If you get stress, distress, illness in Spanish with a mouth ulcer - and need a phramacy

 On holiday in the Spanish-speaking Canary Islands I got a mouth ulcer. I knew the home remedy from experience and my dentist.

So I asked for salt and tap water.

I also have pills which must be taken at home or in hotels on holiday with plain water, not mineral water.

Firstly, the greeting is not Buenos dias or tarde. It it is shortened to Buenos.

Spanish Agua del grifo - tap water (I had trouble remembering the Spanish - gives you grief trying to get it from a grifo).

I googled possible causes of mouth ulcers and these included lack of sleep and stress. I had had stress from minor irritations in the parador hotel on La Palma in the Canaries. I had no bedroom slippers nor towelling robe.

Savanna - slippers, bedroom towelling slippers in a hotel.

When I tried to communicate slippers by pointing to a towel Toalla and to my feet  I was offered a bath mat.

Finally, I achieved my objective. Salt water rinse. Fine for a couple of hours. But, at tea time, the mouth ulcer was still there.

Later I found a Farmacia - pharmacy, and pointed to my inner lip.

The pharmacist understood toothache.  Eventually she understood.

She offered me Aloclair.

10.50 Euros. Expensive

Cheaper than a doctor.

Peace of mind.

Unlike Bonjela in the UK, Aloclair came with an applicator.

The instructions were in Spanish.

.

Spanish - English

agua - water

aguas - waters

agua sin gas - still water (bottled water, not fizzy)

banos - toilets / bathrooms

buenas - hello / good day (any time)

cerrado - closed

de - of

doloroso - sore

entrada - entrance

farmacia - pharmacy

gracias - thanks

grave - serious

(de) nada/ nada - it's nothing / not at all / you're welcome, literally of nothing

mas - more

medico - doctor

Muy - very

necesito - I need

no - not / don't

pain - dolor (noun)

quiero - I want

no - no /not

servicios - toilets / services

si - yes

tienda - shop

toalla - towel

úlcera - ulcer

English - Spanish

pain - dolor (noun)

painful - doloroso

-ends-

Updated with vocabulary when I was back at my desk on June 12th 2026.

Please share links to useful posts.

Easy similar Italian words - and an update on using Duolingo leagues on basic and upgrading to Premium

The words in Italian are in bold so you can re-read and learn them. Mano of the words simply add o to create the masculine in Italian, for bambino, mano, medico, parco, telefono, vino.  Add the feminine ending e (like our English word feminine) to aprile, credere, impossibile, and simile. Watch out for the double letters in infatti, in fact the letter t appears twice, like in the words letter and fatter.

EASY WORDS

aprile - April (No capital letters starting months in Italian)

bambino - baby

credere - believable

durata - duration 

infatti - in fact

impossibile (im-poss-ee-bill-ay) - impossible

mano - hand (like manual labor, hand work)

medico - doctor

parco - park

(il - the masculine) progetto - project

simile - similar

telefono - telephone

televisione - television

(il) trena - (the, masculine) train

vino - wine

CONFUSING WORDS

ragioni - not regions but reasons, rationality. The i at the end is a plural, like the word spaghetti.

These are todays words from my Duolingo exercises. I used Duolingo for free for a year learning Spanish. 

Now I am doing Italian. This was for a proposed holiday in Spain which has now been cancelled. Never mind. My project for the year is to learn Italian. 

Advertising On Duloingo and Websites

Duolingo is no longer the same as before. It has turned more commercial, like Facebook and the Daily Mail, everything on the internet seems to be bombarding me with advertising. I can't afford to buy another garment from Shein every hour. No point sending me cat food ads when I don't have a cat. I already have installed Grammarly.

Leaderboards On Dulingo

I am addicted to the Leaderboards on Duolingo. You can't be bored with the Leaderboard. It gives you points for every exercise completed. You compete with up to thirty others on your level. If you are in the top half dozen (the exact number varies from fewer in the lowest to more the hightest leaague) you go up. Conversely, if you are in the lowest of your league you slip back to compete with those who spend less time and effert. 

Competing For Position

You do an exercise and add points. Go away for an hour or two, to do something useful, cleaning and tidaying the house, calling a friend, calling family, writing a book, answering mail, paying bills. You come back and somebody else has been busy and caught up right behind you in points or overtaken you. 

Blocked By Duolingo

Then, last week, March 2025, I kept getting signs that I had run out of hearts and could not do any more exercises. Maybe, last year, I had not reached this limit. Maybe, this year, they have changed their system.

Resisting Paying

At first I resisted paying. I am in a system which advertises itself as free. I have been promoting it in my blogs as free. I am a loyal long term member.

I was afraid of being sucked into paying a big sum later, or small sums forever, even after I die. (I am in my seventies.) 

The system promised that I would start getting hearts again if I came back after three hours. Two hours, one hour.

Agreeing To Pay

I thought again. Let's at least check the prices. I have had a year's worth of value from them. I get hours a day from them. I owe them something. I'd pay for food, clothes, entertainment. 

