GammaGlobulin

Next time you need an English-Chinese or Chinese-English interpreter... Please just PM me. Thank you.

I agree with you that the language schools, such as the one at ChuanDa, are TOPS... With EXCELLENT teachers. And...the teachers there are kind, dedicated and patient, and some become good friends, too. Some of the teachers at ChuanDa are geniuses, as well, with very, VERY dry wit. They teach foreigners, and so... They are used to irony and irreverent repartee...especially...from... Recalcitrant students like ME.

I must agree with you, one more time, though I always hate to admit it...that.... I DETEST ideology. The UDDER contempt for ideology, ... Is my bag, Sir!

While in China, I never saw a restricted area, having been mostly in Shanghai and SiChuan, and Dalian, etc. Nobody restricts your movement. And, I talk to anyone I like, at will, both in English and mostly in Chinese. And, people reply with very little restraint. There are topics that are considered to be out of bounds, as I already mentioned, those dealing with criticism of the gov, and such. But, with a friend, you can talk about almost anything. it's not North Korea, after all! The Chinese gov does not control people in that way. Instead they use the point system and social media and AI, as you know.

These two words ARE accepted and spoken in everyday English. Same with GongHo, for example, and many other examples of borrowed words in English. Gung ho is an English term, with the current meaning of 'overly enthusiastic or energetic. Toro is the same... Ole is the same.... Gung ho is borrowed from the Chinese, I believe.

Not my opinions. While in China, and while in Taiwan, I seldom, very seldom, watched or read western media. I know what I know from living in China, for many years. Also, YES, you are absolutely correct that the Chinese gov gives great personal freedom to people in areas that do not matter. I could write a book about this, and have started two.... But, here is not the proper forum to delve into this topic in greater depth and detail.

Toro! Olé!

Trump, the narcissist that he is, loves to be mentioned. We are just humoring him, I think.

Right. Pago Pago will be nothing more than a Pit Stop for me, on my way to Antarctica....and... Beyond...

I remember being in Taipei at the time, and listening to the events unfold on the radio.

Freezer directly to microwave is GOOD. Saves MUCHO Timo... Chicken breast cooked in convection oven. Cabbage cooked in slow cooker. Omelet cooked in wok by my restaurant chef. Rice cooked in one of my two Panasonic family-size rice steamers. Why is it not good to go directly from freezer to nuke, in case of chicken breast/ Or from fridge to nuke, in the case of rice, cabbage soup? Any particular accepted, peer-reviewed evidence you have to support your claim?

A Rose is a Rose, as you say.

I have no pan. I do not need a pan. I do not wash pans. And, it takes 4 minutes to heat up a bowl of cabbage soup, straight out of the fridge. Omelets from the freezer take two nukings of 2 minutes per nuke. Rice from fridge takes 4 minutes. Chicken breast from freezer takes 1.5 minutes, plus final 1.5 minutes. Believe me.....

You are RIGHT! It was truly remarkable when the CCP starved to death 50 million of their own people. But, to me, you sound a bit like Edgar Snow....

Yes. I think the term for it in in islands is CARGO.

I think you forgot to mention that the Chinese student's day does not end in the afternoons. The day ends at 10:00 PM, and the students return from school at 10:30 PM...

Most interesting. Thai students are FAR Happier, and this is the truth.

I always travel solo. But, Bongo Bongo is Better when two play this game, after one reaches Pago Pago.

Yes. I know, firsthand, that this is all true. I lost teeth to rice with pebbles mixed in. The teachers are lousy, many of them anyway. The class sizes are Crazy Huge.... I never taught at a school there...but.... I studied Chinese at a university (ChuanDa) in China...and I know what universities are like...and saw TongJi University, up close, for a period of time. But it is the new ed system regulations being put in place by Xi that are so detrimental to the mind of young students in the grades 7 through 12 which I find detestable. Xi must go. Xi is a thousand times worse than Trump, although...they are birds of a feather in terms of personality.

Yes, and maybe... Bongo Bongo...too... If the woman is willing....

If you mean the CCP...then I Agree!

Great Minds...as they say. I will continue to research. One never knows when the time may become ripe, like the fruit in AS...

Am I serious about Retiring in American Samoa? Deadly! Here is why: https://www.unbiased.com/discover/retirement/retiring-in-american-samoa This could be my true paradise, or yours.... We need only investigate, plan, and then take action. I still need to know more, obviously.

I read your link: A. I was not able to find too much about entry requirements for American Retirees, but I will continue to investigate. B. Still, the place looks nice, and there are many there who are obviously living a wonderful lifestyle...it seems....

When I was in school, at a prep school, I studied loooooong hours. But, that was only because I WANTED to... And, it was because I could often choose what and how I studied. I would study until midnight, or beyond, and enjoy it, and never feel stressed. But what about the typical student in China that often needs to study dumb worthless Topics like Xi-JinPing Thought? Is this something that will benefit the student in Old Age? Or, is it a waste of time, time which could be better spent following an individualistic approach, according to Free Study decided by each student....? Here, for example is a typical study regimen, a day in and day out drudge schedule, which all/most students must mindlessly adhere to: What would you do if someone tried to force your child to work from 6AM to 10:30PM, with some of that time devoted to CLEANING the school and dormitory, spending time washing the latrines, and such? What would YOU do? Regards, Gamma