Try to Understand China. Learn Chinese.
I recently snapped this photo of a “Chinese character.” I thought it might be interesting to put AI (Claude) to the test to see if it could recognize it. Across three models, the results differed more than I expected. Haiku 4.5 (the oldest model) That’s 福 (fú) — “fortune” or “happiness.” Classic Spring Festival energy! The stylized calligraphy here is giving major auspicious vibes, which... Read…
I feel remiss for not having made any Chinese New Year-related post yet. I reread my old post from 2022 and realized that those are the same feelings I still harbor, so no need to write about that. (One of the benefits of keeping a blog, I guess?) However, walking around Shanghai, I did notice this CNY decoration and felt it was worth sharing: This... Read More The post Fancy Horsies appeared…
This blog has been quiet in 2025. For one thing, blogs already seem to be a relic of the past (did you know that kids in the high school IB program learn “blog” as a text type, and they have no clue what it is at all until they learn about it in high school?). For another, there’s just a lot going on in my... Read More The post Reviewing 2025 appeared first on Sinosplice .
Merry Christmas, everyone! (Obligatory link to the Chinese Christmas songs page from the archive) I’ve still got a year-end update post coming, but in the meantime, I need to share a great deal happening at AllSet Learning right now. If you’re learning Chinese online or thinking about it, there’s no cheaper way to give our top-notch services a try for a very low $33. Yes,... Read More The post…
I went to the movie theater with my family on Saturday to watch Zootopia 2 (疯狂动物城2) here in Shanghai. As usual, we watched the movie with the original audio and Chinese subtitles, and enjoyed it a lot. But I did take note of the subtitles here and there and noticed a little translation detail that I liked. It relates to the new Shakira song “Zoo”... Read More The post Zootopia 2 and “Zoo Ooh Ooh”…
I just had my 25th Chinaversary today. Although I don’t usually pay much attention to this date, 25 years felt like enough of a milestone to make a cheesy graphic about it! (Yes, apparently I’m big in Guilin.) So the amount of time I’ve lived in China has now significantly exceeded the amount of time I’ve lived in the US or anywhere else. It’s a... Read More The post 25 Years! appeared first on…
I recently came across this YouTube video, and it echoed a lot of the same discoveries I made, back in the day. If you’re learning Chinese, and you’re even a little bit curious about the names of the elements in Chinese (and yes, this involves some special characters!), check it out: A got AI to provide a nice little summary of what the video covers: The post The Periodic Table in Chinese has fun…
I saw this posted by David Moser on Facebook recently: David writes: This bilingual sign in the restroom of a Beijing hospital is interesting. The Chinese literally reads: “[If this is] a special day, [if] you need a feminine hygiene product, please contact someone at the front desk.” The English eschews such gentle euphemisms: “If you need a tampon during your period, please contact with... Read…
Some friends in Shanghai are organizing this: If you’re in Shanghai this January 1st (2025), come to the Children’s Charity Bazaar, which benefits the Heart to Heart Foundation, helping underprivileged children get the heart surgery they desperately need. You don’t even have to wake up early! 11am until 5pm at the 889 mall (889 Wanhangdu Rd.). Some more info about Heart to Heart from its... Read…
So I had a great time on my trip to Naples, Italy (I’ll have to write more about that soon), and after returning to Shanghai I have continued to study Italian through Duolingo and ChatGPT. One thing that I’ve noticed about Italian is that plural forms require a lot more attention than I’ve ever given them in any of my language study to date. In... Read More The post More Pants than Pant appeared…