Comparative Costs

The amount asked was less than UK one hundred pounds. (Some of my travel websites are quoting hotels in NZ currency because of my February trip to New Zealand when I set my laptop to the local currency.) If you are being quoted in another currency, or in your own currency and you want to tell a friend or readers another currency, you can look for the flag or currency abbreviation on the website page, click on it and change it, instead of having to go into another website to get the day's currency exchange rate and echange table column.) The answer was sixty pounds.

Family Budget

I thought, that's doable. I told all the family in a whatsapp group chat. They did not objects. They were all spending far more on other activities overseas.

Commitment and Cancelling

I now have two weeks to cancel. Then I will be committed to sign up to premium for the year. 

Any Advantage To Premium?

I must admit I am a bit disappointed because don't find that premium is doing me much extra good. 

I was expecting to be given the grammar clues about what I had done wrong. But I am getting most answers right. I am writing down the correct answers in an A6 notebook labelled Italian. 

Self-Checking Translation Answers

My hand-written pages listings are no longer in alphabetical order, dictionary style  That used to delay me in writing, while I looked for a page which still had an empty line for that letter of the alphabet. Instead, I write down in the running order of the day's words and sentences learned. 

Some of the exercises are timed. I keep Google translate open to check the spelling. 

Mistakes Allowed

f I am tired from not enough sleep, or over-confident, I get impatent and make a silly mistake. Sometimes if I mistype, or use a spelling closer to the English sound, a instead of e, or vice versa, the system just warns me of a typo. 

No time is lost on Duo. 

But I take time to check and if necessary correct that spelling in my hand-written list, or underline the vowel or double letter as a memory aid.

Time Lost On Mis-Translation

However, if I am hasty and careless, I might miss out the word not, or only, having grasped the subject object and verb. So I slow down and check both all the words in the Duolingo suggestions. Then I re-read all the words I have typed, to see if I am missing any extra word. 

Word Order And Alternative Words

I use Google to select the word order. 

Sometimes google translate gives me another similar word which is not acccenpted by the Duolingo system. Is that unreasonable? I can flag this in the choice of comments as 'my answer should be accepted'. 

But I now realised that there is a good reason for me to be using the suggested word in the Duolingo exercise. The reason is because it was teaching me a particular word and I have not learned it.

Conclusion - For You

So, hey, ho, off to study I go. I hope this has helped you, or at least entertained you.

Useful Website

duolingo.com

Please follow my blogs. Here on blogspot you can find my blogs on travel, languages, dress of the day, and comic poetry, and wine and dine. The first three are the most active with new blog daily. 

If you want to make a suggestion for a subject, you can contact me through here or another medium. I am on Facebook, linkedIn when I can recall my password after changing my email, but that's another story. Meanwhile, I'm off back to Duolingo. 

Have a nice day. In Italian that's buona giornata.!

Please, share links to your favourite posts, with your friends.

Per favore, condividi i link ai tuoi post preferiti, con i tuoi amici.

See you again, soon.

Ci rivedremo, presto.


Maybe tomorrow.

Forse domani.


I hope so!

lo spero!

Italian words which sound or look similar to English words

 Here are some of the words I have learned recently from Duolingo. I found some of them had obvious connections with similar or longer English words. When I was stumped, I asked my husband and he added a couple more useful suggestions. Notice that the Italian words usually end with a vowel, a, o, e, i. Sometimes the last consonant is dropped, leaving the Italian word ending in a vowel.

Italian - English

farmacia - pharmacy (sounds the same, ph=f) farmaci-a

dito  - finger (like digit) dit -o

ha - has (she has, consonant dropped)

lei - she (To remember the letters, like the French elle, using the letters l and e. Il is he, so you add e to get the feminine lei, and reverse the letter il for he to get lei for her, putting her letter e in the middle of the l and i. Or using the sounds to remember, I remember, 'he was ill and she lay down with him.')

Medico - doctor, in the medical profession, prescribes medicine medic-o

(le) pareti - walls (like partition, starts par, includes the letter t, Italian ends with i , i being plural like the word spaghetti)

pericolo - danger, peril, something perilous pericol -o

preferisco - I prefer (My memory aid is ,'I prefer San Francisco - preferisco San Francisco')

sei - are you? (I rmember, 'Say, are you ...?'

sforzi - effort or force - all have the letters for, in Italian add a hiss at the start and the vowel i at the end sforz - i

vivace - lively, vivacious vivac - e

English - Italian

are you? - sei

danger - pericolo

doctor - medico

effort / force - sforzi

finger - dito

has - ha

I prefer - preferisco

Pharmacy - farmacia

she - lei

vivacious - vivace

walls - paretti

Glossary (mini dictionary of words used in a document)

vowel - voiced sound, a e i o u (and sounds with added y, eg ay)

consonant - what goes with the (vowel) sound, or stops it, usually using the tongue or lips, b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p , q, r s, t v, w, x, z

e.g. Latin for for example

Useful Websites

Duolingo - Italian and other languages

Wiki - consonants

Wiki - vowels

Please follow myy blogs and share links to your favourite posts.

