Residents of the city of Yantai in east China's Shandong Province can now find out ahead of time just exactly how sanitary a particular restaurant is, before actually dining there.

The local sanitation supervision office recently oversaw a program to clean up the dining and drinking utensils used in restaurants, Yantai Evening News reports.

Disinfecting utensils is one of nine indices listed by the office, the other eight include sanitation facilities and staff. A smiling cartoon face is pasted on the door of any establishment that passes all nine indices.

A red-faced cartoon is posted at any restaurant that fails to meet one or two of the nine. The Yantai Evening News reports that a restaurant was given the red face of shame on Tuesday after investigators discovered that there was no air-conditioning in the cold dish preparation room.

Last but not least, a tear-streaked cartoon face is posted at any restaurant that fails to pass at least three indices.

Restaurants with sanitation problems are given 1 month to make amends by the sanitation department, after which the cartoon faces are altered to reflect the new evaluation.

So a restaurant sporting a smiling cartoon face today may later have a tear-streaked face if a future investigation reveals sanitation violations.

The newspaper encouraged diners to report via a fixed hotline any restaurant that refuses to display their evaluation.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/life/2008-06/06/content_6743034.htm

]]> 2008-06-06 14:52:51 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/06/content_6742809.htm

British engineers learn how to make rice dumplings with police in Taizhou, Zhejiang province, on Wednesday. The police introduced the foreigners to customs of the Dragon Boat Festival before their return to the UK.

Pushing a shopping cart, Liu Yunfen's eyes make a sweep of the shelves in a Beijing branch of hypermarket chain Carrefour.

The 68-year-old is in search of the perfect zongzi - pyramidal stuffed dumplings made of glutinous rice and wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves.

It is a busy time for Liu. With just days to go before the traditional Chinese Dragon Boat festival, or the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar, which falls on Sunday this year, she has been tasked with picking the festive treat for her family.

It is a difficult choice.

From stores to supermarkets, displays of zongzi in mind-boggling varieties and brands have mushroomed in recent weeks to entice shoppers, more so since the festival was designated a public holiday. Numerous restaurants have also added zongzi to their menus.

But Liu's shopping cart remained empty.

"The price is a bit higher than last year's," the seasoned shopper says.

"The zongzi I make at home is much cheaper and tastier," she adds.

Apart from the price, Liu says she is more concerned about her 6-year-old grandson and how he is unaware of the origin of eating zongzi - to commemorate Qu Yuan (c. 340 - 278 BC), a minister and patriot poet of the Chu kingdom during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC) who drowned himself in a river to lament the downfall of his country.

The local people were also said to have paddled out on boats, either to scare the fish away or to retrieve Qu Yuan's body - leading to the tradition of dragon boat racing.

Liu has tried teaching her grandson about the festival.

"When Qu died, his followers threw bamboo leaves and cooked rice into the river to tempt the fish away from eating his body. This evolved into the tradition of eating zongzi," Liu recalls telling the boy.

But the child was concentrating on his Transformers robot toy instead.

Liu finally abandoned the idea of buying zongzi at the supermarket. She says she will go to the farmers' market to buy some fresh bamboo leaves and glutinous rice to make her own dumplings.

She plans to make zongzi with her grandson, although she admits she will not know whether the boy will be interested in it.

Hers is a challenge facing many of the older generation amid a growing commercialization of traditional practices such as making and eating zongzi.

Unlike Liu, many people were seen stocking up on the dumplings in supermarkets.

In a Wumart supermarket store in Beijing's Chaoyang district, one shopper, surnamed Sun, bought zongzi.

Sun says zongzi is now a food taken for granted during festivities, like cakes on birthdays or turkeys during Christmas.

But to Huang Tao, a folklorist with Renmin University of China, the festival is much more than eating zongzi. Traditionally, people also wear talismans to fend off evil spirits during the Dragon Boat Festival, since people think diseases are likely to strike during this period.

Chinese also post the picture of Zhongkui, guardian against evil spirits, on the door of their homes, Huang adds.

Adults may also drink realgar wine, and children wear fragrant silk pouches, all of which can ward off evil spirits during the festival, Huang adds.

It is also said that if one can balance a raw egg on its end at noon during this period, the rest of the year will be lucky. Still, eating zongzi will be the main affair, Huang says.

Meanwhile, merchants expect increasing sales of zongzi to boost their profits.

There are about 2,000 enterprises countrywide with total annual zongzi sales of more than 5 million yuan ($720,000), says Weng Yangyang, vice-chairwoman of Zongzi committee of China Food Industry Association (CFIA).

Zeng Yi, manager of Wumart's food department, says the chain's year-on-year growth of zongzi sales is also expected to exceed 30 percent this year.

The chain has more than 2,000 stores in Beijing.

Since May 8, Wumart has seen about 1 million yuan of zongzi sold, or 50,000 yuan a day, he says, adding that sales are expected to peak on the day of the festival and exceed the total sales of the past month.

About eight brands of zongzi can be seen in a Wumart branch alone. Among these, Wufangzhai, Longfong, Synear and Sanquan are the bestsellers, says Zeng.

Innovation also continues to make its way into zongzi this year.

Emei restaurant, a household name in the capital, is stuffing its dumplings with two of its house specialties - spicy diced chicken with peanuts and fried shredded sweet-and-sour pork.

Other restaurants in Beijing plan to introduce zongzi stuffed with roast duck, and sweet and sour spareribs.

To coincide with the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, many producers of zongzi are also shaping their products like the Olympic torch, with some even naming their offerings "Torch Zongzi" to attract customers.

Luxury zongzi, which have fillings of goose liver, shark's fin or abalone, have managed to draw a number of curious customers. But their price of about 200 yuan per kilogram remains daunting, they say.

Market demand will continue to drive innovation of zongzi and allure the younger generation, CFIA's Weng says.

Although the price of zongzi has not shown any significant increase, Weng says the size of some of the items has shrunk.

The price of sticky rice, the main ingredient of zongzi, is currently heading south as its high price in past years has encouraged more farmers to plant the grain and boost supplies, CITIC Securities Bo Guanhui says.

Still, an estimated 5 percent rise in zongzi prices will mainly be caused by an increase in labor and energy costs, Bo adds.

Wumart's Zeng says that zongzi prices have increased only slightly. Considering promotions, prices have actually gone up 5 to 8 percent on average.

"Zongzi remain low priced, ranging from 6 to 20 yuan a kilogram," Zeng says.

Most customers at supermarkets and restaurants say the price is acceptable.

Li Nuo, who works at a design company in Beijing, finds it is unnecessary to eat certain foods on a certain day, since people can have these whenever they like.

But, as someone born in Jiaxing, a city in Zhejiang province where zongzi is especially popular, Li says she still misses the zongzi her grandmother made before she left her hometown for the big city.

"It is stuffed with love," she said.

The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the most important traditional Chinese holidays. It is the day when Chinese people commemorate patriot-poet Qu Yuan (c340 -278 BC).

Qu lived in the kingdom of Chu in the Warring States Period (475-221 BC). He was exiled after jealous, corrupt ministers convinced the king Qu was conspiring against the monarch.

But Qu never lost his love for his country and people. He risked his life to return to the palace in the hope of persuading the king against befriending the powerful northern state of Qin, which was in fact preparing to annex Chu. But the king dismissed him and accepted the Qin state's false friendship.

Qu drowned himself in despair in the Miluo River in what is now Hunan province, when his homeland was finally conquered by Qin in 278 BC.

People rushed to save Qu when they heard of his suicide attempt.

But they failed to find Qu. To prevent his body from being eaten by fish, people banged on their boats to scare the fish away and threw zongzi - pyramid-shaped stuffed dumplings made of glutinous rice and wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves - into the river to distract the creatures.

These practices evolved into a ritual set on the fifth day of the fifth month of the traditional Chinese calendar, when people hold dragon boat races and eat zongzi.

Festive events

The festival, which falls on Sunday, will be different for two reasons this year - because it comes after the May 12 Sichuan quake, and because it is the first one since the authorities made it a public holiday.

In Beijing, a boat race will be held for the fifth time at Qingling Lake in Fangshan district. But this year, participants will be asked to pray for quake victims.

Most tourists are also expected to visit zoos, amusement parks or neighboring cities during the June 7 to 9 holiday period.

In Zhanjiang, Guangdong province, an international dragon boat race will be held on Sunday to celebrate the festival.

(China Daily 06/06/2008 page7)

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/05/content_6738981.htm

The city's coolest new kid on the nightlife block now gives gourmands a reason to stop by for more than a drink. Song enlisted the expertise of Australian chef James Lockett to design an extensive menu of unique fusion selections.

We were particularly impressed by the Tempura Soft Shell Crab Roll, but had trouble deciding between the creamy Linguini with Black Truffles or tender Braised Lamb Leg in White Wine on the 78 yuan two-course lunch menu. The dinner menu also includes sumptuous desserts, most notably the melt-in-your-mouth Sticky Banana Pudding with Caramel and Honeycomb Ice Cream (48 yuan).

With top-notch service and hip decor, Song has added affordable flair to the Beijing culinary landscape.

Song
Tel: 65871311
Add: B108, The Place, 9 Guanghua Lu

]]> 2008-06-05 11:03:42 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/05/content_6738891.htm

From the Thai Reflexology Foot Massage (108-158 yuan) to the deluxe Garden of Eden Package (1,888 yuan), Long Island offers treatments for every taste and budget. After an exhausting work week, we selected the Aromatic Herbal Heat Massage (458 yuan), designed to improve circulation and soothe aching muscles.

Entering Long Island’s temple of serenity, we walked down the wooden stairs and bridge over an indoor stream. The soothing sounds of new age music and running water quickly erased the noise of Beijing.

After piping hot showers, massage therapists entered our room with a small stove. We lay face down on the massage beds and peered through the small openings at an arrangement of flowers and candles on the floor. After a hot oil back massage, the therapists pulled steaming herbal pouches from atop the stove for an exfoliating scrub. They then placed steam pouches at key points on our back.

This process continued for an hour, focusing on the legs, arms and chest in turn. After each, a Thai herbal compound containing fresh plai was applied to moisturize and restore the natural balance of the skin. These treatments were performed according to Ayurvedic principles inscribed in Bangkok's Wat Pho Temple of the Reclining Buddha, the birthplace of traditional Thai massage.

After the final steamed herbal pouch was placed on the belly, the therapists performed a revitalizing head massage that awakened our senses. As we stepped back into the buzz of Beijing’s streets, we felt like we had spent a week at Wat Pho Temple-an easy and much-needed vacation.

Address: Jiahui Center, B1, No. 6 Jiqingli.
Tel: 6551-6112/6113

]]> 2008-06-05 11:24:41 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/05/content_6738898.htm

From the Thai Reflexology Foot Massage (108-158 yuan) to the deluxe Garden of Eden Package (1,888 yuan), Long Island offers treatments for every taste and budget. After an exhausting work week, we selected the Aromatic Herbal Heat Massage (458 yuan), designed to improve circulation and soothe aching muscles.

Entering Long Island’s temple of serenity, we walked down the wooden stairs and bridge over an indoor stream. The soothing sounds of new age music and running water quickly erased the noise of Beijing.

After piping hot showers, massage therapists entered our room with a small stove. We lay face down on the massage beds and peered through the small openings at an arrangement of flowers and candles on the floor. After a hot oil back massage, the therapists pulled steaming herbal pouches from atop the stove for an exfoliating scrub. They then placed steam pouches at key points on our back.

This process continued for an hour, focusing on the legs, arms and chest in turn. After each, a Thai herbal compound containing fresh plai was applied to moisturize and restore the natural balance of the skin. These treatments were performed according to Ayurvedic principles inscribed in Bangkok's Wat Pho Temple of the Reclining Buddha, the birthplace of traditional Thai massage.

After the final steamed herbal pouch was placed on the belly, the therapists performed a revitalizing head massage that awakened our senses. As we stepped back into the buzz of Beijing’s streets, we felt like we had spent a week at Wat Pho Temple-an easy and much-needed vacation.

Address: Jiahui Center, B1, No. 6 Jiqingli.
Tel: 6551-6112/6113

]]> 2008-06-05 11:24:41 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/05/content_6738820.htm

]]> 2008-06-05 11:21:09 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/05/content_6738820.htm

If you want to only climb one mountain in China, then let it be Huangshan Mountain. Its craggy rock faces, hanging mists and clustered pines are a distinctly Chinese landscape.

Brief on Huangshan

The mountain range, consisting of some 70 peaks over 1,000 meters, winds across Anhui Province.

Known as Yishan in ancient texts, the mountain range took on its present name during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), most likely in honor of Huang Di, the father of the Chinese people in legend. Over time, its trails have come to be furnished with stone stairways.

At the very beginning, during the policy of opening up, former Chairman Deng Xiaoping climbed the mountain and said, "Huangshan is a good place where tourism can prosper. You must boast about it and make it known to the world." The mountain entered a new chapter of development shortly after.

Huangshan was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.

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Hiking Huangshan

Depending on your stamina and tolerance for crowds, there are several ways to tackle Huangshan. There are three cable car lines which connect peaks and are also linked by well-maintained trails. Otherwise, hikers have two basic choices of paths: Eastern and Western Steps. The former is the easier of the two while the latter the more scenic and rugged.

