By Yin Yeping

Most people think of an English corner purely as a place for Chinese people to come and practice their language skills with native English speakers. But it can also be somewhere foreigners make local friends to help them adapt to Beijing more rapidly.

The English corner on the campus of Renmin University of China each Friday night has been there for more than a decade. Yet with each year, the corner only grows in popularity.

From the front gate of the university, you can see hundreds of people from different backgrounds gathering under the street lamp in the open square, chatting in English.

Among the regulars is Russell James from Arizona, a manager in a foreign consulting company. When he finally stopped joking about his failures and confusions in learning Chinese, he told the Global Times: "I simply love this place. It is full of different cultural perspectives that each individual can share."

James doesn't claim the corner is perfect, however. "More chairs would be good," he said, smiling.

Also quick to praise the corner was James Triplett, from Mississippi. Triplett works for an international charity organization in Beijing, and was enthusiastically sharing his perspectives on Chinese culture and history.

"When a person lives far away from home, it is not easy to meet somebody who you can talk English with freely and casually," said Triplett. "That is why I love it here!"

Dating

Most of the foreigners who had come to the corner described it as a platform through which they could learn the Chinese language and get answers regarding life in Beijing.

One Chinese student called Yan Yan said that some people even use the corner for dating. "As long as you can speak some English then the opportunities are endless," said Yan Yan.

There is no prescribed end to the meet: it can go on as late as 2 am. Obviously, many foreigners have been touched by this atmosphere of vigorous East meets West interaction. Topics can range from the global economic crisis to climate change, and casual passers by often stop and get involved without even meaning to.

"From the meetings, I learn as much from them as they learn from me," said Yan Yan.

Jim Cook, a 62 years old from Boston comes to the corner because "I realized I couldn't get to know myself better as an American until I put myself in with the local Chinese."

He also feels the corner serves a basic human need, beyond anything to do with improving language skills to pass exams: "People need somebody who they can talk to, especially when far away from home," said Cook.

Lively

Nicolas Theiner, from Slovakia, was a particularly lively member of the group. As an exchange student in Renmin University of China, Theiner finds the corner fascinating, and enjoys learning about China through face-to-face interaction.

"This is a great chance for sharing ideas with a bunch of people from totally different cultural backgrounds," said Theiner. "And I'd like to be here again next time!"

When the Global Times ran into Odel Francis from Nigeria, he had already been at the corner for four hours. Francis is studying toward a PhD at China Foreign Affairs University and although he is always busy, he makes time for the corner. For him, the corner is an idea-provoking zone. It is here, he claimed, that he first realized how eager the Chinese are to open themselves up to the world.

With more foreigners coming to Beijing for work and study, being able to interact with the locals is a necessary skill. The English corner in Renmin University is a great way for proactive foreigners to hit the ground running.