Hello, I'm Gill at www.engvid.com , and today's
lesson is not actually a lesson. We're doing something a little bit different and we have
having an interview with a guest whose name is Chong who has very kindly come. He's agreed
to be interviewed today about his experience of living and working here in the UK. So, Chong, welcome. Thank you for coming.
Okay. - Thank you - And you would like to just tell us a little
about yourself, where you've from, how long you've been in the UK? - Okay, my name is MK Chong, I've been in
the UK for ten years now. And I work as a surveyor. - You're a? - I'm a surveyor. - You're a surveyor in the building industry,
okay. - Yeah, in the building, yeah, yes. - And what country are you from? - I'm from Malaysia. - Ah-hah. So, what language, what is your
native language or languages from there? - Alright now, in Malaysia, the official language
is Malay, and then we use our mother tongue language, which is Chinese, Mandarin and Cantonese.
And we study English as well in our school. - Oh, okay. So, so you started as a child
learning two languages, Chinese and Malay, is that right? - Chinese, Malay, and English. - English as well. So, did people speak English
within your family as you were growing up? Or was that at school? - Well, some of my family, they start English,
with English background, speak English to me. - Ah, okay. - Most of my family members speak Chinese
to me. - Right, okay. But from a very young age,
it sounds like you were hearing and speaking English. You were learning English. - Yeah. - From quite a young age, were you? - Yes, I would say very basic English. - Yes. - Very basic, because. - Yes, basic, basic words. - Basic words. - And for children anyway, children learn
basic words, don't they? - Yes. - And then as we grow up, we learn bigger
words, so that's how it goes. - Yes, that's right. - So, when you went to school, did they give
you lessons in English? - Yes, they did. Each day, we would have about
an hour to two hours of English class or English course. - Right, okay. And do you remember much about
it? Did you enjoy it? You know, did you have interesting lessons in English? - Um, I would say, because we got a textbook,
so we used a textbook in order to always learn things. It was quite interesting because we
had two languages and we have to express ourselves in three different languages. - Oh, I see. So, you were working from a textbook. - Yep. - And, but, using your Malay, Chinese, and
English - Yep. - In the lesson… - Yes. - So, an hour, two hours a day, that was quite
a lot then. - Yes. - That was quite good, so… - Yes. - Do you feel that you learned, you got a
good sort of basic grounding in English from school? - I would say some basic English language
that we learned in our schools, as well as our official language which is Malay and Chinese. - Ah, okay. So, so that's good. So, so then,
as you grew up and went through school, were you still continuing to use English? - Yes. We studied from the primary school
until secondary school, as I say. It's between an hour to two hours during our school days,
and I get to college and we use English as our background studies. For example, we use
English only courses for professional technical subjects in English. - Oh, I see. So, that's interesting. So, for
your sort of professional training. - Yes - You were using English. - Yes - Still in Malaysia, this was? - Yes - Ah, okay. So, you were learning your profession
and using the English language as you did that? - Yes - Ah, that's interesting. - Yes, and at times, it was quite minimal
Malay language, and we don't use Chinese from that point onwards, because we realize English
language is very important for my profession. - Right, okay. And then, tell us a little
bit about your outside work. What sort of interests do you have? - I would say I do some readings and do some
swimming and I play badminton as well. - Oh, badminton and swimming. So, that's very
healthy to keep fit physically. That's very good. - Really good. - Excellent, lovely. Okay. So, can you tell
us about when you first came to the UK? What was your purpose and when was it? - Alright. I first came to the UK in 2004,
a short course in Sheffield, which is in Sheffield University. - Ah, so Sheffield up in Yorkshire, so about
200 miles north of London, I think. - Yep - That is – so that was a short course at
university in Sheffield. - Very short course, correct, yes. It was
like 15 years ago. - 15 years ago, okay. So, what was that like?
Your sort of first impressions of the UK up in Yorkshire, not even in London? - Yeah. We – it's very cold. What I remember,
it's very cold. - Cold. Was it the winter? - No, it was in the summer. - Oh, it was the summer and it was cold! - Yes! Because I – Yeah. I am from Malaysia.
We have a tropic country. - So, you're in a tropical country, Malaysia.
