QUESTIONS ARISING FROM 91st MEETING – 15/6/18
(the record of earlier meetings can be downloaded from the main Circulus page as can the version of Ciceronis Filius with illustrations added. The illustrated text of Genesis is available on the Genesis page and of Kepler's Somnium on the Somnium page.)

Food consumed, with the help of vīnum rubrum, included fragmenta agnīna tandūria (tandoori lamb tikka), the standard cicera aromatica (chana masala) and batātae cum brassicā Pompēiānā (alu gobi) , spināchia cum caseō (saag paneer)and also iūs lentium butyrātum (literally `lentil soup with butter’, daal makhani). This last dish is not actually made from true lentils (lentēs) but a mixture of so-called `black lentils’ or `black gram’ (vigna (-ae, f) mungo) and red kidney beans (phaseōlī vulgārēs) but the translation can be retained in view of the normal meaning of daal. All this was accompanied as usual with pānis Persicus (naan, which is in fact the standard Farsi Word for bread) and orȳza (rice – the Latin term derives from Sanskrit and is itself the source of the English word). Starters were the normal complimentary pānis tenuis (papadom) and tubī vernāles (spring rolls) plus two orders of samōsae holeribus fartae (vegetable samosas)

 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　pānis tenuis
 
Malcolm introduced us to the relatively new site http://bookconcierge.hk/, which lists in order of cost (including shipping to Hong Kong) all the main on-line booksellers stocking a particular title. The cheapest option is normally Book Depository, but not invariably, and John also ponted out that, for bulk orders, Amazon sometimes worked out cheaper.
 
Malcolm had used the site before ordering a copy of Ursus Nomine Paddington (i.e. A Bear Called Paddington), a translation of by Peter Needham, who taught Classics at Eton for thirty years and has also produced Latin versions of the first two Harry Potter novels (Harrius Potter et Philosophi Lapis and Harrius Potter et Camera Secretorum), which we discussed in the July 2017 meeting. As we noted then, there is a long-standing tradition of translating children’s classics, the best known of which, Winnie Ile Pu, actually made it onto the New York Times best sellers’ list. For more details on this topic see http://mentalfloss.com/article/73311/10-popular-childrens-books-have-been-translated-latin
 
Eugene had brought along a copy of the Italian version of Lingua Latina sine Molestia (Il Latino senza Sforzo), an audio-lingual course in the Assimil series, with accompanying CDs.  This textbook is unfortunately no longer available in an English edition, though I think French and German versions are stil in print. The book is used by the well-known champion of spoken Latin Aulus Gratius Avitus in his on-line Schola Latina Europaea et Universalis (see http://avitus.alcuinus.net/schola_latina/), which provides free instruction, and special guidance for English speakers struggling without a translation in their own language! Avitus, who I think is Spanish by birth, is also the founder of the Circulus Latinus Londoniensis, a more rigorous society than our own as they generally enforce their Latin-only rule, though, like us, they always meet over food and drink. Avitus has recently published a very useful survey in English of
Thwe whole spoken Latin scene, which included refers to Circuli Latini in general as `spread from Seattle to Hong Kong’ and can be downloaded from
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/ED66CC496B5BD893A4C519ABF6A257F3/S2058631018000065a.pdf/spoken_latin_learning_teaching_lecturing_and_research.pdf

​We each spoke briefly in Latin about the advantages and disadvantages of life in Hong Kong, using as support the dialogue form the Circulus page reproduced below (the web page itself, with stress indicated, is at https://linguae.weebly.com/circulus-latinus-honcongensis.html ) Jesse wanted to refer to the wide variety of toys and games available in the shops here, which led to a discussion of the best word for toy. There are specific words for a doll (pupa) and a children’s rattle (crepundia) but the words oblectāmentum and lūdibrium offered by some dictionaries seem to have been normally used in classical Latin as abstract nouns meaning `amusement’, `entertainment’ etc. However. ioculus, -ī m, though also employed in the abstract sense, does also seem to have been employed in the concrete sense and is probably the best choice.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Frāter vel soror serpentis ā Taniā līberātī
 
Following on from mention of the countryside and hiking as important attractions, there was a discussion of encounters with snakes, of which Hong Kong still boasts a wide veriety. Tanya had recently discovered one alive but pinned down by rocks which neighbours had piled on it. She took it by the tail and effected a rescue, resulting in the dual gratification of an adrenaline flow and an an enhanced karma balance. Malcolm, who has a house in Chi Ma Wan, the Lantau peninsula where snakes are particularly common, told us how he had once jumped over a green snake on the path – something he realised later was rather foolish as it might have been a venomous bamboo snake rather that a harmless `Green’ (see photos below); the former is supposedly identifiable by a yellow stripe on the underside but in the picture above both species appeas to have some yellow on their skin, with the venomous one distinguishable just by its yellow eyes. Malcolm had also once had the unnerving experience of coming across a Chinese cobra in attack position, which had been masked by a boulder as he ascended steps on a hillside.

