The man who is bridging the gap

In 2005, Canadian Andrew McCallum made his way to China to study at Nankai University in Tianjin.

A kinder, gentler USA on display

When Huang Ya-li visited the USA Pavilion at the Expo 2010 Shanghai, she, like many others, was expecting a lot - but left disappointed.

Fly like an eagle

Pavilion design

Address hukou inequality

Martin Luther King Jr's "I have a dream" speech has to be one of the most inspiring but overused speeches of all time. Nowhere is this truer than among English learners in Beijing.

Beware of greedy glare of Village scene

There's been quite a bit of hand-wringing over the decline and fall of the Nanluoguxiang scene. It's a pity, but so are death and taxes, and all three are equally inevitable. The half-life of a city hot spot lasts at most two years, and Nanluoguxiang is well past its 2006-08 heyday. In any event, the passing of Nanluoguxiang bodes no lasting harm to Beijing's cultural identity.

Apologies, tips on auto attack

On A kick that kicked back Imagine the pedestrian is your mother

Quotation of the day

7 million and still counting

A top private institution gears its English classes for people who want to go overseas

Program really scores with grad student

Lin Lei, 24, a graduate student in civil engineering at Beijing Jiaotong University, said his language skills really clicked once he enrolled in a course offered by the New Oriental Education and Technology Group.

Private, public schools work in tandem

Direct competition between private English schools and public universities does not exist, said Yao Yazhi, a lecturer of English at Beijing Jiaotong University.

What's on

Out + About

Well-dressed nails by male manicurist

It is still something of a surprise to see a man in a nail salon. But Zhou Xingyu, 31, has been a nailist for nearly a decade and is now a partner in a nail salon in Tuanjiehu area. He also works as a nail-art tutor at fashion schools and sometimes appears in fashion magazines such as Xinwei demonstrating the latest nail trends. Sitting at a table covered with nail kits and in front of a shelf full of colorful polishes, he massages a client's fingers, before creaming, smoothing and designing the nails. His dream is to have his own nailist training salons.