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Lesson Introduction
If you're creative, indoor winter sports can be so much fun in China. Warm your hands over your gas stovetop flame with your significant other, or chug baijiu in a vain attempt to warm up from the inside out. Or, steam your pores over a lip-numbing Sichuan hotpot while trying not to look at the guy eating brains beside you. All this, and more, can be yours in a China winter. Listen to today's podcast lesson for more Mandarin fun.
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panda2 says
guys you have put the kiss photo into the so tall lesson? overnight tinkering with system?? I like this lesson, looking forward to HARBIN & snow & baijiu !!!November 28, 2007
sfrrr says
Guys--I have never seen snow like the stuff in the picture in China. It looks more like Sierra snow. Or maybe Montreal snow. Where was the photo shot?November 28, 2007
trevelyan says
I've seen photos of places in 吉林 that look like that, but not Bejiing or Inner Mongolia.November 28, 2007
mark says
其实现在还不是冬天，因为十二月二十号冬天开始。 对不对？November 28, 2007
johnb says
Mark, 在中国，冬天的定义是平均气温连续5天低于10ºC，所以有的地方已经入冬了。November 28, 2007
mark says
Johnb, So, Mark Twain was right, it is always Winter in San Francisco. 很有趣November 28, 2007
trevelyan says
Mark - if you're thinking of the same one I am, that's my favourite Twain quote. I think it translates roughly as: 我在三藩市过的唯一夏天是我一生最冷的冬天。November 28, 2007
venusjin says
there is a traditional calendar in China. in this calendric,chinese people call the day of winter beginning "立li4冬dong1"。 the chinese traditional calendar has 24 special days which stand for the alternation of the seasons each year.we call them"24 solar term"二十四节气er4shi2si4jie2qi4 they are: 立春(li4chun1) the Beginning of Spring (1st solar term)Feb.3,4, or 5 雨水(yu3shui3) Rain Water (2nd solar term)Feb.18,19 or 20 惊蜇(jing1zhe2) the Waking of Insects (3rd solar term)Mar.5,6, or 7 春分(chun1fen1) the Spring Equinox (4th solar term)Mar.20,21 or 22 清明(qing1ming2) Pure Brightness (5th solar term)Apr.4,5 or 6 谷雨(gu3yu3) Grain Rain (6th solar term)Apr.19,20 or 21 立夏(li4xia4) the Beginning of Summer (7th solar term)May 5,6 or 7 小满(xiao3man3) Lesser Fullness of Grain (8th solar term)May 20,21 or 22 芒种(mang2zhong4) Grain in Beard (9th solar term)Jun.5,6 or 7 夏至(xia4zhi4) the Summer Solstice (10th solar term)Jun.21 or 22 小暑(xiao3shu3) Lesser Heat (11th solar term)Jul.6,7 or 8 大暑(da4shu3) Greater Heat (12th solar term)Jul.22,23 or 24 立秋(li4qiu1) the Beginning of Autumn (13th solar term)Aug.7,8 or 9 处暑(chu4shu3) the End of Heat (14th solar term)Aug.22,23 or 24 白露(bai2lu4) White Dew (15th solar term)Sep.7,8 or 9 秋分(qiu1fen1) the Autumn Equinox (16th solar term)Sep.22,23 or 24 寒露(han2lu4) Cold Dew (17th solar term)Oct.8 or 9 霜降(shuang1jiang4) Frost's Descent (18th solar term)Oct.23 or 24 立冬(li4dong1) the Beginning of Winter (19th solar term)Nov.7 or 8 小雪(xiao3xue3) Lesser Snow (20th solar term)Nov.22 or 23 大雪(da4xue3) Greater Snow (21th solar term)Dec.6,7 or 8 冬至(dong1zhi4) the Winter Solstice (22th solar term)Dec.21,22 or 23 小寒(xiao3han2) Lesser Cold (23th solar term)Jan.5,6 or 7 大寒(da4han2) Greater Cold (24th solar term)Jan.20 or 2November 28, 2007
gaylon says
There are several words in Chinese used to describe "to experience" -- in this lesson there is 感受 but perhaps someone can help me better understand the differences (if any) in context/use between these few: 感受gan3shou4, 体会ti3hui4, 体验ti3yan4, 经验jing1yan4, 经历jing1li4. I'm sure there are more words than those but I'm just not remembering them right now. Any examples much appreciated!November 28, 2007
venusjin says
from the standpoint of astronomy,立冬is the beginning of winter but in climatology, we define "平均气温连续5天低于10ºC" as winter, just like what Johnb has saidNovember 28, 2007
changye says
I skied only once here in China several years ago. I have to admit I am an extremely terrible skier, BUT to my surprise, I definitely was the best performer then in that small ski ground in my town. More surprisingly, some onlookers cheered and even gave me applause when I “turned”, if you can call it that, very clumsily. I was a hero at least on that day. BTW, I am NOT good at 滑冰(skating) too.November 28, 2007
changye says
Hi VenusJin, From the standpoint of ME, winter begins on the day I start to wear long johns. But the beginning of spring has nothing to do with my underwear.November 29, 2007
aert says
Hi VenusJin Thanks for the traditional calendar! I likr this sort of thing and will copy it. One remark: in the upper right part of the character zhe2 "hibernation" you have what by itself is jin1 "pound". My dictionaries have wan2 "bullet, pill" here. The character you give I found only in Oshanin's Chinese - Russian dictionary (nr.8734) as zhe4 "sting (as of bee)", colloquial "jellyfish". This dictionary dates from 1952 and has the traditional script. Your comment makes a fine lesson even better!November 29, 2007
