Alex traveled to Taiwan to study Mandarin Chinese. He had never been abroad, and he was excited to learn a new language and explore a new culture.
Alex attended Chinese language classes at a local university for a few weeks. He worked hard to memorize words and phrases, and he made good progress.
One sunny day, Alex was walking home after class. He spotted a street vendor selling tea. He decided to order some cold green tea.
He made sure he remembered how to say it in Chinese. It wasn’t hard.
He had practiced it in class many times before.
Approaching the vendor, Alex said confidently, “Cold green tea, please.”
The vendor nodded and got busy making tea.
A few moments later, he handed Alex a cup of hot black tea.
Alex was puzzled. He thought he had said everything correctly.
He wondered, “How could I get it wrong?! What do I do now?
I don’t know how to explain that I didn’t order hot black tea.”
Alex paid for the tea, and headed back home.
“No doubt, Chinese is not an easy language, but how hard could it be to order tea?” thought Alex as he walked down the street.
He felt defeated. He just couldn’t understand how after studying so hard for weeks, he was having such a hard time ordering tea.
With his head down, he walked into the dorm.
He lived together with other students. Some were international students just like him and some were local.
His good friend Gao, a local Taiwanese student, approached Alex and asked him why he was so upset.
Alex told him what happened on the street.
Gao started laughing.
For a moment Alex felt even worse than before.
“It’s not your fault,” said Gao with a smile. “Many vendors here speak only our local dialect, not Mandarin Chinese. That’s why he didn’t understand you. Most likely he wouldn’t understand me either if I ordered in Chinese.”
Alex was relieved to learn that it wasn’t his fault. He lightened up, walked to the fridge and grabbed some ice.
“I wanted to have some cold green tea, but cold black tea will do just as well.” said Alex with a smile.
He got his tea and his books and headed to the study room to do his homework. He still had a long language learning journey ahead of him, and he didn’t want to waste any time dwelling in the past.
Short Story with Russian Translation
| Black Tea | Черный чай |
| Alex traveled to Taiwan to study Mandarin Chinese. | Алекс поехал на Тайвань, чтобы изучать китайский язык. |
| He had never been abroad, and he was excited to learn a new language and explore a new culture. | Он никогда не был за границей, и ему не терпелось выучить новый язык и познакомиться с новой культурой. |
| Alex attended Chinese language classes at a local university for a few weeks. | В течение нескольких недель Алекс посещал занятия по китайскому языку в местном университете. |
| He worked hard to memorize words and phrases, and he made good progress. | Он старательно заучивал слова и фразы и добился хороших успехов. |
| One sunny day, Alex was walking home after class. | В один из солнечных дней Алекс шел домой после занятий. |
| He spotted a street vendor selling tea. | Он заметил уличного торговца, продающего чай. |
| He decided to order some cold green tea. | Он решил заказать холодный зеленый чай. |
| He made sure he remembered how to say it in Chinese. | Он убедился в том, что он помнит как сказать это по-китайски. |
| It wasn’t hard. | Это было несложно. |
| He had practiced it in class many times before. | Он уже много раз практиковался в этом на занятиях. |
| Approaching the vendor, Alex said confidently, “Cold green tea, please.” | Подойдя к продавцу, Алекс уверенно сказал: “Холодный зеленый чай, пожалуйста”. |
| The vendor nodded and got busy making tea. | Продавец кивнул и занялся приготовлением чая. |
| A few moments later, he handed Alex a cup of hot black tea. | Через несколько минут он протянул Алексу чашку с горячим черным чаем. |
| Alex was puzzled. | Алекс был озадачен. |
| He thought he had said everything correctly. | Ему казалось, что он все сказал правильно. |
| He wondered, “How could I get it wrong?! What do I do now? | Он недоумевал: “Как я мог ошибиться?! Что же мне теперь делать? |
| I don’t know how to explain that I didn’t order hot black tea.” | Не знаю, как объяснить, что я не заказывал горячий черный чай”. |
| Alex paid for the tea, and headed back home. | Алекс заплатил за чай и отправился обратно домой. |
| “No doubt, Chinese is not an easy language, but how hard could it be to order tea?” thought Alex as he walked down the street. | Несомненно, китайский язык не из легких, но неужели так трудно заказать чай? – думал Алекс, идя по улице. |
| He felt defeated. | Он чувствовал себя побежденным. |
| He just couldn’t understand how after studying so hard for weeks, he was having such a hard time ordering tea. | Он просто не мог понять, как после упорных занятий в течение нескольких недель ему так трудно заказать чай. |
| With his head down, he walked into the dorm. | Опустив голову, он зашел в общежитие. |
| He lived together with other students. | Он жил вместе с другими студентами. |
| Some were international students just like him and some were local. | Некоторые из них были иностранными студентами, как и он, а некоторые – местными. |
| His good friend Gao, a local Taiwanese student, approached Alex and asked him why he was so upset. | Его хороший друг Гао, местный тайваньский студент, подошел к Алексу и спросил, почему он так расстроен. |
| Alex told him what happened on the street. | Алекс рассказал ему, что произошло на улице. |
| Gao started laughing. | Гао начал смеяться. |
| For a moment Alex felt even worse than before. | На мгновение Алексу стало еще хуже, чем раньше. |
| “It’s not your fault,” said Gao with a smile. | Это не твоя вина – с улыбкой сказал Гао. |
| “Many vendors here speak only our local dialect, not Mandarin Chinese. | Многие продавцы здесь говорят только на нашем местном диалекте, а не на мандаринском китайском. |
| That’s why he didn’t understand you. | Поэтому он тебя не понял. |
| Most likely he wouldn’t understand me either if I ordered in Chinese.” | Скорее всего, он не понял бы и меня, если бы я сделал заказ на китайском. |
| Alex was relieved to learn that it wasn’t his fault. | Алекс успокоился, узнав, что это не его вина. |
| He lightened up, walked to the fridge and grabbed some ice. | Он просиял, подошел к холодильнику и взял лед. |
| “I wanted to have some cold green tea, but cold black tea will do just as well.” said Alex with a smile. | Я хотел выпить холодного зеленого чая, но холодный черный чай тоже подойдет, – с улыбкой сказал Алекс. |
| He got his tea and his books and headed to the study room to do his homework. | Он взял свой чай и учебники, и направился в учебную комнату делать домашнюю работу. |
| He still had a long language learning journey ahead of him, and he didn’t want to waste any time dwelling in the past. | Ему еще предстоял долгий путь изучения языка, и он не хотел тратить время на то, чтобы зацикливаться на прошлом. |