Partied then collected a TEFL certificate

On Thursday night we celebrated the end of our classes with a night out in Beijing.  We headed to Sanlitun which is the main expat bar area.  It's pretty much like going out in London except warmer, slightly cheaper and there are lots of rooftop bars.

Katy, Charlotte and Sarah.  Three tall blonde girls in China = lots of attention

Rik working the pole.

Friday we had our first proper lie-in which was glorious.  In the afternoon we went to the CEAIE headquarters for the Closing Ceremony.  Each of the Mandarin classes had prepared a song and a skit to perform at the ceremony.  The one benefit of being in the non-beginners class was that we got to sing a brilliant song called Xi Shua Shua as chosen by Steph.  Click the link, it's well worth a watch.

In the photo below you can see my class singing the song.  Yes, that's me pumping my hands into the air.  Good stuff.

Steph (in white at the front) leading what must have been quite an impressive rendition of Xi Shua Shua

Sarah also got in on the act.  Here's her class performing Tian Mi Mi:

A powerful and at times emotional performance.

We also received our TEFL certificates and so we are now officially ready to teach English in China.  Hooray.

After the ceremony we were treated to dinner and then a few of us headed to another of the bar areas in Beijing called Houhai.  Houhai is a large lake with hundreds of bars, restaurants and KTVs (karaoke) lining the water front.  It looks very pretty at night and, unlike at Sanlitun, there are many more Chinese people than Westerners.

Once back at the hotel it was time to finish packing and say some goodbyes.  Tomorrow we more to Tianjin!

Culture Shock:  Men in the street rolling up their t-shirts to just below their nipples to stay cool in the heat.  Apparently this is only something that peasants would do.
Drink cost:  £5 for a cocktail in Sanlitun.  Luckily Thursday night was "Ladies Night" which meant free drinks until 12am.
Dialogue used:  Women xiang qu Sanlitun. (We want to go to Sanlitun)