dongling says
I am from Sweden and we use to have snow. Last weekend we got some 10 cm but today the wehter is warmer and it has dissapear. When I was childs in the north of Sweden we use to skate to our school on the street witch was cover by ice, atleast a layer of 5 cm ice. We use to play ishojey at the school were they have a icehockerink. So I dont think it is unusual to have ice on the street. In the south of Sweden they use to have salt on the street so the ice melt but it is harful for the cars and anlo eviroment. I have question about some vocab I miss on this topic. Whats the word for: Downhill skiing, Crosscountry Skiing. skitrack, skiwax, ski pole, ski boot.November 29, 2007
msc417 says
VenusJin, What are you talking about? 立冬 has no astronomical significance whatsoever. The only dates that could be said to have any real significance are the Equinoxes and Solstices (which all happen around the 22nd of the months March, June, September and December). But the equinox is not the "middle of the season" (I assume you would respond with that to defend your "立冬 is the astronomical start of Winter" nonsense). To think that the seasons start and end between the Solstices and Equinoxes is a misunderstanding of our Earth's climate. While the solstice may be shortest day of the year (thus you wuld think it is the middle of winter), it is actually more akin to the start of Winter because of the way ocean temperatures keep us warmer in the days leading up to the winter solstice. If you don't believe this, just look at average temperatures in any northern hemisphere city: Beijing for example: Nov. 38.8, Dec. 37, Jan. 23, Feb. 28.6 Most of us (like Changye above) define the seasons by how the weather feels to us, but if you say that the start of Winter is in Nov. and the start of Spring is in Feb. (Feb 4th no less!), this makes no sense because your start of Winter is (on average) 10º warmer than the start of Spring. By the way, it is a bit misleading to call the traditional Chinese calendar a base for "astronomical" calculations... the Chinese Calendar is a lunar calendar and completely disregards the relationship between the earth and sun... hardly astronomical.November 29, 2007
jennyzhu says
Here in Shanghai, we are so snow deprived that on one winter day when it finally snowed for half a day, my teacher gave us the afternoon off to play in the snow. That was when I was 10. Priceless memory.November 29, 2007
bazza says
I'll send you some snow for xmas Jenny. :) Not here yet either though.November 29, 2007
26953 says
We've had snow here since National Day. But that's life in Alaska. Bill in AKNovember 29, 2007
john says
What msc417 makes total sense, but I've always taken a cultural view of the seasons: the Chinese celebrate the same seasons as us, but they traditionally shift the seasons about 50 days earlier than westerners. I think trying to make it all scientific is a mistake, since designations of the seasons date way back to before science.November 29, 2007
tarany says
I spent a year in Harbin, and unfortunately all of the streets don't turn into ice skating rinks... It actually doesn't snow that much, and what snow does fall turns into dirty grey sludge and ice. Mostly it's just cold as balls and windy. I think most Harbin locals wear long underwear for almost half the year despite the fact that once the heat is on it is always boiling inside. Anyway, the ice lantern festival is more amazing in person than you would guess from pictures and worth the trip. You get used to the cold. I miss that place, actually.November 29, 2007
tarany says
Sorry, I thought I had already resized that photo.November 29, 2007
azerdocmom says
what is this picture of? looks cool.November 29, 2007
feng4huang2 says
Why cant I see the pictures that go along with each lesson? People are always talking about how cool/interesting/suitable they are and they dont show up for me---WHY?November 29, 2007
tarany says
It's a photo of Harbin's famous ice lantern festival. They build a mini city out of ice sculptures with florescent lights inside. 冰雪大世界November 29, 2007
phil says
