Vienna

To Have So Much Fun That One Forgets About Shu

Liou Shan, son of Liou Bei, was ruler of the kingdom of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms Period. He was a coward who cared only about amusing himself and knew nothing about ruling a country.

One time, the kingdom of Wei attacked Shu and took Liou Shan prisoner.

The people of Wei gave Liou Shan the title "Duke of peace and Happiness", and took him to live in their capital. Liou Shan had so much fun in the Wei capital that he soon forgot he was the ruler of a defeated kingdom. One day, Sz-ma Jau, a very powerful Wei general, invited Liou Shan over to dinner. Sz-ma Jau intenetionally hired some people to perform traditional Shu songs and plays at dinner, in order to insult Liou Shan. When Liou Shan's subordinates heard the music and saw the plays of their homeland, they grew very sad. Only Liou Shan was completely unaffected, and continued drinking wine and being merry. When Sz-ma Jau asked him, "Don't you miss Shu?" Liou Shan laughed and replied, "I'm having so much fun here; of course I don't miss Shu." And so Sz-ma Jau had even less respect for Liou Shan.

Today, when a person is enjoying himself so much that he forgets about his home and his work, we can say that he "is having so much fun that he has forgotten about Shu."

乐不思蜀

    「乐不思蜀」是起源于我国三国时代的故事。刘备去世后，由儿子刘禅继位，刘禅的小名叫阿斗，是个愚笨无能的人。一开始，由于有诸葛亮等有才能的人辅佐，所以还没有什么大问题。后来，这些贤人先后去世，蜀国也就很快的被魏国灭了，刘禅因此投降被俘。他投降后，被安排到魏国的京城许昌居住，并且封为安乐公。有一次，魏国的大将军司马昭请他喝酒，当筵席进行得酒酣耳热时。司马昭说：「安乐公，您离开蜀地已经很久了，因此我今天特别安排了一场富有蜀国地方色彩的舞蹈，让你回味回味啊！」这场舞蹈跳得刘禅身旁的部属们非常难过，更加想念他们的家乡。然而唯独安乐公刘禅依然谈笑自若，丝毫没有难过的表情。司马昭问道：「你还想不想回西蜀的家乡呢？」刘禅答道：「这里有歌有舞，又有美酒好喝，我怎么舍得回西蜀国呢！」很不错的事唷!

The Old Horse Knows The Way

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Huan of the Kingdom of Ch'i was at war with the Kingdom of Gu-ju. The king of Gu-ju ordered his supreme commander to pretend to surrender to Duke Huan. So the commander of the Gu-ju army, while pretending to let Duke Huan's troops catch up to him, actually led them into a great desert known as Han-hai. Right at that time, there was a strong wind which blew the sand and stones all around and made it impossible to distinguish which direction was which. Duke Huan's troops, unable to go anywhere, realized that they had been tricked. Just then, Guan Jung of Ch'i remembered that borses are always able to find their way home, no matter how far they have strayed. So at his suggestion, the army let a few of the old horses go, and then followed where they went. And as expected, the horses led the army out of Han-hai. Today, a person who is very experienced at any given thing may be refered to as "the old horse who knows the way.

老马识途

    春秋时代，有一次，管仲和隰朋跟随齐桓公出征孤竹国，春天去，冬天回，归途中迷失了道路。管仲说：「可以让老马发挥作用了。」于是让几匹老马在前面走，队伍跟在后面，终于找到了道路。走在山里，队伍找不到水喝。隰朋说：「蚂蚁冬天住在山南，夏天住在山北，只要顺着蚂蚁窝向下挖就会找到水源。」果然挖到了水。

    象管仲这样能干、隰朋这样聪明的人，也知道要向老马和蚂蚁学习，可是今天有许多人，不知道自己知识浅薄，也不愿向别人学习，不是错得很厉害吗？

    「老马识途」比喻有经验的人对事情比较熟悉。

To Hang Books On The Ox's Horn

In ancient times, there lived a boy named Li Mi, who loved to read. He never wasted a single minute, but spent all of his spare time every day reading.

