奧運棒球台中戰

今天看完《The Dark Knight》後，回到家，一上 PTT，就看到棒球版、幹版雙雙隱版，就知道發生什麼事了……

我沒有空看比賽，只有看一局半，不是很清楚內容怎樣。但早在奧運開始前，看到那個「突破僵局制」，我就覺得很反感了，感覺是給業餘的打的一樣，整個等級降了一大截。前一陣子，看到賽程，更是啞口無言。基本上最吃香的是日本隊了，除了十七號休兵隔天十八號有早上 10:30 的比賽，其他場次全都是晚上出賽。

中華隊呢，20:00 開打的台日戰，戰完超級強隊，晚上十一點多了吧，睡個頂多六個小時，隔天早上 10:30 就要出戰休息時間多出至少十個小時的中國隊……我想這個賽程真的經過仔細打量，相當相當照顧我們的「台灣同胞」。中國人最偉大的了，呵呵。聽說好球帶會變型呢！

不過說到頭來，中華隊的打擊真的要改善改善，後援更是另人搖頭！用這種實力打下去的話，還要輸多少場真的是不敢講。

Started Learning Korean | 我學韓文的第一步

Language: English | 中文

When I was in junior high, I always wanted to learn Korean. And finally, last week, I bought a book and started learning Korean.

This is the book:

莎郎嘿喲！韓語 I Love Korean!

I like this book. Basically, every Korean sentence is accompanied by a Romanized transcript and the same sentence with Chinese characters. And most importantly, a CD is provided.

Thanks to that CD, I found more than ten mistakes in the pronunciation guide section. Here, I am going to list some of them:

Vowels:

1. ㅓ can be [ɔ] and [ʌ], rather than just [ɔ].
2. Similarly, ㅕ can be [jɔ] and [jʌ], rather than just [jɔ].
3. ㅡ sounds more like [ɨ]. Definitely not [ʌ]!
4. I know that nowadays most people pronounce ㅚ as [we], however, the speaker recorded pronounces it as [ø].
5. ㅢ sounds [ɨi] to me. Definitely not [ui]!

Consonants:

1. When ㅅ is followed by [j] or [i], it becomes [ɕ] (like x/ㄒ in Mandarin), rather than [ʃ].
2. ㅈ can be [tɕ] and [dʑ], rather than [tʃ] and [dʒ]!
3. ㅊ should be [tɕ^h]. Not [tʃ^h]!
4. ㅃ, ㅉ, ㄸ, ㄲ, and ㅆ represent consonants produced with more tense, rather than making them voiced.

But, anyway, it is a good book, for beginners like me. Perhaps I will take a Korean Beginner course at university, since I found Korean language quite fun and enjoyable.

其實從國中開始就想要學韓文了，但直到上週，買了一本書後，才算真正地開始起來。

這本書蠻不錯的：

莎郎嘿喲！韓語 I Love Korean!

我喜歡它的一點是，每句韓文，都會附上羅馬字母的表音，以及加上了漢字的原文。而且，很重要的一點是，還附上了一張 CD。

因為那張 CD，我在「發音簡介」那一部份裡，找出超過十個錯處……這裡先列一些出來好了……

母音：

1. ㅓ 的發音應該是 [ɔ] 或是 [ʌ]，而不單單是 [ɔ]；
2. 同樣地，ㅕ 應該是 [jɔ] 或是 [jʌ]，而不單單是 [jɔ]；
3. ㅡ 聽起來比較像是 [ɨ]；絕對不會是 [ʌ]！
4. 我知道現在大部份的人都會將 ㅚ 發成 [we]，可是錄音裡的人是將 ㅚ 發成 [ø] 的。
5. ㅢ 聽起來比較像是 [ɨi] 喔！怎麼會是 [ui] 呢？

