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Thousand Island Lake (千岛湖） Posted by Stephen on May 15, 2012
Well it’s that time of the year again in China when temperatures (温度 wēn dù) rise (上升 shàng shēng) and a great deal of humidity (潮 cháo) descends upon the mainland (大陆 dàlù). Whether you live in 北京，上海 or 重庆，summer (夏天 xià tiān) always comes early in China. For some people, air conditioning (空调 kōng…
Nixon’s Chinese Legacy Posted by Stephen on Mar 30, 2012
In 1972, President Nixon (尼克松 pronounced: Ní kè sōng) did something Western powers had been unable to do since the Opium Wars: open China to the rest of the world. Sure it took years of negotiations, the (timely) death of Chairman Máo Zé Dōng (毛泽东), and the ascension of Deng Xiao Ping as a policy…
The Strong Stuff: BáiJiǔ (白酒） Posted by Stephen on Mar 28, 2012
Seeing as we’ve already covered beer in a previous post, it’s time now to move on to the strong stuff and talk about China’s most popular spirit: 白酒 (bái jiǔ). If you want to experience drinking culture in China, baijiu will give you an epic crash course in boozing (not to mention a one hell…
“China-Pop” (中文流行音乐) Posted by Stephen on Mar 9, 2012
What’s the music you hear on the subways and in taxis? Those love ballads mixed with wailing guitar rifts that serenade you throughout department stores and malls? Why that’s C-pop, China’s very own brand of pop music. C-pop or Chinese popular music (中文流行音乐 pronounced: zhōngwén liúxíng yīnyuè), is a loosely defined musical genre by artists originating from mainland China, Hong…
China’s Next Leader: Xí Jìnpíng (习近平) Posted by Stephen on Feb 15, 2012
We all know that Hu Jintao is the man, and currently the highest ranking political leader in China. But who’s the man behind the man? After all, Hu Jintao is expected to step down and pass the torch this year. With China’s rise as a regional superpower and economic juggernaut, people want to know who’s behind…
Basketball (篮球) Posted by Stephen on Feb 13, 2012
Move over pingpong and say so long to soccer because China has turned into a nation obsessed with the sport of basketball. Walk outside to various parks and sports centers and you’ll notice grassy fields going unused and pingpong tables acting as dust collectors while every basketball court is filled with 5 on 5 half…
Lin-sanity (林書豪) Posted by Stephen on Feb 12, 2012
When Yao Ming retired from the NBA, China’s influence among the sport of Basketball began to wane substantially. That was, until Lin-sanity swept the league. Now everyone is talking about the former Harvard Star and Taiwanese native, who has carried the previously slumping New York Knicks to five straight wins with him starting at point…