<![CDATA[Comments on: Getting Off the Metro]]> 2009-09-17 18:00:00 <![CDATA[By: dunderklumpen]]> Good morning ^_^

Here's some related stuff: http://chinesepod.com/lessons/riding-the-subway

]]> Good morning ^_^

Here's some related stuff: http://chinesepod.com/lessons/riding-the-subway

]]> <![CDATA[By: jennyzhu]]> Cartainly a highly useful topic in China. I have taken a longer ride on occasions because it was too crowded to get off.

]]> Cartainly a highly useful topic in China. I have taken a longer ride on occasions because it was too crowded to get off.

]]> <![CDATA[By: John]]> Yeah, it's not readily apparent how useful this lesson is if you've never been in the situation of needing to get off the subway/bus, but being physically blocked, and unsure what you should say to ask people to move...

]]> Yeah, it's not readily apparent how useful this lesson is if you've never been in the situation of needing to get off the subway/bus, but being physically blocked, and unsure what you should say to ask people to move...

]]> <![CDATA[By: tiaopidepi]]> Shanghai subways are too crowded for this conversation. I relied on standing tall and saying 让一下！ in a nice, loud voice! Rude, but effective.

]]> Shanghai subways are too crowded for this conversation. I relied on standing tall and saying 让一下！ in a nice, loud voice! Rude, but effective.

]]> <![CDATA[By: jennyzhu]]> This past summer, many passengers complained about the stuffy carriage. So the management of the Shanghai subway put ice in some carriages to keep temperature low. It turns out that the trains were made in Germany, thus had air conditioning system made for German summer not Shanghai's.   

]]> This past summer, many passengers complained about the stuffy carriage. So the management of the Shanghai subway put ice in some carriages to keep temperature low. It turns out that the trains were made in Germany, thus had air conditioning system made for German summer not Shanghai's.   

]]> <![CDATA[By: henning]]> Hey! It can get really hot in a German summer...like 20 degrees C. Sometimes. When it isn't raining.

;)

]]> Hey! It can get really hot in a German summer...like 20 degrees C. Sometimes. When it isn't raining.

;)

]]> <![CDATA[By: bodawei]]> @Jenny

I don't believe that you can blame the 'Germans' for not getting the air-conditioning right. (Note that they were of course built to Chinese specifications!)   

A lot of German expertise has been employed in establishing metro systems in China.  Before I left Sydney I was working (on the Sydney Metro) next to a German guy who spent nine years working in China.  He gave me some useful 'inside knowledge' on Chinese railways. 

On a language learning front, I asked him one of my favourite questions: did he learn Chinese 'for his work?'  He said 'of course not!', confirming my expectation. For him, a love for Chinese language came first, and then later he saw the opportunity to work in China.  

I have never yet met anyone who learnt Chinese effectively with merely a work motivation - it seems to me that such a 'functional' motivation would not be enough to achieve any real success.  Perhaps there is a poddy out there to contradict me？    

]]> @Jenny

I don't believe that you can blame the 'Germans' for not getting the air-conditioning right. (Note that they were of course built to Chinese specifications!)   

A lot of German expertise has been employed in establishing metro systems in China.  Before I left Sydney I was working (on the Sydney Metro) next to a German guy who spent nine years working in China.  He gave me some useful 'inside knowledge' on Chinese railways. 

On a language learning front, I asked him one of my favourite questions: did he learn Chinese 'for his work?'  He said 'of course not!', confirming my expectation. For him, a love for Chinese language came first, and then later he saw the opportunity to work in China.  

I have never yet met anyone who learnt Chinese effectively with merely a work motivation - it seems to me that such a 'functional' motivation would not be enough to achieve any real success.  Perhaps there is a poddy out there to contradict me？    

]]> <![CDATA[By: walidshaari]]> Nice one dunderklumpen, idid not know that there are video webcasts in chinesepods! are there more of this? it would be nice to have movies with subtitles

]]> Nice one dunderklumpen, idid not know that there are video webcasts in chinesepods! are there more of this? it would be nice to have movies with subtitles

]]> <![CDATA[By: baolinna27]]> Hi! 

I lived in Beijing and also got a job so I know pretty well how things turn out at 8 o'clock in the downtown.

I learned what I heard and sometime I used 口一下 But never knew if I was right... is this ok?

 

]]> Hi! 

I lived in Beijing and also got a job so I know pretty well how things turn out at 8 o'clock in the downtown.

I learned what I heard and sometime I used 口一下 But never knew if I was right... is this ok?

 

]]> <![CDATA[By: light487]]> I never had any problems getting off the subway in Shanghai or Beijing. The transport I had trouble with getting off were the buses. :) I remember in Xi'an and Beijing, the bus was so crowded that I had to use some Chinese in order to get off at my stop. I used these two phrases:

我走了
wǒ zǒu le
I'm leaving (the "le" indicates a change of state)

让一下
ràng yīxià
Let me through

I didn't have the "xiache" vocab.. but the above two things worked well. They may not have been totally correct but they worked..

There was an interesting lesson, from 2005 where Jenny explains her fear of the subway, I wish I could find that now.. :) Also here is one that is related to this lesson, and is also a newbie lesson:

http://chinesepod.com/lessons/what-stop-is-this

 

]]> I never had any problems getting off the subway in Shanghai or Beijing. The transport I had trouble with getting off were the buses. :) I remember in Xi'an and Beijing, the bus was so crowded that I had to use some Chinese in order to get off at my stop. I used these two phrases:

我走了
wǒ zǒu le
I'm leaving (the "le" indicates a change of state)

让一下
ràng yīxià
Let me through

I didn't have the "xiache" vocab.. but the above two things worked well. They may not have been totally correct but they worked..

There was an interesting lesson, from 2005 where Jenny explains her fear of the subway, I wish I could find that now.. :) Also here is one that is related to this lesson, and is also a newbie lesson:

http://chinesepod.com/lessons/what-stop-is-this

 

]]>