Brandy coffee anyone?

A Malaysian coffee lover shared this real conversation he had in Seoul.

Me: what coffee is this?

Mr Korean Cafe Owner: brandy

Me: whoa! That's cool. Never had that before. (takes a sip)

Me to Sung Kim (Korean friend): I don't taste brandy...

Sung: I think he said "blending".

Me to Cafe Owner: How's business?

Cafe Owner: Thank you.

=_= end of conversation

Have fun with languages over a cup of coffee!

Fun Language Tools

How do you eat rice?

Gillian Chung is from Hong Kong. Her latest boyfriend is Korean American. Language of communication: English. Similarities: both Asian, both eat rice. Yet, Gillian said there's a little cultural divide between them.

Take, for instance, mealtimes on dates with him. She said: "Koreans don't raise their rice bowls when they eat as that's impolite to them. I'm still not used to that and feel as if I've incapacitated one hand." (Straits Times Life!, 20 March 2013)

So we thought that all Asians eat rice from a bowl using chopsticks. That's where the similarities end. How we eat tells where we have come from. I am Chinese. I can eat rice from a bowl with chopsticks, but I don't raise my bowl to my mouth and shovel the rice in. My mother told me often that was how low class people ate rice. Rich and refined people used their chopsticks to pick up a lump of rice grains and place it politely in the mouth. But I held the rice bowl in my left hand and used the chopsticks with my right hand. Till today, if I'm eating anything from a bowl, I will hold the bowl in my left hand and bring it up to about neck level. My grandmother and mother always said, "Bring the food to your mouth, not your mouth to your food." In other words, bring the bowl close to your mouth. Don't bend over to bring your mouth as close to the bowl on the table as possible.

However, I don't do that if drinking Western soup! The bowl stays on the table. Only my right hand moves, using the soup spoon. Now, I've learned that Koreans do the same. Leave the bowl on the table. Use only the chopsticks.

I just learned something new today. Next time I eat Korean food, I need to remember to eat Western style but use chopsticks to pick up my food.

Happy learning another culture and language!

Fun Language Tools

When words fail, use your body

Body language must be the most effective means of communication when language fails. Kim Ji Woon speaks no English. The Hollywood actors and actresses he chose for his movie speak no Korean. Hire an interpreter would be the obvious choice. But "lost in translation" was the result. How did they manage to make the movie?

When the other side can't understand what you're saying, show them.

It was so effective that the above comment was expressed!

"Don't tell me you love me, show me!" Common expression that women say to their husbands or boyfriends. This could not be more true in this case. But what was being shown was not love. It was a work directive. Effective? Yes! Was everyone happy? Yes! What more can you ask for?

I'm not advocating that we all stop talking and start gesticulating instead. Language is necessary most of the time. But when you just can't get your message across, try using your body or drawing a picture. After all, a picture paints a thousand words.

Happy communicating!

Fun Language Tools

Update tradition to fit in with the times

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Young people are not interested in traditional music or instruments any more. Polytechnic Chinese orchestra will have to close due to falling membership. Solution? Change the repertoire. Play pop songs. What are the latest hits? K Pop, of course! Winning formula! From a membership of 30, this student Chinese orchestra is now 150 strong and playing to sold out audiences at the main concert hall in town.

Who said traditional Chinese musical instruments can't play any other kind of music? Sure, the sound may be slightly different from the original, but what this teacher has done has breathed new life into a dying tradition. K Pop music played with traditional Chinese instruments is new and refreshing. More importantly, it's drawing the crowds and bringing in the money.

So what is culture anyway? One of the definitions is "the behaviors and beliefs characteristic of a particular social, ethnic, or age group". (Source: dictionary.reference.com) As with anything on earth, culture evolves and changes with the times. You could call it a trend, I suppose. What's important is this: this teacher is a trend setter, not a trend follower.

