The Trilingual Chatbox returns this week with a special guest who has been living nomadically over the past three years. Candice is an advocate of portfolio careers and a simple, wholesome lifestyle. Tune in today as she talks with Lori about her cultural shock experiences and gives advice on leading a life full of fun challenges.
In today’s episode, Lori and Mai have a conversation about some surprises you might encounter when you travel in Japan and Taiwan. Also check this one out for useful patterns to use in Japanese and Taiwanese Mandarin when you unintentionally break a taboo.
*We would like to apologize to our listeners about the audio quality on this episode. Thank you for continuing to listen and all your support. We will make every effort to present better production.
Pattern: Apologize + Explain yourself + A lesson learned
Examples: (1) 對不起、對不起，我沒有注意到。謝謝你提醒我。[TC] …….对不起、对不起，我没有注意到。谢谢你提醒我。[SC] …….duì bù qǐ 、duì bù qǐ ，wǒ méi yǒu zhù yì dào 。xiè xiè nǐ tí xǐng wǒ …….Sorry, I didn’t notice that. Thanks for reminding me. (2) 真的很抱歉，我不知道這樣做會冒犯到人。我會多注意的。 …….真的很抱歉，我不知道这样做会冒犯到人。我会多注意的。 ……..zhēn de hěn bào qiàn ，wǒ bù zhī dào zhè yàng zuò huì mào fàn dào rén …….wǒ huì duō zhù yì de …….I’m terribly sorry. I didn’t know this would come off as offensive here. …….I’ll pay attention next time. (3) 不好意思啦，我不是故意的。這樣我下次知道了。 …….不好意思啦，我不是故意的。这样我下次知道了。 ……..bù hǎo yì sī la，wǒ bú shì gù yì de 。zhè yàng wǒ xià cì zhī dào le …….I’m so sorry. It was an honest mistake. I won’t make the mistake again.
💠 Dialogue
– English –
(Mai and Lori are having dinner at a restaurant.) A: I need to use the bathroom. Where should I leave these pairs of chopsticks? Ah okay, I’ll just stick them into my bowl of rice…. B: No, no, no. What are you doing? You’re not supposed to do that. A: Why not? B: It’s considered a taboo to do that in our culture. A: ________ B: It’s okay. No worries.
– Japanese –
(Mai and Lori are having dinner at a restaurant.) A: I need to use the bathroom. Where should I leave these pairs of chopsticks? Ah okay, I’ll just stick them into my bowl of rice…. B: ダメ、ダメ、ダメ！何してるの！？ごはんに刺しちゃダメだよ！ A: どうしてダメなの？ B: 日本ではそれはやってはいけない事なんだよ。 A: ごめんね、やってはいけないことだって知らなかった。次から気を付けるね。 B: 気にしないで。次やらなければ大丈夫。
– Chinese (Taiwanese Mandarin) –
(Mai and Lori are having dinner at a restaurant.) A: I need to use the bathroom. Where should I leave these pairs of chopsticks? Ah okay, I’ll just stick them into my bowl of rice…. B: 不行不行，你在幹嘛？你不要這樣。 ……不行不行，你在干嘛？你不要这样。 ……bù háng bù háng ，nǐ zài gàn ma ？nǐ bù yào zhè yàng 。 A: 為什麼不行啊？ ……为什么不行啊？ ……wéi shí me bù háng ā ？ B: 因為台灣人覺得這是禁忌。 ……因为台湾人觉得这是禁忌。 ……bù hǎo yì sī la ，wǒ bú shì gù yì de 。zhè yàng wǒ xià cì zhī dào le 。 A: 不好意思啦，我不是故意的。這樣我下次知道了。 ……不好意思啦，我不是故意的。这样我下次知道了。 ……bù hǎo yì sī lā ，wǒ bù shì gù yì de 。zhè yàng wǒ xià cì zhī dào le 。 B: 沒關係啦，這沒什麼。 ……没关系啦，这没什么。 ……méi guān xì lā ，zhè méi shí me 。
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Hi, welcome (back) to The Trilingual Chatbox Podcast! Are you are a fan of Studio Ghibli? In this episode, Mai shares some information about soon-to-open Ghibli Park. It is spoken in Japanese first then followed by English.
