The Change One Man Can Make

WHEN I asked Zhang Yuzhen whether she missed her late husband, the 84-yearold paused for some time before answering my question with a curt "no." Having expected her eyes to mist over and her voice to crack, I was quite taken aback. Later, however, as we chatted in their small courtyard it became clear that Yang Shanzhou’s career as a regional official and dedication to afforestation in his retirement meant that he had spent little time with his family. Despite their long separation Yang Shanzhou was affectionate towards his     

The Marriage Business

WILL you marry me?"I asked her in my most romantic tone,all those years ago.I admit that my voice may have been trembling a little at that moment,but still I was surprised that it took her two days to say"yes."Was it that she thought that this nervousness suggested a question about my commit-     

Beijing's Underground Art Gallery

<正>I was talking to one of my friends recently about a stunning piece of artwork to be found on the Beijing subway."Oh,you mean there is art there?"she asked incredulously.She said she had never noticed and I have to admit that when you see thousands of people rushing daily past these murals,sculptures,calligraphy,painted columns,or special lighting displays—many of them with their noses stuck in their mobile phones—it makes you wonder why anyone actually bothered to put anything up in the fi rst place.     

Mommy, Where Do Dumplings Come from？

I feel certain that in one of my mom's past lives she was Chinese and had her own restaurant. You could not tell this by looking at her of course, but her passion for cooking is proof enough for me. This is further endorsed by the magnitude of dumplings in our house. Whenever I come home the refrigerator is loaded with mom's homemade dumplings or their Slavonic cousins, known as vareniks. When I visited Beijing for the first time in October 1999 I     

Let Indonesia-China Friendly Relations Continue to Flourish

When my friends from the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, the CPAFFC, asked me to write in their jubilium magazine, for the fiftieth anniversary of the Association, I felt very much honoured indeed. Because in the deepest feeling of my heart, I always consider the Chinese people, and China, as the true friends, as lao peng you (old friends), of     

Never Too Late to Start Over

LAST year I decided to pack up my things and move into a retirement community. Many people asked me why I would want to do that, rather than staying in my own home or living with my kids as most people in their late years do. One of the main reasons was that I had already had some friends living in these types of places, and they always spoke highly of the experience.     

Human Rights In Chinese Prisons In the Eye of a Prison Inmate

I'm serving a prison term at the Beijing Prison. It is already more than four years. One day in September 2000, one of my brothers who reside overseas came to see me. In private, he asked me: "Do you have enough to eat? Have you ever been beaten by anybody? Do you do very hard work? Is it cold in winter?" His questions startled me. They showed the unjust reports by foreign media and that made my brother worried about me.     

Just Your Typical Chinese Jane

When I landed in Beijing, I brought with me several suitcases and a huge desire to learn Mandarin. Being a language student at university and armed with a certificate to teach ESL, I thought Chinese would come easily. After I discovered that paying for language classes would far exceed my income as an English instructor, I jumped at the chance when our shipping agent asked whether I'd be interested in a language exchange partner. Two days and a couple of phone calls later, He Ping arrived on my doorstep.     

Chinese Coaches Training Athletes Around the World

AUSTRALIAN Chantelle Newbery, the 10-meter platform diving gold medal winner at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, was very excited when she received the medal and let a reporter in on a secret. ＂I would not have won this gold medal had I not been trained by my coach Wang Tongxiang over the past nine years. Diving is not an advantageous event for Australia, and it is all because of my coach Wang＇s hard work that I＇m able to win this gold medal. I am very grateful to him. Thank God that I was given the opportunity to be trained by such an excellent and outstanding coach,＂ she said.     

LETTERS

The Internet is such a marvelous thing, bringing us thelatest news worldwide and keeping us connected with family members and friends far far away. A colleague of mine recalled when her husband was assigned abroad more than 20 years ago, she waited for nearly two months before getting the first letter from him. The moment she had the envelope in hand, she broke down in tears in the presence of her two-year-old daughter. When I studied abroad five years ago, my son, then four, held online video-talks with me everyday.     

