UB at last

After 32 hrs & 17 mins., I arrived in UB. Things have changed since my last posting, so I'll correct things now. At the last minute, I found out that the university in Khovd had not submitted my visa information & they were reluctant to have me arrive & try to fix the tourist visa to a worker's visa, so Anita got into action & found me a position in Ulan Bataar with a professional computer training school. The software they are learning to use is all in English, so the students are motivated to learn English for their careers. I teach 3 classes a day, Monday through Saturday, but the students in the classes are all mixed in abilities, so that makes teaching a bit difficult. I'm starting out trying just to learn some names & get people introduced to each other, relaxed about speaking English & having some fun.

As far as UB goes, it is a wide open place. Bldgs are mostly concrete block & plaster - crumbling & not very attractive for the most part, but every once in a while one is painted pink or yellow, so the overall effect is not at all typical of what you'd see chez nous. Luckily my apt. is only 2 blocks from the school, so the walk is easy & actually things have not been as cold as I'd feared. My apt. is quite unusual, but very reminiscent of the apts. I'd seen in Prague. The outer door is steel & the stairs are concrete. The risers on the stairs are not equal, so there is often a 2" step at the stop or bottom (or both!) of a flight of stairs. The lights in the halls & stairs are motion-detected & I have a huge steel door into the apt. with 2 double bolts. The "kitchen" is part of the foyer: a small cabinet & a jerry-rigged sink at the end that moves everytime you touch the faucet. The fridge is in the foyer, too, and a microwave, but no stove. I've been told I'll get a stove, but I don't know when or who is going to get it for me. I really don't have room for one, unless it's just a hot plate. After the foyer there are double doors going into the living room, where I have 2 arm chairs & a tv. The bedroom is to the left of the living room & has a queen-size bed & a large wardrobe with drawers. It's all very "art deco", but luckily the heat works & there's plenty of hot water, so I'm comfortable. I was esp. worried about the hot water. I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to finish a shower, or rinse my shampoo out, etc. Everyday when I come home I immed. wash out my underwear, socks & shirt & they're dry by morning - that's how good the heating is. All pipes & wiring is on the inside of the room (outside the walls), so nothing looks "finished" to the western eye. There are holes in the walls where the pipes come through, w/no attempt to enclose anything.

I have another class in 10 minutes, so I'll sign off now & say Hi & Bye to everyone. Please email me whenever you can. I miss you all SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much!