To kiss or not to kiss
By Maikel Liem
Picture by Zhu Lijun
Translated by Jean Chen



Every culture in the world has its own etiquette when it comes to socializing; a bow, a friendly handshake or a hug. But what about a kiss? Although fairly common in most western countries, the kiss on the cheek is somewhat of a taboo between male and female friends and relatives in Asia. And even Asian couples usually do not kiss in public places. So it must be a little uncomfortable for Chinese people, when they come to the west, to see that kissing is a widely accepted and practiced way of saying hello.

Because I grew up in The Netherlands I never gave this labial greeting that much thought; I did not know any better than to kiss my friends and family members on the cheek three times when meeting. But when I entered university, on the other side of the country near Amsterdam, I met and made friends with many Chinese people. This was when I first realized that this kissing business is not common practice for everyone. For instance when I wanted to congratulate one of my newly found Chinese friends on her birthday she was somewhat reluctant to receive the three kisses, even though she has lived in The Netherlands all her life.

When I went to Asia to study for the first time I came to realize that the people there have a somewhat different view on this socializing etiquette. I guess in my case what shocked me in Asia was the way male friends show their affection. As said before, a handshake is a fairly common thing in the west, but it usually does not last longer than a few seconds. In Asia I saw two guys who would grasp their hands almost the whole time they where talking. This happened to me several times as well and it was a bit uncomfortable at first. This opinion is shared by Dr. Bill Brown who even gave an entire lecture on this subject. I also noticed that Asian male friends would walk on the street while putting their arms over each other's shoulders.

When I came back to The Netherlands after one year I must admit that I kind of gave up the greeting kiss myself. In fact even some of my (Dutch) friends have commented about it to me; some asking me whether I do not like the person I have met up with. So, when traveling to the west don't feel embarrassed to give your friends there a kiss on the cheek, but at the same time do not feel obligated. You can never go wrong with a hug and/or a friendly handshake. And if you really have a problem with this kissing thing you should go to France where people kiss two times or America where it is done only once.



世界上每一种文化都有自己独特的问候礼节, 特别是在社交场合, 可以是鞠躬, 友好的握手, 甚至是拥抱. 那么亲吻呢? 亲吻, 在绝大多数的西方国家已是相当普遍的一种问候礼节, 然而在亚洲, 异性朋友间用亲吻来打招呼还是比较忌讳的. 而且, 在亚洲国家很少会看到人们在公众场合亲吻. 所以, 当中国人到西方后发现亲吻是非常普遍并被广泛接受的打招呼的方式, 还是会不习惯的.

我是在荷兰长大的, 每次和朋友或家人见面, 我们习惯在彼此的脸颊上亲三下, 我还没发现有比这更好的打招呼的方式. 因此我从未过多考虑这是否不妥. 但是, 当我到荷兰的另一端靠近阿姆斯特丹上大学后, 我结识了不少中国朋友. 那时, 我才意识到, 亲吻并不是适用于每个人的. 举个例子, 有次我一个新认识的中国女性朋友过生日, 我原想亲吻三下来庆祝她的生日, 可是她有点不愿意接受, 尽管她从小就生活在荷兰.

当我到亚洲读书后, 我才开始明白, 在这儿人们对社交礼仪有完全不同的观点. 我想, 在我遇到的情况里, 最令我震惊的是亚洲男性表达感情的方式. 如上所述, 在西方握手是非常平常的事, 但是握手的时间通常不会超过几秒钟. 但在这儿, 我亲眼见过, 两个大男人在交谈的时候一直握着对方的手. 据我所知, 厦大的潘维廉教授对此还有专门讲座. 我碰到过好几次, 刚开始确实觉得有点不舒服. 还有, 我发现, 在这儿两个大男人走在大街上, 勾肩搭背也是常事.

在亚洲呆了一年, 回到荷兰后, 我得承认, 我自己已经放弃了亲吻这种问候的方式. 事实上, 甚至有几个荷兰朋友特意向我指出来, 或者问我是不是不喜欢他们. 所以, 到西方旅游, 给你的朋友来个脸颊吻, 无须尴尬. 当然也别强迫自己. 一个拥抱或握手也还是可行的. 如果你确实还是不习惯亲吻, 那就去法国吧, 那儿是亲两下, 或者美国, 那儿只要一下哦.

 

 

Cartoon English
By Bo & Bob

 

 

 

Hot Word
Collected by Jianjiang

● high-rise
The Dubai Tower will be the tallest building in the world when finished. It will dwarf the 553m CN Tower in Toronto and planned high-rises in Shanghai and New York.
阿联酋航空公司将修建一座世界上最高的建筑--迪拜塔. 553米高的多伦多电视塔和它一比将变成"小矮人", 上海和纽约正在筹划中的超高层建筑也会相形见绌.
high-rise, 高层建筑. 也可作形容词, a high-rise flat.

