Tag: Language

Things That Are Absurdly Easy in a Country Where You Speak the Language: Haircuts!

Things That Are Absurdly Easy in a Country Where You Speak the Language: Haircuts!

Welcome to the beginning of what will probably be an ongoing new series. I’ve been really, really bad at writing this season. Partly because I’ve been so busy setting up house in a whole ‘nother country (and buying the same freaking things from IKEA that 

Decoding the Putonghua Parallel Universe

Decoding the Putonghua Parallel Universe

A few months ago I was in the middle of a speaking exam with a very capable university student who was explaining at great length to me the plot of his favourite novel. The plot sounded familiar to me, though I didn’t recognize the name