Bite Size Cantonese

This is Podcast Episode 57.

Ever had your flight delayed or been charged extra at the airport? It happened to me! In episode 57, I take you on my first-ever travel vlog, from London to Venice, Italy. You'll pick up everyday Cantonese for flying and travel: boarding, delays, budget airlines, baggage fees and arriving in a new city. I also share my £100 check-in lesson, so you don't make the same mistake.

🎬 Watch the video version with Cantonese & English subtitles on Spotify or YouTube. Seeing it all happen makes it great comprehensible input!

📥 FREE worksheet & takeaway notes for this episode → https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/2a7de697ef

🎁 FREE guide: 15 Useful Cantonese Phrases → https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b

👀 WHO THIS EPISODE IS FOR

Beginner–intermediate learners, heritage speakers (BBC, ABC, CBC, overseas Chinese) who understand some Cantonese but want to speak with confidence, and anyone travelling with Cantonese-speaking family or friends.

🎯 WHAT YOU'LL TAKE AWAY

• Airport & boarding words: 閘口 zaap6 hau2 (gate), 上機 soeng5 gei1 (board), 截止登機 zit6 zi2 dang1 gei1 (boarding closes), 航班延誤 hong4 baan1 jin4 ng6 (flight delay)

• Budget airline talk: 廉航 lim4 hong4, 背囊 bui3 nong4 (backpack), 焗住 guk6 zyu6 (have no choice but to)

• Arrival & sightseeing: 入境 jap6 ging2 (immigration), 護照 wu6 ziu3 (passport), 晚霞 maan5 haa4 (sunset glow)

• A practical travel tip: always check in online early with budget airlines!

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Intro: flight delays & extra airport fees

00:40 Waiting to board at the airport café

01:55 Flight delayed! Reading the departures board

02:37 What is 廉航? Budget airlines in Cantonese

03:11 Story: paying £100 to check in late

04:24 Charged £60 for an oversized backpack

05:09 Landing at Venice Marco Polo Airport

05:45 Chinese signs at Italian immigration

06:35 Taking the bus to the hotel

07:04 Meeting my friend Kala & sunset bus to Venice

07:49 Arriving in Venice: canals & 晚霞

08:51 First dinner: cuttlefish in ink & seafood pasta

09:16 Outro: download your notes & worksheet

📸 Instagram: @BiteSizeCantonese

📧 Email: [email protected]

Thanks for listening. See you in Day 2! Bye~

Celia

Can a holiday leave you more tired than work? And are your favourite travel memories really about the famous sights?

In episode 56 of Bite Size Cantonese, join Celia and her friend Kayla for a relaxed Cantonese conversation while travelling in Italy. From looking after family on holiday to deciding whether to keep exploring or stop for a rest, we share the little challenges and unexpected joys of travelling together.

We also talk about taking photos without forgetting to enjoy the moment. Are we visiting somewhere for ourselves, or just collecting pictures to post online? Along the way, you’ll hear about cherry blossoms and a forgotten sunset in Japan, a muddy mishap in Australia, and why we sometimes miss our own beds before a trip is even over.

Practise your Cantonese listening through natural conversation, everyday expressions, and personal stories. Listen for how we describe feeling tired or relaxed, explain our preferences, and look back on memorable experiences. You don’t need to understand every word. Start with the main ideas, then listen again for the details.

We recorded this conversation on a train, so please excuse the background noise. Come along for the ride!

今集 Celia 同 Kayla 喺意大利嘅火車上，一齊傾旅行趣事！點解去旅行有時仲攰過返工？同屋企人、朋友去玩，點樣遷就大家？由日本睇櫻花到澳洲嘅蝦碌經歷，一齊諗下影相打卡同享受當下嘅分別。透過自然對話練廣東話聽力，亦歡迎留言分享你最難忘嘅旅行回憶！

Timestamps

1:24 Welcome and our travels in Italy
2:27 Can a holiday be more tiring than work?
4:03 Becoming the family tour guide
5:03 What does travelling mean to you?
5:36 Helping family members travel independently
7:03 Keep exploring or take a break?
8:45 Taking photos versus enjoying the moment
10:30 What makes a trip memorable?
11:16 Cherry blossoms and a forgotten sunset in Japan
12:34 A muddy mishap in Australia
14:01 Missing home and what we bring back from travelling
15:10 Hotel beds and interrupted sleep
15:37 Final thoughts and your travel stories

What’s your most unforgettable travel experience? Share a funny mishap, a favourite memory, or something travelling has taught you in the comments. Cantonese or English is welcome. Even one short Cantonese sentence is a chance to practise!