The "calendar" referred to by VenusJin cannot be taken as a universal calendar. It is after all a Chinese farmer's calendar and is entirely relevant to that community. Since it refers to frost and snow it is also clearly northern China in origin. It is also based entirely on the solar calendar and not the lunar calendar. I can say from experience that it fits pretty well with the Dongbei climate. Frosts arrive in late October, small snow in November and big snow in December, severe cold in January...rains in April, heat in June, July and August. This year we have already had snow and night time temperatures down to -15C, certainly winter in my book! The seasons seem to be a bit arbitrary but if one accepts that they decided on four 3 month seasons and that the dates are the start dates then they also fit pretty closely too. Early November is when the day time temperatures start to go below 0C and mid February is when the daytime temperatures creep above 0C. The calendar has probably been used by the rural population of northern China for thousands of years and is largely based upon the reality so it is rather unreasonable for msc417 to suggest that it is all nonsense.November 29, 2007
foleadu says
I have been to Shanghai's 室内滑雪场 many times. It's a lot of fun if you haven't done much skiing before, though after a couple of hours the choice of only three slopes gets a little dull. But, I love the fact that I could go skiing all year round. Also, watching a lot of Chinese trying out skiing for the first time is quite fun. Are there places to 溜冰 in Shanghai?November 29, 2007
foleadu says
The dialogue mp3 just turned into chipmunks! The lesson mp3 seems fine.November 29, 2007
clay says
foleadu try clearing your cashe and reloading it. I just took a gander, and it seemed to work fine for me. [clear cashe: under the "tools" option under most browsers, and generally labeled "clear cashe" or "clear private data"]November 29, 2007
foleadu says
In the dialogue, why is the character for 'cold' (冷) very different from the way it is printed in Word or in my dictionary? I thought it was a different character at first.November 29, 2007
foleadu says
clay, it's working now, thanks.November 29, 2007
amber says
hi foeadu, I think it's a font issue. It's just a little more embellished in the PDF font.November 29, 2007
venusjin says
hi! although present-day chinese people use western calendar,the chinese traditional calendar is still very useful in their lives. there are some traditional festivals in China.such as: "春chun1节jie2“(the Spring Festival) "元yuan2宵xiao1节jie2"(Lantern Festival) "端duan1午wu3节jie2"(the Dragon-Boat Festival) "七qi1夕xi1节jie2"or"乞qi3巧qiao3节jie2"(Double-Seventh Day）------this is chinese Valentine's Day "中zhong1秋qiu1节jie2"(the Mid-Autumn Day) and so on. all these festivals are according to the chinese traditional calendar . as far as i know, many chinese people 's birthdays are still according to the chinese calendar .but some ones' have been according to the western calendar. of course ,few chinese people have two birthdays,one is according to chinese calendar,the other one is to western ,maybe they want to eat cake s twice in one year,hehe.but there is a wonderful coincidence that the same day is not noly the chinese calendar birthday,but also the western calendar birthday when the people is 19 years old \38 years old \57 years old...the multiple of nineteen. en ...i think that one birthday or two is up to the opinions of the people themselves.November 29, 2007
chittywangwang says
why is that the chinese just cant get the hang of skiing and snowboarding...? they try try try....and then fall overNovember 30, 2007
changye says
Hi VenusJin, My boss has three birthdays. Two birthdays based on solar and lunar calendar respectively, and the one misprinted on his ID card. Wow, I really envy him!November 30, 2007
leimengde says
If I go to southern China in winter will the inside of the homes be cool inside. I hear that there are no heaters in the southern homes, and in winters I will need to dress warm even in the south. Does this sound correct? What temperatures can I expect?November 30, 2007
aert says
Hi VenusJin The DOUBLE SEVENTH day reminded me of a text I had read in E. Haenisch's course of the gu3 wen2 with which I started on Chinese.Text no. 52 starts with the words jiu3 yue4 jiu3 ri4 wei2 chong2 jiu3 jie2 "the 9th day of the 9TH month is the DOUBLE NINE festival". It goes on to tell that on that day the teacher leads his pupils onto a hill and points out various landmarks. As this texts is quite old, I don't know if this custom still exists. BTW the last no. of The Economist (Nov. 24th-30th) has on p. 66 a piece on "China's public holidays".November 30, 2007
changye says
Hi aert, I also read about that in a Chinese textbook before. “重九节” is also known as “重阳节”. I don’t remember much about its origin.November 30, 2007
rupakmaharjan says
This web site very much help for me to learn chinese language. Thanks for chinese pod team.November 30, 2007
aert says
