User Comments - bodawei
bodawei
Posted on: Surfing the Web Chinese Style
November 13, 2010 at 2:47 PM可以说‘无线互联网’或者‘无线网络’。不可以说‘无线上网’，因为‘上网’是动词。
Posted on: Surfing the Web Chinese Style
November 13, 2010 at 6:45 AMgotcha, and agree. Somehow there is something cool about the lack of specificity in Chinese, we might say 'delightfully vague', but at times it is plain frustrating. I think Chinese people compensate by talking a lot, with plenty of repetition, even redundancy, actually lots of redundancy, to get closer to the real meaning. Now I wonder, is that just when they are talking to a not so bright foreigner? (Food for thought.) It seems to be a step up in Chinese when you can just ramble on saying the same thing over and over, un-selfconsciously .. it helps if you like the sound of your own voice (it doesn't come naturally to me because I like to be sparing with my words.) Except on ChinesePod. :)
Posted on: Practicing Kung Fu
November 13, 2010 at 2:56 AMwjefferys
'looking for the opinions of the real experts, those that speak Chinese natively'
[What is the emoticon for a wry smile? Anyone?]
Anyway, I was just wondering, your blurb says that you have lived in China for a couple of years. I thought you might be able to answer your own question from that experience in China? Or at least know that there are no extra hard and fast rules? Or conventions vary somewhat across the country? Seriously - in two years you didn't get a feel for when people say 早? Were you learning Chinese at the time, or did you take it up after your return to the US? I am interested because I come across people in China who have lived here for quite a few years without learning any Chinese at all. Recent example I came across .. a guy who has lived in China for about seven years, and run a business here for four years, has made no attempt to learn any Chinese. Probably not that unusual, I have personally met several long term residents who don't want to learn Chinese or who feel that they can't.
Hope you don't mind the prying questions. :) Like Baba I enjoy your contributions on these pages.
'how late in the morning can you use this phrase without sounding silly?'
Most foreigners manage to sound a bit silly at all times of the day. (Scuse my inappropriate humour.)
... it's a fair question, I'll leave it for a native speaker to answer.
Oh.. and (from the dialogue) these wushu sessions are likely to start at an ungodly hour - so it is definitely 早 then.
Posted on: Surfing the Web Chinese Style
November 13, 2010 at 2:28 AMNice little Qing Wen with the basics. (Intermediate level? Really?) I used to say 互联网 until I realised that 网络 is more standard.
If you want to get the internet connected at home you will need a whole lot more language tips - possibly we need a Qing Wen: Internet II?
Posted on: Practicing Kung Fu
November 12, 2010 at 4:10 PMI was half-listening to the commentary on the opening of the Asian Games (as interested as I am in in the Olympics - wait, no, perhaps a little more interested because it's China) and being CCTV 9 it is about as bad as it could get. Something like Channel 7 Australia doing the last Winter Games. Anyway, one bloke referred to kung-fu but he was clearly conflicted on how to pronounce it in English! It came out a bit muffled, like I sound when I forget a person's name and, forced to say something, I blurt something out that consists mainly of air, followed by a very long detailed question, hoping the owner of the name didn't notice anything untoward with the name.
Posted on: Considering an iPad
November 10, 2010 at 12:34 PM多谢，很有意思。
Posted on: Band Practice
November 10, 2010 at 10:01 AMIt seems that 的话 here means 'if'. If 'bass' [is what we're talking about], let Aji play bass.
Posted on: Considering an iPad
November 10, 2010 at 9:29 AM我多半你的话明白了，
i-Pad是3G启用的吗？(Is I-Pad 3G enabled?)
可是对我苹果和中国联通3G合同不通,对吗？
Posted on: Considering an iPad
November 10, 2010 at 6:04 AM为什么。。 :)
Posted on: Surfing the Web Chinese Style
November 14, 2010 at 12:39 PMYeh, it is very interesting. I like hearing two native speakers checking with each other. :) Lunch yesterday at a cheapie down the road, sitting near the laoban taking the money, I watched as a weather-beaten worker came in and ordered. The laoban kind of grunted and the worker repeated his order. I wondered if he was having a go at the accent, but it is also no doubt a function of a language with so many homonyms. I wonder if there is even more repetition than normal here because to my ear the tones practically disappear in the local speak. Or they are emphatically different to textbook tones.