Where am I again?

As I mentioned in one of my earlier blogs, it is often easy to forget that I am really in China. Now even more so than last term. As I sit in the restaurant (during the welcome dinner) and listen in on the various conversations going on around me, there might be as many as three languages not including Chinese. The French Canadians talk in French with the man from France. The two girls who are Mexican-American, the Mexican woman, and me and Sable talk in Spanish. The other foreign teachers speak English. Personally, hearing the French around me and speaking in a mix of Spanish and English reminds me of being abroad in Barcelona, where people spoke in a mix of Spanish and Catalan (which sounds like French). It is very international here now, to say the least.

I love the opportunity that I now have to practice all of the languages that I am learning. For example, yesterday morning my first two conversations were not in my native language (English). My first conversation was in Spanish, when a teacher from Mexico called me to ask about bringing her son (who is now my student) to the preschool. My second conversation was in Chinese. Walking to the classroom, I ran into Xiao Shuang, who is the woman who takes care of the apartment complex. She is really a wonderful person, but unfortunately most of the foreign teachers seem to look down on her because she is kind of like a cleaning lady, therefore, according to them, she is not as good as us. Of course, I do not agree with that and I always try to talk with her, learn more about her, and speak in Chinese with her. Because of this, she really likes me and always compliments me on my Chinese. So, my second conversation of the day was with her. I asked how she has been recently and she immediately complimented my Chinese. She even went so far as to say that I am no longer a "外国人"，　or a foreigner. Now, I am the same as her - a Chinese person. Although it was very sweet of her to say this, and it certainly brightened my day, Ｉ am sure it is not true. But it was nice nonetheless.

So it was not until I went to class that I started speaking in English - and even then I am lucky enough to be able to practice my Chinese with the teachers in the kindergarten. I think it is so great that I can be in China, learn Chinese, but at the same time practice my Spanish and help people with English. I may even have the opportunity to learn a little French! What a fascinating way of life - to always have so many languages and cultures around me. It is magnificent, especially because besides psychology, my interests lie in languages and cultures.