One day, Li Mi had to go to a faraway place to take care of some business. Not wanting to waste any time on the way there, he took all of the books that he wanted to read and hung them on one of the horns of his ox. He then climbed up onto his ox's back, and with a book in one hand and the reins in the other, began his journey.

On the way, Li Mi was spotted by Yang Su, a very well-known scholar of the time. Not wishing to interrupt Li Mi while he was so absorbed in his reading, Yang Su instead followed behind the ox, waiting until Li Mi looked up to get a new book. Yang Su then rode up to Li Mi and greeted him, praising him highly for his attitude towards reading.

Today, we can say that a person who is son diligent in his studies that he finds a way to make use of every minute is "Hanging Books On The Ox's Horn."

牛角挂书

    古时候，有一个人名叫李密，非常喜欢读书。每天从早到晚从来不浪费一分钟，所有的时间都在看书。

    有一次，要到远地方去办事，他担心在路上躭误时间太多。出门前想了一个可以一面赶路一面读书的好办法。自己用草编了个鞍子放在牛背上，把要看的书挂在牛角上。就这样他可以舒服地骑在牛背上，一手拿著书，一手牵着缰绳，一边赶路一边看书。在路上刚好遇到个很有地位的人─杨素。他看到李密专心读书的样子，不想打搅，就跟在李密后面，一直等到李密转头想换一本书时，才上前打招呼，还连连夸奖李密专心读书的态度。

     今天我们可用「牛角挂书」来形容一个人找到方法来用尽他的每分每秒学习。

The Old Man Who Lost His Horse

There was once an old man who lived with his only son at the border of the state. They were fond of horses and often let them graze freely in the meadow.

One time a servant reported to the old man, "A horse is missing! It must have gone into the neighbouring state."

His friends felt sorry for him, but the old man was not bothered at all by the loss. As a matter of fact, he said, "Who knows! The loss may bring us good fortune!"
a few months later, a strange thing happened. Not onl did the missing horse return home safely, it also brought back with it a fine horse from the neighbouring state.

When his friends heard the new, they congratulated the old man on his good luck. But the old man said, "Who knows! This may bring us ill fortune!"
One day, when the old man's son was riding the fine horse, he accidentally fell off the horse, broke his leg, and was crippled.

Many friends came to comfort the old man, but the old man was njot the least disturbed by the accident. "Who knows! This may bring us good fortune after all!" he said.

A year later, when the neighbouring state sent troops across the border, all the young and strong men were drafted to fight the invaders, and most of them got killed. The old man's son was not drafted because he was crippled and so his life was spared.

塞翁失马

    从前在边界的地方，住了一个老人与他的独生子。他们喜欢马匹，常常让他们的马四处吃草。

    有次，仆人回报老人说：「有匹马逃走了，相信是跑到邻国去。」

老人的朋友都替他感到可惜，但老人并没有为此事而烦恼。并说：「天晓得！说不定这会给我们带来好运。」

    过了几个月，有件奇怪的事发生，老人失去的马不仅平安回家，而且带了一匹邻国的骏马回来。朋友知道了，都来道贺，但老人说：「天晓得！说不定这会给我们带来厄运。」

    一天，当他的儿子骑着骏马到处驰骋时，不慎坠马断腿，成了跛子。

    朋友都来慰问他，但老人一点也没有把此事放在心上，并说：「天晓得，说不定这会因祸得福呢！」

     过了一年，邻国举兵入侵，所有壮丁都被征去应战，十之八九都阵亡。老人的儿子，因为残废没有被征，因而得以平安无事。

XiǎoLì：      Hē xǐjiǔ。Hǎo pénɡyou jiéhūn，yāoqǐnɡ wǒ zuò bànniánɡ。

XiǎoYuán： Gōnɡxǐ nǐ de pénɡyou。Tāmen zěnme rènshi de？

XiǎoLì：       Liǎnɡrén qīnɡméi-zhúmǎ，érqiě hái méndānɡhùduì。

XiǎoYuán： Zhème bānpèi？Nà yīdìnɡ huì bǎiniánhǎohé，báitóudàolǎo la。

XiǎoLì：Shì'a。Zhènɡhǎo xiànɡnǐ qǐnɡjiào yīxià，zuò bànniánɡ yīnɡɡāi zhùyì nǎxiē wèntí？

