Archive for 'Uncategorized'
Hangzhou – Part Three Posted by sasha on Apr 17, 2012
For the last of our Hangzhou series, join me on a trip to the City God Temple, a cruise around the town at night, and a late-night feast. 城隍阁 – chéng huáng gé City God Temple 龙舟 – lóng zhōu dragon boat 中国的历史 – zhōng guó de lì shǐ China’s history 传统的中国 – chuán tǒng…
Chinese Immersion Day Posted by sasha on Apr 11, 2012
Studying a foreign language can be difficult and frustrating at times, but luckily, it can also be tons of fun. Of course, the best way to really study a language is to fully immerse yourself into it. As such, I’m here to help you plan a day full of the Chinese language. From the moment…
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…
20 Questions Posted by sasha on Mar 14, 2012
We’ve already covered how to introduce yourself here on the Chinese blog (click here for the written post, and check out the video here), so now it’s time to equip you with some questions that you will certainly come in handy when you meet people in China: 1. 你叫什么名字? (nǐ jiào shén me míng zì)…
“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…
Harbin – China’s Winter Wonderland Posted by sasha on Feb 24, 2012
Harbin (哈尔滨 – Hā ěr bīn) is the capital of Heilongjiang province (黑龙江省 – hēi lóng jiāng shěng), located in the area of China known as Dongbei (东北 – dōng běi), or the Northeast. The city’s name comes from a Manchu word meaning “a place for drying fishing nets.” A city with thousands of years…