Are you going to ride the fried dumpling?

"Are you going to take the 锅贴 (guōtiē) to Beijing?"








Because I accidentally said 锅贴 (guōtiē) instead of 高铁 gāotiě, I accidentally asked my friend if she was going to ride a fried dumpling instead of the high-speed train.

Many of the people in our program went to Beijing for the weekend. It is a quick four hour trip on the high speed train. Because I am volunteer teaching at a migrant school on Friday afternoons and tutor on Sundays, I decided not to go to Beijing. Also, my friend is in town for the weekend.

Today I attended an Education Psychology class conducted in Chinese. Two of the students in the class happened to be the roommates of people in my program. My psychology background definitely helped but I still needed to use my translation app. I could understand most of what the teacher said but when the students answered her questions, I was so lost. I felt like a freshman and crossed my fingers that the teacher wouldn't call me. It was a small class of about 10 girls. Where are all the guys? I am not taking the class with the sole purpose of learning psychology but using it mainly as a method to improve my Chinese. Hopefully by the end of the semester I will understand what is going on.

Earlier this week, I also went to a Positive Psychology class. It was conducted in English and meant for Nanjing University students. Part of me wants to take the class just to interact with locals. It is also fun to people creep and see what a real class in China is like (unlike the Chinese classes I'm taking that is meant for foreigners). Many Chinese kids select their own English names. I met someone named Lilac.

I wish there were more psychology classes on the Gulou campus but most of them are on a campus further away. I think I already have enough on my plate.

Three things I am grateful for:
1. 1.5 Liter bottles of water that cost 2 元 ($0.32 USD) at the convenience store next to our school
We used to joke that if anyone spoke in English and broke the language pledge, we would force them to do shots of China tap water.
2. This was the first week I went to teach an English class at a migrant school (school with 50% migrant workers' children). The kids were so excited and enthusiastic about learning. When we were leaving the school, mobs of kids asked us for our autographs. So strange but cute.
3. I didn't realize this was the weekend by friend was coming in town. Luckily, I am here! It is always nice to see old friends.