● borrowing
Three years after staging the largest debt default in modern history, Argentina recently opened what may be the first Museum of Foreign Debt to teach people the perils of borrowing abroad.
近日, 阿根廷首个外债博物馆正式对外开放. 三年前, 阿根廷爆发了现代史上最大的外债违约. 而今天此举旨在教育人们了解海外贷款的危险性.
borrowing, 借款. 由动词borrow衍生而来. borrowing power, 偿债能力.

● milestone
Air Canada, one of the world's largest airlines will launch non-stop flights between Beijing and Toronto. It will be a milestone for Air Canada 's development in the Chinese market.
世界最大航空公司之一的加拿大航空公司将正式开通北京至多伦多的直飞航班, 这是两国之间首次开通两地的直飞航线, 也是该公司开拓中国市场过程的一个里程碑.
milestone, 里程碑、重要事件. The invention of the computer was a milestone.

● seafront
The yachts are scrubbed, the red carpet is unraveled and giant movie posters vie for attention on the seafront. Let Cannes, the world's greatest film festival, begin.
游艇擦洗一新, 红地毯铺开迎八方来客, 海边公路上的巨幅电影海报争相辉映. 世界上最隆重的电影节在戛纳拉开帷幕.
seafront, 沿海岸而筑的马路, 如厦门美不胜收的环岛路.

● pool
Wimbledon will offer the largest prize money in the history of tennis for its 2005 Championships, increasing the pool by 3.9 percent to 10,085,510 pounds.
今年六七月在温布尔登举行的草地大满贯赛, 将提供网球赛史上最高的一笔奖金, 奖金总额将高达1008.551万英镑, 比上一届增涨了3.9%.
pool, 公共基金. 除了众所周知的"水池"外, pool还指"基金、赌金".

● overhear
Directed by Sydney Pollack, the film revolves around a South African U.N. interpreter who overhears a conversation involving an assassination that could topple the government.
《翻译风波》在内地大受欢迎. 故事的起因是, 一名联合国口译员无意中听到有人用非洲土语交谈, 要暗杀即将在联合国大会上发表演说的一位非洲国家元首.
overhear, 无意中听到、偷听. overhearer就是"偷听者".

 

 

战场与人生
By Suky

前几天接到朋友的越洋电话, 提到美国流行网上游戏赚钱, 两周他就赚了1000多美元. Suky无比兴奋, 忙问游戏地址, 却被泼了冷水: 因为中国人比较聪明, 这些网站对国人提升了难度, 赚钱不太可能啦. 太聪明也会被歧视? 抑或聪明也是一种错误. Suky不禁想起美国大兵的必读手册, 其中一些对生活还是挺有启发意义的.

1. You are not a superman.
你不是超人. (不要无谓冒险、不要做傻事. 居然把这条放第一位? )

2. If it's stupid but works, it isn't stupid.
如果这个蠢方法有效, 那它就不是一个蠢方法.

3. Don't look conspicuous - it draws fire. (This is why aircraft carriers are called "Bomb Magnets".)
不要太显眼, 因为那会引来对方火力攻击. (这就是航母被称为"炸弹磁铁"的原因. )

4. The simple things are always hard.
简单的事总是难做到.

5. The easy way is always mined.
好走的路总是布满地雷.

6. If you are short of everything except enemy. You are in combat.
如果你除了敌人, 其他什么都缺, 那你往往就要面临作战了.

7. Incoming fire has the right of way.
飞来的子弹有优先通行权. (挡它的道你就要倒大楣! )
8. If the enemy is in range, SO ARE YOU
如果敌人在你的射程内, 别忘了你也在他的射程内.

9. Anything you do can get you shot - including doing nothing.
你作的任何事都可能挨枪子儿-- 包括你什么都不做.

 

 

出行赏美景
By Ivan

天气晴好, 正是出游的好时节. 下面介绍的这些景点中, 不知您到过几处?

Egret Islet, 白鹭洲.
不仅仅是来厦游玩必去的地方, 南京也有这么一块同名的绿洲, 有机会可以去领略一番别样的风味.

Imperial Palace Museum, 故宫.
残旧的深深庭院掩饰不住逼人的帝王霸气. 也有人叫它Forbidden City, 紫禁城内那些神秘的传说惹人遐想.

The Bund, 外滩. bund指"堤岸、码头".
徜徉在中国最繁华的堤岸, 远眺夜上海的如梦美景, 是否能隐约捕捉到周璇旖旎的歌声?

