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It’s not uncommon to ponder the differences between the school systems in the West and China when both parts of the world have their own specialties and struggles. For instance, China has a reputation for churning out math whizzes in schools while the West is known for promoting critical thinking skills. So are the education ...
When you think of going for a stroll in the park, what comes to mind – birds singing? a gentle breeze blowing? swathes of greenery punctuated by plots of brightly colored flowers?
If you’re walking through a park in China, you’ll get all of that… along with a few surprises older generations have waiting for you. ...
Giant pandas are often associated with both wildlife protection (the WWF has used it as an emblem since 1961) and Kung Fu for many Westerners. It is a great national treasure in China as well, symbolizing the delicate spirit, originality, and old culture of the country. The first known case of Panda Diplomacy began in ...
Other Chinese expressions for “embarrassment”
1.社会性死亡现场 (shè huì xìng sǐ wáng xiàn chǎng) social death scene
It made her look like a fool in public. She was so humiliated that she didn’t want to see anyone. She just wanted to crawl into a crack on the ground. It was called “social death”.
2.公开处刑 (gōng kāi chǔ ...
Chinese tea culture refers to both making tea and drinking the tea in China. It is thought that Chinese people discovered tea in the Shennong era (~2400 B.C.), meaning that they’ve been drinking it for nearly 4500 years! This has allowed for many different traditions, expectations, and ideas about tea to evolve over time.
Since tea ...
While “葡萄酒 (pú tɑo jiǔ ) grape wine” culture is relatively new in China, it grew to be the 5th largest wine consumer in the world in a short period of time. Why would this matter? Because if you want to close a business deal, it might be done over drinks. So knowing your wines ...
Recently we went over the significance of “本命年 (Ben Ming Nian)” the 12 year curse in Chinese culture and what it means for the zodiac of the particular reigning year. Well let’s dive a little deeper to understand how time was divided by the ancient Chinese and how zodiac relations are formed.
From the unearthed inscriptions ...
“Poverty Limits My Imagination”
Whenever people see others flaunting their wealth on social media, or interact briefly with the rich and famous, a common refrain is often heard: “贫穷限制了我的想象! (pín qióng xiàn zhì le wǒ de xiǎng xiàng) Poverty limits my imagination!”
This self-effacing sentence is saying that those with money can live lifestyles that ...
“本命年 (Ben Ming Nian) The Twelve-Year Curse”
2021, Is it going to be your best year ever?
Well, if you were born under the ox sign, that may not be the case. You might have initially thought that the Year of the Ox is the best time to achieve your dreams and goals but, sadly, it’s actually ...
Fortunes and Follies for The Ox Zodiac in 2021
The year of the rat didn’t go as intended. It was supposed to be a year for creativity involving change, but we didn’t need nor want that kind of change, right? So in trods the Ox. What can we expect from the steady and methodical Ox Year? ...
What You Don’t Know About Chinese New Year
2021 is the Year of the Ox, the ox being of the twelve Chinese zodiac animals. In fact, there are similar customs in many countries. For example, Myanmar has eight zodiac animals that, similarly to the Chinese zodiac, are assigned to people depending on their date of birth.
In ...
Food – the Be-all, End-all
Before they had to stay home all day, many people took easy access to food for granted; these days, however, even though everyone is realizing just how important food is, that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy it, too. Eat what you need, but enjoy what you eat!
1. 吃货 (chī huò): n. ...
Xia Yuan Festival is a traditional festival on October 15th in the lunar calendar and November 29th in the solar calendar this year. Its origin is derived from Taoism and this is the birthday of the celestial emperor also known as the Official/God of Water.
As one of the oldest gods in Taoism, the Water God ...
Great Snow, also know as Major Snow 大雪 (dàxuě), is the 21st solar term of the 24 solar terms and 3rd term of the winter season. It begins on December 7th, 2020, and ends on December 20th which is when the Sun reaches the celestial longitude of 255° and ends when it reaches ...
“光棍节 (guānggùn jié) Singles Day” is an unofficial Chinese holiday (and shopping period) that celebrates bachelors, bachelorettes, and single people in general. Young Chinese people take the opportunity to make the most of being single. Always celebrated on November 11th, the holiday falls on a Wednesday this year.
Its origins stem from the fact ...
Halloween is almost here, and you know what that means — it’s prank time! Whether you’re the one jumping out with a, “Boo!” or jumping back with an, “Aah!” things are gonna get scary. Good news is, after you read this article today, Chinese won’t be nearly as scary as you might think it is!
Words ...
The date of “重阳节 (chóng yáng jié)” is September 9th of the Lunar Calendar, and in English which it is called the Double Ninth Festival. As shown in previous articles, Tomb-sweeping day, New Year’s Eve, Zhongyuan Festival (July 15th in Lunar), and Double Ninth Festival are all traditional festivals for worshiping ancestors.
In The Book of ...
As in English, in Chinese there are different ways to talk about understanding something. In English you might say, “I get it,” or, “Can you comprehend this?” or, “She understands that,” etc.
In Chinese, “理解(lǐjiě)” and “了解(liǎojiě)” are two verbs, both of which mean, “to know and understand”. However, there’s a difference: “了解” has a broader ...
As the year embraces September, so too will Chinese people begin to embrace the nearing Mid-Autumn Festival. The Mid-Autumn Festival has evolved from “sacrificing the moon” ceremonies. So the Autumn Equinox in ancient times and has become a precious cultural heritage. To give you an idea of what it’s like: adults usually indulge in moon ...
Autumnal Equinox is the 16th of the 24 solar terms, which is generally from September 22nd to 24th on the Gregorian Calendar. The highest point of the sun continues to move south after the autumnal equinox so that the days are short and the nights are longer in the northern hemisphere while the southern hemisphere ...
