February 6th
The past couple of days, the other new teachers and I have started our English teacher training with the recruiting agency that brought us here. It’s been going pretty well—nice to get some practice with demo lessons and get to know the other teachers.
On a less fun note, my gum has been feeling irritated—maybe even a little infected—and it’s really starting to bug me. So I asked one of the agency workers if I should see a doctor or dentist. She listened, nodded knowingly, and then told me she’d had the exact same issue when she moved here. She explained that, according to Chinese medicine, the stress of relocating could have “heated up” my body, causing inflammation.
Interesting. I was expecting a dentist recommendation, but instead, she asked if I’d be open to trying a traditional herbal remedy before going to a doctor. Sure, why not? I’m always up for something natural, and I’m curious about Chinese medicine—one day of this experiment wouldn’t hurt.
Twenty minutes later, two bottles of a dark, purplish tea arrived. 涼茶 (liáng chá or leung cha), a well-known herbal drink with cooling properties, originally from the Guangdong province. At first, the bitter herbal flavor wasn’t too bad… but as I forced down the rest of the warm bottle, the bitterness became overwhelming. A definite struggle to finish.
Luckily, I don’t have to drink the second one until after dinner. Something to look forward to.
