Trip to Burger King (second time)

Today I went to Burger King for the second time. There is actually one located one block southeast of our apartment. They have most American and International restaurants and fast food places here in Taipei (but not in most other cities in Taiwan). There is even a Hooters a few blocks away from our place as well. So you can see, we are centrally located by both high quality eating establishments and fine dining entertainment.

I had previously gone to Burger King last week and wanted to try to order in Chinese. The person behind the counter replied "Welcome" in English and it threw me off my game. She then pointed to a menu on the counter with the meals listed on it. I ended up just ordering by pointing at the picture menu and basically got what I wanted, no English needed.

Today when I entered Burger King, I was ready and prepared to only speak Chinese, no English. I went inside, and luckily there was no one else in line. I took the initiative to speak Chinese first so I wouldn't get thrown off again. Luckily the person at the Burger King cash register wasn't very good at English.

Jim: Ni Hao. (Hello).

BK Server: Ni Hao, XX XX XX. (Hello. Something in Chinese I didn't understand).

Jim: Wo yao si hao tsan, wo ye yao da shu tiao, wo ye yao da kele. (I would like a number four combo meal with large fries and large Coke).

BK Server: Hao, si hao tsan, da shu tiao, da kele. (Ok, number four combo with large fries and coke).

BK Server: XX XX XX XX dai zou ma? (Something in Chinese I didn't understand and "to go?").

Jim: Dui, wo yao dai zou. Xie xie. (Correct, I would like this to go. Thank you).

I was then handed my food and everything was fine. Well, then I said "Ketchup?" (because I don't remember the word, plus the word "KETCHUP is actually on the package) and then the server said the first thing in English, "How many?". I held up three fingers and said "San (three)". It kind of killed the mood of my accomplishment, but I stuck to my guns and only spoke Chinese. Mission Accomplished I guess.

I was also finally able to watch Teletubbies in Chinese. It was GREAT! I was able to understand almost 50% of everything that was said (sofa, tired, under, walk, goodbye, small, etc). I'm happy to know that my Chinese comprehension is equivalent to half that of a 1-4 year old.

Another day, another small measure of progress.

Jim