The World Expos are "pretty useless" ?

It is obvious that the World Expos do not generate enough incentives for governments like the US to participate.

Your thoughts ?

Sources:

"U.S. Running Out of Time to Join Shanghai Expo" By Glenn Kessler, Washington Post.

Official World Expo 2010 Shanghai website

A Q&A on LinkedIn... The World Expos are "pretty useless" ?

A report from a Chinese source said that the US pavilion may become KFC later.
"上海世博 美国馆恐变肯德基"

World & Shanghai [世界与上海] - dedicated to World Expo 2010 Shanghai

A poll is created... "Your opinion on World Expo in general"


twitter: BridgeSinoUSA

Leadership Genes - Dominant or Recessive ?

I am inspired by a discussion on the group "Leadership Think Tank" - "Are people born with natural leadership skills or are they taught how to be leaders?" by Nina Love.

Posted a Q&A on the LinkedIn... "Leadership Genes - Dominant or Recessive ?"

Your thoughts ?

Thank you for your participation.

A job in Houston, Texas...

Requirements:

Extensive server-side Java development solving complex issues and having experience with new cutting-edge technology like High Performance Computing, Cloud or Grid, multi-threading, realtime apps, SOA--just examples of the types of experience they're looking for.

The other two important elements are a degree in CS, Science, Engineering or Mathematics from a tier-one University/College and good tenure in past work history.

The company is pretty particular but they are offering excellent salary, the best technology and plenty of room for growth. It's a permanent position in Houston.

Contact:
Fran Woodruff:
email: fran@inqueststaffing.com
www.linkedin.com/in/franwoodruff

A Comedy Movie to be produced - Stinky Tofu

I was inspired by an article "A First Encounter with Stinky Tofu!" from John Melendez on the LinkedIn.

Stinky Tofu [ST - 臭豆腐] is as someone put "a biological weapon developed in China," which is one of the featured dishes in Shanghai, Taiwan and many places. It is considered "a weapon of mass destruction" and some people suggested "it be banned by the Geneva Convention".

By the way, I love it, but my kids detest it. One time when we ate ST in the restaurant in Shanghai, my kids had to run to restroom for fresh air.

A story was told from a friend of mine...

One person heated leftover from the previous night dinner at workplace using a microwave. The leftover included Stinky Tofu causing the entire floor people being evacuated for a precautious measure... in the US.

One responder wrote: "Even after 6 years in Taiwan I still cannot stand the smell of it, but I miss it here back in Switzerland. ;-) "

I replied:

Thank you for your inspiring comments... a new brand of perfume will be born - "STINKY TOFU".

I'll talk with my IP attorney soon.

In fact, I was thinking seriously when John posted this Q&A... for people who live in Shanghai know that Yu Garden is one of Shanghai's tourist spots, which is also considered by many people in Shanghai the birthplace of the Stinky Tofu. Many famous world VIPs visited the Yu Garden including Queen Elizabeth II. I am pretty sure the head of the Commonwealth smelled the Stinky Tofu when visited there... there is a comedy movie that can be made of it... I've been looking for investors and screenplay writers...

Sources:
"Yu Garden: A World Famous Garden with Southern China Style"

"What are the challenges to become a professional screenwriter ?"

Article: "A First Encounter with Stinky Tofu!"

"Stinky Tofu"

Handshakes in China - Cultural Differences

Differences often cause misunderstandings. It is often for us to judge another culture through our own cultural lenses. The "walls" could be easily built by misunderstandings and poor judgment. I truly hope this discussion is a way of introducing Chinese people and the culture to all. I have a lot to learn from you.

__________________________________________________________

For majority Chinese people who have few direct physical contact with foreigners in China, a handshake is NOT a way to demonstrate one's confidence or sincerity as Western professionals have emphasized. Sometimes we may encounter the "dead fish" handshakes from men as many business etiquette trainers in the West describe.

