Confucius Say Posted by sasha on May 2, 2012
Philosopher, teacher, politician, and much more, Confucius (孔子 – kǒng zǐ) is one of the most revered people in China’s long history. Born Kong Qiu (孔丘 – kǒng qiū) in 551 BC in the city of Qufu (曲阜 – qū fù), he came to be known simple as “Master Kong.” His thoughts were eventually developed…
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…
Chinese Idioms (Vol. 5) Posted by sasha on Apr 9, 2012
It’s been a while, but it’s time for another installment of Chinese idioms, or 成语 (chéng yǔ). For this edition, we’ll look at three very different animals – a horse, a mantis, and a bird: 按图索骥 – Àn tú suǒ jì – “judge a horse by the book” Once upon a time, in the Spring…
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…
A Day in the (Chinese) Life Posted by sasha on Mar 28, 2012
To help you learn about telling time in Chinese and describing daily activities, I’m going to describe a typical day in my life, all in Chinese: 我早上九点起床，然后吃早餐。早餐的话我喜欢吃水果和面包，喝果汁和咖啡。我十点去健身房做运动。我喜欢打篮球，跑步，或者游泳。我中午十二点回家吃午饭。我常常吃三明治或者沙拉。饭后我洗澡，然后去公司上班。如果天气好，我骑自行车。如果天气不好，我坐公交车。我下午一点上班。我的工作是教大人英语。我先有三节课，然后休息。休息的时候我喜欢上网或者看书。从六点到九点我还有三节课。我晚上九点下班回家。有时候我在家里做饭，有时候我去饭馆吃中国菜。我的公寓附近有很多好饭馆，比如桂林米粉，东北菜，麻辣烫，什么的。吃晚饭以后我喜欢看电视。因为我是夜猫子，我很晚睡觉。 For beginner learners of Chinese, I realize that can be a lot to digest, so let’s break down my daily routine sentence-by-sentence, with pinyin and English to assist…