Hanbridge Mandarin Chinese Online Learning

Chinese people calculate a person’s age according to the lunar calendar (yīn lì in Chinese;阴历) without zeros, meaning that a newborn’s age is one. Traditionally, Chinese people do not celebrate a birthday every year; rather, birthday celebrations in the form of elaborate banquets are reserved for the elderly and infants. The very old and very young receive special consideration, because in Chinese culture, the elderly are held in very high esteem, and it’s a family’s responsibility to preserve the bloodline with succeeding generations. Following are some of the top Chinese birthday traditions and tips. “ The most important birthdays: A child’s first birthday is very important, and can be celebrated on either the lunar calendar or the Western calendar (阳历 yáng lì). Usually, the parents will put on a big banquet for family and friends. Long noodles (长寿面 in Chinese, cháng shòu miàn in pinyin)are always served up, as they represent long life, as well as red dyed eggs, w...

For over 3000 years, the Chinese have been creating a rich, diverse, and flavorful food culture. Many different places in China have many different characteristic dishes and techniques. 在中国几千年的历史进程当中，创造了丰富多样的美食文化。中国的许多地方拥有着许多不同特色的美食品种及烹饪方法。 Cooking Methods 烹饪方法 1. Become familiar with the several types of "frying" in Chinese cooking: 1.先来熟悉一下几样跟用油有关的烹饪方法： 炸 (zhá): Frying/ Deep-frying; Full or partial immersion cooking in hot oil or fat 炸：把食材放在煮沸的油中烹熟。 煎 (jiān): Pan frying; Cooking in a pan with a light coating of oil or liquid and allowing the food to brown. 煎：把食材放在少量的热油里煎熟至棕色。 炒 (chǎo): Stir-fry; Cooking ingredients at hot oil and stirring quickly to completion. This technique and bao (爆炒, 油爆) are commonly known in English as stir frying. This technique uses higher heat than that of Sautéing. 炒：把东西放在锅里翻炒直至炒熟。 2. Some cooking methods require a great deal of time: 2.接下来是一些很费时的烹饪方法： 煨 (wēi): Baking in a clay pot; Slowly cooking a ceramic vessel of b...

It is difficult to place a number on the total number of Chinese characters. But according to some researchers, the number could be as many as 100,000. A number this large makes it seems completely impossible to learn all of the characters. Before you get all carried away, why don't you just take a moment to relax…because I have good news for you: The number of characters used in the majority of daily life situations is no more than a few thousand. In fact, the 1,000 most frequently used characters cover up to 92% of the written materials in Chinese. The 2,000 most frequently used cover 98% and if you learn the 3,000 most frequently used characters; you will be able to read 99% (that’s just about everything by the way) of Chinese written materials. A little perspective offers some pretty good hope, eh? Learning three thousand characters, or even 1,000 for that matter, will take some time.  However, with dedication and perseverance, you can make it! Before you dive in, there is one ...