Languages / Vietnamese / Level 1 · Unit 1

Ở đâu — Asking for Directions

Lesson 3 of 170 · Level 1 of 6All lessons
In this lesson

You are learning asking for directions: you will read the scene it happens in, take apart the pattern behind them (directions), hear them in a conversation, rehearse them, and finish by saying one thing out loud to be graded.

The scene

Hanoi's Old Quarter — 36 streets, each historically named for what was sold there. Getting lost is easy and delightful. Finding your way requires three phrases.

Chả Cá Street — Finding the Restaurant

The stranger is looking for Chả Cá Lã Vọng — one of Hanoi's most famous restaurants, serving one dish (turmeric-marinated fish grilled at the table with dill) since 1871. The address is Hàng Sơn Street, which is easy to miss.

He asks a young woman on a motorbike stopped at a light. 「Xin lỗi! Chả Cá Lã Vọng ở đâu?」 She squints at his phone. Points: 「Đi thẳng, rồi rẽ phải ở góc phố, thêm hai trăm mét.」

He repeats back: 「Đi thẳng, rẽ phải, đúng không?」 — 「Đúng rồi!」 The light changes. She's gone.

Four minutes: a faded wooden sign, the smell of turmeric and dill. 「Đến nơi rồi!」