Popup Chinese

With the Alibaba IPO throwing daytraders worldwide into a frenzed adulation of all things China, and the press going wild over Jack Ma and his Chinese e-commerce engine, this week's show takes a closer look at Taobao - the jewel in the Alibaba crown - with a hard-hitting quiz covering the most important things no-one seems to be able to remember about our favourite shopping site. Also on the show: questions about Beijing and the secrets of Uighur time.... Quiz Night is a regular feature...

Did you ever thumb through a fresh copy of City Weekend and wonder why the Readers' Choice Award for Creepiest Park in Beijing has been awarded to Jingshan Park every year since the mid-1660s? In this episode, Megan squares off with returning champion Zhiqiang to answer this as well as questions on rehab and earth's diminishing dolphin population. Normally, Megan and Joakeem are trapped in a discussion on how to define their relationship but during Quiz Night this week they stay off that...

Occasionally, we think back on our years in China and look back at our casual brushes with death with the sort of nostalgia other people feel for high school prom. For such were those heady days of SARS, when the streets of Beijing were clean, taxis were readily available, and glaston and woad were part of the everyday lexicon here. Also on this show, what happened to the inventor of the flying car who strapped Cessena wings to a Ford Pinto. Learning Chinese? Our Popup Chinese quiz show is...

After a lengthy hiatus, we're pleased to release another episode of our Chinese Quiz Night. Joining new hosts Joakeem and Grace in our studio are two contestants known and feared by the other residents of Beijing: Martin the Destroyer, famous around Beijing for his mastery on the pub quiz circuit, as well as Ban "the terror from Qinghai" Yan, who is admittedly less intimidating in person that we were expecting. Not sure what this show is doing in your iTunes feed? Our Chinese Quiz Show at...

In our fourth episode of Quiz Night, Tony from New Zealand matches matches his wits against Will from Australia in a battle that covers everything from T.S. Eliot's favorite detective novel, to horrific industrial accidents in Russia. Also up for your enjoyment? David repeatedly mispronounces the word "nuclear" and we learn the best place in Beijing for volleying ammunition into the Forbidden City. Learning Chinese? Our quiz show is geared for anyone with good listening comprehension also...

Nazi refreshments, racist stereotypes from the 1980s and boy bands that refuse to die. Such are just a few of the topics you can expect this week on our Popup Quiz Night, along with our usual round of China questions designed to make you absolutely insufferable to friends and family alike. Learning Chinese? Our Popup Chinese quiz show is intended for people who already have pretty good mandarin but are looking for a fun way to expand their vocabulary. It features nine questions split into...

After succumbing last episode to Brendan's wide-ranging knowledge of everything save contemporary pop music, Echo has switched sides this week to serve as Chinese quizmaster in a show that pits podcaster Sylvia against voice-legend Andy in a China-vs-China battle of the wits. And with a Chinese Mobile recharge card hanging in the balance, and SMS messages just waiting to be sent, the stakes could not be higher for our contestants. Learning Chinese? Our quiz show is intended for people who...

This is the pilot episode of a new concept show we're developing for upper-intermediate students: a quiz game featuring mostly Chinese questions with just enough bilingual discussion thrown in to keep things intelligible. We had a good time producing this, and if you're stretching past the intermediate level we think you'll like it too -- our topics range from ancient Rome to 19th century English literature and there is plenty of useful vocab here you won't find elsewhere, if only because...

Some consider it cold and aloof, while others credit it with uncommon warmth. Whatever your own opinion of the fifth tone, if you're an absolute beginner to Chinese, join Brendan and Echo in today's Speaking Practice lesson as they review the basic rules of how and when to use the neutral tone. We then practice some simple, high-frequency vocabulary that has this unstressed tone, then give you a chance to call us and get feedback on your own Chinese pronunciation. Yes, if you're a premium...

Today's lesson is for elementary Chinese learners. In it we practice saying ten words and phrases, and eight sentences that all contain the character 不. We do this to highlight the tonal change that occurs when you pronounce this character next to another fourth tone character (hint: it changes to second tone). If you're relatively new to Chinese and have been struggling with picking up a natural intonation, this podcast can help. And if you're a premium subscriber we want to help you even...

Join us as we celebrate a belated Oktoberfest with this podcast dedicated to the most popular domestic beer in China. And if you don't know this you pretty much owe it to yourself to listen, since it isn't what you think (Brendan is the only one we know who guessed correctly). Also because dropping this sort of trivia in casual conversation will help you come across as urbane, sophisticated and connected to the pulse of the Chinese consumer. Hello promotion! That said, since this is a...

Our speaking practice lesson for today is all about tone sandhi, and particularly about how to properly pronounce the three-two combo of a dipping third tone followed up by a rising second tone. There is a particular way Chinese people pronounce this combination which actually makes the language easier to speak. Do you know the trick? Listen to our podcast if not and we'll let you in on a great secret for improving your fluency in mandarin. Since this is a speaking practice lesson, premium...

We know you started making plans for a night out as soon as you saw us publish that lesson for Absolute Beginners this morning. Unfortunately for your social ambitions, we don't have a reputation as cruel mandarin taskmasters for nothing. Which is why in addition to our beginner podcast we've got this speaking practice lesson aimed at Elementary students and above: anyone who can be intentionally funny in Chinese. So call us up and tell us a joke. In order to get you in the mood, we've put...