供養（くよう）する　                   hold a memorial service for a departed soul
お供（そなえ）えする　　　　　place food offerings 
私の夫の実家（じっか）では、お盆にお坊（ぼう）さんに家に来てもらい、お経(きょう）をあげてもらっています。
 Buddhist priest may come to my husband's house to read a sutra. 

Japanese culture ♪

お盆（ぼん）Japanese obon

Ordering food is a very common scene in daily life. Whether you are in a restaurant, cafe or fast food restaurant. Today, let’s practice some vocabulary and sentences related to ordering food.

生词：

1.菜单 (càidān) - Menu
2.服务员 (fúwùyuán) - Waiter/Waitress
3.特色菜 (tèsè cài) - Specialty dish
4.饮料 (yǐnliào) - Beverage
5.主菜 (zhǔcài) - Main course
6.小吃 (xiǎochī) - Snack
7.甜点 (tiándiǎn) - Dessert
8.结账 (jiézhàng) - To pay the bill
9.味道 (wèidào) - Taste
10.推荐 (tuījiàn) - Recommend

句子练习：

请给我菜单。 (Qǐng gěi wǒ càidān.)
Please give me the menu.

您有什么推荐的特色菜吗？ (Nín yǒu shénme tuījiàn de tèsè cài ma?)
Do you have any recommended specialty dishes?

我要一杯饮料。 (Wǒ yào yì bēi yǐnliào.)
I would like a drink.

这道菜的味道怎么样？ (Zhè dào cài de wèidào zěnmeyàng?)
How does this dish taste?

请帮我结账。 (Qǐng bāng wǒ jiézhàng.)
Please help me check out.

对话练习：

对话一：
 A: 你好，请问几位？ (Nǐ hǎo, qǐng wèn jǐ wèi?)
Hello, how many people?
B: 两位，请给我们菜单。 (Liǎng wèi, qǐng gěi wǒmen càidān.)
Two people, please give us the menu.

对话二：
 A: 这道菜是什么？(Zhè dào cài shì shénme?)
What is this dish?
B: 这是我们的特色菜，您可以试一下。 (Zhè shì wǒmen de tèsè cài, nín kěyǐ shì yīxià.)
This is our specialty dish, you can try it.


点餐经历
上周末，我和朋友去了一家中餐馆。我们到了以后，服务员给我们菜单。
我点了一个宫保鸡丁，一碗米饭和一杯茶。我的朋友点了一个炒面和一杯水。
我们等了一会儿，菜就来了。宫保鸡丁很好吃，米饭也很好。朋友说炒面很好吃。
吃完以后，我们叫服务员结账。我们用手机支付，非常方便。
这次吃饭很开心，食物很好，服务也很好。

Last weekend, my friend and I went to a Chinese restaurant. When we arrived, the waiter gave us menus. I ordered a Kung Pao Chicken, a bowl of rice and a cup of tea. My friend ordered a fried noodles and a glass of water. We waited for a while and the food came. The Kung Pao Chicken was delicious and so was the rice. Friends said the fried noodles are delicious. After we finished eating, we asked the waiter to pay. We paid by mobile phone which was very convenient. I enjoyed my meal this time, the food was good and the service was excellent.

开口说汉语    "Chinese Chit-Chat"

点餐 Ordering food

This story is about a lion and a mouse. And moral is that how sometime a weak person can be helpful in life.

Hindi Short Stories

Lion and Mouse

HSK2

Made Chinese easy!

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!)

In this episode, I talk about the importance of making mistakes in your target language. "Get out of your comfort zone, talk about something new, make a fool of yourself, and reach fluency one mistake at a time."


You can read the transcript here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1yJtBcqvnvETBvJRr5BlBoQl1WPX66GSs/view?usp=sharing


My teacher profile on iTalki: www.italki.com/teacher/2889545


My Twitter Profile: https://twitter.com/TEA_Time_Tayvin

T.E.A. Time with Tayvin Bayless 

Make mistakes to improve your language 

In this episode of Kev’s English Podcast, Kevin Dean dives into one of the most common mistakes IELTS candidates make in Writing Task 2: using memorised phrases.

Learn why sentences like “In the contemporary era…” or “This essay will discuss both views…” actually hurt your lexical resource and coherence scores — and what to say instead.

✅ Perfect for IELTS students aiming for Band 7 or higher
✅ Useful for those struggling to sound natural in academic writing
✅ Includes real examples from students + better alternatives

🎯 Want more tips? Visit theenglishnative.com
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Don’t forget to subscribe and share with other IELTS learners!

Kev's English Podcast

KEP 33: IELTS Writing Task 2: The Phrases You Must Avoid for Band 7+

💌 Diálogo: Consejos de Amor en una Tarde de Café ☕❤️

Sara: Uff… necesito tu ayuda, Luis. Estoy hecha un lío.

Luis: Claro, amiga. ¿Qué pasó? ¿Problemas del corazón?

Sara: Sí… no sé qué hacer con Diego. Últimamente lo siento distante.

Luis: ¿Han hablado sobre eso? A veces es cuestión de comunicación.

Sara: Intenté hablar, pero siempre dice que está cansado o que todo está bien.

Luis: Hmm… puede que esté estresado, pero también es importante que te sientas escuchada.

Sara: Exacto. Yo lo apoyo en todo, pero siento que no recibo lo mismo.

Luis: ¿Has pensado en hacer algo diferente? Tal vez planear una salida especial para reconectar.

Sara: Buena idea. Podría organizar una cena sorpresa. ¿Crees que funcione?

Luis: Claro, siempre es bueno romper la rutina. Pero también debes decirle cómo te sientes.

Sara: Eso me cuesta. No quiero que piense que me quejo todo el tiempo.

Luis: No es quejas, es expresar tus sentimientos. Si te quiere, lo entenderá.

Sara: Tienes razón. A veces me guardo las cosas y luego exploto.

Luis: Es normal. Pero el amor se construye con honestidad, no con silencios.

Sara: ¿Y si no le importa lo que digo?

Luis: Entonces tendrás tu respuesta. Pero primero, dale la oportunidad de demostrarte lo contrario.

Sara: Gracias, Luis. Eres muy sabio en temas de amor.

Luis: Ja, ja, no sé si sabio… solo he aprendido a base de errores.

Sara: Bueno, tus consejos me sirven mucho. ¡Te contaré cómo va la cena sorpresa!

Luis: ¡Claro! Y si necesitas un chef de emergencia, llámame.