Archive for February 12th, 2009

Cri – Lesson 232

Thursday, February 12th, 2009

(mms://enmms.chinabroadcast.cn/new/lang/ch/studio/Lesson356.wma)

Y: Welcome to Chinese Studio wo Shi Yajie.
R: Wo Shi Raymond. Time to sleep.
Y: Not yet, gotta get through this one last Chinese studio then you can enjoy the rest of the weekend.
R: Ok so anyways thanks for tuning in. Here we are so lets go over some narcoleptic sentences that we’ve learned before.
Sentences of the week
How much did you sleep? 你睡了多久?Did you sleep well? 睡得好吗? It’s time to wake up! 快醒醒!All in today’s Chinese Studio.
Y: You look pretty tired. How much did you sleep?
R: not much… let’s review how to say that in Chinese.
R: how about you? Did you sleep well?
Y: yeah, it was a sound sleep… btw, you can ask like this in Chinese: 睡得好吗?
Y: R, kuai4 xing2 xing3!
R: why, I’m not sleeping… although you can see some saliva on the table…
Y: now it’s time to review this sentence in Chinese: It’s time to wake up!
————————
R; Alright sleep time.
Y: Right before you visit that sandman let me give out the quiz.
R: How do you say “ How much did you sleep?” in Chinese. Send it to Chinese@crifm.com and you could be one of our lucky winners.
Y: That’s right you could get free tuition to the fabulous bridge school or one of our books of idioms.
R: Don’t’ forget to take a look at our website at crienglish.com and click on learn Chinese.

(Source:english.cri.cn)

Learn Chinese Podcast – Happy China 417

Thursday, February 12th, 2009
 
 

     韩佳:快乐学汉语,轻松又好记。

  Learn Chinese with fun.

  It’s delightful and easy to remember.

  大牛:福如东海!

  May your happiness be as great

  as the East Sea!

  寿比南山!

  May you live as long as the

  South Mountain!

  韩佳:你怎么突然冒出这么两句话来啊?

  Why did you quote these two sayings?

  大牛:我呀

  I was talking about

  在说这大门两侧的福星和寿星。

  the God of Happiness and the God of

  Longevity here both sides of this gate.

  韩佳:我说呢。

  Oh, no wonder.

  大牛:韩佳,我们现在在哪儿呢?

  Han Jia, where are we now?

  韩佳:杭州萧山的东方文化园。

  We’re at Xiaoshan Oriental Culture

  Park of Hangzhou.

  大牛:韩佳,这么多人都在等什么呢?

  Han Jia, what are these people

  waiting for?

  韩佳:等着观音菩萨出来啊。

  They are waiting for the appearance

  of Bodhisattva Guanyin.

  大牛:开什么玩笑。

  You are kidding.

  这世界上哪有什么…

  How can there be …

  韩佳:快看,快看,出来了!

  Look, it’s out!

  大牛:真像在梦里一样啊。

  It seems as if we were in a dreamland.

  韩佳:这就是运用现代高科技手段

  This park applies hi-tech methods

  打造的佛国胜景—观音显圣。

  to re-create a realm of Buddhism and the

  appearance of the Goddess of Mercy.

  大牛:有了高科技,

  With hi-tech,

  这传说也能成为现实啊。

  a legend can become a reality.

  韩佳:对了。你想不想看看

  Yes. Do you want to see a house

  金砖铺地、金箔覆顶的房子啊?

  with a gold floor and a gold roof?

  大牛:当然啦!

  Of course I do!

  要是能亲眼看到金子做的屋子

  It would be great to see with my

  own eyes

  该多好啊。

  a house built with gold.

  韩佳:那我现在就满足你这个愿望。

  Now I am going to satisfy your wish.

  Nà wǒ xiànzài jiù mǎnzú nǐ de yuànwàng.

  那 我 现在 就 满足 你 的 愿望。

  Let me fulfill your wish.

  大牛,这里就是杨岐寺的万佛金塔。

  Daniel, this is the Yangqi Temple’s

  Wanfo Gold Pagoda.

  大牛:哇,这里还有这么大一尊玉佛呀!

  Wow, there’s such a huge jade

  Buddha statue here!

  韩佳:这是用一整块白玉雕刻而成的,

  Sculpted out of a whole piece

  of white jade,

  是杨岐寺的镇寺之宝。

  this statue is the hallmark treasure

  of this temple.

  大牛:上面还镶着这么多宝石呢。

  And it is inlaid with so many

  precious stones.

  韩佳:好了,好了,我们赶快去金塔地宫看看吧。

  Well, let’s hurry and take a look inside

  the underground palace of this gold pagoda.

  大牛:来了,来了。

  I’m coming.

  十一,十二,十三…

  Eleven, twelve, thirteen …

  哇,真是金碧辉煌啊!

  Wow, it is indeed resplendent!

  韩佳:你看这墙上的佛经,

  Look at the Buddhist sutras on the wall

  还有天花板上的飞天图。

  and flying fairies on the ceiling.

  都是用纯金贴成的。

  They are coated with pure gold.

