What to talk about with foreigners

If we sit together with a group of people from all over the world, or if we go on a date with a local New Zealander alone, what should we talk about? This serious problem has been bothering me for a long time. Whenever I'm with foreigners, I'm usually very quiet, except for simple chats about the weather - when I was in school, my teacher said that when I'm with foreigners, just chat about the weather. So much so that now, when I actually travel to the Southern Hemisphere and hang out with a bunch of ghost guys, I often don’t know what to talk about other than talking about the weather.

When the time comes to use the book, you will regret it. Although I have learned English in China for almost ten years, now I have to communicate and use it, not only because my pronunciation is so suppressed that I blush and my neck is thick, but I can’t even speak English. The topic cannot be found. Even the answer to "How are you" is always "Fine, thank you, and you?" from the textbook.

However, due to circumstances and work reasons, I have to communicate with different people. As a customer service officer, I was nervous at first and kept my ears straight for fear of hearing something wrong. After doing this for a while, I discovered that there are so many kinds of greetings in English, including colloquial, slang and New Zealand dialect. But one thing makes me feel more at ease. Grammar is not so obvious in daily communication. As long as it can be expressed clearly, some minor flaws in grammar will not hinder communication.

Gradually, I became familiar with the people around me at work. From the manager to the security guard to the cleaner, I could all strike up a conversation. After getting familiar with them, try to communicate with them as much as possible. At first, each time it was a simple conversation, greetings and asking what time they would get off work, but their answers were different every time, and you could learn something new from them. Later, everyone would chat about how their weekend was (especially every Monday), what activities they had recently, which band was coming to New Zealand for a concert again, and New Zealand’s hot topic - Rugby.

If you are at a bus stop, you can start a conversation at any time. At this time, you can use the teacher's instructions - chatting. Use the weather to start the conversation, and then you can involve a series of topics and chat with them. They are all free foreign teachers. You must make good use of resources. In fact, Kiwis in New Zealand have been made very smart by Asians. When they see Asian faces, they will reflexively slow down their speech. Sometimes they can't understand and still guess. That day I greeted an auntie who was working in the mall and I said "haven't? See you these days. (It's been a long time)". She probably heard it as "how are you today. (How are you)" so. She smiled and answered me, "I am good, thank you. (I am good, thank you.)" Well, well, it must be my poor pronunciation.

Some new arrivals will like to go to church and chat with the grandparents. Most of these grandparents are patient and friendly. When talking to foreigners, I will slow down my speaking speed, and often think about how to speak simply so that non-English speakers can understand. Try to find simple words to express.

From the beginning I didn’t dare to say a word, but now I can relax and chat for hours. From simple greetings, we gradually transitioned to chatting about the future, chatting about ideals, chatting about life, and chatting about culture. No matter what is private or not, as long as the other party doesn't mind, we can talk about a lot. Many people are willing to share each other's stories.

In addition, chatting with people from other countries can not only practice your English, but also get closer. Because we are both strangers in a foreign land, we can instantly relate to the feeling of wandering in our hearts and the sense of closeness to each other. When I meet someone who is more talkative, the other person can always find a topic, and I just need to echo his topic. When we meet those who are timid, encourage each other more. We might as well talk more about our insights on life in a foreign country. People are becoming more and more familiar with each other, and they communicate more frequently, such as phone calls, text messages, and Skype. Such exercises lead to more and more topics.

I remember when I first started chatting on Skype, typing in English was extremely slow, and I had to open two Youdao online translators. Every time I finished chatting, I felt like I was devastated. After getting used to it, texting and chatting in English is now very comfortable. We can talk with friends from different countries about the movies we have watched, various styles of music, different customs, different cultures, family members, and interesting things when we were children. Talk about college roommates.

Although different countries have different cultural backgrounds, in fact everyone is an older young man and speaks the same language whenever they meet.

Recently I discovered that two topics will never go out of style and are of great interest to most people - food and emotions. Two eternal topics, let’s talk about them casually. Don’t? be shy, just a try.

Don’t be afraid if your English is not good. As long as the other party can understand, communication will be effective.

Teaching calligraphy to my French friend Auelie

Eating Chinese cakes to my French friend Alex

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