Learning Mandarin

[Original Post at my Blogs | My Blogs]

It is tough to learn a new language as an adult, eventhough the new language is supposed to be similar with one I've known. But a kick in the back is always the best source of motivation, just like a blue knight/wizard learns a new technique after being attacked by the technique.

And so, apart from witnessing how impressive Beijing & Guangzhou are, having to guess the meaning of (nearly) all the conversations which occurred within last week, I've learned "si_1 thong_3" (system), "mu_4 lu_4" (directory), "kuo_2 chi_1" (international), "kuo_2 chia_1" (national), "chi_1 chang_3 fei_1 / chi_1 chang_3 / fei_1 chi_1 chang_3" (airport). As you've probably noticed, those words are not spelled in proper hanyu pinyin and I may have confused the 2nd and the 3rd tone.

Nevertheless, a start is a start is a start.