China for Olympics on a tight budget

Marg

Can anyone advise how I can get the addresses of my holiday hostels translated from English into Chinese? I am anxious about not being able to find where I am staying and be unable to ask for directions! I had the idea of taking the addresses written in Chinese with a simple phrase "Can you please tell me how to find....... " I have tried Babelfish but it doesn't translate for me. Any ideas please?

Thank you

loftus

How about your local Chinese restaurant?

phatbear

Marg wrote: »

Can anyone advise how I can get the addresses of my holiday hostels translated from English into Chinese? I am anxious about not being able to find where I am staying and be unable to ask for directions! I had the idea of taking the addresses written in Chinese with a simple phrase "Can you please tell me how to find....... " I have tried Babelfish but it doesn't translate for me. Any ideas please?

Thank you

Surely if you go upto someone in china with "can you please tell me how to find........." on a piece of paper they are going to answer you back in chinese which will be about as useful to you as a chocolate tea pot.

Personally for a translation i would pop to your local tattoo artist as they all claim to be able to tattoo in chinese so surely they speak it too?

all the best

the bear

riquelme

thats all part of the fun isnt it?

seriously though if you are staying in beijing you should be ok, just buy a lonely planet guide and that can get you around. i.e what buses to catch, where things are etc.

from what i believe they are putting up lots of bilingual signs and there will be lots of translators about. they dont mess about when they do things.

you will be fine, its great fun if slightly unnerving when a whole train station stops and looks at you when you walk in, and when buses stop to stare at the white person.. and when people hide and take photos of you...! a great learning experience..enjoy

Marg

Phatbear
I thought this site was about trying to help other people, not take a pop at people with a genuine need just to show how smart You are! :mad:

As a solo traveller in a foreign country even the address of where you're staying in the local language would enable them to point you in the right direction.

Loftus
Thank you very much for your useful suggestion - I'm going to try that. :A

Marg

Thank you for your advice I'll get the guide - It's not me that's going China but my 6' blonde nephew so I'll tell him to be prepared to be the subject of attention.:A

phatbear

I wasnt aware I was having a pop at you the fact is unless you are standing a block or 2 away from your location no amount of pointing and gesturing is going to help you, ive found this out from years of travelling, i always use to learn the "can i have/where is/ how much/when and why" however none of these question count for jack if you have no idea what the answer means does it.

And your right this site is about trying to help people however its also about telling people the truth, which can mean telling people something they dont want to hear.

all the best

the bear

Stageshoot

On a recent trip to Shanghai the hotel I stayed at emailed me a printed address card in Mandarin to show any taxi drivers to get me to the hotel.

Try emailing the hotel maybe they will be able to do something similar. Even in Shanghai there were loads of bilingual signs on the Tube network and roads,

I don't think you will have anything to worry about in Beijing.

Leopardlady

Having lived and worked in China, your nephew will be suprised with how many people speak english, if only a few words. If he can get from the airport to the hotel then they will be able to give him a card with the hotels details on it in english and chinese.
The government has spent the last few years teaching the taxi drivers english, although i think this may be a little ambitious.

The chinese are a very friendly and open people, they will look after your nephew and want him to see the best their country can offer him.

I am very jealous and would love to be over there for the olympics as i was working there when they won the bid.

Most signs will be in Chinese and english, and often Pinyin, which is the romanised version of chinese, which Babelfish may be giving you as the translation. He could take this translation as the basic, but ask at the airport for a mandarin version.

I hope this helps.

redzip

Marg wrote: »

Can anyone advise how I can get the addresses of my holiday hostels translated from English into Chinese? I am anxious about not being able to find where I am staying and be unable to ask for directions! I had the idea of taking the addresses written in Chinese with a simple phrase "Can you please tell me how to find....... " I have tried Babelfish but it doesn't translate for me. Any ideas please?Thank you

Use Google translate, i find it to be good, but don't worry many young Chinese now days speak basic English , enjoy your trip to china you will be fine
http://translate.google.com/