Archive for April, 2008

Beijing Olympic – Festive Food and Its Fate(1)

Wednesday, April 30th, 2008

During China’s biggest national festival, food plays a role as important as the traditions and customs.

It would not be an idle boast to say that Chinese cuisine is one of the greatest in the world. Nor would it be an exaggeration to say that few other cultures are as food-orientated as Chinese culture. During China’s biggest national festival, food plays a role as important as the traditions and customs that we have just discussed. Therefore let’s turn to Chinese cuisine, something as ancient and established as Chinese culture itself.

According to the Chinese lunar calendar, today is the fifth day of the new year. Consequently I’d like to start our foray into food culture by introducing the customs for today, which is otherwise referred to as Powu, or breaking off on the fifth day. Tradition has it that on this day certain behavior forbidden during the previous part of the festival is now permitted. Women, and especially newly-wedded women, can go back to the homes of their parents or pay visits to friends and relatives. This is also a day when people welcome the God of Wealth and recommence their everyday business. However, these customs are fading out as Spring Festival continues to evolve. Only one habit seems destined to carry on and on, the habit of eating Jiaozi, or stuffed Chinese dumplings. In northern China, the family usually chop the meat and prepare the fillings themselves, to symbolizes the chopping out of bad luck.

The mention of this traditional food is inevitable when talking about either Spring Festival, or Chinese cuisine. However, it is hard to trace the history of Jiaozi precisely. According to historical records, during the Spring and Autumn Period over 2,500 years ago, people in the Yellow River area learnt to grind wheat into flour, and used it to make food stuffed with fillings. Hundreds of years later during the Han Dynasty, a food product was created by the official Zhang Zhongjing to help the poor people get through the cold winter. It was made with all kinds of fillings including mutton, chili pepper and medicinal materials. Following this prototype dumpling, increasing numbers of people began to make what is known today as Jiaozi. These dumplings went on to become an important part of Chinese cuisine, and have even gained the complimentary saying “There is nothing more delicious than Jiaozi”.

(Source: ebeijing.gov.cn)

 

Chinese Characters: aberrance (aberrancy)脱离正道

Wednesday, April 30th, 2008

aberrance (aberrancy):

Chinese Pinyin: tuo1 li2 zheng4 dao4

(Source: about.com)

Learn Chinese Podcast – Happy China 129

Wednesday, April 30th, 2008
 
 

                         Click to Watch Video Podcast

  (3月12日播出)

  旁白: 听人们说,

  I heard some people say that

  来奉化,雪窦山是不能不去的。

  to a visitor to Fenghua, Xuedou

  Mountain is a must-see.

  传说,古代的仁宗皇帝

  It is said the ancient Emperor Renzong

  曾梦游此山。

  once toured this mountain in

  his dream.

  所以雪窦山又叫应梦名山。

  So Xuedou Mountain is also called

  Mengming Mountain.

  这座山的风景很美,

  Since it’s a scenic mountain,

  那我们当然不能错过了。

  we should, of course,

  not miss it.

  韩佳: 快乐学汉语,万里海疆行!

  Learn Chinese the fun way and enjoy

  a Happy Journey across China!

  大家好,我是快乐的韩佳。

  Hi, I’m Merry Han Jia.

  你这是干吗呀?

  Hey, what are you doing here?

  王渊源:我在向弥勒佛学习呢。

  I’m emulating the Maitreya Buddha.

  韩佳: 这雪窦山啊

  Xuedou Mountain is a place

  是弥勒佛的道场。

  where Maitreya Buddha worshiping

  rites are held.

  那这雪窦寺

  And Xuedou Temple

  主要供奉的就是弥勒佛了。

  enshrines mainly the Maitreya Buddha.

  王渊源:我看它一副张口大笑的样子,

  I find his ear-to-ear grin

  一看让人觉得特别的高兴。

  surely makes people happy.

  韩佳: 是啊。这笑口常开呢

  Yes. Always smiling

  是弥勒佛最大的特点了。

  is the biggest feature of the

  Maitreya Buddha.

