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 学中文

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China Mei Tian

中国每天

Day to Day Photo Essays

about

Life in China

 (We overcome the language barrier through Photos)

Every country is made up of mothers, fathers, children, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, friends ...... different cultures, different languages, same people

We should celebrate the diversity rather than be threatened by it

 

A BRIEF HISTORY

OF

CHINA

China's Top 10 Leisure Spots

 

Suzhou, Jiangsu province

Qinhuangdao, Hebei province

Guilin, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region

Huangshan (Yellow Mountain), Anhui province

Yantai, Shandong province

Chengdu, Sichuan province

Lijiang, Yunnan province

Sanya, Hainan province

Qingdao, Shandong province

Hangzhou, Zhejiang province

Beijing's Hutongs

The Hutong, an old-style city alley or lane, is one of the most distinctive features and must-see attractions in Beijing. There are thousands of hutongs in the city, many of which were built during the Yuan (1206-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. We list the most famous hutongs that all travelers to the capital city shouldn't miss in order to get a better experience of the unique culture of ancient Beijing.

List of Beijing's Hutongs

• Bada Hutong
• Ju'er Hutong
• Xi jiao min xiang Hutong
• Dong jiao min xiang Hutong
• Jinyu Hutong
• Liu li chang jie
• Guozi jian jie
• Mao'er Hutong
• Yandai xiejie
• Nan luo gu xiang Hutong

 

Chinese Zodiac

Year of the Rat 老鼠 (lao shu)

Year of the Ox 牛 (niu)

Year of the Tiger 老虎 (lao hu)

Year of the Rabbit 兔 (tu)

Year of the Dragon 龙 (long)

Year of the Snake 蛇 (she)

Year of the Horse 马 (ma)

Year of the Sheep 羊 (yang)

Year of the Monkey 猴 (hou)

Year of the Rooster 公鸡 (gong ji)

Year of the Dog 狗 (gou)

Year of the Pig 猪 (zhu)

The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac

My Father's Wisdom

 

My father taught me to see life as a garden, to look for the beauty and happiness.

These are some of his stories.

 'jiang gu shi'

Storyteller

The writing over the door is 'hou you xian cai'. It means that a member of the household has passed the official examinations and can be regarded as a scholar, a person of intelligence and integrity. It gave a lot of prestige to the family.

'jiang gu shi' means storyteller

In 'jiang gu shi' I will be telling stories about China's history, culture, society, myths, legends, Emperors and life. I hope you enjoy them.

Growing up in China

 

I was born in 1966 at the beginning of the cultural revolution. I grew up in China and lived there for forty-one years before moving to Australia.

I want tell you many stories about my life in China. About my experiences and about growing up in China through profound change; from the heart of Mao’s China to the Olympic Games. Maybe you can, from these stories, to understand about Chinese life, understand China.

 

The Cultural Revolution through my eyes

Scene of Tiananmen Square during the Cultural Revolution. The words on the right banner are:

Shi jie      ren men      da       tuan  jie                      wan sui

World       people       big      come together           live 10,000 years

Meaning: If all the people come together, think together then anything they do will last 10,000 years.

 I was born in 1966, the year China the Culture Revolution began. My mother told me when I was just born that a nurse held me in her arms and said, "come, look at this girl, she is so pretty, her eyes are so big". Another nurse who was in the room standing in front of the window, said, "come here and look at the people marching down the street wearing high caps!"

They were the people the Gong Chan Party (The Communist Party) had branded as counter-revolutionary. They were being marched down the street as an example.

I will be writing the story of my life, and my family's life, in the time of the Cultural Revolution. I hope you will be interested in seeing China through my eyes.

Chinese Folk Customs

 

Xiaosui's Home Cooking

  Cooking Chinese food is not difficult. I was doing it when I was 4 years old. My parents told me how good it was; my sister told me it was terrible.

I have learned a lot since then.

I want to show you how a typical Chinese mother cooks a meal for her family.

