Translation to and from Chinese can be tricky at times. Sometimes you know the translation of a word, but you don’t know how it can be placed inside a sentence. Or you have some sentence, you know the words, yet you cannot translate it in one piece. This is the moment when you need some example sentences. In fact there are several websites that provide examples, however one sticks out in a positive way. Check out jukuu.com.
Searching for 学习 gives a lot of insight.
What you do is basically search for a single Chinese character, or word, or even longer phrase, chengyu or proverb. Then you get a list of example sentences where your searchphrase is used and appropriate translations. In fact you get a long list of translations so you can easily see how a word is used. On the right hand side jukuu provides additional information, like standard translations and a pie chart of translation frequency. Now the best part is it works the other way as well. Jukuu can also help with example translations when entering an English word or short phrase.
Together with the Wikipedia translation method this should be a good way to translate most words and sentences properly. Have fun.
The blog China Divide just made a case for legalizing pornography in China: Pornography should be legal in China. Before I comment about the details I just want to add my signature. Junjie supports that case. Signed! Healthy sex life in China 加油!
Help doctor, my sex life is not harmonious!
Since chairman Mao took over mainland China sex became more and more anti-harmonious. Mao prohibited men having several wifes. Yet he himself had several at the same time, but that’s probably because he was holy or whatever and he had special powers. However the ill-fated propaganda continued and continues today. The black suits of all ranks know how to have a swinging party in sleazy KTVs, yet they speak with their twisted tongue in interviews and public announcements, upholding the harmonious society. Why should anyone care?
I’ve been to China a few times and it can be really painful to talk to some people. I was in Kunming at this English corner some day and talked to this mid 20s guy. He just broke up with his girlfriend. Something was wrong with him. So I asked him if the sex was not satisfying. He said he had been with her like 10 years, but they didn’t have sex. Well, they didn’t even kiss (except on their cheeks). She told him she is not yet ready. Then some day he found out some other guy is banging her regularly. He asked her to stop it, but finally split up with her. The story was really heartbreaking.
From all I heard and experienced I have this theory, that many girls in China who do go out once in a while (read: they know something about life, yet know what the family expects) in fact have one official boyfriend. She will keep him at distance and not start anything with him, yet she will do things necessary so he stays. This guy is just for public display to show she is a traditional girl. At the same time she has fun secretly with all the other guys.
If your brain gets brainwashed with CCTV every day, then there is no wonder this crap happens. Watch some random Chinese soap opera. It’s not romantic. It’s totally over the top. If those guys watched some porn in their youth instead they would actually know what is life about. You can’t blame them.
This being said I agree with China Divide. Educate the masses. Let them watch porn! Would make a real harmonious society with a healthy sex life in China.
One of the unique features of a Chinese nightclub, disco or bar is, the Westener often gets free drinks sponsored by other customers. Some popular explanations include that the Chinese want to impress the Westener so the Westerner stays with this particular Chinese guy. From the Western perspective paying drinks for an unknown person is a weak gesture. Thanks for the drink, have a nice evening, bye. In China however Western guys not only get one drink, they can get completely drunk without spending a single mao. But what is the Chinese perspective on this matter? Why do Chinese guys buy drinks for Westerners in a nightclub, bar or disco? On a side note, it’s almost always the guys who pay drinks for you. One of the very few occasions where a female gave me a drink, she later turned out to be a professional. This was a woman from a mixed group of Chinese, not a single woman.
Babi 2 Club in Chengdu, one of the best Chinese clubs I know.
To answer this question we have to look at Chinese values for a moment. Money ranks very high in the Chinese value system. Like it or not, a big wallet in China is an indicator of your importance in the society. In fact Chinese people mostly believe all white faces are rich. Surveys among Chinese women have show that money ranks among the most important factors for choosing a partner.
What does that have to do with sponsored drinks in China? If have accepted drinks more then once during your time in China, you may have observed something interesting. Sometimes it happens, sometimes not. This Chinese guy just offered you a drink. You accepted and he leaves the table. Only you and the ladies are left there at the table. What this guy did is, he just showed that he is economically superior and you are dependent on his beer (in a economical sense). While it may sound strange from the Western point of view, it makes quite sense from the Chinese viewpoint. What can be done?
If you plan to visit a certain location more than once you should consider buying your own drinks. Otherwise the lovely Chinese females may come to the conclusion that you really are a beggar and have no financial power. Another good idea is to visit two different places and dedicate one to get drunk, where you accept any drink offered, and another place where you pay for yourself and have a higher status.
