C5, 11-12am, Ep15, Booking a Hotel

05/04/20 • 10 min

Hello everyone, this is Jack. Tianjin was feeling 30 degrees yesterday. I felt like I need air conditioning already. It definitely feels like summer is coming, which is my favorite season of the year. How about you? Today, let’s continue with our morning work. Follow me, and if we see or think of anything, let’s say it in Chinese. Today's new content: Hotels are 酒店 (jiǔ diàn). To book a hotel is 定酒店 (dìng jiǔ diàn). 3-star, 4-star and 5-star hotels are 三星级酒店 (sān xīng jí jiǔ diàn), 四星级酒店 (sì xīng jí jiǔ diàn), 五星级酒店 (wǔ xīng jí jiǔ diàn). Budget hotels are 快捷酒店 (kuài jié jiǔ diàn). Others ways to say hotels are 旅馆 (lǚ guǎn) and 宾馆 (bīn guǎn). Hotel California’s Chinese name is 加州旅馆 (jiā zhōu lǚ guǎn). Single room and double room are 单人间 (dān rén jiān), 双人间 (shuāng rén jiān). Presidential suite is 总统套房 (zǒng tǒng tào fáng). Front desk is 前台 (qián tái). ID card is 身份证 (shēn fèn zhèng). Passport is 护照 (hù zhào). Deposit is 押金 (yā jīn), and room card is 房卡 (fáng kǎ). In the last episode, we talked about a few beverages in Chinese. 咖啡 is coffee and 茶 is the tea, right? So after I took a coke, 可乐 from the break room, 茶水间, I went back to my desk. I looked at my to-do list and found that there is one client coming to visit our company this afternoon, and I need to book him a hotel. Let’s get that done! A hotel is called 酒店 (jiǔ diàn) in Chinese. To book a hotel is called 定酒店 (dìng jiǔ diàn). When it comes to hotels, there are many types. The 3-star hotels are 三星级酒店 (sān xīng jí jiǔ diàn). Similarly, the 4-star hotels are 四星级酒店 (sì xīng jí jiǔ diàn) and 5-star hotels are 五星级酒店 (wǔ xīng jí jiǔ diàn). Now when I hang out with my foreign friends to get a beer, they all know that liquor is 酒. But make no mistake my friend, 酒店 isn’t a place to get drinks, it means hotels. I mean, you can still get drinks in some hotels but you get what I mean with 酒店. When it comes to my own hotel choices, the doctor from the last episode already said it, I’m not rich right? So I often choose the budget hotels or inns. In Chinese, we call them 快捷酒店. 快捷 means express. I remember there was one time, I got a 快捷酒店 (kuài jié jiǔ diàn) on my business trip. Bad Don! Cheap Don! Yup, Don is my boss. Anyway, this particular room smells so bad. It was like a group of people just smoked in there. I called the front desk and the lady said, no worries sir, we are sending people there to eliminate the smell for you. I was like OK, that sounded very cool. Soon a cleaning staff arrived at my room, alone, not with any fancy equipment, just by himself. I was like, hello there what’s you plan eliminating the smell? He said no word, walked straight up to the windows and he opened them... yea, very cool. Hotels also have some other ways to say in Chinese, such as 旅馆 (lǚ guǎn) and 宾馆 (bīn guǎn). I’m sure you know the song Hotel California by Eagles. It is such a famous song that it has an official Chinese name, 加州旅馆 (jiā zhōu lǚ guǎn). There you go, 旅馆 is hotel. In a hotel, there are many types of rooms. A single room is 单人间 (dān rén jiān). A double room is 双人间 (shuāng rén jiān). And the Presidential suite or Royal suite is 总统套房 (zǒng tǒng tào fáng). I wish I could get that one day, maybe after getting Don fired. When you check in your hotel, you need to go to the front desk. It is 前台 (qián tái). 前 is the front and 台 is the desk. You need to show them your ID card in China, which is 身份证 (shēn fèn zhèng), or as a foreigner, you need to show your passport, 护照 (hù zhào). You also need to pay for a deposit, which is 押金 (yā jīn). After you are all set, the front desk will give you your room card, that is 房卡 (fáng kǎ). This is the word-to-word translation, 房 is the room and 卡 is the card. With that, you can happily go to your room! Remember how to eliminate the bad smell in your room! You can do it yourself... :) Get PDF via this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1MeX4SxxQU08Rtm06FMa-ThdFURrvZcwQ

