mengshagong

21-Month Toddler Chinese/English Bilingual Book Review

It’s already time for another book review! We’re still loving many of the books from when Ro was 18 months, especially the CDs that come with 早安晚安 [Good Morning, Good Night] and 小雨滴 [Little Raindrop], but we have new favorites now too. I’ve heard many parents complain about having to read the same books over and over again,Continue reading “21-Month Toddler Chinese/English Bilingual Book Review”

Listening to Chinese children’s songs

In the last two months, the language explosion has continued. We have gone from “bus” and “no bus” to knowing the Chinese names for car, pickup truck, excavator, bulldozer, cement truck, fire truck, and many more. It occurred to me that unless you are learning Chinese as a child with an interest in trucks, youContinue reading “Listening to Chinese children’s songs”

Journey to the West – Chapter 9.3

Translator’s note: Chinese families often refer to each other in the third person by their familial titles. Throughout this section, Madam Zhang is referred to as “grandmother/mother-in-law” and her name is never used. Lady Yin’s mother is referred to as just “wife” when we get to Minister Yin’s house. This sounds so awkward in EnglishContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 9.3”

New Podcast and Instagram

Hi 🙂 We started a podcast. It’s on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. We’re telling the story of Journey to the West and then discussing what surprises us or what we connect with based on our Chinese American and Taiwanese American experiences. I’m still feeling it out and there are a lot of improvements that canContinue reading “New Podcast and Instagram”

Journey to the West – Chapter 9.2

Now Lady Yin loathed that villainous Liu so much that she could eat his flesh and and use his skin for a bed, but she was pregnant, so she cooperated with him reluctantly. Before she knew it, they had arrived in Jiangzhou, where the officials and judges threw the new governor a banquet in welcome.Continue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 9.2”

Miles and the Spider-Society as Wukong and the Heavenly army

In case you missed it, the Chinese Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse riffs off the battle between Wukong, the Colossal Spirit, and Nezha from Chapter 4. We have Miles as Wukong, Peter B. Parker as the Immortal of Colossal Spirit, Spider-Woman Jessica Drew as Nezha, and Gwen Stacy, Miguel O’Hara, Pavitr Prabhakar, and Hobie Brown asContinue reading “Miles and the Spider-Society as Wukong and the Heavenly army”

Journey to the West – Chapter 9.1

We’re turning to the city of Chang’an in Shanxi Province, the capital city for many generations of emperors. Through the Zhou, Qin, and Han dynasties, the flowers bloomed like brocade and waters flowed around the city. It really was a beautiful sight. It was the Tang Dynasty,1 and the Emperor Taizong had been on theContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 9.1”

Journey to the West – Chapter 8.2

Leaving Wujing, Guanyin and Muzha continued East. After some time, they came to a high mountain blanketed in evil gloom. As they were about to fly over it on their clouds, for they could not climb it on foot, a wild wind arose and another demon appeared. His nose was as an upturned lotus seedContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 8.2”

Journey to the West – Chapter 8.1

We have completed the prologue Havoc in Heaven and the narration style will change for the next five chapters. Let me tell you about the lord Buddha, who left Heaven and returned to Thunderclap Monastery on Soul Mountain, where he was welcomed with flying banners and rare flowers, precious treasures and bejeweled canopies by theContinue reading “Journey to the West – Chapter 8.1”

Leaving Havoc in Heaven and entering the Lull

We have officially completed the prologue Havoc in Heaven1 and are now entering what I’m calling The Lull, a five-chapter long series of events that sets up the actual “journey” in Journey to the West. The reason I’m calling it The Lull is because, let’s be honest, we just want to see monkey shenanigans, andContinue reading “Leaving Havoc in Heaven and entering the Lull”