Vietna-sheez

Before arriving in Vietnam I had looked up various words and phrases in my phrasebook and had practiced saying what appeared to be a more difficult language than anything I had seen before. Little did I know...

After a week of twisting and contorting our mouths (and minds) every which way, me and my classmates have come to terms with the fact that the Vietnamese language is not for the dummies! Even pronouncing a simple phrase such as "Bao nhieu dong?" (How much is it?) leaves crowds of young Vietnamese with blank expressions or, more often, in hysterical laughter.

The source of the difficulties lies in the intonations and accents of each word. One word such as "ma" can mean six different things according to what accent is placed on it. Therefore, even the smallest mistake can change the meaning of a sentence completely. While the hope of being somewhat fluent within a year has been completely squashed, I'm now working on the hope that i'll be able to master the simplest phrases at least.