Cultural background:
Old generation Chinese are not comfortable intentionally having physical contact with strangers in particular with foreigners. However, most Chinese are not bothered by bumping into each other in public on crowded streets, in busy buses, subways & train stations etc.

It is not Chinese tradition to shake a hand as a way of greeting in the past.

Shaking a woman's hand by another man firmly might be mistaken for being too eager or perceived as harassment - it is very tricky.

Most Chinese are a bit shy when they have to shake a foreigner's hand.

Two hand handshakes mean:
1. respect to officials, or elderly people etc. [below references with good examples from the President Obama and the First Lady of the USA and Queen Elizabeth]
2. good friends
3. eager to make good relationships in the near future.
...

Please share your thoughts with the group.

Thank you in advance !


References:
"Obama Meets Chinese President Hu" from CNN on youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iu6-UEx3pus&feature=related

"Queen Elizabeth Meets President Obama At Buckingham Palace" from CNN on youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPkxw3WtaZs&feature=related

Source:
Handshakes in China - Cultural Differences on the LinkedIn Group "World & Shanghai"

"What is entrepreneurial spirit in your opinion?"

I was asked by a friend of mine Thomas Fu on the LinkedIn on April 6th, 2009.

My answer:

Hello Thomas,

Thank you for asking, I answered a Q&A 6 months ago for a question "What are the traits of an ENTREPRENEUR?" from John DiPietro.

There are many good answers from other people.

Here is my 2 cents...

My list of the traits of an ENTREPRENEUR... it is a journey of a pioneer...
a burning desire
passion for innovation
super high energy
street smart intelligence
strategies and tactics
a workable business plan
patience
confidence
communication skills
negotiation skills
leadership skills
ability to build a team with lots of soft skills
keeping focused
being able to survive one day without a penny
overcoming numerous obstacles including failures, tragedy, mounting pressure from inner and outer sources... never give up...
being able to quickly learn from mistakes of self and others

Of course, make money and create job opportunities for millions...

Source:
What are the traits of an ENTREPRENEUR?

There is a short answer from one of my friends Cosimo Caraglia on the LinkedIn... so simple, but to the point...
"An entrepreneur is a driver and a bad passenger.
An employee is a good passenger and a safe driver. "

By the way, John DiPietro is the author of the book "YOU DONT HAVE TO BE PERFECT TO BE GREAT."

Ling Edward asked: "Hi Wei, I agree with your all the points here! But I think to be a successful ENTREPRENEUR or to be recognized as "success", he/she should have social responsibility, create/contribute more value to community/society! "

Wei answered: "Hello Ling,

I am so glad you brought up "value to community/society" as an entrepreneur. One month ago I posted a Q&A
"I always want to ask this question: Are there two types of careers for everyone ?"

“There are two types of careers for me:

Type 1. making money for a living - basic needs
Type 2. career as a volunteer to fulfill my dreams to help more people and community we live - self satisfaction
Hybrid of type 1 and type 2 is when one can achieve financial independence.
...”

I am a huge fan of doing volunteering activities for our community/society either to donate money or to donate time & efforts. Your comments make my week. Thank you so much !

Sincerely,
Wei

Source:
"I always want to ask this question: Are there two types of careers for everyone ?"

Chinese Entrepreneurs... from the group "Chinese-Speaking & China-Experienced Business Executives" created by Saul Gitlin 冀碩臨 on the LinkedIn.

"如螃蟹般一红就死　内地富豪形象集体崩溃"


"一项调查显示在美国，每16个人中可能有一人具有企业家精神；在欧洲，每26人中可能有一人具有企业家精神；在日本，每36人中可能有一人具有企业家精神；而在中国，每200人中还找不到一个具有企业家精神的人。"

I don't know if the survey is valid.

Your thoughts ?

Thank you !