We suggest visitors take the west canyon trails, starting from the side where the Taiping cable car station is located. It is amazing, the views there are more spectacular and its mostly downhill. Also it is virtually crowdless.

Regardless of which path you take, you will find yourself in scores of rocks, trees and scenic outlooks. They are usually named after some creature or figure they resemble.

One notable example is Welcoming Pine (Yingke Song), one may instantly find in countless images on silk, paper and porcelain. The pine, reputed to be some 800 years old, stands by the Western Steps with branches outspread like arms, greeting all new arrivals.

Admission to Huangshan is 200 yuan and one-way cable car tickets are 80 yuan.

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Bright Summit Peak

The crowning glory of Huangshan is the rough circle of peaks, Purple Cloud Peak, Pine Forest Peak and Bright Summit Peak. At an elevation of 1,840 meters, Bright Summit Peak (Guangmingding), the second highest in Huangshan, is now the highest peak to which visitors may ascend. The highest, Purple Cloud Peak, has been closed due to ecological protection concerns.

The area can either be part of a long day's hike or an overnight destination. Though we do not recommend you drink excessively on the trail or carve a message in he mountainside, we do recommend you join the masses in viewing the sunrise from one of the peaks.

The area overlooking Beihai (Northern Sea) is especially lovely. It is well worth braving the morning chill.

It also provides great views of Cloud Sea and its neighboring, peaks including the Celestial Capital Peak, Lotus Flower Peak and Jade Screen Peak.

Getting there: The Western Steps will get you to the access trail. You can also approach from the north, via the trails coming from the direction of Beihai and the Eastern Steps.

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Hot spring

Another symbolic feature that one should not miss while visiting Huangshan is its hot springs (wenquan). The springs maintain a steaming temperature of 42 C year round. Guests may bathe in the healing waters, which are purported to cure arthritis and skin problems.

However, do not expect gorgeous natural mountain pools. The waters have been channeled into functional pools in a bathhouse next to the hotels. There are a number of other places to stay, and many find it a quieter and more pleasant option than spending the night in Tangkou.

Getting there: Visitors can reach the springs area by road from Tangkou. Buses and taxis operate regularly between the town and the Hot Springs.

Open: 8 am-11 pm (bathhouse)

Cost: 50 yuan for communal bath

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Hongcun

For many who hope to experience peaceful rural China after seeing so many big cities, Hongcun, a picturesque village located in Yixian County near the mountain area, is the best choice.

Hongcun Village, listed as World Cultural Heritage Site, has a long history of over 900 years and was built in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127 AD). The village is full of primitive simplicity and elegance. It formed the remarkable Hui Culture character with exquisite three carvings architecture and cultural scenery.

Within the village, lots of locals offer accommodations. It is quite an experience to stay in a traditional home ?wood paneled rooms and four-post beds beside a half-moon pool.

We suggest you stay if you can, because from 7 am to 6 pm, the place is jam packed with tourists and art students. However, walking around Hongcun in early morning or late evening is something else. You can catch a glimpse of how life was during years past.

Cost: 80 yuan. A pass, available at the entrance, is valid for one week and is good for multiple entries.

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Accommodation

There are several areas on and around Huangshan in which to spend the night. The Behai Hotel is one of several hotels on the mountains, good for a hot meal and a warm bed after a day of hiking. Aside from the expensive hotel in the mountains, the more comfortable are in Tangkou, a town that serves as the departure spot for most tours.

The Tangkou hotels cost about 400 yuan per night.

Climate

The area around Huangshan enjoys a mild climate with four distinct seasons: cool falls, snowy winters, pleasant springs and humid summers. It rains a lot, mostly from May to September. As you ascend, the temperature may drop significantly.

The best time to visit is spring or fall, when the weather is moderate and the humidity and heat are minimal.

]]> 2008-06-05 11:05:10 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/05/content_6738817.htm

The city's coolest new kid on the nightlife block now gives gourmands a reason to stop by for more than a drink. Song enlisted the expertise of Australian chef James Lockett to design an extensive menu of unique fusion selections.

We were particularly impressed by the Tempura Soft Shell Crab Roll, but had trouble deciding between the creamy Linguini with Black Truffles or tender Braised Lamb Leg in White Wine on the 78 yuan two-course lunch menu. The dinner menu also includes sumptuous desserts, most notably the melt-in-your-mouth Sticky Banana Pudding with Caramel and Honeycomb Ice Cream (48 yuan).

With top-notch service and hip decor, Song has added affordable flair to the Beijing culinary landscape.

Song
Tel: 65871311
Add: B108, The Place, 9 Guanghua Lu

]]> 2008-06-05 11:03:42 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/05/content_6738043.htm

For all of May, a titanic pair of fiberglass breasts sprouting from a tiny girl greeted visitors to 798-a cheap thrill that requires little explanation but begs the question: Purposeful vacuity or lazy artmaking?

Beyond Cartoon is a good introduction to lowbrow Asian art outside Japan inspired by cartoons and comics. Being such, it inevitably exposes the weaknesses in the trend. Like most lowbrow, the work is primarily illustrative and revels in juxtapositions, largely cute with a creepy or sexy edge. Successful artists like Mark Ryden and Aya Takano have parlayed this into flawlessly painted fantasy worlds with tight visual languages. Few of these artists have reached that level of conceptual and technical finesse: Ayn Arista Murti's piece looks like a poor man's Camille Rose Garcia and Xiong Yu's emaciated women don't hold interest long enough to create the atmosphere they could.

One might argue the slacker effort parodies mindless fist-to-mouth consumption, but I'd like to give the artists more credit. After all, they come from countries that manufacture McDonalds toys and produce a hefty chunk of the world's cell animation. Who better understands the importance of shiny, perfectly-formed plastic?

When it's good, it's really good. Definitely catch Ma Chungfu's brilliant video work, especially a piece blending CGI and panned-over drawings. Dongi Lee's Mickey Mouse bastardizations are so convincing one can overlook the similarities to Takashi Murakami's DOB series. Meanwhile, Han Yajuan's bathing beauties are adorable as ever.

The red dots peppering the gallery prove that Chinese lowbrow is hot property. At the same time, the market is in danger of becoming oversaturated and predictable. It only takes so many ridiculously-racked Tinkerbells to transform shock value into the visual equivalent of a Sex-on-the-Beach hangover. Here's hoping these talented artists can outlast their growing pains and give us some eye candy worth drooling over.

]]> 2008-06-05 10:23:11 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735569.htm

While McDonald's has played a decisive role in helping popularize traditional American snack burger, diners can find delicious burgers not only at McDonald's.

One East on Third

When is a burger more than a burger? When it's the Most Expensive Burger in Beijing. As chef de cuisine Josh Goetz explains, "We've taken your classic McDonald's hamburger and done it to the nth degree." He's not lying. With a creamy slice of foie gras in place of cheese, black truffles in place of mushrooms and wagu sirloin instead your standard issue beef, this is Beijing’s most extravagant pub grub. Dollop on the creamy homemade horse radish mustard and sink your teeth into the crusted parmesan bun. 325 yuan.

Tel: 5865-5030
Add: 2/F, Hilton Hotel Beijing, 1 Dongfang Lu, Dongsanhuan Beilu,

Durty Nellie's

It's not Beijing's most famous burger, but Nellie's regular customers know it's a fantastic value: a quarter pound of seasoned beef topped with crispy bacon and bubbling Swiss cheese. Enjoy excellent presentation with a little fan of cucumber slices on a leaf of red cabbage, a tiny mound of coleslaw, a wedge of tomato and a small side of crispy French fries. They don’t ask you how you want it; well done is the standard here. The bun is crispy and fluffy and the taste is everything you want in a burger-Cpeppery, meaty, yummy. 55 yuan (bacon and cheese are extra).

Tel: 6593-5050
Add: 1/B Liangmaqiao Flower Market

All Star Cafe

We'd heard a lot about the burgers here, so we had high expectations. We weren't disappointed. Mike Sweeney's mound of meaty goodness is a shoo-in for our burger all-star team. The meat is juicy and tender and comes topped with a crisp, thick rind of seasoned bacon. Sweeney is particularly proud of the bacon. "We searched long and hard for this bacon. We started out with Chinese stuff, but that was like putting pork rinds on top." We salute Mike's all star mentality while mourning the fact that he just sold the restaurant to a Chinese investor. 20 yuan for the classic.

Tel: 134-3955-9903
Add: Close to Nuren Jie Gourmet Alley

]]> 2008-06-04 14:48:47 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735572.htm

While McDonald's has played a decisive role in helping popularize traditional American snack burger, diners can find delicious burgers not only at McDonald's.

One East on Third

When is a burger more than a burger? When it's the Most Expensive Burger in Beijing. As chef de cuisine Josh Goetz explains, "We've taken your classic McDonald's hamburger and done it to the nth degree." He's not lying. With a creamy slice of foie gras in place of cheese, black truffles in place of mushrooms and wagu sirloin instead your standard issue beef, this is Beijing’s most extravagant pub grub. Dollop on the creamy homemade horse radish mustard and sink your teeth into the crusted parmesan bun. 325 yuan.

Tel: 5865-5030
Add: 2/F, Hilton Hotel Beijing, 1 Dongfang Lu, Dongsanhuan Beilu,

Durty Nellie's

It's not Beijing's most famous burger, but Nellie's regular customers know it's a fantastic value: a quarter pound of seasoned beef topped with crispy bacon and bubbling Swiss cheese. Enjoy excellent presentation with a little fan of cucumber slices on a leaf of red cabbage, a tiny mound of coleslaw, a wedge of tomato and a small side of crispy French fries. They don’t ask you how you want it; well done is the standard here. The bun is crispy and fluffy and the taste is everything you want in a burger-Cpeppery, meaty, yummy. 55 yuan (bacon and cheese are extra).

Tel: 6593-5050
Add: 1/B Liangmaqiao Flower Market

All Star Cafe

We'd heard a lot about the burgers here, so we had high expectations. We weren't disappointed. Mike Sweeney's mound of meaty goodness is a shoo-in for our burger all-star team. The meat is juicy and tender and comes topped with a crisp, thick rind of seasoned bacon. Sweeney is particularly proud of the bacon. "We searched long and hard for this bacon. We started out with Chinese stuff, but that was like putting pork rinds on top." We salute Mike's all star mentality while mourning the fact that he just sold the restaurant to a Chinese investor. 20 yuan for the classic.

Tel: 134-3955-9903
Add: Close to Nuren Jie Gourmet Alley

]]> 2008-06-04 14:48:47 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735459.htm

Hangzhou may enact a new traffic policy next month that will provide 58,000 free parking spaces downtown to ease congestion that has drawn numerous complaints from the public.

Public opinions were sought about the plan, Legal Daily reported Tuesday.

The locations of these parking lots can only be approved when more than 50 percent of the public agree, the report said, citing traffic police authorities in the provincial capital of Zhejiang Province.

The policy is expected to take effect on July 1.

Under the policy, almost all public parking will become free in downtown Hangzhou, including those around the famous West Lake. Presently, parking costs about 20 yuan (US$2.88) per hour in downtown lots, the report said.

Parking fees may also be sharply reduced in other areas of the city, the report said.

Hangzhou had more than 400,000 automobiles by the end of last year, compared to 90,000 in 2000, the report said.

However, parking spaces in downtown Hangzhou reached 130,000 last year, an increase of 20,000 from 2003.

More than 1,000 drivers are fined for parking illegally on sidewalks every day in Hangzhou, the report said.

Pedestrians often complain that cars block sidewalks.

Drivers have complained that there are not enough parking spaces and that fees are too high, the report said.

The Hangzhou government said it will invest more than 100 million yuan to manage these free parking lots. The government may lose more than 20 million yuan annually after the policy takes effect, the report said.

]]> 2008-06-04 13:49:21 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735447.htm More than 30 percent of tourists choose Hawaii as their first destination in the United States, while another 30 percent opt for a whistle stop package tour of the entire country, according to an online survey carried out by Ctrip.com, China's major online travel service company.

The company said most Chinese tourists who go to the US for the first time hope to see as many scenic spots as possible.

Ctrip said more "deep" products are expected to develop as the market matures.

Half of the tourists in the survey said they tended to choose a 10-day-or-under package, while 30 percent preferred a journey of 10 to 15 days. Only 20 percent of the tourists wanted a US-bound tour of more than 15 days.

Most tour packages developed by domestic travel agencies are currently of seven to 15 days. Tourists said the US-bound tours costing about 20,000 yuan (US$2,857) were the most attractive. Only 10 percent of tourists were willing to pay 30,000 yuan or more.

The company said business travel was previously the main stream of the US-bound tour market. However, the increase in recreational tours meant the price would drop to a similar level to that of European tours.

The first tour group bound for the US is expected to set out on June 17. Tourists will set out from Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou separately, and will gather in the US.

At present, most tour packages target the self-service tour to Hawaii or coastal cities, tour agencies said.

Groups going to the US should book visa interviews a month in advance, and tourists should sign up for the group at least two months ahead of time, officials said. Groups apply for either a business (B1) or tourism visa (B2).

