Slavic-roots-western-mind - *Maria* - Tumblr Blog

U- Verbs in Chinese

Unbuckle - 解开 (Jiěkāi) Uncork - 开瓶 (Kāi píng） Uncover - 揭开 (Jiēkāi) Underestimate - 低估 (Dīgū) Undergo - 经历 (Jīnglì) Underline - 强调 (Qiángdiào) Understand - 理解 (Lǐjiě) Undress - 脱衣服 (Tuōyīfú) Unfollow - 取关 (Qǔguān) Uninstall - 卸载 (Xièzǎi) Unite - 团结 (Tuánjié) Unleash - 发动 (Fādòng) Unlock - 解锁 (Jiěsuǒ) Unplug - 拔掉 (Bádiào) Unsubscribe - 退订 (Tuìdìng) Unwind (relax) - 放松 (Fàngsōng) Update - 更新 (Gēngxīn) Upgrade - 升级 (Shēngjí) Use - 使用 (Shǐyòng) Utilize - 利用 (Lìyòng)

And now, a few months later I finally saw the new Major Grom movie Майор Гром: Игра and I have ponderings.

Overall a pretty solid movie, I had no idea what it would be about as I blocked all tags to avoid spoilers. The plot was a tad chaotic and to some extent more violent (literally, first few minutes in and bam! chaos) and unlike the previous movie, it didn't really have that particular flavour of comedy to back it up. It was almost 3 hours long but the fast-pace was enough to keep the momentum going. There were also a few cameos that had me going??? Because there were definitely a few celebrities that I did not expect to feature in this movie.

Chaos aside, the storyline was interesting as there were a few directions going on at once, and as an action movie it's definitely good. Thing is, I don't know if it was intended to be an action movie as it looks like one but it feels like it's supposed to have a more nuanced plot? Maybe it's just me but anyone who watched this movie feel free to share your thoughts.

The soundtrack was epic, Sergey Shnurov's Dragon was just 10/10 and now my playlist has once again expanded. There were other songs but this song that they used during the credits really stuck in my head.

I won't spoil it, but overall it's heavier than the previous Major Grom movie, so whilst I can recommend watching it, be aware that it can get a tad gory in my opinion.

Apparently a new Major Grom/Майор Гром movie just came out (like a week ago) and now I have to wait until it's available to watch online in good quality because I refuse to besmirch this potential masterpiece by watching it in 360p with barely distinguishable audio.

In my area autumn comes slowly. The main indicators are that the hot wind slowly cools down into something more soothing and gentle, the leaves slowly but surely turn orangey-yellow, the pace of life becomes more steady and settled, and the cats become fluffier and chubbier, resembling little fur balls.

你好

你好！👋

Back to uni to-dos: Final year edition

This will be my final year at university, which in itself is honestly unbelievable. Here's a list of things to do before and during your final year, although anyone can benefit from this advice!

1.Review your graduation requirements Make sure that everything is on track grade-wise and that you have enough credits to graduate. If there are any issues, meet with your academic advisor so that you have enough time to fix everything and graduate hassle-free.

2. Fix your sleep schedule before your classes are due to start. You can't be productive if you're always sleep-deprived and running on coffee. Your final year is especially important, so you need to be able to focus, which is practically impossible if you're sleep-deprived.

3. Exchange contact details with your favorite professors, advisors, etc. This may be a cultural thing, but here it's quite usual to remain in contact with your professors. You don't have to be facebook friends, but having someone you can ask for advice or request a LinkedIn recommendation from may be useful, which leads me to the next point.

4. Update your LinkedIn & other profiles This includes updating your email address to something more professional because the email address you had since you were 12 is unlikely to be all that professional now. Add any experience that you may have, whether it's an internship, freelancing or a job placement etc.

5. Plan what comes after or review your plan Are you jumping into a masters degree? Freelancing? Working abroad? Not many people have a 100% finished plan, but it does help to research your options and have an understanding of what you want to do after. Things change and as the past year has shown, some previously considered options are definitely not it.

