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Scenes From a Chinese Restaurant Posted by sasha on Nov 14, 2013
Explore a typical hole-in-the-wall, a mid-range, and a high-end restaurant in Beijing to see what REAL Chinese restaurants look like. Also, hit the streets for some amazing snacks across the country. 羊肉串儿 – yáng ròu chuàn er lamb kebabs 烤馕 － kǎo náng grilled naan bread 西红柿炒鸡蛋 – xī hóng shì chǎo jī dàn scrambled…
Singles’ Day in China Posted by sasha on Nov 11, 2013
Tomorrow is November 11, and it is Singles’ Day (光棍节 – guāng gùn jié) here in China. The name of the festival can roughly be translated as “bare branch” – a tree with no leaves representing a person with no better half. Celebrated on 11.11, the four ones represent those who are flying solo in…
Dalian – Labor Park and Sightseeing Tower Posted by sasha on Nov 8, 2013
On a nice spring day in Dalian, a great thing to do is take a stroll through the Labor Park and hike up to the top of the TV tower, where you can get a great panoramic view of the city. Top it all off with a street food feast! 劳动公园 – láo dòng gōng…
100 Most Common Chinese Characters Posted by sasha on Nov 7, 2013
As most of you may know, Chinese is a language of characters (汉字 – hàn zì). In total, there are tens of thousands of different characters. Don’t let that intimidate you, though – if you know a few thousand, you’ll be just fine. It’s important to remember, however, that most words in Chinese are made…
Hiking in a Small Village Posted by sasha on Nov 5, 2013
Living in a massive metropolis like Beijing, sometimes one feels trapped inside the concrete jungle. Car horns blaze constantly, crowds of people follow you everywhere you go, and more often than not it seems as if you can chew the air. Thankfully, opportunities for great day trips abound in the Chinese capital. Hop on a…
Beijing Zombie Apocalypse Posted by sasha on Oct 31, 2013
What happens when a bunch of zombies walk through the hutongs and ride the subway in Beijing? Find out here! 万圣节 – wàn shèng jié Halloween 服装 – fú zhuāng costume 中国小孩子 – zhōng guó xiǎo hái zi Chinese children 安全 – Ān quán safety 僵尸 – jiāng shī zombie 我想吃脑子 – wǒ xiǎng chī…
Culture Shock in China – Bathrooms Posted by sasha on Oct 30, 2013
We’ve already discussed culture shock in China a bit on here in the last few months. In case you didn’t catch those posts, here’s a quick recap: Part One – Food/Eating Habits: In the first post, I share some details about the culture shock I encountered with Chinese food and just eating in China in…