我不敢相信我已经来台北三个星期了！This past week was my favorite one so far, I think. I am starting to feel like I can actually communicate in Chinese — my friends and I are no longer simply making observations (i.e. “it is raining,” or “I am tired,”) but are actually talking with each other. The language learning process is, most of the time, extremely frustrating and often demoralizing, so these moments of clarity (in which I feel like I have made progress) are exciting and also much needed.
Thursday was July 4th — to celebrate, our teachers got us pizza and had us all sing the American national anthem (but in Chinese, 当然.) It was a spectacle. I am very appreciative of our teachers for doing things like that; I think they really do realize how hard it is for all of us to be away from home.
After classes on Friday, a couple of my friends and I hiked Elephant Mountain and saw beautiful views of Taipei 101. It was certainly worth the mosquito bites.
On Saturday, HTA took us all to the National Palace Museum. As someone who potentially wants to get a PhD in Chinese art or Chinese history, I loved this trip. My favorite room was one dedicated to different Daoist texts. After the National Palace Museum, we learned about Beijing Opera and saw some performances. Then, the performers explained the traditions of Beijing opera, and we all got to paint our own masks to emulate the opera make-up. It was a whirlwind of a day.
On Sunday, a few of my friends and I spent the morning in Ximending (which was 非常热闹) — we were all thrilled to see a new part of Taipei. Then, we spent the evening doing homework and preparing for the week. Excited for the week ahead; on Thursday, we all leave for our social Study Trips. I am going on the trip to Hualien, and am 特别兴奋！