san francisco to berkeley

From July 7-14, I took a summer course titled 'Culture & Inclusion' through U.C. Berkeley Extension. Originally, it was supposed to be held at the downtown San Francisco campus, but was moved to downtown Berkeley.

Why must I take this course? It is a requirement to renew or 'clear' my CA. teaching credential which expired in 2007 while I was teaching at Hong Kong. Luckily, this is the last of an array of classes that I have taken over the course of 4 years. I am finally DONE! It feels good. This means I don't have anymore expensive summer classes! This one in particular cost me $520. (all amounts in usd)

On top of that, I have been commuting to Berkeley from San Francisco via MUNI (SF Municipal Railway) and BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) everyday. I don't normally count my transportation fees but this time it got me at the edge of my seat.
;-D On July 1st, MUNI had raised its adult fare from $1.50 to $2.00 and everyday there were news on television about a possible BART strike, forewarning commuters to consider alternative transportation. My total commute was $12 each day - $4.25 to downtown Berkeley each way, and $2.00 to Embarcadero Station from my house each way. I was really taken aback with the hefty cost totaling to be $72. But, I did find the daily BART rides very relaxing, fast, and convenient! On the first day, I dread waking up 6am and out the door at 6:45am, to get to class at Berkeley by 8:30am. But by Day 3 I was used to it and felt pretty good about it. Now that I'm finished with the course, I kind of miss BARTing to Berkeley. ;-)

The course was taught by Ms. Louise Malandras, who has been teaching for 30+ years. It was a very large class of 43 students. The highlight was meeting and connecting with my fellow classmates who are all teachers from various cultural and teaching backgrounds. I thoroughly enjoyed my group. We also were assinged a Cultural Identity Project in which we had to write about our cultural identity based on two parts - surface level (e.g. language, food, music, dress, etc...) and the deep level (e.g. customs, values, belief system, etc..). We also have to display our project in a gallery-style type of exhibition showing pictures, memorabilia, or cultural artifacts. Some classmates brought really yummy food such as bagels, enchiladas, 7-up pound cake and brownies, falafels, etc... I shared my Chinese heritage with a photo of my parents, memorabilia of Hong Kong including a Time Magazine of the 1997 Handover Event, a book and map of China, an article of me in Ming Yin College published in 2006. I wrote about living in 2 worlds within myself -the Chinese side and the American side. Both are equally important to me.

Another memorable part of the class was hearing my old high school mentioned. I tried to keep quiet because I recognized the elder teacher who was talking. He used to be part of the faculty when I was a student. During a class discussion on cultural capital, he spoke of the countless 'things' that the school has like a new Science Building, a Vickie Center (college resource center), a school newspaper, sports teams, etc.. He went on and on..... He was talking about - Lowell High School (LHS). I graduated in 1991. I have a mixed bag of memories. As Louise Malandras said, LHS is the 'cream of the crop' and it is not a typical public high school. I agree with her. I also included my 50cent in the discussion. I shared with the class that LHS was over the top in its cultural capital. It had privileges that other schools didn't. Perhaps it's more important to view cultural capital as currency in which all schools have a responsibility to transfer to all students.


The last surprise in the class was actually meeting and sitting next to Anita Greer, who used to be the VP at LHS back in the day. I knew she looked familiar but couldn't place her until she told me. Then, I remember. She's fabulous! I also learned that she's the current President of the Board of Trustees of City College of San Francisco. It's interesting how discreet and modest some people are which is a great thing. ;-)

I actually enjoyed the summer course and learned a great deal. I also come to like Berkeley. Over the years, I've only been there a few times for my sister's graduation at UC Berkeley, and a few friends' gatherings and parties, but never on my own. I strolled along Shattuck St. and University Avenue in downtown Berkeley next to the school campus. Interesting shops and people. Nice and hot weather compared to SF. For one of the most liberal cities in the U.S., I was glad I got to spend a few days at Berkeley, taking it all in. It feels so good to finish what might be the last academic summer class of my life. ;-) But, I'll be sure to keep learning. Thanks for reading!