The land of the rising sun

I am moving to Suzhou, China.

I don't really know anything about Suzhou, China. A friend assures me they have nice gardens. During my interview the principal mentioned that the expat community population alone is more than 60,000. For comparison the total population of Bella Bella is about 1500.

Here is what I do know...

I have been hired by Suzhou Industrial Park International School to teach at a BC Curriculum school for the 2014-2015 school year. I will be teaching drama, English, and social studies. My contract includes flights to/from China, health insurance, and a large bonus for completing the year, and a housing allowance or free housing in the teacher dormitory. I want to know more about the teacher dorms, I've been told there is a shared kitchen space. According to a former school employee the cost of living is 2/3rds of that in Canada.

I have to start work on August 27th so I am aiming to leave Canada by about the 20th of the same month.

My mom is staying in Bella Bella and Pumpkin is staying with her for the time being. I hate leaving my cat behind but if I wanted to take him he would have to go through a month of quarantine and I hate the idea of him going through that. I will miss him dreadfully. My next teaching position will be one he can come to with me.

Hopefully Mom and I will meet up somewhere warm and wonderful for Christmas, we are considering Hawaii because it is half-way between us.

I know that Facebook is banned in China but I'm wondering if there are ways around that. We were able to get around the block in Vietnam. Still, I'm unsure just how much leeway exists in China. During my interview this was said to me "I like that you are into social justice but you will want to be careful about that here, our first priority is keeping the students and yourself safe."

Dun, dun, dunnnnn!