So, even the summer in Yorkshire was a shock. - Yeah. - Oh dear, oh well. And apart from the cold
weather up in Yorkshire in the summer, were there are other, you know, unexpected things? - The things are different to Malaysia are
the food. - The food, ah-ha, okay. So, can you give
an example? - Malaysia, I eat a lot of rice and dishes
and English dishes, for example. We call the English big breakfast. - Ah, the big English, what's it called, the
full English breakfast? - Full English breakfast. And then we have
fish and chips. - Fish and chips. - Sausage and mash. - Yes. - These are quite different compared to my
Malaysian food. - Yes, compared to Malaysian food with lots
of rice and things like that. So, was that the kind of food that they were serving in
the university in the catering? - Oh yeah. - At university? - Yeah, it is. Sometimes it was roast. - Yes, so roast meat and vegetables and maybe
gravy. - Yes. - So, what did you think of that kind of food
when you first saw it? - Yeah, I quite like, I like it. I really
was quite… because they got some veg and mashed potato with some roast with it. The
mash and mashed potato and roast to go with it. - So, a bread roll? - A roast, and the roast meats. - Ah, the roast meat. Sorry. Yes, that's it.
So, it's quite healthy, quite a balanced food and of course vegetables are always, you know,
good for you. - Yes, yes. - So, something like the full English breakfast.
Can you, for people who don't know what the full English breakfast is, can you tell us
what the different ingredients are? - Okay. Its name is a full breakfast. And
then we've got sausage, bacon, and baked beans. Mushrooms and a slices of toast. - And is there sometimes fried – there's
a fried bread variety. - Yes, yes. - You know, when the bread is actually fried?
So, it's very full of fat, isn't it? Yes. - Yes, but it's quite tasty, though. - Oh, it tastes lovely, yes. - Any other ingredients? - It's served with a cup of tea or coffee. - Oh, a cup of tea or coffee. - It makes it perfect. - You drink tea or coffee at the same time
as having your breakfast? - Yes. - And do they have anything else, is it tomato
or egg? - Yes, sometimes with some set, they will
have some tomatoes and hash browns sometimes. You can request for a bubble, which is like
mashed potatoes with some veggie and some pan fried or grilled. - Oh, I think, is that bubble and squeak? - Yes, bubble and squeak. - Bubble and squeak. - Oh, I think we need a whole lesson on that
to explain. But anyway, so that's – if you imagine, you must have to have a very large
plate for all those ingredients. - Yes, yes of course. - And you mentioned hash browns, which that's
a kind of potato, isn't it? - Yes, I think they cut it into pieces and
into a triangular shape. - Ah, triangular. I was trying to remember
what shape. And then, are they sort of fried or? - Yeah, they're fried. - Fried, so fried potato, like chips, only
triangular. - That's correct. - Sounds good. Sounds very nice. So, did you
– you enjoyed having the full English breakfast, then. - Yes, of course I enjoyed it. Every weekend. - Every weekend, yes. And if you have that
for breakfast, you don't really need very much at lunchtime. - Yeah. - Do you? You may be able to go through to
the evening. - I always say I have a late lunch after it. - Ah, a late lunch, right. - After English breakfast. - Right, okay. So, and apart from up in Yorkshire,
of course, you mentioned your lectures, lecturers were speaking probably in the RP accent. So,
presumably, you could understand your lecturers well. - Yes, that's correct. - What about people outside the university?
People, if you went into a shop to buy something and had to speak to a shop assistant or something?
What was it like speaking to the local people? - Oh, yeah. At time, I realize the local accent,
which I didn't really understand at that time, however because there is a short-term course.
I didn't stay here for long. I went back to Malaysia. - Ah, I see. So, how long was that course? - It's about three months. - Three months. - Three months. - So, you didn't really have much opportunity
to get to know the local area so much? - Yeah, correct. - So, if you did hear, did you hear a few
local people, and was it difficult to? - Yes, it was quite difficult to me, even
if I go to the market to get some food. It's difficult for me to understand. I have to
always ask “Pardon?” and “Can you please repeat again?” - Repeat it, yes, yes. Because people, apart
from their accent, there might be unusual words, like dialect words that you might not
recognize because they have a particular set of words in Yorkshire that maybe people in
other parts of the country don't use. - Yes, yes. - So, okay. So, then that was just a short
course, three months. And then you went back to Malaysia. So, how long was it before you
came back again? - Okay, it was five years before I came back
again. - Right. - And it was on the further education, I pursued
my further education in the UK while this time, I'm in London. - Oh, you were in London next time, okay.
Whereabouts in London was it? - In the University of Greenwich. - Greenwich, so Greenwich, that's Southeast
London, isn't it? - Yes. - So, an area I think we both know very well.
