Patience in language learning

I’ll never forget the day I told a Taiwanese cab driver I wanted to “eat” Jhubei (a city on the west coast of Taiwan) instead of saying “I want to go to Jhubei.”

She laughed, corrected my Chinese and mumbled something about how I was an American, excusing my mistake.

Learning a new language really is like trying to ride a bike. I fell down numerous times on my way from knowing only two words of Chinese to developing toddler-speaking capabilities (or survival Mandarin). Sometimes the frustration was intense but it was better than being frustrated with myself for not trying.

The thing I found most encouraging practicing Chinese in Taiwan was that even though people would sometimes laugh (and call me a moron no doubt) overall they were very tolerant and supportive. I’m sure I made a fool out of myself numerous times but people generally seemed happy that I was even trying to speak the language (and not expecting them to just bust out the English). There were a few incidents when communication just wasn’t getting through on either end and during those moments the locals would actually go out of their way to find someone who could speak English (a friend, relative, acquaintance) to assist.

Experiencing this acceptance made me feel ashamed of how some people in the United States treat foreigners. While I do think it is important anyone living in any country attempts to learn the national language, I also know that learning a language is definitely not easy and perhaps people should try to view the issue from another perspective before saying things like “Speak English or get out of the country.”

A lot of the time it just comes down to humiliation. After awhile I learned that even if some Taiwanese locals could speak English, they held back, afraid of embarrassing themselves.  I especially learned a lot about language acquisition through working with my students. We helped one another become more confident in regard to our language learning fears.

I’m not saying everyone in Taiwan was so accepting. I once had a truck driver go off on a tangent, his face shiny red and looking as if it were on the verge of exploding, questioning why I wasn’t fluent in Mandarin after one year of living in the country.

(For the record, it’s been said it takes a good 4 to 10 years to become fluent in Mandarin).

That was one moment where I felt like I understood how foreigners in the USA must feel when attacked for not knowing enough English.

I think practicing Mandarin with my students (after our English lessons) helped the most. Children are supportive and clap when you pronounce something correctly. Their laughter was less “Hey, you are an idiot,” and more “Hey teacher, that sounds funny. Here, let’s show you how to say it.”

We should all be as patient when it comes to communicating with speakers of other languages.

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One thing that really shocked me when I moved to Taiwan was the number of 7-Elevens.  Everywhere. Even in rural mountain communities. But it’s a good thing because most expats arriving in Taiwan would die of starvation if it weren’t for the plethora of convenience stores available. Many foreign teachers and other workers new to the country gravitate to 7-Eleven during their first few months. Possible reasons for this — they can’t speak Mandarin other than to say hello/thank you, or they’re too terrified to try local food.

But it’s just not expats who frequent 7-Eleven. Though there are many convenience stores on the island, i.e., Family Mart, 7-Eleven is the most popular. Taiwan takes third place in the world for country with the most 7-11 chains. Statistics show around eighty percent of Taiwanese shoppers visit a convenience story every week.

In addition to selling the expected wares, the shops offer photo development, digital image printing, bill pay, MRT and bus fare cards, phone cards, photocopying, wireless internet services, and more.

A first-time visit to a Taiwanese 7-Eleven is somewhat of an adventure. After opening the front door, visitors are promptly greeted with an automated voice chiming out something that sounds like “Morning!” but is really 欢迎 Huānyíng, which means “Welcome.”

It took my roommate and I a little too long to figure this out.

Happy Mandarin messages and music about on-sale items play over and over again as one peruses the goods. Keychains, stickers, and 7-11 cartoon figurines sprout up throughout the store.

Like convenience stores around the world, Taiwanese 7-Elevens offer junk food such as potato chips, snack cakes, ice cream, and hot dogs on a rotating grill.

Other delicacies include seaweed chips, pastries, steamed buns filled with meat, vegetables or custard, lunch boxes, noodles, microwavable curries and dinners (a new expat’s dietary staple) and fruit.

There are stranger items, some of which I grew to love.  Like jelly-infused food and drink.

There is a jelly addiction in Taiwan. Stores across the country offer numerous drinks containing cubes of various flavored jellies. The love does not end there. Some brands of pudding and yogurt also contain jelly surprises.

Bags of dried seaweed, squid, and tiny fish mixed with almonds are hot 7-11 commodities.

Not a fan of the little dried fish.

Treats such as tofu, squid balls, pig’s blood cakes, and other steaming snacks can be found at the front of the store.

One of the strangest things one might discover is the cauldron of bubbling black mystery behind the counter.

After several months eyeballing said pot I got up the courage to sample its contents. And I promptly fell in love with tea eggs. A pot of tea eggs is a fixture at many a Taiwanese convenience store and they’re so addicting you can’t eat just one. Make sure to grab a bag!

If you’re ever in Taiwan, head on over to that 7-11 just down the street for a mini culinary adventure.

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I was not always good at using chopsticks. My occasional chopsticks wielding sushi experiences hadn’t prepared me for what I’d face in Taiwan. Not at all.

My first chopsticks challenge came a few weeks after I’d arrived in Taiwan. The large omelet sat harmlessly next to the pieces of battered coconut shrimp. An odd combination, yes, but pretty much the norm in the lower level food court of Taipei 101.

I stabbed the yellow mass with one stick, slowly raising it into the air. The sunny blob escaped my grasp, falling to the plate with a wobbly thud. My attempts with the coconut shrimp didn’t fare much better. I’m sure I made quite a picture that day…the strange white blonde trying to figure out how to eat eggs with chopsticks. But I learned quickly. Soon, I graduated to eating salad, and eventually to picking up one grain of rice between not only wooden, but also those slippery PLASTIC chopsticks that always tried to best me. I didn’t think much of my newfound skills but some of the locals seemed mightily impressed. As if most foreigners were incapable of such a feat. As if I could give Mr. Miyagi a run for his money.

“Wow, you are so good with chopsticks,” they’d say, and for a moment I’d feel like I was seven years old again and just received a yellow star from my teacher.

But this post isn’t about how great I am because I’m now a Chopsticks Master.

I wanted to share some of the funniest chopsticks pictures I’ve found on the web. Feel free to post links and I’ll try to add them to this collection.

photo © rfleming.net

photo © www.icanhascheezburger.com

photo © www.sodahead.com

© www.childsplate.com

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