Learning the characters is very important if the OP wants to be able to send messages to his favorite HG/WGS via Chinese sms and QQ.  That is how those senior members are able to build up their relationships with the girls outside of the saunas/ktvs/pimps/141.  

You don't have to remember how to write the characters as you can use pinyin entry on cell phones and computers to write.  You just have to be able to recognize the correct characters.

Oh in that case i think you better go to Beijing.

atomic3d, would it be too tough to go to Kunming to learn chinese? because our friend maybe even have problem to get a cab to go to hotel after the flight is landed on the airport given i think he doesn't know any chinese at all.

Yes please, Kunming is a place I'd like to visit!

Actually I did learn some 500 Traditional characters (read and write) many years ago ... then forgot them through disuse.  

Currently probably know around 150 Simplified characters, and I have a list of which ones I need for the first level.  Can speak the basic stuff - getting to hotel etc in a strange country has never been an issue for me, just use a phrasebook and prepare in advance.  The bigger issue (in any language) is being able to understand what the guy (or gal) says in response ... only way to practice that is on the street.  

So I'm really looking for the strong focus and full immersion, to get myself to the level where I can learn organically from day-to-day communication.  

Come to that, if anyone knows a good school in Shenzhen or Zhuhai, I'd consider that as an alternative, going for full immersion during the week ...

With regards to airports, it doesn't really matter where he goes if he doesn't know Chinese.  It is not any easier to get to a school from the airport from Beijing if the taxi driver doesn't understand English and even if the taxi driver understood the name a bit, he still will be literally taken on the expensive, scenic route.

Usually if the student has enrolled in a program before going to China, the school will pick up the students at the airport to make the entry to the Chinese environment uneventful.

If you decide that you are definitely going to Kunming, let me know and I'll try and arrange some introductions. In the interim I recommend you join the attached Kunming expat site (see link), it has a lot of good info. and I found it very useful during my stay. I'll PM you with further info.

http://www.gokunming.com/en/

how much did you pay to learn the mandarin course in Kunming at that time? It took you how long to finish it?

I started the university course on a try before you buy agreement, with the understanding that I would be learning conversational mandarin and some pinyin, by the 2nd week it became clear that they'd misrepresented the course so I walked.

The private school offered the same assurances, I paid the 1st month up front only to find the same brick wall and lies as the university, didn't go back for a 2nd month. Don't remember how much it cost now, but wasn't much. I didn't shed any tears at being ripped off and I did learn a little. I was going to hire a tutor after that, but just lost track of time and never got around to it.

Kunming is in nearly all respects has a cheaper cost of living than any other big city in China with a great climate and relatively clean environment. The only major drawback is the undeveloped P4P scene. If your used to the delights of HK, DG, ZH, etc. then your going to be disappointed. There is a bar scene, with plenty of civvie girls if your presentable and can spin a good line, which was my main reason for wanting to speak the lingo at the time.

[ Last edited by  atomic3d at 8-9-2010 14:15 ]

thanks the information. i find out the cost to learn mandarin in HK is more expensive than in Beijing. Right now i am learning it from a private tutor and the cost is around HK$500/hour. Therefore i think it maybe not a bad idea to go to Kunming given i haven't been to there before.

Bro, you might want to check out www.tutorkingdom.com

you can get native PRC gals and guys who are studying in Hong Kong working for IRO $50-$100 per hour depending on aqe.  

Not the same as a $500 tutor from one of the big name schools, but very affordable as a supplement to build up your hours and help you get practice.

Oh!!!! $50-$100!!!! It is a good deal. thanks the info. but do they know how to teach people because know how to speak maybe doesn't mean know how to teach. but i guess it is a good channel to speak to native people although it sounds a bit strange to give money to talk to you....

Anyway, thanks the info. it is a good idea.

Here's a typical ad from the gokunming website.               

Grace88
August 10
Respond
                Learning Chinese with me

Hi, guys. I am Grace, a graduate from Bachelor of Arts. My major in university is Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language. I have studied in Europe for one year. I speak fluent English with certificate of CET6 and 6.5 in The International English Language Testing System. My Mandarin is the first standard with certificate.
I used to be a English- Chinese translator for a Canadian surgeon as well.
If you need any help with your Chinese or English translation, please feel free to contact any time. My phone no. is 13529354525
The charge of tutoring would be ￥25 for 1 hour and ￥50 for 2 hours.

You're absolutely right, the issue is whether they are able to teach what they know.  When you pay $400+ you are paying for the guy's systematic process and his/her experience in working with other people like us who are pressed for time and 'linguistically challenged'.  

I have met some young people who have a natural talent for teaching.  One girl in particular contacted me randomly via skype, became a good friend and we've met up a few times.  She really does have a talent for figuring out how to teach, and making it fun.  But, like you say, lack of a structured textbook is a major barrier.  

Which explains why the $400+ crowd survive in the face of cheaper competition.  

The bottom line for languages is that it does require the hours.  Once you're following a structured program, there isn't a 'faster way' that will magically download the necessary neural connections.  You have to build them up over time with repetition, like building up new muscles.  

So having some cheaper opportunities to support your homework and to practice what you're doing at a good school makes a lot of sense.  If you interview a few students you should expect to discard 90% of the available pool, but you will definitely find gems who can make all the difference.

oh...how can you contacted a girl randomly in skype? I have skype for a year but no random people contact me? what did you do?

Can you give me the contact of that girl in skype? Maybe i can learn it from her online.

No: she contacted me.  I get several random invitations a month, mostly lonely network-marketers trying to build their down-line, but every now and again there's a girl looking for human contact.  

I'll ask her if she's still looking for contacts ...

[ Last edited by  DArtagnan at 10-9-2010 11:04 ]

Whoever suggested rosetta stone, thats a really good suggestion...

I have used it to learn chinese as well as french... for a short period of time, just using the program every day can get you results for sure

I have tried night schools and books etc, none of them worked as well as rosetta stone for me... hope this helps

Programs like rosetta are fine as an addition, but I've found nothing can replace the interaction and camaraderie a group of people in a classroom or even the one to one interaction between student and tutor or GF.

For sure, don't get me wrong... GF is definitely definitely the #1 way to learn!!

after i started going out w my GF I started picking up mando a ton easier...even tho i only spoke canto before

Rosetta stone is just one of those things that I think helps a ton when you don't have a person to teach you one on one and can only rely on yourself in a limited timespan