Follow Bite Size Cantonese for more Cantonese listening practice, and find @bitesizecantonese on Instagram and YouTube for more comprehensible input videos.

Keep listening and learning, one small step at a time.

📸 Instagram: ⁠@BiteSizeCantonese⁠

✉️ Email / 電郵：⁠[email protected]

Learn five more Hong Kong MTR announcements with Celia, from closing doors to letting passengers off first. Discover how formal announcements translate into everyday Cantonese, practise useful expressions, and test yourself with a listening challenge. Hear Celia’s Hong Kong and London reflections, plus news about free dim sum learning trials.

Send a message "dim sum beta test" to email below or Direct message to Instagram, you will have access to the learning kit.

廣東話標題： 聽得明港鐵廣播：由廣播學日常廣東話（下集）

今集 Celia 同你學多五句港鐵廣播，由「車門即將關閉」到「請先讓乘客落車」，逐句拆解，再教你點樣用日常廣東話講返同一個意思。最後仲有聆聽挑戰，考吓你聽得明幾多！一齊聽吓 Celia 喺香港同倫敦搭車嘅感受，仲有免費試用點心廣東話學習教材嘅消息。

📖 Transcript / 文字稿 https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b

📸 Instagram: @BiteSizeCantonese

✉️ Email / 電郵：[email protected]

This is Bite Size CantoneseEp54.

Ride along with Bite Size Cantonese and explore Hong Kong MTR announcements. Learn 下一站 (haa6 jat1 zaam6; next station), 請勿靠近車門 (cing2 mat6 kaau3 gan6 ce1 mun4; please stand clear of the doors), and 轉車 (zyun2 ce1; interchange).

Listen, repeat, and travel with greater Cantonese confidence across Hong Kong each day.

Please do leave your comment, I will be grateful to have your feedback.

Download the transcript and 15 useful Cantonese phrases in the episode description. Start learning today and feel confident communicating in Cantonese. !⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b

Follow Celia on Instagram 👉 @BiteSizeCantonese for more tips, and email Celia [email protected]

Join Celia for a Cantonese day out at Horsey Gap Beach on the east coast of England!

After travelling from London, we walk along a sandy path, meet lots of cows, and head towards the sea in search of sea lions. We watch them swimming in the water, wait to see whether they will come ashore, and finally spot several of them relaxing in the sunshine, including a tiny baby.

Through this relaxed episode, you will practise listening to natural Hong Kong Cantonese while learning useful words and expressions about travelling, animals, the beach, and describing what you can see.

Listen for words including 牛 (ngau4; cow), 海灘 (hoi2 taan1; beach), 海獅 (hoi2 si1; sea lion), 上岸 (soeng5 ngon6; come ashore), and 曬太陽 (saai3 taai3 joeng4; bask in the sun).

This episode is ideal for Cantonese learners and heritage learners who want to build confidence with everyday vocabulary and natural listening practice through a simple, relatable story.

Please note that the Jyutping and Cantonese subtitle wording may not correspond word for word. When watching with subtitles, pay close attention to the Cantonese characters.

What marine animals have you seen at the beach? Share your experience with Bite Size Cantonese and continue practising with our other episodes.

Transcript from this link:⁠https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Instagram: BiteSizeCantonese

Come along for a haircut at my hairstylist's home and a visit to a bookshop. You will hear a real request for about two inches off, some thinning, and layers before we explore book sections and find a Cantonese learning book.

Practise 剪頭髮 (*zin2 tau4 faat3*; get a haircut) and 兩寸 (*loeng5 cyun3*; two inches). At the bookshop, hear two ways to say bookshop, 書店 (*syu1 dim3*) and 書局 (*syu1 guk2*), as well as 地庫 (*dei6 fu3*; basement). These everyday words make the episode useful for Cantonese learners and heritage learners who want to follow natural conversations about errands and books.

Listen along, repeat a phrase that you could use yourself.

approx. timestamp

0:21 Haircut and bookshop plan1:16 Asking for a haircut2:08 Meeting the cat2:41 The haircut result3:52 Arriving at Bond Street4:01 Two ways to say bookshop4:50 Inside the bookshop8:44 Exploring the basement9:29 Looking for China and Hong Kong booksSubscribe for more Cantonese listening practice, and comment with a phrase you would use at the hairdresser or bookshop.Transcript from this link:⁠https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram: BiteSizeCantonese

How do you talk about the chores you do every day in Cantonese?

