I took my midterm exam today. It was stressful to prepare for, because of all the vocabulary that I have been trying to cram into my head, but overall I think the test went well. I can feel my Chinese skills have dramatically improved in such a short time span, especially my listening skills and picking out words that I understand and pulling my knowledge to make out what someone is saying in Chinese, even if I don't know all the vocab used. Also I have been forced to understand and know how to say everyday phrases like "please open/close the umbrella; lets cross the street over this way; we're running late, let's hurry; choose your favorite tv channel; etc." I'm so happy that I'm now able make fun conversations with my host family, especially my host sister, and that we enjoy each others company so much. :) And its amusing to me to always hear people exclaim "foreigner" in Chinese, as well as "oh, she doesn't understand," to which I sometimes reply to their surprise, "dong yi dian" (I understand some).
A few days ago we were visited by some really cool actresses from the famous Beijing Opera! The woman gave us a preview of the show, a singing lesson, dance/acting lesson, then allowed us to paint our faces and dress up as a character!!! It was so much fun! Then we had to create a brief skit using the "opera skills" that we had learned. I hate to say, but I was really really bad... I guess the Beijing Opera isn't my calling... Today we learned how to play Chinese Chess. I played with my host sister, Wang Zhe, and she was much better than me. I don't know how we ended up getting stalemate, but I'm pretty sure she went really easy on me.. :)
Later my host mom and aunt took Wang Zhe and I out to dinner and the mall. I ate my first eel and lichen! Both the dishes were interesting... And at the mall my family was so excited to buy me some "cuter" outfits, haha, because the styles in China are different and they want me to fit in better. The Chinese women actually do dress really cute, they dress like little dolls, with lots of pastel colors, ruffles, flowers, pearls, and heels. Oh, not to mention all the graphic t-shirts with English phrases on them (most make no sense whatsoever). I really didn't want any of the outfits my family picked out for me, because their taste is just a lot different than mine, but I finally allowed them to buy me an outfit, and my host sister bought the same thing to match with me. :)
Even though I don't wanna leave this city, I do miss my family and friends at home! (shoutout to Heather! miss ya!) :)
Sincerely,
Susanna
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