Previous Episode

C5, 11-12am, Ep14, Coffee, Tea and Others

Hey what’s up, welcome back to Jack Bao’s 24 Authentic Chinese. As you may know already, I live in Tianjin, China, beautiful city. Recently spring is coming. We have high in 20 degrees, sunny and warm. Just beautiful. Probably the best season although some people may argue for the summer. As the temperature getting higher, one of my favorite things to do is to drink a cold coke. Today, let’s talk about coffee, tea and some other drinks. In the last episode, I was sending a package. Now that the delivery guy, 快递小哥, has left, I was on the way back to my desk. I felt thirsty, so I decided to stop by the break room in my company. The break room is called 茶水间 (chá shuǐ jiān). 茶水间 is the best place in my company. Unlike the large firms such as Google, Facebook, or China’s Tencent, Alibaba, where their break rooms are huge and have everything, food, snacks, drinks, anything you can think of, ours is a small one. But not bad too. It has all kinds of beverages. Beverages are 饮料 (yǐn liào). We have cold drinks and hot drinks. Cold drinks are 冷饮 (lěng yǐn), and hot drinks are 热饮 (rè yǐn). Yes, you’re correct, 冷 means cold and 热 means hot. I’m a very fine man when it comes to drinking and I’ll choose my drinks wisely. For instance, when I have steak I’d like to pair it with some big and bold red wines. You want to have it strong right? Depending on the preparation, spices and of course, your mood. Nice. Oh wait, I’m still at work? You’re talking about the beverage drinks? Sure, I still master them. For example, when I feel a little under the weather, I’d like to have something with rich sugar, make it sweet. Always a good choice, so Coke, Sprite, and Fanta. Coke is 可乐 (kě lè), Sprite is 雪碧 (xuě bì). Fanta is 芬达 (fēn dá). They are all originated from their English names. Sounds the same! Hey I don’t know about you. For me, one Coke just makes me happy! The carbon dioxide mixing with the oxygen in the air hitting your throat and then pressing your stomach, getting out eventually with a hiccup. Very nice! Like a volcanic eruption, getting the stress out! Especially good with some deep fried food. Yes, getting myself fried chicken with Coke tonight! When I feel sleepy, I’d like to drink some tea. Tea is 茶 (chá). When it’s warm, I will choose the green tea, 绿茶 (lǜ chá). When it’s code, I will get the black tea, 红茶 (hóng chá). A quick reminder here. 绿茶 where 绿 means the green, so 绿茶 is the green tea. But 红茶, 红 is actually red, it’s not black. But we call 红茶 as the black team. In China, tea is consumed much largely than any other drinks. If I’m still sleepy, sometimes I will drink coffee. I’m not much of a coffee guy, because the caffeine keeps me awake at night. Coffee is 咖啡 (kā fēi). Again, another word which comes from English. If I’m super tired but have to keep up with the work, I’ll take the red bull. Everyone knows that drink, red bull is 红牛 (hóng niú). Word to word translation. Red is 红, and bull is 牛. I heard a way to mix the red bull with cold coffee, but I never tried that. If you did, let me know how was it... One day, I was seeing an old Chinese doctor who is specialized at traditional Chinese medicine. He just took a look at me, and said: Are you always feeling exhausted these days? I was like, yea, how did you know?! Chinese medicine is magic, you know that by just one quick look? What’s wrong with me? What should I do? He then said, well you should definitely stop drinking all those beverages, red bull, coffee, tea, even Coke and Sprite. Why? I asked. Look, you were holding a red bull now, and you are obviously not rich. So stop drinking those drinks you can’t afford, water is the best for you. And you will start feeling better... err, what a wise doctor?! Now review: The break room is 茶水间 (chá shuǐ jiān). Beverages are 饮料 (yǐn liào). Cold drinks are 冷饮 (lěng yǐn). Hot drinks are 热饮 (rè yǐn). Coke is 可乐 (kě lè). Sprite is 雪碧 (xuě bì). Fanta is 芬达 (fēn dá). Tea is 茶 (chá). Green tea is 绿茶 (lǜ chá). Black tea is 红茶 (hóng chá). Coffee is 咖啡 (kā fēi). Red bull is 红牛(hóng niú). Get PDF via this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1MeX4SxxQU08Rtm06FMa-ThdFURrvZcwQ

