SHKL Posted July 26, 2015 at 07:42 PM Report Share Posted July 26, 2015 at 07:42 PM Hey there, i would like to know if any of you are willing to translate this postcard i got. If i am at the wrong forum please point me in the right direction Help is welcome Many thanks :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
889 Posted July 26, 2015 at 10:13 PM Report Share Posted July 26, 2015 at 10:13 PM Dear XXX, How've you been recently? I hope you and your family are fine. Do you like studying Chinese? I've just returned to Germany. Living in Beijing was a lot of fun, but the air is not very good, so I'm very happy to have returned to Berlin. [What are the hiragana doing in there?] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skylee Posted July 27, 2015 at 01:52 AM Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 01:52 AM Those are emoticons, not hiragana, I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHKL Posted July 27, 2015 at 05:15 AM Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 05:15 AM Thank you all very much! where are the emoticons you are talking about? The weird thing is, that I've never studied Chinese, and I can't understand who could have sent it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lu Posted July 27, 2015 at 08:09 AM Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 08:09 AM Is it addressed to you? Pity there's no name on it from the sender, unless it's 'Soral'? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
889 Posted July 27, 2015 at 08:27 AM Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 08:27 AM We're talking about べ and び. In any event, I don't believe your postcard was written by a native Chinese speaker. It's possible she means to ask, "Do you like studying Chinese?" in the sense of "Would you like to study Chinese?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skylee Posted July 27, 2015 at 09:29 AM Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 09:29 AM It is not べ. It is two dots above a downward bracket, a sad face. And it is not び, but two dots above an upward bracket, a smiling face. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
889 Posted July 27, 2015 at 09:39 AM Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 09:39 AM I might have thought that as well, except she's so carefully written those "serifs" in び. That said, in context I do think she's using these characters as smileys/frownies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lu Posted July 27, 2015 at 09:50 AM Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 09:50 AM The handwriting looks pretty native to me, but on the other hand the English at the bottom doesn't look like most Chinese people's English writing. I agree with Skylee that the 'hiragana' are smileys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kamille Posted July 27, 2015 at 01:08 PM Report Share Posted July 27, 2015 at 01:08 PM Those are definitely smileys. And if they aren't, it would mean that they are awfully badly written hiraganas in the midst of a full-Chinese text. Logic, asparagus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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