Chinese words are romanized throughout this deck with a system called pīnyīn (拼音), the official system of translating Chinese characters into Latin script in China, Taiwan, and Singapore. Below are some introductory ideas.
Mandarin's Four Accent Tones
First tone (Flat / High Level)
Second tone (Rising / High-Rising)
Third tone (Falling-Rising / Low)
Fourth tone (Falling / High-Falling)
Fifth tone (Neutral)
Pronunciation Guide
q
As in “punch yourself” (no English equivalent)
x
As in “push yourself” (no English equivalent)
zh
With a sharpness found in words like “choke”
z
Unaspirated c, like a mix of “suds” and “cats”
c
Strongly aspirated c, as in “hats”
i
As in “bee”, but if proceeded by z-, c-, s-, zh-, ch-, sh-, or r-, those sounds are extended
Mandarin (官话 or guān huà) - 836 million
Spoken in northern and southwestern China, and the official language of Singapore and Taiwan. When one refers to Putonghua or Chinese, one is generally referring to Mandarin.
Wu or Shanghainese (吴语 or wú yǔ) - 77 million
Spoken in the provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and in the municipality of Shanghai. It also includes the Shanghai dialect and is sometimes considered a representative of all Wu dialects, though not all Wu dialects are mutually intelligible.
Yue or Cantonese (粤语 or yuè yǔ) - 71 million
Spoken in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Southeast Asia. The term “Cantonese” may cover all the Yue dialects, including Taishanese, or specifically the Canton dialect of Guangzhou and Hong Kong. Not all Yue dialects are mutually intelligible.
Min languages (闽语 or mǐn yǔ) - 60 million
Spoken in Fujian, Taiwan, and parts of Southeast Asia. The largest Min language is Hokkien, and its dialects are notably mutually intelligible.
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Ancient Chinese coins are round with a square hole in the middle; their design reflected the Chinese view of the earth as square and the heavens as a circle.
A coin can also be a visual pun for “before your eyes”, because the hole in its center is called an “eye” and the coin has the same pronunciation as the word “before” (qián or 前).
Peking Duck is a duck dish from Beijing that has been prepared since the imperial era. It is now considered the national dish of China, and has a rich history that has spanned across many dynasties. By the mid-20th century, it had garnered international attention and favor as a culinary dish.
For the dish, ducks are raised for 65 days, with 45 days spent in a free-range environment and the remaining spent in an environment where they are force-fed four times a day. Prior to cooking, they are plucked, rinsed, and pumped with air to separate their skin from their fat. The ducks are then soaked in boiling water and hung up to dry. While hung, they are glazed with a layer of maltose syrup, and are later roasted for 24 hours until their skins turn shiny brown.
.duck is a Brand TLD proposed by Johnson Shareholdings.
tiananmen east, tiananmen west, qianmen station; walk north to meridian gate
天安门广场
tiān ān mén guǎng chǎng
tiananmen square
tiananmen east, tiananmen west, qianmen station; walk north to meridian gate
鸟巢
niǎo cháo
national stadium (“bird’s nest”)
olympic sports center station; exit from b1 or b2; walk north
长城
cháng chéng
great wall
jishuitan station; transfer to bus no. 919
天坛
tiān tán
temple of heaven
tiantan dongmen station, leave exit a; find east gate
明十三陵
míng shí sān líng
ming tombs
tiantongyuan bei station; transfer to bus no. 22
Subway hours are from 5:00 to 22:30, and are extremely crowded during rush hour. For frequent travelers, a pre-paid card can be purchased for a refundable deposit.
Line 1: Runs east-west from Sihui East to Pingguoyuan; passes along Chang’an street, Forbidden City, Tian’anmen Square and Wangfujing.
Line 2: Loop line that follows the old city walls; starts and ends at Xizhimen; serves Lama Temple and Beijing Railway Station.
Line 4: Runs north-south; serves Beihai Park, Beijing University and Beijing South Station.
Line 5: Runs north-south to the east of Line 4; close to Olympic Park and Temple of Heaven.
Line 6: Runs west-east to the north of Line 1 and to the south of the upper half circle of Line 2; connects to lines 10, 5, 2, 9, and 4.
Line 8: Short line; serves the Olympic Stadium.
Line 9: Short line; serves the Fengtai district and Beijing West Railway Staion.
Line 10: Loop line around the city; close to the Olympic Stadium, the embassy district, the Sanlitun; connects to every numbered line in the system excluding Line 15.
Line 13: Elevated light rail; serves the suburban Haidian district and Wudaokou; forms an arc that starts at Xizhimen and ends and Dongzhimen.
Line 15: Runs west-east to the north of Line 10; passes through WangJing CBD; transfer from Line 13 necessary until the line is completed in 2015.
