Mine the only ones not learning Mandarin?

KrazyKow
Tue, 22 Jan 2008 22:51:23 +0000

In Houston (perhaps not on one of the coasts you had in mind), I can think of a number of situations when speaking Mandarin could have been quite useful. While many of my (Chinese) high school friends had parents who spoke English quite well, I also had a number of friends whose parents spoke very little English, or who were quite difficult to understand. In many authentic Chinese restaurants in the Houston area, you’re not going to be ordering any of the specials unless you can either speak or read Chinese. In certain areas of town, it can be tricky to communicate with waiters. Perhaps surprisingly, I rarely found a use for the Spanish I took in high school; maybe I just wasn’t in the right part of town.

Having just returned from a trip to China after taking a semester of Mandarin in college, it’s clear that a semester isn’t enough to be functional. I’m not sure that after a year or two of high school Spanish that I was much better off, though. The vocabulary that is useful for travel is not what typically comes first in language courses. After a year of Spanish, I could tell you all about school supplies and my friends’ appearances; after a semester of Mandarian, I can discuss the classes I’m taking and what I like to do in my free time (but only if the answer is basketball).