So it turns out that not everything in Beijing is really in "walking distance" from your hotel as your tour guide promised. Or that's how it feels now that you're halfway between Xizhimen and Sanlitun with only twenty minutes left before the show. Suffice it to say that the maze of hutongs in which you are lost no longer seem as charming as they did from the outside....Learning Chinese? Our podcast for today is designed for absolute beginners to the Chinese language. This means that even if you don't have any background in mandarin, you should be able to follow along and pick up some of the basics of this fascinating language. So give us a listen and be sure to signup for access to our premium features like transcripts, tests and extra audio recordings.
Kariannshea
said on June 16, 2011
I am so exited to learn Chinese it is one of my dreams!!!!!!!!!
Xiao Hu
said on June 16, 2011
@Kariannshea,欢迎你来到泡泡中文。You're absolutely going to love learning Chinese! If you have any questions, you can always ask me, I've been learning for a while so I can always help. I also recommend that you just take the plunge into learning characters right away, because it will be a tremendous help to learning the spoken language, in addition, if you plan on moving to China it will be an absolute necessity to learn to read and write in order to really make the most of living in the country.Good luck to you!小虎
Echo
said on June 16, 2011
@Kariannshea,Hi, welcome to join us! 欢迎你！If you have any Chinese questions or suggestions about the site, please always feel free to leave a comment on the site or write to me directly.--Echoecho@popupchinese.com
richard
said on June 18, 2011
@XiaoHu, i agree if Kariannshea is planning to visit or live in China learning 'Hanzi' is necessary. i'm 6months 'chabuduo' into my learning the pinyin chart, pinying chuck expressions and pronunciation and doing quite well. i think trying to plunge immediately as a beginner into 'Hanzi' would have discourage me.
richard
said on June 18, 2011
@XiaoHu also wanted to mention. when you are in the absolute beginners lessons i think you should make an effort to include hanzi, pinying and translation so that all can benefit from your good teaching.
Xiao Hu
said on June 19, 2011
@Richard,I agree that "Hanzi" is rather daunting, but don't let that stop you from learning Chinese characters from day one. Characters can be such a tremendous assistance later on that the sooner you begin learning them, the sooner you can begin mastering Chinese. Later on you might want to use Chinese texts to learn or improve your Chinese and it will be imperitive to know them in order to get to the next level.Pinyin is a great help, but it can never replace the real thing.Next time I post Chinese on a beginner forum, I'll put in translations and pinyin to assist learners.祝你学中文学得很开心哦！Zhu4 ni3 xue2 zhong1 wen2 xue2 de hen3 kai1 xin1 o!Happy Chinese learning!小虎
richard
said on June 19, 2011
@XiaoHu, i'm outside china with few opportunity to hear and speak (no zhongguoren in my apt. bld.) zixue hen nan i'm using mostly pop-up chinese , free chinesepod'qingwen' for grammar and MDBG as my tool dictionnary. as you said i'll need to have a go at hanzi eventually i'm starting 'taijiquan' lessons where there are a few chinese seniors so hopefully and can practice a bit. your comments and add. chinese sentences are helpful . tks for the pinying/translation in beginners/ele level lessons
Xiao Hu
said on June 19, 2011
@Richard,I actually started exactly the way you have, with no contact with Chinese people outside of occassional trips to the Chinese community, just textbooks and CD's to listen to (no Chinesepod or Popup Chinese then) and a will to learn.I remember my ex-girlfriend (an American girl obviously), after I had been studying for about 6 months she and I went to the local 中国餐厅 zhong1 guo2 can1 ting1 (Chinese Restaurant) and grabbed a newspaper to see how many characters I could read, the waiter came up to me and said in Chinese “你会说一点汉语吗？”ni3 hui4 shuo1 yi1 dian3 han4 yu3 ma? (can you speak a little Chinese) I replied, "会". He then curiously asked, “那你可以看得懂中文字吗？”na4 ni3 ke3 yi3 kan4 de dong3 zhong1 wen2 zi4 ma? (then can you read Chinese characters?) I replied, "可以看得懂一些." ke3 yi3 kan4 de dong3 yi1 xie1 (I can read some)He asked me to point out the characters I recognized and read them off to him. I read off a good 12 or 13 characters randomly and thought that was pretty good, considering it was through self-study (with little focus on actually reading characters mind you).My ex-girlfriend jeered at me and said, "you should just give up on this Chinese thing, you've been learning for 6 months and still can't read at all!"Of course explaining that the nature of the Chinese written language in non-phonetic and much more difficult than any western or phonetic script was completely lost on her and she just maintained that it would be in my best interest to give it up, that I just didn't have the knack for languages.Another incident occured years later when, after I could ready Chinese well, of course still wasn't up to speed on every character, a coworkers girlfriend asked me to tell her what two characters on my phone's homescreen (which was set to unsimplified Chinese) said. The characters in question were 多媒体 duo1 mei2 ti3 (multimedia), which at the time, I recognized all the characters on the phone except for that one that she asked about. I told her I wasn't sure and she replied, "You SHOULD know, I mean, after all the time you've been learning the language. How can you not know?"To which the same explanation as with my ex-girlfriend was given and was then rendered completely moot. My point is, no matter how hard it seems, if you really want to learn characters even 自学 zi4 xue2, then you CAN do it!
