HSK - The Summer Palace

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The Summer Palace

( 2008-07-08 )

The Summer Palace (Yiheyuan), a world-renowned imperial garden located in Northwestern Beijing, is a masterpiece of Chinese landscaping that harmoniously incorporates the works of man and nature. The Palace, which served four generations of the imperial family, is now a popular resort for people
from all walks of life.

Covering 293 hectares, the palace mainly consists of Longevity Hill and Kunming Lake, and boasts more than 3,000 various buildings. About three quarters of the garden is covered by a lake.

The Summer Palace has a history of over 800 years. Early in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), an imperial palace named Golden Hill Palace was built on the present site of the Summer Palace. In 1750, with 4.48 million taels of silver, Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) built the Garden of
Clear Ripples, renaming it Longevity Hill to celebrate his mother's birthday.

In 1860 the site was burned down by invading allied forces from Great Britain and France. In 1888, Empress Dowager Cixi, with a fund of 30 million taels of silver embezzled from the Imperial Navy, restored the grand garden. The construction lasted 10 years. After its completion, Cixi renamed it
Yiheyuan, the Garden of Peace and Harmony. In 1900, the Allied Eight Powers again attacked the site, this time destroying all of big temples and halls at the back of the Longevity Hill, with only one remaining. When Cixi returned to Beijing in 1903, the full-scale restoration again took place. The
site was rebuilt in time for the empress to enjoy a few more summers and was finally opened to the public in 1923.

In the past, to avoid the intense heat of Beijing summers, the Qing imperial family left the Forbidden City to stay at the Summer Palace. Three-fourths of the palace is covered by Kunming Lake, whose shape and size have been altered many times by successive landscape architects. The lake is
central to the overall design of the park.

The Summer Palace is an outstanding example of imperial, as well as private gardens, with features of both northern and southern China. It is the best-preserved and largest of all Chinese imperial gardens. The palace integrates the natural landscape of hills and open water with man-made features,
such as pavilions, halls, palaces, temples and bridges, into a harmonious and aesthetically exceptional whole.

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Chinese Studies - Wei Qi

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Wei Qi

( 2008-07-07 )

Having developed in China between 3,000 and 4,000 years ago, Go (called Wei Qi in China) contends with backgammon for the right to be called the oldest game still played in its original form. Today it is played by millions in Asia and thousands elsewhere.

The game has had ups and downs in China, where Confucius looked on it as a waste of time, the late Chairman Mao Zedong required his generals to study it.

In ancient China, Go was perceived as the popular game of the aristocracy, while Xiangqi (Chinese chess) was the game of the masses. Go was considered one of the four cultivated arts of the Chinese scholar gentleman, along with calligraphy, painting and playing the musical instrument guqin.

The design of a Go set is prescribed with a compelling simplicity dating back through centuries. The white stones, 180 in number, and the black, 181, must be round. The thickness may vary among sets, with thicker being better. Inexpensive sets include glass or plastic stones; in the best sets, the
white are clamshell and the black are slate. But there the possibilities for variation end. A stone is meant to be held between the tips of the index and middle fingers, and the basic geometry cannot be changed.

There is more flexibility in the design of the board, although any good set will have a board made of wood, and the appearance of the playing surface does not invite alteration. Just as a chess board must have 64 squares arranged in an 8 x 8 matrix, a full-size Go board must have a grid of 19
horizontal and 19 vertical lines. (Simplified versions of the game can be played on a 9 x 9 or on a 13 x 13 board; it is strongly recommended that beginners learn on a 9 x 9 board.)

A Go set is not complete without bowls to hold the stones. Like the board, the bowls are typically made of wood (although plastic ones are available). The shape is a somewhat flattened sphere, with the lid shaped like a saucer. During a game, the upturned lid is used to hold stones that are
captured from the opponent.

At first glance, the board may appear to be square, but it is not. The standard size is roughly 16 1/2 in. by 18 in. It is always slightly longer than it is wide, just enough to prevent perfect symmetry. Thus when a game is finished and the black and white stones almost cover the board, the round
stones butt together, reflecting the nature of the game: two players use their respective stones to compete for territory on the surface of the board, staking out areas that they want to own, while the opponent tries to push and squeeze those areas in order to gain more territory for himself.

