Lesson 178 我买了一张硬座票

M: Peng2you3men. Ni3men hao3! Huan1ying2 shou1ting1 Xian4zai4 Xue2 Han4yu3. Wo3 shi4 ML.

S: Da4 jia1 hao3. Wo3 shi4 Stuart. ML has bought our train tickets ML mai3 hao3 le wo3men de huo3che1piao4.

M: We're at the train station. Wo3men zai4 huo3che1zhan4.

S: ML, what type of ticket did you buy? 你买了哪种票? ni3 mai3 le nei3 zhong3 piao4?

M: 我买了一张硬座票，一张软卧票 wo3 mai3 le yi4 zhang1 ying4zuo4 piao4, yi4 zhang1 ruan3 wo4 piao4.

S: 啊，你坐硬座吗 ni3 zuo4 ying4zuo4 ma?

M: You misunderstand 你理解错了 ni3 li3jie3 cuo4 le.

S: 我怎么理解错了 wo3 zen3me li3jie3 cuo4 le?

M: 我坐软卧，你坐硬座 wo3 zuo4 ruan3 wo4, ni3 zuo4 ying4 zuo4.

S: There's nothing I can do. 我没办法 wo3 mei2 ban4fa!

M: Dui4 le! Ni3 mei2 ban4fa.

M: Ok, time to look at what we said.

S: 曼丽，你买了哪种票? That's easy. ML, you bought what kind of ticket? ni3 mai3 le nei3 zhong3 piao4?

M: And note the measure word for ticket, it's zhang1. 我买了一张硬座票，一张软卧票 wo3 mai3 le yi4 zhang1 ying4zuo4 piao4, yi4 zhang1 ruan3 wo4 piao4.

S: 啊，你坐硬座吗？Ni3 zuo4 ying4zuo4 ma?

M: You misunderstand 你理解错了

S: wo3 li3jie3 cuo4 le. 理解 LI JIE li3 jie3, both third tone, mean to ‘understand' li3jie3. 错 CUO cuo4, we know, means ‘wrong'. So, li3jie3 cuo4 le, ‘understand wrongly', to ‘misunderstand' . Now everybody say, Sorry, I misunderstood.

M: Hen3 hao3. 对不起，我理解错了 dui4 bu4 qi3, wo3 li3jie3 cuo4 le.

S: And I said, 我怎么理解错了? 怎么 remember, means ‘how', ‘in what way', as in, How could I misunderstand, wo3 zen3me li3jie3 cuo4 le? Say it, wo3 zen3me li3jie3 cuo4 le?

M: And I said, I go soft sleeper, you go hard seat. 我坐软卧，你坐硬座, wo3 zuo4 ruan3 wo4, ni3 zuo4 ying4 zuo4. Noticed the verb we use here? Right, it's ‘to sit', zuo4. For Chinese, they ‘sit' almost all kinds of vehicles, 坐火车、坐汽车、坐飞机，etc. And no matter it's hard seat or soft sleeper, just to ‘sit', zuo4.

S: I said, 我没办法. 办法 BAN FA ban4fa, means ‘way' or ‘method', ban4fa. So ‘wo3 mei2 ban4fa' literally means ‘I have no method'. In real English, ‘There's nothing I can
do.' Say it, wo3 mei2 ban4fa, wo3 mei2 ban4fa. You could also say, wo3 mei2you3 ban4fa, which means exactly the same, yi2 yang4.

S: To finish, our short chat. 曼丽，你买了哪种票 ni3 mai3 le nei3 zhong3 piao4?

M: 我买了一张硬座票，一张软卧票 wo3 mai3 le yi4 zhang1 ying4zuo4 piao4, yi4 zhang1 ruan3 wo4 piao4.

S: 啊，你坐硬座吗 ni3 zuo4 ying4zuo4 ma?

M: 你理解错了 ni3 li3jie3 cuo4 le.

S: 我怎么理解错了 wo3 zen3me li3jie3 cuo4 le?

M: 我坐软卧，你坐硬座 wo3 zuo4 ruan3 wo4, ni3 zuo4 ying4 zuo4.

S: 我没办法 wo3 mei2 ban4fa!

M: Dui4 le! Ni3 mei2 ban4fa. Let's go. 我们走吧！