Chinese Cluster Faculty Dinner
Last Sunday night our cluster had the Chinese faculty dinner at our program director Dr. Liu’s place. It was a really enjoyable night. We paired up and did an awesome job cooking Chinese dishes. Dr. Liu also prepared many delicious dishes by herself. I enjoyed spending time with cluster members, meeting prospective students, and interacting with our teachers in a different context. Being with both new students and old students made me wonder how quickly time goes by, and how this immersion program has affected them as well as me. I will definitely miss those who are graduating this semester, and I also look forward to welcoming the new students into our cluster!
Scroll down to see pictures and what our cluster members have to say about that night! (Yi)
Picture 1: the first round
Picture 2: chatting and enjoy the Chinese music
Jack:
I was surprised by how well everyone cooked in the cluster. It was also quite a feat to pull off all those dishes with the limited budget we had. It’s nice to see everyone, especially, Dr. Liu outside the context of the Language House. I enjoy listening to the different dialects of Chinese spoken during the night, which was very representative of the diverse dialects that exist in China. Music and sing along to old Chinese pop songs we was good times, but the professor Chien’s toddlers stolen the show with their infant charms. Baby Xavier was quite the ladies’ man, fitting of Richie Ren’s flirtatious songs: “Girls across the street look here.”
It was nostalgic meeting the incoming Chinese Cluster members, as I will leave the Language house this semester and graduate from the university. I wonder what the cluster will be like and how this place will affect their lives.
Picture 3: lobster noodle and fried beef with broccoli by David, salmon by Dr. Liu, and many other dishes
Mae:
Sunday night was my first and last Language House faculty dinner. Although it had been busy weekend for me going between state lines and celebrating Easter, I was still happy to spent the night with my clustermates. Afterall, it is not often that we all can sit down and have a meal together. Not only did we chat with teachers (and play with their adorable kids!), but also got to know the prospective students. I wish them all the best of luck for next year. Midway through the evening, I suddenly realized that I will be graduating soon and will have to prepare to say goodbye. It's hard to believe that my time at Maryland is coming to an end, but I will do my best to take advantage of the last weeks as part of a great program and in the company of great people at the Language House.
Picture 4: fried eggplant by Jack and fried eggs with tomato by Lotus
Monica:
Yi (our cluster mentor) and I made a mushroom-and-lettuce vegetarian dish and a soup with beef, carrots, and potatoes. I think people liked the food we made—most of it was gone, thankfully. I met the newcomers/prospective Language House students, and I am excited to sort of be their ‘mentor’ when they join the Chinese cluster next fall! Mark did a little singing for us, and the rest of the evening was filled with talk and Chinese music as we watched Chien Laoshi’s kids running around Chen (two different teachers) Laoshi’s house.
Watching Chien Laoshi’s kids reminded me of when I was their age going to these kind of dinner parties. I vaguely remember being annoyed sometimes at their persistence to keep attending these events; I mean, I was more interested in playing my Nintendo64! However, now that I’m (a lot) older, I can see why my parents took me to these (sometimes boring) events. It is at once a teaching experience and a fun time. The children learn how to socialize from their parents, and their parents remember the days when they were young, and let loose a little bit (did anyone else’s parents play poker and MahJong into the night?). As the ‘middle generation,’ between small children and parents, I am in a position to see the value of dinners like these, and it is my hope that this tradition continues with my generation of ABC’s (American Born Chinese).
Lotus:
The faculty dinner at Dr. Liu's place was quite the experience. I thoroughly enjoyed sampling the 8 dishes that the cluster prepared and stayed in the kitchen for easy access to second and third servings. Everyone succeeded in cooking their dish - who knew that we could all be chefs when the pressure was on? I was not aware that we were all capable of cooking such wonderful meals! Dr. Liu also made a delicious salmon dish; we eagerly took home the leftovers and split it between the girls and guys.
Meeting the potential new members was also very enjoyable. They seemed so enthusiastic about the Language House, which definitely rubbed off on me, as I remembered how excited I was as a new member. I am very excited for them to join our cluster, but even more excited for them to meet everyone in the Language House! We are all fun, friendly people who have something in common.
As much as I enjoyed eating and meeting the new members, I would have to say that meeting faculty members from the Chinese department was the most entertaining part of the evening. It was fun seeing them out of the "academic" context and having casual conversations with them. We got to play with one of the professors' two kids and watch them dance to Chinese songs that I remember from my childhood, which I will soon add to my iTunes playlist. The atmosphere was very warm and welcoming, and it was great spending time with my cluster mates at the same place and time.
I wish the best for the new members and cannot wait to welcome them into our apartment next fall!
Picture 6: star of the night
Jennifer:
After living with 300 to 400 level Chinese students for the past couple of years in Language House, it was really refreshing to meet 100 level prospective residents. It made me think about how far we have come in terms of speaking after living in the house. I hope that the new students gained a lot out of getting to know faculty members and will learn even more during their residency in this house.
David:
For the faculty dinner, everyone had to make a dish for Dr. Liu’s faculty dinner. Both Mark and I collaborated to create a lobster shrimp with noodles along with beef broccoli. It took about an hour and a half for us to make the dish because there were so many ingredients to prepare. Once the dishes were done, we drove to Dr. Liu’s house and met with all the other current and prospective students along with Chinese Faculty members. During my stay there, we introduced ourselves to the group and waited for faculty members to arrive. We started eating after everyone settled down; it was like a huge gathering and it was somewhat informal because any topics that
came to mind were discussed. I ate about 6 plates of food along with fruits and desserts, everyone looked at me in awe and I felt I should’ve eaten somewhere else besides the living room, but overall, it was a delightful experience to communicate with people I have not met before. Even though the noodles I made were a bit dry, it was still enjoyed by many people at the faculty dinner.
