Last Friday night, some one-on-one students had a daytrip within the Kunming city. When they encountered a minor problem and tried to contact Keats staff, none of them had a valid SIM card to make a local call. One of the students came up with an idea – contacting Keats staff using his mobile app, which is WeChat. Then they finally made their way to contact Joy of Keats School.

微信, its English name is WeChat. Developed in 2011, WeChat is a free app for real-time Internet phone calls and messages. It is now one of the most popular apps among Chinese people. Almost every young Chinese use the WeChat to communicate with their family and friends. To many users, the WeChat sometimes even replaces the phone calls and short messages.

Thanks to the WeChat, the students successfully found Joy who helped the students solve their problems and they were very grateful to Joy’s show-up in time. However, Joy was more thankful to the WeChat. Based on her real experience, Joy recommend any student who comes to learn Chinese in China to download the WeChat on their smart phones. Even you don’t have a valid SIM card, you can still find us through the WeChat under the wifi condition.

There is another feature of WeChat that is worth mentioning, which is the Friends Circle. Many Chinese learners use the Friends Circle to share their amazing experience in China. Friends can “like” or comment on the post. This function is more like the Facebook. It is also a great way to meet new Chinese friends.

There are now two versions of WeChat, one is the Chinese version and the other one is the International version. Keats students use the International version as its language is in English. You are also welcome to try the Chinese version which is the one that Chinese people are using. Take out your mobile phones and download the WeChat now! You can find out more information about the WeChat here: http://weixin.qq.com/