competition to hear the teacher. Teacher speaks, you listen. Simple as. Why can't it all be like that?!




In other news, I am thinking about compiling a list of current prices and useful places for people to go, something to help next year's students (if there are any, someone mentioned problems with the Urumqi-Newcastle connection), this sentences is partly a reminder to myself to actually do this, and partly a request for people to say what kind of things they think should be on this list :) Customer participation and all that.