6. Career fairs and networking events Chances are you may have attended some, but for final years these things are especially important. You have a chance to personally meet recruiters and to exchange contact details which may come in handy in the future. Obviously you can do that via LinkedIn, but I for one think that talking in person can add more of a personal touch. Regarding networking in general, it doesn't necessarily have to be a formal affair. Sure there are those formal meetings but they don't always have to be. There are plenty of facebook groups e.g. marketing, women in finance etc. which you can join and ask for mentoring, advice or even if you can meet up for a coffee and a chat. Alternatively, your university most likely has a careers/guidance office where you can find out about any networking meetings or organizations that have events going on.

7. Create an application schedule Many firms open their graduate student program applications at a certain time, so depending on where you're applying, or if you're skipping that, a schedule is a good idea. If you're targeting different sectors then your resume will have to be altered a bit to make it appropriate for the job that you're applying for. Many jobs also require cover letters, so it may be a good idea to have a rough template so that you know what exactly it is that you're supposed to include and then edit accordingly.

8. Try to get some work experience It doesn't have to be full-time at an office type of work, but any experience is good. Freelance language tutor, an internship, volunteer work, writing for your uni's paper. Experience doesn't automatically guarantee you a job, but it can be beneficial in standing out or giving you an extra boost.

9. Try to get some extra qualifications A language proficiency test, a coursera course (there are quite a lot of free ones), a LinkedIn powerpoint course, Code First Girls javascript course (also free!). You can add quite a lot of skills to your LinkedIn profile, but you do need to be able to back them up. These extra courses and qualification aren't just good for your resume, but they're also a good way for you to develop new skills and develop new interests. And who knows where they might end up taking you. My teachers former student ended up finding herself a husband on a study abroad language program in Korea and now they're happily married and living in Japan I think.

10. Make the most of it Uni certainly has it's ups and downs, but for most it's a pretty rewarding and occasionally enlightening journey. You may have different feelings towards it, but it is coming to an end so make some good memories.

11. Remember that life will go on after uni Many people may feel odd after graduating, you just spent 3-4 years living your life as a student and now you're not. Your previous routines that worked before may not work anymore. You may not be as close to your former dormmates. You may drift apart from your college bestie. But life goes on. Many things may stay the same and even more things may change and that's ok.

🎶✨when u get this, list 5 songs u like to listen to, publish. then, send this ask to 10 of your favorite followers (positivity is cool)🎶✨

thank you!💖💖

Проклятие русалки by Green Apelsin

We didn't start the fire by Billy Joel

Surrender by Shouting at Planes

扛過槍 放過羊 by 半噸兄弟

Wisdom eyes by Nine Treasures

I have around 50 drafts in progress sitting and waiting their turn because I have been bitten by the muse of inspiration and I am on a roll.

In other words, I was bitten by a cat but an actual correlation is yet to be determined.

My favourite works by Andrey Shishkin: 1. Берегиня/Bereginya (2017) 2. Уральский сказ/ Ural tale (2016) 3. Среча/Srecha (2017) 4. Ярило/Yarilo (2016) 5. Архистратиг/ Archistratig (2018) 6. Девана/ Devana (2013) 7. Ларец/ Casket (2013)

There's nothing like an online recruiting conference for potential employees/applicants at a chinese company to humble you. It's like I understand, but then I absolutely don't and the topics keep flowing so quickly.

And this was just the presentation about the company culture, the job positions and responsibilities, etc. I could understand the information presented on the slides, but my listening skills definitely need more work.

On the plus side, I now know exactly what I need to brush up on if I want to try for an office job in China although the intense and fast-paced working environment has it's own challenges. Time will tell.

Just spreading some love. I think you are neat. Internalize it. ❤️

Thank you anon, that's really kind of you! 💖💖

T - Verbs in Chinese

Tackle (an issue) - 处理 (chǔlǐ)

Take - 拿 (ná)

Talk - 说 (shuō)

Target - 瞄准 (miáozhǔn)

Teach - 教 (jiāo)

Tell - 告诉 (gàosù)

Terminate - 终止 (zhōngzhǐ)

Testify - 作证 (zuòzhèng)

Thank - 感谢 (gǎnxiè)

Think - 想 (xiǎng)

Threaten - 威胁 (wēixié)

Throw - 扔 (rēng)

Tie - 系 (jì)

Tighten - 紧 (jǐn)

Tolerate - 容忍 (róngrěn)

Touch - 触摸 (chùmō)

