Post: #51

I am thinking about going to China to volunteer for a couple of weeks or a month teaching english to Migrant children. It will be good for college applications, get my volunteer hours for high school completed, and also be a great opportunity to perfect my Chinese. Does anyone know of a program that I can get involved with for doing this? I lived in China for 3 years while in middle school so I'm experienced and know the culture.

Post: #52

(03-05-2014 04:24 PM)Switch Wrote:  I am thinking about going to China to volunteer for a couple of weeks or a month teaching english to Migrant children. It will be good for college applications, get my volunteer hours for high school completed, and also be a great opportunity to perfect my Chinese. Does anyone know of a program that I can get involved with for doing this? I lived in China for 3 years while in middle school so I'm experienced and know the culture.

I believe that a lot of individuals who are in some way connected to this organization work with migrant children in the Beijing area: http://www.bicf.org/

I can't connect you with anyone specifically, but if you shot off and email, they should be able to offer you some recommendations.

Post: #53

What have people's reactions been to speaking Chinese to random people in the US? They have been friendly to me, much more so than Russian people when I converse with them (I'm professionally proficient in Russian but only have conversational Mandarin).

Pleco is awesome. I also like quizlet - you can create your own custom sentence flash cards that the iPhone can recite to you.

Post: #54

(03-05-2014 09:31 PM)ao85 Wrote:  What have people's reactions been to speaking Chinese to random people in the US? They have been friendly to me, much more so than Russian people when I converse with them (I'm professionally proficient in Russian but only have conversational Mandarin).

Very positive.

Post: #55

(03-05-2014 09:31 PM)ao85 Wrote:  What have people's reactions been to speaking Chinese to random people in the US? They have been friendly to me, much more so than Russian people when I converse with them (I'm professionally proficient in Russian but only have conversational Mandarin).

Can't say anything about the US, but Chinese/Taiwanese people in Germany and Japan have almost always reacted very positively whenever you converse in Chinese to them. Hongkonger tourists, on the other hand, don't get too exited when you speak to them in Mandarin.

Post: #56

most of tje chinese i talk to are.FOB exchange students. they love it

Post: #57

(03-05-2014 09:31 PM)ao85 Wrote:  What have people's reactions been to speaking Chinese to random people in the US?

Last week, I was at a Vietnamese noodle shop run by Chinese folks.

My friend, a Chinese immigrant ordered, but the noodles where fricken spicy, so I stopped one of the waitresses as she was passing by and requested a glass of ice water, in Chinese of course.

The look her face was priceless.

When she came back to the table, she asked my friend is he was my teacher and he explained that we'd actually met in China and I'd learned Chinese long before that initially meeting.

Of course, she didn't ask me any questions or look at me. Just had a conversation with my buddy.

Post: #58

Yeah, the looks on their faces are always priceless.

Post: #59

found a big ass book of 成语s, gonna have fun working those into conversations

Post: #60

(03-06-2014 01:23 AM)Suits Wrote:  

(03-05-2014 09:31 PM)ao85 Wrote:  What have people's reactions been to speaking Chinese to random people in the US?

Last week, I was at a Vietnamese noodle shop run by Chinese folks.

My friend, a Chinese immigrant ordered, but the noodles where fricken spicy, so I stopped one of the waitresses as she was passing by and requested a glass of ice water, in Chinese of course.

The look her face was priceless.

When she came back to the table, she asked my friend is he was my teacher and he explained that we'd actually met in China and I'd learned Chinese long before that initially meeting.

Of course, she didn't ask me any questions or look at me. Just had a conversation with my buddy.

I've heard this happening in China (maybe someone on the forum wrote about it) that even though you can speak Chinese, the Chinese person either ignores you or continues to speak in English. It seems to me this is usually because they haven't processed that you speak Chinese, not out of any malice. Is there a polite way of getting them to engage with you in Chinese? This would be important in getting conversation practice. This has happened to me a few times. Or it could be I need to work on my tones and it's too hard for them to understand me.

Post: #61

dont just start in english in the middle if a conversation. stary with hello and a few obvious questions. sometimes they expect english so badly that your chinese sounds like am english word theu dont know.
its probably mot tones cause tones arent overly omportant for basic conversation. make sure youre actual pronounciation is right first. a LOT of english speakers get basic finals wrong.

