Leo in Bali 单词故事 · 中英对照 v2

Leo Zhang moved to Bali last month. He is thirty-five, and he was a product manager in Shanghai. On his first morning at JB School, he felt anxious焦虑的. Everything was new, and nothing was familiar熟悉的. He wanted to say hello, but he hesitated犹豫 at the door. Then his teacher, Sonia, smiled at him. "Come in. Don't be scared害怕的. We are all friends here."

Sonia is a strict严格的 teacher, but she is also kind. She is serious严肃的 about homework, and she never lets students be rude粗鲁的. "In my class, everyone is polite有礼貌的," she said. "You can make mistakes. Just be honest简单的 / 诚实的 /…." Leo liked her simple简单的 / 诚实的 /… rules. She was also very straight简单的 / 诚实的 /… with him: "Your reading is good, but your speaking is weak弱的."

There were six students in the class. Kenji from Japan was very talkative爱说话的. He was an extrovert外向的人 and always energetic精力充沛的, even at eight in the morning. Ana from Spain was different. She was an introvert内向的人, a little shy害羞的 and reserved矜持的. But her notebook was full of beautiful drawings. She was very creative有创造力的.

Kenji had a distinctive独特的 laugh. You could hear it from the street. Some days the class was lively热闹的 and fun. Other days, when Kenji and two Australian boys shouted, it was just noisy吵闹的. Leo was easy-going随和的, so he did not mind. "Leo is hard-working勤奋的 and very easy-going随和的," Sonia told the others.

In the break, Kenji showed Leo a video of a Muay Thai fight. "Is it too violent暴力的 for you?" he asked. Leo was a bit confused感到困惑的. "Why do people hit each other for fun?" "It looks violent暴力的, but the fighters are brave勇敢的 and fearless无所畏惧的," Kenji said. "And outside the ring, most of them are very mild温和的 people."

Then Leo told them a secret. "I have a phobia恐惧症 of deep water. In the sea, I am a coward胆小鬼." Everyone laughed, and Leo felt embarrassed尴尬的. "You are not a coward," Ana said quietly. "You are just sensitive敏感的. And you were brave勇敢的 enough to tell us." After that, Leo was not disappointed失望的 in himself anymore.

Leo looked at his new classmates. They seemed happy and free, and he felt a little envious嫉妒的. In Shanghai, he was never satisfied满意的 with his life. Now he wanted to be more open-minded思想开明的. Sonia gave him one piece of advice: "Be consistent一贯的. Come every day and persist一贯的. A good student is not selfish自私的 with ideas, and he is loyal忠诚的 to his goals. But don't be too obedient听话的. Ask questions!"

At the end of the day, Leo was not scared害怕的 or confused感到困惑的 anymore. The school already felt familiar熟悉的. Next time, he would not hesitate犹豫 to speak. He was still envious嫉妒的 of Kenji's energetic精力充沛的 style, but he liked his own quiet way too. Maybe he could be creative有创造力的 like Ana. "Tomorrow I will be serious严肃的," he thought, "and polite有礼貌的, and never rude粗鲁的, because my teacher is strict严格的!"

Leo's house was next to a small warung, a local food shop. The owner, Pak Made, was a warm-hearted热心肠的 man. Every morning he said, "Good morning, neighbour! Are you hungry饥饿的?" Leo usually said yes. Pak Made was kind善良的 and patient耐心的, and his food was always good好的.

Pak Made's daughter, Ketut, was eight and very naughty淘气的. One day she took Leo's shoes and hid them. Leo was annoyed恼火的. "This game is really annoying令人恼火的!" he said. But he did not get angry生气的. He needed patience耐心. In the end, Ketut gave the shoes back and laughed. "You are nice好的, Uncle Leo."

The first weeks were not easy. Leo was often lonely孤独的 at night. He had no friends and no family here. Sometimes he sat at home and felt bored感到无聊的. TV was boring令人无聊的 because he did not understand the jokes. He was also stressed压力大的 about money and his visa. "Can I survive幸存 here alone?" he asked himself. "Should I quit退出 and go back?"

