In this edition: Extreme cycling in Tibet, solar panels made in Xinjiang, the subjective state of the Chinese economy, a Chinese man looks back on living in Europe and “Love Defense Wars” with a lovely couple from Anhui.
Cycling and camping in Tibet
Chinese adventurer 刘伟元 (Liú Wěiyuán) continues his bicycle journey through the mountains of Tibet. Conquering great heights, he captures the mountain scenery along the way and explores an abandoned village. At night, he finds shelter in an abandoned cowshed. While wolves howl outside, he cooks a large pot of rice and bacon on the wood stove left behind by the farmers.
Difficulty level: HSK 4 (southern dialect, sometimes speaks ‘r’ like ‘l’)
中文拼音English小木屋xiǎo mù wūsmall wooden cabin小木屋火灭掉了xiǎo mù wū huǒ miè diào lethe fire in the cabin went out取取暖qǔqǔ nuǎnwarm up a bit火给它浇灭了huǒ gěi tā jiāomiè lethe fire was put out (with water)这个信号塔是太阳能的zhè gè xìnhàotǎ shì tàiyángnéng dethis signal tower uses solar power露营lùyíngcamping房子是废弃的fángzi shì fèiqì dethe house is abandoned好诡异hǎo guǐyìvery strange / creepy想不明白xiǎng bù míngbáican’t figure it out来一罐八宝粥啊lái yí guàn bābǎozhōu alet’s have a can of eight-treasure porridge吃饱了才有力气爬上去chī bǎo le cái yǒu lì qi pá shàng qùonly after eating can we have the strength to climb up羽绒服yǔróngfúdown jacket风景如画fēngjǐng rúhuàscenery like a painting高反gāofǎnaltitude sickness满满一锅mǎn mǎn yì guōa pot full累惨了lèi cǎn leextremely tired
Chinese summary: 中国探险者刘伟元继续在西藏骑自行车旅行。他翻过很高的山，一路拍下美丽的山景，还去看了一座没人住的村庄。晚上，他住在一间废弃的牛棚里。外面有狼在叫，他用留下来的柴火炉煮了一大锅米饭和腊肉。
Xinjiang’s role in the global solar industry
China has quietly become the powerhouse of the global solar industry. Today, the country produces more than 80% of the world’s solar cells, and over half of the most critical raw material behind them – polysilicon (多晶硅 – duō jīng guī) – comes from one place: Xinjiang. How did China outperform so many US and European manufacturers? This video provides some answers.
Difficulty level: HSK 6
ChinesePinyinEnglish太阳能电池tài yáng néng diàn chísolar cell / solar battery光伏企业guāng fú qǐ yèphotovoltaic enterprise / solar power company生产线shēng chǎn xiànproduction line补贴市场bǔ tiē shì chǎngsubsidized market绿色能源lǜ sè néng yuángreen energy / renewable energy能源宝库néng yuán bǎo kùenergy treasure trove / rich energy reserve煤炭méi tàncoal多晶硅duō jīng guīpolysilicon可再生能源kě zài shēng néng yuánrenewable energy清洁能源qīng jié néng yuánclean energy光伏发电guāng fú fā diànphotovoltaic power generation风力发电fēng lì fā diànwind power generation发电厂fā diàn chǎngpower plant能源转型néng yuán zhuǎn xíngenergy transition碳排放tàn pái fàngcarbon emissions减排目标jiǎn pái mù biāoemission-reduction target储能技术chǔ néng jì shùenergy storage technology电网diàn wǎngpower grid
Chinese summary: 这段视频介绍了中国为什么能在太阳能电池（tàiyángnéng diànchí）生产方面取得成功。中国现在几乎控制了全球的生产链（shēngchǎn liàn）。视频中提到，这主要是因为中国拥有充足的原材料（yuáncáiliào），比如多晶硅（duōjīngguī）和煤炭（méitàn），同时也有支持产业发展的产业政策（chǎnyè zhèngcè）。因此，中国在全球绿色转型（lǜsè zhuǎnxíng）中起着重要作用。此外，中国也在积极发展太阳能（tàiyángnéng）和风能（fēngnéng），从而生产更多的清洁能源（qīngjié néngyuán）。
How do Chinese feel about their economy in late 2025? – Chinese Street Interview
In this street interview, Eileen tries to find out how the average Chinese person views the state of the Chinese economy. Most answers aren’t very positive. People complain about how difficult it is to find good jobs. People complain about long working hours and unpaid overtime. It seems as if only people with good jobs in industries where China is strong are more positive. Lots of useful and interesting vocabulary to study.
