Taking the subway to the Summer Palace

史密斯在北京火车站买去天津开会的票，买好票后他发现时间还早，于是突发奇想，决定去颐和园逛逛。 走出车站过了马路然后下地铁。
史密斯：你好，我刚刚在那边售票机买票，但是它好像用不了，不能识别我的纸币，然后我硬币又不够。可以在这边买票吗？
窗口：没问题，您去哪里？
史密斯：去颐和园。
窗口：单程还是往返？
史密斯：往返吧。
窗口: 票给您，4块。
史密斯： 好的。对了，从这边到颐和园似乎没有直达，2号线不到的。我看不大明白地铁线路图，能不能问下，应该要怎么走？
窗口：你坐到西直门然后换车，换4号线到北宫门站就可以了。
史密斯：哦哦，谢谢。
保安：喂，这位先生！这位先生！
史密斯：您是在叫我吗？
保安：对的。您听得懂中文的吧？您的包要放下来检查一下的啊！没经过检查不能带进去的！
史密斯：这样啊？我看前面的人也没经过检查就过去了啊？
保安：他们的包很小，还不到检查规格。但是您这个公务包的大小，是要检查的。
史密斯：我包里面有一瓶水，这个可以带吗？
保安：可以的。您先放上去再说吧，有问题我们会跟您讲的。
史密斯：好的。
史密斯通过X光扫描，拿回包，乘坐2号线到了东直门，然后换乘4号线到了北宫门。但是出站后他便又迷失了方向感，完全不知道该怎么走。
史密斯：你好，请问去颐和园是怎么走？
路人：颐和园很近了啊！下面那个路口，就前面那个，那个很宽的大马路口，左转，然后走个5分钟就到了。你左转以后就看得到的啦！
史密斯：好的。多谢！
路人：不用谢。
史密斯：你好，买张票。
售票处：一张吗？需要月票或者年票吗？
史密斯：一张。不需要的。
售票处： 好的，30元。
史密斯： 给。
售票员： 8点要关门，现在已经不早了，您赶紧进去吧！
史密斯：明白了，谢谢谢谢！

Taking the subway to the Summer Palace

Shǐmìsī zài Běijīng Huǒchēzhàn mǎi qù Tiānjīn kāihuì de piào, mǎihǎo piào hòu tā fāxiàn shíjiān hái zǎo, yúshì tūfà qíxiǎng, juédìng qù Yíhéyuán guàngguang. Zǒuchū chēzhàn guòle mǎlù ránhòu xià dìtiě.
Shǐmìsī: Nǐ hǎo, wǒ gānggāng zài nàbiān shòupiàojī mǎi piào, dànshì tā hǎoxiàng yòngbuliǎo, bù néng shíbié wǒ de zhǐbì, ránhòu wǒ yìngbì yòu bú gòu. Kěyǐ zài zhèbiān mǎi piào ma?
Chuāngkǒu: Méi wèntí, nín qù nǎlǐ?
Shǐmìsī: Qù Yíhéyuán.
Chuāngkǒu: Dānchéng háishi wǎngfǎn?
Shǐmìsī: Wǎngfǎn ba.
Chuāngkǒu: Piào gěi nín, sì kuài.
Shǐmìsī: Hǎo de. Duìle, cóng zhèbiān dào Yíhéyuán sìhū méi yǒu zhídá, èr hàoxiàn bú dào de. Wǒ kàn bú dà míngbai ditiě xiànlùtú, néng bu néng wèn xià, yīnggāi yào zěnme zǒu?
Chuāngkǒu: Nǐ zuò dào Xīzhímén ránhòu huànchē, huàn sì hàoxiàn dào Běigōngménzhàn jiù kěyǐle.
Shǐmìsī: Ò, xièxie.
Bǎoān: Wèi, zhè wèi xiānsheng! Zhè wèi xiānsheng!
Shǐmìsī: Nín shì zài jiào wǒ ma?
Bǎoān: Duì de. Nín tīngdedǒng zhōngwén de ba? Nín de bāo yào fàngxiàlái jiǎnchá yíxià de a! Méi jīngguò jiǎnchá bù néng dàijìnqù de!
Shǐmìsī: Zhèyàng a? Wǒ kàn qiánmian de rén yě méi jīngguò jiǎnchá jiù guòqùle a?
Bǎoān: Tāmen de bāo hěn xiǎo, hái bú dào jiǎnchá guīgé. Dànshi nín zhège gōngwùbāo de dàxiǎo, shì yào jiǎnchá de.
Shǐmìsī: Wǒ bāo lǐmiàn yǒu yì píng shuǐ, zhège kěyǐ dài ma?
Bǎoān: Kěyǐ de. Nín xiān fàngshàngqù zài shuō ba, yǒu wèntí wǒmen huì gēn nín jiǎng de.
Shǐmìsī: Hǎo de. Shǐmìsī tōngguò X guāng sǎomiáo, náhuí bāo, chéngzuò èr hàoxiàn dàole Dōngzhímén, ránhòu huànchéng sì hàoxiàn dàole Běigōngmén. Dànshi chūzhàn hòu tā biàn yòu míshīle fāngxiànggǎn, wánquán bù zhīdào gāi zěnme zǒu.
Shǐmìsī: Nǐ hǎo, qǐng wèn qù Yíhéyuán shì zěnme zǒu?
Lùrén: Yíhéyuán hěn jìnle a! Xiàmian nàge lùkǒu, jiù qiánmian nàge, nàge hěn kuān de dà mǎlùkǒu, zuǒzhuǎn, ránhòu zǒu ge wǔ fēnzhōng jiù dàole. Nǐ zuǒzhuǎn yǐhòu jiù kàndedào de la!
Shǐmìsī: Hǎo de. Duōxiè!
Lùrén: Bú yòng xiè.
Shǐmìsī: Nǐ hǎo, mǎi zhāng piào.
Shòupiàochù: Yì zhāng ma? Xūyào yuèpiào huòzhě niánpiào ma?
Shǐmìsī: Yì zhāng. Bù xūyào de.
Shòupiàochù: Hǎo de, sānshí yuán.
Shǐmìsī: Gěi.
Shòupiàoyuán: Bā diǎn yào guānmén, xiànzài yǐjīng bù zǎole, nín gǎnjǐn jìnqù ba!
Shǐmìsī: Míngbaile, xièxie xièxie!