`Green’ (cyclophiops major)
​

Bamboo snake (trimeresurus albolabris )

​                                                                                              Chinese cobra (naja atra)

Whilst the bamboo snake is responsible for 90% of the snake bites in Hong Kong, the most venomous is the king cobra, which can grow as long as 6 metres. Malcolm had believed that there were none of these left in Hong Kong but the compilers of the guide at http://www.southside.hk/southsides-guide-common-snakes-hong-kong/ claim that, though possibly extinct on Hong Kong island, they can still be found throughout the New Territories. They normally steer clear of humans,  which presumably explains the uncertainty over the size of their population. 

Whilst the bamboo snake is responsible for 90% of the snake bites in Hong Kong, the most venomous is the king cobra, which can grow as long as 6 metres. Malcolm had believed that there were none of these left in Hong Kong but the compilers of the guide at http://www.southside.hk/southsides-guide-common-snakes-hong-kong/ claim that, though possibly extinct on Hong Kong island, they can still be found throughout the New Territories. They normally steer clear of humans,  which presumably explains the uncertainty over the size of their population. 

                                                                King cobra  (ophiophagus hannah)

​Unnerving as some of the above may be, we have the consolation that, according to `Southside’, there have been no fatal bites for the last twenty years and John reckons that, despite being a keen hiker, he has only seen snakes about ten times in thirty years. The largest was in a rubbish bin near Yuen Long – probably a Burmese python but he did not choose to go close enough to investigate!

                                                               Bamboo python (python bivittatus)
​
We touched briefly on vocatives like Eugenī, formed by cutting off the-us at the end of 2nd. Declension nouns.  John was a little uncertain but thought that the stress on such forms was always on the same syllable as the nominative (e.g.Eugénī, vocative of Eugénius) even if this resultd in accentuation of a short penultimate syllable. A later check confirmed that this was correct and that the contracted genitive of nouns in –ius was accented in a similar way. See
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0001%3Apart%3D1%3Asection%3D9
 
We finally read chapters VIII-XI of Somnium (see below and https://linguae.weebly.com/somnium.html, the web page including illustrations.) John noted that the accusation of witchcraft brought against Kepler’s mother might have been partly the result of his inclusion of `spirits’ in his story and of his narrator bewing the son of a woman with some of the qualities associated with witches. Since the narrator is portrayed as studying under the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, as Kepler himself had done, the story, drafts of which were in circulation by around 1611, might have been interpreted as partly autobiographical
 
The narrative includes a description in chapter IX of how thew bodies of humans `taking of’ for transport to the moon hav to be spread out so that the force exereted on them is evenly distributed. John had added a note comparing this with the recommendation that someone in a freely falling lift could minimise the impact at the bottom by lying stretched out on the floor. Malcolm trhough this was correct and that the best policy was to jump up and down to have a chance of being in the air when impact occurred. A `Lonely Planet’ video located later by Tanya, argues that this second method is of little use because the jumper’s velocity relative to the lift would be so slight compared to that of the lift itself hurtling  towards the ground, It recommends instead bracing oneself again the rails on the side of the lift and slightly bending the legs (see https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9Y-i4NS70MY). Comments posted beneath the video point out that the whole `falling lift’ scenario is highly unlikely since the counter weight would keep the lift stationary or even make it move upwards if the power failed.