  “笑口常开”

  ”Xiao kou chang kai”

  就是用来形容人

  means to be smiling

  经常保持高兴的心情。

  and happy all the time.

  王渊源:“笑口常开”

  ”Xiao kou chang kai”

  就是用来形容人

  means to be smiling

  经常保持高兴的心情。

  and happy all the time.

  韩佳: 那我们举个例子来说吧。

  Let’s explain with an example.

  Tā zhǒng shi yìfù xiàokǒuchángkāi de yàngzi

  他 总 是 一副 笑口常开 的 样子。

  He always looks very happy.

  有句话呢

  There is a saying

  是这样形容弥勒佛的。

  describing the Maitreya Buddha.

  大肚能容,容天下难容之事。

  ”His big belly contains all

  injustices under heaven.

  笑口常开,笑天下可笑之人。

  His always laughs at all laughable

  people in the world.”

  那这句话呢

  This saying

  就是提醒人们,

  reminds people

  对生活要乐观、宽容。

  to be optimistic and tolerant

  toward life.

  旁白: 离开了雪窦寺,

  After leaving Xuedou Temple,

  我们慢慢往山上走去。

  we slowly walked up the mountain.

  听说雪窦山上有一个高台,

  We heard there’s a tableland

  on the mountain,

  去那里欣赏风景感觉更好。

  a vantage point to enjoy

  the scenery.

  叫什么名字来着?

  What is its name?

  韩佳: 妙高台。

  Miaogaotai.

  王渊源:对对对,就是妙高台。

  Yes, yes, it’s called Miaogaotai.

  你说从哪个角度看更美呢?

  From which angle do you think the

  scenery would look more beautiful?

  韩佳: 来这边吧。

  We’d better come over to

  this side.

  你看,这儿不错。

  Look, it’s pretty good.

  王渊源:视野挺开阔的。

  The field of vision is much wider.

  韩佳: 每个来雪窦山的人啊

  Every visitor to Xuedou Mountain

  都会到妙高台来看一看。

  would come to Miaogaotai here

  for a look.

  王渊源:那你说它为什么会叫妙高台呢?

  Tell me why it’s called Miaogaotai?

  韩佳: 因为在这高台上看风景啊

  Because seeing scenery on top

  of this tableland

  会给人一种妙不可言的感觉。

  conjures up a sense of indescribable

  amazement.

  所以就叫妙高台了。

  That’s why it’s called Miaogaotai.

  王渊源:原来是这样的。

  Oh, I see.

  画外音:你们看,那儿好像有瀑布!

  Look, there seems to be a

  waterfall over there!

  王渊源:没想到雪窦山上

  I never imagined on Xuedou Mountain

  还有这么壮观的瀑布呢!

  there could be such a

  spectacular waterfall!

  还有三个大字呢。

  There are also three big

  characters there:

  千丈岩。

  ”Qian Zhang Yan”.

  韩佳: 没错儿。千丈岩指的就是

  Exactly. Qianzhangyan

  对面那片悬崖。

  refers to that stretch of precipices.

  那个瀑布就叫千丈岩瀑布。

  That waterfall is called Qianzhang

  Waterfall.

  它在当地名气可大了。

  It is quite famous in this area.

  王渊源:“名气”就是有名望的意思。

  ”Ming qi” means fame.

  韩佳: “名气”就相当于“知名度”,

  ”Ming qi” is equal to “zhi ming du”,

  就是指某人或者是某个事物

  meaning the fame of someone

  or something

  被社会公众知道、熟悉的程度。

  enjoyed in society.

  王渊源:真的很高啊!

  It is indeed very high!

  韩佳: 对啊。

  Yes.

  这个瀑布有一百八十多米的落差。

  The drop of the waterfall is

  over 180 meters.

  你看见那块石头没有?

  Do you see that big rock?

  王渊源:看见了。

  Yes, I do.