子音：

1. 當 ㅅ 在 [j] 或是 [i] 前的時候，發音會變成 [ɕ] (就像國語裡的 x/ㄒ)，而不是 [ʃ]；
2. ㅈ 的發音是 [tɕ] 以及 [dʑ]，而不是 [tʃ] 以及 [dʒ]！
3. ㅊ 應該是 [tɕ^h]，而不是 [tʃ^h]！
4. ㅃ、ㅉ、ㄸ、ㄲ、ㅆ 是表示發音時比較強列、比較緊，而不是單單把清音變成濁音啊！

不過不管如何，這本書還是蠻不錯的，只是有點很入門就是了。現在想說，接下來的那個學期，是不是應該在大學上一上韓文課呢？呵呵，其實韓文並沒有想像中令人討厭嘛。

When I was in junior high, I always wanted to learn Korean. And finally, last week, I bought a book and started learning Korean.

This is the book:

莎郎嘿喲！韓語 I Love Korean!

I like this book. Basically, every Korean sentence is accompanied by a Romanized transcript and the same sentence with Chinese characters. And most importantly, a CD is provided.

Thanks to that CD, I found more than ten mistakes in the pronunciation guide section. Here, I am going to list some of them:

Vowels:

1. ㅓ can be [ɔ] and [ʌ], rather than just [ɔ].
2. Similarly, ㅕ can be [jɔ] and [jʌ], rather than just [jɔ].
3. ㅡ sounds more like [ɨ]. Definitely not [ʌ]!
4. I know that nowadays most people pronounce ㅚ as [we], however, the speaker recorded pronounces it as [ø].
5. ㅢ sounds [ɨi] to me. Definitely not [ui]!

Consonants:

1. When ㅅ is followed by [j] or [i], it becomes [ɕ] (like x/ㄒ in Mandarin), rather than [ʃ].
2. ㅈ can be [tɕ] and [dʑ], rather than [tʃ] and [dʒ]!
3. ㅊ should be [tɕ^h]. Not [tʃ^h]!
4. ㅃ, ㅉ, ㄸ, ㄲ, and ㅆ represent consonants produced with more tense, rather than making them voiced.

But, anyway, it is a good book, for beginners like me. Perhaps I will take a Korean Beginner course at university, since I found Korean language quite fun and enjoyable.

Laura Pausini: Dove L’Aria E’ Polvere

Language: English | 中文

歌手：Laura Pausini
專輯：Resta In Ascolto (2004)

«Dove L’Aria E’ Polvere» 是關於一位小男孩的歌。這位小孩叫做 Ali Ismail Abbas，來自伊拉克。他的雙臂以及所有的家人，都在戰爭中，被飛彈給奪去了。

歌曲的開始，出現了一隻老鷹：l'aquila：

Cronaca del giorno in cui
L'aquila volò
Su confini dove l'aria è polvere

我花了一些時間來想，這老鷹，指的到底是什麼。一開始，我的推論是，老鷹是指那飛彈。在我看到 Laura 的一段話後，更加確定了；她將那飛彈形容為一隻 "金屬大鳥" (grosso uccello di metallo)。然而，除此之外，你不覺得這個 "大老鷹" 有讓你想起某些東西嗎？或者，更白一點，某一個國家？

嗯，除了大老鷹，這裡，還告訴了我們事發地點：dove l'aria è polvere，那空氣充滿塵埃的地方。

然後，歌曲告訴我們發生什麼了：老鷹來到，把小男孩的雙臂奪去了……接著，來到副歌：

Ed un soldato raccontò
Di come il cielo si oscurò

一位士兵提到天空變暗了。這裡，是真的要說天空變黑了？還是，這想要告訴我們，我們的理性，以及人與人間的關係，因為這一次的暴力行為，蒙上了一層陰影？

E in terra pianse lacrime
Urlando ruggine

那士兵呼吼著，在地上哭泣……你是否有想過，一名士兵，也是會流淚的？

接著，Laura 問了我們一個淺顯，卻很深刻的問題：

Ma che cos'è la libertà?
E che significato ha?