Post: #62

Taking a university beginner mandarin class for business purposes. Apparently most universities in North America use this same system to teach students how to speak, read and write mandarin in both characters and pinyin. The system is called Integrated Chinese.

Can be found online for free here:
Audio: http://www.langlab.wayne.edu/new-fltc/ht...dition.htm
Books can be found online if you search around. They have the textbook, a character workbook, and a grammar book.
videos: http://www.teachertube.com/user_videos.p...frankwyang

videos are pretty fucking lame considering the price of the textbooks... but they're funny to watch because of the horrible acting

Before looking online I saw that the audiobook was being sold by my uni for $60, textbook for another $60, and each workbook (grammar and characters) for $30 each.

My class does three 4 hour lessons for each chapter. Usually we'll begin learning the new words and how to pronounce them and use them grammatically. Next class we'll get tested on spelling 5 random words from the first part of that chapter in pinyin and character, do a memorized skit of a conversation between two speakers then begin the second part of the chapter where new words are introduced. 3rd class we'll get a 30 minute quiz on the whole chapter and begin with the next chapter.

So far after 2 months of doing it, I feel pretty comfortable around the language. I went to a restaurant the other day and noticed some basic words being used my native speakers. Having a prof teach it makes it seam like a reasonably simple language to learn if you put in your dues. You just need to learn new words, remember their symbols and practice saying them so your tones are correct.

The thing that made taking it on more mentally manageable was when my prof said that symbols are actually more efficient than syllable languages because when you see a symbol, you automatically know what it means compared to syllables, where you must pronounce each one. It ends up being a quicker language. Also sentence structure is quite simple for example, time always comes first in a sentence and has a specific order.

All that being said. I'm just learning basic things like Greetings, Family, Dates & Times Hobbies, Visiting friends, etc. Very basic stuff.

I'm also thinking about just getting right into Pimsleur while doing this against the recommendation of my prof but have noticed that the audio from Integrated Chinese and from Pimsleur have slightly different accents from what I can hear. Who knows though, tones are where I'm really falling behind atm.

Post: #63

is the integrated chinese about a guy named wang peng?

Post: #64

This happens to me all of the time in Shenzhen. Probably happens in 1/10 or more times that I speak to a Chinese shopkeeper, worker, etc. Taxi drivers for some reason, not so much.


I've heard this happening in China (maybe someone on the forum wrote about it) that even though you can speak Chinese, the Chinese person either ignores you or continues to speak in English. It seems to me this is usually because they haven't processed that you speak Chinese, not out of any malice. Is there a polite way of getting them to engage with you in Chinese? This would be important in getting conversation practice. This has happened to me a few times. Or it could be I need to work on my tones and it's too hard for them to understand me.
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Post: #65

they also probably dont want to deal.with bad chinese. i hate broken english

Post: #66

I don't think its that, really. People see and hear, often, what they expect to see and hear. The fact that my chinese may not be good doesn't help, of course, but since they're answering me in Chinese (when it happens to me) or when it frustrates communication, its unlikely thats the reason. I agree that if they answer in English though, that could very well be the reason.

Post: #67

i used to get stuck with ransom people wanting to practice english wih me and i hated it. id segway into chinese as fast as possible. the average person doesnt want to help a stranger if ita inconvenient. i didnt mean to sound harsh, what i meant was take what tou can get, and then try to find places that will be open to you speaking chinese. when you find one, youll know. there was a resteraunt we woukd go to near my apartment, way off the beaten path. when wed fo theyd love having is. theyd come over, ask a bunch of questuons, where were from ect. didnt even bother in english. they just though it was so fucking cool we were coming to their little 胡同

Post: #68

(03-07-2014 12:16 AM)clever alias Wrote:  is the integrated chinese about a guy named wang peng?

Yeah its about Wang Peng, Li You, and Bai Ying Ai, so far after 5 chapters.

Post: #69

Relating to Chinese people speaking to you in Chinglish: it happened to me, too. Even though they understand every word you say, for the first few minutes, some of them will continue to talk in this mix of broken English and broken sign language...which is actually harder to understand than if they just spoke Chinese.