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C5, 11-12am, Ep16, Fruits

Hello everyone, good to see you again. Welcome back to my podcast. When this season is over, you will learn about 500 most used daily conversational words and phrases in China. Remember to always practice after the show. If you need them, don’t forget that I have PDF link of this podcast at the end. Let’s move on to today’s topic. ------ Today's New Content: Fruits are 水果 (shuǐ guǒ). Apple is 苹果 (píng guǒ). Strawberry is 草莓 (cǎo méi). Blueberry is 蓝莓 (lán méi). Peach is 桃子 (táo zi). Pear is 梨 (lí). To share a pear is 分梨 (fèn lí) but to separate is also 分离 (fèn lí). Banana is 香蕉 (xiāng jiāo). Orange is 桔子 (jú zǐ). Watermelon is 西瓜 (xī guā). Mango is 芒果 (máng guǒ). Pineapple is 菠萝 (bō luó). Durian is 榴莲 (liú lián). And coconut is 椰子 (yē zi). ------ OK! In the last episode, I booked a hotel for our client. Hotels are 酒店, right? After getting that done, I felt a little hungry. But is not lunch time yet. Luckily I brought some fruits with me from home. For those of you who do the same, high five! Fruits in Chinese are 水果 (shuǐ guǒ). I opened my backpack. Hmm, I brought an apple with today. Apple is 苹果 (píng guǒ). If you recall, we talked about this word. Yes, the mac is 苹果笔记本. I took a bite of the apple, and two people came to my mind, Isaac Newton and Steve Jobs. Legend has it that the young Newton was sitting under an apple tree and getting hit by an apple on the head, an “aha moment” for his great law of gravity. And Steve Jobs probably made one of the greatest companies in history with the famous apple icon. Jobs also said stay hungry. I firmly believe that’s why his apple was taken for only one bite! Not me my friend, I’m eating the whole thing! I love fruits and I pretty much love them all. For instance, right now it’s a good time to have strawberries, blueberries, peaches and pears. Let’s take a look at each one of them. Strawberries are 草莓 (cǎo méi). Blueberries are 蓝莓 (lán méi). Peaches are 桃子 (táo zi), and pears are 梨 (lí). These are fruits you can simply wash them clean and eat them. Now a very important Chinese culture to note here. In China, it is known not to share a pear with your families or friends. Because to say share a pear, it is 分梨 (fèn lí). But in Chinese, to separate is also 分离 (fèn lí). So to share a pear, and to separate have the very identical pronunciations in Chinese. That’s why it is believed if you are sharing a pear, that means you and this person might get separated. Tricky. So don’t offer your friend to share a pear with China. Me personally? I ask Don, my boss, to share a pear with me many times. Now there are other fruits you must get rid of the skins first. Like bananas, oranges, watermelons, mangos, and pineapples. Let’s take a look. Bananas are 香蕉 (xiāng jiāo). Oranges are 桔子 (jú zǐ). Watermelons are 西瓜 (xī guā). Mangos are 芒果 (máng guǒ). And pineapples are 菠萝 (bō luó). These are all delicious fruits. As I said, I love all kinds of fruits. Well there is one exception. Durians. Some of my friends absolutely love it. They will go crazy getting a really, well, stinky, durian. I always pass it, yet they can be very very expensive to get in some areas of China, like my city, Tianjin. So durian is 榴莲 (liú lián). So remember the old doctor who is specialized at traditional Chinese medicine? I went to see him again the other day. He found that I had some skin problems, getting itchy during this time of the year. I thought it was an allergy or something. He told me to eat more fruits because they have good vitamins and can be good for my skin. Look, he said, you know there is a metaphor, you become what you eat, right? So have fruits with good skins! What’s your favorite fruit anyway? I said, ahhh, my favorite fruit is coconut... No wonder I have skin problems. That’s worst fruit skin you can have... Alright, so coconut is 椰子 (yē zi). What is your favorite fruit? Any luck that it might be one of these we learned today? Let’s review them together. Fruits are 水果 (shuǐ guǒ). Apple is 苹果 (píng guǒ). Strawberry is 草莓 (cǎo méi). Blueberry is 蓝莓 (lán méi). Peach is 桃子 (táo zi). Pear is 梨 (lí). To share a pear is 分梨 (fèn lí) but to separate is also 分离 (fèn lí). Banana is 香蕉 (xiāng jiāo). Orange is 桔子 (jú zǐ). Watermelon is 西瓜 (xī guā). Mango is 芒果 (máng guǒ). Pineapple is 菠萝 (bō luó). Durian is 榴莲 (liú lián). And coconut is 椰子 (yē zi). What other fruits do you like? Send me a message and let me know! Get PDF via this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1MeX4SxxQU08Rtm06FMa-ThdFURrvZcwQ