什麼是自由？那是什麼意思呢？那真的是承諾帶給我們的自由嗎？自由，那到底是什麼呢？

在第二節主歌裡，一開始，歌詞告訴我們，老鷹犧牲牠的那些英雄；牠向大眾展示牠的功勳、牠的戰利品。然而：

Il bambino è orfano di casa e di poesia
Per l'indifferenza che
La guerra ha dentro sé

那小孩成為了一位沒有家，沒有詩歌的孤兒 (關於詩歌 poesia 的意思，可以參考上一篇 post)……他成為了孤兒，全是因為，戰爭的無情。

然後，在副歌裡，又一個提問：

Ma che cos'è la verità?
E che significato ha?

什麼是事實呢？那又是什麼意思呢？我們能相信電視上，他們所告訴我們的嗎？我們能相信報紙上的東西嗎？他們有告訴我們事件背後的真相嗎？

接著，在第三段副歌裡，重復了一次提問後：

E' il sole che non sorge mai
E' il buio addosso a noi

太陽永不升起，黑暗籠罩我們。這就是自由？還是，這只是令我們的人性，令我們的人格，陷入一個黑暗的時期？

最後，在結尾裡，Laura 以一個強烈的呼喊，做為本歌終結：

[D]immi che cos'è la libertà... cos'è?

告訴我什麼是自由 ... 那到底是什麼呢？相當棒、相當有力的結尾。

一開始，我會覺得這首歌有點強烈，有點難以下嚥；那些痛苦，那些憤怒，那些疑問。可是，當你開始反問自己、開始憎恨我們那醜陋的一面、開始在心裡默默呼吼後，你會發現，其實這首歌，就真的很讚！你會立即愛上它的！

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這裡有一些 Youtube 上找到的影片：

LAURA PAUSINI Donde el Aire es Ceniza TG
一小段報導，附有 Laura 的訪問喔～


Dove l'aria è polvere
歌迷做的影片，有葡文字幕。有的圖可能會令人感到不安。

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關於 Ali Ismail Abbas，可以參考：

• Wikipedia: Ali Ismail Abbas
• BBC NEWS | Have Your Say | My Iraq: Ali Abbas

關於 Laura：

• Official Website
• Wikipedia: Laura Pausini

關於這張專輯：

• Amazon
• Warner Music Italy
• Wikipedia: Resta in ascolto

Artist: Laura Pausini
Album: Resta In Ascolto (2004)

«Dove L’Aria E’ Polvere» is a song about an Iraqi boy, Ali Ismail Abbas, whose arms and entire family were taken away by American missiles.

The song begins with l'aquila, which means the eagle:

Cronaca del giorno in cui
L'aquila volò
Su confini dove l'aria è polvere

I spent some time figuring what l'aquila refers to. At first, I thought l'aquila could be the missile that hit the boy's house. I am quite sure about this because Laura described the missile as a big metal bird (grosso uccello di metallo). However, don't you think that a eagle reminds you of something, or, a country? You know what I mean, right?

Besides the eagle, here, it tells us where the event happened: dove l'aria è polvere, literally, where the air is dust.

After this, the song tells us what happened to the boy: the eagle took away the boy's arms. Then, the chorus begins:

Ed un soldato raccontò
Di come il cielo si oscurò

A soldier speaked of how the sky darkened. Does it really mean that the sky grew dark? Or, is it trying to tell us that our reason, our mind, and our relationship were darkened by this violent, unreasoning act?

E in terra pianse lacrime
Urlando ruggine

The soldier then cried on the ground, shouting. Have you ever thought that a soldier may cry as well?

Then, Laura asks us a simple but meaningful question:

Ma che cos'è la libertà?
E che significato ha?

What is freedom? Is this the freedom that promised to bring to us? And freedom, what does it mean?

In the second verse, it says that the eagle sacrifices its heroes and displays its "stars" and trophies. But sadly:

Il bambino è orfano di casa e di poesia
Per l'indifferenza che
La guerra ha dentro sé

The boy is now an orphan, without home and without "poetry." (You may check my previous post for the meaning of the word poesia.) He became an orphan because of the indifference that war has in itself. How sad, and how cruel! War turns people cold-blooded!

