In 1993, I was a university sophomore and decided I wanted to learn more about the Korean Language and History. I applied to be a foreign exchange student at Yonsei University in Seoul Korea and was accepted! I was so excited! I arrived in Korea on August 15, 1993 and during my one semester at Yonsei University I had the most amazing time. Even though it was my first time living in a foreign country, I never felt homesick… until Thanksgiving! Suddenly I realized that I was going to spend Thanksgiving apart from my family for the first time in my life. This made me think about why Thanksgiving was so important to me and to many other American families. First of all, on Thanksgiving my whole family always got together in one place. I loved spending time with my grandparents from both sides of my family. Secondly, every family has their traditions, and these are very valuable. My dad was always in charge of cooking the turkey. I remember waking up on Thanksgiving Day to the wonderful smell of turkey and stuffing. Finally, that day caused me to stop everything and simply be grateful for all the blessings I have been given. Being in Korea on Thanksgiving gave me a whole new appreciation for the holiday. I hope all Language Systems students have a chance to enjoy the spirit of Thanksgiving this year in America.
Language Systems Lifestyle
By Ty Mussack, Program Coordinator at OC
Halloween is always a special time of the year for our students to have a lot of fun while learning about American culture. Every year at our Orange County campus we hold costume and pumpkin carving contests. It’s always really cool to see some of the costumes that both teachers and students come up with. Last year the winner of the student costume contest was a Japanese student named Yohsuke. He dressed up as a big baby. He was wearing an adult-sized diaper, had a big pacifier in his mouth, and was carrying a baby’s bottle of milk. His costume was crazy and funny! I think that’s why he won. The students also come up with some really great ideas for the pumpkin carving contest. Of course, Language Systems provided the students with plenty of Halloween candy in the good old American tradition!
Discover Orange County
Discover Vietnamese food!
By Bao, Level 6 Student
One of the cool things about OC is city areas like Little Saigon. It’s an area that has tons of Vietnamese people and is well-known for Pho, which is a kind of Vietnamese noodle soup. In America, people can find Pho restaurants easily in any area where there is a Vietnamese community. In Southern California, if you love Asian food, you should taste the Pho in Westminster City, Orange County (OC), also known as Little Saigon. There are many Pho restaurants in Little Saigon, but I strongly recommend a restaurant called “Pho 79.”
Pho 79 is located at 9941 Hazard Avenue, Westminster, OC, at the corner of Bolsa Avenue and Hazard. For over a century Pho has been served in a bowl with a specific cut of white rice noodle in clear beef broth, with slim cuts of beef. Variations feature tendons, tripe, meatballs, chicken legs, chicken breasts or other chicken organs. There are also three bowl sizes: medium, large, and extra-large. The extra-large is also called the super bowl in Vietnamese. This will help you when you want to order in any Pho restaurant in America. You and your friend can have a meal with each other at Pho 79 for around $17 (including tip) for two extra-large bowls.
With many Vietnamese living outside their own country for a lot of different reasons, Pho is not only a type of food, but also part of their memories of Vietnam. Therefore, when a Vietnamese person opens a Pho restaurant, the owner also wants to introduce Vietnamese culture to people in America. So when you come to Pho 79, or any Pho restaurant, you are not only tasting Vietnamese food, you are also tasting Vietnamese culture.
Halloween Spooktacular & Moonlight Movie Friday, October 28 – 3:00 PM – 9:00 PM LOCATION: Dana Point Community Center 34052 Del Obispo St. Dana Point, California 92629
The City of Dana Point will be hosting spooky fun again this year. Fun FREE activities for the whole family! At 3:00 pm the City of Dana Point will be hosting spooky fun at Lantern Bay Park. Halloween Carnival Games, Halloween Cookie Decorating & Crafts, a costume parade and more! The night ends with the Moonlight Movie, Hotel Transylvania 2 (PG), beginning at 7 pm, plus free popcorn and treats INFORMATION: 949-248-3530
Anaheim Plaza – Halloween Trick or Treat Saturday, October 29 – 11:00 am – 1:00 pm LOCATION: N. Euclid St. & Santa Ana Frwy. Anaheim, CA 92801
Free Fun Family Event – Anaheim Plaza Food Court Anaheim Plaza will be hosting a Halloween Trick-or-Treat Event. This event is for the whole family and will include giveaways, balloon art, face painting, and a kid friendly DJ. Free Tick-or-Treat Bag and Flashlight for the first 100 kids.
