Go for it! I lived in 3 different countries before, but they all were in Europe, so coming to China was completely different. It got me out of my comfort zone, I got to know a completely different culture, cuisine, way of life and met friends for life. However, don't expect this all to come to you in the first week. Give it a time, explore, go to see new places, and mainly ENJOY!!! The time goes by way too quickly (and even faster when you're an ESL teacher) and sometimes we are so busy planning ahead (despite the future is not guaranteed) that we forget to enjoy the moment.
An average day start by greeting the children as they are coming to school. Then we have lessons. Time between lessons is spent by preparing next lessons, thinking about better ways to teach, searching for great videos or songs on internet, and, in the end of the day, saying goodbye to children you probably meet on your way home, and even if you can't see them, they certainly can see you and will shout "hello", run to you, and give you a hug - and this is the moment you realize you have never felt as useful to society as you feel now.
There are many people fearing to teach in kindergarten. I admit it, it is not easy, but it is the most rewarding job I have ever experienced. Children are naturally honest and, if they like you, they certainly find a way to show it. And trust me: it will melt your heart.
My biggest fear was that the horror stories I read on internet before I came over will happen to me. Nothing like that happened. I actually expected that, once I start working, nobody will care anymore and I will just work without anyone offering a help or support when needed. However, Echo certainly exceeded my expectations. People from Echo keep in touch; they even give you an advice on your lesson plans, listen to you, support you when necessary, and most of all they listen and check on you from time to time and ask how you're getting on. And this is really something that means gold when you're in completely foreign world.
I chose China because I think Chinese history and culture is very rich and the cuisine is very tasty. Also, China is one of the biggest and most populous countries and it is a country of BRICS. The Chinese economy goes up all the time and their use of technology is amazing. We only can learn from them. Honestly, coming to China, I thought I was tech savvy, but I wasn't as tech savvy as I am now and I keep learning and improving. I didn't want to go to Hong Kong because I think you really can experience the true Chinese culture and way of life in mainland China.