Scroll down to see pictures and what our cluster members have to say about that night! (Yi)
Picture 1: the first round
Picture 2: chatting and enjoy the Chinese music
Jack:
I was surprised by how well everyone cooked in the cluster. It was also quite a feat to pull off all those dishes with the limited budget we had. It’s nice to see everyone, especially, Dr. Liu outside the context of the Language House. I enjoy listening to the different dialects of Chinese spoken during the night, which was very representative of the diverse dialects that exist in China. Music and sing along to old Chinese pop songs we was good times, but the professor Chien’s toddlers stolen the show with their infant charms. Baby Xavier was quite the ladies’ man, fitting of Richie Ren’s flirtatious songs: “Girls across the street look here.”
It was nostalgic meeting the incoming Chinese Cluster members, as I will leave the Language house this semester and graduate from the university. I wonder what the cluster will be like and how this place will affect their lives.
Picture 3: lobster noodle and fried beef with broccoli by David, salmon by Dr. Liu, and many other dishes
Mae:
Sunday night was my first and last Language House faculty dinner. Although it had been busy weekend for me going between state lines and celebrating Easter, I was still happy to spent the night with my clustermates. Afterall, it is not often that we all can sit down and have a meal together. Not only did we chat with teachers (and play with their adorable kids!), but also got to know the prospective students. I wish them all the best of luck for next year. Midway through the evening, I suddenly realized that I will be graduating soon and will have to prepare to say goodbye. It's hard to believe that my time at Maryland is coming to an end, but I will do my best to take advantage of the last weeks as part of a great program and in the company of great people at the Language House.
Picture 4: fried eggplant by Jack and fried eggs with tomato by Lotus
Monica:
Yi (our cluster mentor) and I made a mushroom-and-lettuce vegetarian dish and a soup with beef, carrots, and potatoes. I think people liked the food we made—most of it was gone, thankfully. I met the newcomers/prospective Language House students, and I am excited to sort of be their ‘mentor’ when they join the Chinese cluster next fall! Mark did a little singing for us, and the rest of the evening was filled with talk and Chinese music as we watched Chien Laoshi’s kids running around Chen (two different teachers) Laoshi’s house.
Watching Chien Laoshi’s kids reminded me of when I was their age going to these kind of dinner parties. I vaguely remember being annoyed sometimes at their persistence to keep attending these events; I mean, I was more interested in playing my Nintendo64! However, now that I’m (a lot) older, I can see why my parents took me to these (sometimes boring) events. It is at once a teaching experience and a fun time. The children learn how to socialize from their parents, and their parents remember the days when they were young, and let loose a little bit (did anyone else’s parents play poker and MahJong into the night?). As the ‘middle generation,’ between small children and parents, I am in a position to see the value of dinners like these, and it is my hope that this tradition continues with my generation of ABC’s (American Born Chinese).
Lotus:
The faculty dinner at Dr. Liu's place was quite the experience. I thoroughly enjoyed sampling the 8 dishes that the cluster prepared and stayed in the kitchen for easy access to second and third servings. Everyone succeeded in cooking their dish - who knew that we could all be chefs when the pressure was on? I was not aware that we were all capable of cooking such wonderful meals! Dr. Liu also made a delicious salmon dish; we eagerly took home the leftovers and split it between the girls and guys.
Meeting the potential new members was also very enjoyable. They seemed so enthusiastic about the Language House, which definitely rubbed off on me, as I remembered how excited I was as a new member. I am very excited for them to join our cluster, but even more excited for them to meet everyone in the Language House! We are all fun, friendly people who have something in common.
As much as I enjoyed eating and meeting the new members, I would have to say that meeting faculty members from the Chinese department was the most entertaining part of the evening. It was fun seeing them out of the "academic" context and having casual conversations with them. We got to play with one of the professors' two kids and watch them dance to Chinese songs that I remember from my childhood, which I will soon add to my iTunes playlist. The atmosphere was very warm and welcoming, and it was great spending time with my cluster mates at the same place and time.
I wish the best for the new members and cannot wait to welcome them into our apartment next fall!
Picture 6: star of the night
Jennifer:
After living with 300 to 400 level Chinese students for the past couple of years in Language House, it was really refreshing to meet 100 level prospective residents. It made me think about how far we have come in terms of speaking after living in the house. I hope that the new students gained a lot out of getting to know faculty members and will learn even more during their residency in this house.
David:
For the faculty dinner, everyone had to make a dish for Dr. Liu’s faculty dinner. Both Mark and I collaborated to create a lobster shrimp with noodles along with beef broccoli. It took about an hour and a half for us to make the dish because there were so many ingredients to prepare. Once the dishes were done, we drove to Dr. Liu’s house and met with all the other current and prospective students along with Chinese Faculty members. During my stay there, we introduced ourselves to the group and waited for faculty members to arrive. We started eating after everyone settled down; it was like a huge gathering and it was somewhat informal because any topics that
came to mind were discussed. I ate about 6 plates of food along with fruits and desserts, everyone looked at me in awe and I felt I should’ve eaten somewhere else besides the living room, but overall, it was a delightful experience to communicate with people I have not met before. Even though the noodles I made were a bit dry, it was still enjoyed by many people at the faculty dinner.
posted by Language House @ UMD | 7:40 PM
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