Then, in the chorus, a similar question is asked:

Ma che cos'è la verità?
E che significato ha?

This time, the question is: What is the truth? And what does it mean? Honestly, this is a serious question. What is the truth? Is it what they tell us on TV? Or is it what we read in the newspaper? Does it give us both sides of the story? Can we trust it? How should one judge?

Then, in the 3^rd chorus, after the questioning:

E' il sole che non sorge mai
E' il buio addosso a noi

The sun never rises. The dark is upon us. Is this freedom?

Then, at the end, Laura ends the song with a strong question:

[D]immi che cos'è la libertà... cos'è?

Tell me what freedom is... what is it? Great ending.

At first, I found this song a little bit sharp. The pain, the anger, and thouse powerful questions, they make it a bit hard to swallow, at the beginning. But, after you start questioning yourself, hate how ugly we have become, and shout the anger secretly in your heart, you will find that the song is actually fabulous. And you will start to love it immediately.

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Here are some related clips on Youtube:

LAURA PAUSINI Donde el Aire es Ceniza TG
A brief reportage of the event with a short interview of Laura


Dove l'aria è polvere
A fan-made video with Portuguese subtitles. Few of the pics can be unpleasant and even terrifying.

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For more about Ali Ismail Abbas:

• Wikipedia: Ali Ismail Abbas
• BBC NEWS | Have Your Say | My Iraq: Ali Abbas

About Laura:

• Official Website
• Wikipedia: Laura Pausini

About the album:

• Amazon
• Warner Music Italy
• Wikipedia: Resta in ascolto

So Nice are Hong Kong People | 超有禮貌的香港人

Language: English | 中文

I was running to the train this morning, and I hit a guy. Well, I didn't mean to bump into him, and I said sorry and "Are you alright?" and "Are you fine?" many many times.

Mom says that Hong Kong people are really rude. Sorry but I have to disagree. This guy that I hit this morning, just gave a perfect example of how polite and civilized a Hongkonger is.

Okay. After I hit him, his cell phone fell on the floor. I knew this was a pretty hard hit, probably the greatest one I had ever done on somebody. So, I said, "I'm sorry. Are you alright? I'm really sorry."

To reply, he asked how's my mother doing, literally: "I f_k your mother!" (我屌你老母！)

I felt sorry, but I had my dignity. Actually, I was surprised! I never realized that in fact Hong Kong people are that nice! So gentle, so civilized!

So, he went on, "F_k your mother. My phone, is it f_king broken?" (屌你老母，我個電話係唔係跌撚爆佐啊！)

Again, surprisingly, he asked about my mom. See, this was a strager I just hit, but, instead of barking, he constantly sent my mom some greetings. I was totally surprised, and not able to make any reply.

"I f_k your mother. F_k your mother." (我屌你老母啊。屌你老母啊！) Sitll the same, not finished yet, and with his eyes staring right into my eyes. One thing he should learn about is when to stop asking about someone or something too much and too frequently. Going too far is certainly not good.

He turned, finally, but after about half a meter, he turned back again, facing me, staring, and said, "F_k your mother." (屌你老母啊)

Now, his reaction didn't make me feel guilty at all. So kind. His words just made me feel I had done nothing wrong, and I knew that, actually, I DID NOTHING WRONG.

I hit him, yes, but not intentionally. I said sorry, I apologized, I asked whether I could help him, and I expressed it with my eyes, my reaction. I just stayed there. If he needed help, I would be glad.

But after his reaction, his words, his staring, I found that I stayed there not because I was guilty and waiting for my conviction. I remained still because I was sincere. I was defending the holyness of human being. And since I am human being, no other than what he is, I deserved no such treating. So, I stood there like a statue that represented the mercifulness, the holyness, and the reason of mankind. I stood, and thus I should not move. An I moved, I failed to protect the dignity of being human.

This moment, I was holy, so I felt. It was like every single human was backing me. I felt I was invincible, but at the same time, not conquering.