]]> 2008-06-04 13:51:04 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735444.htm

Hangzhou may enact a new traffic policy next month that will provide 58,000 free parking spaces downtown to ease congestion that has drawn numerous complaints from the public.

Public opinions were sought about the plan, Legal Daily reported Tuesday.

The locations of these parking lots can only be approved when more than 50 percent of the public agree, the report said, citing traffic police authorities in the provincial capital of Zhejiang Province.

The policy is expected to take effect on July 1.

Under the policy, almost all public parking will become free in downtown Hangzhou, including those around the famous West Lake. Presently, parking costs about 20 yuan (US$2.88) per hour in downtown lots, the report said.

Parking fees may also be sharply reduced in other areas of the city, the report said.

Hangzhou had more than 400,000 automobiles by the end of last year, compared to 90,000 in 2000, the report said.

However, parking spaces in downtown Hangzhou reached 130,000 last year, an increase of 20,000 from 2003.

More than 1,000 drivers are fined for parking illegally on sidewalks every day in Hangzhou, the report said.

Pedestrians often complain that cars block sidewalks.

Drivers have complained that there are not enough parking spaces and that fees are too high, the report said.

The Hangzhou government said it will invest more than 100 million yuan to manage these free parking lots. The government may lose more than 20 million yuan annually after the policy takes effect, the report said.

]]> 2008-06-04 13:49:21 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735450.htm

A mother and daughter receive a free cloth bag from a volunteer in Anhui province on Tuesday, June 3, 2008. The Anhui branch of the State Grid, China's largest power transmission company, is distributing free environmentally friendly shopping bags to promote World Environment Day on June 5. [Photo:xinhuanet]

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A volunteer from the Anhui branch of the State Grid, China's largest power transmission company, hands out free environmentally friendly cloth shopping bags. The company is distributing free environmentally friendly bags to promote World Environment Day on June 5. [Photo:xinhuanet]

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A worker at the Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau in the Hubei Province city of Yidu hands out energy saving tips on June 3. The city is calling on residents to save energy and reduce emissions in anticipation of World Environment Day on June 5. [Photo:xinhuanet]

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A young girl models clothing made entirely of waste materials including paper and discarded CDs in Jinan, Shandong province, on June 3. The girl's Jinan kindergarten staged a fashion show to display clothing made from waste materials and to educate the students on environmental protection in anticipation of World Environment Day on June 5. [Photo:xinhuanet]

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A woman throws a used battery into a collection bin for electronic waste in Yichang, Hubei Province on June 3. City residents are able to receive an environmentally friendly cloth shopping bag in exchange for a used battery. [Photo:xinhuanet]

]]> 2008-06-04 13:51:13 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735346.htm

A girl selects fragrant bags in Bozhou, eastern China's Anhui Province on Monday, June 2, 2008. The colorful fragrant bags are attracting many local citizens as the traditional Dragon Boat Festival draws near. People in some parts of China have a tradition of putting on fragrant bags at the Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on June 8 this year. [Photo: Xinhua]

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A citizen shows fragrant bags in Bozhou, eastern China's Anhui Province on Monday, June 2, 2008. [Photo: Xinhua]

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A citizen selects fragrant bags in Bozhou, eastern China's Anhui Province on Monday, June 2, 2008. [Photo: Xinhua]

]]> 2008-06-04 11:27:44 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/showbiz/2008-06/04/content_6734380.htm

 

PKM GALLERY is proud to announce an exhibition of new work by Wang Qingsong, his first solo show of new works in China in eight years. This exhibition, “Caution”, is a continuation of Wang Qingsong’s use of meticulously planned and constructed sets as a backdrop for photographic questioning of familiar cultural signs, symbols and skepticism related to China’s recent rapid changes. For the first time, the artist presents a site-specific installation set created within the gallery space where the interior is completely wrapped in the ubiquitous red, white and blue, striped tarp that blankets much of China’s evolving urban landscape, transforming the gallery into a circus-like construction site with a marked sense of impermanence. The all-encompassing nature of the installation compels the audience to become part of the artwork, a fact which is heightened by the surveillance system installed on the gallery’s second floor which allows viewers to observe their counterparts on the first floor. Through exhibiting the photographs and the set side by side, this exhibition allows insight into Wang Qingsong’s creative process like never before.

Wang Qingsong’s work has been the subject of numerous solo exhibitions and group shows around the world at institutions and events including the Rencontres d’Arles in France (2006), the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo (2005), the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver (2004), the International Center for Photography (2004 and 2006) and PS1 Contemporary Art Center (2002) in New York.

Add: PKM GALLERY Beijing

Time:May 31 – July 12, 2008

---

]]> 2008-06-04 09:38:59 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6734932.htm

]]> 2008-06-04 10:43:05 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735087.htm

Established director John Woo has joined hands with video website www.6.cn to provide cinephiles a platform to appreciate his latest offering Red Cliff (Chi Bi) before its premiere in July.

In addition to a bunch of exclusive interviews, sidelights and trailers of the film, the website offers four sections based on the film's storyline. Users can play four online games linked to The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the classic Chinese novel that the film is adapted from.

]]> 2008-06-04 10:40:48 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6735043.htm

Cadillac has unveiled its brand-new advertisement for the latest Cadillac CTS line, produced by William Chang Suk-ping and featuring Olympic champion Liu Xiang.

Chang's lens has transformed Liu's image from that of a tousled, sweaty athlete to a stylishly successful young man enjoying the high life. The four outfits Chang designed for Liu to sport in the advertisement series feature a formal suit, smart casual wear, leisure sportswear and a leather jacket.

Chang often works with acclaimed Hong Kong director Wong Kar-Wai as his art director, costume designer and editor. It was Chang who came up with the idea of the 200 or more cheongsams that Maggie Cheung wore in In the Mood for Love.

]]> 2008-06-04 10:38:30 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/04/content_6734932.htm

Sarah Jessica Parker arrives during the "Sex And The City" movie premiere at Radio City Music Hall in New York May 27, 2008.[Agencies]

Believe it or not, there are women out there who did not and do not watch Sex and the City. Not during its six-season run from 1998 to 2004, nor in the subsequent four years it has been available on DVD, HBO On Demand or in syndication almost nightly on TBS. Still, here's betting that more than a few of those Sex-less women have donned a giant flower pin, flaunted Manolos or pined for a Birkin bag in the past 10 years, after an "SATC"-fueled fad gripped the masses. The HBO series was a fashion force that, thanks to Sarah Jessica Parker's effervescent Carrie Bradshaw and her costumer, Patricia Field, exposed a mainstream audience to flamboyant style extremes.

So, with the release of Sex and the City: The Movie, legions of loyalists hope to learn more than the answer to obvious questions like: Will Carrie and Big get married? Movie-goers want to see the clothes. And so, just after the opening credits roll comes Parker's familiar girlish voice-over, declaring that the female New York experience comes down to "the two L's: labels and love." In the movie, those labels include Chanel, Prada, Vera Wang, Carolina Herrera, Oscar de la Renta, Christian Lacroix, Vivienne Westwood and, of course, Manolo Blahnik. That Carrie, in all seriousness, states that a Richard Prince Louis Vuitton bag is "the best money I ever spent," says it all about the show's, and now the movie's, priorities.

Style-wise, the supporting cast is, for the most part, as it was. Charlotte is still prim in printed sundresses and generally perky, uptown attire. Samantha is perhaps bigger and bolder than ever in over-the-top, often unsightly, getups, including canary yellow and emerald green jackets belted over white pencil skirts and topped off with door-knocker earrings. If anyone experienced a transformation, albeit a mild one, it's Miranda. Whereas in the series, Cynthia Nixon's cynical high-powered lawyer sometimes dressed as a quintessential corporate stiff in stark suits and boring basics, here she is fully, believably chic in tweeds, earth tones and graphic prints, often accessorized with demonstrative geometric jewelry.

Of course, the fashion story was and always will be about Carrie, a character, who, thanks to Field, holds dual titles as television's best and worst dressed. To the well-trained, high-fashion eye, Carrie's 81 costume changes make up perhaps the most metaphorical wardrobe in cinematic history. For half of the film she comes off as a polished, uberfashionable grown-up; the other half, she's the quirky, experimental fashion trailblazer/victim. Polished Carrie is done up head-to-toe in resort and spring 2008 trends: florals, like a gem-studded YSL sack dress, and full-skirted frocks made a little edgy with a studded black leather belt.

At her best (or worst, depending on how you see it), Carrie entertains and impresses with imaginative combinations. As for her outrageous, often tacky, taste, she pulls it off with the help of Parker's taut, toned and all-around tiny figure that can make even stonewashed, button-fly jeans look good. Or an all-black ensemble of a tarlike puffy coat, topped with a fedora; not to mention a pair of pajamas paired with a fur coat, white high-heel booties and a sequined beanie. Indeed, it's a taste of the wacky, and totally in character.

Still, it fails to deliver the same euphoric fashion rush as did the series. In the 10 years since the show started, dedicated Sex maniacs have become used to Carrie's wild, tacky and impossibly theatrical gear. This time, it's impossible to shock them. Fashion-wise, the in-the-bag blockbuster Sex and the City: The Movie is definitely fun, but not enough to get carried away.

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Actresses (L-R) Kristin Davis, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kim Cattrall arrive for the German premiere of ''Sex And The City: The Movie'' at a cinema in Berlin May 15, 2008.[Agencies]

Sex and the City remained a fashionable choice for moviegoers as women turned out in huge numbers for the big-screen version, which led the weekend box office in the US with $56.8 million.

Sex moved from the city to the cinema on Friday as hordes of determined women descended upon Manhattan for the premiere of Sex and the City in the city where the hit television show-turned-film takes place.

"Is there a New York girl that isn't (a fan of the show)?" asks Nikki Lamarine, standing outside a Times Square cinema as she and about 30 girlfriends clutched opening-night tickets they had secured several weeks in advance.

"If there is, she's weird," Lamarine adds.

In honor of the premiere, the women sported bright dresses, high heels and dramatic hats that owed more than a little to the four style-savvy stars of the new film and the hit HBO television series on which it is based.

One of the very few men in the crowd was New Yorker Dennis Castillo, a longtime fan who had come with a group of female friends.

"I'm really excited to see Samantha and all her craziness," says Castillo, referring to one of the four women friends who in the film are portrayed living their lives four years after they left off when the TV show went off the air in 2004.

Sarah Jessica Parker is the fashion-conscious Manhattan columnist Carrie Bradshaw. An online survey of more than 10,000 moviegoers buying tickets for Sex and the City found that 94 percent were women, and that 67 percent planned to attend the movie over the weekend with a group of female friends.

Several Manhattan bars were serving free Cosmopolitans, a cocktail favored by the foursome on the TV show, to those who attended opening night.

Sarah Jessica Parker, who stars as the fashion-conscious Manhattan columnist Carrie Bradshaw, says fans expecting "the joy and the good times and the whimsy and the clothes and the cocktails and the salty language" would get their fill, but might be surprised to find "that the shank of the movie is pretty sad".

That could account for at least some of the grumbling on film-centered websites such as the Internet Movie Data Base, where more than 3,000 users had rated the film a paltry 3.7 of a possible 10 as of Friday night.

But the voting breakdown hinted at a healthy dose of sexism in the city, with men casting nearly three times as many votes as women, and rating the film a 3, while women gave it a 7.

(China Daily 06/04/2008 page18)

]]> 2008-06-04 10:32:20 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732410.htm Young adults experience news fatigue from being inundated by facts and updates and have trouble accessing in-depth stories, according to a study to be unveiled at a global media conference yesterday.

The Context-Based Research Group, an ethnographic research firm, found that the news consumption behavior of younger readers differs profoundly from that of previous generations.

The research project, commissioned by The Associated Press in 2007, analyzed the news consumption patterns of an ethnically diverse group of 18 men and women between the ages of 18 and 34 in six cities in the United States, Britain and India.

It ultimately helped AP design a new model for news delivery to meet the needs of young adults, who are driving the shift from traditional media to digital news, said Jim Kennedy, AP's director of strategic planning.

"The real value was that it gave us a lasting model of how news is being consumed in the digital space by young people that we can use to improve our own newsgathering and project development," Kennedy said.

That includes what the AP calls "1-2-3 filing", starting with a news alert headline for breaking news, followed by a short present-tense story that is usable on the Web and by broadcasters. The third step is to add details and format stories in ways most appropriate for various news platforms.

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Editors at the Telegraph in London are following a similar approach and have seen a big jump in traffic at the newspaper's website. The study said the Telegraph has adopted the mind-set of a broadcast-news operation to quickly build from headlines to short stories to complete multimedia packages online to boost readership.

The study's purpose was to obtain a deeper and more holistic understanding of the news consumption behavior of younger audiences. The results were scheduled to be presented yesterday in a 71-page report to media executives and editors from around the globe at the World Editors Forum in Goteborg, southwestern Sweden.

A key finding was that participants yearned for quality and in-depth reporting but had difficulty immediately accessing such content because they were bombarded by facts and updates in headlines and snippets of news.

The study also found that participants were unable to give full attention to the news because they were almost always simultaneously engaged in other activities, such as reading e-mail.

That represents a shift from previous consumption models in which people sat down to watch the evening news or read the morning paper.

