As its name suggests, the Tea-Horse Road was a central trade route for exchanges during the Han people’s tea and the Tibetan horses. The road stretched across more than 4,000 km, mainly through southwestern China. It is not only a road for exchanging tea and horses, but also other commodities and even the culture and […]
In the Song Dynasty, the large-scale commerce in tea and horses between the Chinese dynasties and the Tibetan developed very quickly. The government then required a large number of warhorses to defend against the invading northern nomadic. It established the tea and horse office in charge of the tea and horse trade and set up […]
Wushu, also known as Kung-fu or martial arts is one of the most typical examples of traditional Chinese culture. Wushu was historically termed “Wu-Yi” or martial arts. Literally, wu means military while shu means art, thus Wushu the art of fighting or maritial arts. Fairly recently, the Chinese government changed the term to “Guoshu” or […]
Li Qingzhao (1084-1155), self-titled Yi’an Jushi, is one of the most-talented women in China history in the literature field. Her life was a bittersweet story. She married Zhao Mingcheng and shared with him the love of poetry and antiquities. They had enjoyed a happy family life before the emperors of the Song Dynasty were captured […]
“Li” in China not only refers to not only gifts, but more often than not, courtesy and modesty towards people. Politeness is extremely important in contacts among Chinese people. It helps you approach the other side and establish a good relationship. Politeness or rudeness is a key factor behind success or failure in China. When […]
About two thousand years ago, the Chinese philosopher Lao Zi remarked: “Dao gives rise to one; one gives rise to two; two gives rise to three , and three gives rise to myriad things.” In other words, the entirety of the universe is composed of just a few simple elements. Chinese characters are this way as […]
Ancient Chinese considered marriage as the origin of all ceremonies. Ceratin rules and formalities had to be observed and certain gifts had to be presented. In the Tang Dynasty, custom went so that tea was treated as a betrothal gift. Since the Song Dynasty, tea was even more closely related to wedding. A betrothal gift […]
Qixi, or the Double Seventh Festival, on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month, is a traditional festival full of romance. It is the only Chinese festival devoted to love, and thus sometimes called Chinese Valentine’s Day. There are some very interesting traditions on the day. Doing Needlework A girl will be attractive to […]
For some people when they think of Daoism, they are often referring to the works of Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi. These thought system may be seen as philosophies, rather than religions, as they include nothing within themselves about gods, worship or ritual. This type of Taoism is often referred in Chinese as “Daojia” or […]
Kang Xi (1654-1722) was the 2nd emperor of the Qing Dynasty. His personal name was Xuanye. He was one of China’s most capable rulers. During his reign, he laid the foundation for a long period of political stability and prosperity. Under his reign, the Treaty of Nerchinsk was signed with Russia, parts of Outer Mongolia […]
Før jeg begynte på Keats School, hadde jeg ingen tillit til mine kinesiske ferdigheter. Jeg hadde ikke tillit nok til å snakke mandarin og prate med kinesere. Men etter fire måneder med studier på Keats blir jeg mer og mer selvsikker på å snakke kinesisk nå. Å studere kinesisk i Kina på Keats School har vært den beste avgjørelsen jeg noensinne har tatt. Det er mange spill i timen, og lærerens undervisningsmetoder er også veldig interessante. Min erfaring på Keats School har endret mitt syn på Kina og kinesere.
En ting jeg virkelig likte var at jeg kunne samarbeide med læreren min for å lage en individuell studieplan. En annen veldig fin ting er at du bor på skolen, du føler deg helt trygg. Du har alltid en gruppe mennesker som er villige til å gjøre ting sammen med deg i helgene eller om kveldene. De serverer deg alle tre måltidene om dagen, og maten var utmerket.
Listening and speaking in the classroom every day has improved my communication skills. After three weeks, my new words and sentences became more and more natural and fluent. Now I am used to thinking in Chinese, and I understand better what other people say, to be able to have real conversations with other people.
Jeg er en masterstudent som jobber med doktorgraden min ved Columbia University. Vi klarte å fokusere mye på å snakke, spesielt intervjubasert tale, og vi har klart å forbedre mine kinesiske lese- og skriveferdigheter, så når jeg drar tilbake til Columbia, kan jeg ta formelle kinesiskkurs. Det har vært en veldig god opplevelse, og jeg elsker læreren min.
Når det gjelder å studere kinesisk her, synes jeg boforholdene er veldig praktiske fordi studenthjemmet ligger veldig nært klasserommet. Lærerne våre liker å undervise i kinesisk. De er også veldig lidenskapelige. Sammenlignet med andre byer i Kina har Kunming veldig bra vær.
Jeg tok det intensive kinesiskkurset én-til-én i seks timer om dagen. Timene er veldig interessante. Lærerne er omsorgsfulle, og innholdet læreren underviser meg i passer til nivået mitt. Det er en enkel måte å lære mandarin på. Jeg bruker mye tid på å øve på kinesisk i timene. Maten er god her. Jeg har forbedret kinesiskkunnskapene mine gjennom dette programmet på Keats.
Jeg synes det kinesiske læringsmiljøet her er flott. Undervisningsmetodene er også veldig interaktive og morsomme. Det jeg liker spesielt godt her er at læreren min ikke holder seg til læreboken. Vi bruker mye tid på å diskutere generelle emner, som kinesisk kultur, verdensnyheter og typiske uttrykk som brukes av lokalbefolkningen. Vi diskuterer også sosiale og økonomiske emner.
Jeg liker meg veldig godt på dette stedet fordi vi har privatundervisning i mandarin. Jeg tok 6-timersprogrammet, 4 timer om morgenen og 2 timer om ettermiddagen. Selv om det er ganske mye, er undervisningen gratis. Dette er veldig nyttig fordi jeg kan repetere det jeg har gjort før og lære nye ting. De to lærerne mine er fantastiske. Vi bor på skolen, så det er praktisk. Det er interessant for meg å møte mennesker fra hele verden.