Week Eleven Top Ten

1. Karaoke is a great way to break the ice

On the bus with the Tainan high school students, we sang karaoke style. Despite being from two different countries, we knew a lot of the same songs. I really enjoyed singing along with everyone!

2. I still make very funny language mistakes

Although I'm making fewer and fewer mistakes, my Chinese is still humorous at times. This weekend, I attempted to ask someone if he had a pen I could borrow. Instead, I asked if he had a nose! These silly mistakes remind me to laugh it off and keep studying!

3. I can (almost) successfully complete a midterm in Chinese

This week, I took the same midterm as my Taiwanese classmates in drama class. Despite the two questions I had not known were being added to the test, I was able to answer all the questions in Chinese. I successfully wrote a paragraph explaining why I wanted a certain role in a play, a list of 15 things I would do to prepare for this part, and 20 names of professionals involved in a stage production. This was definitely an accomplishment for me!

4. Running helps me de-stress

This week, I was feeling a bit homesick. I discovered that going for a run helps me a lot. I am very grateful the apartment I live in has a gym!

5. Tainan's sugar refinery has been beautifully restored

I was blown away at what an amazing job the drumming organization had done in preserving the sugar refinery. The combination of new and old was striking and inspiring. I very much so enjoyed visiting!