Train - 训练 (xùnliàn)

Transfer - 转移 (zhuǎnyí)

Transform - 转变 (zhuǎnbiàn)

Translate - 翻译 (fānyì)

Transmit - 传送 (chuánsòng)

Travel - 旅行 (lǚxíng)

Tremble - 颤抖 (chàndǒu)

Trigger - 触发 (chùfā)

Trust - 信任 (xìnrèn)

Try - 尝试 (chángshì)

Type - 打字 (dǎzì)

Post-China advice #1

When leaving China make sure to withdraw money from your Chinese bank account, because many banks don't allow you to transfer money abroad unless you actually physically go to said bank and transfer it from there in person.

In theory you can withdraw it at an atm abroad, but not many support chinese cards.

I had some money left so now the only way to get it out is to either remove it when/if I go back to China or to purchase something from a Chinese site and have it sent all the way here.

Option number 2 isn't too bad actually, I have my eye on this really nice steamer so that I can make some baozi and jiaozi properly, but the point stands. Especially if it's a large amount, make sure to either withdraw it as cash or to send it back home if you're leaving.

Chinese musical instruments pt. 1

I was inspired by my research into the different types of Chinese opera, so I decided to write about the chinese musical instruments.

Usually, traditional chinese instruments are grouped into 8 categories, 八音 (bā yīn): metal, bamboo, wood, stone, silk, clay, gourd and skin so I'll try to group them accordingly.

Metal 金 (Jīn)

Bo 钹 (bó) This is a percussion type of cymbal, with the size varying on the subtype. This instrument is also used in some chinese operas, which makes it all the more interesting to hear.

Bianzhong 编钟 (biānzhōng) This is a set of bronze chime bells, arranged in a specific order with each bell having it's own two special pitches which are usually determined by the bell size. The structure is especially interesting, as all the bells are hung from a frame (typically wooden) from which they're played. Other countries also have similar instruments, such as Japan, Vietnam and Korea although their names vary and they may have their own specific features.

Luo 锣 (luó) Luo is actually a general name for a gong, which varies in size and pitch depending on its type. Depending on the size, luo can either be hung on a frame or if it's small enough it can be played in hand.

Yunluo 云锣 (yúnluó) Like the luo, these are also gongs, named cloud gongs. There are 10 small gongs in a frame with the same size but different thickness so that each gongs pitch would vary. There is a more modern version, which has over 20 gongs and is much larger in size.

Suona 唢呐 (suǒnà) The Suona is a double-reeded trumpet, with reed meaning a thin strip of material. As Suona is classified as a metal instrument, it's made from metal with the reed attached to it. It's actual origin is quite interesting, as some sources place the Suona all the way to the Jin dynasty (266-420), whereas some consider Suona's origin to be from outside of China.

Bamboo 竹 (Zhú)

Dizi 笛子(dízi) The Dizi is a Chinese flute, which has quite a lot of varieties, such as 梆笛 (Bāngdí). This flute is especially interesting as it's used in Chinese opera, Chinese folk music and also in Chinese orchestra. Depending on the region, different bamboo is used to create this instrument - Purple bamboo in the north and white in the southern regions, although other material can also be used, even jade.

Xiao 箫 (xiāo) This is a vertical flute, orginating from the Qiang people in ancient China. The material is usually bamboo, with black and purple bamboo considered to be the best type. There are also quite a few variations, such as the 北箫 (Běixiāo), 琴箫 (Qínxiāo) and 南箫 (Nánxiāo).

Paixiao 排箫 (páixiāo) The Paixiao is a type of a panflute, which has a noticeable difference from the western type, as the pipe holes are created via an angled cut or a notch.

Bili 筚篥 (bìlì) / 管 (guǎn) This is a double-reed pipe, which has a few names. Guan appears to be a general name for woodwind instruments, so if looking for this specific instrument, it should be searched using Bili. This instrument can be traced back to the Zhou dynasty, where it was used as a military instrument. Later it became a popular court and ritual instrument, but eventually lost it's court popularity. Instead, it's quite popular in folk music and in Peking Opera, especially for military scenes.

