http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/writing/public-speaking/top-8-reasons-to-get-you-started-learning-chinese.html http://www.articletrader.com/writing/public-speaking/top-8-reasons-to-get-you-started-learning-chinese.html Sun, 27 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
With businesses now rushing to China (PRC), and the generations of Chinese immigrants establishing their specialties in foreign lands, the influence of Chinese culture is unmistakable in all the major cities of the globe.

While the Chinese people abroad and at home have had to live with their notorious Chinglish, many second-generation Chinese immigrants have shed the image of the broken English and now speak as fluently as any native speakers. The novelty of the new Chinese immigrant speaking fluent English has worn out, and now it is the Westerners that must tackle the language barrier and avoid wearing the tag of speaking broken Mandarin Chinese.

There are many reasons why someone would desire to learn Chinese . What might surprise you is that many second and third generation Chinese immigrants also want to join the club of learning Chinese, because in their haste to learn English, they have neglected their own mother tongue – Mandarin Chinese.

So what are the top motivations for many of us who want to learn Chinese ? We compiled some top motivations here for you:

For the businessmen/businesswomen – the savvy and culturally sensitive generation of business people realize

1) bring their products and services to a wider market.

2) the importance of bridging the cultural and linguistic barriers that have been the bane of doing business with China (PRC);

3) the advantage of having capturing information and data from the source of origin, thus avoid the ‘Chinese Whisper’ effects. Small businesses and websites have also taken advantage of technology improvements to

For translators/interpreters – the influx of immigrants to places such as America, Australia, England and other countries now means that

4) the demand for professional language services are on the increase. There is also an impetus to

5) bring the research of Chinese academics to the Western world, much in the same way that Russian research has been translated and published in Western journals.

For interest groups/people – with the loosening of media and technological regulations and restrictions, the Chinese language and culture has been opened up to more interest groups than ever before. People who are fascinated by the

6) culture and language, as well as those who

For second/third generation migrants – with their roots firmly established in foreign countries, they are now

7) trying to recover their language and culture origins, lost when they were busy trying to integrate with their new environment. Also, second/third generation migrants who have retained their language skills want to give their children a head start by teaching them the language early, and wish to let their children learn Chinese.


8) wish to travel in the country and wanting to reduce the impact of the cultural shock are also very likely to want to learn Chinese.



Some useful resources:
1) Learn Chinese Pinyin [http://pinyin.quickmandarin.com]
2) Pinyin Table [http://www.quickmandarin.com/chinesepinyintable/]
3) Chinese school [http://www.yaomandarinschool.com]



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Learn Chinese

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/writing/public-speaking/a-beginner-tutorial-on-learning-chinese.html http://www.articletrader.com/writing/public-speaking/a-beginner-tutorial-on-learning-chinese.html Sun, 27 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 The best way to tackle the challenge of learning Chinese is to identify your reason and motivation for learning the language, as this will help you focus on the things that you should look out for. For example, the business owner wanting to learn Chinese has different needs to the traveler going over for a two week trip, and so you have to direct your learning to achieve the best results. Of course, perhaps a combination of methods would work best for you, but first let’s look at some of the popular approaches today.

The traditional way of studying Chinese is to enroll in a course. The psychological trigger of paying for books, resources, lessons, teacher all motivate the student to put in a certain amount of effort. However, learning this way can become slightly monotonous. The benefit of this approach is that you can gain formal assessment for your study efforts, and can take something away from the course that will help further advance your studies. On the other hand, it doesn’t necessarily suit the style and pace of everyone.

Nowadays, with the widespread use of technology as a learning tool, many possibilities have been created for those who prefer a different approach to learning languages. Of course, the traditional method of learning has evolved to keep pace with technology, with many institutions offering distance or online courses or modules to tailor to individual needs. However, there have been some interesting new ways to learn languages that are just been explored recently.

One of the most innovative ways to learn Chinese is by joining a chat room or virtual reality environment. The design of software programs have allowed the use of multi-lingual input and output, along with speech and voice recognition to offer users a much richer learning environment even in the absence of direct human face-to-face contact. Chat programs such as QQ up being rapidly taken up by the Chinese populations, and foreign users always attract curious Chinese locals that want to offer language exchange through the translation and dictionary functions of the program. Virtual reality worlds such as Second Life and HiPiHi have also opened up new communication channels for users to interact with each other, and several linguistic and language interest groups are emerging and embracing the new medium for communication and exchange of ideas/information.

Despite all the convenience of technology, any language enthusiasts will tell you the difference between learning the language and experiencing the language (i.e. travel to the country). To be immersed in the language beats any method of learning, but the costs of travel and accommodation tends to entice only those who find it a financially viable means of learning, or those die hard culture/language enthusiasts.

