This is the traditional symbol for the forces of yin and yang, sometimes described as two fish swimming head to tail. The left half is yin and the right half is yang. Taken literally, yin and yang mean the dark side and sunny side of a hill.

People commonly think of yin and yang as opposing forces. However, it is really more appropriate to view them as complementary pairs. The Chinese believe problems arise not when the two forces are battling, but when there is an imbalance between them. Floods, divorce, or even a fire in the kitchen – all can be attributed to disharmony in the forces of yin and yang.
How does the concept of yin and yang relate to food?
A basic adherence to this philosophy can be found in ANY Chinese dish, from stir-fried beef with broccoli to sweet and sour pork. There is always a balance in color, flavors, and textures.

However, belief in the importance of following the principles of yin and yang in the diet extends further.
Certain foods have yin properties, while others have yang properties – Cooling or warm, fat or non-fat, high-calorie or low- calorie, and etc.

Almost no foodstuff is purely yin or yang – it’s more that one characteristic tends to dominate. It also reinforces that it is not so much the individual ingredients, as the the balance and contrast between ingredients in each dish, that is important. Interestingly, cooking methods also have more of a yin or yang property, as the list below demonstrates

Cooking Methods:

Types of Foods: 

Chinese food emphasizes on consuming a diet that contains a healthy balance between yin and yang. You’ll find most Chinese dishes are made of a mixture of ingredients and each meal is made up of a combination of dishes.

龙年 (lóngnián): n. the Year of the Dragon
本命年 (běnmìngnián): n. one’s year of birth in relation to the Chinese Zodiac

China’s celebration of the lunar New Year, the renowned Spring Festival, is less than a month away. As the zodiac’s limelight shifts to a different animal each year, 2012 has been designated "龙年 (lóngnián) the Year of the Dragon." If your birth year also happens to be in the Year of the Dragon, it is your "本命年 (běnmìngnián). You’ve got quite a few concerns to be conscious of.
In Chinese culture, your "本命年 (běnmìngnián)" will align with one of 12 animals in the "生肖 (shēngxiào) Chinese Zodiac." Your sign will align with the present year’s animal every twelve years, namely at the age of twelve, twenty-four, thirty-six and so on. However, according to traditional Chinese culture, if your animal sign is the same as the current lunar year’s, it’s considered an unlucky year. That’s why people also call it "槛儿年 (kǎnrnián) threshold year," that is thought difficult to get through.

Key Learning Points:
龙年 (lóngnián): n. the Year of the Dragon

Example: 
Lóngnián kuài dào le, zhù dàjiā shìshìshùnxīn, tiāntiānkāixīn.
龙年        快     到 了， 祝  大家  事事顺心,  天天开心。
The Year of the Dragon is coming! I hope everything goes well with you and you find a bit of happiness everyday.

春节       chūnjié       The Spring Festival
农历       nónglì         lunar calendar
正月       zhēngyuè    lunar January; the first month by lunar calendar
除夕       chúxī          New Year’s Eve

初一       chūyī           the beginning of New Year
元宵节    yuánxiāojié  The Lantern Festival
过年      guònián        have the Spring Festival
对联      duìlián          poetic couplet

春联      chūnlián       Spring Festival couplets
剪纸      jiǎnzhǐ          paper-cuts
买年货   mǎiniánhuò  special purchases for the Spring Festival

年画      niánhuà       New Year paintings

敬酒      jìngjiǔ         propose a toast
灯笼     dēnglóng     lantern: a portable light
烟花     yānhuā        fireworks
爆竹     bàozhú       firecrackers (People scare off evil spirits and ghosts with the loud pop.)

红包     hóngbāo     red packets (cash wrapped up in red paper, symbolize fortune and wealth in the coming year.)
灯谜     dēngmí       riddles written on lanterns
灯会     dēnghuì      exhibit of lanterns
守岁     shǒusùi       staying-up

拜年    bàinián      pay New Year’s call; give New Year’s greetings; New Year’s visit
去晦气  qùhùiqì     get rid of the ill- fortune
祭祖宗  jìzǔzōng    offer sacrifices to one’s ancestors
压岁钱  yāsuìqián   gift money; money given to children as a lunar New Year gift
辞旧岁  cíjiùsuì       bid farewell to the old year

a

啊: placed at the end of a sentence to express admiration or affirmation, for example:

duō hǎo de dì fɑnɡ a

多 好 的 地 方 啊！
What a place!

nǐ kě yào xiǎo xīn a

你 可 要 小 心 啊！
Do be careful!
Or to indicate a question, for example:

nǐ men nǎ tiān qù lǚ xínɡ a

你 们 哪 天 去 旅 行 啊？
When are you going to start on your journey?
啊can also be placed in the sentence to pause for a second and draw attention to the following sentences, for example:

nǐ a lǎo zhè yànɡ xià qu kě bù xínɡ
你 啊 ，老 这 样 下 去 可 不 行！
Look! You can’t go on like this.
Or placed after a repetitive verb to indicate that it is a very long process:

tā men zǒu a zǒu a yì zhí zǒu dào hé biān
他 们 走 啊，走 啊，一 直 走 到 河 边。
They went on and on till they came to a river.

ya

呀: ah; oh

ya xià xuě le
呀，下 雪 了！
Oh, it’s snowing!

shuí ya
谁 呀？
Who is it?

zhēn shānɡ xīn ya
真 伤 心 呀！
Woe is me!

ò
哦: Oh; ah; I see

ò   wǒ dǒnɡ le
哦，我 懂 了。
Oh! I see. Oh! Now I understand.