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* Environmental Emblem of Beijing 2008 ( 07-10 )
* Emblem of the Beijing Olympic Torch Relay ( 07-10 )
* Emblem of the Beijing 2008 OYC ( 07-10 )
* Emblem of the Beijing Olympic Cultural Festival ( 07-10 )

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Chinese Character - Emergency Numbers

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Emergency Numbers

( 2008-06-27 )

Medical first aid: 120

Police-reporting service center of Beijing Bureau of Public Security: 110

Fire alarm: 119

Query of telephone numbers: 114

You needn't worry about personal unfamiliarity with Beijing since we'll be constantly at your side and always at your service.

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* Beijing Paralympics Emblem ( 07-10 )
* Environmental Emblem of Beijing 2008 ( 07-10 )
* Emblem of the Beijing Olympic Torch Relay ( 07-10 )
* Emblem of the Beijing 2008 OYC ( 07-10 )
* Emblem of the Beijing Olympic Cultural Festival ( 07-10 )

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* Museums to exhibit 1,000 national treasures
* Creating new rituals, Beijing style
* Marine mural unveiled in capital
* Illustrated Olympic giant panda story comes out
* Ten recommended Beijing shopping streets

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* Dance Along the River during the Qingming Festival
* Concert by Macao Chinese Orchestra
* Kataklo Athletic Dance Theatre
* UK Contemporary Exhibition
* The Russia Star Ballet

Olympic on Beijing's Axis

　 Online Tour

============================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================================

| About us | E-mail | Contact |

Constructed by .cn
Copyright 2003 Ministry of Culture, P.R.China. All rights reserved

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Chinese Character - Sweet Music from beyond the Tomb

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Exchange>Exhibition

Sweet Music from beyond the Tomb

A performer plays the bell chimes (bianzhong) on the exhibition.

A series of stone bell chimes (bianzhong), a drum shaped like a red-crowned crane and a long-lost 10-string zither (shi xuan qin) are among the 2,000-year-old musical instruments on display at the Minhang Museum.

Around 70 ancient instruments, including bamboo flutes, pan flutes and other musical objects, date from before the Qin Dynasty (2,000-221 BC). They were excavated in the Leigudun Tombs in Hubei Province.

All the musical instruments are on display for the first time in Shanghai.

The Tomb Group of Leigudun is one of the most important archeological discoveries in China in the 20th century. Leigudun was the cemetery of the Zeng Kingdom of the early Warring States Period (476-221 BC). Today it lies in the northwest suburb of Suizhou City. Around 70 tombs still are being
excavated.

The tomb of the duke, Zeng Houyi, is the biggest, 220 square meters on a slope of Hongsha Cliff. It has four compass-point chambers that are partitioned by huge timbers. The two-layer coffin was painted and decorated. Twenty one people were buried alive to serve and entertain the spirit in the
afterlife - mainly young girls and women, 13 to 25.

In 1977, construction workers happened upon the tomb and found around 7,000 objects, such as musical instruments, weapons, gold and silver vessels, ornaments, jade containers and articles for horses and stables.

In 1981, another large tomb was discovered nearby, presumably that of the duke's wife. It contained more than 2,770 objects in bronze, jade and gold - and the world-famous bell chimes carved from stone almost 2,400 years ago old. It is the one on display in Shanghai.

The well-preserved chimes can still be played. They were hung in a row and struck by musicians, each sounding a different chime.

In addition to the ancient bells, many other well-designed ancient instruments were also unearthed, important for the study of music in ancient China. The instruments in the second tomb and those in the duke's tomb represent a complete ensemble from the time.

Until the excavation, some of the instruments had only been seen in ancient books and musicologists believed there were no relics as the instrument had not been handed down from generations. These include certain bamboo pan flutes and the 10-string zither.

The exhibition will run until next Wednesday and then move to the Beijing Olympic Village.

Date: through May 28, 9am-5pm

Address: 5/F, 255 Xinjian Rd E., at the Metro Line 1 Xinzhuang Station,Shanghai

Admission: Free

Tel: 6414-2162

Editor:Wang Nan

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Learn Chinese - Chinese Orchestra to Perform for Pope in Vatican

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Exchange>Stage

Chinese Orchestra to Perform for Pope in Vatican

The Beijing-based China Philharmonic Orchestra arrived in Rome on May 4 on a performing tour of three European cities, the first leg of which is the Vatican.