So how to handle the situation? The best case is to have your own drink. The second best is the accept the drink immediately, smile, and say “Thanks dude”. The worst case is to say “no” for a while, only to give in afterwards and accept the drink. In this case you really subordinated yourself to the other guy and appear to be his tool. Don’t do that. I hope I could give some insight on Chinese nightlife to you. If you like to add something, feel free to comment. Cheers!
As the topic air pollution has come up a few times here, I have created some videos to help everyone find a nice spot for living healthy. First of all, AMFIC publishes measurements and forecasts of air pollution in China. Unfortunately you cannot look at past measurements comfortably, therefore I wrote a script to download all 2009 measurements and created some nice videos. Each of them shows the pm10 particle concentration in different parts of China, including Hong Kong / Guangzhou area, Beijing, Shanghai and Eastern China. pm10 particles are particles smaller than 10 micrometers but larger than 2.5 micrometer. Unfortunately they don’t publish <=2.5 μm measurements. In general, the smaller and lighter a particle is, the longer it will stay in the air. Larger particles (greater than 10 micrometers in diameter) tend to settle to the ground by gravity in a matter of hours whereas the smallest particles (less than 1 micrometer) can stay in the atmosphere for weeks and are mostly removed by precipitation. As a rule of thumb, smaller particles are more likely to cause cancer in your precious body.
Shanghai pm10 particle air pollution 2009
Shanghai pm10 particle air pollution 2009
HK / Guangzhou area pm10 particle air pollution 2009
Eastern China pm10 particle air pollution 2009
As you can see, Kozen in Hong Kong enjoys superb air quality and that place can be a place of choice, unlike the nearby Guangzhou. MKL in Taiwan also made a great choice, as Taiwans air is definitely above average for such a large urban area. Keep in mind that air in Europe rarely surpass the green readings. You will find yellow air quality readings in Europe only in large industrial areas during long periods without rain. Just to keep things in perspective. Microparticles may lead to cancer, alzheimers, atherosclerosis and permanent declines in lung capacity (among other nasty things). For those in Beijing, there is a Twitter Channel called Beijing Air for pm2.5 particles. Readings during last few days are almost entirely composed of very unhealthy. Mind you, the highes level on that scale is hazardous, which happens also frequently, but no toxic level as the scale is intended to be used in Europe and Northern America where the level mediocre is never exceeded.
I just watched this movie created by WoW players (World of Warcraft) from China. They used the game to portrait some events that happened during the last few years in China regarding their beloved game and also freedom of speech in general. In the movie the hero Kan Nimei goes on a strife against his main enemy Yang Yongxin who in reality is a Chinese professor who tried to cure children from internet addiction by using electric shocks. Along his way he comes along many things that people in China had to endure while playing WoW. The video is well made, over 100 people contributed, funny but also very moving and shows the unbearable situation of young people on the Chinese internet. In the end the authors ask the people to raise their hands against suppression by the authorities. It seems to be discussed all over the Chinese internet right now. I don’t know why it isn’t harmonized yet.
Unfortunately I don’t have the time to write about the details, but some other people already did. Check this Wallstreet Online article. DigiCha has an article with more references. Kaiser Kuo also commented on “war on internet addiction”. Apart from a moving, well made movie about important Chinese issues, it also offers interesting young language. You might learn some new words. Junjie says: Absolutely worth watching.
It was some day in 1995, or maybe 1996, definitely before Hong Kong became Chinese, I’m not really sure about the exact year, when a life changing decision was made. Not made by myself, as at that time all important decisions were made by my parents for me. My mum decided I had to accompany her on a Hong Kong trip as a English German translator.
View from Hong Kong peak, taken on in 2008. My old Hong Kong photos are all printed on paper.
I had a number of serious concerns, mostly because I didn’t know better. I only knew China from news reports, where they showed some hungry souls. I didn’t even know Hong Kong was not China at that time. So I thought our holiday would be without electricity, water, heating or eatable food. I even was concerned if we were going to stay in a hotel room or under the open sky. Furthermore, I was seriously concerned about becoming a political prisoner at my young age. Why? Because China imprisons people randomly, they said on TV. See what TV propaganda can make young people believe! At that time there was no wikipedia to check facts. We didn’t even have internet in our house at all. Maybe we were the backward people.
We did make a democratic voting: I voted for staying at home. Two other people of my family voted for me to go on this trip. Me going to China had won the elections. My dad stayed at home. He didn’t want to go, although he voted for me going there. So my mum and me joined a travel group of about 20 people visiting Hong Kong.