  韩佳: 那叫飞雪岩。

  It’s called Feixue Rock.

  有了那块石头,

  With that rock down there,

  水流冲击下去之后,

  the impacted tumbling water

  水珠就会四溅。

  produces droplets flying in

  all directions.

  看上去好像飞扬的雪花一样。

  They look like dancing snowflakes.

  王渊源:是有点儿像啊。

  Yes, they do.

  旁白: 看着水流从天而降,

  Seeing the water falling from

  the sky

  巨大的水声冲击着我们的耳朵,

  and hearing the thundering roars

  of the water,

  那种感觉让我们不禁赞叹

  we can’t help

  大自然的美丽。

  exalting the beauty of Mother Nature.

  溪口镇位于雪窦山脚下。

  Xikou lies at the foot of

  Xuedou Mountain.

  这是一个古老的小镇。

  This is an old, small town.

  清澈的剡溪在小镇旁流过。

  The crystal-clear Shanxi River

  flows by the town.

  溪口这个名字也是由它而来的。

  That’s where the name Xikou

  comes from.

  韩佳: 这溪口古镇建于唐朝,

  The ancient town Xikou was founded

  in the Tang Dynasty

  到现在已经有一千多年的历史了。

  with a history of more than

  1,000 years.

  王渊源:千年古镇,

  A thousand-year-old town

  那肯定有值得一看的东西。

  is surely worth seeing.

  韩佳: 当然了。

  Of course.

  你看,那不就是嘛。

  Look, it is right there.

  渊源,你觉得这些木雕怎么样啊?

  Yuanyuan, what do you think

  of these wood carvings?

  王渊源:雕得真好!

  Pretty good!

  这些人物形象相当生动啊。

  All these figures are quite vivid.

  韩佳: 那它们是根据中国的

  They were sculpted

  民间传说和古典小说的故事

  according to Chinese folktales

  雕刻而成的。

  and classic novels.

  在过去,这里的人们

  In the past, people here

  都喜欢用这种方式来装饰屋子。

  tended to decorate their rooms

  this way.

  你看那些牛腿,漂亮吗?

  Look at those “niu tui”, are

  they pretty?

  王渊源:等等。你说什么?

  Wait a minute. What did

  you say?

  牛腿?这里哪儿来的牛啊?

  Cow legs? There aren’t any

  cows here.

  韩佳: “牛腿”是一个俗称,

  ”Niu tui”, cow legs, is an

  informal term

  就是用来指支撑房屋的那个部分。

  referring to a house-supporting pillar.

  因为它的样子看起来很像牛的后腿,

  Its shape looks like a cow leg,

  所以才会有了这个名字。

  so it is called a cow-leg pillar.

  王渊源:那它应该是用来稳固建筑的吧?

  So it functions as a support

  for a house, right?

  韩佳: 嗯。牛腿的作用呢

  Yes. The function of a cow-leg pillar

  就是用来分担房顶的重量,

  is to share the weight of a roof

  使建筑更加地稳定、牢固。

  so as to make the house more

  secure and firm.

  王渊源:能把这些牛腿

  Even such pillars

  雕刻得这么精美,

  are sculpted so beautifully,

  看来溪口的建筑

  it seems to me Xikou’s architecture

  真的很讲究啊。

  must be very extraordinary.

  韩佳: 渊源刚才说到的“精美”。

  Yuanyuan just said “jingmei”.

  就是指精致而美好。

  It means exquisite or excellent.

  我们经常会说精美的设计、

  We often say an exquisite design

  精美的建筑等等。

  or excellent architecture.

  王渊源:“精美”就是指精致而美好。

  ”Jingmei” means exquisite

  or excellent.

  韩佳: 那我们举个例子来说吧。

  Let’s explain with an example.

  Zhèxiē mùdiāo diāokè de shēngdòng ér jīngměi

  这些 木雕 雕刻 得 生动 而 精美。

  These wood carvings are vividly

  and exquisitely carved.

  王渊源:玉泰盐铺?

