Enjoy your life

It's boring to stay at home in the weekend. The weather is good for going outside and having a break. The life in the country is simple and comfortable. There aren't internet, club, park, marketplace, and so on. But there are fresh air, trees, flowers, rivers instead. I prefer to spend my holiday in the country. It makes me feel relaxed.

In nature, people can find lots of food by themselves. The field snails that grow in the field, pool or raceway near the field can be made a delicious dish. People can fish in the river or lake. It's not easy to catch the fish. When they catch a fish, they will be more happier. The water in the pool is so cool, so people put the watermelons into the water in order to making them cool. The fridge is no use there.

Every weekend I went to the countryside and enjoy my time. I felt happy and comfortable.

 

By Lussie

Blog-Oil tea

Oil tea

Oil Tea(Youcha) , a distinctive flavor of Guilin, is quite popular in Guilin, especially in Gongcheng and Guangyang. Today, i want to introduce the Guangyang oil tea to you, which is made by frying tealeaves, ginger, chili, noodle ,mung, vegetable and other ingredients.

First, we drink Tangcha(Sweet tea), which is the first cup of the oil tea, and we always put the egg in the bowl, and then drink the tea and eat the egg. (1)

Second, put all the vegetable, tea, mungs etc in the oil pot ,and boil it. In fact, it can be seen as a soup.(2)

At the same time, we should put the noodle, Chill, shallot in the bowl. (3)

And then pour the soup into the bowl.(4)

Now, you can eat the oil tea. (5)

Blog-The World of Dumplings

Make the waxberry wine

May or June is the waxberry harvest. A lot of waxberries are sold in the market. The waxberry is sweet and sour. It tastes delicious. In the hot season, people like eating them. There is a waxberry tree growing in the field of my relative. The waxberries are not bigger and riper than those sold in the market. They are more sour and aren't suited for eating directly. So I would use them to make the wine.

Firstly, wash the waxberries. The waxberries are soft, so don't knead them. Just put them in the water and put some salt in it. The salt can make the waxberries clear.

Secondly, after fifteen to thirty minutes pour the water and put the waxberries in a big dish. It can make them dry quickly.

Thirdly, prepare a big glass bottle and lots of rock candy.

Fourthly, when the waxberries are dry, put the waxberries and rock candy in the bottle and cover it.

Last, put the bottle in the shady area.

About two month later, the wine is done. The time is longer, it tastes more delicious. I can't wait for drinking the wine that made ourselves.

 

Lussie

Leon's blog

Silent Spring

I was reading Silent Spring these days. It is a very interesting book. The book is mainly about the consequences of abuse of chemical pesticides. The book was written by Rachel Carson 47 years ago, but for Chinese readers, it is not an "old" book, we read it just like reading the news papers of yesterday. To make more profit, Melanie was put into milk and Sudan was put into meat. To make more profit, rivers and lakes was polluted. This is just like what happened in USA half a century ago.  We worry about the food we eat and water we drink everyday. I installed a water purified system in my kitchen yesterday. According to the book, underground water in many areas near chemical factories was contaminated, and we can do nothing about it.

According to Guilin Evening News, a local newspaper, Red-Slider turtle was found in the four lakes around Guilin downtown area. This is not good news for local species as their life may be in danger. The balance of Ecological Environment will be broken as there is no natural enemy for Red-Slider turtle.
By reading Silent Spring, I understand why we should biodiversity, because it can stop the spread of diseases.
The language of this book is very beautiful and easy to understand (even through there are some jargons) . I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to improve English and awareness of Environment protection.  
Leon

 

Dancer Joyce

Joyce, a friend of mine, is a very talented professional dancer. Like most of dancers, Joyce started to learn dancing when she was a child and went to Guangxi Art Institute for further study. Her great passion on dancing always touches me and her fans.

The first time I met her is at Aerobic health club in Guilin. She taught belly dance, pole dance and jazz dance. Every time when music starts, she becomes another person who is different from the one in her daily life.

I am very glad to find her dancing video on Youku. Please enjoy!

5-day Great Wall Hiking

At the end of April, my colleague David and I went to Beijing for a 5-day Great Wall hiking trip. The trip covered seven sections of the Great Wall, they are: Huanghuacheng, Jiankou, Mutianyu, Gubeikou, Jinshanling, Simatai and Huangyaguan.



The first day was only a 2 hours hiking to warm up. Huanghuacheng is about 1.5 hours away from Beijing city, and this section of the Wall is rebuilt quite well. The Great Wall hiking involves a climbing up onto the Wall and it usually takes about 20-30 minutes.

The second day was a hard day as well as the following two days, each of these three days involved 6 hours hiking. Here is the itinerary,

Day 2, Dazhenyu village to Xizhazi village, hiking on Jiankou section; Day 3, Xizhazi village to Mutianyu section, hiking on Jiankou section then onto Mutianyu section (Yes, they connect to each other!!); Day 4, Jinshanling to Simatai, after that, one hour on Gubeikou section.