Xindi 新笛 (xīndí) The Xindi is a more modern type of Dizi (the name literally means a new flute), which first appeared in the 20th century. The xindi differentiates itself from the original dizi by it's additional 5 holes, allowing for lower tones which makes it quite important for the Chinese orchestra.

Wood 木 (Mù)

Muyu 木鱼 (mùyú) This is a wooden fish-shaped woodblock which is hit to create a beat during rituals, most commonly during Buddhist ceremonies, Muyu's name literally means a wooden fish, as it's origin stories are associated with fish, with one story claiming that a fish helped a monk but in turn asked him for a favour, which the monk promised to do but forgot. The fish became angry and splashed him into the water. The monk survived, but his notes were all ruined, which is why he made a wooden statue of the fish and beat it.

Yu 敔 (yǔ) On the topic of animals, this is a tiger-shaped hollow box with toothed edges on its back. Why a tiger? It may be because the tiger had a powerful association with strength and power, although I have yet to find a source confirming my theory.

Zhu 柷 (zhù) This is a wooden box that has an open middle, which is played by using a wooden stick to hit the inner bottom. This instrument is very rarely used nowadays, with the majority of Zhus being in museums and temples, but apparently they still remain in use in a few temples for ceremonies.

Paiban 拍板 (pāibǎn) The Paiban is clapper made of wooden or bamboo flat pieces. When it's played together with a drum, this combination is called a Guban 鼓板 (gǔbǎn), which is used quite often in various different music genres, such as Peking Opera, Yue Opera, Kunqu Opera and others.

Slavic roots western mind turns 1 year old today!

It's been exactly a year since my very first post as slavic roots western mind, and looking back it's been a good year. I'm thankful for everyone for sticking around and supporting me, here's to hoping for more years like this!🥂

Yep, the traditional script is definitely more difficult even with detailed explanations! I guess there may be some differences between the script used in Inner Mongolia vs Mongolia, as Mongolia switched to cyrillic but Inner Mongolia kept using the traditional script so it may have evolved a bit.

It would be interesting to see if and to what extent both scripts differ but the resources may be a tad difficult to find. Apparently the Mongolian in Mongolia is based on the Khalka dialect which has a different pronunciation from Inner Mongolia's Mongolian, so phonetics may also be at play here.

Cyrillic is quite different from the latin alphabet, but it can be learned with practice. The only slight issue is that phonetically mongolian cyrillic is really different from russian, bulgarian, ukrainian cyrillic etc. so the pronunciation can get very confusing if you already know or if you're learning another cyrillic-based language.

Discovered that there are regular flights between Germany and Mongolia so decided to give Mongolian another try. I was pleasantly shocked to discover that there are now more and better learning resources available.

My main mistake was relying solely on english teaching material, I completely forgot that I know other languages e.g. Chinese and the resources found on Baidu look promising.

I might make a post with the resources and material at some point, but for now I need to sort out what's useful and what's not suitable yet.

Who knows, perhaps a summer exploring Mongolia isn't such a distant ethereal dream after all.

Oh got it! I'm still sorting through it, but so far the best source I found was Inner Mongolia University's course on Open163. They have a good beginners course, but the only possible snag is that they use the traditional script rather than the cyrilic. Most of the chinese courses also actually use the traditional script, which they do teach but it does make things a bit more challenging imo.

Discovered that there are regular flights between Germany and Mongolia so decided to give Mongolian another try. I was pleasantly shocked to discover that there are now more and better learning resources available.

My main mistake was relying solely on english teaching material, I completely forgot that I know other languages e.g. Chinese and the resources found on Baidu look promising.

I might make a post with the resources and material at some point, but for now I need to sort out what's useful and what's not suitable yet.

Who knows, perhaps a summer exploring Mongolia isn't such a distant ethereal dream after all.

Hi, great to meet a fellow mongolian learner! I almost finished compiling a post with all of my mongolian resources, would be happy to create one for Chinese! Of the top of my head I regulary use Chairman Bao via my uni, 99cws for reading practice (this site features sooo many chinese books, my reading list quadrupled), LTL's Grammar Bank (they cover up to HSK4), Informal Talks and I used the app 文字大玩家 to practice characters, which while fun got a bit frustrating as I was stuck on the same level for a month lol. Other than that I'm doing Peking University's HSK Coursera course (free!), they have quite a few interesting courses.

