Mandy Chen

Mandy is encouraging and that provides me with more confidence to speak, or try to speak Chinese rather than talk in half-Chinese and half-English conversation. We discuss current events and socially relevant topics, comparing the differences in our countries and culture in a very relaxed and casual atmosphere.

We don’t ever have a lesson plan because we keep the sessions spontaneous, which is what I like and enjoy about learning from Mandy. She is up to discussing current events and various topics that may come up in the conversation/discussion. This allows me to try harder to express myself and likewise opens up new discussions.

She is genuinely interested in the topics that we discuss, which can be related to our countries, our families, culture, etc. There is a healthy exchange of ideas and impressions.

Animated discussion regarding Chinese names (as I am expecting my first grandchild) as well as the way surnames work in China compared to the West. Enjoyed our conversation as always. Mandy also helped me come up with a potential Chinese name for my grandchild. She gave her opinion on how it sounded and what the meaning behind it was, etc.

Mandy is always ready to listen to my stories about recent experiences and is genuinely interested in what i have to share. I’m comfortable to ask her for feedback on what the counterpart or equivalent of my experiences are in China (e.g. hiking trails, hotels, toilets, etc).

We discussed the Olympics! It’s great to be able to discuss current events like what’s on (nearly) everybody’s consciousness at the moment. We learned about each other’s countries focus on sports and where one another’s sporting interests lie.