The Magic of Mandarin

10/01/19 • 28 min

1 October 2019 is the 70th anniversary of the National Day of the People’s Republic of China. Mandarin Chinese is the most widely spoken language in the world - Gareth and Phumi chat to Mr John Gelling, principal at Pretoria Chinese School; Ms Angela Liu, deputy principal at Pretoria Chinese School, and Refilwe Mashiane, a Grade 11 pupil at the school.

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How the Chinese found a home in South Africa

In this week’s episode of Howzit China, Gareth Cliff and Phumi Mashigo chat to Professor Katherine Munro, chairman of the Johannesburg Heritage Foundation and Mr Walter Pon, retail director of Sui Hing Hong, and a respected Chinese community elder and leader who has made it his life's mission to preserve the history of Chinese people in South Africa. Prof. Munro and Mr Pon share the history of how the Chinese came to South Africa during the 'Witwatersrand Gold Rush' and the role played by the apartheid regime that made the Chinese preserve their history and culture as they have to this day. Mr Pon, a third generation South African born Chinese man, shares his family's story of their arrival in South Africa, the challenges and the discrmination they and other Chinese migrants faced, and how they integrated with the local community.

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South Africans thriving in China

Gareth Cliff and Phumi Mashigo chat to Boithabiso Mokoena, Tshepiso Malele, and Asi Lily about their experiences while living in China. They all met through Thrive Beijing, an initiative that hosts events for expats living there. They tell us how to survive with minimum Mandarin, how to get around using taxis or bicycles, the food that you must try, and the food that would remind one of South African cuisine.