Challenge 7 - complete

Xin chào (Hello!)

Ivor and Karen, taking your advice (and challenge) to learn a few words of Vietnamese, I have concentrated on those I am most like to say or hear on my two-week trip. Apologies in advance for some of the dodgy diacriticals – I couldn’t find them all in Word.

I anticipate in the first few days I will be saying:

Cách dây bao nhiêu ki-lo-mét? (How many kilometres!?!?!?!)

And more than likely:

Bánh xe tôi bi xì (I have a flat tyre).

I sincerely hope on those first few days that there won’t be too many núi (mountains), but plenty of riding beside sÔng (rivers) and biên (the sea), with a little bit of lying on the bãi biên (beach) at the end of each day.

Words that I won’t learn, because I don’t want to hear them are:

Có tai nan! Làm ón goi xe cűu thoung! (There’s been an accident! Please call an ambulance!).

As I start to hit my stride, I image that the phrase Cái này giá bao nhiêu? (How much is this?) will come in handy, along with the very useful Tôi lăy cái này (I’ll take it), and the can’t live without Ban có nhân thé tin dung? (Do you take credit cards?)

And why has it taken my so long to get to Tôi tim nhà hang (I am looking for a restaurant), because that really goes without saying. You two know me so well. However, I hope that it doesn’t lead me to ask Tôi tim phòng vê sinh (I am looking for a toilet) pleading Tôi bi tiêu cháy (I’m diarrhoea – as close as I could get!).

Since the guidebook does not include a word for beer, by the end of the trip, I may just fall into an exasperated heap and ask, Có ai biêt nói tiênh Anh không? (Does anyone speak English?)