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Wonderful time in Yangshuo!

Thank you very much for the wonderful time – I enjoyed every minute in the classroom and on campus, due to wonderful teachers, wonderful staff and wonderful fellow students… Xiexie nimen :-)

Lisa Becker – Germany, at Mandacentre 13/07/2009 – 04/09/2009

Jumping right into the deep end!

I have had a great three weeks in Yangshuo learning Chinese. When I arrived on a Saturday night I was tired from the trip and nervous about my time here. I had only emailed Roland and didn’t know anyone. I had been in China less than a week. But everyone with the school had been so friendly and my teachers have been great. In fact, I call them my friends. So I will always remember the beautiful scenery around Yangshuo and all my friends in the language school.

So… here we go!!

Mark Coppins – USA, at Mandacentre 08/06/2009 – 28/06/2009

A recommendation to everyone!

I turned up in Yangshuo and fell in love with the place within two days, both as a stunning place to live and also a great environment to learn Chinese. It was a big change from the stuffy, expensive and mass produced group lessons that I had experienced in Shanghai. I ended up spending nine months there. In Susan, i found a dedicated teacher with excellent English skills and a very impressive way of explaining difficult parts of the language in simple terms. Outside the classroom, the opportunity to practice are numerous, with plenty of Chinese students willing to chat with you, and making an effort around the town will also see you rewarded with friendly locals willing to help. I had a great time at Mandacentre and in Yangshuo, made good friends, and would recommend the school to anyone wanting to get out of the big cities and actually enjoy learning.

Ben Lloyd – England, at Mandacentre 15/01/2009 – 04/09/2009

Learning Chinese at high speed!

I spent two months studying at Mandacentre, Yangshuo. My intention was to learn Chinese just from talking to the locals, but I needed a solid foundation before I could really converse. In my private lessons I was allowed to suggest any topics I would like to learn, but I rarely needed to, as the teachers would pick up on the topics I normally speak about,and design our lessons around that. In a one on one environment there's little time for day dreaming. As a result of this I think I have learned Chinese at fast pace, and can now chat with my Chinese friends in Chinese. Yangshuo itself has an amazing country side. There are many tourist things to do, and sports like rock climbing. However for me I found just going to the country side by bike or motorbike to be the most fun. At night time the bars are full of people. I've had a lot of fun here, and now with my solid foundation in Chinese, I'm ready to countinue the rest of my adventure in China.

Andrew Browne - Ireland, at Mandacentre 18/01/2010 - 19/03/2010

A great experience at a wonderful school!

My time studying at Mandacentre was outstanding and exceeded my expectations. Under the expert supervision of Roland and with the excellent teaching skills of Blue, Susan, and Jenny, my Chinese rapidly improved. Roland's keen understanding of Western and Chinese cultures combined with his savvy managerial skills allowed him to shape a curriculum and environment that took the best of what the school and its employees had to offer and apply them in a way most effective for a Westerner such as myself. Blue, Jenny and Susan were excellent teachers - their admirable patience, sensitivity and obvious commitment to helping me was demonstrated in many ways. Not only did they quickly and accurately assess my ability level as well as the best methods to teach me, but it was clear they put in the time and energy to craft thoughtful, logical, fun, diverse and personalized ways to do so. For example, they deliberately constructed and varied lessons to keep things interesting but at the same time preserved a logical flow and cohesiveness that allowed me to reinforce and rapidly build my vocabulary and grammar. Although their teaching styles were quite different, because they worked together to plan lessons and because they clearly communicated with each other about our classes, these differences further contributed to making the overall instruction comprehensive and dynamic.

Not only were the teachers and staff great at their jobs, but the school environment added an additional positive aspect to my experience. The co-located English students provided the opportunity to not only practice my Chinese, but also made it easy to make Chinese friends. After my first week at the school, I was having meals and drinks nearly every evening with some combination of students, staff and teachers. From the cafeteria cook to the Chinese and Western teachers to the English students, I was overwhelmed by the inclusiveness, kindness and generosity of the entire community. Such relationships not only helped to further accelerate my ability to speak Chinese, but it enriched my experience, giving me a more intimate interaction with China, its culture and the warmth of the Chinese people. While I could have gone to a larger program in a bigger city, Mandacentre offers the personal attention and sense of community that made for a fun, intimate and professional environment that was conducive to maximizing my learning and enjoyment.

Lukas Filler – USA, at Mandacentre 21/03/2010 – 21/05/2010