Despite having a very long summer holiday (about 12 weeks–Best. Job, Ever.) I can’t really go anywhere. International travel is basically impossible and domestic travel is going to be CRAZY crowded. Also my school asked us to not travel outside the province and even if we go somewhere close there
When You’re Really, Truly, “The Foreigner”
Let’s talk about speaking Chinese. These days about 70% of my life is lived totally in Chinese with people that can’t speak English. (Take my classes out of the equation and you get closer to 90%.) I am not a natural language learner. In fact, I would say I was
Thousand Character Chinese Classic
Like I do at the end of every year, I have my students in speaking class become teachers. Their final exam is to “teach class” for 15 minutes. (Not a presentation, but actually teach.) This is always super fun. Students freak out when I assign it to them, but then
What it’s Like Taking a Intensive Chinese Class
So I just got back from a four-week intensive Chinese class, the second time I’ve taken one of these, and for those of you who are thinking of doing the same thing, I thought I’d write about my experience so you can decide for yourself. Four years ago I was
Class is Over, Time to Hit the Road
Final exams have been given, grades submitted, and lots of selfies with students have been taken. The semester, and subsequently the school year, is finished! Boom. Add another notch to the belt. Year seven complete. So what to do now with my 2 months of freedom? Well, when you live
Go Check Out my Guest Post
So I wrote a guest post over at Linda Living in China blog. I had read another one of her guest posts, (about a girl learning Chinese by traveling by herself) and I realized that one of my best methods of learning Chinese was dating Chinese guys. I actually wrote
You're on Color! (Our new bet)
A few months ago, I said that my best friend Color won a bet we had started almost two years prior. (My punishment is going to be that I have to cook thai food for him. It could have been worse!) A few years is a long time to continue
My HSK 5 Results *sad face*
And……………I didn’t make it. I failed HSK 5 by 11 measly points. That’s like 4-5 questions. I knew it was going to be close and I knew I would either just pass or just fail. But I was hoping for the pass. This was my score: Listening: 59 Writing: 59
Getting Discouraged with the HSK
As of today, I have 2 weeks until I take the HSK 5, a chinese language test. I’ve been technically preparing for months, but only seriously for the past 6 weeks. Every day I try to do some exercises, take a part of a practice test, memorize some new words.
Is Communication Fate?
As my Chinese is getting better, and I’m making more chinese friends, a thought has been taking shape. Is ease of communication an indication of who I should be friends with? Let’s face it, speaking chinese with me is not easy. You have to work at it. You have to