Me: Saya nak makan daging.
Server (nods and smiles): Bahasa Malay.
We've finally started our trip and here's what I've learnt so far. Although a lot of people speak English, not all do so very confidently. And they, like Thai people, appreciate it when you make an effort in their language.
Case in point was asking for food on our first full day in Kota Kinabulu. We were asking the lady at a noodle shop in English if she had any vegetarian food.
She didn't understand so I tried to use the phrase Saya tak makan daging I don't eat meat. She then smiled and nodded saying approvingly Bahasa Malay Malay language...and then proceeded to list in Malay the many meat types available.
So I got out our vegan passport instead as I had reached the limit of my memorised Malay outside of numbers and saying thank you. At which point she took one look at the page, shook her head and said 'No, cannot' and walked away.
After the end of our exchange I realised the cause of the confusion. I must have said the very similar phrase Saya nak makan daging I want to eat meat.
What I took away from our experience at the noodle bar was not that I made a mistake, but instead that making an effort to speak the local language led to a smile and that made me want to keep on practising.
No comments:
Post a Comment