In this issue I will give you an answer if there are deserts in Russia. There are many interesting facts in it as well as a lot of numbers used in different Russian cases.

В этом выпуске я дам вам ответ, есть ли в России пустыни. В нём много интересных фактов, а также много чисел, используемых в разных падежах русского языка.

Russian with Nick

#3 Есть ли в России пустыни?

今天我们要探讨的话题是感恩，在工作中，在生活中，在学习中，你最感恩的人或事是什么呢？请留言吧！

HSK2

感恩

안녕하세요.

오늘은 새해 계획을 말할 거예요.

여러분은 연초에(at the beginning of the year), 계획을 세워요? (계획을 세우다 make a plan)
저는 사실(actually) 새해 계획을 잘 세우지 않아요.

계획을 세우면 꼭 그 계획을 지켜야 할 것 같아서, 조금 부담스러워요. 
(계획을 지키다 keep to plan, a.부담스럽다 burdensome)

그래서 계획 대신, 올해 하고 싶은 것들을 더 생각하는 편이에요. 

2024년에는 작년보다 더 성장하고 싶어요. (v. 성장하다 develop)
한국어 선생님으로서도 더 성장하고 싶고, 인간적으로도 더 좋은 사람이 되고 싶어요.

그래서 책도 더 많이 읽고 자기 계발도 더 많이 하고 
좋아하는 사람들과 즐거운 시간을 더 많이 보내고 싶어요. 
(자기 계발 self-improvement, self-developement)

영어 공부도 더 하고, 다른 외국어들도 더 공부할 거예요. 
옛날에 독일어하고 러시아어하고 중국어를 공부했었는데 연습하지 않아서 다 잊어버렸어요. 독일어 공부를 다시 시작해 볼 생각이에요 ㅎㅎ

아! 그리고 원래 건강에 별로 관심이 없었는데,
이제 서른 살이 되어서 좀 건강에 신경을 써 보려고 해요.

저는 운동을 너~무 싫어해서, 운동보다는 건강한 음식을 먹는 것으로 건강을 더 신경 쓰려고 해요. 라면을 아주 좋아하는데 라면을 먹는 횟수를 좀 줄여야 겠어요 ㅎㅎ

여러분은 새해 계획이 있어요? 연초에 어떤 계획을 세워요?
올해 어떤 사람이 되고 싶어요? 무엇을 하고 싶어요?

반짝반짝 빛나는 여러분을 언제나 응원합니다.
새해에는 소망하는 모든 일들이 다 이루지기를 진심으로 바랍니다.

감사합니다. 


Korean with Rumi

새해 계획_Plans for the New Year

        李白(701- 762), 是中国唐朝时期著名的诗人，他小时候对学习很不感兴趣，经常跑到外边玩儿。一天，李白在河边发现一位老婆婆竟然在磨一根铁棒子。李白觉得很好奇，就走过去问老婆婆在干什么，原来老婆婆的孙女要学绣花，她要给孙女做一根绣花针。
        李白听完以后，像大部分孩子一样哈哈大笑，因为他认为把铁棒子磨成绣花针太浪费时间了，等老婆婆磨好了，她孙女可能也变成老婆婆了。可是，老婆婆自信地告诉他：“只要功夫深，铁杆磨成针。”
        听完老婆婆的回答，李白突然明白了一个道理：无论做什么事情，只要坚持就可能成功。从此，李白就开始努力学习、积累知识，最终成为一名伟大的诗人。

        看完这个谚语故事，你知道努力和坚持对成功有多么重要了吧？

功夫 [gōng fu] workmanship; skill
铁杵磨成针[tiě chǔ mó chénɡ zhēn]
an iron pestle can be ground down to a needle — perseverance will prevail
老婆婆[lǎo po pó] granny(used by children in addressing an old woman)
绣花[xiù huā]embroider; do embroidery


Li Bai (701- 762) was a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty of China. When he was young, Li Bai was not interested in learning at all, and he often went out playing. One day, Li Bai saw an old woman grinding an iron pestle by the river. He felt so curious that he went over and asked the old woman what she was doing . It turned out that she was making a needle for her granddaughter to learn embroidery. 
Having heard this, Li Bai laughed as most kids would do, because he thought it was a waste of time to grind an iron pestle into a needle and that by the day the needle was made, her granddaughter would have turned into an old woman herself. However, the old woman told him with confidence: "As long as you work hard enough, an iron pestle can be ground down to a needle." 
Suddenly Li Bai realized that perseverance would help one succeed in everything. From then on, Li Bai began to study hard and accumulate knowledge. He finally became a great poet! 
After reading this story, you must have learned how important hard work and perseverance are to success.

HSK6 Vocab Based - Short Story Podcast

04. 中国谚语--只要功夫深, 铁杵磨成针 Chinese proverb - As Long as You Work Hard Enough, an Iron Pestle Can Be Ground Down to a Needle 

“什么？” 王后对魔镜大喊，
“谁比我更美？” 
“白雪公主。” 魔镜说。
"What?" the queen shouted at her mirror.
"Who is more beautiful than I am?"
"Snow White," the mirror said.

王后非常生气。
“大家都说白雪公主很美！
说她很善良，很完美！
我可不信！” 
The queen was very angry.
"Everyone says Snow White is so pretty!
She's so nice, so perfect!
I don't believe it!"

那天晚上，王后在村庄里和猎人见面。
猎人带着一把斧子。
王后在他耳边说了几句悄悄话。
然后给了他一些金币。
That night the queen met a hunter in the village.
He carried an ax.
The queen whispered in his ear.
Then she gave him some gold coins.

Listening & Speaking (Mandarin)

白雪公主与七个小矮人（猎人-1） Snow White and the seven Dwarfs    (中级）

In this episode of Hey Alexis!, I’m joined by Jerome as we dive into fun and useful English idioms! We break down expressions like keep in touch, playing with fire, and crash a party—explaining their meanings and how to use them naturally in conversation. Tune in for a lively chat and start adding these idioms to your English toolkit! 🎙️🔥

Thanks to Jerome for being such a great guest!!!

Alexis Teacher Profile  : https://www.italki.com/en/teacher/9464070
Jerome: https://www.italki.com/en/teacher/4075458



Hey Alexis!

Idioms in Action: Keep in Touch, Playing with Fire & More (with Jerome!)

¿Sabían que la tradición de disfrazarse viene de actos simbólicos celtas para alejar a espíritus malignos? Conversemos sobre las raíces celtas del Halloween. 
En el siguiente enlace encuentran el artículo del podcast: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iNjR_5-beWgGpzKlzb-Y_ibC6E2LGDmmuAwxgIwz9jo/edit?usp=sharing

Voces Difusora

Halloween: la sabiduría celta detrás de esta celebración

"En la punta de la lengua" 

Entérate qué es y cómo usar esta frase en español



Expresiones idiomáticas en español 

"En la punta de la lengua"

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DdUdXmkmjUPYjy0TzX8g9GFFh83wI8cS/view?usp=drivesdk

(Apologies for the sudden ending)