Difficulty level: HSK 5 / 6
ChinesePinyinEnglish经济大环境jīng jì dà huán jìngthe overall economic environment现在找工作面了好多，只有一个offerxiàn zài zhǎo gōng zuò miàn le hǎo duō, zhǐ yǒu yí gè offerI’ve interviewed a lot while job hunting, but only got one offer经济的不好体现在我的工资太低上jīng jì de bù hǎo tǐ xiàn zài wǒ de gōng zī tài dī shàngthe bad economy shows in how low my salary is消费降级xiāo fèi jiàng jíconsumption downgrade / cutting back on spending天然的一个感触tiān rán de yí gè gǎn chùa natural feeling / something you feel instinctively各行各业gè háng gè yèall walks of life / every industry批发行业pī fā háng yèthe wholesale industry生意在变差shēng yì zài biàn chàbusiness is getting worse跑外卖过度一下日子pǎo wài mài guò dù yí xià rì zidoing food delivery to get by for a while岗位少，抢的人多gǎng wèi shǎo, qiǎng de rén duōfew positions, many people competing制造成本没有变化zhì zào chéng běn méi yǒu biàn huàmanufacturing costs haven’t changed吐槽特朗普tǔ cáo Tèlǎngpǔcomplaining about / ranting about Trump对我们的用户不利duì wǒ men de yòng hù bù lìunfavorable to our users你是从事什么行业的？nǐ shì cóng shì shén me háng yè de?what industry do you work in?我可能做三个人的工作，但是拿的是一个人的工资wǒ kě néng zuò sān gè rén de gōng zuò, dàn shì ná de shì yí gè rén de gōng zīI’m probably doing the work of three people, but getting paid like one时长就零零七shí cháng jiù líng líng qīthe duration is just 007 (very short / barely any time)福利待遇fú lì dài yùbenefits and compensation还房贷huán fáng dàipaying off a mortgage硬着头皮做yìng zhe tóu pí zuòforcing oneself to do it / gritting one’s teeth and pushing through房贷占了你工资的多少fáng dài zhàn le nǐ gōng zī de duō shǎohow much of your salary goes to your mortgage?老员工裁掉lǎo yuán gōng cái diàolaying off long-term / senior employees
Chinese summary: 在这段视频中，Eileen 在街头采访路人，询问他们如何看待中国当前的经济大环境。受访者分享了自己对经济形势的看法和个人观察。
Why this Chinese man left Europe after 20 years – interview
This Mandarin Corner video features Eileen interviewing Bruce, a Shanghainese man who lived in the Netherlands and Germany for over 20 years, about his experiences in Europe and cultural differences with China. Bruce explains that he mostly stayed within Chinese social circles and had little contact with Dutch or German people, which shapes his limited sense of connection to local society. While some of his views strike me as oversimplified, I do think his experiences fit in a larger picture and are shared (to some extent) by other overseas Chinese, who live in Europe yet are seldomly heard or seen.