Direct flights between China and the US

1. Los Angeles/Shanghai--China Eastern Airlines
2. Los Angeles/Beijing--Air China
3. San Francisco/Shanghai--United Airlines
4. San Francisco/Beijing--United Airlines
5. Chicago/Beijing--United Airlines
6. Chicago/Shanghai--United Airlines
7. Chicago/Shanghai--American Airlines
8. Atlanta/Shanghai--Delta Airlines
9. New York/Beijing--Air China
10. New York/Shanghai--China Eastern Airlines
11. Newark/Beijing--Continental Airlines
12. Washington DC/Beijing-United Airlines

Source: A direct flight between Shanghai and Texas ?

Business Chinese 101 - fun & practical

I would like to start with three level Business Chinese 101 here.
(Beginner-Intermediate-Advanced)

April 5th, 2009

Beginner:
Chinese language intro => http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_language
你好 [how are you] - [pron: nee hao]
一,二,三 [1, 2, 3 ] - [pron: yi, er, san]
说中文 [speaking Chinese language] - [pron: shuo zhong wen]
难 [difficult] - [pron: nan]

Intermediate:
Please share your learning experience and resources with all. Thank you.

Websites:
Convert Chinese Characters to Pinyin: http://www.chinesetopinyin.com/ [very simple]
Zhongwen: http://www.zhongwen.com/
Claimed a free online: http://www.chineselearner.com/

Can someone help find a free website to listen Chinese words & sentences ? Thank you.


Advanced:
Please share your learning experience and resources with all. Thank you.

Testing water - 摸个底

An interesting article "如螃蟹般一红就死　内地富豪形象集体崩溃"
http://bbs.tiexue.net/post_3468970_1.html#

Enjoy learning...

Are there good websites for children to learn Chinese ?

Many thanks !