"Our observations and analysis identified that consumers' news diets are out of balance due to the over-consumption of facts and headlines," said Robbie Blinkoff, co-founder and head anthropologist at Baltimore, Maryland-based Context-Based Research Group.

To combat that, the authors recommended that news producers develop easier ways for readers to discover in-depth content and to avoid repetitious updates of breaking news.

The research was conducted in six major metropolitan areas around the globe: Houston, Silicon Valley, Philadelphia and Kansas City in the United States; Brighton, Britain; and Hyderabad, India.

(China Daily 06/03/2008 page10)

]]> 2008-06-03 15:14:31 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732436.htm

Like many forms of "Western" music in China, jazz has had its challenges gaining ground with local audiences. Officially prohibited during the Cultural Revolution, the genre was then viewed as a bourgeois and decadent social evil.

"To look at the jazz scene in Beijing today, and think of what was happening here musically 25 years ago, one sees amazing growth", says Jessica Meider, a 10-year veteran of the Beijing jazz scene and vocalist for jazz ensemble Quattrology.

There is still a ways to go, of course. Liu Yue, mentioned by many as the top jazz guitarist in Beijing, explains, "It's difficult for many jazz musicians to make a living from just playing jazz, so many have to play in other bands in different genres as well." According to David Mitchell, guitarist with Panjir and Enfant Terrible, exposure to other musical influences is beneficial. "If you find the right way to introduce people to jazz, they’ll almost always enjoy it. Elements of electro, world music, funk and drum make it possible to get the listeners attention.”

Jazz is a genre defined by its past, and the contradictory elements of jazz, where improvisation meets uniformity will always make for some friction. The canon of “standards” played by jazz musicians across the globe can be looked at as a measuring stick of players’ talent, as well as an obstacle to creativity and innovative composition. “Original composition is the lifeblood of jazz,” says Mitchell. Liu Yue points out that “Jazz musicians start from the standards. Studying the classics builds understanding of the music’s history and reveals the level of the musicians playing them.”

Saxophonist Nathaniel Gao, the organizing force behind the Red Hand Jazz Band, asserts that, “It’s important to grasp the traditions behind jazz, but our band has been having a great time focusing on original material.”

Putting the standards vs. composition debate to the side, Gao maintains, “What Beijing really needs is more resources and venues to see live jazz. It’s encouraging that most people in Beijing jazz are Chinese, with a lot of younger musicians with talent.”

]]> 2008-06-03 15:13:54 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732419.htm

Like many forms of "Western" music in China, jazz has had its challenges gaining ground with local audiences. Officially prohibited during the Cultural Revolution, the genre was then viewed as a bourgeois and decadent social evil.

"To look at the jazz scene in Beijing today, and think of what was happening here musically 25 years ago, one sees amazing growth", says Jessica Meider, a 10-year veteran of the Beijing jazz scene and vocalist for jazz ensemble Quattrology.

There is still a ways to go, of course. Liu Yue, mentioned by many as the top jazz guitarist in Beijing, explains, "It's difficult for many jazz musicians to make a living from just playing jazz, so many have to play in other bands in different genres as well." According to David Mitchell, guitarist with Panjir and Enfant Terrible, exposure to other musical influences is beneficial. "If you find the right way to introduce people to jazz, they’ll almost always enjoy it. Elements of electro, world music, funk and drum make it possible to get the listeners attention.”

Jazz is a genre defined by its past, and the contradictory elements of jazz, where improvisation meets uniformity will always make for some friction. The canon of “standards” played by jazz musicians across the globe can be looked at as a measuring stick of players’ talent, as well as an obstacle to creativity and innovative composition. “Original composition is the lifeblood of jazz,” says Mitchell. Liu Yue points out that “Jazz musicians start from the standards. Studying the classics builds understanding of the music’s history and reveals the level of the musicians playing them.”

Saxophonist Nathaniel Gao, the organizing force behind the Red Hand Jazz Band, asserts that, “It’s important to grasp the traditions behind jazz, but our band has been having a great time focusing on original material.”

Putting the standards vs. composition debate to the side, Gao maintains, “What Beijing really needs is more resources and venues to see live jazz. It’s encouraging that most people in Beijing jazz are Chinese, with a lot of younger musicians with talent.”

]]> 2008-06-03 15:13:54 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732390.htm

As Summer comes, Greek salad has become a favorite of many girls. Where to get the best Greek salads? Here are some suggestions.

Greek Taverna
This Greek salad (40 yuan) tops the list. Perfectly creamy, almost sweet, homemade feta cheese atop leafy greens complements chunks of red tomato, colorful rings of red and green peppers and red onion mixed together with velvety olive oil and whole kalamata olives. Attractively served along with oregano sprinkled pita bread makes this one stand out as one of the best Greek salads in town.
Add: Unit 41 Thumb Plaza, 199 Fangdian Lu
Tel: 5033-7500

Element Fresh
All the right components are here in this Greek salad (68 yuan). Mixed baby greens add color and variety dotted by small pieces of kalamata olives. A creamy feta (though slightly too salty) adds depth while cherry tomatoes and a few slices of cucumber mix well with the vinaigrette dressing, though it's a bit heavy on the vinegar. Overall, this is an attractive, healthy salad.
Website: http://www.elementfresh.com

Haya's Mediterranean Cuisine
The key here is the feta cheese, creamy with a touch of salt. The dressing does not overpower. This Greek salad (30 yuan) has, all-round, a good value. The vegetables are mixed and chopped to blend their natural flavors with the light dressing, although the black olives are less authentic-Cnot kalamata. As a bonus, this one is served with warm pita bread.
Add: 2/F, 3219 Hongmei Lu or 415 Dagu Lu
Tel: 6465-1166 (Gubei), 6295-9511 (Jing'an)

]]> 2008-06-03 15:01:47 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732393.htm

As Summer comes, Greek salad has become a favorite of many girls. Where to get the best Greek salads? Here are some suggestions.

Greek Taverna
This Greek salad (40 yuan) tops the list. Perfectly creamy, almost sweet, homemade feta cheese atop leafy greens complements chunks of red tomato, colorful rings of red and green peppers and red onion mixed together with velvety olive oil and whole kalamata olives. Attractively served along with oregano sprinkled pita bread makes this one stand out as one of the best Greek salads in town.
Add: Unit 41 Thumb Plaza, 199 Fangdian Lu
Tel: 5033-7500

Element Fresh
All the right components are here in this Greek salad (68 yuan). Mixed baby greens add color and variety dotted by small pieces of kalamata olives. A creamy feta (though slightly too salty) adds depth while cherry tomatoes and a few slices of cucumber mix well with the vinaigrette dressing, though it's a bit heavy on the vinegar. Overall, this is an attractive, healthy salad.
Website: http://www.elementfresh.com

Haya's Mediterranean Cuisine
The key here is the feta cheese, creamy with a touch of salt. The dressing does not overpower. This Greek salad (30 yuan) has, all-round, a good value. The vegetables are mixed and chopped to blend their natural flavors with the light dressing, although the black olives are less authentic-Cnot kalamata. As a bonus, this one is served with warm pita bread.
Add: 2/F, 3219 Hongmei Lu or 415 Dagu Lu
Tel: 6465-1166 (Gubei), 6295-9511 (Jing'an)

]]> 2008-06-03 15:01:47 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732291.htm

China's famous scenic area Jiuzhaigou has applied for reopening to tourists in two months since it closed due to the May 12 earthquake.

The tourist attraction, located in Aba Prefecture, southwest China's Sichuan Province, is waiting for permission from China National Tourism Administration (CNTA), the Beijing News reported on Sunday.

Tourism, the pillar industry and major source of income for Aba, has been seriously affected by the 8.0 magnitude earthquake. The loss of ticket sales for Aba's tourism scenic spots totaled over 7 billion yuan, said Liu Wenzhi, deputy head of the Aba Tibetan-Qiang Autonomous Prefecture.

Fortunately, the hotels and tramway in Jiuzhaigou have not been damaged by the deadly earthquake.

As to transportation, Liu said, flights to Jiuzhaigou are available, while the road from Lanzhou to the scenic area remains open. Some other passageways are under reconstruction.

They applied to CNTA for permission to reopen Jiuzhaigou in June or July, the report said.

Tourism in quake-hit Sichuan Province has been halted by CNTA since May 12.

]]> 2008-06-03 14:18:16 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732288.htm

Designed for serious carnivores, ARCO Latina will give you more than your daily-recommended dose of protein.

While there will be a la carte dishes available, the buffet is the main attraction at this recently opened Brazilian barbecue restaurant. At 168 yuan per person, it includes a generous selection of cold salads, soups, sides, seafood and dessert, and this is just an accompaniment.

The real deal is the meat, which they slice from skewers directly onto your plate. The beef may be the highlight but the other offerings are equally delicious. We sampled everything they brought to our table, unable to resist the sumptuous sliced beef, crispy pork, chicken wrapped in bacon, lamb chops and more.

While a bit expensive at 58 yuan, we also tried the signature house drink, the Caipirinha, a combination of Cachaca (Brazilian liquor distilled from sugarcane), lime and sugar on the rocks. Finally full, we turned over the small paper bulls on our table from the green "Yes Please" side to the red "No Thanks," our signal to the staff that they need not bring more meat in our direction, and walked away so full we didn't even realize we hadn't made it to dessert.

Add: 1/F, JinJiang Hotel, 59 Maoming Nan Lu
Tel: 6472-2718

]]> 2008-06-03 14:18:08 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732297.htm

Designed for serious carnivores, ARCO Latina will give you more than your daily-recommended dose of protein.

While there will be a la carte dishes available, the buffet is the main attraction at this recently opened Brazilian barbecue restaurant. At 168 yuan per person, it includes a generous selection of cold salads, soups, sides, seafood and dessert, and this is just an accompaniment.

The real deal is the meat, which they slice from skewers directly onto your plate. The beef may be the highlight but the other offerings are equally delicious. We sampled everything they brought to our table, unable to resist the sumptuous sliced beef, crispy pork, chicken wrapped in bacon, lamb chops and more.

While a bit expensive at 58 yuan, we also tried the signature house drink, the Caipirinha, a combination of Cachaca (Brazilian liquor distilled from sugarcane), lime and sugar on the rocks. Finally full, we turned over the small paper bulls on our table from the green "Yes Please" side to the red "No Thanks," our signal to the staff that they need not bring more meat in our direction, and walked away so full we didn't even realize we hadn't made it to dessert.

Add: 1/F, JinJiang Hotel, 59 Maoming Nan Lu
Tel: 6472-2718

]]> 2008-06-03 14:18:08 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732144.htm

]]> 2008-06-03 11:58:33 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732144.htm

Pop diva Zhang Liangying at a Beijing press release promoting her album in 2006.

Though wildly popular, the Idol singing competitions in the West are viewed with much skepticism. Despite showing talent and having a large fan base, participants often find themselves pigeonholed. Critics claim that the competition offers an easy shortcut to stardom, and calls for neither talent nor hard work.

But 2005 Super Girl (China's version of Idol) participant Zhang Liangying believes it is not as simple as it seems. "It's very complicated," she says. "I have only one word to describe it: tiring."

Zhang, better known as Jane Zhang, has been trying to free herself from the pop image her performance in China's Idol competition earned her, three years ago. Dubbed "Dolphin Princess" for the uncommon flexibility of her vocal range, Zhang's journey toward a more "artistic" musical career has been easier than that of many of her peers.

Just one year after the completion of 2005's Super Girl, Zhang found herself collaborating with two of China's most respected musicians. She sang the theme song for the 2006 film The Banquet, joining hands with avant-garde composer Tan Dun and award-winning pianist Lang Lang. Most singers can only expect to work on such high-profile projects at the peak of their careers.

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Zhang has a large fan base in the country since winning the singing competition three years ago. Photos by Xiao Huaiyuan

On her experience of working with Tan, Zhang says, "I must thank Tan Dun. He has given me so much."

Zhang certainly has reason to thank him. Their collaboration has brought Zhang far more respect than what Idol contestants can usually expect. It has also raised questions about genre and how artists may or may not move freely across boundaries.

Her second album sounded more like a mixture of R&B and jazz than the Chinese pop that many expected from her. Zhang says, "I don't like to be classified. My sound is elegant, and flexible. I sing what brings me pleasure, so I prefer to be dynamic."

Zhang has committed to perform in the international World Peace One concert series, whose aim is to eradicate war within the next 10 years. Besides The Banquet, she has also sung the theme songs for The Forbidden Kingdom as well as the highly acclaimed television series, The Return of the Condor Hero.

Whether these accomplishments are expected of singers who make it in the Idol competitions is debatable. Nonetheless, Zhang is moving in directions that not many could have foreseen three years ago.

Early last month, the singer was invited to perform in Tokyo. As part of Chinese President Hu Jintao's "warm spring" tour of Japan, Zhang staged a rare performance at Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's official residence. Zhang has been actively helping promote cultural understanding and friendship between the youth of both countries through her music.

(China Daily 06/03/2008 page19)

]]> 2008-06-03 11:52:28 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732134.htm

Locals are likely to stay at home for the Dragon Boat Festival holiday this long weekend, even though prices for tours and accommodation, for the first time, will not rise during such a national break.

