Back to School at Confucius Institute in Ateneo

   Today was my first day of class in Ateneo. I enrolled in Basic Chinese 2. My interest in studying Chinese was put on hold for a decade. I was still in my college days when I studied Chinese in my college university, Centro Escolar University and I took it as a summer course in Languages Internationale. 

   It felt good to be back in school again after a year of not stepping on any school grounds. It was just last year when I finished my Master's degree course in Miriam College, and now I'm back again in Katipunan, and this time in Ateneo. 

   My brain was in a state of shock this morning because after we recited the pinyin, b, p, m, f, etc. We proceeded to counting numbers, and it was not just 1 to 10 but up to 100. It's a good thing I still know how to count in Chinese. After that we learned some vocabulary words with regards to food and drinks. We were also made to recite a tongue twister, 'si shi si', to brush up on our knowledge with regards to the tones. Our professor also taught us the Chinese names for the 12 animals. I must admit I'm also having a hard time with the tonal system of Mandarin. From what I know Mandarin language uses four tones, I guess I should be thankful because in Cantonese its maybe 6 or 7. My classmates also have their textbook with them. I don't have a textbook because I was not aware of what we are going to use. Some of my classmates know each other already because, they have attended the Basic Chinese 1. The textbook that they've used before, they will also use in Basic Chinese 2. We had a lot of fun in our class. I even made a blooper because instead of saying, 'Wo xihuan chi dangao'. (cake), I've said 'dongao', I'm looking forward already for our class next week. After our class I bought the book, and I inquired about my school I.D., according to the staff, Ms.Airen it is not yet finished. I saw that our book was from Beijing Language Cultural University press, wow! That school is really famous for those who want to learn Chinese, I know its impossible for me to study there. Also, the tuition fee is quite pricey. So I'm just contented with the book for now.

   I was pondering while in the classroom, if I should transfer to Basic Chinese 1. I made up my mind that I'll just stay in our class because its a good challenge for me. Besides, I've already studied Chinese before. We are 12 in our class. We have 3 boys and the rest are girls. One of my guy classmate who's older than the rest of us was really funny, his answers were really funny, so we cracked up with laughter. Our laoshi's name is Ms. Maria Joanna Tecson, and her Chinese surname is Chua. She said that she also teaches in Chiang Kai Shek college in Manila. I find her nice and cute.

  Confucius Institute according to Wikipedia is:

   a non-profit public institutions aligned with the Government of the People's Republic of China that aim to promote Chinese language and culture, support local Chinese teaching internationally, and facilitate cultural exchanges. Confucius Institutes are sometimes compared to language and culture promotion organizations such as Britain's British Council, France's Alliance Française and Germany's Goethe-Institut. 

  From what I read, the institution promotes the study of Chinese culture, history, language, music (learning how to play traditional Chinese musical instrument, Guzheng), calligraphy, painting, and martial-arts (tai-chi and qigong). The courses offered in Ateneo are limited only. Their music class is available only in their Makati campus, as well as the other courses that were mentioned.

  So if you want to de-stress, learn something new or just do what you love to do. Like me, a Chinese studies enthusiast. Then I suggest you enroll in Confucius Institute in Ateneo. Let me end this post by quoting Confucius saying.  

"Never be tired of learning, or teaching others." - Confucius