Vocab and notes

火车站 huǒchēzhàn ‘(railway) station’
开会 kāihuì ‘have a meeting’
买好 mǎihǎo ‘buy’. 好 Hǎo is a resultative complement.
后 … hòu ‘after …’
发现 fāxiàn ‘find out, discover’
时间 shíjiān ‘time’
于是 yúshì ‘thereupon, as a result, thus’
突发奇想 tūfā qíxiǎng ‘suddenly have a thought/be inspired to do something’
决定 juédìng ‘decide’
逛 guàng ‘stroll, visit’. Note that when verbs are repeated, the second time they lose their tone: 逛逛 guàngguang. This rare character is also used in 逛街 guàngjiē ‘go shopping’.
走出 zǒuchū ‘to leave, go out’
地铁 dìtiě ‘underground, subway’
刚刚 gānggāng ‘just now’
售票机 shòupiàojī ‘ticket machine’
好像 hǎoxiàng ‘apparently’
用不了 yòngbuliǎo ‘cannot use’. 了 Liǎo is a potential complement.
识别 shíbié ‘recognize’
纸币 zhǐbì ‘paper money’
然后我硬币又不够 Ránhòu wǒ yìngbì yòu bú gòu. ‘Moreover I didn’t have enough coins.’ Note the position of 又 yòu ‘moreover’. 够 gòu ‘enough'
单程还是往返？ Dānchéng háishi wǎngfǎn? ‘Single or return?’
往返吧。 Wǎngfǎn ba. ‘Return, please.’
似乎 sìhū ‘apparently’
直达 zhídá ‘a direct route’
2号线 èr hàoxiàn ‘line 2’
我看不大明白地铁线路图。Wǒ kàn bú dà míngbai dìtiě xiànlùtú. ‘I think I don’t understand the subway map well.’
下 Xià is short for 一下 yíxià ‘just (do something)’
应该要怎么走？ Yīnggāi yào zěnme zǒu? ‘How should I go?’
换车 huànchē ‘change train, transfer’
保安 bǎoān ‘security (man)’
喂，这位先生！ Wèi, zhè wèi xiānsheng! ‘Excuse me, sir!’ 喂 Wèi used to attract attention. It is also used for ‘hello’ on the phone, in which case it changes tone:  wéi. 位 Wèi is used in formal situations instead of 个 ge as a measure word for people. Too many weis here!
您是在叫我吗？ Nín shì zài jiào wǒ ma? ‘Are you calling me? This is an emphatic use of 是 shì, similar to that sometimes found before adjectives.
听得懂 tīngdedǒng ‘understand (by hearing)’. This is a potential complement.
您的包要放下来检查一下的啊！ Nín de bāo yào fàngxiàlái jiǎnchá yíxià de a! ‘You need to put your bag down and get it checked.’ 的 De adds an assertive note.
没经过检查不能带进去的！ Méi jīngguò jiǎnchá bù néng dàijìnqù de! ‘If you don’t pass the control, you can’t take it in!’
这样啊？ Zhèyàng a? ‘Is that so? Really?’
前门的人 qiánmian de rén ‘the people in front’
检查规格 jiǎnchá guīgé ‘rules/standards of the control’
公务包 gōngwùbāo ‘brief case’
大小 dàxiǎo ‘size’. Chinese can form abstract nouns by putting adjectives of opposite meaning together.
一瓶水yì píng shuǐ ‘a bottle of water’. 瓶 Píng
您先放上去再说吧。 Nín xiān fàngshàngqù zài shuō ba. ‘Please put it on first and we’ll have another word about it.’
讲 jiǎng ‘speak, talk’
史密斯通过X光扫描。 Shǐmìsī tōngguò X guāng sǎomiáo. ‘Mr Smith goes through the X-ray scan.
拿回 náhuí ‘get back’
乘坐 chéngzuò ‘get on (a train)’
但是出站后他便又迷失了方向感，完全不知道该怎么走。 Dànshi chūzhàn hòu tā biàn yòu míshīle fāngxiànggǎn, wánquán bù zhīdào gāi zěnme zǒu. ‘But after he left the station, he then lost his sense of direction again and absolutely didn’t know how to get there.’
颐和园很近了啊！ Yíhéyuán hěn jìnle a! ‘The Summer Palace is already very close!’
路口 lùkǒu =马路口 mǎlùkǒu ‘crossing, intersection’
宽 kuān ‘wide’
左转 zuǒzhuǎn ‘turn left’
走个五分钟 zǒu ge wǔ fēnzhōng ‘walk for five minutes’. Note the interesting use of 个 ge.
看得到 kàndedào ‘be able to see’. This is a potential complement.
月票 yuèpiào ‘monthly ticket’
年票 niánpiào ‘annual ticket’
关门 guānmén ‘(something) closes’
赶紧进去 gǎnjǐn jìnqù ‘hurry and enter’
明白了 Míngbaile. ‘I understand.’