SOMNIUM, capitula VIII-XI
 
VIII Quīnquāgintā mīllibus mīliārium Germānicōrum[1] ^53 in aetheris profundō sita
        Fifty                                   thousand    of-miles                              German                 in  of-upper-air   depth   situated
^54 est Levānia īnsula; iter ad eam hinc vel ex eā in hās Terrās rārissimē patet ^55, et
      Is   Levania    island   route  to  it from-here  or  from it  into these   lands  very-rarely  is-open    and
cum patet, nostrae quidem gentī facile est ^56, hominibus vērō trānsportandīs plānē
when  it-is-open  to-our     indeed  race   easy    is          for-humans  indeed     to-be-transported  clearly
difficillimum et cum summō vītae periculo conjūnctum ^57. Nūllī ā nōbīs sedentāriī
very-difficult      and   with  greatest  to-life    danger     joined               no  by  us  desk-bound--people
adscīscuntur in hunc comitātum, nulli corpulenti, nūllī dēlicātī ^58, sed legimus eōs,
are-admitted     into  this  fellowship        no   fat-people    no     delicate-ones     but   we-chose  those
quī aetātem verēdōrum assiduō ūsū cōnsūmunt, aut quī nāvibus frequenter Indiās
who    life      of-swift-horses continual  in-use    spend       or   who   in-ships    frequently  the-Indies
adeunt, pāne biscoctō,[2] alliō, piscibus dūrātis et cibīs abhorrentibus victitāre suētī
go-to   on-bread  double-cooked  garlic      fish     dried    and foods    unappetizing    to-live-on   accustomed
^59. Inprīmīs nōbīs aptae sunt vetulae exsuccae ^60, quibus inde ā pueritiā trīta est
Especially         for-us   suitable are   old-women   dried-up      to-whom  right from childhood  common is
ratiō, hircōs nocturnōs, aut furcas, aut trīta pallia inequitandī trājiciendīque per
practice  he-goats    nocturnal   or  forked-sticks or  worn-out cloaks  of-riding-on   and-of-traversing  through
immānia terrārum spatia. Nūllī ē Germāniā virī aptī sunt, Hispānōrum sicca corpora
immense    of-the-earth  expanses  No   from  Germany   men  suitable are    of-Spaniards     dry   bodies
nōn respuimus ^61.
not     we-spurn

[1] The term German mile`(miliāre Germānicum) was used for several measure of distance but Kepler’s own note 53 explains he is using the `German geographical mile’, defined as 1/15 of a degree of longitude at the equator, or approximately 4.61 English miles. 50,000 of these units is equivalent to 230,545 miles, compared with the 238,855 mile actual average distance of the moon from the earth.
[2] The phrase pānis biscoctus is used by Marco Polo for wafers made by the inhabitants of the Arabian peninsula from salted fish but here presumably means `hardtack’, i.e biscuits or crackers made from flour and water, which were staple food for sailors at this time. Kepler himself lived very frugally and enjoyed gnawing on bones and hard crusts (see Rosen, Kepler’s Somnium, p.15, n.17).

IX Tōtum iter, quantum est, quattuor ad summum hōrārum spatiō absolvitur ^62.
Whole       jopurnet  great-as  it-is    four     at      most       of-hours   in-span   is-completed
Neque enim nōbīs semper occupātissimīs anteā cōnstat dē tempore eundī ^63, quam
Not      for     with-us   always      very-busy     before  it-is-agreed about   time    of going     than
Lūna ab orientis partibus coeperit dēficere;[1] quae ubi tōta lūxerit, nōbīs adhūc in
Moon   from   of-east   regions will-have-begun to-be-eclipsed  this  when whole will-be-lit with-us   still   on  
itinere haerentibus, irrita redditur nostra profectiō.Tam praeceps occāsio efficit, ut
journey     stuck        useless  is-rendered    our   departure     so    short     opportunity causes    that
paucōs ex humānā gente, nec aliōs, nisi nostrī[2] observantissimōs comitēs habeāmus
few      from  human    race    and-not others except to-us       those-most-devoted  companions  we-have
^64. Ergō hominem aliquem hujusmodī agminātim invādimus omnēsque subtus
      Therefore   human     some     of-this-kind     in-a-column  we-rush-upon   and-all     from-below
nītentēs, in altum eum tollimus ^65. Prīma quaeque mōlītiō dūrissima ipsī accidit ^66,
pushing    on   high    him  we-lift          first   each       take-off    most-harsh to-man-himself happens
nec enim aliter torquētur ac sī pulvere bombardicō excussus montēs et maria trānāret
not  for otherwise  he-is-tormented than if  by-powder   explosive    hurled-off    mountains and  seas he-flew-over
^67. Proptereā narcoticīs et opiātīs statim in prīncipiō sopiendus est ^68 et membrātim
    For this reason  with-narcotics and  opiates  at-once at     start    to-be-put-to-sleep he- is    and  limb-by-limb
explicandus ^69, ne corpus a pōdice, caput ā corpore gestētur,    sed ut violentia in
to-be-spread-out        lest  body  from buttocks   head  from  body   may-be-torn-away but  so-that  shock among
singula membra dīvidātur.[3] Tunc excipit nova difficultās, ingēns frīgus ^70, et
individual     limbs  may-be-divided     then   takes-over  new     difficulty    immense cold       and
prohibita respīrātiō ^71, quōrum illī ingenitā nobis vi ^72, huic vērō spongiīs
blocked        breathing         of-which  former  in-born  in-us by-power   latter   indeed by-sponges
humectīs ad nārēs admōtīs obviam īmus[4] ^73.
damp      to   nostrils   moved  up-against  we-go