Italian words which are handy

 Italian - English

dice - he says/tells (like the English word dictate)

(il) dottore - (the) doctor

mattina - morning

pagina - page (the first three letters are the same)

perfetto/a - perfect (adjectives match the masculine or feminine of the noun)

pescare - to fish (like the zodiac sign, pisces)

(il) professore - (the) professor (just add an e to the end of the word and you have the Italian, but the end of the word is pronounced like 'eh?'

riposare - to rest (like repose)

telefono - telephone

vado a - I am going to

English - Italian

doctor - dottore

to fish - pescare (like the zodiac sign, Pisces)

I am going to - vado a

morning - mattina

page = pagina

perfect - perfetto/a (remember no c in the Italian word

professor - professore

to rest - riposare (notice the i after the first r in the Italian)

said - dice

telephone - telefono

Packing Medicines - Travel Tooth Problems Tackled - with Antibiotics, Prescriptions, Mouthwash, Photos

I pack assorted medicines to go on holiday. The first thing is an elastoplast in my handbag for counteracting the effects rubbing shoes, or dealing with minor cuts. 

Elastoplast

Nowadays you can buy a spray-on Elastoplast. That is a kind of antiseptic. 

Tooth Repair Kit

You can also buy an emergency tooth repair kit. In case you lose a filling. But this requires a steady hand to apply to the right place. 

I told my friends about this. One weekend they phoned me and asked if they could have my kit, which they would replace on Monday when the shops opened.

Tooth Trouble Tale

This year, 2025, I had a stabbing pain in a tooth with a filling for a few seconds after I used a toothpick after eating. 

I went to the dentist. He took an x-ray. Fortunately, not an immediate disaster. Unless it got worse, and I had non-stop pain lasting more than an hour.

No, I didn't want my tooth extracted. And a crown. Which only lasts ten years. 

More expense, now. And in the future. 

A whole caboodle.  Bed rest for recovery, when I have outings and holidays planned. A breif period with no tooth, before the crown arrives, looking unsightly.

And I have fragile bones, osteoporosis. And a head injury from a car accident. I could end up with a broken jaw. Migraines.

And the pain! I bad memories of being in bed in agony for days after the extraction of my wisdom teeth.

Let's look on the bright side. From my visit to the dentist, I learned several useful things.

Who Can Prescribe Anti-biotics?

In the UK a denstist can prescribe antibiotics for a problem such as a small tooth abscess. No need for me to go to the doctor for the antibiotics. I was relieved there was no need for me to have a tooth extracted there and then.

A dentist can prescribe antibiotics for you to take when you have an ongoing tooth problem and you are about to travel to a remote place.

Pharmacy Information

In England we call the pharmacy a chemist (shop). In America they refer to a drug store.

When I got to the chemist's, the pharmacy, with my prescription, I asked the size of the pills. Large pills would need a lot of water to swallow. Was there an alternative size of pill? Could I chew the pill or crush it? 

The assistant, the pharmacist's wife, looked at the antibiotic pill packet to find out if the pill had a coating, which she said was to stop it being an irritant to your stomach lining. Really? If so, don't crush it.

Liquid Medicine

She said there was an alternative liquid medicine. I had aleady decided to avoid liquid when travelling, because they are not allowed on planes if the bottle of liquid is to large. Could be a nuisance. But faced with large pills, I was having second thoughts, about a course I might start before I left for my travels. So, I wanted to discuss the options,.

But she could not change my prescription from the pills to the liquid. I would have to go back to the dentist. And other patients have said that liquid tastes  horrible.

Mouthwash

To create an emergency mouthwash, use salt in water. So said my dentist. Not new information for me. But I had forgotten it. Great reminder.

When travelling, you can take with you salt. Sometimes you find tiny packets of salt at fast food places.

So, salt is easier. What about prescriptions?

Photograph Of Prescriptions 

I photograph all my prescriptions. Then if I lose the medicine in lost luggage, misrouted luggage, or a stolen handbag, or forgotten jacket, I have a record online for a pharmacist at my destination. 

If security says I can't import pills, I will have proof that they are a prescribed medicine for my own use, and not for resale. Nor are they some forbidden, unknown drug.

Who Can Prescribe Antibiotics?

Afterwards I was talking to other people about my experiences. My family told me that in the UK psychiatrists can prescribe medicines because they have had medical training. But psychologists cannot. 

Who Is A Medical Doctor?

Confusingly, in the UK the word doctor almost always means a medical professional. However, over in Germany other professions such as engineers, who have a doctorate, a PhD, are called Doctor. 

I am now armed with a whole lot of things for packing on my next trip. I just need a list!

Did you put on weight on holiday, or the business trip? How to find out

Weighing machine. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

You can tell if your buttons are popping. Your clothes are tight.  

What about the fact that you weight yourself naked at home?

Simple. Weight yourself fully clothed in your commonly worn travlling outfit before leaving home. Do it the day you leave or the day before. That is your first day weight.

But dare you weigh yourself.?

1 Pharmacies. In italy and other countries there are weighing machines. You may have to pay. They could be free.

2 Any time you go to the doctor for anything the doctor's prmises or nurse's room probably has a weighing machine.

3 Many hotels and hostels have a large weighing machine for weighting large luggage. This is to help guests find out if their luggage is over weight before leaving for the airport.