And so, what was – how long was that course? - A year and a half. - Ah, okay. - A year and a half. And again, this is a
full study course and the lecturers they are using are English. I can understand. And when
I finished the course and started to look for a job, and then I have a difficult time
understanding the local accent. - Yes, yes, because also in London there's
a local accent. We've had a lesson on the cockney accent. So, that's not always easy
to understand. - Yes. - So, how did you, how did you cope with this,
the difficulty? How did you manage with the difficulty of understanding what people were
saying in the local accent? - Well again, I would say I'm a bit lucky
because I got a job in an English-speaking environment. - Ah, ah, that's good. - Yeah, my colleagues and my friends speak
in English, and when I had questions, I ask what does it mean or asked them to repeat
again for me. - Ah, that's good. So, most of your colleagues
perhaps are native English speakers. - Yes, yeah. They are native English speakers,
or they've been here for a long, so they're using the local language fluently. - Right, and they know things like idioms. - Correct. - And so on, what does that mean? That sort
of, I don't know if you can think of an idiom that might be used in the building industry
that you might not have understood at first? - Um, in the industry. I had a meeting with
a contractor before, and he said, “Don't worry, Chong, everything is honky-dory”. - Ah, it's honky-dory, it's honky-dory. - Honky-dory. So, I didn't understand what
does it mean. - No. - So, that is kind of things that are a bit
difficult. I don't' know what does it mean. - Yes, so you asked your colleagues, what
does honky-dory mean? And do you remember what answer? - Yes, they will be done in a very perfect
way. - Yes, yes, so it means everything will be
nice, perfect. So, strangely I think honky-dory comes possibly from Japanese, I'm not sure. - I see. - But it's a bit unclear. I remember looking
it up once to find out where does that term come from, and it's not really definite. But
it's possibly Japanese, so. - Yeah. - Honky-dory being used in the London area. - Honky-dory, yeah. And there's metaphor which
is quite difficult for me to understand as well. For example, we talk about certain subjects
for cars, certain things in construction industry or in my work, and my colleagues say, “Oh,
don't worry about that. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.” - Oh yes, that's a good one. Cross that bridge
when we come to it, yes. - I didn't know what they were saying. - So, you thought he was asking you to go
over a bridge, literally? - Yes. - Rather than just say, when we get to that
point, we will deal with it then, later. We don't need to think of it now. - Yes, yes. - So, that's good. Lovely, okay. And so, do
you feel that that's a few years now that you've been working in London, in the building
industry. So, do you feel your English skills have progressed in that time? - Yes, definitely, definitely. It's because
we can learn in a good environment, English-speaking environment. So, I learn it from like, from
listening. - Yes. - On a day-to-day basis. - Yes. - And then I speak as – I speak as many
as I can. - Yes, and I think maybe you also have to
write reports. - Yes, definitely. - Or documents as well. - Yes, yes. It helps. So, we have to – I
have to use a lot more local way to describe and write things, writing things down. - Yes, and then maybe dealing with clients
and building people and so, all sorts of different people you have to deal with? - Yes, correct. - So, coping with everybody's different accents
and ways of speaking. - Yeah. - And all of that? - Yes, yes, that's correct. Especially like,
speaking and listening to them as well is one of – actually one of the challenges
for me. - Yes, because I mean, people do sometimes
speak very quickly. - Yes. - And even a native speaker like me, sometimes
I don't catch what somebody's said and I have to ask them to repeat. So, if I as a native
speaker have difficulty with another native speaker, you know, I'm sure, you know, when
it's not your first language, you'll find it difficult. - Yes, yes. But I – I start, I feel quite
difficult to catch up with the language when I first came back. I gradually improved, because…
we have a lot of English friends and colleagues, so it really helps. - That's great. So, being in an English-speaking
environment really helps with colleagues and friends. - Yes, yes. - So, that's good. Okay. And going back to
the weather. I'm just thinking, if you're from a tropical country, you would never see
snow there, would you? So, can you remember when you first saw snow in the UK? - Ah yeah, I think it was between 2007–2008.