[1] The conjunction antequam is here split between the two clauses and ante itself changed to anteā (afterwards). The whole sentence would most naturally be translated `As we are so busy, there is no agreement to go until a lunar eclipse has begun’ but `there is agreement not to go before the start of an eclipse’ makes better sense.’ During such an eclipse, the moon remains within the earth’s shadow for about four hours.
[2] nostrī is genitive of object. Only those most devoted to the demons can accompany them.
[3] For this reason, the advice or someone trapped in a free-falling lift is to lie stretched out on the floor to minimise the effect of the impact at the bottom.
[4] i.e the demons deal with the first problem (the coldness of space) with their innate magic powers  and with the latter (difficulty of breathing) by using sponges. 

X Confectā prīmā parte itineris facilior redditur vectiō ^74. Tunc līberō āerī
With-finished      first   part   of-journey  easier   is-rendered  passage       then    to-open  air
expōnimus corpora manūsque subtrahimus ^75. Atque illa in sēsē` conglobantur ut
we-expose      (their) bodies and-hands    we-take-away         and     those into themselves  are-rolled-up  as
arāneī, quae nōs sōlō fere nūtū[1] trānsportāmus ^76, adeō ut dēnique mōlēs corporea
spiders    which  we  alone almost with-will   we-transport         so     that   finally    mass     bodily
sponte suā vergat in locum prōpositum ^77.Sed parum nōbīs est utilis haec ϱοπη quia
of-accord  own  proceeds to  place   proposed             but    too-little  to-us   is  useful  this ímpetus because
nimis tarda ^78, itaque nūtū ut dīxī accelerāmus et praecēdimus jam corpus, nē
too      late         and-so   by-will as I-said   we-speed-it-up  and   go-ahead-of   now   body     lest
dūrissimō impactū in Lūnam damnī quid patiātur.     Solent    hominēs, cum
by-very-hard    impact    on    moon  of-harm  anything  it-may-suffer  are-accustomed    humans    when
expergiscuntur, querī  dē ineffābilī membrōrum omnium lassitūdine, ā quā sērō
they-wake-up      to-complain about  indescribable    of-limbs       all     weariness    from which  later

[1] nūtus, -ūs m nod, will

admodum sē recipiunt, ut ambulent[1] ^79. Multae praetereā occurrunt difficultātēs,
quite     themselves they-recover so-that they can-walk        many      besides     occur         difficulties
quās longum esset recensēre. Nōbīs nihil admodum evenit malī. Tenebrās enim
which    long    it-would-be  to-recount  to-us    nothing   indeed     happens  of-evil   shadows  for
Tellūris, quam longae illae sunt, confertim inhabitāmus ^80, quae ubi Levāniam
of-earth      as      long    they-are      in-group     we-inhabit            which  when  Levania
attigerint, praestō sumus, quasi ex nāvī in terram exscendentēs ^81, et ibi nōs properē
will-have-touched at-hand  we-are    as-if  from ship  onto    land  disembarking        and  there ourselves quickly  
in spēluncās et loca tenebrōsa recipimus ^82, nē nōs Sōl in apertō paulō post
into    caves    and  places   dark     we-withdraw       lest   us   sun  in     open  a-little  later
obrūtūrus    optātō dīversōriō ējiciat   umbramque discēdentem insequī cōgat ^83.  
going-to-overwhelm from-chosen  living-quarters  may-eject   and-shadow     departing       to-follow  may-force
Dantur ibi nōbīs indūciae exercendōrum ingeniōrum ex animī sententiā, conferimus
is-given  there  to-us  leisure    of-being-exercised      talents    according-to of-mind    feeling   we-confer
cum eijus prōvinciae daemonibus inītāque societāte, ubi prīmum locus Sōle carēre
with    of-that    province      demons  and-with- entered-into alliance  when     first  place  from-sun to-be-free
coeperit [2]^84, jūnctīs agminibus in umbram exspatiāmur, et sī illa mucrōne suō,
will-have-begun       with-united   columns   into  shadow      we-rush       and if  it    with-apex   its  
quod plērumque fit[3]^85, Tellūrem feriat, Terrīs  et nōs sociīs exercitibus incubimus,
which    generally  happens      planet-earth should-strike upon-earth also we  with-allied   forces       fall        
quod non aliās nōbīs licet,  quam cum Sōlem hominēs vīderint dēficere. Hinc ēvenit,
Which  not otherwise to-us  is-allowed  than    when  Sun      human   will-have-seen be-eclipsed hence  it-happens
ut dēfectūs Sōlis adeō metuantur ^86.
that  eclipses  of-sun  so-much   are-feared