Discovered that there are regular flights between Germany and Mongolia so decided to give Mongolian another try. I was pleasantly shocked to discover that there are now more and better learning resources available.

My main mistake was relying solely on english teaching material, I completely forgot that I know other languages e.g. Chinese and the resources found on Baidu look promising.

I might make a post with the resources and material at some point, but for now I need to sort out what's useful and what's not suitable yet.

Who knows, perhaps a summer exploring Mongolia isn't such a distant ethereal dream after all.

Main types of Chinese Opera pt. 1

There are many different types of chinese opera, so here are some of the main ones!

Peking Opera 京剧 (Jīngjù)

This is probably one of the most well-known operas, originating from Beijing during the Qing dynasty. There are 4 main roles:

1.生 (shēng), which is usually an older dignified male character such as a scholar, which can be divided into older, younger and martial 生 aka 武生 (wǔshēng)

2. 旦 (dàn), a female role which was previously played by men as women were not allowed to perform during the Qing dynasty, but nowadays both men and women can play this role. This role has several subtypes:

闺门旦 (guīméndàn), a young unmarried high-status virtuous woman, whose main focus is singing.

正旦 (Zhèngdàn)/青衣 (Qīngyī), an elegant, middle-aged, usually married woman who mainly sings.

花旦 (Huādàn), a young woman who unlike the Guīméndàn focuses on speech and movement.

武旦 (Wǔdàn), this is a martial arts role with quite a lot of stunts and fighting with rare singing moments

刀马旦 (Dāomǎdàn), a young brave warrior, who usually focuses on acrobatics, singing and dancing unlike the Wǔdàn.

老旦 (Lǎodàn), is an older female role, usually with a lower singing voice.

彩旦 (Cǎi dàn), is more of a clown role, which is apparently more commonly performed by men

4. 净 (Jìng), a "rough man" role, usually has a vibrant and strong character, which has heavy face painting.

5. 丑 (chǒu), the clown role, which is one of the most physically demanding roles due to the acting and acrobatics combo, despite being considered as a minor role.

There are over 1400 stories used in Peking Opera, with 2 traditional types, civil and martial. Civil focuses on the relationship between the characters and is usually about normal daily occurrences, whereas martial is more about action and fighting. Another more modern type of differentiation divides the plays into traditional (pre-1949ish), plays created after 1949, and contemporary plays.

Kunqu Opera 昆曲 (kūnqǔ)

This is one of the oldest types of Chinese opera, originating from Kunshan, combining signing, dancing and martial arts. It features similar characters like the Peking Opera with another character 末 (Mò), who is an old man with a long beard.

However, there are some differences, as Kunqu uses softer, melodic music and different instruments such as the flute as the main accompanying instrument rather than Peking Opera's stringed instruments. The types of stories are also different, as Kunqu's focus more on the romantic and poetic aspect, exploring various classical stories. Peking Opera's stories tend to be a bit more varied as previously mentioned.

Traditionally, Kunqu was mostly for the upper-class as the stories performed were classical Chinese literature, and at the time not everyone had the opportunity to learn. This may be why Kunqu typically uses classic chinese, whereas Peking uses a combination of both classic and vernacular, making it more available for everyone.

Yue Opera 越剧 (yuèjù)

This opera is also known as Shaoxing opera, originating from Shaoxing, Zhejiang in early 1900s. Originally the performances featured only male actors but nowadays all-female performance troupes are becoming the standard. It's interestingly the 2nd most loved opera type, just after Peking Opera as it's slow and romantic form is perfect for love stories such as The Butterfly Lovers.

Yue Opera also features the usual set of character types e.g. 生，旦 etc. except they are usually played by women.

In terms of appearance, Yue Opera tends to go for a more subtle makeup look (as subtle as stage makeup can be) and simpler but nonetheless gorgeous costumes, in contrast to Peking Opera's dramatic and bursting colors.

Yue Opera usually relies on string instruments, with a smaller musical ensemble and musical accompaniment so that the performers singing is more clear unlike Peking Opera's stronger background music.

Discovered that there are regular flights between Germany and Mongolia so decided to give Mongolian another try. I was pleasantly shocked to discover that there are now more and better learning resources available.