Yin He：Dream of a Wilderness Comes True in Tibet

Ilanded a job in a Beijing bank in ：2OLO after graduating with a master＇s degree. I was lucky. A job in a bank in the metropolis is well paid with bright career prospects,and consequently much sought after. But it didn＇t appeal to me. I found that sitting in a cubicle clad in a sharp suit from nine to five, five days a week was slowly eroding my ambition and spirit. I soon felt isolated in this cell of cement, steel and glass. I itched for the freedom of a great wilderness - a world of clear blue skies and lush meadows strewn with wild flowers extending to an open horizon. Although devoid of modern amenities, to me the wild blue yonder teemed with promise and opportunities that would renew my youth and vigor.     

LETTERS

I have been reading China Today for the past few years and find it very interesting for its extensive coverage of all that is new in China. I'm a student of modern Chinese history. In keeping with your idea of using China Today as a platform for making friends, I would like to give you the following basic details. I am a Sri Lankan doctor who knows a little Chinese (putonghua) and I would like to communicate with Chinese friends who can help me improve my Chinese and help me understand more of the long road China has traveled in     

KINDERGARTEN DANCE CLASS

joined the dancing class twoyears ago, because my momwanted me to, but it soon becamefun, and now I really enjoy it. Myteachers, mom and dad love me allthe more when I dance well." Six-     

LETTERS

正Now in my 60s,I am starting to think seriously about where I’m going to spend my later years.I do not personally oppose living in a nursing home when I’m too old to take care of myself.My children treat me very well and I enjoy the time we spend together.But they have lives of their own,while I have a life of my own.I don’t have the heart to expect them to look after me,as they are already occupied with     

LETTERS

Irecently read your article .entitled ＂Coupling and Unoupling Chinese Style＂ with great interest. Though the events mentioned in the article weren＇t part of my life, I know them to be true. My parents told me that they had bowed to a portrait of Chairman Mao at their wedding, a must for any wedding process of the time. The gifts they received were mostly wash basins and thermal flasks, several of which remained unused till I was a teenager.     

Being Chinese in the West

T he woman spoke a polished English with an Australian accent as she greeted us on board the rickety bus carry- ing us to Yangshuo, with the peasants and their marketwares. We became acquainted over the dusty potholes as shetold of spending time with her aunt in Shanghai and the com-plications she had faced with the Chinese language. It was notuntil she removed her sunglasses that the full extent of her plightbecame obvious, as she explained that most people expectedher to be fluent in Manda…     

Home-based Old-age Care-the Gray Solution？

GAO Yuhua has been liv-ing at the Beijing No. 1 Welfare Institute for 18 years. "I never consid-ered living at a welfare institute. It seemed to me that, as I have sons and daughters to support me, why should I? I first started coming here in the daytime to join in the sing-songs and drawing classes. I enjoyed it more each day, and it distracted me from my ill-ness." Gao Yuhua was diagnosed with     

Like Mountains and Waters,His Demeanor Lasts Forever——In Memoriam of Former CSHRS President Luo Haocai

正On November 3, 2011 when I attended the experience exchange meeting for human rights institutions held at Sichuan University, I had my first close contact with Teacher Luo Haocai. At the meeting, I gave a speech on the theme of the history and status quo of human rights research and teaching at Southwest University of Political Science and Law (SWUPL). At lunchtime, Teacher Luo went to the restaurant with us to eat buffet, when he specially asked me to his table and further inquired about the     

Family First

My decision to come to China was a pretty simple one:curiosity.I am originally from Holland,but have always been fascinated with China-this mysterious and rising oriental superpower.I bought books and movies on the country,wishing to satisfy my questions.On the contrary,it only inspired more.With China’s economy booming,many amazing career opportunities are currently open to foreigners like me.It was a very natural decision for me to come to explore the possibilities in China.Beijing brims with opportunities and ancient Chinese culture,which is the reason I have made it my home.     

Letters

A Letter to Editor-in-Chief EmeritusI an a retired American High School principalwho loves China and the Chinese people, and havedevoted my life to assisting Chinese people andChinese groups in need of assistance.I have long had the desire to write to you as a fel-low senior who shares my great love for China and itspeople. I learned of you and your tremendous relation-ship with China when I first subscribed to ChinaReconstructs, and have continued to read more aboutyou. With each readi…