He told Sonia about his feelings. She listened and stayed calm平静的. "Living abroad is hard. You have to endure忍受 the first months. Many people tolerate容忍 it for a while and then go home. But you are independent独立的. Don't admit defeat认输 so early." Leo smiled. "OK. I can stand it忍受."

Sonia also talked about the class. "There are two kinds of learners. An active student积极主动的学生 asks questions and speaks a lot. A passive student被动、安静的学生 just listens and waits. Leo, you are smart聪明的, but you have a wandering mind走神. In class, I often see you looking out of the window!" Leo felt silly, but he knew she was right.

Pak Made gave him good advice too. "In Bali, we say: be chill放松. When you are relaxed放松的, life is easier. Go to the beach after class and unwind放松." He also said, "Most people here are good. There are some bad people坏人, like everywhere, but don't be cold to对某人冷淡 strangers because of them."

One weekend, Leo saw something unbelievable难以置信的. Some boys were throwing stones at a dog. "Stop! That is cruel残忍的!" Leo shouted. The boys ran away. Ketut looked at him with big eyes. "Uncle Leo, you were so confident自信的!" For the first time in weeks, Leo felt confident自信的.

That night, Leo wrote in his notebook: "I am not rich富有的. I am not famous. But hard work努力工作 can change my life. Bali is a unique独特的 place, and my life here will be unique独特的 too. I will be patient耐心的 with myself. When I am stressed压力大的, I will go to the beach. I can tolerate容忍 a few hard days. And I want to be warm-hearted热心肠的 like Pak Made."

Leo usually feels active积极的 and positive积极的 in the morning. But this week was different. He had a lot of stress压力 from a job interview. On Monday night he was still awake醒着的 at two o'clock. He was worried担心的 about his English, and he felt a little sick生病的.

On Tuesday, Kenji was very excited兴奋的. "I got tickets for the fight!" he shouted. Leo was busy忙碌的 and irritated恼火的. "Please keep quiet保持安静, I am studying," he said. His temper脾气 was short that day. Kenji was not afraid害怕的 of him. "Hey, calm down冷静下来, my friend. Don't panic恐慌."

Leo took a deep breath. "Sorry. I am afraid害怕的 of the interview. I want the job, but I also want to stay in Bali. I feel conflicted内心矛盾的." Kenji sat down. The room was quiet安静的 now. "You are always friendly友好的 and kind. You will be fine. Just calm down冷静下来 and practise with me."

They practised every evening. Leo kept a steady稳定的 rhythm: one hour of speaking, then a short walk. A regular规律的 plan had a good effect影响 on him. He did not panic恐慌 in the interview. Later, Sonia said, "I am proud自豪的 of you." Even when the company said no, it was not a big disappointment失望. "It was a lovely可爱的 experience," Leo said. "And my friendly友好的 neighbours helped me a lot."

On Monday, Lesson 4 was about phrasal verbs. Sonia wrote on the board: "Who do you take after长相/性格像某家人?" Leo said, "I take after长相/性格像某家人 my father. We are both quiet." Kenji said, "I take after my mother. She talks all day!"

Next question: "Who do you get on with与某人相处融洽 in your family?" Sonia explained, "In British English we often say get on with. In American English we often say get along with与某人相处融洽. They mean the same thing." Ana said, "I get along with my sister. When I have a problem, I turn to转向 her first."

Leo said, "Last year I decided to give up放弃 my job and my city. It was a big change." "But you didn't give up English!" said Sonia. "You will pick up接 new words fast here." After class, Kenji said, "Let's get coffee and catch up跟上. I didn't see you all weekend."

At the café, Kenji ordered two coffees to take away带走. They walked to the beach. "One day I want to open my own gym and meet the world走向世界," Kenji said. "My little brother will come from Japan to help me. I will pick接 him up接 at the airport." Leo laughed. "Then I will teach you both to talk like managers."