  Yutai Yan Pu?

  韩佳,盐铺就是卖盐的商店吧?

  Is “yan pu” a shop selling salt?

  韩佳: 对啊。这家玉泰盐铺呢

  Yes. Yutai Salt Shop

  是溪口古镇历史相当悠久的一家盐铺。

  is a very old salt shop in Xikou.

  王渊源:可是我不太明白,

  But I don’t quite understand

  为什么会有商店专门卖盐呢。

  why there should be an exclusive

  shop selling salt.

  韩佳: 因为在过去

  That’s because in the past

  盐的制作相当困难,

  the production of salt was

  very difficult

  价格又很高。

  and salt was very expensive.

  所以呢,

  Therefore,

  政府是不允许民间私自贩卖盐的。

  the government did not allow

  private shops to sell salt.

  这样就产生了这种盐铺,

  This kind of salt shops

  他们得到了政府的许可,

  had the government license

  可以公开出售盐。

  to sell salt publicly.

  王渊源:原来是这样。

  Oh, I see.

  说起来,像这样专门卖盐的商店

  In fact, this is my first time

  我还是第一次见到呢。

  to see an exclusive salt shop

  like this.

  那看来,我们这一趟溪口

  It seems our trip to Xikou

  还真是来对了。

  is quite worthwhile.

  那韩佳,咱们接着要去哪儿呢?

  Han Jia, what’s the next place

  we’re going to visit?

  韩佳: 要去的地方可多了。

  Still a lot of places we’re

  going to visit.

  王渊源:还有很多地方?

  Still a lot?

  韩佳: 嗯。

  Yes.

  王渊源:那我们今天看得完吗?

  We can’t see them all today, right?

  韩佳: 没关系。

  That doesn’t matter.

  观众朋友们可以跟我们一起

  Our audience can take a look

  with us

  到赏心悦目中去饱览一番。

  at the Feast for the Eyes.

  赏心悦目:

  溪口风景名胜区景色秀丽

  The Xikou Scenic Area has beautiful scenery.

  云雾四合 犹如仙境

  It’s like a fairyland shrouded in mist.

  青峰环列 泉瀑争鸣

  It’s a place surrounded by green mountains

  涧水奔泻 状如飞雪

  with cascading waterfalls.

  四面青山 山山朝古刹

  All the mountains face an ancient temple

  环列翠峰 峰峰叩弥勒

  as if they were paying homage

  to the Maitreya Buddha.

  蒋氏故居坐北朝南 临街而建

  The former residence of Chiang Kai-shek

  包括丰镐房 玉泰盐铺和小洋房

  consists of Fenggao House, Yutai Salt Shop

  and the Western-Style House.

  庭内精雕细绘 浮彩镂金

  The courtyard features ornately carved doorways.

  溪口集山水之灵秀 人文之精华

  Xikou, a place of scenic beauty and

  home of many talented people.

  韩佳: 好,看完了今天的赏心悦目之后呢,

  Now, after today’s Feast for

  the Eyes,

  不知道您有何感想?

  how do you feel?

  王渊源:相信您一定喜欢上

  I’m sure you must have

  become interested

  溪口这个古镇了吧。

  in this ancient town of Xikou.

  韩佳: 那现在马上就要看看

  Now let’s take a look

  我们的有奖问答题了。

  at our award-winning question.

  王渊源:好。

  Good.

  今天的有奖问答题是这样的。

  Here’s today’s award-winning question.

  (问题部分略)

  韩佳: 别忘了明天同一时间,

  Don’t forget same time tomorrow

  继续收看我们的节目,

  to continue to watch our program

  跟我们一起“万里海疆快乐行”。

  and join us for the Happy Journey

  across China.

  王渊源:也别忘了我们的口号。

  And also don’t forget our slogan.

  合: 学说中国话,朋友遍天下!

  Learn Chinese and make friends everywhere!

  韩佳: 明天见。

  See you tomorrow.

(Source: cctv.com)