122个英译最爱的中国成语

1. 爱屋及乌 Love me, love my dog.
2. 百闻不如一见 Seeing is believing
3. 比上不足比下有余 worse off than some, better off than many; to fall short of the best, but be better than the worst
4. 笨鸟先飞 A slow sparrow should make an early start
5. 不眠之夜 white night
6. 不以物喜不以己悲 Not pleased by external gains, not saddened by personal losses
7. 不遗余力 Spare no effort; go all out; do one's best
8. 不打不成交 No discord, no concord
9. 拆东墙补西墙 Rob Peter to pay Paul
10. 辞旧迎新 Bid farewell to the old and usher in the new; ring out the old year and ring in the new
11. 大事化小小事化了 Try first to make their mistake sound less serious and then to reduce it to nothing at all
12. 大开眼界 Open one's eyes; broaden one's horizon; be an eye-opener
13. 国泰民安 The country flourishes and people live in peace
14. 过犹不及 Going too far is as bad as not going far enough; beyond is as wrong as falling short; too much is as bad as too little
15. 功夫不负有心人 Everything comes to him who waits
16. 好了伤疤忘了疼 Once on shore, one prays no more
17. 好事不出门恶事传千里 Good news never goes beyond the gate, while bad news spread far and wide
18. 和气生财 Harmony brings wealth
19. 活到老学到老 One is never too old to learn
20. 既往不咎 Let bygones be bygones
21. 金无足赤人无完人 Gold can't be pure and man can't be perfect
22. 金玉满堂 Treasures fill the home
23. 脚踏实地 Be down-to-earth
24. 脚踩两只船 Sit on the fence
25. 君子之交淡如水 The friendship between gentlemen is as pure as crystal; a hedge between keeps friendship green
26. 老生常谈陈词滥调 Cut and dried, cliché
27. 礼尚往来 Courtesy calls for reciprocity
28. 留得青山在不怕没柴烧 Where there is life, there is hope
29. 马到成功 Achieve immediate victory; win instant success
30. 名利双收 Gain in both fame and wealth
31. 茅塞顿开 Be suddenly enlightened
32. 没有规矩不成方圆 Nothing can be accomplished without norms or standards
33. 每逢佳节倍思亲 On festive occasions more than ever one thinks of one's dear ones far away. It is on the festival occasions when one misses his dear most
34. 谋事在人成事在天 The planning lies with man, the outcome with Heaven. Man proposes, God disposes
35. 弄巧成拙 Be too smart by half; Cunning outwits itself
36. 拿手好戏 Masterpiece
37. 赔了夫人又折兵 Throw good money after bad
38. 抛砖引玉 A modest spur to induce others to come forward with valuable contributions; throw a sprat to catch a whale
39. 破釜沉舟 Cut off all means of retreat；burn one’s own way of retreat and be determined to fight to the end
40. 抢得先机 Take the preemptive opportunities
41. 巧妇难为无米之炊 If you have no hand you can't make a fist. One can't make bricks without straw
42. 千里之行始于足下 A thousand-li journey begins with the first step--the highest eminence is to be gained step by step
43. 前事不忘后事之师 Past experience, if not forgotten, is a guide for the future
44. 前人栽树后人乘凉 One generation plants the trees in whose shade another generation rests. One sows and another reaps
45. 前怕狼后怕虎 Fear the wolf in front and the tiger behind hesitate in doing something
46. 强龙难压地头蛇 Even a dragon (from the outside) finds it hard to control a snake in its old haunt - Powerful outsiders can hardly afford to neglect local bullies
47. 强强联手 Win-win co-operation
48. 瑞雪兆丰年 A timely snow promises a good harvest
49. 人之初性本善 Man's nature at birth is good
50. 人逢喜事精神爽 Joy puts heart into a man
51. 人海战术 Huge-crowd strategy
52. 世上无难事只要肯攀登 Where there is a will, there is a way
53. 世外桃源 A fictitious land of peace away from the turmoil of the world;
54. 死而后已 Until my heart stops beating
55. 岁岁平安 Peace all year round
56. 上有天堂下有苏杭 Just as there is paradise in heaven, there are Suzhou and Hangzhou on earth
57. 塞翁失马焉知非福 Misfortune may be an actual blessing
58. 三十而立 A man should be independent at the age of thirty. At thirty, a man should be able to think for himself
59. 升级换代 Updating and upgrading (of products)
60. 四十不惑 Life begins at forty
61. 谁言寸草心报得三春晖 Such kindness of warm sun, can't be repaid by grass
62. 水涨船高 When the river rises, the boat floats high
63. 时不我待 Time and tide wait for no man
64. 杀鸡用牛刀 Break a butterfly on the wheel
65. 实事求是 Seek truth from facts; be practical and realistic; be true to facts
66. 说曹操，曹操到 Talk of the devil and he comes
67. 实话实说 Speak the plain truth; call a spade a spade; tell it as it is
68. 实践是检验真理的唯一标准 Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth
69. 山不在高，有仙则名 No matter how high the mountain is, its name will spread far and wide if there is a fairy
    
