Reem is a smart, well spoken young woman. She gives off the impression of being wise beyond her years and she surely is! She’s well travelled but loves Los Angeles more than any other city in the United States. She sat down with me to share some more about what she loves.
I was born in Saudi Arabia in the capital of Riyadh. It’s very different from here because Saudi Arabia has a much different culture from the rest of the world because of our religion, Islam. We closely connect our culture and lifestyle to our religion. I don’t think that every country in the world has a ruling system that’s based on religion either. We also don’t have a way to vote for a ruler. We have a family who rules our country.
I think that I wanted to combine learning with fun. It’s a very good opportunity to learn. I have taken English courses in another country before and I prefer it here. It’s very important to learn English when I work. It’s like a second language in my country. I’d also like to pursue a Master’s degree in the United States later, so it would be important for that too. I think that it can benefit you in general.
No, I’ve been to the United States 4 of 5 times already actually. I came as a tourist to visit Florida, Chicago, Las Vegas, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. I love Los Angeles the most, but New York is the runner up.
I miss home cooked food. I also miss spending time with my family and friends.
I watch a lot of TV shows, like How to Get Away with Murder and Revenge. I really like tv shows that have crime, drama, and I sometimes watch documentaries. I like watching anything on Netflix.
People who want to learn English must watch tv shows. For me watching people speak English on tv show has been more beneficial to me than a grammar class. I think the environment in Los Angeles helps with practicing English too because people are patient and understanding when I try to speak to them. You can also try reading short novels. I think that would help too. Consistently studying subjects in English helps as well.
Favorite place in LA:
My favorite places in Los Angeles are Beverly Hills, Sunset, Hollywood, Venice Beach, Santa Monica Beach, and Abbot-Kinney. I just like Los Angeles in general. It’s a hard question to answer because I love Los Angeles in general.
Favorite restaurant in Westwood:
My favorite restaurant in Westwood is In-n-Out. I haven’t tried very many places in Westwood because I only go to In-n-Out. I have tried Shake-Shack, but I think that In-n-Out is much better. I like that their menu is simple and good.
Favorite type of food:
My favorite type of food is American and Italian. I like burgers! It’s so basic but good. For Italian food, I like pizza and pasta. I really like pizza with cheese, pepperoni, chicken and olives. I once had a lobster pizza that was really good too!
Favorite moment in class at ELC:
I really like when we talk about a topic that I’m really passionate about. It’s nice because I’m able to practice talking about something I actually care about in class. In general, I also appreciate the diverse student population because I love to learn new things about my classmates and their cultures.
