蝴蝶 = hu2die2

Evry way of learning is different. Of course they study, they just don't know it when you give a baby a book. You just turn it into a game. Evry one learns differently. I do a am in a Mexican jail, and I better learn Spanish or am going to get smoked. You be surprised what you can do when someone puts a gun to your head 😂

The english and chinese mixing sounds natural to me as a singaporean haha

I'm learning Japanese, and what has really helped with the input was listening to Awakening Asia Church. Their sermons have an English speaker and a Japanese translator, making it both really dope (just growing in faith) and super easy for the acquisition of it :)

髒話 = bad words 加油！

I ship it

Wow, so eine feine Bearbeitung, Zusammenfassung und Klarheit, es erstaunt mich!😮

keep going...

ikenna got conversational fluent in 6 months to a year in 7 different languages

НАДОЕЛ;)))) great video mate, ich habe Englisch gelernt und versuche jetzt Deutsch zu lernen. German techno is wonderful🫶

Ease and perfection depends upon the degree in which we cease to depend upon our consciousness, a philosopher once said.

so proud of you for moving to China, being honest, and sticking it out! Please know you’re not alone and it’ll get better. The exact same thing happened to me when I lived in Italy years ago- constant stares, pointing, whispering, and people taking photos of me. I’m from a major city in the US that’s really diverse so I felt really shocked, angry, and disoriented too. It IS rude and culturally insensitive but I learned to ignore it and would jokingly tell myself this must be what it’d be like to be famous. Just like you, I pushed through, enjoyed myself, and gained the respect of locals every time I spoke Italian. I miss that season so much because it was a gift, even though there were drawbacks. Whether we call it a Westerner thing or racism and harassment, rising above and immersing yourself anyway leaves a positive impression culturally and socially. Don’t let it stop you and don’t take the other comments too hard. Praying for you and that you enjoy this season! Keep going and you too will remember the positive more than the negative

马老师太棒啦！😊

Thank you. Very interesting. I think exploring in the young age is important. So I wish you to find what you are seeking for. ❤

Interesting. How many languages do you speak?

😂😂😂

Get to the point faster!

4:25 relatable content!!! Cause I always say YES to that question thinking they asked if I was American. 🤦🏽‍♂️🤦🏽‍♂️

These are AMAZING shots!!! How is this my first time watching your videos????

In australia I bought the multiple entry visa but they ended up giving me 5 year validity, multiple entry, 90 days per entry. Surprised me a lot, think I got the best tourist visa.

being german are you not used to staring? I'm trying to see how bad it is before I go. is it similar to the famous german stare they'll give foreigners in public?

I understand where you're coming from as I'm also a fellow European learning Chinese, but you may need to rethink your attitude here. This is tipical of us Westerners, we tend to have this skewed globalist vision of the world and even though we know that China and many other places are not like that we still tend to think that we can somehow "change them" or like you said, get them to "think about their own behavior". I don't want to be overly harsh with you because I don't think you are coming to these conclusions from a bad place, but this is not only a lost cause, it is also product of a colonial mindset whether you see it that way or not. Sure we all agree people should be respectful, especially in a country as developed as China is becoming, but you need to understand that your own standards of what constitutes respectful treatment are not in any shape or form universal, and I believe that if you truly want to engage with Chinese people, be it in a city or a rural town, or any other non-Western people in a meaningful, genuine way, this is a hurdle you need to overcome and I'm sure your experience will be much better and fulfilling for it.

Hey Thomas, what apps or media do you recommend for learning Mandarin?

alter ich werd als chinese in München auch ständig angestarrt, natürlich ist es vergleichsweise seltener und subtiler aber das passiert schon sehr oft. inzwischen nervts mich nicht mehr solange der Anblick nicht unfreundlich wirkt. und die kinder starren mich an wie du in china wirst lol, einmal in der sbahn hat n mädchen lange angestarrt und anschließend die mutter gefragt total verwirrend: was ist das? die Frau hat sich auch ned entschuldigt oder iwas nur es weggezogen.

What an excellent video! Thank you so much for this- it really gives me the courage to keep learning and one day come and visit China as well to immerse myself in the language even more! Kudos from Australia!

Dude, this is the first video of yours Im seeing and it could not come at a better time. This video has changed me. Your experience so far in China is exactly how I envision it going for me with those same frustrations and headaches. But seeing you taking it on and coming out the other side with a new found confidence is awe -inspiring. You mentioned HelloTalk and it has been a fundamental part in my chinese immersion. I am going to watch all of your videos youve made about China, I hope I can learn more from you. Thank you so much for this video, it means the world to me.

