Why learning Chinese is easier in Year of the Ox_其他

Why learning Chinese is easier in Year of the Ox

I actually quit my China Daily job and told my bosses I needed to go to language school full-time. A compromise was made, and they gave me time off work to study. For the past 18 months I have averaged one-on-one study, 12 hours a week - and I still can't speak very well. But I know more than 2,500 words and could go back to Lijiang and have a much better time. I'm half way down the road.

My listening is much better than my speaking, but as soon as people start speaking quickly (i.e. normal), I'm lost. Chinese television is still mystery. I normally experience a 5-second delay before I comprehend a little bit of what's being said. But I still watch TV and still focus. I need those 800 hours, and I've racked up about 500.

But a learner does have some wonderful moments of clarity on the path, and this happens to me every few months. The four tones actually start sounding different, new words learnt weeks before leap to mind, and even some of those strange squiggly lines make sense.

If you want to learn Chinese and work a busy job, like many of us expats do, the road will be longer, but this mission is not impossible.

According to Chinese astrology, the Ox works hard, patiently, and methodically, with original intelligence and reflective thought. Behind this tenacious, laboring, and self-sacrificing exterior lies an active mind.