While a part of us reminisces the old, we do appreciate the new. Sometimes the new could simply be following the trend of the day, but giving it a little twist. Ride the wave while it's up! The wave will die down soon enough. Then it's time to look out for the next new wave.

What's the new save in your part of the world now? Does it involve learning a new language? K Pop is all about Korean culture and language. You want to sing K Pop or be the next K Pop star? Go learn Korean today!

Ride the new wave! Learn a new language today!

Fun Language Tools

Learn to write Chinese beautifully

Chinese writing is not easy. Chinese words or characters are based on pictures of the actual item, rather than made up of parts of a phoenetically-based alphabet. (For example, the character for "moon" 月 looks like a crescent moon.) However, there is a system to writing each character. After that, comes the art of Chinese writing.

"To Write Chinese Words" is a DVD that teaches you how to write beautiful Chinese characters using a pen. You could call it calligraphy with a pen, instead of using a brush. In traditional Chinese calligraphy, you have to learn how to hold a Chinese writing brush correctly, then dip it in ink before you can begin to write, "To Write Chinese Words" uses an ordinary pen, which you are already familiar with. No added stress.

You will often hear a Chinese person say, "My handwriting is so messy," (我的字很潦草。）or "My Chinese handwriting does not look good." （我的书法不好看。）One of my friend's received this unkind remark from her primary school Chinese teacher, "Your characters look like devils dancing." (你的字好像鬼在跳舞。） Needless to say, she never mastered the Chinese language, nor the writing!

The beauty of the DVD is that there is a dual track for language of instruction: English or Mandarin, with subtitles in that language. You may not be conversant in Mandarin, but that will not stop you from learning to write beautifully. If you are a student of the Japanese or Korean languages, you can also use this DVD, with instructions in English. Chinese characters are also part of Japanese and Korean writing systems.

Learn Mandarin, Japanese or Korean (or all 3 languages!) and pick up a new skill today! Impress your friends and family!

Fun Language Tools

Singaporean K Pop stars

K Pop group Skarf has 2 Singaporean teens, Tasha and Ferlyn, as members. One of them, Ferlyn, is now the team leader and has been asked to host a Korean entertainment programme. Yes, I'm proud of their achievements. But what impresses me most is that 1 year of grueling training in Korean language (from zero knowledge), acting, singing and dancing, these 2 girls have completely embraced Korean K Pop culture and Korean language to be considered "local".

Ms Jasmine Lee has been elected a member of the Korean Parliament. She has fully embraced the culture of her late husband, yet she is not fully accepted as a "local". Contrast this with Ferlyn's quick acceptance into the world of K Pop and entertainment!

Speaking the language opens many doors. Tasha and Ferlyn were forced into that environment. When everything was new and fresh, they did not find it too tough. But somewhere in the middle of the year-long boot camp, they felt like giving up altogether. “可是，为了完成我们的梦想，我们坚持下去，” ("But, to fulfill our dream, we persevered on,") Ferlyn said on a TV interview. Today, Ferlyn has just started living out her dream to be a K Pop sensation.

What's your dream? Does it involve having to learn another language? If yes, go for it! Dreams don't become reality just by dreaming. Get started on learning a language! Get on the road to fulfilling your dream! You can do it!

Fun Language Tools

Gangnam - uniquely Korean

After "Gangnam" made it to last year's Word of the Year 2012 list, the Mayor of Gangnam district in Seoul, Korea, has decided that their district will now go global.

The overwhelming success of a previously unknown singer from Gangnam has suddenly put Gangnam in the mouths of children and adults worldwide (besides setting their feet a-dancin'). Now the Mayor of Gangnam says that her district is a "uniquely Korean brand".

While America used to be the trendsetter in fashion and entertainment, it seems like Korea has taken over with Korean dramas, K Pop and Psy. So, should we blindly follow another culture? No. The Mayor of Gangnam rightly says that they have no need to follow anyone else now. The world is now following them - Gangnam Style!

Maybe we should all learn Korean...

Fun Language Tools wishes you a year of learning!