I am happy to see that everyone is more comfortable writing English. And I am very impressed with all of you. You all have very solid grammar and composition, some minor mistakes here and there notwithstanding. That’s the way to go, sisters and brothers. Keep writing. After a while you will find it easy.
And as you guys are more comfortable writing, we can think about more interesting things for ĐCN, such as a new category for “poetry and essay in English.” Keep writing. And if have written a good poem or essay in English, send it to me for posting on ĐCN.
For today discussion, could each person write a piece on your experience and feeling on English study.
When did you start learning English? How did you feel about English at first?
Then when did you start to really love English?
How do you feel about English as a language? Beautiful? Sounds pleasant to ear? Sounds romantic?
How does English help you open your horizons, such as American music and singers, American culture, British culture, Australian culture?
How do you think English may help Vietnam as a nation?
How do you think English teaching may be improved?
For today’s challenge I have here a poem I wrote 10 years ago, called Huế. It was published in Illuminations, an annual international poetry publication.
It would be great if you ladies and gentlemen, English talents out there, translate Huế into Vietnamese. This is my poem. So please make my day 🙂
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Huế
This imperial city
where kings and princesses
looked past mountains and seas
searching for a landing patch for the migratory Lạc flock
where you have sung for me
the murmurs of a mother on the Huong river
the day she got word of her son’s death on the battlefield
where the souls of kings and warriors
still vibrate the lotus flowers on the tranquil moat
has been torn and beaten and crushed
time and time again
so that when I look at you in the eyes
though the sky may be blue and bright and transparent
I only see a white stork flying in the sunset.
1. Let’s continue our interesting discussion on our daily quotes. Pickup a quote we post today or any quote posted previously on ĐCN and talk about it.
2. What is your plan for summer vacation? What do you plan to do for three months.
TODAY’s CHALLENGE
Today chi Hue has 4 Diana Ross songs posted. Please translate anyone of them into English.
Today chị Huệ posted 25 quotes in one posting. So let’s use some of these quotes for our discussion. Please tell what you feel about any of the following quotes.
Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage.
(William Ellery Channing)
Out of your vulnerabilities will come your strength.
( Sigmund Freud)
When all else is lost, the future still remains. (Christian Nevell Boyee)
Perhaps our eyes need to be washed by our tears once in a while , so that we can see Life with a clearer view again. (Alex Tan)
Bị ung thư gan giai đoạn cuối, ông Khởi bắt cóc nhai sống để tự tử cho người nhà đỡ khổ. Thế nhưng, ông không chết, và gan mật cóc đã giúp ông sống khỏe 3 năm nay. Nhiều người nghe tin đồn đã tìm đến học hỏi mong thoát cơn bạo bệnh.
Ông Mai Xuân Khởi ở xã Quảng Sơn, huyện Quảng Trạch, Quảng Bình kể lại, năm 2004, ông được các bác sĩ ở Huế xác định ung thư gan nặng và về nhà chờ chết. Đến năm 2006, bị những cơn đau hành hạ suốt ngày đêm, nhà lại nghèo, không có tiền để đi xạ trị hay mua thuốc, nhìn người thân suốt ngày phải chầu chực chờ mình chết, ông tìm cách tự sát để người nhà đỡ khổ. Một ngày, khi vợ con đi vắng hết, đang quằn quại đau, thấy một con cóc nhảy ra từ gầm giường, ông bắt lấy rồi nhai sống. Thế nhưng, ông không chết mà cơn đau lại có phần giảm đi.
Nghĩ rằng “độc trị được độc”, cóc có thể giúp mình chữa bệnh, từ hôm sau ông Khởi bắt hàng chục con rồi đem về mổ bụng lấy gan, mật nuốt sống. Cứ thế, ngày nào ông cũng làm vậy, ngày nhiều nhất có khi ăn hết 15 bộ gan, mật cóc. Ông dần thấy mình khỏe ra, đỡ đau hẳn.
Hiện nay, sau ba năm, đã ăn hết hàng nghìn con cóc, ông Khởi cho biết, mình hầu như không thấy đau nữa. Hằng ngày, ông vẫn ra đồng cuốc đất, làm ruộng và mỗi bữa ăn hết 3 bát cơm. Mới đây, ông đi siêu âm ở một phòng khám địa phương, kết quả cho thấy, khối u ở gan vẫn còn nhưng không phát triển thêm so với 6 năm trước.
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What do you say about this news? Would you at least send this article to someone you know who has cancer? Would you recommend that person to at least try a couple of frogs?
TODAY’S CHALLENGE
Please translate the above news article into English.
