Bilingual

most s'porean are at least bilingual due to the education system...
70% of the s'porean is chinese...hence bilingual in english and chinese languages are common.
however, there are many negative reports on the proficiency of s'porean in mastering these 2 languages well at the same time. however, i am still proud of ourselves...coz not only are we bilingual, there are a large group of us who can speak at least one dialect and understand a few others...
and there is always this debate between 'Jack of all trades n Master of none' or 'master of one'...
i must say that a lot of time it depends on situation, depends on the need and demand and usage...
i personally go for jack of all trade...especially in today society...unless u r so passion abt something n do it really well...be the best master of it...why not be a 'jack' knowing 70% of everything...

some differences to share

meaning s'porean nutonghua (meaning mandarin used by mainland chinese)
close your eyes 关眼睛 闭眼睛
hot water 烧水 热水/开水
big size 大只 大个
(refering to pple)
一粒 (refer to any item irregardless of size)
一粒 (refer to only small item like a grape)

a lot of time, it is roots down to culture...upbringing...background...
I hv one moral to telling this story...in this world...it takes a lot of understanding...paitence...communication to understand one another...not only between countries...but also between races etc...to achieve PEACE