Ana and her roommate had a fight about the kitchen. "She never washes the cups. I can't stand it受不了!" Ana said. Sonia smiled. "How do you deal with处理 it?" "I don't. I just go to my room." "That is not a good way to deal with处理 problems," Sonia said.

The next day, Ana bought two coffees. She wanted to make up with与某人和好 her roommate. They talked for an hour and made a simple plan. "Now we wash our cups every night," Ana told the class. "I can deal with处理 that."

One Sunday, Pak Made invited Leo to a family gathering家庭聚会. "My whole family家庭 will be there," he said. "My grandfather祖父母 / 外祖父母 and grandmother祖父母 / 外祖父母, my son儿子 / 女儿 and daughter儿子 / 女儿, my cousins堂/表兄弟姐妹, and even my mother-in-law岳母 / 婆婆!" Leo laughed. "That's a big party."

Pak Made's wife妻子, Wayan, welcomed Leo at the door. She has been married to与某人结婚 Pak Made for thirty years. "Our marriage婚姻 is happy because my husband丈夫 cooks," she joked. Many relatives came from Pak Made's father's side父方亲戚. There were children孩子们 everywhere.

An old man asked Leo, "Do you have siblings兄弟姐妹?" "No, I'm an only child独生子女," Leo said. "In China, many people of my age are only children." "Then you are lucky today," the old man said. "Today you have fifty brothers and sisters!"

Ketut ran to Leo with two small children. "This is my nephew侄子 / 外甥 · 侄…, and this is my niece侄子 / 外甥 · 侄…!" she said proudly. Leo was confused. "You are eight. How can you have a nephew and a niece?" Pak Made laughed. "Ketut is my youngest. My oldest son is twenty-eight. His kids are Ketut's nephew侄子 / 外甥 · 侄… and niece侄子 / 外甥 · 侄…."

At the party, Leo met many people. Some became a friend朋友 quickly. Others were just an acquaintance点头之交: he knew their names, but not much more. A young woman from Jakarta was a domestic tourist国内游客 on holiday. She was a fellow fan同好 of Chinese dramas, so they talked for an hour.

Leo also met Pak Made's cousin from Germany. "My name is Sonja," she said. "With a J? My teacher is Sonia, with an I," Leo said. "Same name, different spelling!" Sonja came with her escort陪同者, a tour guide who went everywhere with her. Later Sonia told Leo, "Escort can mean a person who goes with you. But today, partner陪同者 is a safer word for the person you share your life with."

Sonja told Leo about her life in Berlin. "I live with a roommate室友. She is also my teammate队友 in our football club. She's my partner陪同者 on every trip, but not my escort陪同者!" Two hours ago, Sonja was a stranger陌生人. Now she felt like a friend朋友. Leo thought, "In Bali, a stranger can become a friend in one evening, and an acquaintance点头之交 can become family."

At nine o'clock, the delivery guys外卖/快递员 arrived with more food. Wayan laughed. "My son ordered more! He is a highest-level member最高等级会员 on the food app, so delivery is free for him." Later, a babysitter保姆 took the sleepy children home. Leo walked back slowly, full and happy.

In class, the topic was love. Kenji told a story. "My girlfriend女朋友 and I often have arguments争论. But after every fight, we have a sweet make-up和好." Everyone laughed. Kenji has a girlfriend女朋友 in Tokyo, but she wants to visit Bali next month.

Sonia wrote two words on the board: monogamy一夫一妻制 and polygamy一夫多妻制. "In most countries, the law says one husband and one wife. That is monogamy一夫一妻制. In a few places, one man can have many wives. That is polygamy一夫多妻制." Pak Made said, "In Bali, most people marry结婚 only one person."

Then everyone talked about their lives. Leo said, "I want to be single单身 for now." Ana said, "My brother and his wife live separate分开住. He works in Madrid and she works in Paris." A young Australian guy男人 said, "I still live with parents和父母同住. It is cheap!" Ana's best friend最好的朋友 from Spain is gay同性恋的, and her cousin is a lesbian女同性恋. "In my family, love is love," she said.