Under the baton of artistic director Yu Long, the orchestra will perform for Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday at the Paul VI Audience Hall, the Vatican's principal auditorium.

Considering the special venue and that the Pope is a big Mozart fan, the concert will start with Mozart's Requiem while the well-known Chinese folk song Jasmine Flower will be the grand finale.

The orchestra will be accompanied by the Shanghai Opera House Chorus.

"It is a people-to-people exchange event through culture and art," said an official from the Foreign Ministry. "Music is a universal language that can bring together people from different countries, and from different religious and cultural backgrounds. We hope the concert is a big success."

Vatican Radio, which first reported the concert, said: "Music is confirming its role as a language and the most precious medium for dialogue among peoples and cultures."

"I certainly feel very excited. It is a historic visit. Although we played in Rome in 2004, this will be the orchestra's first appearance at the Vatican," conductor Yu told China Daily.

According to Yu, the concert was initiated by the Chinese side and the performance was planned relatively quickly.

Yu, 44, the Shanghai-born and German-trained conductor, likened the orchestra's visit to "ping pong diplomacy," referring to the visit by American table tennis players to China in 1971, which opened the door of China-US exchanges.

The philharmonic performed Mozart's Requiem at St Joseph's Church (Dongtang Cathedral) two years ago. On April 8, the orchestra and Shanghai Opera House Chorus presented the same concert at St Ignatius Cathedral in Shanghai to an audience of more than 1,000, to mark the church's 400th anniversary.

Yu said that helped pave the way for the coming performance at Vatican.

"That opened up this kind of territory," Yu said, adding that such a concert provides a common vehicle for promoting dialogue and peace.

By Chen Jie

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Free Chinese Lesson - Dan (female)

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Exchange>Exhibition

Dan (female)

Mu Guiying

Mu Guiying Ready to Fight as Marshal

Exploring the Valley

Mu Guiying was a famous woman general of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). Mu Guiying was reluctant to accept the assignment of the Emperor for her to fight as marshal in the war out of dissatisfaction with the unfair treatment rendered by the imperial court to the generals of the Yang family.
She later took her grandmother She Taijun's advice and changed her mind by leading her troops into the battlefield.

Distressed and heart-broken upon hearing the sad and surprising news that her beloved husband and Chief Marshal, Yang Zongbao, was dead in battlefield, Mu Guiying vowed to protect the frontier, in order to carry out her husband's wish, by taking the lead in exploring the deep valley. As a result,
she found a path to the enemy's barrack, which led to the defeat of the enemy troop. "Exploring the Valley" is an act from "Woman Generals of the Yang Family".

Repertoire: Mu Guiying Ready to Fight as Marshal, Exploring the Valley

She Taijun

She Taijun was a famous woman general of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). Under the circumstances when Yang Zongbao, her grandson, was shot dead in battlefield and the frontier was endangered, She Taijun, with state security as her top priority, led woman generals of the Yang family to fight
courageously in battlefield, defeated the enemy of Western Xia and returned triumphantly.

Repertoire: Women Generals of the Yang Family

Yue's Mother

She is the mother of Yue Fei, famous general of the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and national hero fighting against the invasion of the State of Jin. When Yue Fei left the army and went home out of indignation for the marshal, Yue's mother gave him earnest teachings about national responsibility, and
urged him to return to the army and join the fight against enemy. She carved the characters such as "loyalty to the nation" on her son's back as a reminder to his determination in safeguarding national security.

Repertoire:Tattooing Words on the Back

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Learn Chinese online - Exhibition of Chinese Coins

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Exchange>Exhibition

Exhibition of Chinese Coins

Date of Shipment: 2004.4

Total Packages:6 boxes,

Time of Previous Exhibitions

Venues

2004.5-05.5

Turkey

2005.6-8

Malta

2005.9-12

Croatia

2006.1-12

Serbia and Montenegro

2007.2-7

Poland

2007.7-12

Czech Republic

Time of Upcoming Exhibitions

Venues

2008

Republic of Korea

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