Hi Changye My Chnese-Dutch and Chinese-Russian dictionaries also have chong2 yang2 (besides chong2 jiu3 and zhong1 qiu1). I understand "double nine" and "mid autumn" but wondered what exactly "double yang2" refers to (sunshine? vigor?). My search had no other result than that yang2 with reference to seasons also occurs in yang2 chun1 "spring" with the interesting but unhelpful extensions yang2 chun1 bai2 xue3 "intellectual art and literature" and yang2 chun1 mian4 "simple noodle soup". Well, there was another result: an interesting half hour. Thanks!November 30, 2007
bill says
Hi Jenny, When my daughter was in the 2nd grade it snowed all day in Palo Alto. She wanted to stay home. I told her next time. It hasn't snowed since and that was in Feb. of 1976!! Her daughter is now in the 2nd grade. 也许要下雪了！这里很冷 ... BillNovember 30, 2007
woodstock says
Hi Chittywangwang, I hope your comment is not a reference of all Chinese in general. I am Chinese and used to live in the Catskill area in New York state and I skied for over 30 years. Of that 30 years I taught skiing for 15 years and ski boarding for 5 years.November 30, 2007
wjefferys says
I have a question about vocabulary. It concerns "ice skating." Many years ago I learned 滑冰 for this, and recently noticed (my wife and I are figure skating fans) that the world grand prix China cup competition was called 中国杯世界花样滑冰大奖赛 on the big banner at the rink. The dialog gives 溜冰 with the same translation (although the MDBG dictionary doesn't recognize this combination). So my question is, is there any difference in nuance between these two ways of saying "ice skating?" Are there contexts where one would be preferred to the other? 朱勇谋November 30, 2007
feng4huang2 says
LEIMENGDE Yes it is cold inside the houses in the South of China! It feels especially cold because there is never any reprieve--you are cold outside, you go inside and its still cold. So many people burn coal inside the house to keep warm--so you get to breathe in the great smell of coal--not to mention the health benefits!! On the upside there are some beautiful outdoor hotsprings to warm up in when you cant take any more cold. You can immerse yourself in red wine, hot chocolate, tea, coffee, beer, even bai jiu all on the side of a mountain-VERY NICE! Hope you enjoy your time here!!November 30, 2007
changye says
Hi aert, Let me try to explain about “重阳节”. According to the theory of Yin-Yang and the five elements (阴阳五行说), a traditional Chinese philosophy, the number nine is regarded as positive (阳), in other words, a lucky number. September 9 (九月九日), double nine, by the lunar calendar naturally means “double positive” and hence is called “重阳节”. The pronunciation of “九九” is the same as that of “久久”(long time), which also has a positive meaning. Interestingly, the number nine is a little shunned in Japan since it has the same reading as that of “苦”(suffering). As for me, I love “九”(jiu3) very much, because it always reminds me of “酒” (jiu3) and makes me feel happy.November 30, 2007
goulnik says
gaylon, I'll give you the Wenlin definitions and example, which should help (myself too) :December 1, 2007
aert says
Hi Changye Thanks a lot for the explanation! So the reference of yang2 is not "sunshine" or "vigor" but just "Yang".— another step on the way to learning to think the Chinese way. I have a long way to go yet. As you probably know, in the West 13 is the unlucky number and Friday the unlucky day, and in Holland 11 is the "gekkengetal" = "lunatic's number". I heard (but never checked myself) that some hotels in the USA have no room #13 and no 13th floor, to make it easier to accommodate the superstitious, and a Canadian friend of mine absolutely refused to travel by plane on any Fri. 13th. I don't know how these ideas arose. Possibly the fact that 5, 11and 13 are prime numbers has played a role.December 1, 2007
goulnik says
and now from 现代汉语词典 (汉英双语) :December 1, 2007
gaylon says
Awesome thanks Goulniky! Many thanks too for including some useful examples. Now off to 现学现卖！December 1, 2007
brims says
what's the skiing like near Beijing? is it expensive, and also, is it any good? also, anyone been skiing in Jilin? what's that like?December 1, 2007
tongmeng says
Grammar question, though it might be silly: Can I simply say "dong tian dao le" ( "winter arrived") ? "dong tian yao dao le" literally translated would be "winter demand/ant arreived". Sounds a bit funny *g*December 1, 2007
wjefferys says
