Learning a foreign language is always fun, but to learn Chinese I guess my all teeth will fall apart. I've spent two years in china, still I don't get a clue what my Chinese lab mates are talking about. The situation gets worst in lab meetings which is usually conducted in Chinese and most of the time I just seat around with my face like "Bangla panch". My crazy Chinese Professor who speaks to Chinese students 10 minutes on some issues, he speaks to me on the same issue in less than 2 minutes with a lot of pause. Sometimes I wonder is that the same translation he said to me? When I myself try to speak Chinese, my poor pronunciation is the worst. The situation just turns out that "they forget their own language". Oftentimes they just stare at me like I'm the alien one landed from Mars. In fact to all Chinese, all foreigners are aliens. So then I bring out my smart cellphone where I kept at least two Chinese-to-English and English-to-Chinese translator apps and dictionary. I show them what I wanted to say and they understand. I breathe a deep sigh of relieve, "Oh! Finally!"
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| Thats my expression when everyone around me speaks Chinese Photo source: Hachiman Hikigaya (Yahari Ore no Seishun SNAFU) |
I had this fascination for learning Japanese from watching anime. Konichiwa (good day), Ohayo gozaimasu (good morning), arigatou gozaimasu (Thank you),
Sugoi! (wow!), Oishii! (Delicious!), Nani (What?), Kawaii desu ne (its cute!), Hontou desu ka? (Really?), Ganbatte kudasai (do your best)
suki dayo (male speech for I love you) or suki yo (female speech for I love you). In 2012 with these words in mind I went to Japan for 2 months. I liked how Japanese people greet each other by bowing. I also started bowing to anyone I meet on the lift and stairs. Unfortunately I could not speak more than those words and I had trouble finding halal and vegetarian foods. A senior friend taught me that "buta" means pork and to survive learn to speak two sentences: "Kore ni wa butaniku ya butaniku no abura?" (Does this food contain pork or pork oil?) and "Kore wa bejitarian-yō no shokujidesu ka?" (is this food vegetarian?). So I survived in a non-English speaking East Asian country for the first time without knowing the language.
In 2013 I went to China to start my PhD. Before leaving Bangladesh only Chinese word that I knew was "Ni hao" (Hello!). Still I could not say "Ni hao" like the Chinese. So to fulfill the requirement I had to study how to read, write and speak Chinese language for 3 months. What was the first words you learned during the foreign language study? For me it was learning to say "Ni hao", thank you (Xie Xie), welcome (Bu ke qi) in a Chinese way and least but not the least "Wo aii ni" (I love you!) and "Wo thebia Xi huan ni" (I specially like you).
By the way can't help sharing two jokes:
Joke number 1:
A Swiss man, looking for directions, pulls up at a bus stop where two Americans are waiting.
“Entschuldigung, koennen Sie Deutsch sprechen?” he asks. The two Americans just stared at him.
“Excusez-moi, parlez vous Fracais?” he tries. The two continue to stare.
“Parlare Italiano?” No response. “Hablan ustedes Espanol?” Still nothing.
The Swiss guy drives off, extremely disgusted.
The first American turns to the second and says, “Y’know, maybe we should learn a foreign language.” “Why?” says the other. “That guy knew four languages, and it didn’t do him any good.”
Joke number 2:
Two translators on a ship were talking.
“Can you swim?” asked one.
“No” said the other, “but I can shout for help in nine languages.”
I would be that person learning to ask for help other than "hello" and "thank you". By the way, other day I checked my foreign language skills during a conversation with a friend. Except my mother tongue and English, I can speak and understand a little of Chinese, few words of Japanese, as well as Hindi and Urdu. My friend commented, "What shall you do if all language fails in an alien land?"
"If all else fails, use the universal sign and body language and don't forget to download translator apps in your cellphone."
