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World Hotels - Tibetan: Lonely Planet Phrasebook
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List Price: $8.99
Our Price: $8.99
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 401
EAN: 9781740595247
ISBN: 1740595246
Label: Lonely Planet
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 256
Publication Date: 2008-02-01
Publisher: Lonely Planet
Studio: Lonely Planet
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Editorial Reviews:
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Stepping out onto the Barkhor circuit, you're swept along by a sea of chanting pilgrims. You go with the flow as the procession winds its way clockwise. You peer beyond the swirling prayer flags - is that the Jamkhang you can see? This pocket companion is full of phrases to help you out in any situation - not just discovering Buddhist temples. You'll be talking your way around Tibet in now time.
Our phrasebooks give you a comprehensive mix of practical and social words and phrases in more than 120 languages. Chat with the locals and discover their culture - a guaranteed way to enrich your travel experience.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating: 
Summary: Lacking a few things
Comment: I've recently returned from a few weeks in Tibet. One of my group had this phrase book and we tried to use it to speak with our driver. A few things: First, a pronunciation guide would have helped. Second, we found some common words missing, or at least were not able to find them the way the book is laid out. We ended up drawing pictures on Post-Its to communicate with our driver and learn words from him in this way.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Invaluable When Traveling Individually in Tibet
Comment: I've been to Tibet five times now, and each time I have carried my now well worn copy of this phrasebook with me. Without it, I'd be at a real loss. It is has proven wonderful for communicating with locals - not only in Lhasa, but also in far more remote parts of the country. It is safe to say that using this phrasebook has enhanced my experiences in Tibet many times over.
If I did have one criticism of it, it would be that while it does have a brief English to Tibetan Dictionary in back, it would greatly benefit from a Tibetan to English Dictionary as well. So many times Tibetans have picked up the phrasebook from me and searched in vain for a word that they are trying to find.
But that criticism is minor. If you're traveling in Tibet on your own, this phrasebooks is a must. Depending on how long you're going to be in the country, you may want to consider the LP Mandarin Phrasebook as well.....
Customer Rating:
Summary: Probably the best you'll find for what you need
Comment: As a small language book that is only meant to give you the basics this is a great book.
A warning though... This book attempts to educated the reader in a "standard Tibetan language". They mention the three main dialects of U-tsang, Amdo, and Kham and claim that great interaction between them is leading to this standardization. It has not be my experience nor have I seen other scholars even mention the existence of such a standardization. From what I have learned the three dialects are quite different to the point of mutual misunderstanding. I do not feel that this book prepared me to speak Amdo, nor would it prepare anyone else to speak either Amdo or Kham. If that is your goal, good luck finding any book that can do that. But, for most people this is irrelevant. Most interaction with Tibetans by Westerners is with central U-tsang Tibetans. I never thoought about it before, but most of the Tibetan exiles are central/U-tsang.
Upon further consultation with some Tibetans I have come to the conclusion that some mishmash of the dialects does exist in the Tibetan diaspora in India. So this book would be more useful there. Keep in mind though that the original exodus into India consisted mostly of Central Tibetans and so this new amalgamation likely favors that dialects sensibilities.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Oh, what a great little book!
Comment: I just love this little book. I haven't got to travel to tibet as of yet, but I do attend teachings at a Drikung Kagyu monastery where I interact with a few native tibetans. I must admit, I usually chicken out when it comes to trying to really speak. But it is soooo fun to be able to find words and phrases that I already know from practices and be able to see them in other usage.
A terrific book! Ok, one thing, the print, especially the tibetan script is tiny, but then there is so much info crammed in this pocket-sized book, who can really complain. if you have a hard time with little print, throw a little reading magnifier strip in your pocket with it :)
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Comment: My main objective was learning to speak some Tibetan on a conversational level, and not just a traveler's level. The book teaches the writitng system and enough grammar to be able to correctly speak Tibetan as we speak everyday English. Nothing too deep and technical, but nothing too brief. The small book is absolutely jam-packed with words and phrases. It suits the need of both the traveler and one who wants a basic conversational ability in Tibetan. It's value exceeds the price greatly!
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