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Quick question about the language

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  1. #101

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    Quote Originally Posted by Cwbguy:
    Good luck on that one!
    Hehehe, well at least now you know HK cantonese culture is not limited to just gossip, comics and Chinese Opera.

  2. #102

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    i think there is benefits definetely in learning canto - as an analogy, I went on a tour to Europe with a group that was 95% chinese, non-english speakers.

    We toured Olympia in Greece with an english-speaking, Greek tour guide who gave a fascinating commentary on the ancient civilisation.

    The Chinese speakers in the group had to rely on the Chinese tour guide to provide the commentary. I was later told by one of the english/chinese speakers in the group that he had only bothered to translate a 3rd of what had been said by the native guide.

    Watercooler and imparanoic like this.

  3. #103

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    Yes you can get by with just English, even out in the boonies where I live, quite a few expats here and dont speak a word of Chinese.

    All you need are the basics to survive

    Delay No More
    Pok Gai
    Sik See


  4. #104

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    The point is- knowing your address and 'thank you' is useful.

    Being so good that you can read menus and chat to your security guard about squid fishing is nice.

    There is no middle ground. Being able to say 'how much is that? ' or 'I don't want it' or 'bloody hell it's hot' isn't actually very useful because chances are they would understand you even if you said it in english. And if not, you could make yourself understood with gestures etc if needed.

    Canto is a nightmare to learn- so if you don't use it at work and you don't plan on shacking up with a local, for most people it's not worth spending the time- it would be years before you really saw any benefit.

    The fact that you can't understand Joey is just an added bonus.

    kimwy66 likes this.

  5. #105

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    Quote Originally Posted by wtbhotia:
    Yes you can get by with just English, even out in the boonies where I live, quite a few expats here and dont speak a word of Chinese.

    All you need are the basics to survive

    Delay No More
    Pok Gai
    Sik See
    To make friends the quick way always greet the locals with "Nay low may".

    If someone greets you with this, you should reply with "Hum kah ling".
    Proplus likes this.

  6. #106

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    Quote Originally Posted by wtbhotia:
    Yes you can get by with just English, even out in the boonies where I live, quite a few expats here and dont speak a word of Chinese.

    All you need are the basics to survive

    Delay No More
    Pok Gai
    Sik See
    http://nawcom.com/swearing/cantonese.htm
    emx likes this.

  7. #107

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    Quote Originally Posted by wtbhotia:
    All you need are the basics to survive

    Delay No More
    I disagree. But it's quite amazing how some locals can put it into every sentence they speak. Ever listened to the guy driving the minibus?

  8. #108

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    Quote Originally Posted by jw1701:
    Ah the joys of colourful Cantonese, combining two phrases together:

    Pok gai + Haam ga chan

    This was first first Cantonese I learnt, many moons ago.


  9. #109

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    Quote Originally Posted by Cwbguy:
    Same situation in my local wet market in Causeway Bay at the back of Time Square. The majority of the stall holders, meat, fish, fruit and veg all speak a little English, and if I want something particularly exotic like beef bones or a particular cut of meat, I ask a local friend to write it out for me, something that Proplus has admitted even he is unable to do.

    TB you forgot to put at the end of your post"look in the mirror if you want to see arrogant, then you GTFO"
    Bowrington Road?

    Walk through it pretty much everyday.

    OP - I've been here a year and a half. The Taxi Translator App will get you around no problem.

    The only reason to learn cantonese that I have come across so far is if you want to eat really cheaply in the local restaurants that don't have English on the menu (i find these places dont have many english speaking staff).

    I would love to be able to understand the language and maybe i will learn one day.

  10. #110

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    Not a surprise to many who have been here but for those newly introduced to our local boiler, this is a demonstration in his logic:

    In this thread he is getting all uppidy about how important Cantonese is, learn the local language, embrace etc etc..

    Quote Originally Posted by Watercooler:
    I find learning cantonese open many doors for me. Thank you very much.
    And not too long ago, he was telling everyone, dont send your kids to Cantonese schools, its too hard and you wont need it anyway. Send your kids to English only schools :
    http://hongkong.geoexpat.com/forum/7...ml#post1971677
    Quote Originally Posted by Watercooler:
    I am assuming you are planning to place your kid in the school system once you moved here? If so perhaps it's not such a good idea to put your kid into typical local school, they do teach in Cantonese which will be hard for your kid to follow.
    And the coolest part is yet to come : he will start foaming at the mouth and insult everyone in sight all the while claiming that he didnt mean it that way

    I'll go back to my popcorn now.

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