70. 韬光养晦 Hide one's capacities and bide one's time
71. 糖衣炮弹 Sugar-coated bullets
72. 天有不测风云 Anything unexpected may happen. a bolt from the blue
73. 团结就是力量 Unity is strength
74. 跳进黄河洗不清 Even if one jumped into the Yellow River, one cannot wash oneself clean--there's nothing one can do to clear one's name
75. 歪风邪气 Unhealthy practices and evil phenomena
76. 物以类聚，人以群分 Birds of a feather flock together
77. 往事如风 The past has vanished (from memory) like wind.; What in past, is past
78. 望子成龙 Hold high hopes for one's child
79. 屋漏又逢连阴雨 Misfortunes never come singly. When it rains it pours
80. 文韬武略 Military expertise; military strategy
81. 唯利是图 Draw water to one's mill
82. 无源之水，无本之木 Water without a source, and a tree without roots
83. 无中生有 Make create something out of nothing
84. 无风不起浪 There are no waves without wind. There's no smoke without fire
85. 徇私枉法 Bend the law for the benefit of relatives or friends
86. 新官上任三把火 A new broom sweeps clean
87. 虚心使人进步，骄傲使人落后 Modesty helps one go forward, whereas conceit makes one lag behind
88. 蓄势而发 Accumulate strength for a take-off
89. 心想事成 May all your wish come true
90. 心照不宣 Have a tacit understanding; give tacit consent; tacit understanding
91. 先入为主 First impressions are firmly entrenched
92. 先下手为强 Catch the ball before the bound
93. 像热锅上的蚂蚁 Like an ant on a hot pan
94. 现身说法 Warn people by taking oneself as an example
95. 息事宁人 Pour oil on troubled waters
96. 喜忧参半 Mingled hope and fear
97. 循序渐进 Step by step
98. 一路平安，一路顺风 Speed somebody on their way; speed the parting guest
99. 严以律己，宽以待人 Be strict with oneself and lenient towards others
100. 鱼米之乡 A land of milk and honey
101. 有情人终成眷属 Jack shall have Jill, all shall be well.
102. 有钱能使鬼推磨 Money makes the mare go. Money talks
103. 有识之士 People of vision
104. 有勇无谋 Use brawn rather than brain
105. 有缘千里来相会 Separated as we are thousands of miles apart, we come together as if by predestination
106. 与时俱进 Advance with times
107. 以人为本 People oriented; people foremost
108. 因材施教 Teach students according to their aptitude
109. 欲穷千里目，更上一层楼 To ascend another storey to see a thousand miles further; Ascend further, were you to look farther; Would eye embrace a thousand miles? Go up, one flight.
110. 欲速则不达 Haste does not bring success
111. 优胜劣汰 Survival of the fittest
112. 英雄所见略同 Great minds think alike
113. 冤家宜解不宜结 Better make friends than make enemies
114. 冤假错案 Cases in which people were unjustly, falsely or wrongly charged or sentenced; unjust, false or wrong cases
115. 一言既出，驷马难追 A real man never goes back on his words
116. 招财进宝 Money and treasures will be plentiful
117. 债台高筑 Become debt-ridden
118. 致命要害 Achilles' heel
119. 众矢之的 Target of public criticism
120. 知己知彼，百战不殆 Know the enemy and know yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles with no danger of defeat
121. 纸上谈兵 Be an armchair strategist
122. 纸包不住火 Truth will come to light sooner or later

Why I call myself "Global Citizen" ?

Feelings Sandwich

At home, I am constantly in a situation between my elder child and younger child, or between my wife and my two children.

At work, we may experience the similar Sandwich feelings with colleagues, managers, friends etc.

The news about "a confrontation between American and Chinese vessels in the South China Sea" made me ponder. I, Chinese American, am in a similar situation when I read the news.

I share a Q&A with all I posted in April, 2008 "Your Opinion: Patriotism ?"
We are often called by a few Chinese as "banana", [skin - yellow, inside - white].
Meanwhile, we are not trusted by majority non-Chinese.

By the way, I am Hakka born in Shanghai, now I label myself Global Citizen.

I responded to a friend of mine on LinkedIn for the news in the South China Sea... "From Chinese history, Chinese were not aggressive, correct me if I'm wrong."

My American friend replied: "I would never disagree with you on such a subject. But all great people evolve, or we would have no history. "

Here is a positive development "US committed to pursuing positive relationship with China".

Collaboration = Win-Win

Confrontation = lose-lose

Your thoughts ? Thank you !

Global Citizenship

World Expo 2010 Shanghai

Taking Everything for Granted vs Appreciation

Taking Everything for Granted vs Appreciation

Recently I learned two inspiring stories from one of my mentors.

Story A:
An Asian lady at Home Depot purchased heavy materials. An employee kindly asked her "do you need help?". "Yes, thank you so much if you could," the lady said. Later the lady requested to meet the store manager to thank the employee as well as the store manager for having a good employee in the team. Everyone was VERY happy.

