# No Games, but Mooncakes: We Get Snacking on September Meetups ## Quick Navigation - [Find Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners.md): Discover language exchange partners worldwide - [Language Exchange](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange.md): Practice with native speakers worldwide - [Moments](https://www.hellotalk.com/moments.md): Share your language learning journey - [Topics](https://www.hellotalk.com/topics.md): Explore trending topics and discussions - [Chat & Messaging](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/features/chat.md): Text, voice, and video conversations - [Voice Rooms](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/features/voiceroom.md): Join live audio conversations - [Live Streaming](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/features/live-streaming.md): Interactive classes and language sessions - [Certified Teachers](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/features/certified-teachers.md): Learn from professional language instructors - [Immersive Learning](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/features/immersive-learning.md): Learn everywhere with instant translations - [Translation Tools](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/features/translation.md): Instant translation between any languages - [AI-Powered Apps](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/aiapps.md): Access specialized learning tools - [Language AI Apps](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/aiapps.md): Discover our AI-powered language learning applications - [All Features](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/features.md): Explore all learning features and tools - [Download](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/download.md): Get HelloTalk on iOS and Android Autumn is slowly approaching. Students go back to school and university, and everyone is grasping the last rays of sun. Sounds a little dramatic! No drama at HelloTalk meetups though, but rather... there seems to be a taste for snacking in September ? Maybe we're already preparing ourselves for cold winter months. With HelloTalk meetups that change of seasons is definitely easier. Or, at least tastier! ## London, UK London called us again! ☎️ ? On the first Saturday of September, Tom hosted the second London meet up ?. Tom made a big effort to get everyone together. One of the guests Marlon said: *“I came to the HelloTalk meetup in London. This was the second meetup to take place in London, but it was my first time attending the event. Having missed the initial one being caught with some other commitments, I'm glad I had the chance to attend this one!* *We casually relaxed by the Regent’s Canal while chatting, eating and drinking. Being a warm, sunny day, the weather was ideal for relaxing outdoors! I met a diverse group of people from a range of different countries. Some attendees were from the UK, while others were from China, South Korea, Venezuela, Sweden, and Germany. We had a lot of fun discussing our experiences of travelling and living in different countries.* *I look forward to attending another meetup. I’d love to give a huge thanks to Tom for organising this month’s event!"* Pub, queen’s palace, British museum… What will the Londoners come up with next time? ? ? Thanks Tom and thank you all who made it! ? ## San Francisco, USA First HelloTalk meet-up in San Francisco, was a success! We had 15-20 guests gathered at the beautiful outdoor park on top of new Salesforce Transit Center. There were fruit platters, freshly-cut watermelon, pies, cookies, Chinese pancakes, and candies — HelloTalkers evidently like to snack! ? The group was a mix of ages, professions, backgrounds, and language preferences, which made for a vibrant exchange! The picnic began with a mini ice-breaker activity ❄️: apart from their names and languages each person shared one of their favourite cities in the world. Most people were interested in learning Mandarin and improving their English, but quite a few were also learning Japanese and Korean. In this, after all still quite small group we also had people speaking Spanish, French, Italian, Hindi, Tagalog, Cantonese, and German! Unsurprisingly perhaps HelloTalk was also one of the topics of conversation. Most people turned out to be fairly new to the app, but a couple of people were more die-hard fans, already active in the online community for over a year — way to go! ? Looks like everyone was impressed with the various functionalities of the app. As the people got immersed in language practice, the sun was blazing and the dark chocolate peanut cups melted into a pot of “fondue” ?Some decided to use it as a cookie dip, others lamented that they could not indulge in such luxury. Gotta keep in shape! After three hours spent together people developed connections: exchanged contact info and followed each other on HelloTalk so they can keep in touch later. And... perhaps organise another fondue-filled meetup? ? Special thanks to our event organizers Sam and Chunyue, and our photographer Coy ? ## Melbourne, Australia 東京大学卒業式にて The Crafty Squire pub in Melbourne ??attracted more than 30 keen HelloTalkers on Sunday evening. A brave move right before a week of work and study! As it always happens on such occasions, the event started with some locational confusion. People being dispersed all around not sure where the epicentre of events was! But, after we located a **perfect place** for the night on the top level, we rounded everyone up and migrated to the. Next steps: get drinks (essential! ?), write name tags, and... joined in on discussions ranging from language learning to the meaning of life! People stayed chatting until late evening. Did anyone discover the meaning of life? We don't know yet! Met many new passionate language learners got connected, so the event was definitely a success. A great start for, hopefully, a long series of HelloTalk meetups "down under" ? Special thanks to our organizer Gabriel who helped to initiate our first event in Australia ? ## Shenzhen, China: Mooncake Cooking Class Chinese mid-autumn festival is coming soon! Do you know what people typically eat to celebrate it? Mooncakes, 月饼, delicious pastries which are often given as gifts ? To introduce more people to this delicacy, HelloTalk community angel Willow hosted a mooncake making class in Shenzhen ? Around 30 HelloTalk users learnt to make iced mooncakes at the same time making new friends. Willow prepared a short presentation to introduce mid-autumn fairy tales. Laughter filled the cafe as Willow made the participants act out a play ?! Antonia said: *"I felt I was the queen of mooncakes tonight! Thank you so much Willow for organising the event. I had a really lovely time and enjoyed learning about Chinese culture and the mid-autumn festival."