What’s in a word? How ‘Mama Moon’ cashed in on language

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December 12, 2018

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What’s in a word? How ‘Mama Moon’ cashed in on language

Source: Xinhua | 07:06 UTC+8 December 12, 2018 |

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How many languages can you say “hello” in? Xu Xiuzhen, 74, nicknamed “Mama Moon” by foreign tourists, from Yangshuo County in the southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, can say it in over 10.

Recently, a video of her giving directions in English to several lost foreign passengers near Yangshuo’s well-known Mt. Moon scenic area started trending on China’s social media. People were amazed by Xu’s self-taught English level.

Xu’s ambition to learn English began in the late 1970s when Yangshuo became the country’s first tourist destinations to welcome foreign visitors after China’s reform and opening-up in 1978.

Yangshuo is best known for its other-worldly limestone karsts and picturesque rivers that appear on 20-yuan notes.

“I began to see more foreign faces near Mt. Moon, and locals who spoke some English sold more bottled water than me,” said Xu. “No English, no money.”

With the influx of foreigners, a craze for learning English began to sweep the county where a large number of villagers sought opportunities given the booming tourism market.

Xu eagerly joined the craze. At that time, she made a living on farming and occasionally sold bottled water to tourists near Mt. Moon.

“I used pinyin to memorize the pronunciation of English words, but my strong southern accent made it quite difficult to understand,” said Xu. “So, I turned to foreign visitors for help. They have helped me correct my word choice and pronunciation.”

In 1997, “Mama Moon” had her first foreign guest, an Italian. She was paid 50 yuan (US$7) for an hour-long guided tour in English.

Before that, she would only earn 7 to 8 yuan per day selling her farm vegetables and bottled water to tourists.

Practice makes perfect. By 1998, Xu was bringing in a stable income of 400 to 500 yuan per month working as an English guide, and her sales of water increased rapidly.

Over the past two decades, Xu continued learning and practicing. Xu is now learning her third, fourth and even 10th language, including French, Spanish, Japanese and German as foreign visitors from all around the world pour in.

Yangshuo received over 7.94 million visitors in the first half of 2018.

Xu’s nickname “Mama Moon” is becoming familiar to more visitors and locals due to her inspiring story and her cheerful and friendly personality.

Xu never stops learning. In 2010, she opened a guest farmhouse with 22 rooms, bringing in over 200,000 yuan a year.

“Yangshuo was included on a high-speed rail line in early 2016. I have been considering taking a trip once business cools off during the off-peak season,” said Xu.

“I couldn’t even think of that 40 years ago.”

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What’s in a word? How ‘Mama Moon’ cashed in on language

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