This Semester's Discussion Group

Hello all,

I am sorry to say that I will not be hosting the discussion group this semester. My work load is very heavy and my priorities dictate that, as always, class comes first. However, as for practicing outside of class, there are still options. First are the Blue Wall tutoring sessions. Stephanie Tan has organized several fluent speakers who will be at the Blue Wall at a variety of different times every week. For more information, contact her or any 中文老师。Also I beleive that the language partner system might still be in place.

Lastly, I would like to keep this blog up and running. I think we can all agree that Ge Daozhen has done amazing things with this resource! So I think this should remain as a useful resource for anyone studying or just interested in Chinese.

I think that's all for now. Thanks to everyone who helped make the group possible last semester and I hope to see you guys around campus this semester!

Bri

How to Write in Pinyin 24/7

Here is a pinyin font for your computer...

Pinyin Input

Enjoy!

When is the Discussion Group Meeting This Semester?

Talk amongst yourselves... :-)

Kangxi Radical 94, 犬 (犭)

犬 quǎn means dog and depicts a person with something on his shoulder.

















The Standing Version of this radical looks like this, 犭, and really is a standing dog (minus the tail)...

Spongebob Procrastinates in Chinese

For your viewing pleasure...

Want to see the same episode in English? Click here.

For beginners, it's hard to watch Spongebob in Chinese without picking up certain basic vocabulary like pencil, pants, etc. :-)

Inauguration Vocabulary and Another Cool Phrase

Happy Inauguration Eve! 我非常兴奋阿！ If you are as excited about the inauguration as I am then you will probably need some additional Chinese vocabulary for talking to your friends about the ceremony and about our new president.
President -
总统 (zǒng tǒng)
...so American President is, of course, 美国总统.
Vice-President -
副总统(fù zǒng tǒng)
Inauguration (Ceremony) -
就职典礼 (jiùzhídiǎnlǐ)


Barack Obama -
巴拉克·奥巴马 (bālākè·àobāmǎ)
奥 means profound.
巴 (which appears twice in his name) means hope.
Biden - 拜登'(bài dēng)
First Lady - 第一夫人(dìyī fūrén)
Michelle Obama - 米歇尔·奥巴马 (Mǐxiē ěr·àobāmǎ)
White House - 白宫(Báigōng)
Bush Jr. - 小布什(xiǎobùshí)
Suitcases/Luggage - 行李(xíngli) :-P

And for something almost entirely unrelated, here is the cool phrase of the day...

你想左了。 You're not thinking about it the right way/You've got the wrong idea.

Toilet Themed Restaurant

Someone posted about this...ummm...disturbing? restaurant on a Chinesepod group.