Story B:
An Asian lady involved in a chain-reaction car accident hit by another car from behind, then hit a car in front of her. Fortunately no one was seriously hurt. Several police officers came and peacefully solved the accident. The lady asked one of police officers to tell his badge number, so she could write to his boss "for good experience with police officers." Other police officers overheard the conversation with surprise look.

"A genuine praise goes a long way..." - the soft power with a distinctive appearance will positively influence mainstream toward a specific group in the society.

We are being role models for our children. Showing appreciation is one of many good traditions that our children should carry on.

How Significant are Genuine Humbleness & Mutual Respect among Countries ?

How Significant are Genuine Humbleness & Mutual Respect among Countries ?

"Start by Listening"

Why and Why not ?

Thank you for you participation.
____________________________

References:

"WHY: Is Humility Really Powerful ?"

"Your Opinion: why some people are being arrogant ? Any advantages ?"

"Non-Aggressiveness - a Sign of Weakness ?"

The world is far from ideal, so are individuals. But we are civilized citizens and maturing as we grow. History will judge us. A country will set an example for her citizens good or bad.

Languages: Chinese vs English

One disadvantage right now for China is English-speaking population because virtually all textbooks are written in Chinese in China including higher education. So to Chinese, they have to learn Chinese and English. However, I have seen this disadvantage shifting to advantage soon because there is a delay for non-Chinese readers that what Chinese are thinking and doing, in particular media, books and blogs etc. It means that many Chinese know things happening in the world, but only a few global elites who can read Chinese may know things happening in China. Unless there is a breakthrough in translation software. It's interesting to see this world 5 years from now and beyond...

One of the most important reasons western media had hard time to understand China [often underestimate China] is that very few people truly know the language and the 5000-year Chinese history and culture. I am determined to be the bridge between the US and China. The role of a matchmaker is to assist people of both cultures with historical evidence and provide options with cons and pros to people who have no knowledge about the cultural differences. In modern term, I provide people with value-added services. It is a part of important education.

Fun to Learn Chinese [兴趣学中文] - Black Comedy

Just for fun to learn Chinese... a friend of mine shared with me the following humor.

2009年，我们向领导保证:
领导的要求就是我们的追求；
领导的脾气就是我们的福气；
领导的鼓励就是我们的动力；
领导的想法就是我们的做法；
领导的酒量就是我们的胆量；
领导的表情就是我们的心情；
领导的嗜好就是我们的爱好；
领导的意向就是我们的方向；
领导的小蜜就是我们的秘密；
领导的情人就是我们的亲人！

我们还要做到：
* 领导没来，我先来，看看谁坐主席台；
* 领导没讲，我先讲，拍拍话筒响不响；
* 领导说话，我鼓掌，带动台下一片响；
* 领导吃饭，我先尝，看看饭菜凉不凉；
* 领导睡觉，我站岗，跟谁睡觉我不讲！

预祝领导们春节快乐！

_______________________________________

Source from Tony Lee...

土地下的先烈们纷纷打来电话询问
　　江姐问：国民党被推翻了么？
　　答：被阿扁推翻了。
　　董存瑞问：劳动人民还当牛做马吗？
　　答：不劳动了，都下岗了。
　　吴琼花问：姐妹们都翻身得解放了吗？
　　答：解放了，都当小姐了。
　　扬子荣问：土匪都剿灭了吗？
　　答：都改当公安和城管了。
　　杨白劳问：地主都打倒了么？
　　答：都入党了。
　　雷锋问：那资本家呢？
　　答：都进人大和政协了！
　　刘胡兰问：同志们都藏了么？
　　答：都隐身上网了
　　毛主席问：大家现在都在忙什么？
　　答：都在"斗地主"
　　毛主席：那我就放心了…
　　清明快到了, 别忘了给孩子们讲讲很久很久很久以前的事：那时候天还是蓝的，水也是绿的，庄稼是长在地里的，猪肉是可以放心吃的，耗子还是怕猫的，法庭是讲理的，结婚是先谈恋的，理发店是只管理发的，药是可以治病的，医生是救死扶伤的，拍电影是不需要陪导演睡觉的，照相是要穿衣服的，欠钱是要还的，孩子的爸爸是明确的，学校是不图挣钱的，白痴是不能当教授的.