Industry sources said the holiday occurred right before the college and high school entrance examinations, which meant many families would stay at home so students could prepare for the tests.

The earthquake in Sichuan Province had also affected the tour market for the holiday.

Shanghai CYTS Tours said they would not promote overseas-bound travel or long-term travel within the country for the holiday. "Due to the earthquake in Sichuan, the province won't accept tour groups before July," said Liu Xiaojun, an official with the agency. "Yunnan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces were also affected by the quake, so few people will choose there as their tour destination."

As short-term travel will be in demand, the Shanghai Sightseeing Bus Center will release nine new products. The tours include visiting the zongzi (glutinous rice dumplings) processing factory in Jiaxing and picking fresh fruit in Hangzhou.

According to online tour service company Ctrip.com, Jiaxing in Zhejiang Province is expected to be popular as it is famous for zongzi, a traditional snack of the Dragon Boat festival.

Ningbo and Xiangshan are also tipped to be popular.

]]> 2008-06-03 11:38:51 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/03/content_6732137.htm

Locals are likely to stay at home for the Dragon Boat Festival holiday this long weekend, even though prices for tours and accommodation, for the first time, will not rise during such a national break.

Industry sources said the holiday occurred right before the college and high school entrance examinations, which meant many families would stay at home so students could prepare for the tests.

The earthquake in Sichuan Province had also affected the tour market for the holiday.

Shanghai CYTS Tours said they would not promote overseas-bound travel or long-term travel within the country for the holiday. "Due to the earthquake in Sichuan, the province won't accept tour groups before July," said Liu Xiaojun, an official with the agency. "Yunnan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces were also affected by the quake, so few people will choose there as their tour destination."

As short-term travel will be in demand, the Shanghai Sightseeing Bus Center will release nine new products. The tours include visiting the zongzi (glutinous rice dumplings) processing factory in Jiaxing and picking fresh fruit in Hangzhou.

According to online tour service company Ctrip.com, Jiaxing in Zhejiang Province is expected to be popular as it is famous for zongzi, a traditional snack of the Dragon Boat festival.

Ningbo and Xiangshan are also tipped to be popular.

]]> 2008-06-03 11:38:51 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729420.htm

]]> 2008-06-02 17:04:46 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729420.htm

A veteran New York theater teacher stands next to a young man on a TV production set in Beijing while texting his friends on his cell phone.

Acting in a Chinese TV show is the most amazing experience for Australian Sally Benson. File photo Fifty-eight-year-old Glen Sparer studied film direction at New York University and learned the Stanford Meisner approach to the Stanislavski Method.

Beside Sparer is 20-year-old Sergio Almeida, who has never acted before. He remembers his favorite movie The Bourne Identity and pretends to be Matt Damon.

Both men reflect the diversity of experience among foreigners, who are gracing the big and small screens of China.

University campuses and weekend expat hot spots are now the hunting grounds for casting agents and talent scouts looking for those "must-have" Western faces for their productions.

Over the past 10 years, waiguoren, or foreigners, have gone from playing extras and bit-part characters to starring in major supporting roles. And, demand for foreign faces is rising.

CCTV1's Lost in Los Angeles is a 30-part mini-series filmed mostly in Beijing. The story is about Chinese twins - a boy and girl - born in America and adopted by US parents. Their real Chinese father goes to Los Angeles to find them. And of course there are twists and turns associated with any soap. The daughter and star of the series, Angela, is lured into a drug ring, gets pregnant, is hit by a car, then finds out she is adopted, and wears green and purple streaks in her hair.

Thirty-year-old American Daygan Sobotka scored a major role, playing the villain who tricks the lead actress into a nasty drug deal.

Sobotka's only acting experience before coming to China was in high school and college theater productions. But in 2005, after he arrived in Beijing, he learnt the popular Chinese comedy "cross talk" routine and attracted publicity.

The Chinese-speaking expat's cross talk fame opened many doors.

"A big thing here is that we are unique," he says. "It's likely someone will say, 'hey we need a white person and you're one of the 50 they have to choose from. So, they will take you."

---

He understands an Oscar-winning performance is not essential, but tries to make his efforts as real as possible.

Sergio Almeida plays a bartender in a Chinese TV show. Sally Benson Sobotka remembers his high school drama lessons about the different methods, internal and external acting. For example, if an actor is required to cry, the internal method involves thinking about a sad event. The external technique involves lowering the head and wiping the eyes.

"I try to make it as internal as I can, however that's not always possible and as easy as we wish it."

When it comes to China's fast-changing society, appearance is important to hundreds of millions of Chinese viewers and consumers.

Assistant to the director and foreign casting Lost in Los Angeles David Tom says the Olympics has been the catapult, which has been pushing everything up and content in film productions reflects that change.

"The focus, the economy, foreign advertising, investment, everything is coming together," he says.

And, he says the focus is no longer imperial soap operas or martial arts films.

"The focus is on modern contemporary pieces and not period pieces," he says. "We are showing 'New China'. Everyone is looking at China, everyone's coming to China this year, everything that will be on TV and film will be 'New China'.

"We have foreign faces on products, in advertisement and television. There is a reason for that, and the reason is psychological."

"Chinese audiences don't see enough foreigners on Chinese TV and film and if they do see them, they see them as stereotypical."

When casting, he looks for foreigners who can act, but most importantly, how they fit the role.

---

"We do have an idea of how we think they should look."

He says Chinese-speaking expats are essential, but aspiring actors need not be totally fluent.

"It's required of all actors in China to speak good, if not perfect, Mandarin, and then you have some foreigners that speak broken Mandarin, which is okay, as that is what we want the character to be like."

"It's also about the look and acting ability, if you speak perfect Chinese it's a bonus."

Sparer was cast as Angela's adoptive father. He has acted for the past 30 years, and in the past six months he has lived in Beijing and appeared in six different productions. He attributed this success to his special look - he's one of few male actors in his age range.

While some Westerners get into acting as a way to make some extra money, the challenge of acting for a different audience is one of the main reasons Sparer decided to get involved.

"The ethnic make-up of Beijing is changing," he says.

"Chinese people are interested in Westerners and vice versa. To be able to present a character to a Chinese audience is an interesting challenge."

Westerners interested primarily in acting work are hard to find. Most Westerners interested are normally short-term students, or people who are on work visas with 9 to 5 jobs. But, Chinese TV can be a serious business for some.

Rachel Dewoskin was one of the first foreign TV stars in China, playing a sexy American college student, who wins the love of a rebellious young Chinese man. Her book, Foreign Babes in Beijing, records her rise to fame and is now being made into a Hollywood production.

However, sometimes acting ability and Chinese fluency are pushed aside. While some foreigners with no acting ability are hesitant to be involved, others are throwing caution to the wind and trying their luck.

Portuguese-born Almeida landed a role as a bartender in the CCTV1's mini-series. Without an ounce of previous acting experience and basic conversational Chinese abilities, he was picked entirely by his photograph taken off a website.

His acting method involves remembering his favorite movies and trying to act in similar ways.

"It can be a bit nerve-racking, especially with the close-up shots. But, after the first scene I warmed up, and it was fine," he says.

"The people on set help you as well. They tell you what to do if you don't know."

China offers acting opportunities that are almost impossible to get back home, Sobokta says.

"The opportunities here are easier to come by, but now the amount of work I get isn't enough to live off, although in the future it could be."

Foreigner actors and actresses can make up to 1,000 yuan ($143) a day.

(China Daily 06/02/2008 page10)

]]> 2008-06-02 16:57:35 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729159.htm

One of the oldest ballet companies in Europe is visiting Shanghai next month and giving four local children a taste of stardom. Here is more about the performance by the Royal Swedish Ballet.

Four local children will have a rare chance to dance in the classic ballet "Swan Lake" with the 235-year-old Royal Swedish Ballet next month.

Madeleine Onne, artistic director of the company, has recently visited Shanghai and held auditions.

"We are interested in cooperating with local dancers in some ways and we are especially interested in the dancing skills of Chinese children," says Onne, who has selected four 10-year-old dancers from the dance school attached to the Shanghai Theater Academy.

"I selected them for their figures and ballet skills and how they could play their parts and highlight the appearance in the ballet of a clown," Onne says.

One of the oldest ballet dance companies in Europe, the Royal Swedish Ballet was founded by King Gustav III, who was a great lover of the arts and an actor and playwright himself. The king wanted to promote the use of Swedish as the language of the upper classes who generally spoke French.

---

However, after its initial reign of glory, the Royal Swedish Ballet was neglected in the 19th century and languished in the shadow of the Royal Danish Ballet. A turning point came with the arrival of Michel Fokine in 1913 and his productions of "Les Sylphides" and other ballets dragged the troupe into the 20th century.

"We have the best technique in Sweden," says Onne, who has been a member of the company since 1978. "People should be able to watch our dancers for only a few minutes and be able to say 'That's the Royal Swedish Ballet. It couldn't be anyone else'."

The company will perform the most classical of classic ballet, "Swan Lake," which in this Shanghai version is enhanced with an air of romantic Gothic tragedy.

"I want new creations, but I don't want the dancers 'crawling on the floor.' I want them to use the techniques they've been trained for since they were nine," says Onne. "That's what I'd like to do with the company - old things and new things but with classical ballet as a base."

The ballet is one of the 80 performances to celebrate the third anniversary of the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in June and July. The center has hosted 1,300 shows for 1.5 million audience since its founding.

Among these performances were not only high-end concerts by the world's top orchestras like Berliner Philharmoniker and BBC Philharmonic Symphony, but also low-price (30-yuan) concerts and free music lectures to popularize classical music. The Art Center will also upgrade its Website www.shoac.com.cn (with English version) with more functions such as online ticket purchase and audio-video downloading.

Date: June 14-16, 7:15pm

Address: 425 Dingxiang Rd, Pudong

Tickets: 180-1,280 yuan

Tel: 6854-1234

]]> 2008-06-02 14:10:36 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729142.htm

One of the oldest ballet companies in Europe is visiting Shanghai next month and giving four local children a taste of stardom. Here is more about the performance by the Royal Swedish Ballet.

Four local children will have a rare chance to dance in the classic ballet "Swan Lake" with the 235-year-old Royal Swedish Ballet next month.

Madeleine Onne, artistic director of the company, has recently visited Shanghai and held auditions.

"We are interested in cooperating with local dancers in some ways and we are especially interested in the dancing skills of Chinese children," says Onne, who has selected four 10-year-old dancers from the dance school attached to the Shanghai Theater Academy.

"I selected them for their figures and ballet skills and how they could play their parts and highlight the appearance in the ballet of a clown," Onne says.

One of the oldest ballet dance companies in Europe, the Royal Swedish Ballet was founded by King Gustav III, who was a great lover of the arts and an actor and playwright himself. The king wanted to promote the use of Swedish as the language of the upper classes who generally spoke French.

---

However, after its initial reign of glory, the Royal Swedish Ballet was neglected in the 19th century and languished in the shadow of the Royal Danish Ballet. A turning point came with the arrival of Michel Fokine in 1913 and his productions of "Les Sylphides" and other ballets dragged the troupe into the 20th century.

"We have the best technique in Sweden," says Onne, who has been a member of the company since 1978. "People should be able to watch our dancers for only a few minutes and be able to say 'That's the Royal Swedish Ballet. It couldn't be anyone else'."

The company will perform the most classical of classic ballet, "Swan Lake," which in this Shanghai version is enhanced with an air of romantic Gothic tragedy.

"I want new creations, but I don't want the dancers 'crawling on the floor.' I want them to use the techniques they've been trained for since they were nine," says Onne. "That's what I'd like to do with the company - old things and new things but with classical ballet as a base."

The ballet is one of the 80 performances to celebrate the third anniversary of the Shanghai Oriental Art Center in June and July. The center has hosted 1,300 shows for 1.5 million audience since its founding.

Among these performances were not only high-end concerts by the world's top orchestras like Berliner Philharmoniker and BBC Philharmonic Symphony, but also low-price (30-yuan) concerts and free music lectures to popularize classical music. The Art Center will also upgrade its Website www.shoac.com.cn (with English version) with more functions such as online ticket purchase and audio-video downloading.

Date: June 14-16, 7:15pm

Address: 425 Dingxiang Rd, Pudong

Tickets: 180-1,280 yuan

Tel: 6854-1234

]]> 2008-06-02 14:10:36 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729138.htm A favorite with Italian women, this "Made in Italy" legwear and intimates brand has also started winning over the hearts of women worldwide.

From stockings and knits, to lingerie and swimwear, this one-stop shop has it all, from simple basics to decorative pieces. Lines include Golden Lady’s own brand of tights and stockings, Phillipe Matignon aimed for the more refined woman, and Sisi – a line of stylish and creative knits.

Men and children are also catered to, and as prices range from RMB 29 to RMB 699, you’ll find it tricky to walk out empty-handed.

Golden Point
Daily 10am-10pm.
L426, 4/F, Xinzhongguan Shopping Center, 19 Zhongguancun Dajie, Haidian District
82486887

]]> 2008-06-02 14:10:30 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729150.htm A favorite with Italian women, this "Made in Italy" legwear and intimates brand has also started winning over the hearts of women worldwide.