We never had any snow in Malaysia. - No. - And then in the UK, the forecast, there
was snow and then… and then I went to sleep, and the day after, in the morning, I saw everything
just white. And then outside the window it was snowing, and we are so exciting. - Yes. - I'm very excited. And I went out, without
changing, without brushing my teeth, I just went out and start playing with the snow. - Oh wow, so you just went straight out. - Yes. - Into the snow. I think an English person
might think, “Ooh, it's snowing, it's cold.” But for the first time when you see it, you
just wanted to go out into it and… - Yes, and I do a snowball. - Do some snowballs. - And I throw… - With somebody and throwing snowballs at
each other. - Yes. - Which is the tradition. Who were you snowballing
with? - I was snowballing with my wife. - Oh, with your wife. Was it the first time
she had seen snow as well? - Yes, yes. - So, it was really exciting for both of you
to see the snow. - Yes, both of us are very excited. - And you have a little daughter, I think. - Yes, I do. - Has she seen the snow yet? - Yes, she has. And she's very excited as
well. - Yes. - She's “Daddy, look: snow!” - Oh wow! - And she asks me to build a snowman for her. - Oh wow, so you built a snowman for your
daughter? - Yes. - Yes, wow. So, how old is she at the moment? - Oh, she is five. - Five. - Five. - So, what has it been like for her with her
parents both from Malaysia and was she born here? - Yeah, she was born here. - Yes. - And she studies in primary school now. She's
in her reception year. - Right. - I have to say, she's using English language
as a mother tongue language, because she doesn't speak Chinese to us. - No. - We always ask her questions, let me speak
to her in Chinese Cantonese, she will respond back in English. - Oh wow, so she's been learning English,
really, as she's been growing up. But do you and your wife speak in Chinese to each other,
or? - Yes, we speak Cantonese to each other. - Right. - And we try to speak our language to my daughter. - So that she grows up at least knowing another
language. - Yes. - And so, she's going to an English-speaking
school? - Yes. - And she's learning probably a lot of – a
lot of phrases, a lot of ways of saying things. - Yes, she does. - So, is she learning things that you and
your wife don't know? So, maybe you're learning other – another part of English from your
five-year-old daughter, maybe? - Yeah, that's correct. Because she learns
– I think she – session of, what I call it, phonics. So she learns phonics now so
she can pronounce more accurately. - Oh, I see. So, at school, the teachers are
teaching her pronunciation. - Yes. - Phonics. - Phonics, yeah. - So, they're teaching how to speak in a nice,
clear. - Nice, clear. - English accent. - That is correct. - Wow, so, so can you think of any examples
of things that your daughter has said which you thought that you didn't recognize? Unusual
words or phrases? Maybe she's learnt from other children? - Um, let me think. There's quite a lot. For
example, when I say “Tesco”, she says, “No Daddy, it's not correct. It's Tesco,
Tesco”. - Tesco. - Tesco, yeah. - Tesco. - Because I speak very flat. - Oh! So, the intonation. If you say “Tesco”
in a very sort of level intonation. - Yeah, intonation. - And she tells you to say it “TES-co”. - Yeah. - So, you've got to raise your voice and make
it fall again. - Yes, it sounds better. - So, she's – she's correcting your… - Yes, she does. - Your pronunciation. Oh, that's funny. So,
Tesco, for anyone who doesn't know Tesco. It's a big supermarket chain in the UK. So,
everybody's heard of Tesco in the UK. Okay. Oh, that's great. Amazing. So, okay. And then,
is there still something about English, I mean, learning another language, it's always,
you know, nobody ever stops learning another language. Is there something about English
that you still find difficult? - I have improved quite a lot compared to
me like, when I first arrived in the UK. I'm still learning to listen and how to speak
to English people because, obviously, they are – there's a manner of language they
use a lot more than me, and… - Yes, yes, so people who, they have an advantage,
really. When you're speaking with maybe a client or customer. - Yes, a customer. - Who is a native English speaker, and you're
having to deal with them on an equal level. - Correct. - And maybe negotiate and things like that. - Yes. - So, that's quite tough, isn't it, to do
in – when it's not your native language. - Yes, it's quite challenging. - Yes. - So, I'm still learning, but it's better
compared to years before. - Right. - And I'll keep continuing to learn. - Yeah, that's great. Lovely, okay. So, just
finally, I wonder if you have any advice for the people watching on www.engvid.com who
are maybe in another country, not in the UK, but maybe thinking of coming here to live
and work or study. Do you have any particular advice for the viewers? - Yeah, yeah. I advise the viewers to watch
as much BBC as you could. Again, watch as much www.engvid.com as you could. And then
immerse yourself in English speaking environments and make friends with English speaking friends. - Right. - So that – that would be wise. - Okay, that's brilliant. Thank you very much,
Chong. - You're welcome, Gill, you're welcome. - Okay, thank you for coming. It's been really
interesting hearing about your experiences. - Thank you. - And we'd like to wish you all the very best
with your ongoing job and your life here. - Thank you. - Okay, thank you, thank you.
