Accent samples - Tom part 2

Tom,

Are you an American?

Asian love white people. That is the truth.

You know, Tom, the internet is every bit as popular in the more developed countries of Asia as it is in Eastern Europe, which means that you can still run this website if you go to Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, or Japan. In China- that is, the mainland provinces-, you may have to apply for a website licence from the government but doing what you want over there is easy if you have enough money to bribe a few officials.

to Boy,

Tom is from Poland, but has mastered the American accent.

to Juan,

Apparently so. My cousin is a Filipino-American who was born and raised in the US. She went to South Korea to teach English to a group of businessmen. Upon her first meeting with her students, her students were surprised and dismayed that she wasn't white and demanded their money back. When she told them that she was born and educated in the US, they eased up a bit. I guess they felt that only white Americans were qualified to teach them English.

And even white people who do not speak English at all can teach English in Asia.

So even if I can speak like a native speaker, I will never have the same chance Tom has now. He blew it away, though.

Wingyellow, I guess you didn't notice I was kidding about the wealth and prestige.

So the government in Hong Kong pays $5000 for what exactly?
What is the cost of living in Hong Kong (rent + food + Internet + other basic needs)? How much could I save, assuming no family to support there?

Thanks.

Ryan,

Thanks a lot for your comments.
I'm not sure I understand what you said about keeping the tongue flat to pronounce the [r] sound, though. Isn't American [r] retroflex, meaning you have to curl the tongue upward and back?

HK Government pays 5000 to any native speakers. Tom can pass as one, but I don't know whether they will check your background. For these teachers, the rent is paid by our government. Food can be expensive or cheap. Internet is 10 to 20 a month. Since you don't have to pay rent, you almost save every cent.

Even if you cannot come to Hong Kong, try other Asian countries, Tom. You are white and quite handsome. And you really can speak like an American. These all mean that you have the potential. Don't waste your talent! Actually, I wish I had had a teacher like you when I was small.

You should first pay a visit to Asia to get a basic idea of the situation and make some friends.

Tom, you are right. Perhaps it has to do with the length of time you guys spend with your tongue curled upward and back. With the American R I think it only curls back a fraction of a second.

Ryan

Ah, yes. I'm actually working on my [r] to make it less "conspicuous". A couple months ago I pronounced my r's even more strongly than I do now. I understand that might sound unnatural to Americans, even though it is the American [r], only pronounced very emphatically. I'm currently paying attention to my r's and I'm trying to pronounce them in a more subtle way.

1000 sq ft OK in Hong Kong costs approximately 400 mahn mun-gong-bye. Wingyellow should tell you how much to rent one OK just in case zing-foo doesn't cover it.

Food around 150 mun-gong-bye for a single person's big dinner at Mei-sum-die-zao-lao, but you can get meat, vegetables, and fruit very cheap at the local guy-see if you are game for risk. Food in Bahk-guy around the same price as American tsiu-kup-see-tseungs.

Remember to think in how many mun-gong-bye when you come to HK. Forget about mei-gum.

Translation: (This guy is trying to have fun)
mahn=10000, 400 mahn= 4 million
gong-bye= Hong Kong dollar
zing-foo= government (you have to pay about 700 for rent if not covered)
Mei-sum=a restaurant's name
die zao lao= big chinese restaurant
guy-see=market
Bahk-guy=Park n Shop (a supermarket)
Tsiu kup see tseung= supermarket
mei gum = US$

You are a marvel.

To Tom,

Your American accent sounds excellent! I'm so impressed of it.

I'm an Asian (Chinese) from Malaysia. I've been picking up American accent since a year ago. I noticed it is easier for an European to sound "nasalized" than an Asian where an American accent demands some "nasalities"... What do you guys think?

Hope to have your opinions. Thanks.

James