Chinese American here who has visited and lived in China and Hong Kong for half her life. If you were wearing a visible camera, that's not cool as Asians do not want to be filmed outside their residences and apartment buildings. Full stop. Frankly even I'd stare at you for filming then tell you to please stop doing that in English. Most locals I know are very private when they're not in a big city and they'll be wondering if you're a blogger digging up shit on China or worse. Stalking them. However, if your camera was not visible and if it was simply them looking at you because you're a foreigner and different then you are in a very very rural part of China and you will experience all sorts. On that, yes it is unnerving and trust me when I say that even though I camouflage 100% based on my looks and Mandarin I would not feel comfortable going into rural China without a guide or my mother and father. And it's not out of safety it's just that I truly don't want to be lost as China is incredibly huge, the culture is indeed different (as you experienced), I didn't have a mainlander accent but a Taiwanese one, and I cannot base what I know in Shenzhen to the whole of China. Btw vpn is an established thing in China and the idea that China is cut off from everyone is just not a thing anymore. Middle aged chinese people however choose, yes choose, to ignore Western media because the reporting is heavily anti China and they feel they can get everything they want on taobao. No need for Amazon, which works btw with my vpn . Anyways how do I know they choose to ignore the media and prefer local news? My father who is nearing his 90s. He speaks English well enough as he worked in Syracuse New York for over 10 years, but said he can no longer tolerate CNN and BBCs take on China without their reporters pounding the pavement and reporting what they see rather than spreading more propaganda. On that, if you want a more friendly and westernized experience of China I still recommend 100% Hong Kong and Shenzhen. There, people wouldn't even blink at you for being a tourist making a video or speaking Chinese and that's the experience I personally recommend because you will learn a lot, enjoy the area, and become fluent in the language but at a much more comfortable pace. I became near fluent in Cantonese after just 3 years of immersion and I think I can gain it back.... Especially if the United States denaturalizes me and sends me back to Asia... *That* is a story for another day but I digress. What you did is brave but you really should try the westernized areas first before diving into the rural parts. There are all sorts there who, even though not dangerous, may not share the same values and will 100% make you uncomfortable. Anyways hope that doesn't sully your take on China. Oh and yes. ebikes are death there. I amost always get run over by them as a pedestrian.

Cultural norms vary in different cultures. Even within a country, what is the norm in the city may not be the norm in a village. Also many rural people are in the city so you will get a mix of people in a city. Staring is also not particular to China. I feel uncomfortable with stares in India also. I expect that if I were to walk around in an African village I would get a fair amount of stares too. When one is an outsider, he should not impose his expectations on the locals.

Unsubscribed. Young westerners are just looking for a reason to get offended. Very weak.

A lot of chinese know hakka and mandarin or cantonese and mandarin The same as Europeans who know english and a euro country

How did you do with the internet all being all in chinese?

You can get a working holiday visa in taiwan You can also get a digital nomad visa for taiwan

You could also stay in Taiwan? This will give you more options

Thank you so much for giving us how to best way to learn english, Immersion is the key to learn any languages

What about the language of silence?

I experienced quite a bit of “prejudice/harassment” when I was in northern rural China many years back. But I never took it personally, thought it did make me uncomfortable. Rural China in particular is very isolated from the world and people simply don’t know other cultures and peoples and I was probably the first for many in that village. Maybe you’d like the city Dalian? It’s pretty rich and has loads of foreigners doing business there. Nobody gave a f about me or my friends (mostly white and a black guy)

Congratulations! Don't give up. And good luck on your adventures!

What you’ve said makes some sense. Many elder people have lower levels of education, lack empathy, and their strong accents can make them difficult to understand. However, I don’t think it’s fair to label them as racist, as they’re often unaware of how their behavior bothers others . As you mentioned, they’ve never learned a second language or had opportunities to travel abroad, so it’s hard for them to relate to the situation you’re experiencing. When you go to the 1-tier city like Shanghai and Beijing, then no one will stare at you. 😃

You are not normal! 😂 You really stand out among the Chinese. When you speak English, you sound sophisticated, and I have to say, there isn’t much difference between you and most Chinese people in terms of psychological maturity. But when you speak Chinese, you sound like a big guy with the soul of a 5-year-old, giving off a vibe of innocence and naivety. It’s a bit of a Rain Man vibe. 😊 Don’t get me wrong; it’s actually charming in a cute way. I can totally see why people like to stare at you. By the way, the middle-aged people you referred to in the video are actually not around their 40s or 50s. They are older, around their 60s or 70s. Age is an illusion, anyway. For your comfort, I can’t understand old people well either when they have a strong accent from their dialect. You know what? Before I learned English at a high level, I projected a lot of exotic Hollywood fantasy qualities onto western people, but at the same time, I found them a bit stupid, thinking, “Chinese Mandarin is such a straightforward language. They must be so simple-minded to speak it like a simpleton.” That impression was not an insult, though. It actually meant harmless, friendly, and approachable in my perception. But now, I feel that everyone in this world is similar, complicated, and ego-oriented, despite the clumsy cuteness people might show when speaking a foreign language. 加油! Speaking good Chinese may open up a lot of doors for you. Rarity always holds great value. May you have a comfortable experience in China and live like in a movie.🤗Good Video, BTW, make more.🙃

Amazing info, thanks

This is a real gem, Thomas. Thank you for such comprehensive walkthrough.

I’ve recently submitted my application for a US tourist visa, which cost me $185 and I have to wait until January 2025 for the in-person interview.😂

The only video about language learning on KZbin is about how KZbin does human trafficking.

I look forward to EVERY video, and now I really enjoy hearing about your experiences in China and especially your language learning.

There is no "right" way to learn a language. I personally prefer apps, as they build a pretty good foundation. Everyone's journey is different.

Danke für das Video, hat mir sehr geholfen und bestätigt mit Birkenbihl weiterzumachen. Abo ist erstellt.

Me gusta mas cuando no hay musica en el video. Me cansa diferenciar voz y musica.

7:30 bro i was eating my food

No matter what, everyone is smart enough to figure out what they need to improve. The only real key is consistency. I became fluent at 40 in just twenty months without ever going to school. I simply made sure to dedicate at least two focused hours every day. Speaking practice is essential

Erdgeschoss is not basement, it actually means ground floor, Keller would be basement