So, he stared, angrily. And with a few more greetings, finally, he turned. Justice gave me strength, and strength guided me to victory. This day, I am proud, proud of being a human, and proud of having defended humanity.

How gracious!

前幾天，早上，搭火車，在手扶電梯卡了半天後 一堆站在那邊卡位子然後看到火車要開了才在那邊跑的鳥人)，到了月臺了，看到火車，就衝啊。跑的時候，撞到一個男的。

我媽說，香港人很沒有文化，這，原諒我，實在無法同意。因為，我這才體會到香港人是多麼有禮貌的啊！

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撞到那個人以後，我頻頻表示歉意，屢說：「對唔住 (對不起)」、「有冇事啊 (你還好吧？你沒事吧？)」

出呼我意料，那個人起來後，就接連問候我的媽媽。我想，哇靠，這是多麼樣的親切，多麼樣的友善的行為啊！拜託，我撞到他耶，而且那下撞得恰恰好，他手機 (那時應該是拿在手上) 掉到地上了！可是呢，這位＿不但沒有幹天幹地，還直接問候起我家母來……

「我屌你老母啊！」
(我糙你媽啊！)

你看，你看，還不止一次喔：

「我屌你老母！」
(我糙你媽！)

然後呢，他走向前去，彎下身，撿起手機：

「屌你老母，我個電話係唔係跌橪爆佐啊！」
(糙你媽的，我電話，幹是不是摔爆掉了！)

再一次，＿展現出他的親切。由於這太親近了，我有點不習慣，以至於，無法對＿做出任何回應。我就只能，維持我純真、無邪、友善的眼神，親切地、慈悲地看待＿。

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「我屌你老母啊！屌你老母啊！」
(我糙你媽的！糙你媽啊！)

我想，有的時候，太親切，反而不好。這＿應該要學會的一點是，頻頻追問人家家人怎樣怎樣了，實在是，有點太超過了。這兒有一條線，你應該要看到的。

嗯，然後，過了一會兒了，他轉身了，終於，問候完了喔？喔，還沒，他又回過身了，而且還盯著我：

「屌你老母啊！」
(糙你媽啊！)

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他的問候，使得我不但沒有感到罪過，反之，我發現到：我沒有錯。我撞到他了，是的。我道歉了，站在那邊，向他投射出致歉的眼神；如果他有什麼需要幫忙的話，我會很樂意的；況且，他手機也沒有 (彼娘的) 爆掉啊。

當然，我不是那麼無恥的人，我是在＿頻頻向我家母問候後，才體會到：「這，我並沒有犯錯」。＿有一點讓我覺得很無解是，你以為，透過不斷地咒罵，透過不斷的凶狠眼神、凶狠用詞，就能讓你處在比高的位子？就能讓你變得比較對？就能讓你可以繼續這樣不斷問候人家？

你繼續罵啊，你繼續盯啊。我知道我做錯了什麼，我知道我有什麼是沒有做錯的。在這條「線」內，我可以向你表示歉意；可是，過了這條「線」後，對不起，我是不會改變的：我不會感到抱歉，我也不會感到憤怒；為了一個＿動怒？對不起，我做不到，我辦不到。你是什麼？在那邊幹人家媽的就比較強大？對不起，你處在哪個位子，我很清楚。你繼續幹下去，你的「位置」仍舊不變。

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可能是太難以置信了吧，這＿盯了我好幾次，幹人家媽的好幾回後，啞了。他露出難以置信的表情。我做什麼了嗎？我沒有，我沒有不爽，我沒有回嗆，我臉上的歉意消失了，但我的表情沒有顯出任何情緒。我很清楚地知道，我在哪個「位置」。在目前的這個「位置」，如果我沒有做錯的話，我不必表示出歉意，我不必表示出內疚；這只會讓這種＿以為：「我是對的」，然後繼續在那邊「糙你媽的」。

同樣地，我心裡不能出現波動。如果我跩起來了，這表示我的心情受到影響了。要是我心情受到影響，就等於失去了自己的「位置」；心理受到影響後，砲火回擊的話，這＿想必會不爽，然後，兩個人在那邊對幹，事情的結果必然不好。

所以，我唯一能回應他的是，保持我應該做的。我有做錯的話，我會道歉，就像剛開始時那樣。而現在，我沒有錯，沒有必要道歉，就不能給他那邊道歉。畢竟，做錯事情不道歉，跟沒做錯事情而一直道歉，都是有失事實準則的行為。

沒有什麼比事實掌握在手上更有力的了。這一刻，如同感覺到，背後有無窮的力量給我撐腰。這一刻，我知道事實的真相在哪裡。一直在那邊幹人家媽的，我想，我並不值得受到如此對待。然我的心情也沒有受到波動。我不知道為什麼我能夠感到這樣的不可征服、這樣的滿足、這樣的不動。可能是，就像之前所說的，我知道事實的真相在哪裡。當你知道以後，你就不會被影響到 (moved) 了。

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事情的最後是這樣的，那＿就那邊盯，狠盯，盯好幾遍，然後，就走了。你盯啊，我要怕你嗎？我要顯得悲賤？我要調頭跑掉？我要顯得跩？你敢打我嗎？你要動手嗎？不，你不敢，你不能。因為，你是錯的，你心虛了。糙了人家媽的講了那麼多遍後，狠盯人家這麼久後，我有怎麼樣了嗎？你是爆掉幾根血管了呢？糙人家媽的就代表你是對的？對不起。真實賜予給我力量，力量助我堅持著真理。你繼續糙他媽的吧，我是不會受到影響的。

呵呵，我真慈悲。

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或許，香港回歸偉大的祖國後，變得更有文化了。香港，成為了禮儀之邦、文化古國的一份子，化身成現代、科學、文明的中華民族菁英，在世界各國人民的眼前，化身成中華民族偉大的五千年歷史文化的楷模。這是人民的表率！讓我們向這些優秀的香港同胞，致上無比的敬意！

I was running to the train this morning, and I hit a guy. Well, I didn't mean to bump into him, and I said sorry and "Are you alright?" and "Are you fine?" many many times.

Mom says that Hong Kong people are really rude. Sorry but I have to disagree. This guy that I hit this morning, just gave a perfect example of how polite and civilized a Hongkonger is.

Okay. After I hit him, his cell phone fell on the floor. I knew this was a pretty hard hit, probably the greatest one I had ever done on somebody. So, I said, "I'm sorry. Are you alright? I'm really sorry."

To reply, he asked how's my mother doing, literally: "I f_k your mother!" (我屌你老母！)

I felt sorry, but I had my dignity. Actually, I was surprised! I never realized that in fact Hong Kong people are that nice! So gentle, so civilized!

So, he went on, "F_k your mother. My phone, is it f_king broken?" (屌你老母，我個電話係唔係跌撚爆佐啊！)

Again, surprisingly, he asked about my mom. See, this was a strager I just hit, but, instead of barking, he constantly sent my mom some greetings. I was totally surprised, and not able to make any reply.

"I f_k your mother. F_k your mother." (我屌你老母啊。屌你老母啊！) Sitll the same, not finished yet, and with his eyes staring right into my eyes. One thing he should learn about is when to stop asking about someone or something too much and too frequently. Going too far is certainly not good.

He turned, finally, but after about half a meter, he turned back again, facing me, staring, and said, "F_k your mother." (屌你老母啊)

Now, his reaction didn't make me feel guilty at all. So kind. His words just made me feel I had done nothing wrong, and I knew that, actually, I DID NOTHING WRONG.

I hit him, yes, but not intentionally. I said sorry, I apologized, I asked whether I could help him, and I expressed it with my eyes, my reaction. I just stayed there. If he needed help, I would be glad.

But after his reaction, his words, his staring, I found that I stayed there not because I was guilty and waiting for my conviction. I remained still because I was sincere. I was defending the holyness of human being. And since I am human being, no other than what he is, I deserved no such treating. So, I stood there like a statue that represented the mercifulness, the holyness, and the reason of mankind. I stood, and thus I should not move. An I moved, I failed to protect the dignity of being human.

