Hi, my name is Jan Abbey. I came to Urumqi 3 years ago from the United States. My home is in Michigan, which is surrounded by the 5 Great Lakes so the environment here is very different from my home. However, I love the dry climate and warm hearts of the people of Urumqi. I also enjoy the mixture of cultures, languages and food that are found in Xinjiang.
Learning a foreign language is a difficult undertaking but is well worth the hard work. The biggest problem for Chinese people who are learning English is that they are too shy and afraid of making a mistake so they won’t open their mouths to speak, you can’t learn English unless you speak English!
Making mistakes and having a good teacher correct them are the best way to improve. Don’t be afraid! Open your mouth and speak and you will be surprised at how quickly your English will improve.