When I was moving out of my apartment in Beijing, I felt a strong sense of 留恋 (reluctance to leave) as I reflected over 喜怒哀乐 (all [the] types of emotions) that had taken place in that room.  When my landlord talked about 补偿 (compensation) from ending the contract early, I had feared that he was going to hold on to more of my rent; it turned out he only wanted one month’s rent as compensation.   Also on my itinerary in Beijing was a wedding.  It was there after hearing glass breaking that I heard that the noise of breaking glass at a banquet is unlucky, so people say 岁岁平安 (peace throughout your years, see exp. below) to counter the effects.  As the groom was a 回民 (Hui Muslim), there was a great selection of foods I had never tried before- including cow spine and some spicy pancakes.  After setting aside the lunacy of shipping my winter coat down to Shenzhen where the temperature rarely goes below 50F, I finally settled on 中铁 (China railway) to handle my 托运 (shipping).  It would be much cheaper than shipping it by air, and I was instructed to hold on to my 条子 (slip)  which would prove that I was the sender of the bags (besides having my name scrawled all over the bags).  With my remaining time in Beijing before going to the airport, I went to Tiananmen Square to see the 花车 (floats) which were driven during the parade to 纪念 (commemorate) China’s founding.

留恋 liu2lian4 – to feel a sense of longing
喜怒哀乐 xi3nu4ai1le4 – all the types of emotion (happiness, anger, sadness, merriment)
补偿 bu3chang2 – compensation
岁岁平安 sui4sui4ping2an1 – may you have peace throughout your years.  the reason why this is said relates to the word 碎 (sui4) meaning “shatter” or “break.”
回民 hui2min2 – the Hui people, a Muslim group in China
中铁 zhong1tie3 – China Railway
托运 tuo1yun4 – ship
条子 tiao2zi3 – note, slip
花车 hua1che1 – lit. “flower car” (floats)
纪念 ji4nian4 – commemorate