Tại ngã tư Bùi Thị Xuân – Trần Nhân Tông (Hà Nội), bị yêu cầu xuất trình giấy tờ vì phạm luật, tài xế taxi bất ngờ lao thẳng, hất một cảnh sát lên capô. Sau màn lạng lách, vượt đèn đỏ dài 5km, tài xế mới chịu giảm ga.
Theo thượng tá Hoàng Thuyết, Phó phòng Cảnh sát 113 Công an Hà Nội, sáng 21/6, một taxi dừng xe sai quy định tại ngã tư Bùi Thị Xuân – Trần Nhân Tông. Thượng sĩ Trương Tuấn Anh (26 tuổi) yêu cầu lái xe xuống xe xuất trình giấy tờ. Thay vì chấp hành, tài xế đã nhấn ga đâm thẳng khiến cảnh sát này phải nhảy lên bám vào nắp capô.
“Thấy mọi người la hét, tôi nhìn lên thấy trên capô taxi một cảnh sát đang lắc lư và cố níu chiếc cần gạt nước để khỏi bị hất xuống đất. Chiếc xe lạng lách vượt đèn đỏ khiến các phương tiện dạt vào lề đường”, chị Dung, phố Trần Nhân Tông kể
Chiếc taxi đã vượt qua phố Trần Nhân Tông, Hàn Thuyên, Phan Huy Chú, Trần Quang Khải, Trần Nhật Duật… Đến bãi Phúc Xá (sau khi chạy được gần 5km) lái xe mới chịu giảm ga để cảnh sát này nhảy xuống rồi phóng mất hút. Sau chặng đường dài nằm trên capô, thượng sĩ Tuấn Anh bị xây xước nhẹ.
Công an Hà Nội đã xác định được danh tính lái xe và đang truy bắt.
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Would you like to say something about this? The news article says, “Thay vì chấp hành, tài xế đã nhấn ga đâm thẳng khiến cảnh sát này phải nhảy lên bám vào nắp capô,” but the title of the article says, “Tài xế taxi hất cảnh sát lên capô.” How do you think about that?
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TODAY’s CHALLENGE
1. Chị Huệ has 5 songs by superstar Barbara Streisand today, to be translated into Vietnamese.
2. Please translate the above news article into English.
The teacher that I remember most is my teacher in primary school in Nha Trang. That was a catholic nun in the parish school in Hà Dừa parish, Thành, 12 km West of Nha Trang. Her name sounded like Séraphin. But I am not sure how it spelled. (Séraphin is a French word for high-ranked angle, but that is a masculine term). I guess I liked her because I was her favorite student, doing well in class, not making troubles, winning inter-school competitions. And all the kids agreed that she was much nicer than the other nun, who were more ready to scold and spank you (usually with a stick on your buttocks). I have always wanted to visit her (probably in their convent in Bình Cang, between Nha Trang and Thành) but have never got a chance yet.
Who is your favorite primary-school teacher? Tell us about him/her.
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TODAY’s CHALLENGE
Please translation the following excerpt into Vietnamese.
Chúng ta phải đối diện với một cuộc đời đầy khó khăn và thử thách, đòi hỏi mồ hôi, nghị lực, và chiến đấu. Nhưng không sao, mình có tin vui cho các bạn, kể cả các bạn không thích đổ mồ hôi, hao nghi lực, hay phải chiến đấu: Bản chất kinh tế của đời sống tạo ra qui luật căn bản là những việc càng khó khăn thì càng mang lại nhiều phần thưởng. Việc càng dễ dàng thì càng nhiều người vào làm, mà càng nhiều người cạnh tranh lao động, thì giá lao động, hay phần thưởng lao động, càng thấp. Ví dụ: Làm nhân công may trên dây chuyền của hãng may thì dễ hơn làm bác sĩ—ít tốn thời giờ học ở trường, và không phải học các môn khó khăn như bác sĩ. Vì vậy, nhiều người có thể làm hãng may hơn làm bác sĩ. Giá lao động may, do đó, thấp hơn giá lao động bác sĩ. Tương tự như vậy, bán hàng rong cũng ít lời hơn là mở tiệm phở, vì hàng rong đòi hỏi ít kiến thức và vốn liếng hơn.
Do you have a good sense of humor? If yes, write a funny caption for this picture.
Under the picture is my attempt at a funny caption (and I am not known for being humorous, so if you don’t feel it funny, too bad!)
“Hmm… it’s coming a little too fast for a sharp picture”
Now your turn. Shoot!
TODAY’S CHALLENGE
A short quote to challenge your translation skill. Could you translate this into Vietnamese? “Death is more universal than life; everyone dies but not everyone lives.”