XiǎoYuán：  Bànniánɡ hé bànlánɡ zhǔyào shì xiézhù xīnniánɡ hé xīnlánɡ wánchénɡ jiéhūn 
小袁：         伴娘        和    伴郎     主要    是   协助     新娘    和    新郎     完成       结婚  
                   lǐyí de。Bǐfanɡshuō zǒulù shí bānɡ xīnniánɡ tí yīxià hūnshā，jiāohuàn  jièzhi  
                   礼仪的。  比方说     走路  时   帮      新娘   提  一下  婚纱，    交换     戒指  
                   shí bānɡzhe  dì  yīxià  。

XiǎoLì：       Xūyào bānɡ xīnniánɡ dàijiǔ mɑ？

XiǎoYuán：  Hāhā，xiǎnɡ de měi，jiāobēijiǔ dānɡrán shì xīnniánɡ xīnlánɡ běnrén hē le。

XiǎoLì：Nǐ  wùhui le，wǒde yìsi  shì xīnniánɡ xiànɡ bīnkè jìnɡjiǔ shí yàobuyào wǒ dàijiǔ。

XiǎoYuán： Gèdì fēnɡsú bùyīyànɡ，wǒmen zhèr shì bùxūyào，érqiě hái yǔnxǔ xīnniánɡ 
小袁：         各地   风俗    不一样，   我们    这儿 是   不需要， 而且 还  允许    新娘
                   xīnlánɡ jiǔbēi lǐ chānshuǐ。Dàn wǒ yě tīnɡshuō yǒuxiē dìfɑnɡ huì bǎ bànniánɡ
                    新郎    酒杯 里    掺水。   但   我  也    听说      有些    地方   会 把    伴娘
                   bànlánɡ dōu ɡuànzuì。

XiǎoLì：       Bùhuì bɑ？Zhème cǎn'a。

XiǎoYuán：  Duìle，bùyào wànɡle zhǔnbèi hónɡbāo。

Vocabularly

随大流

Do as the others do

【注音】suí dà liú

【解释】从众心理是一种普遍心理，跟大家一样，不会出现俗话说的“枪打出头鸟”。

“To do as the others do” is a common mentality，so that one will not court danger as the saying goes：“the bird out of the group will be shot.”

【例子】

例：做服装设计的必须有创新意识，不能随大流。

Ex.：As a fashion designer, one must pursue novelty instead of following the trend.

死心眼儿

Rigid or one-track mind

【注音】sǐ xīn yǎnr

【解释】过去古人认为心是思想的器官，而且聪明人的心是有空间的，笨人的心是死板一块。因此有“死心眼儿”和“心眼儿活”的说法。

In the old time, people used to believe that heart is the organ for thinking, and smart people have space in their hearts while stupid people’s heart is a dead plate. Therefore, we have expressions of si xin yanr and xin yanr huo to describe the two types of people.

【例子】

例：大家都说老李是死心眼儿，没有一点灵活性。

Ex.：Everyone says that Lao Li is one-track minded. He has the least flexibility.

dà wàn er
大 腕 儿
Person with high skills or rich experiences

dà kuăn
大 款
Person of wealth

xià găng
下 岗
Lose one’s job

bèi chăo yóu yù
被 炒 鱿 鱼
To be fired

pào bā
泡 吧
Indulge oneself in spending long time in bar, café or discotheque

Lesson 2

wăng liàn
网 恋
Love on the Internet; cyber love

wăng luò chōng làng
网 络 冲 浪
Surfing the net; net surfing

wăng shàng gòu wù
网 上 购 物
Online shopping

xu ni xiàn shí
虚 拟 现 实
Virtual reality

Lesson 3

qín liú găn
禽 流 感
Bird flu

yu shí jù jìn
与 时 俱 进
Keeping up with the times

zhī shi jīng jì
知 识 经 济
Knowledge economy

zhí zhèng néng lì
执 政 能 力
The Party's ruling capabilities

kē xué fā zhăn guān
科 学 发 展 观
To take the view of scientific development; to view things from the perspective of scientific development