4 Some countries in Asia have street vendors who sit with a wighing machine at their feet and make their lving by charging you a small fee, or accepting a donation, from passers-by who wish to weight themselves.

5 Some large deaprtment stores stock weighting machines. Some may be in packets and won't work until you remove the packaging or insert a battery or turn them on. However, look around, you might find one which works. If you smile and chat up a bored assistant, they might help you.  

6 Carry a tape measure. Measure your waist. 

Sometimes the scales tell you mystery numbers.

Just google it to find the conversion.

Useful Websites

https://coolconversion.com/weight/kg-to-stones-pounds/_56.4_kg_in_stones_and_pounds_

Portuguese words for travellers to Brazil, Madeira and Portugal

flag of Portugal

Portuguese - English

aguas - waters/rainfall

amor - love

apartamento (um apartamento) - apartment (an apartment)

avenida - avenue

barco - boat

bilhete - ticket / bilhete de volta - return ticket

carro - car

casa - house

castelo - castle

condominio - condo/condominium

de - of

doutor - doctor (this is from translate google, different results from Wiki phrasebook)

eu - I

Eu te amo - I love you (literally I you love, subject, object, verb)

jardim - garden

lago - lake/pond

livre - free

livro - book

mapa - map

mar - sea

Marca - March (noun, the month)

mercado/supermercado - market/supermarket

meu - me/mine

nova - new

perdido - lost

pinheiro - pine tree, pine tree forest (Place name)

piscina - pool/swimming pool

policia - police

ponte - bridge

porto - harbour

real - royal

rio - river

rua - street

sapato - shoe

torre -  tower

triste - sad 

English - Portuguese

apartment - apartamento

avenida - avenue

boat - barco

book - livro

bridge - ponte

car - carro

castle - castelo

condo/condominium - condominio

doctor - doutor

free - livre

garden - jardim

harbour - porto

house - casa

I - eu

lake/pond - lago

map - mapa

lost - perdido

love - amor

me/mine - meu

new - nova

of - de

old - velha (feminine) velho (masculine)

pine tree/pine tree forest - pinheiro

police - policia

pond/lake - lago

rain - aguas

return ticket - bilhete de volta

river - rio

royal - real

sad - triste (the same word in French)

sea - mar

shoe - sapato

street - rua

swimming pool - piscina

ticket - bilhete

tower - torre 

Useful Websites

FREE

https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Brazilian_Portuguese_phrasebook

https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Portuguese_phrasebook

UNDER ten dollars

https://shop.lonelyplanet.com/products/portuguese-phrasebook-4

https://shop.lonelyplanet.com/products/brazilian-portuguese-phrasebook-5

Portuguese Words - help - how do I say help in Portuguese, and French

Flag of Brazil

Portuguese - English

ambulância - ambulance

 ajuda - help (it looks like adge, but think j as i, and it becomes like the word aid in English, and the French would be aidez-moi or help me)

ajuda-me - help me

(o) médico - (the) doctor

farmacia - pharamacy

obrigada - thank you

perdido/perdida - lost

policia - police

por favor - please

English - Portuguese

ambulance - ambulância

(the) doctor -  o médico

help - ajuda

help me - ajuda-me

lost - perdido (perdida - feminine)

pharmacia - farmacia

please - por favor

police - policia 

thank you - obrigada

You can also use these words in Portugal in Europe, and on the island of Madeira.

Useful Websites

duolingo.com

translate google

Please share links to your favourite posts.

Easy to recognize Malay and Indonesian words in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore

Flag of Malaysia.

In Malaysia and Indonesia and the Food Courts of Singapore you will see lots of Malay words for food and drink. Makan (verb) means eat and food for short, and makanan for food. Miniman means drink. Indonesian and Malay are similar with a few differences in vocabulary, with Portuguese words or derived words added in Indonesia. 

In Singapore you see signs and hear announcements on the MRT (Mass Rapid Transport) trains, in the four national languages, English, Chinese (Mandarin), Malay and Tamil. The easiest language to pick up quickly is Malay, because the script is one which English speakers recognize, and what you see is what you say. (Technical term, a phonetic language.)

I looked at the English language and Malay language versions of a health leaflet about vaccinations and found lots of similar words. You will easily recognize:

Malay - English

aktif - active

aktiviti - activity/activities

doktor - doctor

fizikal - physical

kronik - chronic

program - programme

serius - serious

sistem - system

sosial - social

vaksin - vaccine

vaksinasi - vaccination/vaccinated

Some common words (with my memory aid hints)

Malay - English

anda - you/your (I'm fine - and you?)

atas - above (at the top, like a hat)

atau - or

bagi - for

boleh - can

dan - and (same letters in a different order)

di - at

diri - self (direct it back to yourself)

ini - this (in, inside or on or is this, isn't it innit?)

orang (as in orang utan) person

orang-orang (plural is doubled) people

rumah - home (room at home, letter m in both languages)

selamat - safe (Letters s a a and e in both words)

wanita - woman/women (initial letter w in both words,  and the e in women is pronounced like i, it is a woman)

Malay is very similar to Indonesia.