Instead of traveling to the country, it might also be worthwhile considering making friends with Chinese people who have made the trip to your country. Perhaps enquire about how you can host foreign exchange students, or join language exchange programs with local English language schools or organizations. That way, you can bring the people to you, rather than having to go to the people to learn the language.

Anyway, whatever method you choose to learn Chinese , the thing of paramount importance for any beginners is to work out your motivation for learning the language (it is one of the most difficult and greatest learning curve). When you have figured that out, you will want to adjust your learning style to the method of learning.

Well justified motivation for learning Chinese , along with the efficient learning methods, will go a long way to ensure that the experience will be a rewarding, even if slightly challenging one.


Some useful resources:

1) Learn Chinese Toronto [http://www.yaomandarinschool.com/toronto/]
2) Learn Chinese Vancouver [http://www.yaomandarinschool.com/vancouver/]
3) Chinese class Toronto [http://www.learnchinesetoronto.com]




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Learn chinese

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/travel/a-guide-to-having-a-safe-memorable-trip-to-china-prc.html http://www.articletrader.com/travel/a-guide-to-having-a-safe-memorable-trip-to-china-prc.html Sun, 27 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600

When to Go: If you looking for the lowest price on travel, plan your trip during the Low Season; December, January and February. The Peak Travel Season pertains to May, September and October. March, April, June, July, August and November are perhaps the best travel months with respect to price, weather and entertainment.

Getting There: The national airline is Air China (PRC). As is true of any flight, travelers should confirm their return flight reservations; airline overbooking has led to people being stranded in China (PRC). Also, be prepared for a lengthy flight. A nonstop from New York to Beijing lasts 14 hours while a charter to Shanghai lasts upwards of 18 hours.

There are four airport hubs within China (PRC); Beijing/Peking (BJS/PEK), Guangzhou Baiyun International, Shanghai Hongqiao (SHA) and Shanghai Pudong (PVG). Each airport includes taxis, public and shuttle buses, duty free shops, banks/currency conversions, post offices, business and internet facilities and bars and restaurants. Important to note is the departure tax, which is paid in Chinese currency only. Children under 12 and transit passengers, proceeding within 24 hours of travel, are exempt.

Once There: Once in China (PRC), there are several transportation options via rail, sea and automobile. Railways provide the principal means of transportation throughout China (PRC). The trains are affordable, safe and well maintained operating between major cities; services include Beijing to Guangzhou, Shanghai, Harbin, Chengdu and Urumqi. There are three types of trains, the Express option being the best of the three. There are four varieties of fare: hard seat, soft seat (only on short-distance trains such as the Hong Kong to Guangzhou (Canton) line), hard sleeper and soft sleeper. Children under 3 ft tall travel free and those under 4ft pay a quarter of the fare. Train travel is often a comfortable experience albeit, a time consuming one, due to the distance between destinations. Domestic plane travel is a time saving alternative. Flights from Shanghei to Beijing, Hong Kong to Shanghei and Guangzhou to Shanghei are approximately 2 hours; however, the roundtrip travel costs average $350 USD. Though express train travel between these cities ranges from 12 to 18 hours, the prices are decidedly more affordable, between $15 to $30 USD.


Visa- Don’t Leave Home Without It: Visas for leisure travel to China (PRC) are easy to obtain, granting a one month’s stay. The Chinese embassy or consulate, your travel agent or an independent visa service will gladly assist you. In the United States, contact the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC or the Consulates in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston or New York. US citizens can stay in Hong Kong without a visa for up to 30 days.

Tips on Tipping: Tipping is widely accepted and encouraged by tour guides, hotel staff and car services. In restaurants, if the tip has not already been figured into the bill, a 10 to 15 percent tip is advisable.

Good Eats: A meal in China (PRC) need not include won ton or dim sum to be considered delicious and authentic. China (PRC) offers a vast array of dining options including Muslim, Korean, American and traditional Chinese. Americans should leave their preconceptions of Chinese food at the customs gate!

One smart tip: Traveling in a foreign country can be very exotic, fun and intimidating. This is particularly true if you don’t speak the language. It will be smart to bring a wallet size “survival language guide” - China Travel guide in your wallet at all times. So you can at least express yourself in the emergency situation such as “where is the bathroom”, “I am allergic to….”, “ I need to see doctor…” etc… You can download this wonderful guide at our Chinese translation website: www.chinesetranslationpro.com.


If you have business or personal Translation needs, please visit this Chinese translation agency:
http://www.quickmandarin.com/translation-chinese.php


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Learn Chinese

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>