Taking the subway to the Summer Palace

Mr Smith buys a ticket at Beijing Station to go to Tianjin for a meeting. After buying the ticket he finds he is early and so he suddenly has the idea to go to visit the Summer Palace. He leaves the station, crosses the road and then goes down in to the subway.
Mr Smith: Hello, I’ve just tried to buy a ticket at that ticket machine, but apparently I can’t use it, as it doesn’t recognize my paper money and then I didn’t have enough change. Can I buy a ticket here?
Person at window: No problem, where are you going to?
Mr Smith: To the Summer Palace.
Person at window: Single or return?
Mr Smith: Return, please.
Person at window: Here are the tickets, Y4.
Mr Smith: All right. Mm, there doesn’t seem to be a direct route from here to the Summer Palace, Line 2 doesn’t go there. I don’t think I understand the subway map very well, may I ask you how I should go?
Person at window: You take it as far as Xizhimen and then change. If you change on to Line 4 and go to Beigongmen Station, it’ll be fine.
Mr Smith: Oh, thank you.
Security: Hello, Sir! Sir!
Mr Smith: Are you calling me?
Security: Yes. Do you understand Chinese? You need to put your bag down for the control! If it doesn’t pass through the control, you can’t take it in!
Mr Smith: I see. I think the people before didn’t have to pass the control and just went through?
Security: Their bags were small and didn’t meet the control criteria. But with the size of your brief case, it needs to be checked.
Mr Smith: There’s a bottle of water in there, can I take that?
Security: Yes. If you first put it on, we’ll see. If there’s a problem, we can talk to you about it.
Mr Smith: All right.
Mr Smith goes through the X-ray scan, gets his bag back, gets on Line 2 for Dongzhimen and then changes on to Line 4 and goes to Beigongmen. However, after he leaves the station, he loses his sense of direction and has no idea how to get there.
Mr Smith: Hello, excuse me, how do I get to the Summer Palace?
Passer-by: You’re already very close to the Summer Palace! The intersection down there, the one in front, turn left at the wide intersection and then walk for five minutes and you’re there. After you turn left, you’ll be able to see it.
Mr Smith: All right. Many thanks!
Passer-by: That’s all right.
Mr Smith: Hello, I’d like to buy a ticket.
Person in ticket booth: One ticket? Do you need a monthly ticket or an annual ticket?
Mr Smith: One (ordinary) ticket, please. I don’t need one of those.
Person in ticket booth: All right. Y30.
Mr Smith: Here it is.
Person in ticket booth: It will close at 8:00, and it’s not early now. Hurry in!
Mr Smith: Got it. Many thanks!