I’m learning via Duolingo, but it’s mostly because I paid for a year. I think HelloChinese is a much better app based learning method, and I recommend supplementing with talking with native speakers as much as you can. You can use HelloTalk to meet them, but it’s monetized to hell so I recommend moving to WeChat once you meet some cool people you like talking with.
I also have some workbooks I bought off Amazon, and I watch basically any mandarin content on Netflix and try to repeat after people when they talk to get the feel for sentence flow and accent. There’s a hilarious two part movie with Stephen Chow on Netflix that I watch a lot, and right now I’m watching a Taiwanese soap opera essentially called Back to 1989.
For typing, I just use the built in keyboard on my phone. I used WeChats keyboard for a while, and I think it’s honestly way better, but it always ends up crashing entirely and needs reinstalled, and I’ve been too lazy to do so for a few months now.
Take lots of notes, even in Duolingo I write down most of the sentences it uses for examples, and I write down literally every character I learn. I’ve filled one notebook so far, just started on my second. My writing is terrible, but it’s less about good handwriting and more about imprinting into my brain.
I learned braised beef in China proper when I was there, because I love it haha. Since I’ve been back it’s been one of the only bits I’ve been able to use locally, because asking for braised beef at my local Chinese restaurants usually results in them thinking I want something completely different, but if I go, 我要红烧牛肉，they usually go oooohhh and make it for me.
Lol i am still a long way from learning that verb, how are you learning? Also what software do you use to write?
I’m learning via Duolingo, but it’s mostly because I paid for a year. I think HelloChinese is a much better app based learning method, and I recommend supplementing with talking with native speakers as much as you can. You can use HelloTalk to meet them, but it’s monetized to hell so I recommend moving to WeChat once you meet some cool people you like talking with.
I also have some workbooks I bought off Amazon, and I watch basically any mandarin content on Netflix and try to repeat after people when they talk to get the feel for sentence flow and accent. There’s a hilarious two part movie with Stephen Chow on Netflix that I watch a lot, and right now I’m watching a Taiwanese soap opera essentially called Back to 1989.
For typing, I just use the built in keyboard on my phone. I used WeChats keyboard for a while, and I think it’s honestly way better, but it always ends up crashing entirely and needs reinstalled, and I’ve been too lazy to do so for a few months now.
Take lots of notes, even in Duolingo I write down most of the sentences it uses for examples, and I write down literally every character I learn. I’ve filled one notebook so far, just started on my second. My writing is terrible, but it’s less about good handwriting and more about imprinting into my brain.
I learned braised beef in China proper when I was there, because I love it haha. Since I’ve been back it’s been one of the only bits I’ve been able to use locally, because asking for braised beef at my local Chinese restaurants usually results in them thinking I want something completely different, but if I go, 我要红烧牛肉，they usually go oooohhh and make it for me.