lesson 4

fēng huì
峰 会
Summit meeting or conference

zhu dă
主 打
Main; chief; major; the focus of

rén qì
人 气
Public or popular feeling or opinion

xià hăi
下 海
To engage in business; to become a business person

tiào cáo
跳 槽
To regularly move from one job to another; to job-hop

Nanjing has a long history. The Six dynasties of the Wu, the Eastern Jin, The song, The Qi, the Liang and the Chen, chose Nanjing as their capital. Later on, the Southern Tang Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (1852-1864AD) and the Republic of China also made Nanjing their capital. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Nanjing became the capital of Jiangsu Province and the largest comprehensive industrial city of this province.

Nanjing witnessed the triangular balance of power of the Three Kingdoms (220-280AD), the ups and downs of six dynasties, the insult inflicted on contemporary China, as the Xinhai Revolution of1911 and the War of Resistance against Japan (1937-1945). After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, it has experienced rapid economic growth. It is one of the biggest open industrial cities in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and the coastal areas of East China. It is also a famous water-land transportation hub.

The Zhonghua Gate
The Zhonghua Gate is the biggest city gate in Nanjing, which is made up of three urn-like city walls and four gates. It is 128m long from south to north and 118.5m wide from east to west, covering an area of 15168m2. The wall, 21.45m high, is a magnificent project of complicated structure and fine design. It takes a significant position in China’s history of city wall construction.

The Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum
The Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum is built to commemorate Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the great pioneer of the democratic revolution in China. This mausoleum, like a big bell, ascends from the south to the north by 392 steps. The whole building complex is designed to display a solemn and majestic air, known as “the best mausoleum in the history of Chinese contemporary architecture”.

The Qinhuai River
The Qinhuai River, a famous scenic spot, consists of the inner river and outer river. The inner river is in the city of Nanjing, which is the busiest place along the ten-li Qinhuai. The biggest attraction of Qinhuai River is the lantern boats which can be traced back to the Ming Dynasty. All the boats on the river, big or small, hang colorful lanterns up and everyone visiting here enjoys the pleasure of taking a ride on the boats.

The Confucius Temple
Located on the northern bank of the Qinhuai River, The Confucius Temple was first built in 1034, and was originally a place for enshrining and offering sacrifice for Confucius. Now it has become a place where local people can have some cultural activities. The construction of this ancient complex, including the surrounding teahouses, restaurants and stores were all built in the style of the Ming and Qing dynasties. More than 200 different traditional foods and local delicacies are available there.

中国古都之南京

南京历史悠久，东吴、东晋和南朝的宋、齐、梁、陈（史称六朝）以及南唐、明、太平天国、中华民国共１０个朝代和政权在此建都。中华人民国和国成立后，南京为江苏省省会，成为江苏最大的综合工业城市。
南京目睹过三国鼎立和六朝兴亡，见证过近代中国的屈辱，也经历了辛亥革命和抗日战争。中华人民共和国成立后，南京发展迅速，是长江下游、华东沿海地区对外开放的大工业城市之一，也是著名的水路交通枢纽。

中华门
中华门是南京城墙的最大城门，由三道瓮城和四道城门组成，南北长128米，东西宽118.5米，总面积达15168平方米。城墙高21.45米，工程宏伟，结构复杂，设计巧妙，在中国城墙建筑史上占有极其重要的地位。

中山陵
中山陵是中国伟大的民族革命先行者孙中山先生的陵墓。陵墓像一个大钟，由南往北山势逐渐升高，共有392级台阶。整个建筑布局严整、庄严雄伟，为誉为“中国近代史上的第一陵。”

秦淮河
秦淮河分内河和外河。内河在南京城内，是十里秦淮最繁华的地方。秦淮风光最著名的是自明代沿袭至今的灯船。河上的船，不论大小，一律悬挂彩灯。到秦淮河游玩的人，都可以乘灯船为乐事。

夫子庙
夫子庙位于秦淮河北岸，始建于1034年，原是供奉和祭祀孔子的地方，现在已成为群众文化活动场所。夫子庙古建筑群，包括周围的茶馆、酒楼、店铺等建筑都是明清风格。这里的传统小吃特别多，品种不下200

You must know Beijing well.