Useful web sites

duolingo.com Indonesian

Facebook Polyglot groups

translate google

Please share links to your favourite posts.

Numbers You Need For Emergencies in the UK, USA, Singapore and worldwide

 We need a call number for minor emergencies like that. Like what: I've missed my last bus home. Somewhere not yet reaching the call the police and the Samaritans. Or a redirection service. There's a medical helpline that puts you through to a nurse. I thougt it was 101 in the UK but it is simpler than that, like 999 it is the same number three time, just one, not once but three times.

London transport ought to have one for missed the last train, connecting you with all night buses, time and distance to where to catch an all night bus, nearly stations with later trains, first morning train and waiting room, nearby all night cafe or kiosk and 24 hour toilet, and taxi, grab or bicycle hire. Plus bigger signs telling you the time of the last train and second to last at every station. Also the vet and animal lovers local neighbourhood watch and help so that animal lovers can save spiders, toads etc.

What to do when arriving in another country or planning an outing or trip whether overseas or local.

LOCAL LIST

Call police

fire

ambulance

Nurse/medical

helpline

samaritans

speaking clock number and price - or how to book alarm in hotel or on mobile phone

Hospital

doctor

Dentis

Bus to home/hotel

Time of last bus

Time of last but one

bicycle racks yes/no where

map service

language translation online

(print it off common phrases)

phasebook to buy

grammar/sentence structure (eg tips page starting language in duloingo and Wikipedia, simple Wiki, and wikivoyage language pages

train

EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS Print off and add

Water

Electricity

Gas

Landlord/building management of Home / office

Doctor

Dentist

Hospital

Pharmacy (opening hours)

Medicines in nearby supermarket

First aid kit location

Revival (usually in railway station near ticket office or in condo by swimming pool)

• 000 – emergency number in Australia
• 100 – emergency number in India, Greece and Israel
• 106 – emergency number in Australia for textphone/TTY
• 108 – emergency number in India (22 states)
• 110 – emergency number mainly in China, Japan, Taiwan
• 111 – emergency number in New Zealand
• 112 – emergency number across the European Union and on GSM mobile networks across the world
• 119 – emergency number in Jamaica and parts of Asia
• 122 – emergency number for specific services in several countries
• 911 – emergency number in North America and the Philippines
• 999 – emergency number in many countries

Singapore emergency police 999

Singapore emergency ambulance and fire 995

Singapore non emergency ambulance 1777 

Useful Websites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_emergency_telephone_numbers

https://seniorcare.com.sg/singapore-emergency-phone-number-ambulance-police/

About the Author

Angela Lansbury is teacher of English. (Advanced English and English as a Second Language or English as a Foreign Language, French and other languages, an aspiring polyglot.)

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Member of many toastmasters  speaker training clubs, and speaking contest judge.

Angela Lansbury, the author of 20 books including Wedding Speeches & Toasts, and Quick Quotations, has lived in the USA, Spain and Singapore. 

She  has several blogs and writes daily on at least two of the following:

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

 Please share links to your favourite posts.

Who needs swear words when learning or teaching English or a foreign language?

When you are travelling, it might be helpful to know if somebody is swearing, or making an improper suggestion, in order to avoid them.

However, I see no reason for learning swear words in another language. It is the quickest way to lose friends and respect from people who could be useful, restaurant staff, hotel staff, bank staff, doctors, bystanders.

I am a teacher. I managed to get though most of my life wihout needing any swear words.

As an English tutor I can't afford to swear, nor even use a siilar sounding nonsense word every time I drop a pencil. It is too complicated to explain to a Japanese child who is learning English.

Just think what you would want a child to say to the school head teacher.I really love it. I adore it. If you want silence when you are trying to photograph a songbird without frightening it, you just say to bystanders, 'sh', or, 'quiet, - now!'

I recall when my husband and I were celebrating our first wedding anniversary at the Souffle restaurant at the Intercontinental Hotel, Park Lane. The romance was ruined by the noisy conversation of two young women, with two young men, one of whom kept saying, My Wife ... (referrring to his absent wife). The two young women who we presumed to be escorts, were showing off their knowledge of swear words in different languages.

That really put me off swear words, especially swear words in public places.

You are unlikely to hear swear words if you come to a toastmasters meeting.

Author, Author! About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. (Not related to the actress.)
Author of twenty books including: Quick Quotations; Who Said What When.
See books and profiles on Lulu.com and Amazon, such as Wedding Speeches & Toasts. Also watch videos on YouTube.
See other posts on singers and statues and languages and destinations.

Online Toastmasters International Meetings
If you want to learn to speak the Queen's English, or Received Pronunciation. join me at my online toastmasters club,
Braddell Heights Advanced. Wednesdays, 7-9 Singapore time which is seven hours ahead of London, England.

https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=braddell%20heights%20advanced%20toastmasters
I am also a member of
Singapore Online.9-12 pm, Singapore time, Fridays. I am also a member of
Tampines Changkat Advanced.
Harrovians, Toastmasters Club, London.
Tiarel.toastmasters club, Singapore.