richard
said on June 19, 2011
XiaoHu, tks for your time , stories and sentence structures. you are a teacher and motivator. i'm using the computer every morning to learn conversational chinese to keep my brain and memory active (69yrs old) i will keep at it because i like the chinese language and culture.wo xuyao fanfu lianxi
Xiao Hu
said on June 20, 2011
@Richard,Back in the day I knew a 71 year old woman who was a great friend of my Chinese professor. She liked Chinese, obviously because she was a tremendous fan of the people and culture, but also because it kept her mind active.I'm a firm believer that the best way to exercise one's 记性 ji4 xing4 (memory) is to learn another language.Chinese in particular, with its tones, characters, sonorant quality and great challenge can exercise so many perts of the brain and aspects of the thinking process, both right and left brain receive benefits.The best way to maintain youth is to learn Chinese!
richard
said on June 20, 2011
XiaoHu, considering the few opportunities i have to hear, speak and be corrected i've come to the conclusion i need an 'ayi2' to live with with me for a few yrs.(that would speed up my learning, right!)can you or Echo send me one ? . qijian wo hui jixu jiayou dere: grammarwhat's the simple 'kouyu' way to say > why bother with that ? and > as far as i know ...
Echo
said on June 20, 2011
@richard,Hahaha, you may want to try our one-on-one lessons (University Program) :)About "why bother with that", it has many different ways to translate it depending on the context. Something like "wei4shen2me5 fei4shi4" is close, but really it depends on the specific situation."As far as I know" is "ju4 wo3 suo3 zhi1". It's not really "kou3yu3", but it's the only best way to say it.--Echoecho@popupchinese.com
drummerboy
said on June 21, 2011
@ Richard Regardless of your level or language environment there is no substitute for a good teacher. I am very fortunate to have the opportunity to speak Chinese with native speakers every day. However regular conversation, which is great practice, does not include grammar or pronunciation corrections and refinements. Having Echo help me on a weekly basis has been fantastic, so I highly recommend the university 1 on 1 package. :-)Best of luck to you with your studies!
richard
said on June 21, 2011
@Echo , drummerboy, wo zhidaoPUchinese as been helpful and generous to me and i don't hesitate to recommend the site every chance i get. i'm not comfortable to say i can't afford any extra. i'm living month to month on can. old age and supplement pensions and certainly an 'ayi' in my mind 'wo kai wanxiao le' and 'buyong zizhao mafan' . the taichi and exercise lessons for seniors are free community services here. the 1 on 1 package must be a successful tool then again the set-up is not convenient at the senior bld. i'm now living at.i'm gradually moving up to study elementary lessons it's fun!
Echo
said on June 22, 2011
@richard,Hi, zhen1 bu4hao3yi4si5! I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable. Actually I'm pretty sure you can learn Chinese well no matter what tools you use if you keep jia1you2 yourself. And make sure to leave a comment on the site or write to me directly if you have any Chinese questions. That will help you jin4bu4 as well.--Echoecho@popupchinese.com
trevelyan
said on June 22, 2011
Also worth mentioning for anyone looking for speaking practice -- there are a number of sites that act as free intermediary for language exchange partners. One of the decent-sized ones for Chinese is italki.com. If anyone is looking for conversation practice and doesn't mind spending some time teaching a Chinese student English, it's not a bad deal.
drummerboy
said on June 22, 2011
So sorry Richard. I certainly didn't mean for my enthusiasm about popup to make you feel uncomfortable. Are there any Chinese churches or community centers where you live? If so they might have some free classes, or just the opportunity to speak with native speakers every now and then. The online language exchange sounds like a great option too.
richard
said on June 22, 2011
no need for you'all to be concern (nimen beng keqi)i even have Echo,David and Brendan on CC101 also an efficient site for learning mandarin.@drummerboy, ya i have been to a local chinese community center. it's for chinese people(cantonese/mandarin in my city) who need to integrate, learn english and french . no mandarin courses but always the possibllity to meet a senior willing to converse.@trevelyan, tks for the language exchange option@Echo, grammar time: 'zhengzai' is sometimes use before the verb . does this compare to the complement 'dao' after a verb > is this another way to indicate a beginning/continuing action?