From stockings and knits, to lingerie and swimwear, this one-stop shop has it all, from simple basics to decorative pieces. Lines include Golden Lady’s own brand of tights and stockings, Phillipe Matignon aimed for the more refined woman, and Sisi – a line of stylish and creative knits.

Men and children are also catered to, and as prices range from RMB 29 to RMB 699, you’ll find it tricky to walk out empty-handed.

Golden Point
Daily 10am-10pm.
L426, 4/F, Xinzhongguan Shopping Center, 19 Zhongguancun Dajie, Haidian District
82486887

]]> 2008-06-02 14:10:30 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729105.htm

Quietly sitting at home one night, I received a surprising text message. Written in Chinese, the message claimed that the largest gay bar in Asia would "warmly" open that weekend in Shanghai. As a jaded gay, I was quite skeptical of the message and quickly dismissed it, but my dancing feet eventually got the best of me.

The gay clubbing scene in Shanghai is not in the best of shape. Club Deep closed a long time ago. PinkHome's troubles continue to affect its reputation. As one of my gays told me, "PinkHome is dead." Nowadays, most of the regular clubbers end up at Shanghai Studio, complaining that "there's no where else to go." In fact, many gays have resolved themselves to, gasp, going to straight bars in order to get their dance on, with MAO and M Seven being the most popular clubbing destinations.

While I am not sure of the legitimacy of its claim as the largest gay club in Asia, Club LC's ("Live Cool") most remarkable feature is its size (no pun intended). Many Shanghai gay club goers are used to being crowded together like sardines. It was refreshing to go to a place where I didn't feel like I was on top of someone else. (Or maybe that isn't such a bad thing.)

After a fun night of ogling and dancing, I was quite optimistic about the future of the club. With Club Deep out of the picture and PinkHome quickly fading into obscurity, Club LC could easily fill the void. In addition to dancing and drinking, the club also features nightly performances starring ridiculously skinny boys that need to eat a hamburger--or four. While the performances aren't worth writing home about, it's certainly better than some sad drag queen shows I've seen.

"Sure, it's big, but when there's no one there, it looks completely empty," said one club goer that I spoke to. I would have to agree with that statement. Popularity is very important in the Shanghai gay community. For example, if it looks like no one is dancing and having a good time, they all head to the exits as if there's a fire. With its large space, eventually the crowd will probably dwindle away and Club LC will fade just like the others. While the pessimist in me believes that, for the sake of Shanghai's gay club scene, I really hope I'm wrong.

]]> 2008-06-02 13:57:06 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729102.htm All together now... (from left) Hong Kong artists Alan Tam, Andy Hui, Jackie Chan, Sammi Cheng, Denise Ho, Andy Lau and Eason Chan sing as they join more than 200 artists from China's mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan during a charity show to raise funds for Sichuan earthquake survivors in Hong Kong yesterday. The marathon concert raised a total of HK$31.8 million (US$4.07 million) for the quake victims.

]]>

All together now... (from left) Hong Kong artists Alan Tam, Andy Hui, Jackie Chan, Sammi Cheng, Denise Ho, Andy Lau and Eason Chan sing as they join more than 200 artists from China's mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan during a charity show to raise funds for Sichuan earthquake survivors in Hong Kong yesterday. The marathon concert raised a total of HK$31.8 million (US$4.07 million) for the quake victims.

]]> 2008-06-02 13:57:01 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729108.htm

Quietly sitting at home one night, I received a surprising text message. Written in Chinese, the message claimed that the largest gay bar in Asia would "warmly" open that weekend in Shanghai. As a jaded gay, I was quite skeptical of the message and quickly dismissed it, but my dancing feet eventually got the best of me.

The gay clubbing scene in Shanghai is not in the best of shape. Club Deep closed a long time ago. PinkHome's troubles continue to affect its reputation. As one of my gays told me, "PinkHome is dead." Nowadays, most of the regular clubbers end up at Shanghai Studio, complaining that "there's no where else to go." In fact, many gays have resolved themselves to, gasp, going to straight bars in order to get their dance on, with MAO and M Seven being the most popular clubbing destinations.

While I am not sure of the legitimacy of its claim as the largest gay club in Asia, Club LC's ("Live Cool") most remarkable feature is its size (no pun intended). Many Shanghai gay club goers are used to being crowded together like sardines. It was refreshing to go to a place where I didn't feel like I was on top of someone else. (Or maybe that isn't such a bad thing.)

After a fun night of ogling and dancing, I was quite optimistic about the future of the club. With Club Deep out of the picture and PinkHome quickly fading into obscurity, Club LC could easily fill the void. In addition to dancing and drinking, the club also features nightly performances starring ridiculously skinny boys that need to eat a hamburger--or four. While the performances aren't worth writing home about, it's certainly better than some sad drag queen shows I've seen.

"Sure, it's big, but when there's no one there, it looks completely empty," said one club goer that I spoke to. I would have to agree with that statement. Popularity is very important in the Shanghai gay community. For example, if it looks like no one is dancing and having a good time, they all head to the exits as if there's a fire. With its large space, eventually the crowd will probably dwindle away and Club LC will fade just like the others. While the pessimist in me believes that, for the sake of Shanghai's gay club scene, I really hope I'm wrong.

]]> 2008-06-02 13:57:06 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729069.htm

The dining room glitters white and brass; Kamat's made us feel like foreign dignitaries visiting a Tandoori prince.

The waitstaff is alive, readily explaining and recommending dishes. The deep-fried bits, vegetable samosas (28 yuan) and assorted pakoras (28 yuan), were what Chinese deep-frying strives for, crunchy and spicy on the outside, fresh and clean in the middle. Creamy Chicken Korma (48 yuan) oozed into our stomachs, dulling our senses, though the basket of na’an (10 yuan) was a little hard.

The waiter came over to check on the Chicken Vindaloo (48 yuan), which wasn't as hot as we had hoped. "We can make it hotter, if you want," he said. "Can you do that right now?" we asked. "Of course," he smiled. Ten minutes later we were fanning our tongues in chili bliss. 

Kamat's Indian Restaurant
Tel: 6268-4999
Add: 2/F Di San Ji Creative Zone No.66, Beisihuanxilu

]]> 2008-06-02 13:44:56 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729066.htm

So, what sets iClub apart from other networking groups?

Well, we are really a lifestyle concierge membership program for Beijing. We try to make our events fun and different from what other people are doing. Most groups here organize networking events or parties. That's fun, but you can't really learn anything from it. People who come to our events learn something every time.

Can anyone who loves learning attend these events?

Most of our events are public, but some are exclusive to our members.

And, how would I become a member?

It's easy. Our membership is 399 yuan a year in Beijing. We not only organize events, but members also receive benefits like discounts to the venues we work with. Nice. But, what I really want to know is ...

Do I get a free iPod or iPhone for joining iClub?

No, but that's a great idea! We do have membership package that includes a book, a membership card and a map. Plus, members have the chance to win gifts every month. That sounds very cool.

What is your favorite activity iClub has ever done?

Personally, I liked the sake tasting dinner the best. The event was open to the public, and people were able to learn about Japanese culture and the art of sake making and enjoy a wonderful meal. And I got to drink sake!

For more on iClub’s events, benefits and how you can join, visit http://www.iclubchina.com

]]> 2008-06-02 13:44:49 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729063.htm

Restaurants in office buildings and shopping malls seem to lack a certain "je ne sais quoi," and certainly, Sushi Inc. is no exception.

It's all very nicely done, a little mezzanine terrace inside the building with comfortable banquettes and a soothing water feature, but still inside an office tower. You just can't get away from it. Service was a little faltering and the arrival of the food was slow, but when it came, we were mostly impressed. We tried many rolls and, as this is the sister restaurant to Haiku by Hatsune, a place we love, the standard was excellent, although the selection was smaller.

The Wasabi Challenge (65 yuan) almost blew our heads off, but we can't say the waiter didn't warn us, and a crispy Sake-2-me (65 yuan) was the favorite. A few teething problems--the edamame (18 yuan) was lacking flavor and a usual favorite, the octopus sashimi (part of a large plate at 380 yuan), was tasteless and rubbery. Disappointed by the lack of choice in wines by the glass and the 60 yuan price tag, we opted for a bottle of Californian chardonnay, the Smoking Loon, which turned out to be a winner.

In general, a bonus for those working in the area and those who don't want to make a jaunt across the river, but we prefer the much more pleasant ambiance at Haiku.

Sushi Inc.
Add: 2/F, Citigroup Tower, 33 Huayuanshiqiao Lu
Tel: 5877-6551

]]> 2008-06-02 13:44:43 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729081.htm

Restaurants in office buildings and shopping malls seem to lack a certain "je ne sais quoi," and certainly, Sushi Inc. is no exception.

It's all very nicely done, a little mezzanine terrace inside the building with comfortable banquettes and a soothing water feature, but still inside an office tower. You just can't get away from it. Service was a little faltering and the arrival of the food was slow, but when it came, we were mostly impressed. We tried many rolls and, as this is the sister restaurant to Haiku by Hatsune, a place we love, the standard was excellent, although the selection was smaller.

The Wasabi Challenge (65 yuan) almost blew our heads off, but we can't say the waiter didn't warn us, and a crispy Sake-2-me (65 yuan) was the favorite. A few teething problems--the edamame (18 yuan) was lacking flavor and a usual favorite, the octopus sashimi (part of a large plate at 380 yuan), was tasteless and rubbery. Disappointed by the lack of choice in wines by the glass and the 60 yuan price tag, we opted for a bottle of Californian chardonnay, the Smoking Loon, which turned out to be a winner.

In general, a bonus for those working in the area and those who don't want to make a jaunt across the river, but we prefer the much more pleasant ambiance at Haiku.

Sushi Inc.
Add: 2/F, Citigroup Tower, 33 Huayuanshiqiao Lu
Tel: 5877-6551

]]> 2008-06-02 13:44:43 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6729075.htm

The dining room glitters white and brass; Kamat's made us feel like foreign dignitaries visiting a Tandoori prince.

The waitstaff is alive, readily explaining and recommending dishes. The deep-fried bits, vegetable samosas (28 yuan) and assorted pakoras (28 yuan), were what Chinese deep-frying strives for, crunchy and spicy on the outside, fresh and clean in the middle. Creamy Chicken Korma (48 yuan) oozed into our stomachs, dulling our senses, though the basket of na’an (10 yuan) was a little hard.

The waiter came over to check on the Chicken Vindaloo (48 yuan), which wasn't as hot as we had hoped. "We can make it hotter, if you want," he said. "Can you do that right now?" we asked. "Of course," he smiled. Ten minutes later we were fanning our tongues in chili bliss. 

Kamat's Indian Restaurant
Tel: 6268-4999
Add: 2/F Di San Ji Creative Zone No.66, Beisihuanxilu

]]> 2008-06-02 13:44:56 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6728683.htm

]]> 2008-06-02 11:16:14 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6728683.htm

 

]]> 2008-06-02 11:11:49 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-06/02/content_6728683.htm What Color Is Your Diet?last year. Its Chinese edition, due later this year, looks set to challenge the country's millenia-old dining habits.Believe it or not, foods of different colors can take special care of different parts of your body. To know more details, read on.]]>

David Heber, director of the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition, published What Color Is Your Diet? last year. Its Chinese edition, due later this year, looks set to challenge the country's millenia-old dining habits.Believe it or not, foods of different colors can take special care of different parts of your body. To know more details, read on.

Red

protecting your heart

Nutritional research shows that red and bright pink fruits and vegetables contain phytochemicals, such as lycopene and anthocyanins. Phytochemicals, substances found only in plants, help your body fight disease and promote good health.

Watermelon, guava, pink grapefruit and fresh tomato all belong to the red family. Other red fruits and vegetables, such as strawberries, raspberries and beets contain anthocyanins, a group of phytochemicals that are powerful antioxidants that help control high blood pressure and protect against diabetes-related circulatory problems.

Green

protecting your livers

Green fruits and vegetables are common everyday foods. They contain varying amounts of potent phytochemicals, such as lutein and indoles, which interest researchers because of their potential antioxidants, health-promoting benefits. Go green every day with fruits and vegetables like avocados, green apples, green grapes, honeydews, kiwifruits, limes, green pears, artichokes, green beans and green cabbage.

Black

protecting your kidney

Black beans, Chinese olives and black currants are all members of the black group. These are good for your kidneys.

Black beans are a very good source of cholesterol-lowering fiber, as are most other legumes. In addition to lowering cholesterol, their high fiber content prevents blood sugar levels from rising rapidly after a meal, making these beans a good choice for individuals with diabetes, insulin resistance or hypoglycemia. When combined with whole grains such as brown rice, black beans provide a virtually fat-free high quality protein. You may already be familiar with beans' fiber and protein.

---

White

protecting your lungs

The white family includes endive, garlic, ginger, parsnips, white peaches, pears, potatoes, white mushrooms and white corn. Actually, white, tan and brown fruits and vegetables contain varying amounts of phytochemicals of interest to scientists. These include allicin, found in the garlic and onion family. The mineral selenium, found in mushrooms, is also the subject of research.