As I said I’m not sure if it was 1995 or 1996, but I do know it was December around Christmas time and we would spend the new year in Hong Kong. We flew from Zurich, Switzerland and the first surprise was that the airline fucked up big time. We had to wait at the airport the whole day. But we did get a reward for all the waiting, as we were told later.
For all those Hong Kong-greenhorns reading my blog: At that time the international airport of Hong Kong was Kai Tak (启德机场 – cantonese: Kai2 dak1 gei1 coeng4), which indeed was the most exiting airport that ever existed. And in retrospect I’m so happy that I could land there, sitting at the window at the right side of the plane. Seconds before the landing the plane makes an 50 degree turn to the right, the right wing pointing seriously to the ground. It seems like the buildings at the side of the plane are higher, than the plane itself is flying. I didn’t have any digital camera equipment at that time, let alone a mobile phone, but someone else did:
There’s no other airport than Kai Tak where the plane makes a 50 degree turn to the right seconds before landing
When I looked out of the window while flying over the city of Hong Kong I was positively surprised. No farms! Instead modern multistory buildings, some with luxury swimming pools on the top. On the first day this city took over my mind. I was seriously impressed. Everything was so modern, compared to Germany. The weather was awesome. Hot and humid in mid December. And you can buy all the cool fashion for fair prices.
I was also surprised how beautiful the women of China are. So much better than the German women. And the clothes they are wearing are also much skimpier, which could be result of the hot weather and the lack of unhealthy fast food. Equal to the beauty of the women was the taste of the local food. Strangely I was the only one of our travel group, who ate everything that was put on the table.
Then there was the new year party. As I mentioned previously, the airline had a few hours delay and therefore they sponsored a full blow new years party in a luxury restaurant including a all you can eat buffet of lobster and many other delicious specialties. I wonder why I didn’t get the same treatment when I got delayed 12 hours on my Chengdu trip 2007.
We also made a short trip to Guangzhou (广州), a real communist city at that time. This communist city impressed me the least. When I was standing in front of our Guangzhou hotel, I could barely see the top floor because there was only little air between all those dust particles in the atmosphere. Our tour guide said it was a natural phenomenon, not man made. I guess he was right: Naturally coming out of all the fires burning along the railroad track that brought us to Guangzhou. On the positive side, Guangzhou was the place where I fell in love with authentic Chinese food. I can’t remember what was on the table, but I can say for sure: It tasted great.
Although this trip was overwhelmingly impressive, my memories got blurry after a while, yet I never totally forgot about the trip. It took about ten years until I finally started to learn Chinese, and I’m sure that this China trip played a major role in my decision to learn Chinese. Therefore I’m really thankful that I could make that trip. This is how I discovered China. To everyone reading this: If you haven’t visited China yet, go there immediately. It could also change your life.
A Chinese name is a must have for any Westerner who visits China. So I was told. I’ve experimented with some Chinese names, but since then I have given up on using a Chinese name. Although my real European name is hard to pronounce for Chinese, after five minutes of training most Chinese can do it.
However on this blog I still use a Chinese name I’ve also used while in China before. I’ve kept this name on the blog, because I want to keep a little bit of privacy here. And it does give me some privacy. Unfortunately there are disadvantages connected to a Chinese name when used online. Here’s the problem: When I add a comment to some online discussion, most people think I’m a Chinese guy and I have to explain to them I’m not. It can be fun at some moments, yet it’s confusing in more serious discussions and it always takes some extra time for pointing this out.
Maybe I should find a Western name for myself. Not my real name, but some pseudonym. Or maybe a Chinese name, that shows I’m not Chinese. Like for example: Laowai. Or maybe: Waiguoguizi. Don’t know what to do about this really. Any recommendations?
Another post totally unrelated to China, but I have to talk about it. One of our politicians in charge of the harmonious German society, Ursula von der Leyen, has proposed a new law to make the internet more safe for minors. This law has not yet been approved, but if it will be approved, then the Chinese internet is an oasis of freedom. Here is what might happen:
Basically I have to rate my website to which age it is appropriate. I can choose between sitewide oder per page rating. Unfortunately it is to much work to make sure, all my articles including all posted comments by all my readers are safe for a certain age group. I’m not an legal expert, so I can’t really rate every piece of text without making mistakes. Bottom line is, I label my whole site suitable for people 18 years and older.
But there is the downside of this. If I label my website for people aged 18, I have to make sure, only people at least 18 years old access my content. Either I ask everyone to send me a copy of their passport and give them accounts, or alternatively, I only make my site only available from 11pm to 6am Central European Time. German internet law sucks! Let’s hope Ursula fails with her bullshit internet censorship.