We spent the night at a farmer's house of Dazhenyu village on day 1 and started the hiking early in the morning. The Wall was so wild and the scenery was fascinating! There were small trees, wild grass and flowers on the Wall, some collapsed parts made the hiking very thrilling!

One can get tired easily while hiking on the Wall as the Wall was built on the top of the stone mountains, it winds its way from this mountain to that mountain and you can't see where it ends! My secret was that never look for the end but keep walking!

The road conditions of the Wall are quite similar for day 2 & 3 as they are so called wild Great Wall, you can meet only a few local people hiking, and no vendors at all to sell you water.

Definitely it is very dangerous to get through the Wall. However with the efforts of previous hikers, you can take a path by the collapsed Wall and skip the dangerous part then get back onto the Wall in no time.

One may camp in one of the towers of the Wall for fun. Surely the wild Great Wall doesn't suit everyone.

After four hours hiking on day 3, we got to Mutianyu, the most recommending section for our customers. It was rebuilt well, but the slope near the top/end of the hiking was really challenging! At Mutianyu you can also try cable car and slideway.

We spent the night at Jinshan hotel at the foot of Jinshanling section, it was a nice courtyard hotel and it offered simple western breakfasts.

Day 4, we set out early for the hiking from Jinshanling to Simatai, yes, these two sections are connected as well. The first two hours were for hiking on well-rebuilt Wall, the other two hours' hiking was a bit like the one on previous day, but without the bushes. Highlights at the end of the tour were about the rope bridge and the overhead cable. Try the later one so as to save another 30 minutes walking down to the parking lot, definitely you need some courage for that!

Gubeikou is actually the name of the area, there are two separate sections in the area, one is called Wohushan, the other Panlongshan, the later one connects to Jinshanling section. It involves another 4-5 hours for the hiking.

The last day was much more relaxing compared with the previous days, Huangyaguan Great Wall is located in Tianjin, and it is rebuilt well and it takes at most 3 hours for the hiking.
Some useful tips for the Great Wall hiking trips, sun cream, walking sticks, hiking boots, enough water and some snacks must be prepared, also no toilets along the Wall, you can solve your problems easily while hiking on the wild Walls, but for the Jinshanling to Simatai section, no way!

http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XOTA4NzQyNjg=.html for pictures of all sections mentioned
http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XOTA4NzcxNjQ=.html especially for the sections from Jinshanling to Simatai

Enjoy them!

Mother’s Day

Today is Mother’s Day. I thank my mother for bringing me up and educating me. Wish her happy Mother’ Day.

I received a short message that my friend wish me happy today. Before this message, I did not realize that I am a mother too, a 3-year old boy’s mother. I am more happy after being a mother. My son gave me lots of fun when he is growing up from an infant to a 3-year old child. I need him to accompany me and he needs me also. I use his lovely, pure eyes to watch this world again. I found much different.

I think my mother had same feeling as I did.

Rainy Season in Guilin

Every June is the rainy season in Guilin. Li River’s water level will go up two to three meters more. You will see Elephant Hill Park in the water. What’s more, you will have a chance to see the most beautiful Li River covered with fog and mist.

Sunny Day

After a heavy rain

Li River covered with fog and mist.

What a clever idea

My nephew is a second-grade pupil. He failed in examination. When he got his report he was deeply worried. The report has been signed by his parents. He told me that he had a good idea to prevent his father know his poor work.
When we get home he said to his father, “Dad, can you write your name with your eyes shut?” My uncle answered with a smile.”Give me a pencil and piece of paper”. My nephew placed the report on the table just beneath the pencil. His father wrote his name on “a piece of paper”. Of course my uncle finally knew what happened.

May Day scene

It was a public holiday on the first day of May. People said it will be a hard journey to walk in the shopping mall or shopping street.
Definitely the whole place was full of people. They were jostling with each other in the street. At shopping center everywhere people were buying, selling and bargaining. Some people looked very pleased with getting a good price. I could hear all kinds of noise in the markets. Hawkers were shouting to attract customers.
My conclusion is Don’t go out on public holiday.

The City I Live and Work

Guilin is a small, but beautiful southern city. The first time I heard about Guilin was in my primary school. There was an article, titled “Guilin’s scenery is the most beautiful one under heaven”. Every Chinese pupil has to remember this article as it is such a beautiful writing about Guilin’s scenery. During the 1990’s, a famous song titled “I want to visit Guilin” became a hit. Since then, Guilin becomes one of the most well-known cities which Chinese people want to visit. Now, I live and work in this city. So how does it look?

City symbol: Elephant Hill.

Water system: Two Rivers and Four Lakes Park.

