If there is one thing I would do differently for next year (and yes, that is how I am thinking already), I would learn some Tibetan. Of course, I'm fairly sure that all of the monks know more English than I could ever learn of Tibetan, but I would like to try. I feel very ineffective when trying to help them work on calculations and activities - a few words would possibly go a long way.
Tsondue talked me through the alphabet today. I had made an initial attempt a few weeks ago, but quickly decided it was too hard for me. He broke it down in a way that seemed much less intimidating. It is a tonal language, but I can hear the difference between some of the tones. Listening to the language, I have an easier time picking out the different sounds - it reminds me of Japanese - compared to French. I have a sneaking suspicion that it sounds "easier" since I am totally missing some of the different sounds.
I'd like to learn the names of the numbers, some basic polite phrases, and some helpful teaching phrases - "do you understand?", "that is correct", "do you have questions?", etc. I have been working on my Italian for the past few weeks - there is a flashcard app that I use on my smartphone. If I loaded in some Tibetan flashcards (and worked with a Tibetan speaker, like Tsondue), I could probably learn a few phrases for next year. My Italian deck has about 1200 cards from when I took Italian. Of course, Italian pronunciation is much easier.
Tsondue talked me through the alphabet today. I had made an initial attempt a few weeks ago, but quickly decided it was too hard for me. He broke it down in a way that seemed much less intimidating. It is a tonal language, but I can hear the difference between some of the tones. Listening to the language, I have an easier time picking out the different sounds - it reminds me of Japanese - compared to French. I have a sneaking suspicion that it sounds "easier" since I am totally missing some of the different sounds.
I'd like to learn the names of the numbers, some basic polite phrases, and some helpful teaching phrases - "do you understand?", "that is correct", "do you have questions?", etc. I have been working on my Italian for the past few weeks - there is a flashcard app that I use on my smartphone. If I loaded in some Tibetan flashcards (and worked with a Tibetan speaker, like Tsondue), I could probably learn a few phrases for next year. My Italian deck has about 1200 cards from when I took Italian. Of course, Italian pronunciation is much easier.
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| The first line is an Indian language, the second line is Tibetan. |
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