Pak Made talked about his own mother母亲. "She lived together一起 with us for twenty years. My wife and I had no honeymoon蜜月, because we had no money. But my mother母亲 said, 'A good marriage is better than a honeymoon蜜月.'" Leo thought about his good friend好朋友 / 密友 in Shanghai. "A close friend好朋友 / 密友 can accompany陪伴 you in hard times," he said. "Like you, Pak Made."

Kenji loves Muay Thai泰拳. He also does kick boxing踢拳 and watches UFC终极格斗赛 : 综合格斗 every week. "UFC is the biggest MMA终极格斗赛 : 综合格斗 company," he explained. "MMA means mixed martial arts. Almost every martial art武术 is allowed." One Saturday, he took Leo to a fight night at a small stadium体育场 in Denpasar.

The first fighter格斗选手 was a young Balinese man. He was in the bantam最轻量级 group, the lightest weight class体重级别 that night. He was small, but his muscles肌肉 were hard like rock. A commentator比赛解说员 shouted into the microphone. "Look at his speed! He thinks he is invincible不可战胜的!"

The fight was fast. The Balinese fighter threw a punch用拳打 and then a high kick踢. His opponent tried a spinning backfist旋转背拳, but he missed. In round two, the young man hit him in the body and knocked击倒 him down击倒. The crowd stood up. The commentator screamed, "He is down!"

But the other fighter got up. He was not beaten被打败 yet. Then something bad happened: he hit the young man with his head. "That's a headbutt用头撞! It's not allowed!" Kenji said. The referee stopped the fight. The Balinese fighter was hurt. An earlier kick had hit his throat喉咙, and now he had a cramp抽筋 in his calf小腿.

In the end, the referee gave the win to the young man. The other fighter had to accept defeat击败. He walked out, covered in sweat出汗. "Every punch用拳打 costs a lot of energy," Kenji said. "Fighters train like soldiers士兵." The commentator比赛解说员 said, "What a night! This young man will defeat击败 many more fighters."

On the way home, Leo said, "I prefer gentle sports, like jogging慢跑 and hiking徒步." Kenji laughed. "That's so boring! This year I want to try an extreme sport极限运动, like sky diving跳伞 or bungee jumping蹦极." "Bungee jumping? You jump from a bridge with a rope绳子 on your legs? No, thank you!"

Kenji told him about his family. "My uncle was a soldier. He jumped with a parachute降落伞·跳伞 / 弓箭手 many times. And my grandfather was an archer降落伞·跳伞 / 弓箭手 in a bow club." Then he said, "Leo, let's run a marathon马拉松 together in December." "A marathon马拉松? That's 42 kilometres!" "Don't worry. We will sweat出汗 a lot, but we will finish."

After the fight night, Leo's knees hurt. "I need a softer exercise锻炼," he said. Ana took him to the pool. "Swimming游泳 is good for your back and your heart." Now Leo goes swimming游泳 three times a week. It is his favourite exercise锻炼.

When Leo first came to Bali, foreign food外国食物 was hard for him. Some dishes were too sweet, and some were too hot. He had to adjust调整 slowly. Pak Made said, "Our food is simple. We use fresh ingredients食材: rice, chilli, garlic and coconut. No artificial人工的 colours. And we never eat chicken raw生的!"

Pak Made's specialty特产 was babi guling, roast pork. "In English, the animal is a pig猪 → 猪肉 / 牛 …, but the meat is pork猪 → 猪肉 / 牛 …," he said. "A cow猪 → 猪肉 / 牛 … gives beef猪 → 猪肉 / 牛 …." Leo nodded. "In Chinese, we just say pig meat and cow meat. English is more difficult!"

Leo loved the taste味道 of Pak Made's fried rice炒饭. It was not suitable适合的 for a diet, but it was always a fulfilling meal令人满足的一餐. "Here you have freedom自由," Pak Made said. "Big portion份 or small portion, you choose. Extra rice is free!"

