Don’t Go Hungry – How to Order in Chinese Posted by sasha on Jul 2, 2014
We have to eat in order to survive. Perhaps that’s why food-related language is always at the top of any new learner’s to do list. When I first got to China and realized how little English was spoken and how it was virtually non-existent in restaurants, I quickly realized that I had to either learn…
20 Most Common Chinese Characters Posted by sasha on Jun 30, 2014
A few months ago, I wrote about the 100 most common Chinese characters. While that post is certainly useful, I decided it might be more beneficial for new Chinese learners to follow along on this list with videos. This way, you can focus more on the pronunciation of these characters and learn them in groups…
Tricky Chinese Tones Posted by sasha on Jun 26, 2014
For most learners of Chinese, mastering the tones is one of the most difficult and time-consuming aspects of the language. Trying to remember not only words, but the correct intonation as well, often leads to misunderstandings when communicating with native speakers. We’ve discussed the four tones plus the neutral tone at length here already, so…
Highlights of Shandong Province Posted by sasha on Jun 23, 2014
Take a video journey through eastern China’s Shandong province. Climb Mt. Tai, the holiest Taoist mountain in the country, visit the home of Confucius for a lesson in history and culture, and then head to Qingdao to hit the crowded beach, feast on seafood, and get crazy at the annual beer festival. 泰安 – tài’ān…
Let’s Talk Sports – Chinese Soccer Vocabulary Posted by sasha on Jun 19, 2014
Unless you’ve been living under a rock recently, you know that the biggest event in world sports is going on right now – the World Cup (世界杯 – shì jiè bēi). In America, we call it soccer, but the rest of the world knows this sport as football (足球 – zú qiú). In case you…
10 Great Posts for Beginners Posted by sasha on Jun 16, 2014
Here at the Chinese language & culture blog, we try to post a variety of content that caters to a wide audience – no matter what your level of Chinese, there’s something for you here. As this blog has been around for quite a few years now, it can be intimidating trying to search through…
Chinese Rocket Fuel AKA Baijiu Posted by sasha on Jun 12, 2014
Recently, I penned an intimate love letter to Chinese dumplings. Boiled, steamed, or fried, these tasty little morsels are without a doubt my favorite thing about going out to eat in China. It’s not all smiles at a Chinese dinner table, though, so today we must tell the other side of the story. Binge Drinking…