Echo
said on June 23, 2011
@richard,“Zheng4zai4" is an adverb, so we should put it in front of verbs. Yes, it indicates a present continuing action."Dao4" is used as a verb complement sometimes, and that's why it's used after a verb. "Dao4" does not necessarily indicate a continuing action. It's a resultant complement.--Echoecho@popupchinese.com
christianlpotter
said on May 8, 2012
Heyas all ;)I have a small question about 差远了. I know that Brendan said 差远的那个差 is pronounced 1st tone, and I know that 差 can be both 1st and 4th, but when I listen to it, it sounds like sometimes it slips to 4th tone? Admittedly, my 听力 probably sucks....which is "correct"? Or at least, which one should I use when I say 差远了? Was I hearing it right, that there were two different pronunciations, or was I hallucinating?Thanks!--李波
amber
said on May 8, 2012
@christianlpotter, It should be cha4yuan3le5, I think.--Amberamber@popupchinese.com
christianlpotter
said on May 8, 2012
@AmberThanks Amber, especially for the swift response. That clears up my confusion ;)--李波
vallynn
said on July 7, 2018
I know these are old comments, but it's very sad to see @Xiao Hu's stories about people thinking he should give up learning Chinese because of his 'slow progress'My ex boyfriend (who did not know any Chinese) didn't say anything of that nature, but he would always harp on how Chinese was illogical compared to his true love German, especially in that you aren't 100% guaranteed to know the pronunciation of a character you have never seen before.
1biometricdocuments11
said on April 13, 2022
https://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineTop 10 Genuine Biometric Consultant Online sales@biometricdocument.com. - Biometric Document Consultant OnlineHow to Get Resident Permit, ID Card, Driving License, IELTS, TOEFL, NEBOSH, US & UK Passport? ( sales@biometricdocument.com)Contact InfoUnited Statescall+1 (352) 405-1569sales@biometricdocument.comwhatsapp+1 (352) 405-156924/7 - Monday to Sundayhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/driving-licence-quickly/https://www.biometricdocument.com/citizenship/https://www.biometricdocument.com/identification-card/https://www.biometricdocument.com/passport-service/https://www.biometricdocument.com/https://www.biometricdocument.com/birth-certificate/https://www.biometricdocument.com/blog/https://www.biometricdocument.com/about-us/https://www.biometricdocument.com/contact-us-now/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineWhere To Apply Biometric Documents Online From other countriesHow to Apply Biometric Documents Online for ImmigrationBulgaria Visa For immiogration Apply biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria from real consultantFrom Real Consultant Apply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria https://www.biometricdocument.com/Legit Consultant to Apply Biometric Documents Online From USA and Canadahttps://www.biometricdocument.com/If you are in Canada, USA, Germany, Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Europe Where to Go in Bulgaria Hidden Hotels in Europe for Thttps://www.biometricdocument.com/ravel LoversFrom Germany and Italy Apply Biometric Documents Online Passport, i.d cards.How to Apply Biometric Documents Online in Europe for New CitizensNew Citizens In USA and UK Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/UK Documents Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online From UK and Irelandhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Immigration Passport how to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineDriving License How to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineBirth Certificate Online where to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineVisa Cards, SSN Cards where to Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/How To Apply Biometric Documents Online 2022.
1biometricdocuments11
said on April 13, 2022
https://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineTop 10 Genuine Biometric Consultant Online sales@biometricdocument.com. - Biometric Document Consultant OnlineHow to Get Resident Permit, ID Card, Driving License, IELTS, TOEFL, NEBOSH, US & UK Passport? ( sales@biometricdocument.com)Contact InfoUnited Statescall+1 (352) 405-1569sales@biometricdocument.comwhatsapp+1 (352) 405-156924/7 - Monday to Sundayhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/driving-licence-quickly/https://www.biometricdocument.com/citizenship/https://www.biometricdocument.com/identification-card/https://www.biometricdocument.com/passport-service/https://www.biometricdocument.com/https://www.biometricdocument.com/birth-certificate/https://www.biometricdocument.com/blog/https://www.biometricdocument.com/about-us/https://www.biometricdocument.com/contact-us-now/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineWhere To Apply Biometric Documents Online From other countriesHow to Apply Biometric Documents Online for ImmigrationBulgaria Visa For immiogration Apply biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria from real consultantFrom Real Consultant Apply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria https://www.biometricdocument.com/Legit Consultant to Apply Biometric Documents Online From USA and Canadahttps://www.biometricdocument.com/If you are in Canada, USA, Germany, Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Europe Where to Go in Bulgaria Hidden Hotels in Europe for Thttps://www.biometricdocument.com/ravel LoversFrom Germany and Italy Apply Biometric Documents Online Passport, i.d cards.How to Apply Biometric Documents Online in Europe for New CitizensNew Citizens In USA and UK Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/UK Documents Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online From UK and Irelandhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Immigration Passport how to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineDriving License How to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineBirth Certificate Online where to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineVisa Cards, SSN Cards where to Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/How To Apply Biometric Documents Online 2022.