Toastmasters International Find a Club
https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club
https://books.google.com.sg/books?id=upSEBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=quick+quotations

lulu.com/shop/angela-lansbury/who-said-what-when/paperback/product

Covid-19 What Do These Death and Infection Statistics Mean?

The USA is in turmoil. Some people are in favour of lockdown, others against.

You often hear or read:

'The percentage of people affected is less than one percent. That's less than die of flu.'

It is like comparing guns and knives. 

When I go to a doctor, I don't want him to refuse to treat me on the grounds that I am more likely to be run over by a bus. 

Nr to refuse to treat my teenage child on the grounds that he is more likely to die by suicide. Or by driving too fast.

To the average member of the public these figures are meaningless and the public presented with these facts showng tiny percentages ignore them. Many forums in popular media repeat the idea that it is all a lot of fuss about nothing. 

To convey the message that these statistics are important, we may need to illustrate numbers in human and visual terms.

Meaning how many deaths? And families and workers – does a percentage really matter? If we tell the public this means x deaths in ‘your street’ or ‘your children’s school’, or two primary school children in your school will lose a beloved granny, or two schools in your city will lose a teacher, they are more likely to understand the implications and  demand action and comply with suggestions and laws and instructions.

It would certainly put a blight on a wedding if a parent or grandparent died.

It would cause a major upheaval in a family if the grandparents doing babysitting and childminding were taken away so that the parents could not work.

Stay home. Stay safe.

Useful Websites

https://www.gov.sg/features/covid-19
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/covid-19-a-cautionary-tale-from-spore?
Facebool.trevorsharot

About The Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, club organizer and speaker.

Toastmasters International Find a Club
https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club
https://books.google.com.sg/books?id=upSEBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=quick+quotations
lulu.com/shop/angela-lansbury/who-said-what-when/paperback/product-21713991
learncool.sg
Braddell Heights Advanced speakers club meets every Wednesday, currently on line.
Future Meetings include
Wednesday May 13th, lucky for us, as we have Thomas Chen running a workshop on Networking.
Contact President Angela Lansbury or VPE Faith. Then login to learncool.sg and wait to be admitted by the host.
Please share links to your favourite posts

Telemedicine - Phone call to doctor

I am in home stay like most people in the UK, Singapore and other parts of the world. I can't go out to the doctor. So I just did a 'telemedicine' phone call. It was simply to renew pills, but the doctor wanted to see me and speak to me.

Private consultation. First you have to pay them. Credit card on the phone.

The cost in the USA depends on your insurance. In the UK consultations at a doctor or hospital are free, but a long wait unless you go privately, which you can do by paying or though insurance.

In Singapore hospitals can be subsidised out of your CPF, or compulsory savings deducted from your salary during your working life in Singapore (for Singaporeans and permanent long-stay residents).

The Singapore cost could be about 50S dollars, 49 Euros, forty three pounds sterling, just for a quick consultation or chat to get a renewed prescription.

Then sign a form promising to pay them, even if the call is terminated by either of you.
Signing was easy. Not like a contract I signed online in the UK months ago, which required a specimen signature on file. For the doctor in Singapore it was just like signing when somebody delivers mail. I moved the mouse over a box and got a jagged version of my signature.

Would they phone me or should I phone them?

I was worried aboout what to wear - and would I have to undress. No. Just a chat. My family say, 'You're a worrier.'

They phoned me. They told me there was a click button to connect.
Eventually by scrolling down an email I found it.

The family asked me which video service the doctors were using. It was not zoom but a medical call service which connects the patient's records and the call.

Useful Websites
Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong
https://platomedical.com/

USA
https://platomedical.com/

About the Author
Angela Lansbury is a travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

How To Ask for help and warn of danger in foreign languages: French, Spanish, German, Malay, Indonesian, Chinese simplified, Chinese traditional, Pinyin?Chinese

Help
Which way?
Leave now. Quickly
Danger
This way
This way is better / safer
Way out
Wait here
Call 999 (995 in Singapore for )...?
Are you ok?
Are you hurt?
You are safe now.
The emergency is over.
Please write your name and phone number.
In capitals.
I need a phone.
I need a doctor.
I need water, drinking water.
Yes/no
Thank you
Goodbye
Safe journey

FRENCH
(My translation)
Au secours.
Quelle direction?
Allez-tous en, Maintenon. Vite!
Danger
par cici
par ici est mieux / plus sauf
exit
Restez ici
Appelez neuf neuf neuf
neuf neuf cinq pour
Ca va? / Tout va bien?
Vous etes blesse?
Yous etes sauf maintenon
Le probleme est fini
S'il vous plait, ecrivez votre nom and numero de telephone sur le papier,
en majuscule
J'ai besoin d'un telephone
J'ai besoin d'un medecin
I besoin d'leau, potable,
Merci
au revoir
Bon voyage/Soyez sauf....

FRENCH
Google translation
Maintenon is the name of a writer, Should be maintenant.
exit should be sortie


SPANISH

Ayuda

De que manera

Salir ahora. Con rapidez

Peligro

De esta manera

De esta manera es mejor / más seguro

Salida

Espera aquí

Llame al 999 (995 en Singapur para ...?

