So despite the fact I look like the living dead and exhausted, I have a new Mandarin Check video. Yeah, I’m a bit tired, but it’s the light, I swear! It’s not the super best, but that’s not the point of the video. I wanted to test my writing skills by writing about my experience directly in Hanzi, then test my fluency by creating a video. I read it over once before recording, and I don’t think it’s half bad. I’ll take it.
Annnnd, my Mexican roommate who can actually speak quite decent Chinese said it wasn’t too bad. I AM WIN!
In summation, I’m halfway through my elementary-B course at Beijing Institute of Economic Management (BIEM), the small university I attend between home and work. I’m way over due for a Mandarin Check, and actually quite miss doing any kind of video work. I’m really enjoying life right now, but my schedule doesn’t allow for as much creative work as I’d like: 8:35 leave house for Chinese class from 9-12:10. Lunch/short study time, then clock in at 1:30-8:30ish. Home around 9. It’s busy and I don’t get as much time for blogging. But I really feel like I’m making progress in my Mandarin, and I’m really happy with life. Had a great Thanksgiving with friends, coworkers, and teachers, and had so much to be grateful for (You’re now included if you’re reading this blog!).
Feel free to critique/give feedback. Included is the English translation.
Mandarin Check Script: 11/28/12
你好！我是唐金妮，一个美国的留学生住在北京。现在，我在一个小咖啡听用上网。
我喜欢给我一个考试，考我的汉语。我正在读我的汉字。可能错了，可是，这是小考试。没问题。我知道我要练习读汉字。对我最难。所以如果我读得不太流利，这是为什么。
也我告诉你：我知道我看起来有点累。没问题。
我来了中国七个多月了。告诉你我的生活。有一个挺好的生活在中国。习惯了。可是明年,想做倍的工作。我对上网的工做很感兴趣。在中国，我住在朝阳区。我也工作在望京。
为什么来中国？学习汉语，也找到有意思工作。现在，教小孩子，三岁到八岁。学生很可爱，很萌。
同事门也喜欢：挺好。也休息的时候，我们一起玩玩。比如，这个星期一，我们去看电影。
也我很喜欢我的同屋门。我们习惯，也我们一起去玩玩。比肉，两个星期以前，我们有一个晚会。对感恩节。挺好了。
谢谢你们听！祝你晚安！
Mandarin Check: 11/28/12 English Translation
Hello! I’m Ginny Tonkin, an American foreign student living in Beijing. Right now, I’m in a small coffee shop using the Internet.
I want to give myself a little test, to test my Chinese. I’m reading my Chinese characters now. Maybe I’ll make a mistake, but this is a small test, no worries. I know I need to practice reading characters. For me, it’s the hardest. So if I don’t read very fluently, this is why.
Also, I’ll tell you, I know I look really tired. Oh well.
I’ve been in Beijing over seven months. I’ll tell you about my life. I have quite a good life in China. I’ve become used to it. But next year, I want to find other work. For me, Internet-related work is interesting. In China, I live in Chaoyang District. I also work in Wangjing.
Why did I come to China? To study Chinese, and to find interesting work. Now, I teach kids, 3 to 8 years old. They’re cute and adorable. Also like my coworkers, they’re quite nice. Also when we don’t have work, we go out together. For example, this Monday we went to see a movie.
Also really like my roommates. We’re used to each other, and we go do fun stuff together. Like two weeks ago, we had a party for Thanksgiving. It was quite good.
Thanks for listening! Have a good night!