On Friday, Leo went to the market early. "Come before eight," Pak Made had told him. "After that, the best fruit is sold-out售罄的." Leo bought mangoes, a bag of raisins葡萄干 for breakfast, and two hundred grams克 of coffee beans. He also bought fresh milk from a small dairy farm奶牛场 in the hills.

At home, he wanted to store储存 the milk, but his fridge was broken. Pak Made said, "You can store储存 it in my fridge. Keep it in a safe area保存在安全区域, away from Ketut!" Leo laughed. Next to the warung there was a small store储存 that sold ice, so he bought some too.

In the evening, the class went to a beach restaurant. Leo ordered a steak. "How would you like it? Well done全熟 / 三分熟 / … or medium rare全熟 / 三分熟 / …?" the waiter asked. "Well done, please." Kenji ordered a platter大拼盘, a big set大拼盘 of grilled meat for four people. The coffee there was bitter全熟 / 三分熟 / …, but Leo liked its taste味道.

Kenji drank beer啤酒, and Ana drank red wine葡萄酒 from Spain. "I don't drink much alcohol酒精," Leo said. "In China, my boss drank hard alcohol烈性酒 at every business dinner." "Like whiskey威士忌?" asked Ana. "Or tequila龙舌兰酒?" asked Kenji. "No, Chinese liquor烈酒. It's called baijiu, and it's very strong!"

Kenji trains every day, so he cares about food. "Your lunch is not nutritious有营养的," he told Leo one day. Leo was eating cup noodles杯面. At home he had ten bags of packed noodles包装面 too. "That is starch-based processed food淀粉类加工食品," Kenji said. "It makes your blood sugar go up. Eat real food!"

Kenji showed Leo his bag: protein powder蛋白粉, fish oil and a vitamin supplement补充剂. "And never an energy drink能量饮料," he said. "Many diet drinks have aspartame阿斯巴甜. It is an artificial sweetener人工甜味剂." Leo read the label on his diet cola. "Oh no. Aspartame!"

So that evening they went to a night market. There was pork satay猪肉沙嗲 on small sticks and BBQ beef烧烤牛肉. The skin of the roast pork was gold and crispy脆的. "This is a better main meal正餐," Kenji said. Leo also tried a small sandwich with ham火腿. Everything was fresh新鲜的 and hot.

Then Leo smelled something strong. "Is that durian榴莲?" he asked. "I love durian!" Kenji covered his nose. Leo bought one. "In China, some people even put it in hot pot火锅," he said. "Hot pot with durian? That's crazy!" Kenji said. "Is it spicy辣的?" "Only a little."

The next morning, Leo and Ana went to a coffee shop in Canggu. The barista explained the beans. "Arabica阿拉比卡 is soft and a little sweet. Robusta罗布斯塔 is stronger and more bitter. Our house blend招牌拼配 mixes both." Leo ordered a medium中等的 cup of the house blend. "Not too big, not too small," he said. "Just right."

On Sunday, Pak Made made a Western breakfast for Leo. There was toast吐司 on a white plate盘子 and a cup杯子 of black coffee. Ketut wanted something else. "I want pizza披萨 and fries薯条!" she shouted. "Not for breakfast," her father said.

Leo ordered a bowl of一碗… noodle面条 soup and a set of一份 / 一套… chicken rice. Ketut had a cola可乐. After breakfast, Leo helped to wash the dishes餐具. "In China, a noodle面条 means long life," he told Ketut. "Then I will eat a lot of noodles," she said.

In class, Sonia asked, "Which season季节 do you like best?" Leo said, "In China there are four seasons: spring春天, summer夏天, autumn秋天 and winter冬天. In winter, it can be minus ten degrees零下十度 in the north." Kenji said, "In Bali there are only two seasons: wet and dry."