ò   zhēn de
哦？真 的？
Oh, you do?

ma

吗: placed at the end of a sentence to indicate a question

shì ma

是 吗？
That so?

ké yǐ ma

可 以 吗？
Would you?

tánɡ cù yú hǎo chī ma

糖 醋 鱼 好 吃 吗？
How do you like the sweet and sour fish?

ma
嘛: to indicate it is obvious

zhè yě bù nénɡ ɡuài tā  tóu yì huí ma
这 也 不 能 怪 他，头 一 回 嘛。
He’s not to blame. After all, it was the first time he’d done it.
Or, placed at the end of a sentence to draw attention to the following sentences:

nǐ ma jiù bú yònɡ qīn zì qù le
你 嘛，就 不 用 亲 自 去 了。
As for you, I don’t think you have to go in person.

 

Many chinese learners take hsk tests,.HSK can not only test your chinese level, and also can benefit you a lot.

The HSK Certificate serves

1) to certify that the holder has obtained the required Chinese Proficiency to enter a college or university as an undergraduate or graduate student.

2) to certify that the holder can be exempt from studying Chinese courses depending on the level of certification.

3)as a basis for the employment institutions to evaluate the Chinese proficiency of their employees.

Application Requirements

According to the regulations made by the Ministry of Education in China, any foreign student who wants to apply for undergraduate programs in universities in China must take HSK and receive at least one of the following certificates (Mandarin Course in Beijing):

1. Intermediate level C required for admission to a college or university of arts, such as Chinese literature, history, philosophy, etc. and Chinese medicine.

2. Elementary level C required for admission to a college or university of science or technology.

(The best way to learn Chinese is to learn Chinese in China, while the most convenient way to learn Chinese is to learn Chinese online )

Convenience

Online Chinese lessons bring native teacher to you, wherever you are in the world. They can be scheduled around your busy schedule and no time is lost travelling to and from class. Plus you can continue classes when you’re on holiday or travelling on business.

No pre-recorded material

Online learning allows you to take advantage of voice and video functionality – it’s as close to having class in a Chinese classroom as you can get without actually being there. Pre-recorded podcasts and audio files certainly have their place in language learning, but with no feedback from a teacher it can be very difficult to grasp grammatical complexities, check pronunciation and have your questions answered.

One-on-one tuition

In all your classes, you’ll speak Chinese online (via Skype) directly to your teacher. Having a dedicated teacher monitoring your successes and difficulties is the surest way to make progress with your language learning, but one-on-one attention is tricky to come by if you’re learning Chinese at a school, university or night school. One on  one online classes also enable student-centered teaching approaches: each student has their own way of learning that works best for them, which can be addressed and catered for.

Maximum Participation

In an online Chinese lesson, students are constantly engaged in conversation with their teacher: this maximises student interaction and ensures that the Chinese they learn is immediately put into practice.

Diversity of Skills

Taking online Chinese lessons will also help you to develop your general communication skills and use technology which is becoming increasingly commonplace in 21st Century business, as people interact across multiple time zones and continents.

辣 (là): adj. spicy/hot       
The Chinese character "辣 (là)" literally means spicy. In China, Sichuan province is famous for its spicy cuisine, for example, "火锅 (huǒguō)" hotpot. And it is said that Sichuan girls are beautiful and forthright. So people tend to call Sichuan girls "辣妹子 (làmèizi) spicy girls." Particularly, the famous song "辣妹子 (làmèizi) Spicy Sisters" sang by Song Zuying made this term popular and people began to call pretty girls "辣妹 (làmèi)." When the pop group Spice Girls became a hit in China, the implications of "辣 (là)" widened. People now use it to describe girls who are beautiful and sexy. In English, the term is hot.
Examples:
        Nǐ xǐhuan chī là de dōngxi ma?
Amy: 你  喜欢  吃  辣  的 东西  吗？ 
        Do you like spicy food?
         Dāngrán le, wǒ kěshì Sìchuān làmèizi.
Lana: 当然      了，我  可是  四川    辣妹子。 
        Of course, and I’m a spicy girl from Sichuan Province.

Chinese is the language Chinese people speak which includes Mandarin, Cantonese, Shanghainese, etc. Mandarin is the language MOST Chinese people speak. People from mainland China, Taiwan, Singapore all speak Mandarin. People from Hong Kong speak Cantonese.But normally they have to learn Mandarin in school.

The ancient character for the word “big” described a man standing facing the front, with feet and hands wide open.
字义: big, large, great  
组词:
大衣  [ dàyī ]   overcoat 
大使  [ dàshǐ ]   ambassador
大方  [ dàfang ]   generous
大学  [ dàxué ]   university 
大家  [ dàjiā ]   everybody
大街  [ dàjiē ]   main street
例句: 
1、这件大衣剪裁得好，做得也很好。
   Zhè jiàn dàyī jiǎncái de hǎo, zuò de yě hěn hǎo.
   The coat was well cut and well made.
2、他很大方，经常买东西送给别人。
   Tā hěn dàfang, jīngcháng mǎi dōngxi  sòng gěi biérén.
   He is very generous — he often buys things for other people.
3、他是我大学里最好的朋友。
   Tā shì wǒ dàxué lǐ zuì hǎo de péngyou.
   He was my best friend at the university.

(Source: http://my.chinese.cn/space.php?do)

有点yǒudiǎn +adj./v.

adj./v.+ 一点 yìdiǎn

For example:

我有点冷。 wǒ yǒudiǎn lěng. I’m a little cold.

我有点感冒。 wǒ yǒudiǎn gǎnmào. I have a slight cold.

你有大一点的吗? Nǐ yǒu dà yìdiǎn de ma? Do you have a bigger one?

我吃了一点东西. wǒ chīle yìdiǎn dōngxī. I ate a little stuff.