Lesson 098 Shall We Take a Photo?

M: Dàjiā hǎo. Huānyíng nǐmen dào Xiànzài Xué Hànyǔ. Wǒ shì ML.

S: Wǒ shì Stuart. ML, jīn tiān wǒmen xué shénme?

M. First, let's warm up with the dialogue of the last lesson, then enter the Summer Palace and learn to say things like ‘take a photo' and ‘good, better, best'.

S. Hǎo zhúyi. And, you guys at home, please repeat everything out loud with us, very important. Here goes.

M. 我们去哪儿买票？wǒmen qù nǎr mǎi piào?

S. 去那儿　qù nǎr.

M. 好，我去买票 wǒ qù mǎi piào. 您好，我要两张票 nín hǎo, wǒ yào liǎng zhāng piào.

WOMAN. 两张票，三十块 liǎng zhāng piào, sān shí kuài.

M. xiè xie. Stuart, 票买好了 piào mǎihǎo le.

S. 多少钱 duō shao qián?

M. 十五块一张 shí wǔ kuài yì zhāng.

S. 好了，我们进去 hǎo le, wǒmen jìn qu.

M. 入口在哪儿 rùkǒu zài nǎr?

S. 入口在那儿 rùkǒu zài nǎr.

M. So, we'll be in the Summer Palace in seconds.

S. Now we're in the Yíhéyuán. 现在我们在颐和园里 xiàn zài wǒmen zài Yíhéyuán lǐ.

M. Let's take a photo, ok? 我们拍个照，好不好？wǒmen pāigèzhào, hǎo bù hǎo?

S. 好。我们在哪儿拍？wǒmen zài nǎr pāi?

M. Here's good. 这里好 zhèlǐ hǎo.

S. But there's better. 但是，那边更好 dàn shì, naàbian gènghǎo.

M. I feel here's better 我觉得这里更好 wǒ juéde zhèlǐ gènghǎo.

S. I reckon there's better than here. 我认为，那边比这里好 wǒ rènwéi, nà biān bǐ zhèlǐ hǎo.

M. But the best place is over there. 但是，最好的地方是那边 dànshì, zuìhǎo de dìfang shì nàbian.

S. 对了，那边是最好的地方 nàbiān shì zuì hǎo de dìfang.

S. Wow, some very useful Putonghua. Like ‘take a photo'. 拍个照 PAI GE ZHAO， pāigèzhào.

M. Pai1, here means ‘to take'. But, mind you, this word usually means ‘to bounce', as in ‘bouncing a basketball'. So, everyone say, ‘let's take a photo, ok?'. 我们拍个照，好不好？wǒmen pāigèzhào, hǎo bù hǎo?

S. And ML said:

M. Here's good 这里好 ZHE LI zhè lǐ, like zhèr4, means ‘here'. Here's good, zhèlǐ hǎo, zhèlǐ hǎo.

S. 但是，那边更好. Na4bian NA BIAN na4bian, like 那儿，means ‘there' nàbiān.

M. And I will now say, ‘good, better, best' in Han4yu3. Repeat with me. 好 hǎo, 更好 gèng hǎo, 最好 zuì hǎo.

S: And if 坏 HUAI huài, means ‘bad', how do you say ‘she is very bad, he is worse, but, I am the worst'? Dá duì le: tā huài, tā gèng huài, dàn shì, wǒ zuì huài.

M. And how do you say, ‘he is very clever, you are cleverer, but I am the cleverest'. Right. Tā hěn cōngming, nǐ gèng cōngming, búguò, wǒ zuì cōngming.

S. And so modest. But, time's up, so we'll continue taking photos next lesson. Zài jiàn.