Orange

protecting your spleen

Oranges and tangerines certainly belong to this group. Other members include Hami melon, pumpkin and papaya. Oranges are an excellent source of vitamin C and contain some vitamin A, which is good for your spleen.

However, vitamin C dissipates quickly after an orange is cut or squeezed. Eight hours at room temperature or 24 hours in the refrigerator is enough to cause a 20 percent loss in vitamin C. Canned, bottled and frozen-concentrate orange juices have a greatly decreased vitamin C content.

Purple

protecting your brain

Grapes, blueberries, blackberries, purple cabbages and onions all belong to the purple group. Purple fruits and vegetables contain varying amounts of health-promoting phytochemicals such as anthocyanins and phenolics, currently being studied for their antioxidant and anti-aging benefits.

Purple group foods are rich in the antioxidant monoterpenes that protect tissues from free radical damage. Aubergines are members of the solanacae family, which includes peppers and tomatoes. In animal studies, rabbits fed aubergine were protected against the formation of plaque, even when fed a high cholesterol diet. The active ingredients in the aubergines bind with cholesterol from the diet in the intestinal tract, thereby preventing it from entering the bloodstream.

Black aduki beans are the quickest of all the beans to cook, the lowest in calories and the highest in nutritional content. The beans help detoxify the body ?and, like all beans, are a good source of folic acid, which aids the formation of red blood cells. They also provide magnesium and copper, both of which are needed by the body to utilize vitamin C and calcium.

]]> 2008-06-02 10:29:36 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724674.htm

With a bright orange and brown decor, Espressamente recreates a modern, generic, somewhat artificial setting for an Italian coffee shop.

Expect great coffee from the signature Illy brand-Cour Espresso All Americana (24 yuan) gave justice to this high quality Italian coffee. The cappuccino (30 yuan) was strong and ended with a natural sweet taste, giving us the most intense of coffee pleasures. The chicken salad (25 yuan) with balsamic dressing surprised our palate agreeably but the watery chicken took away a bit of the enjoyment.

Our hot and spicy ciabatta (32 yuan) had a pleasant sweet and sour sauce, but unfortunately the processed cheese prevented it from being a truly great panini and the cheese and bacon version (30 yuan) was overrun by sweet mayonnaise.

All combined, our taste buds got a bit of an overdose, killing any desire for dessert. Still, we will definitely be back to enjoy another cappuccino outdoors in the sunshine.

Espressamente Illy Cafe
Add: Shop 156, Grand Gateway Mall, 1 Hongqiao Lu
Tel: 6447-9697

]]> 2008-05-30 14:48:07 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724683.htm

This restaurant was origlnally a part of the royal princess's mansion, and the entire restaurant follows a Qing Dynasty style with wait staff dressed in authentic Qing Dynasty attire. Inside the luxurious grey-walled courtyard are red posts with hanging imperial lanterns, clear springs, and secluded, refined surroundings.

The dishes here are primarlly the palace's stewed items. Just one type of "Assorted Stew" can be cooked in a variety of ways: dark-skinned chicken, duck, oxtail, shark's fin, and mushrooms and fungi of every variety can enter the "pot". There are also between ten and twenty medicinal herbs meticulously prepared, making the stew both delicious and nutritious. Ge Ge Fu uses meat or vegetable broth, giving it a pure, fresh taste. Each pot is made according to the number of people dining, from 2-3 people, 4-6 people, 7-10 people, and ten or more people. The price mcreases according to the number of people, but with generous amounts of fresh, pure ingredients, yon'll definitely get your money's worth. The restaurant will also provides meat dishes, vegetable dishes or dumplings to complement the many different kinds of stews.

If you are have already experienced the shouted greetings of waiters in old Beijing noodle houses, you should see the performance provided by the young women at Ge Ge Fu. First, they appear from the palace, enter the courtyard and have a meal and go shopping, enacting several other situations, and allowing guests a peak at life in the palace?There is also singing, dancing and folk acrobatics, providing their customers a unique and interesting treat.

At Ge Ge Fu there is also another interesting activity: imperial examinations. There is an examination paper at each table, the contents of which consist of food culture trivia. Once completed, the papers will be graded by special test officials and the results and the names of top-scoring guests will be posted. Those who rank as "Number One Scholar". "Second Best", "Third Place", and "Successful Candidate" can win different coupons to use during their next visit. After the meal, customers will be distribute a certain amount ot copper money corresponding to the amount spent at their table. Customers can use the copper money in the gift shop to purchase souvenirs of their dining experience.

Ge Ge Fu
Location: 9 Daqudeng Hutong, National Art Gallery, Dongcheng District
Tel: 010-64078006

]]> 2008-05-30 14:48:30 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724686.htm

With a bright orange and brown decor, Espressamente recreates a modern, generic, somewhat artificial setting for an Italian coffee shop.

Expect great coffee from the signature Illy brand-Cour Espresso All Americana (24 yuan) gave justice to this high quality Italian coffee. The cappuccino (30 yuan) was strong and ended with a natural sweet taste, giving us the most intense of coffee pleasures. The chicken salad (25 yuan) with balsamic dressing surprised our palate agreeably but the watery chicken took away a bit of the enjoyment.

Our hot and spicy ciabatta (32 yuan) had a pleasant sweet and sour sauce, but unfortunately the processed cheese prevented it from being a truly great panini and the cheese and bacon version (30 yuan) was overrun by sweet mayonnaise.

All combined, our taste buds got a bit of an overdose, killing any desire for dessert. Still, we will definitely be back to enjoy another cappuccino outdoors in the sunshine.

Espressamente Illy Cafe
Add: Shop 156, Grand Gateway Mall, 1 Hongqiao Lu
Tel: 6447-9697

]]> 2008-05-30 14:48:07 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724671.htm

As Children's Day is around the corner and Chinese prestigious university Beida is celebrating its anniversary, Beijing is riddled with various shows.

Fairy drama Monkey King's Dream will be shown to mark International Children's Day. The play has been performed more than 100 times in Shanghai. The Monkey King, a familiar character for Chinese children, shuttles between the past and future, telling a story of his magical powers and modern technology.

7:30 pm, today-June 1
The Great Theater of China Nationalities, 49 Fuxingmennei Dajie, Xicheng District
6602-2530

Paolo Nani and Kristjn Ingimarsson from Denmark will stage a "slapstick comedy without words" titled Art of Dying. In 100 minutes of wordless hilarity and tenderness, the piece explores the end we all have to face but want to ignore. They are two clowns, a long-standing double act at the peak of their career. Suddenly, one of them learns he is dying. How does a clown die? Are there any instructions? How does he die politely, without making a mess? And does it really have to be in the middle of a successful tour? With nothing to lose, it is time to enjoy the "now" as never before.

7 pm, June 3, 4
Peking University Concert Hall
6551-6930, 6551-6906

The National Center for the Performing Arts is opening its doors for youngsters to celebrate Children's Day, with the Beijing Children's Arts Theater running its latest production, You Look Like Delicious. Adapted from renowned Japanese illustrator Miyanishi Tatsuya's work, the show tells a story that takes place in the Cretaceous period, where an evil Tyrannosaurus rex longs to be the father of another small dinosaur.

10:30 am, 2:30 pm, 7:30 pm, till Sunday
West of the Tian'anmen Square
6655-0000

]]> 2008-05-30 12:37:30 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724285.htm

As Children's Day is around the corner and Chinese prestigious university Beida is celebrating its anniversary, Beijing is riddled with various shows.

Fairy drama Monkey King's Dream will be shown to mark International Children's Day. The play has been performed more than 100 times in Shanghai. The Monkey King, a familiar character for Chinese children, shuttles between the past and future, telling a story of his magical powers and modern technology.

7:30 pm, today-June 1
The Great Theater of China Nationalities, 49 Fuxingmennei Dajie, Xicheng District
6602-2530

Paolo Nani and Kristjn Ingimarsson from Denmark will stage a "slapstick comedy without words" titled Art of Dying. In 100 minutes of wordless hilarity and tenderness, the piece explores the end we all have to face but want to ignore. They are two clowns, a long-standing double act at the peak of their career. Suddenly, one of them learns he is dying. How does a clown die? Are there any instructions? How does he die politely, without making a mess? And does it really have to be in the middle of a successful tour? With nothing to lose, it is time to enjoy the "now" as never before.

7 pm, June 3, 4
Peking University Concert Hall
6551-6930, 6551-6906

The National Center for the Performing Arts is opening its doors for youngsters to celebrate Children's Day, with the Beijing Children's Arts Theater running its latest production, You Look Like Delicious. Adapted from renowned Japanese illustrator Miyanishi Tatsuya's work, the show tells a story that takes place in the Cretaceous period, where an evil Tyrannosaurus rex longs to be the father of another small dinosaur.

10:30 am, 2:30 pm, 7:30 pm, till Sunday
West of the Tian'anmen Square
6655-0000

]]> 2008-05-30 12:37:30 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724203.htm

The Foreign Ministry has dismissed news reports and rumors claiming the country had stopped issuing multiple-entry visas and had tightened visa restrictions.

A senior official of the ministry's consular department called such reports "unfounded", adding that Chinese diplomatic missions have been issuing multiple-entry visas to foreigners who meet the requirements.

"We have not cut down the number of visas," he said on Wednesday.

The type of visa issued and the period of validity and stay are in accordance with relevant laws and regulations as well as the specific situation of individual applicants, the official said in a statement.

He advised foreigners to submit all relevant documents and apply for the visa in their home country or country of residence to ensure smooth procedures.

The official did admit China had recently made some changes according to Chinese law, the practice at past Olympics and usual international practice.

The arrangements include asking the applicants to provide invitation letters, proof of accommodation and round-trip air tickets to ascertain their identity and purpose of visit.

"The policy is to create a safe and favorable environment for the Olympic Games," he said.

The official said visa issuance concerns national sovereignty, and different countries have different requirements for applicants. He said, comparatively speaking, it is quite convenient to apply for a Chinese visa.

He also said every country's visa policy is subject to change. For example, when a country is holding large-scale international sporting event, mutual or unilateral visa exemption might be canceled or suspended.

(China Daily 05/30/2008 page2)

]]> 2008-05-30 11:41:07 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724222.htm

Sports City Cafe is the only restaurant in Beijing with an international standard basketball half court on site. Work up a sweat on the court and then head to the bar for a drink and a hearty chat with the friendly bartenders. You can admire the giant hands holding a basketball above the bar, illuminated and sparkling under the lights. It is nothing if not a unique dining experience!

After working up an appetite, settle down and prepare to taste the masterful culinary delights created by chefs from New York. Sports City Cafe effers over ten types of assorted cold dishes and close to twenty types of specialty dishes. After a tough game, the specially-made salad bar and wide variety of desserts will get both your mind and your stomach in the mood for eating.

Sprot City Cafe
Location: Gloria Plaza Hotel, 2 Jianguomennan Dajie, Chaoyang DistrictTel: 6515 8855

]]> 2008-05-30 11:33:20 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724239.htm

Sports City Cafe is the only restaurant in Beijing with an international standard basketball half court on site. Work up a sweat on the court and then head to the bar for a drink and a hearty chat with the friendly bartenders. You can admire the giant hands holding a basketball above the bar, illuminated and sparkling under the lights. It is nothing if not a unique dining experience!

After working up an appetite, settle down and prepare to taste the masterful culinary delights created by chefs from New York. Sports City Cafe effers over ten types of assorted cold dishes and close to twenty types of specialty dishes. After a tough game, the specially-made salad bar and wide variety of desserts will get both your mind and your stomach in the mood for eating.

Sprot City Cafe
Location: Gloria Plaza Hotel, 2 Jianguomennan Dajie, Chaoyang DistrictTel: 6515 8855

]]> 2008-05-30 11:33:20 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724104.htm

The cuisine is essentially Sichuan in tone. The chef has opted for classic, yet exquisite dishes, largely embracing the traditional but with a few forays into more novel gastronomic territory.

The majority of the dishes though are redolent with authentic Sichuan flavor. The rabbit meat from old Chengdu city is a little known, yet somehow typical, Sichuan-style cold dish. The diced rabbit is stir-fried with peanuts, sesame, pepper and chili oil, to create a dish not wholly dissimilar to the more common spicy chicken. Less familiar, though, are the house special stone-fired shrimps.

To create this remarkable dish, a layer of heated stones is placed at the bottom of a container and then overlaid with leeks. Legend boasts comparatively few offerings in a Cantonese style, but it takes great pains to get them right. Its shark’s fin, abalone and bird’s nest are superb.

China wine, Domestic red wine, yellow wine and beer are also on offer.

There staff are efficient, courteous and attentive.

Legend is set in a nineteenth century-styled house. Charmingly, everything, where possible, retains the original styling. Price?A very reasonable RMB 80 per head (unless ordering premium dishes such as shark fin or abalone)

Legend
Location:218 Sichuan Road M. Shanghai
Tel: 021-63298117

]]> 2008-05-30 10:54:50 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6724126.htm

The cuisine is essentially Sichuan in tone. The chef has opted for classic, yet exquisite dishes, largely embracing the traditional but with a few forays into more novel gastronomic territory.

