Growing up with Chinese Lesson 35: Sending emails

Growing up with Chinese(成长汉语) is an entertaining, fun and easy Chinese series. This series teaches 300 of the most commonly spoken Chinese phrases to teenagers. It is hosted by Charlotte MacInnis, known to the Chinese audiences as Ai Hua.

Key words:
回 huí:to return
寄 jì:to send
加班 jiābān:to work overtime
全家 quánjiā:whole family
福 fú:good fortune
碰到 pèngdào:to run into
一般 yìbān:generally
方便 fāngbiàn:convenient
直接 zhíjiē:direct
说不了 shuō bù liǎo:can’t speak
免不了 miǎn bù liǎo:unavoidable
犯错误 fàn cuòwù:to make mistakes

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Happy Chinese S2: Tourist Chinese — Kaifeng 12 快乐汉语:旅游汉语 开封12 木版年画

Happy Chinese(快乐汉语) is an entertaining, fun and easy Chinese series. In Season II, we will focus on typical Tourist Chinese by famous tourist spots in China. It helps the learners form a solid foundation for their further studies.快乐汉语系列二《旅游汉语》主要教授在中国旅游途中的实用汉语。我们将以情景剧的方式把中国最有代表的旅游胜地串联起来,展示中国的秀美山川、人杰地灵。

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Growing up with Chinese Lesson 40: Beijing Snacks

Growing up with Chinese(成长汉语) is an entertaining, fun and easy Chinese series. This series teaches 300 of the most commonly spoken Chinese phrases to teenagers. It is hosted by Charlotte MacInnis, known to the Chinese audiences as Ai Hua.

Key words:
居然 jūrán:to one’s surprise
发现 fāxiàn:to discover
历史 lìshǐ:history
尝尝 chángchang:to taste
算得上 suàn de shàng:to count
第一次 dì-yīcì:the first time
不怎么样 bù zěnmeyàng:I think not.
垃圾食品 lājī shípǐn:junk food
北京小吃 Běijīng xiǎochī:Beijing snacks
自从……以来 zìcóng……yǐlái:ever since

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New wording in the elderly law being sued came into force

New wording in the law requiring people to visit or keep in touch with their elderly parents or risk being sued came into force Monday.新修订的《老年人权益保障法》于7月1日生效,其中规定,成年子女应当经常看望或者问候老年人,否则就会面临被起诉的危险。
It is primarily aimed at raising awareness of the issue, said one of the drafters, Xiao Jinming, a law professor at Shandong University. "It is mainly to stress the right of elderly people to ask for emotional support … we want to emphasize there is such a need," he said.山东大学法律系教授、该法案起草者之一肖金明说,这样做的目的是让人们意识到养老问题。他说:“主要是强调老年人有权利要求精神慰藉……我们想强调老人有这样的诉求。”
Cleaning lady Wang Yi, 57, who lives alone in Shanghai, said the new law is "better than nothing." Her two sons work several hundred kilometers (miles) away in southern Guangdong province and she sees them only at an annual family reunion.今年57岁的王怡(音译)是位清洁工,独自居住在上海,她说这个法律“总比什么也没有强”。王怡有两个儿子,现在都在几百公里外的广东省工作,只有每年过年团圆时才能见到一面。
"It is too little, for sure, I think twice a year would be good," she said. "We Chinese people raise children to take care of us when we are old."她说:“哪怕一年见两次面也好,现在见面机会太少了。我们中国人抚养孩子,就是希望等我们老了能有个照应。”
China's legislature amended the law in December following frequent reports of elderly parents neglected by their children. It says offspring of parents older than 60 should see that their daily, financial and spiritual needs are met.中国立法机构在十二月修订该法律之前,曾有一系列报道称年老父母被儿女忽视。报告称60岁以上的父母应该确保儿女能满足他们的日常生活、和物质精神需求。
Although respect for the elderly is deeply engrained in Chinese society, three decades of market reforms have accelerated the breakup of China's traditional extended family, and there are few affordable alternatives, such as retirement homes.尽管尊敬长辈深深植根于中国文化中,三十年的市场经济改革使得中国传统的家族意识日渐淡薄,而其他诸如养老院一类的赡养方式价格不菲。
Rapid aging poses serious threats to the country's social and economic stability, as the burden of supporting the growing number of elderly passes to a proportionately shrinking working population and the social safety net remains weak.老龄化速度过快,对中国社会经济的稳定发展都带来巨大威胁。社会保障制度仍不全面,工作人口所占比例不断减小,但却要负担起更多老龄人口的衣食住行。
Zhang Ye, a 36-year-old university lecturer from eastern Jiangsu Province, said the amended law was "unreasonable" and put too much pressure on people who migrate away from home in search of work or independence.36岁的张烨(音译)是江苏省东部某大学讲师,她说这次修订案“不切实际”,对于那些远离家乡寻找工作谋求独立的人来说压力更大。
"For young people who are abroad or work really far away from their parents, it is just too hard and too expensive to visit their parents," she said. "I often go to visit my parents and call them … (but) if a young person doesn't want to, I doubt such a law will work."她说:“有些年轻人身在国外,或远离家乡,对他们来说经常看望父母很难做到,而且花销太大。我经常回家探望父母,和他们打电话……但是要是孩子不愿这样做,我认为法律对他们也不会起作用。”

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Tales from Three Character Classic《三字经》故事

The Three Character Classic, or San Zi Jing, is one of the Chinese classic texts. It was probably written in the 13th century and attributed to Wang Yinglin during the Song Dynasty. The work is not one of the traditional six Confucian classics, but rather the embodiment of Confucian thought suitable for teaching young children. Until the latter part of the 19th century, it served as a child's first formal education at home. The text is written in triplets of characters for easy memorization. With the short and simple text arranged in three-character verses, children learned many common characters, grammar structures, elements of Chinese history and the basis of Confucian morality.《三字经》与《百家姓》、《千字文》并称为三大国学启蒙读物。《三字经》是中华民族珍贵的文化遗产,它短小精悍、琅琅上口,千百年来,家喻户晓。其内容涵盖了历史、天文、地理、道德以及一些民间传说,所谓“熟读《三字经》,可知千古事”。基于历史原因,《三字经》难免含有一些精神糟粕、艺术瑕疵,但其独特的思想价值和文化魅力仍然为世人所公认,被历代中国人奉为经典并不断流传。古人曰:“熟读三字经,便可知天下事,通圣人礼。” 《三字经》自南宋以来,已有七百多年历史,共一千多字,可谓家喻户晓,脍炙人口。三字一句的韵文极易成诵,内容包括了中国传统的教育、历史、天文、地理、伦理和道德以及一些民间传说,广泛生动而又言简意赅。《三字经》早就不仅仅属于汉民族了,它有满文、蒙文译本。《三字经》也不再仅仅属于中国,它的英文、法文译本也已经问世。1990年新加坡出版的英文新译本更是被联合国教科文组织选入“儿童道德丛书”,加以世界范围的推广,也是儿童的必背读物。
 

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Happy Chinese S2: Tourist Chinese — Kaifeng 10 快乐汉语:旅游汉语 开封10 汴绣

Happy Chinese(快乐汉语) is an entertaining, fun and easy Chinese series. In Season II, we will focus on typical Tourist Chinese by famous tourist spots in China. It helps the learners form a solid foundation for their further studies.快乐汉语系列二《旅游汉语》主要教授在中国旅游途中的实用汉语。我们将以情景剧的方式把中国最有代表的旅游胜地串联起来,展示中国的秀美山川、人杰地灵。

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