[1] ut ambulent is a subjunctive result clause: `quite a bit later they recover to the extent that they can walk about.’
[2] Kepler explains in his own note that this event (lunar nightfall) occurs about a week after the lunar eclipse during which they arrive. For a lunar eclipse to occur the earth must be in exact alignment between moon and sun, which can only happen at full moon. i.e. when it is mid-day on the side of the moon facing earth.
[3] plērumque (generally, frequently ) seems an odd word to use of solar eclipses but Kepler’s note refer to these being more frequent than lunar eclipses.

XI Atque haec dē itinere in Levāniam dicta sunto.[1] Sequitur, ut dē ipsīus prōvinciae
   And   these-things about journey  to  Levania     said  let-have-been   it-follows that about  itself   of-province
fōrmā dīcam, exorsus mōre geōgraphōrum ab iīs,    quae coelitus illī ēveniunt. Etsī
form     I-will-say having-started in-manner  of-geographers from those-things which in-heavens  to-it  happen   although
sīderum fīxōrum aspectūs tōta Levānia habet nōbīscum eōsdem ^87, mōtūs tamen
of-stars      fixed     view      whole-of Levania     has     with-us     same          movements  however
planētārum et quantitātēs ab iīs, quās nōs hīc vidēmus, observat dīversissimās, adeō ut
of-planets      and     sizes     from them  which we  here  see       observes     very-different  so-much-so that  
plāne alia sit totīus apud ipsōs astronomiae ratiō.
cleearly other  is   of-whole among  them    astronomy    system
Quemadmodum igitur gēographī nostrī orbem Terrae dīvidunt in quīnque zōnās
In-which-manner      therefore  geographers  our     globe     of-earth  divide   into  five      zones
propter phaenomena coelestia, sīc Levānia ex duōbus cōnstat hemisphaeriīs ^88, ūnō
on-account-of   phenomena    celestial    thus  Levania  of    two      consists   hemispheres            one
subvolvārum, alterō prīvolvārum[2] ^89, quōrum illud perpetuō fruitur suā volvā quae
of-the-Subvolvans   second  of-the-Privolvans           of-which  the-former perpetually  enjoys  its    Volva which
est illīs vice nostrae Lūnae, hoc vērō Volvae cōnspectū in aeternum prīvātur ^90. Et
is  to-them in-place of-our    moon  the-latter  indeed  of-Volva  from-sight for   ever     is-separated      and
circulus hemisphaeria dīvidēns instar nostrī colūrī[3] sōlstitiōrum per polōs mundī
circle       hemispheres       dividing   similar  to-our   colour     of-solstices   though  poles of-world  passes
trānsit appellāturque dīvīsor ^91.
passes      and-is-called       divider
Quae   igitur utrīque sunt commūnia hemisphaeriō, prīmō locō explicābō. Itaque
What-things  therefore  to-vboth  are    common     hemispheres       in-first   place  I-will-explain  and-so
Levānia tōta vicissitūdinēs sentit diēī et noctis ut nōs ^92, sed carent illī hāc nostrā
Levania    whole   alternations   perceives of-day and   of-night as  us       but   lack    they  this    our
annuā variētāte tōtō annō ^93. Per tōtam enim Levāniam aequantur diēs fere noctibus,
anual     variation  in-whole year       through  whole   for   Levania     are-equal    days  almost   to-nights
nisi quod prīvolvīs rēgulāriter omnīs diēs est brevior suā nocte, subvolvīs longior ^94.
except  that  for-Privilvans    regularly    every   day  is   shorter   than-its  night for-Subvolvans   longer
Quid autem per circuitum annōrum 8 variētur, infrā erit dīcendum.
What   however  through    cycle     of-years  8  is-varied  below  will-be needing-to-be-said

