Archive for May 2nd, 2009

« Older Entries

Beijing Olympic – New world xrecord in Antalya

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

In Antalya, Turkey, the third stage of the Archery World Cup, which opened on May 27, proved to be very intense. On Wednesday afternoon, the first day of actual competitions, a new world record was created. In the team event of the recurve men’s qualifications, the athletes from the Republic of Korea (ROK) set a new world record for the 70m round (3 x 72 arrows) with 2,039 points. The Indians were close behind with a total of 2,035 points.

The final ranking of the teams is decided by adding up the individual points of each team member. Although the ROK athletes ended up first in the team rankings, Indian archer Mangal Singh Champia made it in the top place of the individual list with a mere X10 lead over Park Kyung-Mo of the ROK.

The ROK has always been strong in archery. Out of a total of 54 Olympic gold medals the country has secured, 14 have been in this event since the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Yet, in the contest on Wednesday, the champions met another strong competitor – India. The two teams engaged in a fiery fight. Although India finished in second place, they still beat the previous record – 2,031 points, shot by ROK in 1996 — by four points.

In the upcoming Beijing Olympic Games, the ROK is planning to gather 10 gold medals, which, they hope, can get them into the top ten of the gold medal list. Archery is one of their must-win sports, according to the country’s Olympic committee.

All qualified archers will enter the elimination rounds on May 29.

<!– /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:宋体; panose-1:2 1 6 0 3 1 1 1 1 1; mso-font-alt:SimSun; mso-font-charset:134; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 135135232 16 0 262145 0;} @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:swiss; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:536871559 0 0 0 415 0;} @font-face {font-family:”\@宋体”; panose-1:2 1 6 0 3 1 1 1 1 1; mso-font-charset:134; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 135135232 16 0 262145 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:”"; margin:0cm; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:none; mso-hyphenate:none; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-fareast-language:#00FF;} /* Page Definitions */ @page {mso-page-border-surround-header:no; mso-page-border-surround-footer:no;} @page Section1 {size:612.0pt 792.0pt; margin:72.0pt 90.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt; mso-header-margin:36.0pt; mso-footer-margin:36.0pt; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} –>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:普通表格;
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:”";
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:”Times New Roman”;
mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”;
mso-ansi-language:#0400;
mso-fareast-language:#0400;
mso-bidi-language:#0400;}
(Source: en.beijing2008.cn)

Posted in Beijing Olympic, China Travel | No Comments »

China Travel – Suspended Coffins of the Bo People

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

The Suspended Coffins of the Bo People is located in Matangba of Luobiao Village, 55 kilometers south of Gongxian County, Sichuan Province.

Suspended coffins were a special kind of burying form of the Bo People, an ancient minority group. These coffins were discovered west of Sichuan Province and northwest of Yunnan Province, with Gongxian County of Sichuan Province as one of the places with the most concentrated number of suspended coffins.

Matangba is also called Fanchuangou — a narrow plain 500 meters long from north to south and 400 to 1,000 meters wide form east to west. A clear stream named the Crab Stream (Pangxiexi) runs along the center of the plain. Suspended coffins dot the two banks of the Crab Stream, with some being over 10 meters above ground level and some even several tens of meters above ground level. The wooden coffins were placed in caves dug in the cliff or in natural caves. There are over 160 coffins in the Crab Stream area.

On the precipice of Matangba are many murals with bright colors and vivid images. Paintings depicting horse-riding, dancing, acrobatics and animals and weapons reflect the social lives and customs of the local people. They are of great importance to the study of the history of ancient minority groups in the south of Sichuan.

(Source: chinaculture.org)

Posted in China Travel, learn Chinese | No Comments »

Cri – Lesson 311

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

Shanshan: Once upon a time, there was a frog who lived in a well. One day, as the frog sat by the side of the well, he met a green turtle from the Eastern Sea.

The frog boasted to the turtle: “Look! How nice my well is and how happy I am to live in it! When I’m in high spirits, I jump on the rim of the well. When I’m tired, I’ll find a hole in the well wall to rest inside, or simply float comfortably on the water. If I feel like a walk, I can stroll on the soft mud. Look at those poor crabs, wrigglers and tadpoles! None of them can compare with me. I’m the master here, and my home is the most comfortable and pleasant place in the world. If you like, Mr. Turtle, you’re welcome to have a look down in my well.”

The turtle was fascinated by this colourful description. He wanted to see for himself what life in the well was like. But as soon as he moved his legs, he stumbled over the railing. He had to step back very carefully.

“It is so narrow and uncomfortable here,” the turtle said. Then he described the vast Eastern Sea and invited the frog to visit. “If you see the Eastern Sea, you’ll know how happy life there can be. You can swim for days without coming to the end. You’ll see loads of other sea life: sea horses, clownfish, sharks, whales, and eat various types of food . . . . .  ”

The frog was dumbfounded. “I don’t believe any other place is better than the well.” He simply could not imagine the scenes the turtle was telling him. He dismissed all thoughts of the sea, and continued to sing the praises of his small home. “Home sweet home. Spacious, comfy, quiet……”

A: From that story comes the idiom Zuò Jǐng Guān Tiān 坐井观天 .

B: Literally translated as Sit at the bottom of a well and look at the sky.

A: People use it to describe someone who has a very narrow view of things or someone who has very limited wisdom and experience.

B: Another idiom derived from this fable: Jǐng Dǐ Zhī Wā 井底之蛙 — a frog at the bottom of a well.

A: Wa is the Chinese word for frog. Jǐng Dǐ Zhī Wā is a metaphor for a person with a very limited outlook.

(Source:english.cri.cn)

Posted in Chinese Lesson, learn Chinese, learn mandarin | No Comments »

« Older Entries