Victor Florez

Year in School: Junior
Major: International Studies
Hometown: Miami, Fla.
Current City: Tianjin, China

Aug. 31, 2010 | Entry No. 2

Before studying Chinese, it sounded like a random arrangement of strange sounds- something that seemed impossible to learn.  By breaking away from that thought process, I have been able to continue studying this language and reach a point in which I am comfortable engaging in conversations with the Chinese people.  

Another thing that has inspired me to continue studying Chinese is to prove wrong those who believe that it is impossible for non-native Chinese to reach a high level of fluency.  Besides that, it has mostly been the process of learning Chinese that has inspired me to keep going. I have met many great Chinese people, as well as others from countries around the world. I learn many things every day, especially being in China now--learn from my daily mistakes, approach everyone with good intentions, introduce Chinese people to Western culture, etc. The most important thing that I keep in mind while learning Mandarin (and doing everything and anything else in my life), is to thoroughly enjoy the journey and not anxiously wait for the destination.

Starting September 13, 2010 classes will begin here at Nankai University, situated in Tianjin, China. Founded in 1919, Nankai University is quite a bit older than USF.  Although the campus is larger than USF's there are only 20,000-25,000 enrolled students, roughly half of USF's enrollment.

During this year in China I will commit myself to studying the Chinese language by studying the culture and history of China in Chinese. If I work hard enough, I hope to attain an advanced proficiency level after these two semesters. For now, I am simply pursuing something that I love doing and already have been presented with many opportunities. This is just the beginning and I know that as long as I pursue what I love to do and am true to myself, opportunities will find me.

 

Aug. 30, 2010 | Entry No. 1

Editor’s note: Victor Florez participated in the Chinese Bridge Competition this summer and was one of five first-place finishers.

I was not prepared at all for my experience participating in the Chinese Bridge Competition.  I met 107 people from over 60 countries whom all had very similar aspirations to myself.  I also discovered that although there are many cultural differences between my international friends, we are all essentially human beings with many more common points than one would imagine.  
 
Participating in the competition was actually quite strenuous because we were up everyday from 8 a.m. and usually did not leave the studio until 11 p.m.-1 a.m. (in total, we had four days off during this month).  It was also very stressful because we were always in a rush to do everything, as if it was at the last minute. Everything seemed completely disorganized but when it came down to live TV time, somehow everything miraculously worked out!  Even under all this stress, all of the international contestants as well as Chinese workers and volunteers were able to come together and have an unforgettable time.  
 
This competition has taught me a number of things: to be more patient under stressful situations, appreciate every minute of life because one does not know how much they will miss it later, to memorize lines in Chinese on the spot, and how to look full of energy and VERY happy for a two-hour photo shoot after a day of mental and physical exhaustion with nothing in your stomach but box lunch! The list goes on but regardless of everything, it was truly an invaluable experience that I will treasure for the rest of my life.