22 June 2007

This is what I learned today: 星期五 makes the rest of the week worthwhile.

Instead of large class, small class and individual class we have a test and a presentation. I was 很紧张 (very nervous) before I began, but it turned out neither was too hard. And the upside? We were out of school by 1:00pm, and headed to 中文桌子 (Chinese Table) with our teachers.

Every Tuesday and Friday from here on out, I think I'll look forward to Chinese Table. Here's how it works. Right after class, we meet our teachers and walk to a restaurant. Tuesday, we went to an on-campus restaurant and today, we went to the one in our hotel. We sit around tables full of strange-looking dishes--the teachers order food that we would never know to ask for--and eat and chat. It's free, and today today in addition to food there was a karaoke machine.

This week has had it's ups and downs, but today was unquestionably fun. Tonight I meet my Chinese host family, and tomorrow we go to the 长城 (Great Wall). (A great guest lecturer, David Spindler, came yesterday and spoke with us about the Wall's history... in truth, you cannot see the wall from the moon. I'll try to post a New Yorker article about him when the internet speeds up.)

Okay, now it's off to meet yet another teacher--this one, though, is officially called my 朋友 (friend). 再见！