This moment, I was holy, so I felt. It was like every single human was backing me. I felt I was invincible, but at the same time, not conquering.

So, he stared, angrily. And with a few more greetings, finally, he turned. Justice gave me strength, and strength guided me to victory. This day, I am proud, proud of being a human, and proud of having defended humanity.

How gracious!

Quanto? Quando? T or d?

Language: English | 中文

Few days ago, during the Italian class, a student (Italian: studentessa) from Mainland asked our teacher, Cecilia, "Excuse me, what's the meaning of Quan[t]o?"

I knew she wanted to ask quando. But the problem is, she couldn't produce the d sound. You know, in Mandarin, there is no d sound. Or, in other words, they don't know what d is. So, what they do is just substitute the d sound with the unaspirated t sound, or, more precisely, they think the unaspirated t sound is d.

Anyway, Ceci replied, "Quanto? Hom much. Or how many."

Then, the girl asked again. This time, she tried it harder, "No, quan[t]o! Quan[t]o!" (Ironic, though, that the harder she tried, the clearer that the sound was a t! Yes, yes, it was unaspirated, but, sadly, it was a t, no matter how hard you tried!)

"Quanto?"

"No. Q-U-A-N-[T]i-O."

"Oh, QUANDO! That means when!"

Well, I never had supposed this would happen. It's quite fun, though. It just shows that Italian has good ear to distinguish voiced and voiceless consonants, and that many Chinese don't know the difference. (Actually, I never really awared of the difference between voiced and voiceless consonants, until I was 19 or 20. Even so, I still think I am very lucky.)

前幾天，在上義大利文課的時候，一個大陸來的女學生問老師："Excuse me, what is quan[t]o?"

我知道她想問 quando，可是問題是，她不知道什麼是 d。我想這不能怪她，畢竟，普通話、廣東話等這些漢語裡，都沒有 d 這個音。所以，大部份以這些語言當母語的人，都會以為 d 代表的是一個不送氣的 t 音。

嗯，然後老師就說："Quanto? It means how much, or how many."

女學生說："No. Quan[t]o. Quan[t]o!"

嘿嘿，真的是太有趣了。她越是用力去那邊發那個不送氣的 t (國語裡的ㄉ)，就越是展現出她在發的是個 t，而不是 d。

所以，老師就疑慮地問："Quanto?"

這次，這位女學生就乾脆拼出來了："No. Q-U-A-N-[T]i-O."

老師這才了解："Oh, QUANDO! It means when!"

哈，這實在是太有趣了，一個能夠輕易辨別出 voiced 跟 voiceless 子音的義大利人，碰上一位不會發 d 的、以中文為母語的學生，竟然會發生這種事情！我應該早就想到了啦！我怎麼沒有想過這種事情呢？

Few days ago, during the Italian class, a student (Italian: studentessa) from Mainland asked our teacher, Cecilia, "Excuse me, what's the meaning of Quan[t]o?"

I knew she wanted to ask quando. But the problem is, she couldn't produce the d sound. You know, in Mandarin, there is no d sound. Or, in other words, they don't know what d is. So, what they do is just substitute the d sound with the unaspirated t sound, or, more precisely, they think the unaspirated t sound is d.

Anyway, Ceci replied, "Quanto? Hom much. Or how many."

Then, the girl asked again. This time, she tried it harder, "No, quan[t]o! Quan[t]o!" (Ironic, though, that the harder she tried, the clearer that the sound was a t! Yes, yes, it was unaspirated, but, sadly, it was a t, no matter how hard you tried!)

"Quanto?"

"No. Q-U-A-N-[T]i-O."

"Oh, QUANDO! That means when!"

Well, I never had supposed this would happen. It's quite fun, though. It just shows that Italian has good ear to distinguish voiced and voiceless consonants, and that many Chinese don't know the difference. (Actually, I never really awared of the difference between voiced and voiceless consonants, until I was 19 or 20. Even so, I still think I am very lucky.)