我不知道 – I don’t know

Considering that I am on this dialogue to learn Mandarin, I actually have quite a bit to say about the language. However, not very many of these moments are “lost-in-translation” moments because I can speak enough Mandarin to get by. Probably the funniest story involving language I have involves ordering a drink at a restaurant. A few of my friends and I went to get Hot Pot and decided to order some watermelon juice to accompany the meal. When we were asked how many pitchers we wanted, we thought they asked how many people would be drinking it so we said “four” and then they brought four pitchers of watermelon juice. As good and fresh as it is, it’s not something you particularly need four pitchers of for four people. Needless to say, it was a very funny moment and we definitely had a good laugh.

As far as my favorite phrase that I have learned recently in Mandarin, I would have to say it’s probably “我不知道“ (Wo bu zhidao) which means “I don’t know.” As funny as that sounds it’s actually quite a commonly used phrase as I often don’t know what people are saying to me or how to answer them so I can reply with this phrase. Then, they either switch to English or say it another way. So, all in all it’s a pretty useful phrase and fairly easy to say.

Besides those two points there isn’t much to say about the language. Yes, it’s a very difficult language to learn but anyone who wants to learn a language badly enough will put in the effort to learn it. That’s at least what I’ve found in regards to Mandarin. I have another 2 weeks of Mandarin classes and then I should be much more comfortable in the language. Hopefully all of the immersion and practice will make my Mandarin that much better and I can come back home having learned a lot!