You can find a full transcript at the bottom of this description area as well as on our WordPress website.
Hi, Japanese learners, I`m Mai from The Trilingual Chatbox. In this episode, I`m going to talk about “Recent news in Japan”. Ok, let`s get started.
At the beginning of next month, November 1st, 2022, Ghibli Park will open in Aichi Prefecture. I guess you all know Studio Ghibli, which is a Japanese Animation Studio. This studio has been creating countless famous works such as “My neighbor, Totoro” “Kiki`s delivery” and “Spirited Away”.
Also, in this podcast, when I introduced three Japanese movies on episode 12, one of them was Studio Ghibli`s work in 1991 called “Only Yesterday”. Check out the episode if you are interested.
Let`s get back to today`s story. This park has settings and surroundings from Ghibli movies. There will be five areas, but only three areas “Seishun Hill” “Ghibli`s Warehouse” and “Dondoko Forest” will open in November, and the other two areas “Mononoke Village” and “Witches Valley” will open in 2023. Yet, there will be no attractions or crazy rides, we can walk around and feel the Ghibli world in nature.
It is exciting to think that we are like going into the actual settings of Ghibli movies. My favorite movies are “my neighbor Totoro” and “Kiki`s delivery”, I would love to experience the settings of these two movies. It would be great if we could meet Cat bus, dust bunnies, and Totoro there. In fact, Ghibli movies are all amazing, so I`m so looking forward to seeing the completed park in near future.
It takes one and a half hours from Tokyo to Aichi by bullet train. If you take a regular train, it takes about 7 hours. I live farther from Aichi so I don`t think I will visit the park until all five areas are open in 2023.
The admission fee depends on the area, and you have to buy a ticket to enter each area. “Ghibli`s Warehouse”, where you can look at the displays is 2000 yen per adult on weekdays and 2500 yen on weekends. The other two areas that open in November will be 1000 yen each. If you are a fan of Studio Ghibli, you can consider visiting this park for your next trip to Japan.
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If you’re learning Chinese, the new series can help with your Chinese listening skills. All episodes come with full transcripts. Join us today to check your listening comprehension skills!
What’s up guys! I’m Lori from the Trilingual Chatbox Podcast. This is the Taiwanese Mandarin edition of our new series which just came out late last month. We haven’t given it a proper title so for now it’ll be in the form of a bonus episode. In the previous one, Mai-san has talked about her favorite place in Japan, so if you’re also learning Japanese besides Chinese, make sure you check that out too. This series contains a 5-minute talk in each episode, and the level of Chinese roughly corresponds to HSK level 3 and 4.
So, today’s episode, it’s my turn to share my favorite place in Taiwan. I would love to introduce some place special and one not so easily predicted, so I’ve decided to go for a beautiful place in Hualien. It’s called Taroko Gorge. It is situated within the Taroko National Park, which lies on the east coast of the Taiwan island. I picked this place especially for nature lovers. If you can’t resist beautiful scenery, like myself, and are willing to skip a day in the modern world, then trust me, Taroko Gorge is definitely a must-see. You’ve got a scenic area with lofty waterfalls, steep gorges, a fun suspension bridge, and some trails along cliffs. This place is one of the most famous attractions and is seen as the gem of Taiwan. Now, if you’re intrigued, do check the entry restrictions for foreigners to Taiwan and plan ahead, as it’s still quite popular even during the Covid-19 pandemic. It’s also advised that you choose a time other than July and August, as those months are the typhoon seasons in Taiwan, and roads and trails might close due to safety concerns. As for transportation, I don’t own a car, so basically I also identify myself as a tourist. But I do feel more relaxed when I get to take time to look around while visiting a place. Of course, it depends on your budget, the time span you plan on spending there, and the number of your travelling companion, but there’s the option of private cars for charter, where you get the flexibility I just mentioned for sightseeing while at a much higher cost, and there’s also the option of taking cheaper bus tours with a much more fixed timing that you might need to compromise on. But whichever option you choose, I’m sure the stunning view at Taroko Gorge will compensate for what you’ve missed.
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