¿Estas bien?

¿Estás herido?

Estás a salvo ahora.

La emergencia ha terminado.

Por favor escriba su nombre y número de teléfono.

En mayúsculas.

Necesito un telefono

Necesito un médico.

Necesito agua, agua potable.

Gracias

Adiós

Viaje seguro



FRENCH - (in Spanish) FRANCÉS

GERMAN
Hilfe

Welche Richtung?

Verlasse jetzt. Schnell

Achtung

Diesen Weg

Dieser Weg ist besser / sicherer

Ausweg

Warten Sie hier

Rufen Sie 999 (995 in Singapur für ...?

Geht es dir gut

Sind Sie verletzt?

Du bist jetzt in Sicherheit.

Der Notfall ist vorbei.

Bitte schreiben Sie Ihren Namen und Ihre Telefonnummer.

In Grossbuchstaben.

Ich brauche ein Telefon.

Ich brauche einen Arzt.

Ich brauche Wasser, Trinkwasser.

Danke

Auf Wiedersehen

Sichere Reise



MALAY

Bantuan

Arah mana?

Meninggalkan sekarang. Cepat

Bahaya

Dengan cara ini

Cara ini lebih baik / selamat

Jalan keluar

Tunggu disini

Hubungi 999 (995 di Singapura untuk ...?

Adakah awak ok?

Adakah anda sakit?

Anda selamat sekarang.

Kecemasan sudah berakhir.

Sila tulis nama dan nombor telefon anda.

Dalam ibu kota.

Saya perlukan telefon.

Saya memerlukan doktor.

Saya perlukan air, minum air.

Terima kasih

Selamat tinggal

Perjalanan yang selamat

INDONESIAN

Tolong

Jalan yang mana?

Pergi sekarang. Segera

Bahaya

Cara ini

Cara ini lebih baik / lebih aman

Jalan keluar

Tunggu disini

Hubungi 999 (995 di Singapura untuk ...?

Apa kau baik-baik saja?

Apakah kamu terluka?

Kamu aman sekarang.

Darurat sudah berakhir.

Silakan tulis nama dan nomor telepon Anda.

Di ibukota.

Saya butuh telepon.

Saya perlu dokter.

Saya butuh air, air minum.

Terima kasih

Selamat tinggal

Perjalanan yang aman

SIMPLIFIED CHINESE (CHINA)

救命

哪一条路？

现在离开。 很快

危险

这条路

这样更好/更安全

出路

在这儿等着

致电999（在新加坡拨打995 ...？

你还好吗？

你受伤了吗？

你现在很安全。

紧急情况结束了。

请写下您的姓名和电话号码。

在首都。

我需要电话。

我需要一个医生。

我需要水，饮用水。

谢谢

再见

一路平安
..............................................
TRADITIONAL (TAIWAN

救命

哪一條路？

現在離開。 很快

危險

這條路

這樣更好/更安全

出路

在這兒等著

致電999（在新加坡撥打995 ...？

你還好嗎？

你受傷了嗎？

你現在很安全。

緊急情況結束了。

請寫下您的姓名和電話號碼。

在首都。

我需要電話。

我需要一個醫生。

我需要水，飲用水。

謝謝

再見

一路平安

PINYIN
How to convert Chinese into pinyin?


About the Author
Angela Lansbury is a travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
I can tutor you online in giving a speech or creating a blog. I also give workshops in English to Toastmasters International speakers' groups, colleges and businesses.
Please save in bookmarks and share links to your favourite posts.

Travel Tale Detectives - are you one?

Problem
A member of my family takes a trip to Changi airport with a friendly chatty taxi driver. He says he travelled to London several years ago. He can't remember the airline or the airport name. London has five airports. Which one was it?

Answers
My relative asks: "Was it a direct, non-stop flight?"

"Yes, it was direct."

"Only three airlines fly direct and non-stop between Singapore and London. They are Singapore Airlines, British Airways and QANTUS."

"It was Qantas."

"They fly from Heathrow. So you flew into Heathrow on Qantas!"

When you go to London, photograph the statue of Sherlock Holmes outside Baker Street Station. How many clues can you pick up from your fellow travellers? This great fictional detective was based on a Scottish doctor who could deduce several facts about a patient the moment they walked in and said hello.

For example, a farmer might have dirt under his fingernails.

My late father was an optician. He said that when somebody walked into his shop, he knew what they needed. A teenager without glasses probably had myopia, short sight, and needed his first pair. An older person with a frown, wearing a pair of glasses, was probably a reader and needed an updated stronger prescription. A middle aged person wearing glasses probably had glasses for myopia, short sight but had developed presbyopia, age related long sight in later life and wanted bifocals.

We were on holiday in Spain and my father said of a couple looking in shop windows nearby, "They are British."

I asked, "How do you know? Did you hear them speak?"

"No," said my father. "They are wearing National Health Service spectacles. "

*** 

Have you ever made deductions about people you meet on your travels? Were you right or wrong? How often do you find that 'the clothes make the man' and 'no smoke without fire'? How often do you find that 'you can't judge a book by its cover' and 'handsome is as handsome does'?