Terracotta Sculpture Legion, 兵马俑.
terracotta是"陶器", legion指"军团". 另一个秦朝创造的奇迹是the Great Wall, 长城.

Bright Summit, 光明顶.
黄山归来不看岳, 何况光明顶还能让你回味起倚天屠龙的豪迈. summit是"顶峰"的意思.

West Lake, 西湖.
无须浓妆淡抹, 简单的直译便浓缩了江南的精华. 武汉还有一个东湖East Lake.

Butterfly Spring, 蝴蝶泉.
穿一身白族衣裳, 学一番《五朵金花》, 祈祷忠贞不渝的爱情. spring除了"春天"、"弹簧"外, 还有"泉"的意思.

Lion Grove, 狮子林.
建于元代. 与宋代的沧浪亭Surging Wave Pavilion、明代的拙政园Humble Administrator's Garden、清代的留园Lingering Garden并称为"苏州四大园林".

Repulse Bay, 浅水湾.
香港游近年来十分热火, 疯狂shopping之余, 一些标志性景点也是非去不可. 比如历尽沧桑的太平山The Peak, 和风光无限的维多利亚港Victoria Harbor.

 

 

澳大利亚悉尼大学
University of Sydney



悉尼大学成立于1850年, 是澳洲第一所国立大学. 其悠久的历史和显赫的成就为它赢得了"南半球牛津"(Oxford in South Hemisphere)的美誉.
悉尼大学的主校区(Camperdown/ Darlington Campus)覆盖了悉尼中心地带72公顷的面积, 靠近中央车站和唐人街, 离中心商业区仅5分钟的路程. 建成于1875年的主要行政大楼为后歌特式(Late Gothic Period)建筑风格, 采用悉尼当地出产的沙石岩(sandstone) , 建筑宏伟而优雅, 散发出悉尼大学崇高的学术文化氛围, 是澳洲国宝级的建筑古迹. 主校区之外, 其他如法学院、牙医学院、音乐学院、企业研究所、艺术学院、护理学院、卫生健康学院、农学院、海洋研究所、太空追测站等学院及研究所分别坐落于离主校区三百公里的范围内, 组成一个庞大的教育学术网络.
悉尼大学的18个学科分属于3个学院(The College of Health Sciences, The College of Humanities and Social Sciences, The College of Sciences and Technology), 拥有非常广泛的课程可供选择, 从会计学到土著学研究, 从计算机学到刑法, 从运动训练科学到环境工程, 从海洋研究到音乐, 以及从通讯到泰语, 学生都可以找到自己喜欢的科目.
学校设备方面, 大学图书馆藏书400万册, 还拥有学院及研究系所图书馆23个. 同时生化、解剖、物理、图线程式等实验室均与国际相关机构连接, 为学生提供高品质的最新资讯. 远近驰名的还包括了音乐学院(Sydney College of the Arts)的演奏厅和奥运会标准的游泳池. 此外, 悉尼大学还拥有200个学生协会, 70个学生运动协会, 为澳洲之最.
悉尼大学是太平洋边缘大学联盟(The Association of Pacific Rim Universities)的35所顶级大学之一, 联盟其他成员包括美国斯坦福大学(Stanford University), 加州大学伯克利分校(UC Berkeley)、洛杉矶分校(UCLA)、汉城大学(Seoul National University)、北京大学等. 由于悉尼大学是澳洲的第一流大学, 而且学费生活费较为低廉, 充足的阳光和优美的风景, 每年都吸引来自世界各国的学生前来就读. 
本栏目特约协办:
厦门友好国际·留学游学
国家教育部批准国有留学服务机构
厦门湖滨北路118号振兴大厦20楼
Tel: 5151212 5169958(莲富分部)
www.xmfsc.org.cn

本栏目特约协办:
厦门友好国际·留学游学
国家教育部批准国有留学服务机构
厦门湖滨北路118号振兴大厦20楼
Tel: 5151212 5169958(莲富分部)
www.xmfsc.org.cn

 

 

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Artist Bonnie Vierthaler, founder of BADvertising Institute, endeavors to promote good health in China by raising the awareness of the tobacco issues.
美国艺术家邦妮, 一个坚定的反烟斗士, 在鼓浪屿上用她的智慧和独特的艺术理念让更多的人远离香烟的危害.

An art exhibition titled West Meets East will open next week at the Jingbi Ceramics, at which oil paintings by famous artists and ceramic works from Jingdezhen will be present.
下周在马哥孛罗酒店对面的晶碧陶瓷将举办名为西方遇到东方的美展, 参展的有著名美国油画家的作品和中国景德镇的瓷器精品.