[1] i.e. `Let this be enough about the journey.’
[2] The Subvolvans (`those under Volva [i.e. the earth as seen in the lunar sky]’) are the inhabitants of the side of the moon always turned towards earth and the Privolvans (`those deprived of Volva) live on the far side. Kepler explains in his notes that he chose the name `Volva’ because, unlike the moon itself in our sky, the earth as seen from the moon is turning (volvere) continually.
[3] The solstitial colure is an imaginary circle around the earth passing over the poles and through the points on the zodiac at which the sun appears to be at the winter and summer solstices. This intersects at right angles at the poles a similar circle through the apparent locations of the sun at the vernal and autumnal equinoxes


VĪTA  HONCONGĒNSIS

Quae sunt beneficia vītae Honcongēnsis?               What are the advantages of living in Hong Kong?
    Quaestum invenīre professiōnālibus facile est      It’s easy for professionals to find a job.
    Pecūniae comparandae ānsae multae sunt             There are lots of opportunities to make money.
   Omnia oblectāmenta urbāna praebentur sed         All the amusements of the city are available but we can
       facile in rūs pulchrum pervenīmus.                        easily get into beautiful countryside   
    Aestāte in ōrīs iūcundis sedēre et in marī natāre  In the summer we can sit on nice beaches and swim in the 
      possumus                                                                        sea
     Per tōtum annum inter montēs errāre                   We can hike in the hills all year round.
        possumus
    Hīc cultūra orientālis adest, occidentālis.              It combines eastern and western culture.  
        quoque
    Facillimē ad aliās terrās itinera facere                    We can travel to other countries very easily.
        possumus
    A fūribus vel latrōnibus rārissime vexāmur,        We aren’t often bothered by thieves or robbers and we’re
      in viīs sine timōre ambulāmus.                                 not afraid when we walk in the streets.
    Commeātus pūblicus optimus est.                           Public transport is first-rate.
    Sententiās nostrās līberē exprimere possumus.    We’re free to express our opinions.
     Magna pars incolārum Anglicē commūnicāre       Most local people can communicate in English
      possunt.

Quae sunt detrimenta vītae nostrae?                      What are the disadvantages of our lives here?
    Quī ingeniīs vel artibus nōn dōnātī sunt,              Those who lack talents or skills suffer from poverty.
       paupertāte īnflīguntur.
    Dīvitēs dīvitiōrēs, pauperēs pauperiōrēs  fīunt    The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
    Āēr, aqua, terra inquinātae sunt.                            Air, water and land are polluted
    In minimīs diaetīs habitāmus.                                We live in very small flats.
    In urbe ubīque sunt turbae strepitusque.             In the city there are crowds and noise everywhere.
    Plērīque Honcongēnses in officīnīs multās          Most Hongkongers have to stay long hours in their
       hōrās  remanēre dēbent.                                            workplaces.
    Discipulī vesperī multās per hōrās pēnsa             Students need to spend many hours doing homework in
      dēbent facere                                                               the evening.
    In scholīs lycaeīsque verba ēdiscere maiōris       In schools rote learning is often more important than real
      mōmentī saepe est quam rem intellegere            understanding.
    Conductōrēs operis saepe crūdēlēs sunt               Employers are often harsh.
    Populus iūs nōn habet ēligendī omnēs                 The people do not have the right to choose all their rulers.
      rēctōrēs suōs
    Difficile est sermōnem Cantonēnsem discere.     It’s difficult to learn Cantonese. 

Honcongī quae regiō tē maxime dēlectat?              What area of Hong kong do you like best?
    Tsim Sha Tsui et Centrālem amō quod                  I love  Tsim Sha Tsui and Central because I like big hotels
    magna dēversōria tabernaeque et activitātēs          and shops and cultural activities .  I like the New Territories
    cultūrālēs mihi placent. Terrās Novās et                 and the Outlying Islands because we have peace  and quiet
     Īnsulās Remōtiōrēs amō  quod pācem et                 there  
     silentium ibi habēmus