ASIA & FAR EAST TESTIMONIALS

DID YOU KNOW: All repeat students receive a 10% discount off any program we offer!

"The overall goal--to improve my speaking and listening ability in Chinese--was achieved. It gave me a lot of confidence that I can become more comfortable. This was the first time that Wang Man had welcomed a language student into her home. She and the other family members (including her parents) could not have taken more effort to make me feel at home.

It was a bit of a shock to them, though, that I am far from fluent. Wang Man is a HS English teacher so my lessons revolved around her work schedule, although the grandparents were always home. I have been to Beijing a number of times and know my way around town quite well. Wang Man is an excellent teacher, however, and she bought a very good textbook mid-week in my stay that improved our lessons substantially.

I also took the initiative to talk more, use the vocabulary in the lessons more, and get away from fairly rote use of an outdated book."
Kathryn Mohrman (age: 59) Chinese in Beijing, CHINA

"It was a wonderful time, one of the best of my life. The town was perfect for getting to know Japan -- not too big and not too small. The cultural activities were excellent and it was wonderful to be able to make friends with both Japanese and students of all ages from all around the world.

The school was great in terms of having fun, learning about Japan, and meeting people from all around the world. I didn't learn as much Japanese as I could have: This was because the majority of students there were beginners, so I was forced to speak English in order to socialize with them.

Host Family: roommate was a very fun person, house location which was close to a famous temple and close to the mountains, but far from the school, was good for me. I like to explore places, and I really enjoyed the long bike ride each day. The director of the school, Aizawa Yasuko, was an absolutely wonderful person and was extremely helpful in arranging anything and everything we needed or wanted to do as students."
Charles Frederick (age 19)Studied in Kanazawa, JAPAN

"The program included a good school, good teachers, and surprisingly clean and comfortable accommodations. Generally, my experience of the school was outstanding.

My teachers were of good quality, and the clerks were helpful (and patient with my poor Chinese). The government has obviously been striving to make the neighborhood congenial for foreign students."
David Poecking (age 39)American student in Beijing, CHINA

"This was the best time of my life.

I only regret that I can't stay there forever. I met some of the greatest people I've ever met, and will always remember the good times I had. My host family was excellent! Friendly, helpful, it was the best experience I could imagine.

I did various things, from trips to castles, beaches, parks, educational things, hot springs. Go for it! You can't ever know how much fun you'll have until you go and do it".
Matthew Meyer (age 21) Studied in Kanazawa, JAPAN

"Location was great. Family spoke too much English and trying to figure out if they were saying something in Japanese or accented English was tricky at times.

The teachers were excellent, enthusiastic, caring and interesting. The cultural excursions and activites were great. One wonderful part for me was being able to rent a bicycle from the school at moderate cost ($5/week). Otherwise I would have been spending over $5 a day on bus fare and not getting back and forth to school any faster.

I was so many neat things on my route to school by bike that I would never have seen from a bus. The program director,Yasuko-san, does a good job making every student's visit to Japan as good as possible. She helps with travel plans and answers all questions".
Mary-Ray Cate (age 59)Studied in Kanazawa, JAPAN

"I have never had so much fun in my life. The city and people were wonderful. My host family made my experience special".
Sarah Voss (age: 18) Studied in Kanazawa, JAPAN

"A great experience that helped me learn Chinese and live in the culture for two weeks!

The host family and accommodation was great. The family was really nice and helped me a lot. Future Advice: Make sure that you are ready for the cultural differences and make sure to bring everything you need. Be prepared to study a lot."
Connor Hays (age: 16) Program: Beijing, CHINA

"My experience was definitely a postive one! I met some great people in class and was able to use them as a support system during my stay in Hong Kong. The teachers were friendly and the staff at the institute was veryn accomodating.

I thought the staff was helpful and efficient. They were able to answer most of my questions in a timely manner. Thank you!

The language institute in Hong Kong was great! The staff was very accomodating and encouraged everyone to speak the language. The teachers were knowledgeable and friendly. I loved the fact that they told personal stories in Cantonese to help us learn the language. The personal accounts were informative as well as entertaining. The school itself was small but quite busy at times.

There were lots of students, all ages, which was a plus. The location of the school was in the heart of Hong Kong. . . fun place!

Future Advice: If you're thinking about it, definitely. . . do it! There's nothing like being totally immersed in the language and culture".
Terry Wong (age: 32) Studied in Hong Kong