Sonia is from Chicago. "In America we use Fahrenheit华氏度," she said. "Here the temperature温度 is about 30 degrees. In Fahrenheit, that's 86!" Leo said, "In China we use degrees Celsius摄氏度. Thirty degrees Celsius摄氏度 is hot for me." Sonia added, "British people write theatre剧院 and say autumn. Americans write theater and say fall."

On the weekend, the class went to the beach. The ocean海洋 was blue and warm. Leo forgot his sun cream and got sun-burnt晒伤的. In the evening there were insects everywhere. "Use some bug spray杀虫喷雾 / 昆虫," Ana said. "Every insect杀虫喷雾 / 昆虫 in Bali loves you!"

Leo wanted to take photos of the sky, but his phone battery电池 was dead. "Next time, bring a power bank," Kenji said. Leo looked at the warm sea and smiled. "It's OK. Some things are better to remember with your eyes."

"How hot is it today?" Leo asked. Ketut checked the phone. "Thirty-four degrees度!" In Shanghai, winter can be zero degrees度. In Bali, it is summer all year.

Sonia brought a globe地球仪 / 全球的 to class. "Bali is just south of the equator赤道," she said. "Which way is China?" Leo turned the globe. "China is north北 / 南 / 东. Australia is south北 / 南 / 东, and Japan is east北 / 南 / 东." "Good. Geography地理 is easy for you!" Sonia said. "And climate change is a global地球仪 / 全球的 problem, so we should all know a little geography."

That weekend, Leo, Kenji and Ana left Canggu长谷. They drove through the busy city城市 / 登巴萨 of Denpasar城市 / 登巴萨 and then north to Lovina罗威纳. They wanted to see dolphins and the sunrise日出. Leo said, "In Canggu we watch the sunset日落. In Lovina we watch the sunrise日出." On the way, they passed many rice fields. Every farm农场 was small and green.

Pak Made had told them about agriculture农业 in Bali. "Our rice fields use a very old water system. It is part of our nature自然 and our culture." They stopped near a mountain山 and a quiet lake湖. The air空气 was cool and clean. After the rain, there was an earthy smell土腥味 everywhere.

They climbed a small hill小山 and sat on a big rock岩石. The weather天气 was perfect. Ana said, "In Spain西班牙, the south is very dry, almost like a desert沙子 / 沙漠." Kenji said, "In Japan we have mountains everywhere." Leo said, "One day I want to visit India印度 and the Netherlands荷兰. In the Netherlands, a lot of land is lower than the sea."

At Lovina beach, the sand沙子 / 沙漠 was black, not white. "It's from the volcano," Ana said. But there was a problem: trash垃圾 on the beach, and many plastic塑料 bottles. "In British English we say rubbish垃圾," Ana said. "In any language, it's bad." Kenji said, "Some of it comes from industrial工业的 areas far away."

In a small shop, Leo bought a dictionary字典 of Balinese words. It was thin厚的 / 薄的, not thick厚的 / 薄的. The shop owner said, "Some big cities, like Jakarta, are sinking下沉 a little every year. And a natural disaster自然灾害 can happen any time here. We must protect the natural自然的 world." Leo walked on the black sand沙子 / 沙漠 and thought about it for a long time.

At five in the morning, they took a boat to see the dolphins and the sunrise日出. The sky turned pink and gold. The atmosphere气氛 was quiet and magical. "This is the best attraction景点 in Bali," Kenji said. That night, a hotel had fireworks烟花 for a wedding. Leo thought about the social environment社会环境 in Shanghai: busy, fast, always working. He also thought about ageing老化. "I'm getting older," he said, "but here I feel younger."

Leo's class went stargazing观星 near Mount Batur. They drove up at night. There were tall trees树 on both sides of the road. At the top, it was very dark暗的. One cloud云 moved over the moon, then it was gone.

The lake below was 1,050 metres米 high. "It is about ten degrees now, almost zero零 for me!" Kenji laughed. Sonia showed them a bright point点 in the sky. "That is Jupiter. Some people in Japan日本, Korea韩国 and China中国 can see it tonight too."