It has more to do with the fact that many Chinese just never considered the possibility that a foreigner could ever know how to speak Chinese. They have this odd notion in their minds that all foreigners, at least Whites and possibly others that look obviously foreign, all speak English...perfect English...and only English.

Just to show this isn't due to mispronunciation: a couple times when talking to one of the Chinese students here in Japan, that person's friend would be in the next room and ask from around the corner “他是中国人吗？/ Is he Chinese?” then shit bricks when they saw me. Teachers and friends also generally say I have only a minimal accent. Even with this, it's happened several times that when I speak to a stranger here or in Germany, they assume I'm talking to them in either German, English or Japanese, giving me this blank stare before they finally get it through their heads, saying 哦！你会讲中国话！我以为你在说英语/德语/日语！/Oh! You can speak Chinese! I thought you were speaking [...]!“

Another time I was caught in a rain storm back in Beijing, got into one of those freelance cabs with three Chinese guys. We were bullshitting in the back seat for at least 20 minutes, speaking Chinese the whole time...while joking with the cab driver on and off. Then they said something like "we're getting off here, you can take him [referring to me] to Sanlitun."但是...我不会英语！/ But...I don't speak English!” I said something to him and the other guy said "他会讲中文。“... to which the guy answered. "哦！你会讲中国话！”...No shit, I've just been speaking Chinese this whole time. Another time I was talking to this girl in a club for about five minutes, each time I would speak to her in Chinese she would answer immediately in English [she said she'd studied abroad]. After five whole minutes of having understood me, she finally asked me if I knew any Chinese. Remember, she had understood every word I'd been saying to her in Chinese, otherwise she wouldn't have answered immediately.

It's odd, but it kind of shows how much our perception affects what we see and hear.

Of course, only some of the Chinese act this way. There are still plenty others who will just respond in normal Chinese when you speak to them.

Post: #70

Sarge, agree completely, though some of these stories (particularly with the girl in the club) take it to a further extreme. I haven't seen that kind of blockage before.

To add to the difficulty, Cantonese usually speak pu tong hua very lazily, and so in SZ, it adds to the mix of problems. In BJ, I think there is more of an expectation inherently that someone may speak some Chinese, while in SZ, very little. In HK, it seems, none at all (PTH or Cantonese).

Sarge, where in Japan are you based? Do you ever come through China?

Post: #71

Too be clear, most Chinese are incredibly grateful when they realize you speak Chinese. Most can't speak English at all and appreciate your abilities.

One way to avoid having waitstaff avoid speaking to you is to not go out with Chinese friends or Chinese looking friends.

Post: #72

At any rate, you really should make sure pronunciation is spot on. Tones, for basic conversation, are not overly important, but basic pinyin is essential. your qu and chu should sound distinctly different

Post: #73

(03-07-2014 06:44 PM)CaptainChardonnay Wrote:  

(03-07-2014 12:16 AM)clever alias Wrote:  is the integrated chinese about a guy named wang peng?

Yeah its about Wang Peng, Li You, and Bai Ying Ai, so far after 5 chapters.

Yeah gazing at Li You in the videos is the only thing that made the horrible acting bearable, and she's barely a looker. I assume by the end of the series, she ends up married to Wang Peng.

I used the IC books too in class, but found some stuff totally not of use to me (like the words for your brother's second oldest son) so a waste of my time. They take a while to get to ordering in a restaurant and getting around town. I ended up getting a tutor (university student who was native Chinese) for 2 1-hour sessions a week and she taught me exactly the phrases that I cared about. Much more efficient, and then I supplemented it with my class that used the IC book.

Post: #74

I wasn't too impressed with the IC books, I think it rushes stuff too much, but that may have just been my teacher. it also teaches you one way of saying things, and though it's correct, doesn't necessarily prepare you for how people actually talk

Post: #75

(03-07-2014 11:06 PM)clever alias Wrote:  At any rate, you really should make sure pronunciation is spot on. Tones, for basic conversation, are not overly important, but basic pinyin is essential. your qu and chu should sound distinctly different

I guess your qu, your chu and your zhu as well?