  大牛:这墙上的壁画都是用汉白玉

  Were these bas-reliefs

  雕刻而成的吧?

  carved in marble stone?

  韩佳:没错儿。

  Exactly.

  我们再到里面去看看。

  Let’s take a look inside.

  大牛:这地真是用金砖铺成的。

  The floor is indeed covered with

  gold bricks.

  韩佳:那当然了。你再抬头看看。

  Of course. Raise your head and look up.

  大牛:哇,这么多金佛啊,

  Wow, there are so many gold

  Buddha statuettes

  看得我眼睛都花了。

  that my eyes got dazzled by

  their brilliance.

  韩佳:据说这金色的屋顶上,

  They say, on the golden ceiling,

  一共有九千九百九十九尊佛像。

  there are a total 9,999 Buddha statuettes.

  所以这座地宫就被叫做

  Because of this underground palace,

  the pagoda

  万佛金塔地宫。

  is called the Wanfo (10,000-Buddha)

  Gold Pagoda.

  大牛:这回我可知道什么叫金玉满堂了。

  Now I understand what “jin yu man

  tang” means.

  韩佳:哦,那你给我们解释解释。

  Oh, then explain it to us.

  大牛:没问题。

  No problem.

  “金玉满堂”是用来形容占有的财富非常多。

  ”jin yu man tang” means to possess

  tremendous wealth.

  这要是我的房子该多好啊。

  If only this was my own house.

  Zhè yào shi wǒ de fáng zi gāi duō hǎo!

  这 要是 我 的 房子 该 多 好!

  If only this was my house!

  韩佳,除了我们刚才看到的佛教文化景区,

  Han Jia, apart from the Buddhism

  scenic area we saw just now,

  这东方文化园里还有哪些景区呢?

  are there any other scenic attractions

  in the Oriental Culture Park?

  韩佳:还有儒家文化景区、

  There is also the Confucian Culture

  Scenic Area

  道家文化景区啊。

  and the Taoist Culture Scenic Area.

  大牛:对了。这道家和道教是一回事吗?

  Oh, yeah. Is Taoist culture the

  same as Taoism?

  韩佳:是这样的。

  It is like this.

  道家是先秦时期的一个思想流派。

  The Taoist School was a philosophical

  sect during the early Qin Dynasty.

  代表人物是老子和庄子。

  Its representative figures were

  Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi.

  而道教是一个宗教派别,

  And Taoism is a religious sect,

  是由东汉的张道陵创立的。

  which was founded by Zhang Daoling

  of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

  尊奉老子为祖师爷。

  But Zhang acknowledged Lao Zi

  as being the de facto founder.

  大牛:原来是这么回事。

  Oh, I see.

  你看看,道苑?

  Look, is that a Taoist temple?

  韩佳:那边就是道家文化景区了。

  That’s the Taoist Culture Scenic Area

  over there.

  我们过去看看。

  Let’s go over and take a look.

  大牛:好。

  Good.

  韩佳,这些雕像都是谁啊?

  Han Jia, who are these statues

  supposed to represent?

  韩佳:这都是道家的代表人物啊。

  They are all the statues of representative

  figures of the Taoist School.

  你看这位,这位就是药王孙思邈。

  Look at this one of Sun Simiao,

  the King of Medicines.

  大牛:孙思邈我知道。

  Oh, I know Sun Simiao.

  他是隋唐时期的一位神医。

  He was a magic doctor of the Sui

  and Tang dynasties.

  韩佳:没错儿。那你再看看那位是谁啊。

  That’s true. And see who this is.

  大牛:这不是吕洞宾嘛?

  Isn’t it Lü Dongbin?

  我知道有一句歇后语叫:

  I also know a xiehouyu allegorical saying:

  “狗咬吕洞宾,不识好人心。”

  ”gou yao Lü Dongbin, bu

  shi hao ren xin”.

  这个歇后语是形容一个人不识好坏

  This xiehouyu allegorical saying refers to

  someone who can’t tell good from wrong

  误伤好人。

  and unintentionally hurts kindly people.

  韩佳:没错儿。

  Exactly.

  那你知道这句歇后语是怎么来的吗?

  Then do you know where this

  xiehouyu comes from?

  Ní zhīdao zhè jù xièhòuyǔ shì zěn me lái de mā?

  你 知道 这 句 歇后语 是 怎么 来 的 吗?

  Do you know the origin of this

  two part allegorical saying?

  大牛:肯定是吕洞宾的爱犬咬了他一口。

  It must be that Lü Dongbin’s pet

  dog bit him.

  韩佳:啊?

  What?

  大牛:开玩笑。你说吧。

  I was kidding. You tell us.

  韩佳:传说吕洞宾家有一次失火。

  Legend has it that once Lü’s

  home caught fire.

  他去找他的好朋友苟杳借钱。

  He went to his friend Gou Yao to

  borrow some money from him.

  苟杳非常热情地招待了他,

  Gou Yao received him very warmly,

  可就是没提借钱的事。

  but didn’t say anything about the loan.

  吕洞宾非常生气地回到了家。

  Lü Dongbin left angrily.