It started to rain a little, and the sky became grey. Ana was sad, but Leo said, "Every cloud云 has a silver lining. Now we have time for hot chocolate." They talked deeply深入地 about their homes. "This is a real international国际的 class," Sonia said.

On Monday, the topic in class was the economy经济. Sonia asked, "How is the economy经济 of Bali?" Leo remembered Pak Made's words: "When tourists come, we eat. When tourists don't come, we wait." Ana said, "Bali needs more than tourists. It needs investors投资者. Then people can produce生产 more things here."

Ana works in marketing市场 / 市场营销 for a hotel. "My job is to advertise打广告 / 推广 the hotel and promote打广告 / 推广 it online," she said. "We put ads广告 on Instagram. A good advertisement广告 can spread传播 very fast. But the market市场 / 市场营销 is full. Many hotels compete竞争 for the same tourists."

Kenji asked, "Is it legal合法的 / 非法的 to work here on a tourist visa?" "No, it's illegal合法的 / 非法的," Sonia said. "You need a work visa, and you must apply申请 for it. The policy政策 is strict, and a rule政策 is a rule." Leo said, "My friend has a PhD博士, but his application申请 took six months. The office had to approve批准 every Document文件."

Leo was also looking for a cheaper room. The rent租金 / 数量总额 in Canggu was high. "What is the total amount租金 / 数量总额 for one year?" he asked an agent. "For a villa, the minimum最小值 is 200 million rupiah. The maximum最大值? No limit!" The agent also wanted a fee费用. "We charge收费 a percentage百分比 of the rent: ten percent." Leo said, "Sorry, that's not affordable负担得起的 for me."

Ana told them about her friend. "She was a receptionist前台接待员 at a big hotel, but she got fired被解雇 last month. The new manager wanted better English." Now she is a receptionist前台接待员 at a small hotel. Her new boss pays salary by performance按业绩发薪: more bookings, more money. "Hotels compete竞争 for good workers too," Ana said.

Kenji's gym had a sign at the door: "Membership: 170.000 / month每月 17 万." "That's 170 thousand rupiah, about eleven dollars," Kenji said. "In Indonesia, they use a dot, not a comma." "That's very affordable负担得起的!" Leo said. Kenji also teaches Japanese online. "I get $25 / hour每小时 25 美元," he said. "My primary首要的 students are kids in Tokyo."

Ana showed them her hotel's brand品牌 page. "Look at the reviews评论. One good recommendation推荐 from a guest is better than ten ads." The hotel had won many awards奖项, but on the travel website, its rank排名第 3 至第 9 位 was always no. 3-9排名第 3 至第 9 位, never no. 1. "Why not number one?" Kenji asked. "Bigger hotels pay more for ads," Ana said.

"Every year, more people book online. That is the trend趋势," Ana said. "On Black Friday黑色星期五, we give 50%百分之五十 / 百分之… off. On other days, it's 25%百分之五十 / 百分之… off." Sonia asked Leo, "Which hotel would you recommend推荐 to a friend?" Leo said, "I recommend推荐 Ana's hotel. The price is fair, and the trend趋势 is good." Ana laughed. "Thanks for the recommendation推荐!"

One day Sonia asked Leo about his old job. "I was a product manager产品经理 at a tech company in Shanghai," he said. "Before that, I worked in business development业务拓展. I met clients客户 every day." Sonia said, "So you know business生意! Can you help our school?"

JB School was small. The owner, Mr. Bagus, was a retired退休的 journalist记者. He opened the school after he retired退休的. "The tourism旅游业 industry产业 is big in Bali," he said, "but the school industry产业 is hard. We need more students."

Leo drew a simple picture on the board. "This is a sales funnel: 100 clients → 70 consult → 30 buy客户漏斗：100 个客…." He explained, "People consult咨询 first. They ask questions. Then some of them buy lessons买课. Your salesman销售员 must answer fast." Bagus laughed. "I don't have a salesman. I only have me!"

