Hi! For my first official English blog, I would like to start by sharing some of my own experiences learning about a different language and culture.

Moving Day!

Six and a half years ago, I began a cross cultural adventure when I moved to Thailand. I remember saying goodbye to my parents after an exhausting day of packing, tearful farewells with my close friends in Pennsylvania, a three-hour drive to New York, and an emotional dinner with my relatives. I don't remember many details about it except for the sharp pang of nervous anticipation in my gut, which was my constant companion. Finally, at midnight, I sat alone at the gate waiting to board my plane.

I switched planes three times and arrived in Bangkok twenty-seven hours later. Believe me, I hardly slept or ate at all the whole time. My stomach kept twisting and turning inside me and I felt like I had swallowed a live snake. I think I went to the bathroom every twenty minutes! When the plane landed and I walked into the airport, my legs were shaking so hard that I could hardly walk. I was so scared! I was supposed to meet Pastor Lawan there, who was the woman who ran the orphanage. I was going to be a volunteer staff and teacher at her orphanage for hill tribe children. I kept thinking, "What if Pastor Lawan doesn't recognize me? What if I don't recognize her? What if she didn't understand me when I spoke to her on the phone, asking her to meet me? She doesn't understand English very well." I felt all alone in this foreign country, unable to speak the language... (to be continued in my next blog)


Pastor Lawan with Amee and Naree
(two children in the orphanage)








Vocabulary

Did you notice the words in dark print? They are all adjectives. Adjectives are words which modify, or describe, a noun. Here are the adjectives that I used in my blog:

exhausting
tearful
close
emotional
sharp
nervous


Now, try to place the adjectives in the blanks of the following sentences:


1. Having a baby was the most ____________ experience she ever had.


2. Dan always has ____________ feelings before he speaks in public.


3. The first day of preschool, the room was filled with ____________ children who missed their mothers.


4. Beth is my very ________ friend.


5. I just finished an ______________ exercise class.


6. Be careful, that's a very ____________ knife!

Grammar


As you may have noticed, in the English language, adjectives are usually placed before the noun. That's why I wrote, "an exhausting day," because the adjective "exhausting" describes what kind of day it was. Therefore, the word, "exhausting" goes before the word, "day."


Here are some other examples:


I have a blue sweater. (blue describes the sweater)

Oh no! A wet dog jumped on me! (wet describes the dog)


Try to rewrite the following sentences using the adjective:

example- I looked up at the sky. The sky was blue. 4I looked up at the blue sky.

1. She was wearing shorts. The shorts were orange. 4________________________

2. My friend is making soup. The soup is hot. 4_____________________________

3. I am listening to music. The music is classical. 4___________________________


For more information on adjectives, you can check out this site:
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/adjectives.htm