Halloween Treat-or-Treating at Anaheim Town Square
Saturday, October 29, 2016 – Trick or Treating 2 pm – 4 pm
LOCATION: Anaheim Town Square
2180 East Lincoln Avenue
Anaheim, CA 92806
FREE Event! Activities include: Trick-or-Treating, Pumpkin Decorating, Face Painting, Balloon Art, Train Rides, a Costume Contest and More!
INFORMATION: 714-956-3411
Halloween Carnival
Monday, October 31st – 6:00 – 8:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Central Park La Palma
This yearly spooktacular event features a fabulous COSTUME CONTEST for ghouls and boys with special prizes in each age division! This year’s Halloween spookfest will feature CARNIVAL GAMES, a “GOBLIN GULCH” for children under the age of 5, and a haunted area. Free event. This event will be canceled in the event of rain. INFORMATION: For more information, please call the La Palma Recreation and Community Services Department at (714) 690-3350
Language Systems Faces
Interview with staff John T. (OC)
By Ty Mussack, Program Coordinator at OC
1. How long have you been working at Language Systems? I’ve been working here for about 3 months now. 2. What are your main responsibilities? My job is to help our students with any needs that they might have. There are a lot of different ways that students need assistance. 3. What is the most difficult part of your job? Well, every student has a unique situation or pro
blem, and sometimes it is a challenge to try to find the best way to solve their problems. 4. Where are you from originally? I’m from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. 5. What do you miss about your home country? I miss my friends and certain things about our culture. Sometimes I miss riding around the city on my scooter. A lot of people get around that way in Vietnam. 6. What is your favorite holiday, either in America or in your country? Why? My favorite holiday is Christmas because I think it makes a lot of people feel happy. The Christmas spirit in America is very peaceful and nice.
Student Article 1
Field trip to the Pumpkin Patch 2016
By Tom, Level 5
Today, I went to a pumpkin patch with my classmates. There are a lot of international students at Language Systems. Some of them have been in America more than 1 year, so they have celebrated Halloween before. However, most of the students who are at Language Systems have never experienced the holiday Halloween. This is why some of my classmates wanted to visit a pumpkin patch. It was one way to see how American people prepare for Halloween. When I got to the pumpkin patch, I was surprised to see so many different kinds of pumpkins. Some of them were so big that you could not lift them, yet some of them were really tiny. In addition, there were several kinds of roller coasters for kids. It just cost one dollar to go on a ride. We had a lot of fun. That was an interesting experience. One thing that I am a little bit worried about is that none of us actually bought a pumpkin. We just looked around and took lot of pictures. Then we left from the pumpkin patch. I hope the owner and workers were not upset at us.
Student Article 2
A Dream Come True
By Yana, Level 7
To me, friendship is one of the most unique things in the world. Friendship can help you grow as a person, and sometimes it can even help you achieve your highest goals in life. Making new friends is always a great pleasure for me. I think I’m a happy and friendly person, and I like sharing positivity with other people. For me, no two people are alike. Of course we all have arms, legs, eyes, noses, etc. However, inside each person there is something different, special, and unique. I always try to find this uniqueness in people. Maybe that’s my way of creating new friendships.
When I was in my country, Kazakhstan, I dreamed about having friends from all over the world. I had “friends” from the USA and England, but that was only on Facebook. I wanted to have real friends from around the world that I actually knew personally. Now I am here in California studying English at Language Systems. Finally my dream has come true! At Language Systems, I have made friends from around the world. Now I have real friends from countries like Brazil, China, Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam. We share our experiences and enjoy spending time together. Friendship with these classmates has been a wonderful opportunity for me, and I think it will help me for the rest of my life.
For over 30 years, Language Systems International has been offering comprehensive exchange experiences, providing high-quality English instruction with a focus on a communicative and student-centered environment. Follow our blog to stay updated on our activities and latest news.