What is Black comedy ?
Black comedy is a sub-genre of comedy and satire in which topics and events that are usually regarded as taboo are treated in a satirical or humorous manner while retaining its seriousness.
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_comedy

Please share your Black Comedy with us. Thank you !

"Do you think that Overseas Chinese have an advantage over foreigners beyond language?"

Absolutely, yes, I do. The culture thing you can't just learn from school. Thinking ahead of the curve is based on knowing people, culture, tangibles & intangibles...

There is a saying: "thinking globally, acting locally".

We all know that KFC is EXTREMELY successful in China over McDonald. WHY ? Besides KFC entering the China market 3 years earlier than M, one thing KFC did GREAT was to hire a Chinese from the US to run its China operation. KFC in the US is way behind the M in terms of market share...

Lessons should be learned by SMART foreign companies. Same is true for Chinese companies if they are determined to enter foreign markets and be successful in long run, they should hire local people to run the operations.

By the way, I never eat at KFC both in China and in the US, but my kids love KFC in China.

Learning Chinese for non-Chinese

I would like to share my experience and observations with you. As a Chinese American, I strongly consider myself a global citizen. I was born, educated, and had worked in Shanghai, China for almost 28 years, prior to moving to Brussels, Belgium in April, 1989, and have lived in the US since Oct 1993. To me Chinese is my native language, I am still heavily influenced by my Chinese thinking, writing, speaking, etc. I feel comfortable talking in Chinese than in English except something I learned outside of China. However, my kids were born in the US, the native language is English, like many first generation of Chinese Americans, it is extremely hard to keep them learning Chinese in the US. Don't feel bad if you spend a lot of time learning it, but still can't become fluent in Chinese. Study showed that learning Chinese takes 4 X efforts than learning Italy or French for an English speaking person.

Standard Mandarin is the official language of China and one of four official languages of Singapore. It is one of the six official languages of the United Nations. The majority of overseas Chinese uses Mandarin. So you choose to learn standard Mandarin is excellent. There are many spoken Chinese [local dialects]. It is hard to estimate how many dialects exist [some said 8,000], but they can be roughly classified into one of the seven large groups, i.e., Putonghua (Mandarin - majority speaks), Gan, Kejia (Hakka - my father speaks), Min (my mother speaks), Wu (I speak), Xiang and Yue (Cantonese). Each language group contains a large number of dialects. These are the Chinese languages spoken mostly by the Han people, which represents about 92 percent of the total population. One interesting phenomenon, why we see many Chinatowns almost in every city around the world? It is because the WRITTEN CHINESE can be read by all Chinese who learned how to read and write regardless of the local dialects they speak. For example, people from Hong Kong speak Cantonese, people from Nanjing speak Wu, some people from Taiwan speak Min or Hakka, but amazingly they all can read written Chinese [Chinese Characters]. People in Japan, some in Korea, and some old generation of Vietnamese etc. can read Chinese characters.

Chinese characters are either pictographs or ideographs. A well-educated Chinese today should recognize over 6,000 characters; some 3,000 characters are required to read newspaper.

A real story to share with all... I met a Belgian man around 40 years old in 1991 when I was in Brussels attending a Chinese festival. I was truly amazed by his Chinese, not only he could read, and speak, but he could write really good Chinese, better than most of Chinese. "You must have learned Chinese in China for many years." I asked. "yes, I learn Chinese for 10 years, but I never had a chance to visit China, I always wanted to visit China" he said. "how can you read, speak and especially write Chinese so well?" I asked. "I learned by myself, everyday I write 100 Chinese characters on a black board, listen to Chinese radio, read Chinese books and talk with Chinese I meet." he proudly replied, the last sentence he said to me is the KEY "I treat the language as an ART."