– A. Sachs
Below are some pictures of Kim Lien crossing tunnel in Hanoi one day after opening:
Từ chiều qua đến sáng nay, suốt chiều dài hơn 500m tường hầm phía đường Đại Cồ Việt xuôi về Kim Liên nhan nhản những nét chữ, hình họa…
Bút sáp là chất liệu chủ yếu.
Một công nhân đang dọn vệ sinh trong đường hầm cho biết, ban ngày thường có 2-3 công nhân đi nhặt rác quanh đường hầm. Những nét vẽ bậy trên tường chủ yếu được thực hiện vào tối và đêm.
Vì tường được sơn chống thấm nên rất khó tẩy rửa. Để xóa những vết vẽ đòi hỏi phải cạo đi và sơn lại.
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What do you think about that? What do you want to say about that???
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TODAY’S CHALLENGE
Chị Huệ has several Neil Diamond songs for everyone to translate into Vietnamese.
Below are two quotes on creativity we have posted recently on ĐCN:
“The world is but a canvas to our imaginations.” Henry Thoreau
“Microsoft is a company that manages imagination.” Bill Gates
What do you think about them? How do you gain new ideas, new thinking? Do you have any knowledge or experience to share with other brothers/sisters on creativity?
Have you ever done anything new, like writing a story, writing a song, writing poem, doing a social project, designing and building a house from zero, designing your áo dài, designing your website, making a new toy, etc.? If yes, could you tell everyone how you got the ideas for that work?
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TODAY’S CHALLENGE
Chị Loan has the California Dreaming song today. Below are the lyrics for the song. You may want to translate it into English, and post it early to help other brothers and sisters listen to the song with more understanding.
California Dreaming
~ The Mamas and The Papas
All the leaves are brown
And the sky is gray
I’ve been for a walk
On a winter’s day
I’d be safe and warm
If I was in L.A.
California dreamin’
On such a winter’s day
Stopped into a church
I passed along the way
Oh, I got down on my knees
And I pretend to pray
You know the preacher likes the cold
He knows I’m gonna stay
California dreamin’
On such a winter’s day
All the leaves are brown
And the sky is gray
I’ve been for a walk
On a winter’s day
If I didnt tell her
I could leave today
California dreamin’
On such a winter’s day
(California dreamin’)
On such a winter’s day
(California dreamin’)
On such a winter’s day
Today we have a nice article on my favorite town Nha Trang. I have mentioned once I used to live in Nha Trang when in primary school and in 6th and 7th grade in Võ Tánh (now Lý Tự Trọng). My heart is still in Nha Trang. I have never lost that love.
Nha Trang on the central coast is famous for the island-strewn Nha Trang Bay with its diverse marine park around Mun Island and Southeast Asia’s longest cable car (3,320 m) over the sea.
Less well known are the many babbling brooks close by, particularly in Dien Khanh District, 10 kilometers south of Nha Trang.
The pick of the bunch would have to be Do Brook, also called Nuoc Do (Pouring water), which flows through Phuoc Trach Village at the western end of the Hoang Nguu Range.
The water streams down from high up to form a good-sized pool on the mountainside from which two creeks turn and twist their way down to one large pool apiece.
All three pools have white sandy bottoms and are surrounded by boulders and small cliffs sharing the space with green grass and trees.
The locals like to relate the myth of a huge eaglewood tree that grew there and emitted an instantly recognizable fragrance that permeated the area.
Oddly enough, any would-be timber thief who got close to the tree became oblivious to the perfume and assumed they’d made a mistake. Thus did the tree protect itself and its precious timber.
It didn’t hurt that there were two large snakes living among the boughs as a second line of defense.
The local deity is called Thien Y A Na and is much revered by the local inhabitants. In days of yore, she would often stop by Do Brook to rest and enjoy the cool breeze.
Three peals of thunder always heralded her approach. She arrived in true spirit fashion, as a long and broad patch of blue light like a strip of silk that flew from
Nui Chua Island or Ba Island and gently touched down.
Her temple can be found a little way below one of the lower pools.
The cascading waters of Do Brook are great for swimming and skylarking, and the fresh air and lovely scenery make it an ideal picnic spot.
Reported by Diem Thu
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Do you live in Nha Trang? If not, have you ever been in Nha Trang? In any event, how do feel about Nha Trang?
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TODAY’S CHALLENGE
Chị Huệ has the lyrics of five songs by Elaine Paige. Please translate any of them into English.
That’s it for today. Have a wonderful day, everyone.
Wish everyone a good day. It has been raining a lot lately in Washington. The rain keeps the air cool and the soil moist. The grass is growing fast and the deer appear more often in my back yard.