In this episode, Celia chats with her husband about their household routine: cooking, washing dishes, wiping the table, taking out the rubbish, doing the laundry, vacuuming, dusting, cleaning the bathroom, changing the bed sheets, and more. They compare the chores they enjoy and dislike and talk about the satisfaction of seeing a home become clean and tidy.

You’ll hear practical household vocabulary in a relaxed, real-life conversation, including `做家務` (*zou6 gaa1 mou6*; do household chores), `洗碗碟` (*sai2 wun2 dip6*; wash the dishes), `抹枱` (*maat3 toi2*; wipe the table), `吸塵` (*kap1 can4*; vacuum), `抌垃圾` (*dam2 laap6 saap3*; take out the rubbish), `換床單` (*wun6 cong4 daan1*; change the bed sheets), `拖地` (*to1 dei6*; mop the floor), `晾衫` (*long6 saam1*; hang clothes to dry), and `燙衫` (*tong3 saam1*; iron clothes). You’ll also hear useful descriptive language such as `整齊` (*zing2 cai4*; tidy), `滿足感` (*mun5 zuk1 gam2*; a sense of satisfaction), and `好核突` (*hou2 wat6 dat6*; disgusting).

It’s practical Cantonese listening practice for learners and heritage speakers / Canto learners who want to understand everyday Hong Kong Cantonese and talk more naturally about life at home.

Listen along, notice which expressions you can reuse, which household chore do you like most? and which one do you avoid?

Transcript from this link:https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b⁠⁠⁠⁠

Instagram: BiteSizeCantonese

In Episode 50 of Bitesize Cantonese, Celia talks with her British-born Chinese husband about learning Cantonese while growing up in an English-speaking environment in Scotland. They compare spoken Hong Kong Cantonese with formal written Chinese, unpack abbreviations such as 港大、屯元天、油尖旺 and 醫管局, and share funny misunderstandings involving 邂逅／蟹后 and 細路／細路仔.

The conversation also explores a deeper challenge for BBC, ABC, CBC and other heritage speakers: fear of mispronunciation, embarrassment, identity, and the pressure people feel when others assume they should speak Chinese fluently. You’ll also hear practical ideas for improving Cantonese through Hong Kong news, music, online forums, and real conversations.

Dim Sum Game Link:

https://bitesizecantonese-droid.github.io/Dim-Sim-Game/

Please do leave your comment, I will be grateful to have your feedback.

Download the transcript and 15 useful Cantonese phrases in the episode description. Start learning today and feel confident communicating in Cantonese. !⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b⁠⁠⁠⁠

Follow Celia on Instagram 👉 @BiteSizeCantonese for more tips, and email Celia [email protected])

In this episode 49, Join Celia for a sunny walk through Hyde Park while learning natural, everyday Cantonese through comprehensible input. Using real-life actions, surroundings, repetition, and context, this episode helps you understand Cantonese without translating every word. Stay until the end for a recap of 20 useful vocabulary items and a bonus expression, 大頭蝦—someone who is forgetful or careless. A full transcript is available through the link in the description.

Dim Sum Game Link:

https://bitesizecantonese-droid.github.io/Dim-Sim-Game/

Youtube link:

Please do leave your comment, I will be grateful to have your feedback.

Download the transcript and 15 useful Cantonese phrases in the episode description. Start learning today and feel confident communicating in Cantonese. !⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b⁠⁠⁠⁠

Follow Celia on Instagram 👉 @BiteSizeCantonese for more tips, and email Celia [email protected]

In this episode 48, learn natural Hong Kong Cantonese through everyday meals. In this episode, Celia explores breakfast, lunch, dinner, late-night snacks, eating out, meal prep, fasting, and food delivery. Discover why “Have you eaten yet?” expresses care, practise real listening, and build practical vocabulary for daily conversations with clear, engaging, useful cultural context.

Dim Sum Game Link:

https://bitesizecantonese-droid.github.io/Dim-Sim-Game/

Please do leave your comment, I will be grateful to have your feedback.

Download the transcript and 15 useful Cantonese phrases in the episode description. Start learning today and feel confident communicating in Cantonese. !⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bite-size-cantonese.kit.com/ebeaffd64b⁠⁠⁠

Follow Celia on Instagram 👉 @BiteSizeCantonese for more tips, and email Celia [email protected]