Two pagodas:

Beautiful Li River:

Sleeping Position and Personality

Everyone has got two personalities--the one that is shown to the world and the other that is secret and real.You don't show your secret personality when you're awake because you can control your behavior, but when you're asleep, your sleeping position shows the real you.
　　In a normal night, of course, people frequently change their position,The important position is the one that you go to sleep in.
　　If you go to sleep on your back, you' re a very open person. You normally trust people and you are easily influenced by fashion or new ideas. You don't like to upset people, so you never express your real feelings. You' re quite shy and you aren't very confident...　

If you sleep on your stomach, you are a rather secretive person. You worry a lot and you're always easily upset. You're very stubborn, but you aren't very ambitious. You usually live for today but not tomorrow. This means that you enjoy having a good time.

　　If you sleep curled up, you are probably a very nervous person. You have a few opinion of yourself and so you' re often defensive. You' re shy and you don't normally like meeting people. You prefer to be on your own. You're easily hurt.

　　If you sleep on your side, you have usually got a well-balanced personality. You know your strengths and weaknesses.You' re usually careful. You have a confident personality. You sometimes feel anxious, but you don't often get depressed. You always say what you think even if it annoys people.

The picture was transfered from sg.com.cn.

The activity of the Communist Youth League for the May 4th

Last Saturday, more than 15 members of China Highlights took part in the activity of Yao Mountain environment protection. The activity was organized by Eva Wang, the president of the Communist Youth League of CITS Guilin. The cameraman, Mercier recorded all funny scenes. Now, let's have a look, here we go...

Mike He and David Deng were waiting for the coming members.
Our activity of environment protection attracted hundreds of university students
Hundreds of students were waiting for someone, the president, or a secretary?
Several motor tricycle passed, and a "T" head taxi stopped, yeah, he came!
Yes, it's him, the "slowman" of China Highlights, Honghong Huang
He talked to his driver: "Little boy, wait for me over there", we really could not get what he said.
Now, the president (left) announced to start with a old Chinese Saying: It will rain, the girl will get married, and I am Eva ready to start.
And now, with the coming of a smile beauty, we all gathered together.
We came across a dog on the way, and left us one pained words:"Hey, little babies, don't be mannered ".
The president was emphasizing the traffic safety, but David Deng replied her "Who Care"
It seemed that the president has made a agreement with David Deng.
David Deng made a magic, he said:"When I take out the red flag, there will be a pretty face behind it", do you believe in that?
Here, a craze driver and his craze bus made another beautiful attraction.
With the president picked up the first plastic bag, the clearing activity began.
She was our Image Speaker this moment, her pose was so cool and charming.
The president had a surprise discovery when we were hungry, she got a fat worm, she was so lucky.
She wanted to swallow it, but she gave us a pose before did it.
But she changed her mind as the fat worm begged her: My darling, just let me alone.
On the way, our tech-man got his favorite--A'er bi si, a kind of sugar in China.
Our Image Speaker also got an A'er bi si, she was satisfied.
Now, let's have a show!
Grace Wang showed her work alone.
After 5 hours walking, we arrived in our lunch terminal-Baodao Nongzhuang.
Okay, let's take a photo with our China Highlights flag.
David Deng began to play the table tennis once finished the lunch, and cameraman got a shot for his backside, it was sexy, see blow

The Best Season for Thinking

If you are like most people, your intelligence varies from season to season. You are probably a lot sharper in the spring than you are in any other time of year. A noted scientist, Ellsworth Huntington concluded from other men’s work and his own among peoples in different climates that climate and temperature have a definite effect on our mental abilities.

Spring appears to be the best period of year for thinking. One reason may be that in the spring man’s mental abilities are affected by the same factors that bring about great changes in all nature.

Fall is the next-best season, then winter. As for summer, it seems to be a good time to take a long vacation from thinking.

Do in Rome as Rome does

Whenever they have friends and relatives pay a visit, Chinese people will prepare much more food than their guests could take to make sure they do as good as qualified hosts. So don’t be surprised when you see a table full of cuisine but with only two or three persons. Chinese people also want to pay for the meals to show their sincere and generous which may make foreign guests feel not so free, for Europeans and Americans would prefer Dutch treatment and buy as much food as they can take.

Please do in Rome as Rome does, Chinese people are friendly nationality and which has changed a lot in their traditional customs, now they will only buy enough food for economize and accept Dutch treatment. So just feel to be our guests at anytime.

Why the Zhuang Minority like soured food?

Guilin is in Zhuang Minority Area. In 2001, I first came here, I found people here like to eat soured food. like soured fish, soured meet and soured duck. For me, it is another new taste, however I liked it immediately.
Have you ever think why Zhuang people like eating soured food? There are two reasons. One is the Zhuang people's main food is made of sticky rice. The sticky rice is hard to digest while soured food can accelerate digestion. The other is that soured food is easy to keep for a long time. Zhuang people used to live in the mountains and it usually cost them a whole day or even longer to go outside and be back.
Sticky Rice:

Soured Fish: