Travel with Angela Lansbury: Why you should be bilingual

Four language signpost, English, Chinese, Malay.

"A little learning is a dangerous thing. Drink deep."

So said Alexander Pope, a poet, born in 1688, died 1744.

I am going to tell you about time, days off, and thank you.

When you hear people trying to speak English, do you sometimes think, how good of them to try so hard.

Do you ever think foreigners are charming, but crazy, half wits?

What's worse, if you try to help them and understand them, you can see from the expression on their face, They think you are a crazy half wits!

I thought of that when I arrived late on holiday, and kept 20 hikers waiting.

German flag

'Wilkommen. Welcome. You are one hour late,' said the German speaking leader of the hikers, on my hiking holiday. 'I told you half nine. Halb neun.'

'Yes,' I said, 'It’s half past nine.'

'Nein. No! Half nine is eight hours and thirty minutes. A quarter to in English is 15 minutes before. And halb neun is half an hour before nine."

We looked it up. The Germans say half nine, when the English speakers, you and me, would say half past eight.

A little learning is a dangerous thing. Drink deep.

I think the German should learn and speak English, which is the most widely spoken first and second language in the world, closely followed by Chinese and Spanish, both of which I am learning. Spanish is the easiest language for English speakers. Chinese is the most difficult.

UK flag

In Singapore, many people are bilingual. They speak English as a second language.

I am learning German, because once a year I meet up with this hiking group. I am using Duolingo, which claims to be the most widely used language system in the world. I have signed up for a dozen languages, just to read the first page of handy hints and , and .

Benefits Of Being Bilingual

Apart from avoiding mistranslation mishaps, are there any advantages to learning a second language. Yes. Several.

The first is that being bilingual has been found to postpone the onset of Alzheimers by five years. What is the evidence? Studies have been done amongst contained populations, such as amongst nuns in the USA.

That's a long term benefit.

To keep you amused, I will tell you about mistakes I made with mistranslations in Singlish, Spanish, French,

Pope also said, to err is human, to forgive divine.

English is a common language in Singapore. But Singlish sounds the same and is slightly different.

My Indian Singaporean friend, Jaya, wanted to meet me for lunch. He said to me,

Flag of Singapore

"I want to talk to you. I'm having an off day."

I said, "If you are not feeling well, see doctor. I can see you tomorrow."

He replied, "Why should I see a doctor?".

I said, "if you are having an off day, you are depressed."

"I'm not depressed. I am not working. It's my off day.'

I said, "you mean your 'day off.' "

"Yes, that's what I said, 'an off day.' "

"No. Where I come from, an off day, means a bad day, like food which has gone off. The day when you are not working is a day off."

"thank you," he said.

He said it in English.

French flag

I speak French fluently. Many people can recognize the French word for thank you, merci. (which is also thank you in Romanian.).

In France my former babysitter Carolyn offered me tea.

I said, "merci," - "thank you".

She didn't give me any tea.

Half an hour later, she asked me again,

"Would you like some tea.?

I replied, "I did not get any the first time."

She replied, you said merci.

It took us ten minutes to work out that in English, thank you, means thank you, or yes thank you. In French you say yes please or no thank you, so thank you is short for no thank you.

Remember that.

Finally, thanks in two languages.

I shall finish by thanking you in German and Chinese.