I've been in Kaohsiung for three weeks now, mostly having fun! Classes started Monday, but all schools were closed today due to the typhoons surrounding Taiwan. 我在高雄玩了三個星期. 這個星期一開學 可是今天不上課因為三個颱風來台灣. I am still studying a lot on my own and with friends, but grammar is the most difficult part of Chinese for me now. 我還有自己學也跟我朋友 但是現在最難的部分是中文語法.
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| Hopefully my Chinese isn't quite as bad as this horribly wrong, but hilarious, English t-shirt that my friends and I discovered at a department store. |
I plan to spend my free time meeting with my friends and asking them questions, trying to make sentences and listening to what they say. Unfortunately, this typhoon may keep us inside for more than one day! It is difficult to get around by walking in the wind and rain.
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| Luckily, the storm is not as bad as last year's, which destroyed several villages and killed more than 700 people. | |
Last week, before the typhoon and before classes started, Carol and I met up with many of our friends. One night in particular, we celebrated my friend Winnie's birthday. She and I taught together last year and she has been like an older sister to me for the past year. We went to a party at her home and then out dancing together.
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| We brought a (heavy) plate of fruit to Winnie's potluck birthday dinner. I held it on my head to attract even more attention while we waited for the bus to her house. |
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We also finished setting up our house. I wanted to buy curtains for my room, which faces the other apartments in the building next to ours, so that our neighbors couldn't see me sleeping every morning!
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| I also succeeded in buying an actual mattress to sleep on! |
I am not sure how much more exciting these posts will get, though I will share more about my classes soon. I will be tutoring one high school student for an hour each week, and may pick up more students if I need the money. I am trying to live simply and focus on learning Chinese. What I love is that I can do that just by making friends and spending time with them. We may save up to travel around Taiwan a bit and host some small gatherings for our new friends.
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| There is much beauty to be found in the world every day. |