* ???Advance wishes of happy mid-autumn festival to all HelloTalkers! ??? Maybe you want to organise a cooking class at your meetup? [Sign up to be a HelloTalk ambassador!](https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CCSJHVK) And, if teaching others to cook is too much effort, why not share your yummy stories on our foodie account? [Follow @ht_foodie](https://brc.hellotalk.com/Follow-HTC-Foodie)! ??? --- ## Language Exchange Partners - [English Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/english.md): Connect with native English speakers - [Spanish Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/spanish.md): Connect with native Spanish speakers - [French Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/french.md): Connect with native French speakers - [Japanese Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/japanese.md): Connect with native Japanese speakers - [German Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/german.md): Connect with native German speakers - [Chinese Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/chinese.md): Connect with native Chinese speakers - [Italian Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/italian.md): Connect with native Italian speakers - [Russian Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/russian.md): Connect with native Russian speakers - [Portuguese Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/portuguese.md): Connect with native Portuguese speakers - [Arabic Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/arabic.md): Connect with native Arabic speakers - [Hindi Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/hindi.md): Connect with native Hindi speakers - [Korean Exchange Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/exchange/korean.md): Connect with native Korean speakers ## Learn Languages - [Learn English](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/english.md): Master English with native speakers - [Learn Spanish](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/spanish.md): Master Spanish with native speakers - [Learn French](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/french.md): Master French with native speakers - [Learn Japanese](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/japanese.md): Master Japanese with native speakers - [Learn German](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/german.md): Master German with native speakers - [Learn Chinese](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/chinese.md): Master Chinese with native speakers - [Learn Italian](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/italian.md): Master Italian with native speakers - [Learn Russian](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/russian.md): Master Russian with native speakers - [Learn Portuguese](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/portuguese.md): Master Portuguese with native speakers - [Learn Arabic](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/arabic.md): Master Arabic with native speakers - [Learn Korean](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/korean.md): Master Korean with native speakers - [Learn Hindi](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/learn/hindi.md): Master Hindi with native speakers ## Partners by Country - [USA Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/usa.md): Find language exchange partners in United States - [UK Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/uk.md): Find language exchange partners in United Kingdom - [Canada Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/canada.md): Find language exchange partners in Canada - [Australia Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/australia.md): Find language exchange partners in Australia - [Japan Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/japan.md): Find language exchange partners in Japan - [Korea Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/korea.md): Find language exchange partners in Korea - [China Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/china.md): Find language exchange partners in China - [Spain Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/spain.md): Find language exchange partners in Spain - [France Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/france.md): Find language exchange partners in France - [Germany Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/germany.md): Find language exchange partners in Germany - [Brazil Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/brazil.md): Find language exchange partners in Brazil - [India Language Partners](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/partners/countries/india.md): Find language exchange partners in India ## Resources - [Download iOS App](https://apps.apple.com/app/hellotalk/id557130558): Get HelloTalk on the App Store - [Download Android App](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hellotalk): Get HelloTalk on Google Play - [AI Language Apps](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/aiapps.md): Explore AI-powered language learning tools - [About HelloTalk](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/about.md): Learn more about our mission - [Blog](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/blog.md): Language learning tips and stories - [Help Center](https://www.hellotalk.com/en/faq.md): Get answers to common questions --- *HelloTalk connects you with native speakers worldwide for authentic language practice and cultural exchange.*