1biometricdocuments11
said on April 13, 2022
https://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineTop 10 Genuine Biometric Consultant Online sales@biometricdocument.com. - Biometric Document Consultant OnlineHow to Get Resident Permit, ID Card, Driving License, IELTS, TOEFL, NEBOSH, US & UK Passport? ( sales@biometricdocument.com)Contact InfoUnited Statescall+1 (352) 405-1569sales@biometricdocument.comwhatsapp+1 (352) 405-156924/7 - Monday to Sundayhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/driving-licence-quickly/https://www.biometricdocument.com/citizenship/https://www.biometricdocument.com/identification-card/https://www.biometricdocument.com/passport-service/https://www.biometricdocument.com/https://www.biometricdocument.com/birth-certificate/https://www.biometricdocument.com/blog/https://www.biometricdocument.com/about-us/https://www.biometricdocument.com/contact-us-now/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineWhere To Apply Biometric Documents Online From other countriesHow to Apply Biometric Documents Online for ImmigrationBulgaria Visa For immiogration Apply biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria from real consultantFrom Real Consultant Apply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria https://www.biometricdocument.com/Legit Consultant to Apply Biometric Documents Online From USA and Canadahttps://www.biometricdocument.com/If you are in Canada, USA, Germany, Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Europe Where to Go in Bulgaria Hidden Hotels in Europe for Thttps://www.biometricdocument.com/ravel LoversFrom Germany and Italy Apply Biometric Documents Online Passport, i.d cards.How to Apply Biometric Documents Online in Europe for New CitizensNew Citizens In USA and UK Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/UK Documents Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online From UK and Irelandhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Immigration Passport how to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineDriving License How to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineBirth Certificate Online where to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineVisa Cards, SSN Cards where to Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/How To Apply Biometric Documents Online 2022.
1biometricdocuments11
said on April 13, 2022
https://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineTop 10 Genuine Biometric Consultant Online sales@biometricdocument.com. - Biometric Document Consultant OnlineHow to Get Resident Permit, ID Card, Driving License, IELTS, TOEFL, NEBOSH, US & UK Passport? ( sales@biometricdocument.com)Contact InfoUnited Statescall+1 (352) 405-1569sales@biometricdocument.comwhatsapp+1 (352) 405-156924/7 - Monday to Sundayhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/driving-licence-quickly/https://www.biometricdocument.com/citizenship/https://www.biometricdocument.com/identification-card/https://www.biometricdocument.com/passport-service/https://www.biometricdocument.com/https://www.biometricdocument.com/birth-certificate/https://www.biometricdocument.com/blog/https://www.biometricdocument.com/about-us/https://www.biometricdocument.com/contact-us-now/Apply Biometric Documents OnlineWhere To Apply Biometric Documents Online From other countriesHow to Apply Biometric Documents Online for ImmigrationBulgaria Visa For immiogration Apply biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria from real consultantFrom Real Consultant Apply Biometric Documents Online in Bulgaria https://www.biometricdocument.com/Legit Consultant to Apply Biometric Documents Online From USA and Canadahttps://www.biometricdocument.com/If you are in Canada, USA, Germany, Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online in Europe Where to Go in Bulgaria Hidden Hotels in Europe for Thttps://www.biometricdocument.com/ravel LoversFrom Germany and Italy Apply Biometric Documents Online Passport, i.d cards.How to Apply Biometric Documents Online in Europe for New CitizensNew Citizens In USA and UK Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/UK Documents Apply Biometric Documents OnlineApply Biometric Documents Online From UK and Irelandhttps://www.biometricdocument.com/Immigration Passport how to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineDriving License How to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineBirth Certificate Online where to Apply Biometric Documents OnlineVisa Cards, SSN Cards where to Apply Biometric Documents Onlinehttps://www.biometricdocument.com/How To Apply Biometric Documents Online 2022.
