China is a country with a long history. It has great traditional culture, especially Chinese characters. Chinese characters usually have more than one meaning and some of them are very interesting. Here are six ones. We use "pinyin" here because “pinyin”is the Chinese spelling way for the characters. For example, "fu" is the “pinyin” for good luck in Chinese. “pinyin”"fu”is only the phonic part of the character and if you want to know the meaning of good luck “fu”, you must read Chinese character 福 because “fu” also represents(代表) other Chinese characters that sound the same.

“fu”means blessing, good fortune, good luck. Chinese character “fu”is one of the most popular ones used during Chinese New Year. Chinese people often put up "fu”upside down on the front door of a house or an apartment. The upside down "fu" means good luck comes since the character for upside down in Chinese sounds the same as the character for “come”.

“lu”is used to mean official's a pay in old China. “shou” means long life, age or birthday. "xi" is happiness, The doubled character "xi” means double happiness. It is usually put up everywhere at Chinese weddings. "cai" is weath or money. Chinese often say “ money can make a ghost turn a millstone”. It is to say money really can do a lot of things. But, money can't buy everything. "he" is an important part of Chinese culture. It means good relations with other people, when you have “he”, things will be a lot easier for you.

The top six lucky Chinese charaters. “fu”"lu”"shou”"xi"“cai" "he”,are particularly loved by Chinese people.

B

    In the eyes of many foreigners, Chinese are the best hosts(主人) and the worst guests in the world. They're not really bad guests, but because the guest- host relationship in China is much more different than in some Western countries, it appears they are not nice guests. And Western hosts sometimes look rude (粗鲁的) in the eyes of Chinese guests.

    In China, guests are almost likes gods. Whenever I enter a Chinese person's home, there is always fruit on the table for me, and someone is quick to bring me a cup of tea or water. In the West, generally the guest is not a god. Acting according to the host's way of doing things is usual behavior for a guest.

    My wife's mother, a very kind elderly Chinese lady, doesn't smoke. When I see some of her guests smoking in her house, as a non - smoker, I feel unhappy. Usually I want to stop them directly ( 直接地), but I must realize that in China, to be a good host, she must not do that. In North American homes, if you are a guest, and the hosts are not smokers, you should not smoke in their house. At the very least, you could ask, "Is it OK if I smoke?" But, don't be surprised if they say, "No, you can't smoke." In our culture, if you smoke in their home, you are a bad guest, but if they do not allow you to smoke in their house, they are not a rude host.

    Guests in China also have special habits. Some Western people may not adapt to these habits very soon. Thankfully my wife is Chinese, so whenever we visit a Chinese family she tells me to buy them a gift. However, giving a gift to a host is not always necessary in my country. So, if you invite international guests to your house, don't be too surprised if they don't bring you a gift.

    In China, you probably won't need to change the guest -host relationship very much because you will probably only be the host, and Chinese are naturally very good hosts. If Western hosts invite you to their house, try not to be too surprised if their style of treating you is not what you have expected.

    Dragon Dance(舞龙) is a kind of traditional dance in Chinese culture. It has been spread all over China and to the whole world.

    Traditionally, dragons were made of wood and cloth. However, in the modern times, dragons are much lighter because they are made of lighter materials like plastic. The length(长度) of dragons can be from around 25 to 35 metres for acrobatic(杂技) models, and up to 50 to 70 metres for the largest parade(游行) styles because people believe that the longer the dragon is, the more luck it will bring.  A small organization cannot run a very long dragon because it requires great human power, much money and special skills.

    The Dragon Dance itself began during the Han Dynasty. And it was started by the Chinese who had shown great respect towards the dragon. It was already a popular event during the Song Dynasty. At that time, it became a popular activity like the Lion Dance. People could often see it during some important festivals. In the Qing Dynasty, the Dragon Dance Team of Fuzhou was invited to put on a show in Beijing. And the emperor(黄帝) spoke highly of it. The emperors of ancient China thought of themselves as the dragons.