Day: July 5, 2022

Cheryl has been in Taiwan for 26 years and has worked as a tour guide, translator and author.

Listen to this episode to find out:

– What brought Cheryl to Taiwan in the first place
– Why she recommends Taiwan as a place to learn Mandarin
– The advantage to learning phonetic symbols (zhuyin) along with characters
– How she was able to transition from teaching English to translation and then as a tour guide / translator.
– How she got her first job at a museum
– Why she thinks the demand for translation services will continue to increase
– How to create your own path in your own niche / specialty in Taiwan
– The importance of networking to find opportunities
– What types of projects she would like to do in the future
– The difference in working at a Taiwanese company versus a foreign company
– How to get your ideas through, when working at a local company
– The process of registering your own company here
– How her kids fared with bilingual education

The post Learn Chinese Insights Podcast Episode 010: Cheryl Robbins appeared first on Chinese Learn Online.

We recently updated both our Chinese Flashcards iPhone apps with modern designs. They should be available as free updates, if you have them already.

 

You can find them in the app store here:

Chinese Flashcards: Learn 2700 characters

Chinese Flashcards II: Learn 1000 words for beginners

The post Chinese Flashcards Apps Updated appeared first on Chinese Learn Online.

Jason has lived in Taichung, Taiwan for the past 4 years, after previously doing a stint in China. Listen to this episode to find out:

– What brought Jason to China in the first place.

– How he practiced learning Chinese before moving to China.

– The benefits of learning Chinese from a native English speaker, and what to look for

– How he compares interacting in Chinese in China versus Taiwan

– How he compared living in Nanjing versus Shanghai

– What prompted him to move from China to Taiwan

– His thoughts on traditional classroom learning versus modern methods

– His thoughts on learning to type versus learning to read.

– His approach to learning to read while learning to speak

– How he received a scholarship to learn Chinese in Taiwan (and what key approach he used)

– The differences between Chinese and Taiwanese people

– His communication approach with his Taiwanese wife

 

Resources and links mentioned: Anki flashcard program, Taiwan Ministry of Education Scholarship information

 

The post Learn Chinese Insights Podcast Episode 011: Jason Schuurman appeared first on Chinese Learn Online.

Priya is originally from India, but has now lived in Taiwan for 27 years. She works as a simultaneous interpreter. Listen to this episode to find out:

– What brought Priya to Taiwan in the first place
– Her initial impressions of Taiwan
– How she began learning Chinese and what approach they took
– Why she recommends an intensive approach to learning Chinese
– Why she thinks knowing Indian languages like Hindi helps in learning Mandarin
– Which sounds in Chinese she finds many English speakers have trouble pronouncing
– How she transitioned into working as a translator / interpreter
– Why she prefers interpreting over translating work
– How preparation for interpreting works
– The various types of translating options available, and the skills required for each
– Consecutive, whispering / simultaneous without equipment, simultaneous with equipment
– How interpreting is done for more niche languages (relay interpreting)
– The process that goes through translating sentence by sentence
– Why she recommends putting kids through the local education system up to Grade 3 or so before switching to an international system
– When she recommends learning to write characters and when it isn’t
– Why she recommends Hindi speakers (Indians) learn using zhuyin (bo po mo fo) over pinyin
–

The post Learn Chinese Insights Podcast Episode 012: Priya Lalwani Purswaney appeared first on Chinese Learn Online.

Dominic is from Oregon, USA, and now lives in Taichung, Taiwan with his wife and 3 year old twins. Listen to this episode to find out:

– What made Dominic move to China at the tender age of 16
– What it was like as a teenager living in China
– Why he lost a lot of weight while living in China
– What aspect of being a foreigner in China was the biggest cultural shock to him
– What brought him to Taiwan a couple of years later
– The biggest differences he noticed between Kunming, China and Taiwan
– What it was like to take a university degree in Chinese with local Taiwanese students
– How he transitioned from teaching English to his current position as Director of Operations for a US Tech company
– His advice for people wanting to transition into a different career path in Taiwan / China
– How he uses Chinese in his daily life
– His approach to language with his Taiwanese wife and his kids
– Why he changed his language approach with his kids
– His thoughts on educating his kids at this young age

 

The post Learn Chinese Insights Podcast Episode 015: Dominic Cope appeared first on Chinese Learn Online.