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourites posts.

Light Relief - writing poems whilst travelling

Problem
How to pass the time during a delay? How to see the funny side? How to make good use of your time? I write comic poetry and when I remember and feel inspired I write poems about problems. I met a Singapore Airlines pilot at a toastmasters International meeting and said I would give him a poem, but our paths did not cross again. He was always away flying. However, for your entertainment, here's a new reproduction of my poem.

Answer
To be performed wearing a cap with gold buttons.

The Pilot Speaking
by Angela Lansbury

"This is your co-pilot speaking
I promise we're leaving on time
I know you feel like you're dying
Just breathe deeply, and you'll be fine ..."

"This is your co-pilot speaking
I'm sorry about the delay
If you look out of the windows
You'll see goat herds on the runway

"We don't usually tell you
When we see a snake on the plane
I lift my feet in the cockpit
Calmly sigh, 'Oh no - not again!'

"Whilst I am waiting for the vet
I announce, 'We're waiting for parts ...'
I send for vets - and two doctors
Mine quickly checks my waltzing heart!

"We know you've paid lots of money
We pretend complaints don't cause stress
Altitude makes food taste funny
Crew clean toilets, they do their best

"I have you enjoy a pleasant flight
A safe journey, a lovely day
Remember whilst you have a holiday
We're working, driving, smiling, all day."

Copyright Angela Lansbury
April 21 2017

Quick facts
Single animals or whole herds can get onto fenced or unfenced runways, especially in Africa.
Snakes on the plane have happened several times - either in passenger area or cockpit. Planes from some destinations are checked for stowaways - local wildlife which slithers in. Animals and reptiles and pets can also escape when carried officially or unofficially in luggage, or hidden under the passenger's clothes.

Snakes on a plane
Wikipedia:
The (movie) story is credited to David Dalessandro, a University of Pittsburgh administrator and first-time Hollywood writer. He developed the concept in 1992 after reading a nature magazine article about Indonesian brown tree snakes climbing onto planes in cargo during World War II.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author, speaker, entertainer.

Instant Malay - more than 30 words

Problem
How to remember Malay?

Answer
Start with the easy words.

Story
I woke in the middle of the night and couldn't get back to sleep. So I spent an hour reading a little tex book on the Malay language. I was far too tired to remember anything except the words which sounded nearly the same as English. Next day over breakfast, I asked a companion for the words which they recognised and remembered as being nearly the same.

Tips
SAME/SIMILAR WORDS
Malay - English
a l e r g i - allergy
a m b u l a n s - ambulance
a p r i l - April
aspirin - aspirin
a s m a - asthma
a p o t e k - (apothecary was the old word) pharmacy / chemist (Americans would say drug store)
c e k - check (as in travellers checks)
d o k t e r - doctor
diabetes - diabetes
donor - donor (as in blood donor)
guru - teacher


English - Malay
allergy - a l e r g i
ambulance - a m b u l a n s
April - a p r i l
aspirin - aspirin
asthma - a s m a
cheque (Americans spell it check which is a verb in British English) - c e k
chemist / drug store / pharmacy - a p o t e k
diabetes - diabetes
doctor - d o k t e r
donor - donor
teacher - guru

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author, speaker and teacher of English and languages.

Learning Portuguese For The Olympics

One of the pieces of advice given to participants and spectators of the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is to learn Portuguese in case you need to be admitted to hospital.

I have started learning several languages on Duolingo. I was learning Spanish and Italian and thought Portuguese was an unnecessary complication. Now I'm thinking of learning some Portuguese.

These are the phrases I shall research:

1 English
Hello
My name is
I am ill.
Please call a doctor.
I need a doctor.

Portuguese
Olá
Meu nome é
Estou doente.
Por favor, chame um médico.
Eu preciso de um doutor.

2 English
I need an ambulance.
I need a hospital.
I need a pharmacy.
Do you have a dictionary?
Do you have the address?

Preciso de uma ambulância.
Eu preciso de um hospital.
Eu preciso de uma farmácia.
Você tem um dicionário?
Você tem o endereço?

***
3 English
Do you have the name?
Do you have the phone number?
I need a taxi.
It hurts here.
I need medicine.

Portuguese
Você tem o nome?
Você tem o número de telefone?
Eu preciso de um taxi.
Dói aqui.
Preciso de medicina.

4 English
Where is the hospital?
Where is the doctor?
I am tired.
I am thirsty.
I am hungry.

Portuguese
Onde fica o hospital?
Onde está o médico?
Estou cansado.
Estou morrendo de sede.
Eu estou com fome.

***
These are my translations using Google translate. I suggest that when you are in a Portuguese speaking country, you ask somebody to give an accurate translation of what what be said in your locality, whether Portugal or Brazil or elsewhere, to pick up local vocabulary as well as pronunciation.

If you want to discuss language online, you can join a forum for the language you are learning in Duolingo.

visitportugal.com

visitbrasil.com

http://www.visitmadeira.pt/en-gb/homepage

duolingo.com

earwormslearning.com

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.