  一看家里新屋子已经盖好了,

  But when he got home, he found

  his house already rebuilt

  还摆着一箱金银。

  and saw a box of gold and silver inside.

  原来都是苟杳送的。

  He knew it was Gou Yao who did all this.

  大牛:原来苟杳是人名?

  Actually Gou Yao is the name of a person?

  韩佳:是啊。

  Yes.

  后来人们误把苟杳这个名字,

  But later, people miswrote the name,

  ”gou yao”,

  写成了那个狗咬。

  as “gou yao” (a dog bites).

  流传至今。

  And this miswritten name has been

  passed down to this day.

  大牛:直到今天我才知道。

  I didn’t know that till today.

  要学的东西实在是太多了。

  There is indeed much to learn.

  韩佳:没关系。慢慢来吧。

  That’s okay. Take your time.

  现在我们要劳逸结合。轻松一下,

  We can’t always work without a

  break. Let’s relax for a while

  一起来欣赏一下东方文化园的美景。

  and enjoy the beautiful Oriental

  Culture Park.

  赏心悦目:

  文化园风格独树一帜

  The Oriental Culture Park is unique in style.

  园中小桥流水 生趣盎然

  It features typical scenery of south

  China towns.

  各派文化融合浑然天成

  Here the visitor can witness a medley

  of various cultures of Asia.

  杨岐禅寺庄严恢宏

  The Yangqi Buddhist Temple remains

  majestic and imposing as it has ever been.

  万佛金塔地宫仿造泰国皇宫建成

  The underground palace of Wanfo Pagoda

  was built in imitation of the Thai Grand Palace.

  宫内供有九千九百九十九尊佛像

  Enshrined here are a total of 9,999

  Buddha statues.

  神态各异 流光溢彩

  All these statues are coated with gold.

  加上建筑本身的佛像造型

  Because of these Buddha statues,

  方有“万佛”之名

  the pagoda is known as a pagoda

  of 10,000 Buddhas.

  大牛:刚看了赏心悦目,我算是知道了。

  After seeing the Feast for the Eyes,

  now I know.

  韩佳:哦,你知道什么了?

  What do you know?

  大牛:这东方文化园里的宝贝太多了。

  There are so many treasures in

  the Oriental Culture Park.

  全都留在我脑海里了。

  And they are all kept in my mind.

  韩佳:那你是不是也应该留点什么

  But do you think you should

  leave something

  给我们的观众朋友们?

  for our audience?

  大牛:当然了。给观众朋友们一道题。

  Sure. A question I’m to leave for

  our audience.

  精美礼品寄给您。

  And beautiful gift will be sent to you.

  ( 问题部分略)

  别忘了我们的口号:

  Don’t forget our motto-

  合: 学说中国话,朋友遍天下。

  Learn Chinese and have friends everywhere.

(Source: cctv.com)

China Travel – Jichang Garden

Thursday, February 12th, 2009

The Jichang Garden lies in the Xihui Garden on Huishan Street at the east foot of Huishan Mountain in Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province.

Jichang Garden, also known as Qin Garden, was once the site of two monasteries during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). In 1506 and 1521 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Qin Jin, once the Shangshu of the Department of War (Shangshu was a high official in ancient China), built a garden at the site. Later, Qin Yao, Jin’s nephew, inherited the garden. In 1591 Yao resigned from office due to political frustrations and returned home gloomily. To lift his spirits Yao changed the name of the garden to Jichang Garden (to leave the carefree feeling with the garden).

The present Jichang Garden covers an area of 14.85 mu (1 mu = 1/15 hectare) in a narrow shape stretching from south to north. The garden can be divided into the east and the west. In the east part the main scenery includes the water corridor; in the west, rockeries and forests. The Jinhui Ripple, lying in the east, is a narrow pond containing numerous ripples. A square pavilion was built in the pond with a roof of nine ridges and flying eaves. The pond is surround by jagged rockeries. Qixing Bridge and Lang Bridge divide the pond into two smaller ponds in the north. The rockery in the west is sculpted to imitate the nine peaks of Huishan Mountain and forms a picture of nine lions. The rockery is 3-5 meters high to match the pond. A gully runs through the rockery where water is channeled from the Huishan Spring. It is said the stream gurgles continuously, whispering the name, Hanging Gurgle Gully — a unique landscape in the southern gardens.

The Jichang Garden belongs to a villa that sits at mountain’s foot, full of natural landscapes. Looking from the garden, one can see Huishan Mountain and Xishan Mountain in the distance. It is a representative southern garden with overlapping rockeries, lakes and pagodas.

During the 100 years between the 23rd year (1684) of the reign of Emperor Kangxi and the 49th year (1784) of the reign of Emperor Qianlong, the emperors made 12 inspection tours to the area south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. They paid a visit to the garden every time without exception, leaving countless poems, articles, tablets and couplets there. Emperor Qianlong even built a similar garden at the eastern foot of Wanshou Mountain at the Summer Palace and named it Huishan Garden (renamed Xiequ Garden in 1811). Two stone tablets with imperial writings by the two emperors are kept at the Jichang Garden to this day.

(Source: chinaculture.org)