My main mistake was relying solely on english teaching material, I completely forgot that I know other languages e.g. Chinese and the resources found on Baidu look promising.

I might make a post with the resources and material at some point, but for now I need to sort out what's useful and what's not suitable yet.

Who knows, perhaps a summer exploring Mongolia isn't such a distant ethereal dream after all.

您好！您好。我突然看看你的博客，又好意思又厉害的。我也学习中文，学七年了。我二十九岁，你觉得我太老学外语吗？什么办法你觉得帮助我学越来越快？有一个妻子还有两个动物和好难的工作。非常忙。最近 我觉得很老和不够。。。

您好！谢谢您的赞誉！7年真厉害，我钦佩您的学习毅力。我觉得学习一门新语言还是一项新技能永远不会太晚。学习没有时间限制，只要有兴趣，随时都可以学习中文还是别的东西。

在学中文更快的方面，可能要看您的水平和目标。比如，我目前的水平大约是HSK4，正在学习HSK5. 虽然我的词汇ok,但我的听力和口语还需要实习所以我注重这种的练习。如果您没有那么多时间，可以试一试passive学习。一边工作一边听中文podcasts/音乐/课本音频/有声书等等

我学中文才 3 年，所以在工作和学习的管理方面我没有那么多经验。不过，学习不一定要严格。您可以每个周末读 45 分钟中文报纸/书还是在公交车上听播客。

我们每个人学习的速度不一样。在中国，我的一位同学大约 37 岁，在参加课程之前，他已经自学中文好几年了。其实，我们中文课程的大部分学生年龄在 25-35 岁，所以年龄真不重要，只要您有兴趣和奉献精神，其他一切都会好起来。

我希望我的回答能帮您，祝您学业顺利！

Firstly, when you get this, you have to answer with 5 things you like about yourself, publicly. Then, send this ask to 10 of your favorite followers (non-negotiable, positivity is cool)💛

Thank you for the ask!

My cooking skills (I still have a lot to learn but I make a good lentil stew)

My commitment and dedication

My music taste. (My music library ranges from mongolian heavy metal to numbers from soviet musicals, so there's always something unexpected when on shuffle)

My love for books

My interest in Chinese and all China related things.

Hello lovely people!

I will be away for the next 2 weeks or so, apologies if I haven't replied to any asks or messages, I'll do so once I'm back.

See you all soon!

The 母 Character

Another character breakdown, and this time it's 母!

母 (mǔ)

Mother 母亲

Used for some female relative e.g. 祖母 (paternal grandma)

Used to specify female animals e.g. 母牛，母象，母马

每 (měi)

Every, each e.g. 每天 everyday

海 (hǎi)

A big lake or sea 大海

Many people, a large crowd 人海

毒 (dú)

A toxin or a poison or a venom

An adjective, poisonous/venomous e.g. 毒蛇 (a venomous snake)

A cruel person

A verb, to poison something/one

梅 (méi)

A plum. Apparently 李子 (also plum) is used more often in northern China, and 梅子 in the south.

Plum flower or a plum blossom, the national flower of China (fun fact!) 梅花 (méihuā）

敏 (mǐn)

Quick, agile

Quick-witted, smart

悔 (huǐ)

To regret, feel remorse

霉 (méi)

Mould, mildew

An adjective - mouldy

A verb - to go mouldy/bad

莓 (méi)

A berry e.g. 草莓 (cǎoméi) a strawberry

酶 (méi)

An enzyme

珻 (méi)

Fine jade

痗 (mèi)

A literary Chinese verb meaning to get ill from anxiety or worrying

Just discovered the 盗墓笔记 Graverobbers Chronicles (Dàomù bǐjì) and now I'm obsessed, both with the tv series (accidentally skipped around 2 prequels and now I'm figuring it out as I watch Ultimate Note) and now the books.

At the time of writing this, I am on episode 15/37 and dear God. The amount of craziness and plot twists is just the perfect amount to keep me entertained.

The books are in Chinese so it'll be a good reading practise as reading news articles and graded readers can get repetitive sometimes. Literary Chinese is quite different from the usual textbook or daily Chinese, so this is definitely an interesting challenge.

Here's the link to the site, it's one of the best sites for Chinese novels that I've seen to date and I highly recommend it.