How hard is it to learn mandarin?

[cumulus.james]

Is true that it's really hard to learn mandarin? I learned calculus recently, and my french was OK in school. China is the way forward.

 

[Mr Seal The Albatros]

Well, as well as learning a new alphabet and words, isn't there something about tone of voice being used to say words too? I've never tried learning Mandarin myself, but I'd say it's pretty tough. Still possible though.

 

[jason2023]

Is true that it's really hard to learn mandarin? I learned calculus recently, and my french was OK in school. China is the way forward.

It's hard because there's no alphabet - just characters to memorise. If you're happy just being able to do oral (that is speak and hear!) then I'd go for it. The problem is you'll likely have an accent since it's not from a young age and tones are sensitive (there are 4 tones to one word and they have different meanings). That said, there's no past tense or anything...