May 1, 2016 with class 503

     Yesterday, I went to the library at school.  Andy kept telling me that the library is great, so I wanted to visit the library. I found the library has a wide variety of books, films, etc.

     I saw a lot of DVDs and I found Miyazaki’s DVDs.  I like Miyazaki because he has made many great animated films.  I was surprised that the library held his DVDs.   My favorite Miyazaki’s DVD is “The Secret World of Arrietty” and I found it in the DVD cabinets.  I decided to borrow it.

     Afterwards, I walked to the second floor of the library, where they store a lot of books.  I found a book that talks about Japanese food. 

 I read the book and was interested in one of the articles.  It is about udon noodles. 

The article is about the author, who went to eat udon noodles at a small restaurant.  The author discovered a lot of special dishes and was impressed by the delicious food. I started to miss my hometown. Fortunately, Taiwan also has a lot of delicious Japanese food, which can relieve my homesickness.

       Like Arrietty, who is well-treated by the actor, I am taken good care of by the students here. The thought of going back to my hometown makes me sad.  I am thankful to them for keeping track of what I have been doing here.  I can always look at the photos and think of what I have been through here.

April 24, 2016 with class 503

 I have been in Taiwan for almost a year.  I have eaten a lot of delicious food here.  Today, I tried to make Jiaozi (a kind of Chinese dumplings).  I bought the pre-made wrappers, then I prepared the fillings and finally I cooked on my own. 

        The following is the way we made Jiaozi.  First, add some seasonings like allspice powder, white sesame oil, soy sauce, rice wine, salt, ground ginger, and finely-chopped green onion to the ground pork in a pot.  Then, mix the cabbages (the cabbages have already been squeezed out of extra water with salt.  Sometimes, corns and leeks can be used in the place of the cabbages) and minced meat together by hand until they are thoroughly mixed. 

        After the fillings are done, we start to wrap dumplings.  I pick up a ready-made wrapper.  Then, I use a spoon to scoop out a spoonful of the fillings and put it in the center of the wrapper.  I spread a little water on the edge of the wrapper.  I fold the wrapper in half and pinch the two edges together, forming a half-circle.   A Chinese crescent-shaped dumpling has been done.  

        I can choose either to  boil or to steam Jiaozi.  These delicious dumplings are fast eaten up by me.   Indeed, food made by myself is the most delicious. 

April 7, 2016 with class 503

        Today Angel’s class and I went to Hsinchuang Senior High School, representing our school to participate in a tug-of-war competition held by New Taipei City.  I remembered that every noon before lunch they practiced training their muscles in the playground or even in the gym.   Looking at them practicing hard, I hoped that they could win the championship.  They had put a lot of efforts to be better and better.   During the competition, it seemed that it was easy for them to defeat their competitors.  In the end, they got the championship.  I thought that they deserved it.  We all felt extremely happy because this was our first time.  What a wonderful memory!