I’m getting married in a week, so George, Scott, and I will be out of touch starting tomorrow as we head for the mountains for some bachelor hiking. Jeremy, Evan, and Jake will be here …
梅雨： Rainy Season in Japan
Rainy season began this month for most of Japan, known as 梅雨 or “tsuyu”. The two kanji selected to make this word should give a visual: the first character meaning “plum” usually pronounced “うめ”, (I …
Read More or Die: Join the Challenge Today!
With 30+ degree weather here in Taiwan (that’s 90+ for those using Fahrenheit) it would appear that summer is finally here. For lots of Skritter users that means classes are over and the next exam …
Culture Corner: 世间无难事，只要有心人
Learning is a lifelong process of discovery, exploration, and ever expanding knowledge. Learning something new oftentimes has more to do with one’s attitude and determination than one’s inherent ability… although a little of that never …
Honest Enjoyment of a Chinese Novel
“Humans don’t know what makes us happy”… or at least that is the way Nick Winter (Skritter co-founder) opens the section On Happiness in his new book The Motivation Hacker. He goes on to explain, with …
Interview with Julien Leyre from Marco Polo Project
I first stumbled upon Marco Polo Project (MPP from here on in) a little over a year ago and knew instantly that I would be spending lots of time on the site in the future. If the …
10 Simple Phrases for Improving Your Conversational Skills
Once we get past “你好吗” (how are you?) and “我不会说中文” (I don’t speak Chinese) it seems the sky’s the limit, but what kinds of language can we use to improve conversational skills and extract even …
Actually Good Chinese/English Comics
A month ago, Jake posted Finding Suitable Reading Material for Your Level. I have an addition: bilingual iPad comic books. I just met up with Yen Yen and Colin from Dim Sum Warriors, which apart …
Language Parroting: Part 2
This week on the Skritter blog we’ll be exploring part two of the language parroting post. This week goes beyond the basic struggles we face mimic foreign sounds as beginners and explores some more tips …
Yamato Kotoba, Jukujikun, and Irregular Readings
As you become increasingly familiar with kanji and their readings, it’s not surprising when you can pronounce a word for the first time at a guess and be correct. There are also times where you …