3rd Interview

Interview #3

Eng 191

2011/11/15

Interviewer: Huan Yu

Interviewee: Ha Tiingteck

Date of Interview: 11/14/2011

Country Report

  Malaysia, located in Southeast Asia, a federal constitutional monarchy. Malaysia is declared its independence from British in August 31^st in 1957. Since 16^th century, Malaysia had been invaded by Portugal, Holland and British. In1911, Malaysia became a British colony. The populations of Malaysia are mainly aborigines, occupies about 67.4%. Then, the second largest population is Chinese, occupies around 24%. Then the third is Indian, occupies 7.3%. And the other nation occupies 0.7%. Among the aborigines, there are about 55% of Malayans. As Chinese also is an enormous population, Chinese language is very common in Malaysia. There are about three languages spoken in Malaysia, Malay，English and Chinese.

Link

   The cuisine also reflects the multi-ethnic makeup of population in Malaysia. Lots of cultures have influenced the cuisine. Much of the influence comes from the Malay, Chinese, Indian, Thai, Javanese, and Sumatran cultures. The cuisine of Malaysia is very similar to the cuisine from Singapore, Brunei and Filipino. Also, cuisine in different states may be different. As the time goes by, food in other culture has been assimilated into Malaysia. A good example is some Chinese restaurants in Malaysia also serve with Malay cuisine.

Link

Malaysians celebrate a number of holidays and festivities throughout the year. The most important holiday is the "Hari Merdeka". It is the Independence Day, also known as "Merdeka" (Freedom), on 31 August. It commemorates the independence of the Federation of Malaya. Some other important holidays are the Labor Day (1 May), the King's birthday (first Saturday of June) and so on. Chinese New year is celebrated in Malaysia too. It is the most prominent, lasting for 15 days.

Link

Work Cited:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Malaysia

http://baike.baidu.com/view/7009.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia

Transcript of the interview

H: Huan Yu

T: Ha Tiingteck

H: Hi, my name is Huan. I am doing a research on your country. Would you like to give me an interview about your home country?

T: Yes, sure

H: Ok, thanks. First, what is your Malay name?

T: Ha Tiingteck.

H: Could you spell it to me? As you know it is different from English.

T: H-a T-i-i-n-g-t-e-c-k

H: Ok, got it. Where is your home town?

T: I am from Marang, a city near the South China Sea.

H: I learned that Malaysia has two parts, the east one and the west one, which part you’re your home town belongs to?

T: Oh, it belongs to the west part.

H: Ok, could you please tell me something about the education system of your country?

T: In Malaysia, we go to preschools. From 3-4 years old, we attend pre-school playgroups. Then we go to kindergartens for another two years. After that, we spend 6 years in primary schools. After primary schools, we go to secondary schools for 5years. Then, it is another 2 years in high schools. Then bachelor degree takes 3years to finish. In Malaysia, only the primary schools are compulsory. But pre-schools, primary schools and secondary school are free education. The government takes education very seriously.

H: Ah, it is very interesting. Next, how has your culture influenced your people/family values?

T: The culture definitely has a great influence on the family values. I think culture has a big influence on my family. In Malaysia, Family values are important. Our family is very big and we lived together. Unlike America, people become adult and become so independent. Now, my father and my mother are still lives with my grandparents. Actually, we consider living with families as a kind of happiness.

H: It is very similar to China. What is the weather like in your hometown?

T: Much better than the weather here. The weather in my hometown is very pleasant. As my hometown is close to the sea, the humidity is high. We just have one climate in my hometown. The average temperature is about between 26 and 30℃. We got a lot of rains.

H: Can you adapt to the weather here when you came here for the first time?

T: It is a long and hard time to adapt to the weather here. In winter, I don’t want to go out for one minute at all.

H: You have adapted to the weather here, righter?

T: Better, but I still hate the weather here.

H: I hate it too. In my home town, the weather in winter is not as cold as here. Next question is: what is the form of government in your country?

T: Federal constitutional monarchy and Federal parliamentary democracy.

H: Could you tell me more about that?

T: Sure. In Malaysia, we don’t have president, but we have Yang di-Pertuan Agong. I think Yang di-Pertuan Agong just like president in America. He is the head of the state of Malaysia. Then, we got prime minister and deputy prime minister. Prime minister is the head of the government of Malaysia. Prime minister is officially appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

H: The state of Malaysia and the government of Malaysia is not the same?

T: Yes. The prime minister and his cabinet should be collectively responsible to the parliament.

H: What is the most popular sport in your country?

T: I think it should be soccer. Badminton is also very popular in Malaysia.

H: What is a traditional food in your country?

H: Do you have any recommendations for visiting?

  Malacca is very famous. It is the oldest city in Malaysia. Also the food in Malacca is famous.

H: Can you tell me something about the traditional food?

T: For Staple food, we have rice and noodles. We have lots of dishes to eat with the staple food.

H: Could you tell me a famous food in Malaysia?

T: Laksa. It is famous among Nyonya dishes.

H: Sorry, is the food in your country spicy?

T: Yes. We like cooking with pepper as spices.

H: Could you tell me what festivals you celebrate?

T: We have lot of festivals. The most important should be the "Hari Merdeka". It is our Independence Day. It is on August 31. We also have Labor Day, Maulidur Rasul, King’s birthday and so on.

H: How do you celebrate these holidays?

T: For some national festivals like "Hari Merdeka", we will have several days off and we usually go travelling with our families. For other festivals, we may have a family dinner together.

H: Tell me one thing that makes you proud of your country.

T: The food in Malaysia. Malaysia is known as Food Paradise. 

Cates from different cultures mingle with each other. Chinese food, 

Indian cuisine and Portugal food are also can be found easily in Malaysia.

H: How old are people in your country by the time they got married?

T: Uh, I think is between 25 and 30 years old.

H: Do you have any plan on it?

T: Not now, I need finish my study first. After I graduate from here, I think I will have a plan on it.

H: Best wishes. I think that all. I really appreciate your help. Thanks again.

T: You are welcome.

Preparation


Because of previous two interviews, I have been very
interested in the culture in Malaysia. So I went to the Malaysia culture night.
There, I met Ha Tiingteck. So he becomes my third interviewee. He is very nice
to help me with my interview. Also, he paid lots of attention on my interview.
When I have trouble in spelling in specific Malay words, he is so willing to
help me with that. As usual, I printed those questions out. When doing the
interview, I made some notes; at the same time, I recorded the whole interview.
When I am doing the Transcript of the interview, these notes and record helped
me a lot.


Personal review



  I have done the entire three interviews. From these three interviews, I learned a lot. The first thing that I have learned should be the knowledge of Malaysia. Malaysia is beautiful and kind country. Malaysia is a multi-culture country. There
are mainly three kinds of cultures in Malaysia: Malaysian culture, Chinese culture and Indian culture. I also see Malaysian’s warmth form the three interviewees.
The second thing I have learned is the interview skills. The preparation is very important. You should print the question out. And learn a little about the topic is very helpful for the interview. During the interview, you need to relax; nervous has side effects on your interview. Also taking notes or recording the entire interview help you with review the interview.
 The third thing might be communication skills.
Sometimes, visual images and body languages are much easier for people to understand. For example, we Jason is talking about the geography of Malaysia, I can’t understand very well. But after he showed me the picture, I got it immediately. While you have a communication with others, listening is also very important. Listening
carefully makes you understand easier and focus on the communication. Listening is elegant art. It shows your respect to others.