It is a beautiful day. ĐCN admin Hiển has been in my home since Saturday. He drove from Connecticut for some business in Washington, and also to hang out with me. We had great time, except for the food part. Phượng, my wife, was gone on Saturday and back late Sunday, and I was not so crazy about cooking, so Hien and I survived on whatever leftovers we could find in the refrigerator. Sunday night Phuong was back and cooked a great quick dinner (she is a very good cook), and we all were so happy. Finally some serious food! Hieen has left this morning for his work in Washington and is now, as I write this message, probably on the road back to Connecticut.
OK, here is an interesting news item for today’s discussion.
Lawmaker grills deputy PM on bauxite projects
The National Assembly heated up Saturday when a representative asked a deputy prime minister why the government had not submitted a major bauxite mining project to the legislature for ratification.
In November 2007, the government approved a two-project initiative to mine bauxite and extract alumina in the Central Highlands provinces of Lam Dong and Dak Nong through 2015. The projects envisaged extension through 2025.
On Thursday, deputy Nguyen Dang Trung had pointed out that the Ministry of Industry and Trade had divided the projects into smaller ones of less than VND20 trillion (US$1.12 billion) to bypass the assembly’s approval process. The national plan for bauxite mining includes 12 projects all linked to each other, Trung added.
According to a National Assembly resolution passed in 2006, only key national investment projects valued at VND20 trillion or above required approval of the legislature.
On Thursday, the Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang had shrugged off the allegation that project planners had tried to bypass the legislative body by saying the projects were all independent and unrelated.
Saturday, representative Duong Trung Quoc asked Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung if the projects had been separated into smaller ones.
Hung dodged the question by saying it was best that the projects were implemented separately.
The government had conducted comprehensive feasibility studies for each project and they were set up in accordance with the law, he added.
“The bauxite plan has been the party and government’s policy for the last decade, aiming for the socioeconomic development of the Central Highlands, both in the short and long term,” Hung told the session.
Outsourcing?
Hung also defended the projects against allegations that they would be used to employ foreign laborers instead of Vietnamese.
He said the projects have employed 667 foreigners, including 663 Chinese laborers and 4 Australian experts.
A Vietnamese firm, not a joint venture, is the main investor of the two projects, said Hung.
In April, the Politburo, the decision-making body of the Central Communist Party, instructed the Vietnam Coal and Minerals Group (Vinacomin), the main investor, not to sell stakes to foreign partners.
Chinese Aluminum International Engineering Co. (Chalieco) was contracted to build an alumina extraction plant at the Tan Rai project in Lam Dong Province.
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OK. What do you think about this bauxite project in Central Highland?
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ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION: “TH”
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DAILY CHALLENGE
Please translate the above news article(about Central Highland bauxite project), or only a part of the article, into Vietnamese.
A technician checks equipment on a lake inside the presidential palace in Hanoi on Thursday.
Researchers have begun testing mechanical “SediTurtles” they say will protect a legendary Vietnamese turtle while cleaning the historical lake in which the creature lives.
Experts showed off the German-developed sediment-eating machines this week as part of preparations before an expected cleanup of Hoan Kiem Lake, the heart and soul of Vietnam’s capital.
Nestled in the center of rapidly urbanizing Hanoi, the so-called Lake of the Returned Sword is home to an elusive turtle which symbolizes Vietnam’s centuries-old struggle for independence.
In a story that is taught to all Vietnamese school children, the 15th century leader Le Loi used a magical sword to drive out Chinese invaders and founded the dynasty named after him.
Le Loi later became emperor and one day went boating on the lake. A turtle appeared, took his sacred sword and dove to the bottom, keeping the weapon safe for the next time Vietnam may have to defend its freedom, the story says.
Occasional sightings of a giant soft-shell turtle draw large crowds, and photographs and amateur video clips attest to the claim that at least one turtle indeed still lives in the lake.
Reported sightings of the turtle, a symbol of eternity, are deemed auspicious, especially when they coincide with major national events.
The site’s historical importance therefore requires a delicate clean-up operation, and the joint team of Vietnamese and German experts have been planning how to clean the turtle’s home with minimum risk to the creature.
Leonhard Fechter, of Berlin’s Herbst Umwelttechnik GmbH, said he knows people care about the turtle, so his company made the SediTurtle with a “soft” technology that will not harm the animal.
“We are sure we won’t touch the turtle,” he said as he demonstrated the devices at a fish pond on the grounds of the former home of Vietnam’s first president Ho Chi Minh.
We have only one turtle left in Ho Guom. So the giant turtles will be extinct after this old man/lady dies? Is there any research to see if there are more than one turtle?
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Đọt Chuối Non 