There are two main things you have to know before you begin. The first is that Chinese food does take a lot of preparation and the second is that it takes a lot of cooking utensils. The food is good, with rich variety, but the washing up is ‘terrible’, as my sister would say. My sister was six years older than me, so often when we were sent to do the washing up, it was I who had to do it all.

 

Women in China

中国妇女的生活

 

A Series of Documentaries  

on

China's History

China and Tibet 

Xi Zang 西藏

 "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that," Dalai Lama

56 Ethnic Peoples of China

中華56个民族

Yangtze River Cruise

 Travel on the Trans-Siberian Express

from St Petersburg to Beijing

 Wuzhen 乌镇

Wuzhen 乌镇 is a historic scenic town, part of Tongxiang, in northern Zhejiang Province, China. It lies within the triangle formed by Hangzhou, Suzhou and Shanghai. Wuzhen's area is 46.5 square kilometers. Its total population is 60,000 of which 12,000 permanent residents.

In 1991, Wuzhen was authorized as the Provincial Ancient Town of History and Culture, it was ranked first among the six ancient towns south of the Yangtze River.

 

 Articles & Stories about Life in China

 

 Xiaosui's 唐诗三百首 Tang Shi San Bai Shou

葡萄美酒夜光杯
欲饮琵琶马上催
醉卧沙场君莫笑
古来征战几人回



葡萄美酒夜光杯
pú tao měi jiǔ yè guāng bēi

欲饮琵琶马上催
yù yǐn pí pa mǎ shàng cuī

醉卧沙场君莫笑
zuì wò shā chǎng jūn mò xiào

古来征战几人回
gǔ lái zhēng zhàn jǐ rén huí



pú tao měi jiǔ yè guāng bēi
葡萄美酒夜光杯
Grape beautiful wine ye guang glass

yù yǐn pí pa mǎ shàng cuī
欲饮琵琶马上催
To desire/wish pi pa urgently hastens

zuì wò shā chǎng jūn mò xiào
醉卧沙场君莫笑
intoxicated to lie/crouch battleground do not laugh

gǔ lái zhēng zhàn jǐ rén huí
古来征战几人回
since ancient times expeditions (wars) few people (soldiers) return


This is a famous poem written by Wang Han during the Tang dynasty.

The whole poem is bold and unconstrained, but it does have some bleak feeling in the end.

This is a poem about the soldiers who went to war at border areas of China. They know they will face a hard life, but they smile to face this.


葡萄美酒夜光杯  - The ye guang glass is full of red wine (it was famous glass in Jia Yu Guan city). This tells you where the man was fighting, at Jia Yu Guan, which was far a away and remote.

欲饮琵琶马上催  - I want to stop and drink the wine, but the calling to war pi pa is sounding and I must hurry away to fight. (The pi pa is a musical instrument).

醉卧沙场君莫笑  - Please don’t laugh at me if I am drunk. I am not afraid, but it is the way I face war and the loneliness.

古来征战几人回  - From ancient times to now, how many soldiers can go back home after the war? (In other words, the soldier knows that he will probably die at the war and never return home to see his family again, yet he knows he must fight to protect his large family (his country) and his small family (his parents, wife and children). 

Liang  zhou 凉 州 is the title of the poem

ci 词 is the form of the poem

 

Chinese Art

 艺术

Bamboo 竹 (zhu2: pronounced jew) is much loved by the Chinese because it symbolizes a strong, warm family that is always together.  Bamboo also always grows up, never down, and so represents the hope of success in life.

 

Discover Contemporary China

in

Photographs

  

Hi, me visiting an old  home school  in China

My father was a teacher of Chinese and history. He taught me Chinese when I was very young. I really liked to learn Chinese. So I wished I can become a teacher and teach Chinese when I grew up.

Just like my wish, I became a teacher. Here is my Introduction to Chinese

A Selection of Chinese Folk, Contemporary & Classical Music