Difficulty level: HSK 4-5
ChinesePinyinEnglish Translation学费补贴xuéfèi bǔtiētuition subsidy / tuition allowance高技术移民gāo jìshù yímínhighly skilled migrant分公司fēn gōngsībranch company / subsidiary申请入籍shēnqǐng rùjíapply for naturalization / citizenship德国人比荷兰人冷漠Déguórén bǐ Hélánrén lěngmòGermans are colder than the Dutch (not the author’s view)难相处nán xiāngchǔhard to get along with觉得自己更了不起juéde zìjǐ gèng liǎo bù qǐthink oneself is more impressive / feel superior歧视qíshìdiscrimination上海人歧视外地人Shànghǎi rén qíshì wàidì rénShanghainese discriminate against people from other regions比较低调的人bǐjiào dīdiào de réna relatively low-key / modest person我比较宅wǒ bǐjiào zháiI’m quite introverted / I like staying home文化冲击wénhuà chōngjículture shock荷兰人很直接Hélán rén hěn zhíjiēDutch people are very direct顾及别人的感受gùjí biérén de gǎnshòuconsider other people’s feelings抠门儿kōuménrstingy / tight with money顺其自然shùn qí zìrángo with the flow / let things take their course计较jìjiàoto fuss over / to be calculative天气不稳定tiānqì bù wěndìngthe weather is unstable欧洲开始落后Ōuzhōu kāishǐ luòhòuEurope is starting to fall behind称呼名字chēnghu míngzìaddress by name比较佛系bǐjiào fóxìrelatively laid-back / chill / “zen” attitude内耗nèihàointernal friction / mental struggle / energy drain
Chinese summary: 这段 YouTube 视频里，Eileen 采访了在荷兰和德国生活 20 多年的上海人 Bruce。他讲了自己在欧洲的经历和中欧文化的不同。Bruce 说他大多在华人圈子里，很少和荷兰人接触，所以对当地社会的感觉不多。
《爱情保卫战》- the most horrible mother?
Regular readers of this blog know that I am a big fan of Aiqing Baowei Zhan. Not only because of the vulgar arguments between married couples that are presented as a kind of entertainment – and even education – for the masses, but also because the format is extremely useful for practicing Chinese listening skills, understanding Chinese culture, and more. This is mainly due to the heated on-stage disputes, where the two participants have to defend themselves in front of the audience and the panel, while hurling accusations back and forth at such a furious pace that you start to wonder whether simply taking part in the program hasn’t already sealed the end of the relationship, rather than helping to resolve anything.
The episode in question is not new, but it is one of the most-watched editions ever. It is not always clear who is at fault and needs to change their behavior – sometimes people are simply not very compatible and fail to bring out the best in each other – but in this case, the woman appears to be the more problematic one. Her impulsive shopping habits, her failure as a housewife, and not least her tyrannical attitude toward her own children’s school performance disqualify her on multiple levels. This even pushes the usually impartial host out of his neutral role and makes her husband appear as a model of common sense.
By the way, the dialect spoken by the woman is very interesting. Besides the local accent, the real challenge lies in the speed and the rapidly changing topics, which I actually consider a strength of both the format and the host – he never lingers too long on any one issue. Definitely worth watching, and if you like it, you won’t run out of episodes anytime soon, because the program has been around for a very long time.
Difficulty level: HSK 5 (Anhui-dialect increases difficulty)
中文拼音English买奶粉mǎi nǎi fěnbuy baby formula / milk powder住宾馆zhù bīn guǎnstay in a hotel不诚信bù chéng xìndishonest / lacking integrity难道你用每个锅热出来的外卖味道不一样吗？nán dào nǐ yòng měi gè guō rè chū lái de wài mài wèi dào bù yí yàng ma?Do you really think takeout tastes different when reheated in different pots?花点钱买个锅也不算什么呀huā diǎn qián mǎi gè guō yě bù suàn shén me yaSpending a little money to buy a pot is not a big deal我花的钱就是为了省钱wǒ huā de qián jiù shì wèi le shěng qiánI spend money in order to save money复婚fù hūnremarry (after divorce)你凭什么叫孩子游泳啊nǐ píng shén me jiào hái zi yóu yǒng aWho are you to make the child go swimming?谁提的离婚？shéi tí de lí hūn?Who asked for the divorce?你一点社会经验都没有nǐ yì diǎn shè huì jīng yàn dōu méi yǒuYou have no social experience at all攀比pān bǐcompare oneself with others (competitively)家庭观念jiā tíng guān niànsense of family values苛责孩子kē zé hái zibe overly harsh toward children
Chinese summary: 安徽一对夫妻来参加《爱情保卫战》节目，因为女方想离婚。她对丈夫不满意的主要原因是他们的家庭观念不同，比如在孩子教育、家务分工、为家庭花钱以及消费习惯等方面。不过，女方说得越多，反而越显示出她自己的态度也存在问题。
I hope you enjoyed this final edition from this year. 新年快乐，万事如意! More to come in the next!
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