Leo explained the aim目标. "The core核心 of a small school is its core clients核心客户: students who stay for months. To acquire获取 a new student is expensive. To retain留住 an old student is cheap. So keep your cost成本 low and retain留住 the students you have. The aim目标 is simple: more happy students."

Bagus wrote down a plan. "Step one: contact back old users回访老用户," Leo said. "Send them a message and reconnect重新建立联系. Many will come back. That is what business development业务拓展 means." "Step two: use one platform平台 for booking. Put the school on social media社交媒体. And use an app to collect payment收款. A good platform平台 saves everyone time."

Then Leo talked about competitiveness竞争力. "Other schools are bigger. But you can offer the lowest最低的 price for small groups, and a reliable可靠的 teacher like Sonia. Give new students an irresistible offer无法拒绝的报价: the first lesson is free. If the cost成本 is low, you can still make money." Bagus smiled. "Your business生意 ideas are very good."

Leo also told Bagus about company levels in China. "First there is a middle manager中层经理 / 高层领导…, then a high leader中层经理 / 高层领导…, then a director中层经理 / 高层领导…. Everyone wants to go up." Bagus laughed. "Here, I am everything: the director, the cleaner and the teacher!"

Meanwhile, Kenji had news. He was in a Muay Thai competition比赛 next month, and a sports brand wanted to sponsor赞助商 him. "If I reach the final match决赛, they will pay me more," he said. "The gym also gave me insurance保险, so I'm insured已投保的 if I get hurt." Leo said, "Fighting is not very profitable有利可图的, but the impact影响 on your life is big." Kenji laughed. "The profit利润 is in my heart! And look, my new gloves are very durable耐用的."

On Wednesday, Sonia taught a lesson about the workplace工作场所. "Tell me about your old job, Leo. What was your boss老板 like?" Leo said, "My boss老板 was a tough leader领导者. Every three months we had evaluations评估. We used OKRs: objectives目标 / 关键结果 and key results目标 / 关键结果."

"If you met your objectives目标 / 关键结果, you got a bonus奖金. But the bonus奖金 was small. My position职位 was good and my status状态 was high, but I worked on three projects项目 at the same time. I had no work-life balance工作与生活的平衡."

Sonia drew a chart on the board. "Most workers员工 have active income主动收入. You work, and you earn money挣钱. No work, no salary薪水. Passive income被动收入 is different. Money comes even when you sleep." She drew a line to the top of the chart. "And up here is the boss's salary老板的薪水." Everyone laughed. "One day I want the boss's salary老板的薪水!" Kenji said.

Then she wrote some numbers: "for 5 years · 80 hours · 120 hours + bonus5 年 · 80 小时…." She said, "Some people work 80 hours a month for five years. Then the boss wants 120 hours, plus a small bonus. Is it worth it?" Kenji said, "With good work干得好, you can earn much more money挣多得多的钱 in a short time短时间." "Maybe," said Sonia. "But can you save money存钱?"

Leo said, "In Shanghai, I was in the moonlight clan月光族. Every month I spent my whole salary. I had no saving存钱 at all." Ana laughed. "Me too, when I was young." Leo said, "Now my rent and food are cheap, so I can finally save."

Ana talked about her own job. "Really, I'm a seller卖家. Every day I try to close a deal达成交易 with a customer顾客. My level等级 is senior now." She said that in emails to young guests she writes in a less formal不那么正式 way. "I write 'Hi guys!' and not 'Dear Sir or Madam'."

Leo told them about his job search. "I'm a candidate候选人 for a remote job. There are twenty contestants参赛者... I mean candidates!" Everyone laughed. "A contestant is in a game show," Sonia said. "But maybe a job interview is a game show too!"

Then they talked about shopping. "Everything in Bali is cheaper更便宜的 than in Europe," Ana said. "But compare比较 the quality质量," Kenji said. "Cheap shoes break in a month." Pak Made was bringing them lunch, and he joined in. "My grandfather told me about the old days. Rice was on ration配给: each family got only a small bag. Now we have everything. Be happy!"