I hope that one of our native speakers will say something about this. The difference may be subtle. My sense is that "dong tian dao le" just means that the arrival of winter has been completed, that is, it is now winter but was not before. It could have been just a day or two ago, or it could have been earlier. On the other hand, "dong tian yao dao le" has for me a greater sense of immediacy. That is, the arrival of winter is imminent or has just happened. (This would make sense in the context of the dialog). This is because 'yao' seems to me to be a shortened version of 'kuai yao', which would mean "it's about to happen." I have to admit that I haven't heard the 'yao' all by itself in such sentences, so I am not sure of this. I am going by what my gut says. 朱勇谋December 1, 2007
amber says
hi tongmeng and wjefferys, 冬天要到了。Dōngtiān yào dào le. It means that winter isn't here, yet. “还没有到” “Hái méiyǒu dào” This sentence structure means something is about to happen: 要...了 (yào...le) If you say: 冬天到了。Dōngtiān dào le. It simply means, winter has arrived.December 2, 2007
chittywangwang says
Hi Woodstock I hope you werent offended by my sweeping statement of Chinese Skiers, it was so very offensive. I hope you realise it was just in the name of blogging fun. and I hope you accept my congratualtions on your excellent skiing career. you rock.December 2, 2007
sushan says
Have to add 曲棍球 （qu1gun4qiu2), hockey. The bent stick game. Here in China I am reduced to listening to midday internet radio broadcasts of games. I admit I laughed at Chitty's first mention of Chinese skiers. Every mainlander I've gone skiing with in Canada were first or second timers. I remember one guy being amazed that so many children had the afternoon off to have fun instead of studying.December 3, 2007
agentchuck says
I really liked this lesson. Unfortunately I looked like a bit of an idiot because I laughed out loud when I heard the punch line. And if anyone honestly harbors beliefs that Canadians are better skiiers than Chinese, they have but to see me on the slopes. I'm sure that a newborn giraffe on skis, legs akimbo, would be more graceful.December 3, 2007
woodstock says
Hi Chittywangwang It was not much of a career. Because skiing got so expensive, the only way that I could afford to continue to ski was to teach. The pay was lousy. On busy weekends, there were lots of first timers and teaching beginners was no picnic. As a whole beginners in general and regardless of racial or ethnicity they’re all pretty clumsy.December 3, 2007
danjo says
I went skiing in China with foreign friends to celebrate Christmas last year, outside of Hami 哈密, Xinjiang. It was quite the trip from where we live, and upon arrival we were greeted with the a single slope, smaller than any bunny hill I had ever seen. But it was fun all the same. Most of the Chinese skiers seemed to be women interested in the assistance of the buff ski instructors when they fell.December 13, 2007
TingLan says
这个第一 留言 在 汉语： 今天在威新康星大街 真 的 是 天然 的 溜冰场 。 如果 开车的人 很笨蛋， 所以 很 危险。 我说的对。December 15, 2007
howard97 says
Hi All Regarding the English translations (on the PDF amd mp3's) PLEASE use international English rather than what I assume to be mid school American: "Tai Hao le" for example means just that "very good". Yet nearly every time we get it translated into AWESOME. I am sorry but when that idiom goes out of fashion your transcripts will look dated. Please try and use a general term. I know some people will yell at me BUT Idioms are this: dated, regionalist, sexist, ageist etc. I live in Korea and the idioms that adults have been taught (usually by American teachers) are just absurd. A lawyer friend telephoned his doctor and said "hey Dude, I gotta zit on my ass". True storey. I have lived in Asia long long time and I KNOW that my English has become internationalised and as a consequence everyone can understand my English: I am NOT a teacher but an Engineering Manager who has to be understood easily (mostly by my translators). We have many nationalaities on cpod and I am sure they search for these idioms into their own language and actually it is [mis]-translated on again. Awesome into German, French etc. I don't think so. Translate "Tai Hao le" into a standard pattern. Sorry to go on a bit but I needed to to speak out on this. Actually Jenny speaks the best English without doubt; her vocabulary is perfect, followed by John and although Ken is very enthusiastic he has the worst. He is not sure which English to use and fools himself into being modern "hip" Still Chinapod is probably the best learning centre in the world (or was that Carlsberg?) Howard97December 16, 2007
goulnik says
it's true, definitions are sometimes odd, in this lesson for instance, 滑雪场 (huáxuěchǎng) ski hill => ski(ing) slope. question to CPod, 怎么说 ski resort, 滑雪度假村 (huáxuě dùjiàcūn) ?December 21, 2007
kimiik says
Speaking of 度假村, It's not always some sort quiet and rustic vacation village as you can imagine from the definition. I see some kind of alteration to the original meaning.December 21, 2007