HANGZHOU GLV…A “HAPPENING” PLACE!

简述 ：威尼斯水城、欧洲小镇、还有意大利广场以及无国界飞翔的广场鸽，平和珠海办学八年，有一句响当当的名言：学英语， 何必千里迢迢出国去， 到平和，不用出国，胜似出国。现在，我们说：杭州平和——学英语,看世界！

HANGZHOU GLV…A “HAPPENING” PLACE!
李桑娜Sandra Lee

     杭州“进行中”系列报道之一 
  2007年2月9日

欣欣向荣之地

In the 1960's & 70's the English language in America underwent a lot of changes . One such change was the use of the word happening. If something was “happening” that meant it was exciting and lively and worth being part of. That perfectly describes Hangzhou GLV.

I arrived to very cold weather and a very warm welcome. Denny Wu and Arthur Zhang were waiting at the airport for our Director, James Yi , and I, with cheers and big smiles and hugs. Pearl Feng and Sam Wang were hard at work in the office, so we greeted each other there. We are all old friends so it was a joyful reunion with members of my GLV family. I met new staff members, Fina Zhang, Alan Yi, Harry Chen, Peter Chang, Jean Ji and Grace Hu. A lively crew!

勤奋工作

James drove me around the area and gave me the grand tour of the school, student rooms, offices and teacher's apartments. Everything is under construction and in progress, so it is like a beehive; there are workers and painters everywhere, everyone busily doing their part to get the school up and running by our opening date of April 1, 2007. (Yes, it is April Fool's Day, but we are hoping that all the pranks are fun ones and only add to the excitement of the day!) It all feels so positive and exciting for GLV to be growing this way.

The layout of the new school will be very convenient for us all. All the classrooms have balconies which give them an open feeling. The reception area is designed to be welcoming as well as efficient. We are able to offer “English Only” rooms for any students who are motivated to try to stay “in the English” even after school. I think this will be a great opportunity, especially for the higher levels. In any case, the TVs in all the rooms can only receive English channels, so even those who are a little less excited about the “English Only” opportunity with their roommate can leave the TV on and “listen” to English while they sleep! Some room s open to their own balcony and at end of the hall there is a larger balcon y where students can relax and chat. (In English, of course!) There are other accommodations available as well .

学生宿舍

The surrounding area is very interesting. Hangzhou needed room to grow so it incorporated the town of Xiaoshan . Where we are located is quite near Xiang Lake where we can take a boat and go to an island enjoy sipping the famous Hangzhou teas.

This area was the site, in 2006, of a World Leisure Expo. For that event they built charming structures reflecting many different areas of the world. Nearby is the residential complex called Venice , which is built around canals and includes a large Italian piazza for strolling and feeding the pigeons. We have a motto, “You don't have to go abroad to learn English.” Now we can say, “Come to Hangzhou GLV, learn English and see the world!”

快乐团队

Many, who knew I came to China from Hawaii , warned me that Hangzhou in winter is cold. They were right – much colder than Hawaii , for sure. However, the warmth of the team here, all of whom work hard and laugh a lot, keeps me warm and cozy. There's a lot of work to do, and it is all designed to make our school a place where we love to teach and learn.

Join us! If you are alumnus of GLV and are in the area, be sure to stop by and see us.

Watch this space for further “Hangzhou Happenings.”

Aloha,

Sandra Lee

中文版:杭州平和——充满希望和生机勃发之地！