你一定非常熟悉北京。

A: How many times have you been to Beijing?

A: 你来北京多少次了？

B: Lots of times. Sometimes for business, sometimes for holiday.

B: 很多次了。有时来出差，有时来度假。

A:You must know Beijing well now.

A:你现在对北京一定非常了解了。

B: Well, I get to know it better every time I visit.

B: 哦，我一次比一次更了解北京。

A: That's good. I think it's better when you know a city well.

A: 好。我想当你了解一个城市的时候感觉更好。

B: Yes. You enjoy it  more. It's more interesting.

B: 是的。你会更喜欢它。它会更有趣。

1. To ask someone how often they have done something, you can say: How many times...e.g. How many times have you been to Beijing? 要问某人做某事做了多少次，你可说：How many times..(多少次...)。例如：How many times have you been to Beijing? (你去过北京几次？)

2. If you want to describe how welll you know a place, such as a city, you can say: I get to know it better every time I vist. 如果你想描述你对某地非常熟悉，比如一个城市，你可以说：I get to know it better every time I visit (我一次比一次更了解它)。

 
Chinese opera performers mainly have two methods of makeup: masks and facial painting. The frequent on-stage change of masks, without the audience noticing, is a special technique, known as changing faces. Opera facial painting falls into four main categories -- personality makeup (facial designs, painted faces or Lian Pu), decorative makeup (decorated faces), mood makeup (changing facial designs), and pictographic makeup (animal-like facial designs).

 Lian Pu

Personality makeup, or Lian Pu, refers to facial designs for Jing and Chou roles. It originated from daily life experience, describing such changes of expression as white for fear, red for shyness, dark for suntan, and sallow for illness. Most facial designs attach great importance to the eyes and eyebrows. Lian Pu has formed a complete
system, such as the facial designs of Peking Opera.
 
Red, yellow, white, black, purple, green and silver are the main colors used for facial designs to represent different characters. For instance, red stands for loyal, courageous and upright people; white for sinister and cunning officials; and golden and silvery colors for gods and ghosts.
The facial designs for the Jing roles are made by painting, powdering and coloring in the basic forms of Zheng Lian (keeping the basic face pattern), San Kuai Wa Lian (three-section face) and Sui Lian (fragmentary face). These types are widely used to represent generals, officials, heroes, gods and ghosts.
The Chou actors can be recognized by the patch of white in various shapes (cube-, date pit-or bat-shaped) painted around the eyes and nose. Sometimes these patches are outlined in black, hence the term Xiao Hua Lian (partly painted face). The Chou roles fall into the following two categories: Wen Chou (civil) and Wu Chou (martial). 
京剧脸谱
 
 
 
京剧脸谱
脸谱是京剧的一种表演手段，脸谱历史很悠久。
脸谱来源于生活：生活上常常形容人的脸色的变化，比如说：吓得煞白，臊得通红，晒得漆黑，生病的人形容脸色蜡黄等等。脸谱就是把这种夸张的说法，再用夸张的手法画在脸上。用来描写人物的正直、刚烈。常常画红脸，比如关羽。奸险狡诈之人如曹操，常画白脸，而铁面无私的包公形象则用黑脸来代表，等等。各种人物的脸谱有一定的规矩，这些在京剧中把脸上勾勒出形象，称之为脸谱。脸谱是京剧的一种表演手段，脸谱历史很悠久。 

是人皆有出头日 Every dog has his day.
Explanation: Fortune comes to each in turn.
Example: 别瞧不起人，是人皆有出头日。等我成功的时候，准让你后悔今天的话

王婆卖瓜，自卖自夸 Every potter praises his own pot.
Explanation: people are loath to refer to defects in their possessions or their family members
Example: 买房有价，装修无价，个中情况，自行斟酌，也不要听我‘王婆卖瓜，自卖自夸’，也不要自己‘一厢情愿，不管其他’，只有货比三家，才是为佳！！！