Online Class Notes (Nick) [W]

Vocabulary

Taipei – for some reason we spell it with a “p” in English. This is not good Chinese; I’m sorry about that.

Enthusiastic – to be very excited about doing something (about)
e.g. My friend was very enthusiastic about going to see the symphony this weekend.

Energetic – to have a lot of energy (in general), to be friendly
e.g. The Taiwanese are a very friendly and energetic people. They are always happy to have visitors to their island.

Intersection – crossroad
e.g. She told us to walk to the second intersection, and turn left.

To send the wrong way – to give incorrect directions, to use incorrect directions
e.g. The old lady we asked for directions didn’t know that there was a new stoplight, so she sent us the wrong way.
e.g. The directions we got from Baidu were incorrect and sent us the wrong way.

Midnight, 12am – what in China might be called 24 o’clock
e.g. We stayed at the market until after midnight, and there were still many people eating and having fun.

Grammar

Stay vs. stay in – “to stay” usually means that you aren’t moving
e.g. Perhaps you call your friend while trying to meet up in the metro, and they tell you that they’re at Exit 1. So you say to them “Stay there, and I’ll come find you.” (Because if they move, then you can’t find them!)
To stay in is when it is important to tell the other person where you were.
e.g. During the first of her trip, Joan stayed in Taipei.

Catch up to vs. catch up with – to catch up to means that some people are going the same way, but some start later and hurry to catch up to the others who are ahead; to catch up with is to be trying to catch a person
e.g. Since he was slower, Nick started walking earlier, but Joan caught up to him after an hour anyway. (Joan is a faster walker than Nick, and that they were walking the same way, or even to the same place.)
e.g. After a few minutes, she caught up with him to tell him something important that she had forgotten to say. (She only needed to catch him, not go the same way.)

In vs. at – in is for some area (a building, a city, a country); at is when you want to tell someone exactly where you are (an exit to the metro, an intersection, the third table on the left)
e.g. I am in Taipei this weekend.
e.g. I am in the library, at the third table on the left.
Question from Joan: What about with a plane? Do we use “in” or “on”?
Both! But, if you use “in” you are talking about your location, and you use “on” when you are going to travel. So if you tell me that you are “in” the plane, I will wonder what you are doing there, because it isn’t related to traveling. When traveling, you normally use “on” for planes and buses.

For adjectives, think about which ones describe each other, and put the most specific ones first.
e.g. Like in the story, there is a market, and the market sells food. So, it is food market. This market opens at night, so it is a night food market.

Writing exercise

I went to Taiwan in 2015, it was my first time to go to there. The first city I stayed was Taibei, it is a modern city like Shanghai. There were some skyscrapers, the town hall and the National Palace Museum. People who live there were very enthusiastic. I met a friendly old woman who showed me the way where I wanted to go. But the road had been repaired a few months ago and she forgot that there was a new traffic light at the crossroad, so it couldn’t make me arrive the destination when I wanted to turn right as she told me. The moment I turned right, the old woman caught up to me and told me that she showed me a worry way. I should turn right on the next crossroad. I was so surprised by her eagerness. I also like the food night markets in Taiwan. You can find a lot of delicious local food and the market opened over 24pm. The metros in Taiwan were also operated over 24pm. So you didn’t need to worry about how to go home after had a night snack. It is a heaven for foodie.


I went to Taiwan in 2015. It was my first time (to go to) there. The first city I stayed in was Taibei. It is a modern city like Shanghai. I saw some skyscrapers, the town hall and the National Palace Museum. People who live there were very enthusiastic (energetic). I met a friendly old woman who showed me how to get where I wanted to go. But the road had been repaired a few months ago and she forgot that there was a new traffic light at the crossroad, so it sent me the wrong way when I wanted to turn right as she told me. The moment I turned right, the old woman caught up with me and told me that she sent me the wrong way (she gave me the wrong directions). I should turn right at the next crossroad. I was so surprised by her eagerness. I also like the night food markets in Taiwan. You can find a lot of delicious local food and the market was open until after midnight. The metros in Taiwan also operated until after midnight. So you don’t need to worry about how to get home after you have  (or: after having) a night snack. It is a heaven for a foodie.