a little pause in 云南

I’m writing to you from 大理 (Dàlǐ), where I’ve stopped for 3 days before continuing my journey through 云南 (Yúnnán), which is the trip I really wanted to make before leaving China for good.

Today in Dali

I have to be honest with you about the newsletter, because I’ve been trying to write it in the evenings and it just isn’t coming together the way it should. Between the long days, the patchy guesthouse wifi, and being genuinely wiped out by the time I sit down, there’s no realistic way for me to put the lessons and worksheets together at the level you expect from me.

So I’m giving myself a little pause for once. Nothing new this week, and very likely nothing next week either while I’m still on the road. It feels a bit strange to write that after showing up week after week for more than two years, but I think that after all this time it’s okay to step away for a couple of weeks and actually be present for the trip.

While I’m off wandering around Yunnan, it’s honestly a great excuse to go back and revisit some older lessons. A few that are worth a second look:

• Common Mistakes, Part 1 and Part 2: the small errors almost every learner makes.

• Hidden Meanings of Common Words, Part 1 and Part 2: everyday words with a second, hidden sense.

• Cause & Effect, Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3: from 因为…所以 to the more formal connectors.

If you’re a paid subscriber, remember the whole archive is searchable over at chinesegrammargems.com, so you can look up whatever pattern you’re wrestling with this week.

And if you’d rather have something more structured to work through while I’m away, my workbook is always there waiting for you, a sort of Mandarin cahier de vacances to chip away at over the summer. If you already own it, this is the perfect week to pull it back out. If you don’t, I’ve set up a little travel code, YUNNAN, for 20% off while I’m on the road.

And if you’d like to come along for the rest of the trip, I’m posting stories every day on Instagram at hsklevel, so come say hi if you feel like it.

Back before long with fresh worksheets. Until then, keep the practice going however you can, because even a single sentence a day keeps the momentum alive.

Pierre