上海

同僚たちと部長も先週に中国から帰りましたので、上海は今会社の最も人気の話題です。Because I can fully understand Shanghainese and can speak some, I asked them to include me in the project working with Shanghai. One thing they did very wrong while in Shanghai was to speak English when some of them can actually speak Mandarin. They went to have a hair cut and was charged more than what was shown on the price list. I think they tried to ask why but didn't get an answer and so they ended up just paying a lot more. Similarly with taxi charges. So I used those examples to convince them that they need someone like me who could communicate in the local language. My Shanghainese is very rusty so I need to call my mom more and practice over the phone. I will be visiting Shanghai hopefully this time and I plan to pay a visit to our Shanghai office and see how it is. I might even pick up some Shanghainese learning material to brush up quickly. Languages - they are really so useful and fun.

Last night I was thinking what I can say in Shanghainese and here is the list:
Have you eaten (full) yet? (Also, a way to greet people in Shanghainese)
Are you done washing your head and taking a bath? You have been in there for a long time! (Yes, they said wash your head not hair and yah, I love to hog the bathroom, even now)
We have to go out tomorrow morning to do some shopping.
See you tomorrow morning!
Can you hurry up? There isn't much time! (Yah, I am tardy sometimes so my mom need to say that to me)
Little friends (the way my mom refers to my friends)
Friends (this is to refer to her friends)
Don't watch TV day and night.
You talk too much, eat you meal. (I think that would be my sister)
Don't go "vistor crazy". (Yah, there is such thing especially with kids.)
My mouth is dry, let's go have some tea.
Tomorrow night we will go out to have meal (dinner).
My daughter don't talk much. (That's me when I was young)
She is fairly obedient. Her school work is fairly good. (That would also be me, haha!!)
I don't really play mahjong, my kids have to go to school.
Put the money away.
Why do you drip everywhere when you eat? (Even my little 3-yr old nephew knows this one!)
Can you drive your car here?
Etc..etc.. not bad, huh?