Hey Hey and a Big G'Day toya,

For those that don’t know;

I have made a decision to move back to my beloved mountain city of Shaowu that sits fourteen hours deep into the north western hills of Fujian Province to live and teach next term beginning September. For those that don’t know, I spent a year and a half here from 2007 to mid 2008 prior to moving on to Shaanxi where I have spent the last two years.

As I finish teaching here in Hanzhong City (south-west Shaanxi Province) this coming Wednesday my plan was to head to Fujian Province at the end of the week to drop off my belongings, have a few catch up beers and then head south to Guangxi Province to Yangshuo to catch up with the Buckland’s Team for the first time in four years.

Plans somehow always have a way of being changed!

At the moment Shaowu city is completely flooded leaving the city without power for over a week, all schools have been closed and the students are left without a chance of sitting their end of year exams. This of course sounds like good time for the students to celebrate, but not here in China. It is still unsure if they will get a chance to sit the exams at the beginning of next term but even if they do the fate of the Grade 6 students futures remains unclear as their end of year exam results determine their ability to sit the Middle School Entrance Exam which combined determines what Middle School they will attend.

For those that don’t know, this is where it all begins for Chinese students.
With such a huge population the positions available in the future will always be small.

To make it more clear, a student’s Middle School will then determine what High School they will attend which then determines what University they will be entitled to attend. The end result being, if it’s not a 'good one’ then even the smartest student will never be able to make their dreams their reality. After being here for five and a half years it still blows my mind that a person’s future can be determined from when they leave Primary School.

Such a huge burden to bear for those so young!

This beer and blog is for all of my beautiful friends in Shaowu and a huge thanks goes to several of my old Grade 4, 5 & 6 students who I have remained in contact with over the past two years via QQ who have been sending me messages and photos via their mobile phones and at this stage it is the future of my Fujian Grade 4 students that remains unclear.

A News Clipping Taken From Today’s Online Paper

The death toll from storms that have pounded southern China for more than a week has climbed to around four hundred, the government said Friday (today).

The toll is expected to rise as one hundred and forty two people are missing and more rain is expected, according to the China Meteorological Administration website. That threatens to hamper rescue efforts that have seen 4.4 million people (nearly twice that of Melbourne city) evacuated from their homes.   The death toll climbed from two hundred and eleven in the past two days as heavy rains fell in the southern regions of Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangxi, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters said on its website.

As of five days ago in Fujian Province
(I have been unable to find more up to date information on Fujian)

The floods have triggered landslides and mud flows in east China's Fujian province, leaving seventy six dead and seventy nine missing as of 4 pm Monday, said local flood control officials on Tuesday. The floods, the worst in one hundred years in some regions of Fujian, have affected 2.65 million people (all of Melbourne city) and destroyed 44,200 houses. A total of 527,300 people have been evacuated in Fujian alone, said a spokesperson with the provincial Flood Control and Drought Relief Office.

The government says the flooding has caused about $11 billion in damages.

China sustains major flooding annually along the mighty Yangtze and other major rivers, but this year's floods have been especially heavy, spreading across ten provinces and regions in the south and along the eastern coast.

For those that don’t know: this is only the beginning of the deadly Monsoon Season!

Expect all totals to rise dramatically!
Beers N Noodles toya…..shane
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The soundtrack to this entry was by Elliot Smith.
The album was his wonderful ‘Self Titled’ album.
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