The majority of the dishes though are redolent with authentic Sichuan flavor. The rabbit meat from old Chengdu city is a little known, yet somehow typical, Sichuan-style cold dish. The diced rabbit is stir-fried with peanuts, sesame, pepper and chili oil, to create a dish not wholly dissimilar to the more common spicy chicken. Less familiar, though, are the house special stone-fired shrimps.

To create this remarkable dish, a layer of heated stones is placed at the bottom of a container and then overlaid with leeks. Legend boasts comparatively few offerings in a Cantonese style, but it takes great pains to get them right. Its shark’s fin, abalone and bird’s nest are superb.

China wine, Domestic red wine, yellow wine and beer are also on offer.

There staff are efficient, courteous and attentive.

Legend is set in a nineteenth century-styled house. Charmingly, everything, where possible, retains the original styling. Price?A very reasonable RMB 80 per head (unless ordering premium dishes such as shark fin or abalone)

Legend
Location:218 Sichuan Road M. Shanghai
Tel: 021-63298117

]]> 2008-05-30 10:54:50 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6723988.htm

]]> 2008-05-30 10:52:39 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6723988.htm

]]> 2008-05-30 10:51:58 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6723988.htm

Getting a bad case of the munchies while in the office can be an embarrassing problem. Here we talk with several workers to find out how they deal with the in-cubicle desire to dine.

Shaving off pounds in the cubicle

Shi Xue-Low fat instant food and fruits

"I like eating low-fat instant food like dried tofu and yurouxiangchang when I am hungry in the office. I prefer spicy but healthy foods. As for drinks, like juice or yogurt. They are natural and healthy," Shi Xue, 29, the operations manager of an IT company, said.

"Fruits are my everyday refreshments. It is dry in the office and we need all kinds of fruits to provide vitamins. Fruit is also good for digestion and the skin."

Discriminating tastes

Peter Zha-Tearoom and drink dispenser

Peter Zha, 26, an assistant in Big Four's insurance department, said he is busy with work and has no time for snacks. He is not allowed to snack in his office.

"Men are not the same as women. Many female colleagues like light snacks as entertainment or just to pass time. A man does not. I used to go the teahouse for coffee, and sometimes I go to the drink vending machine," he said.

"I have almost tried almost everything in the vending machine," Peter said,"As for computer radiation, using the computer is unavoidable. I don't worry about that as much as women do".

---

Seasonal changes

Jason Yang-Yogurt and green tea

Jason Yang, 25, a news reporter, said that he always has yogurt and green tea. "I have yogurt everyday. It is an excellent source of protein, calcium and vitamins. Compared to milk, yogurt contains more calcium and protein because of the added cultures," he said. "Green tea is a better choice in summer".

The cheaper, the better

Susan Chan-Chicken noodles in peanut sauce

One of Chan's favorite meals to bring to work is chicken noodles in peanut sauce from he nearby 7-Eleven market.

"I love it because it is cheap and fast. The price is unbeatable at less than 10 yuan, especially with inflation on the rise! The noodle box is clean and easily portable. Once you open it, all you have to do is dump in the cucumber, ground peanuts, mushroom and chicken slices. It is delicious, cheap and fast," she said.

Homemade food is best

Che-Cucumber yoghourt

"Summer is around the corner, and eating yogurt will make you thirstier," Che said. To combat the thirst, he came up with a recipe for cucumb yogurt.

"You can take a cucumber with you if you want to share with your colleagues-and a small knife. It is easy and convenient to make it," he said.

Step One: Open the yogurt and pour it into your cup.

Step Two: Use your knife to cut the cucumber into small pieces. The smaller, the better.

---

Step Three: Mix them.

Step Four: Eat!

That taste is cool and refreshing. If you have never had cucumber yogurt before, be sure to give it a try.

**Basics of office dining

Luo Tianyu, a self-proclaimed office gourmet, shared tips on how to snack and dine in the one-square-meter cubicle.

Snacking and dining are not allowed in some offices. If you have the misfortune to work in such a place, stop reading here.

Rule number one: dining or snacking in the office requires workers to remember to share. Think about that: you have so many colleagues, and you are eating alone? If you do not share your food, others will gossip to your boss about how lazy you are.

If you bring something from home, make sure its smell does not travel more than a meter.

Nuts may be good for your health, but crunching on them is extremely noisy. If you are looking for attention, that's a great way to get it!

Drink water frequently. Recommendations include yogurt and chocolate.

Last but not the least, work hard.

]]> 2008-05-30 10:43:40 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6723401.htm The first direct flight between Shanghai and South America opened on Thursday as a Boeing 777-200 from Mexico City arrived at Pudong International Airport at 6:28 a.m.

The twice-weekly AM099 flight run by Mexican national carrier Aero Mexico takes off from Shanghai at 10:45 a.m. on Thursday and Sunday.

The flight takes 15 hours. Previously, passengers from Mexico to Shanghai had to transfer at San Francisco, Chicago or Tokyo. The direct flight can now save them three to four hours.

]]> 2008-05-30 09:33:00 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/30/content_6723046.htm

A girl is picking cherries in this May 28 photo. A fruit picking festival opened in Xiji plantation in Tongzhou district of Beijing as cherries are now in season. [Photo:jinghua.cn]

]]> 2008-05-30 09:18:31 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/showbiz/2008-05/29/content_6721371.htm

Violin virtuoso Anne Sophie Mutter performs at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing on Tuesday evening, May 27, 2008. [Photo: ent.sina.com.cn]

Violin virtuoso Anne Sophie Mutter began two days of performances at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing on Tuesday evening.

At the debut performance, the German artist began with Bach's "Violin Concerto in E major" and Vivaldi's "Four Seasons," which were specially selected for the Chinese cities of Shanghai and Beijing.

She followed with the "Air on the G String," an adaptation of Johann Sebastian Bach's famous Air by August Wilhelmj. The piece was played slowly and freely, intertwining the song's harmony and melody to express Mutter's sympathy for the Chinese earthquake victims.

The Chinese website Sina quotes Mutter as saying that the May 12th disaster gave her China tour new meaning, thus she hoped that the "Air on the G String" could become a source of help and comfort to those who lost so much after the earthquake.

Mutter was accompanied by Norwegian symphony orchestra, the Trondheim Soloists.

Mutter began her Asian tour in Shanghai on May 25th. After her two days of performances in China's capital city, the tour will continue through June 10th in South Korea and Japan.

Before the tour, Mutter appealed to musicians from around the world to get involved in helping the relief efforts in China.

Mutter, now 45, impressed Herbert von Karajan with her spectacular performance at the Lucerne Festival in 1976. He praised her as "the greatest music prodigy since the young Menuhin" and invited her to the Salzburg Music Festival the following year. Karajan cooperated with her regularly in five concerts a year.

]]> 2008-05-29 16:33:50 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719571.htm

]]> 2008-05-29 16:19:58 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6720800.htm

In the shadow of skyscrapers at the Wangfujing shopping area, passers-by paused before the magnified images of suffering, resilience and hope.

Some took cell phone photos of Premier Wen Jiabao addressing quake survivors with sadness and weariness etched on his face. One family and their young son stopped at the image of a little boy on a stretcher, bleeding and covered in dust - yet still throwing his tiny hand up in a salute to his rescuers.

Photojournalists from around the country have met the challenge of documenting the quake's aftermath and the nation's united efforts to help victims of the disaster to bring such images to the public.

Their work is highlighted in a public photo exhibition launched on May 24, sponsored by national English language newspaper China Daily, the China Cultural Federation Publishing Company, and Beijing Bicycle Rental.

Titled 100 Photojournalists focus on the Great Earthquake, the series follows two previous collections: the SARS outbreak and last winter's devastating snowstorms. Located in front of Wangfujing Bookstore, the pictures have been drawing tourists, shoppers and residents.

The images made a deep impression on 78-year-old Dai Meishan, who recorded every photo on display. Nearly bald and hunchbacked, the senior was surprisingly agile with his camera. He was making a memento for himself, he said.

Dai, who lives alone, has also been recording televised coverage of the quake's relief and rescue efforts.

He hopes the government will produce books and discs on the quake, he said. But, when asked if he would contribute his material, he grinned widely and said his work was too amateur.

Despite two weeks of tireless media coverage on the quake, the display has touched people's hearts.

"I watch the news with tears," said Clem Randall, who came to visit his daughter, a volunteer for the Olympic Games. He plans to donate money to quake victims when he returns to Australia, through charities in his home country.

Nearby, the thriving shopping district showed other signs of citizens eager to participate in relief efforts. People lined up to donate blood at two Red Cross buses. One station collected 130 bags of blood before noon.

Three groups from Beijing's Dongcheng district came together for their project Donate 10 Yuan, Send Compassion to Wenchuan. Tuesday marked day one of their effort, which will continue for at least three more days. They have also set up a booth at Beijing Railway Station.

Donors stopped to stuff 10, 20, 50, and even 100 yuan ($14.38) bills into the donation box sandwiched between towering storefronts at Wangfujing. Each donor received a handcrafted bracelet of red and yellow ribbons. Working together, 100 volunteers made 3,000 bracelets in just one day.

Some stopped by to write encouraging messages on decorated paper. The notes are meant for young quake survivors, who will receive them around for Children's Day, June 1.

(China Daily 05/29/2008 page18)

]]> 2008-05-29 14:38:22 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6720770.htm

In the shadow of skyscrapers at the Wangfujing shopping area, passers-by paused before the magnified images of suffering, resilience and hope.

Some took cell phone photos of Premier Wen Jiabao addressing quake survivors with sadness and weariness etched on his face. One family and their young son stopped at the image of a little boy on a stretcher, bleeding and covered in dust - yet still throwing his tiny hand up in a salute to his rescuers.

Photojournalists from around the country have met the challenge of documenting the quake's aftermath and the nation's united efforts to help victims of the disaster to bring such images to the public.

Their work is highlighted in a public photo exhibition launched on May 24, sponsored by national English language newspaper China Daily, the China Cultural Federation Publishing Company, and Beijing Bicycle Rental.

Titled 100 Photojournalists focus on the Great Earthquake, the series follows two previous collections: the SARS outbreak and last winter's devastating snowstorms. Located in front of Wangfujing Bookstore, the pictures have been drawing tourists, shoppers and residents.

The images made a deep impression on 78-year-old Dai Meishan, who recorded every photo on display. Nearly bald and hunchbacked, the senior was surprisingly agile with his camera. He was making a memento for himself, he said.

Dai, who lives alone, has also been recording televised coverage of the quake's relief and rescue efforts.

He hopes the government will produce books and discs on the quake, he said. But, when asked if he would contribute his material, he grinned widely and said his work was too amateur.

Despite two weeks of tireless media coverage on the quake, the display has touched people's hearts.

"I watch the news with tears," said Clem Randall, who came to visit his daughter, a volunteer for the Olympic Games. He plans to donate money to quake victims when he returns to Australia, through charities in his home country.

Nearby, the thriving shopping district showed other signs of citizens eager to participate in relief efforts. People lined up to donate blood at two Red Cross buses. One station collected 130 bags of blood before noon.

Three groups from Beijing's Dongcheng district came together for their project Donate 10 Yuan, Send Compassion to Wenchuan. Tuesday marked day one of their effort, which will continue for at least three more days. They have also set up a booth at Beijing Railway Station.

Donors stopped to stuff 10, 20, 50, and even 100 yuan ($14.38) bills into the donation box sandwiched between towering storefronts at Wangfujing. Each donor received a handcrafted bracelet of red and yellow ribbons. Working together, 100 volunteers made 3,000 bracelets in just one day.

Some stopped by to write encouraging messages on decorated paper. The notes are meant for young quake survivors, who will receive them around for Children's Day, June 1.

(China Daily 05/29/2008 page18)

]]> 2008-05-29 14:38:22 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6720762.htm

A Japanese brewery on Tuesday said it was planning the first "space beer," using offspring of barley once stored at the International Space Station.

Researchers said the project was part of efforts to prepare for a future in which humans spend extended periods of time in space - and might like a cold beer after a space walk.

Japanese brewery Sapporo Holdings said it would make beer using the third generation of barley grains that had spent five months on the International Space Station in 2006.

"We want to finish the beer by November. It will be the first space beer," Sapporo executive Junichi Ichikawa told reporters.

The company will have enough space grain to produce about 100 bottles of beer but has no immediate plan to make it a commercial venture, Sapporo officials said.

The company teamed up on the project with Okayama University biologist Manabu Sugimoto, who has been part of a Russian space project to explore ways to grow edible plants in space.

Barley can grow in relatively tough environments, such as high and low temperatures, and is rich in fibre and nutrients, making it ideal for space agriculture, the associate professor said.

"In the future, we may reach a point where humans will spend an extended period of time in space and must grow food to sustain ourselves," Sugimoto said.

"In the long run, we hope our space research will be not just about producing food, but about enjoying food and relaxing," Sugimoto said.

(China Daily 05/29/2008 page10)

]]> 2008-05-29 14:27:51 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719571.htm

]]> 2008-05-29 11:33:20 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719571.htm With summer approaching, city dwellers should adopt a shining, colorful and powerful look. Bling-bling is the best choice. By introducing new products to you in the past, here we find that trends have entered and affected every aspect of your life. So, don't fight the feeling, be good to yourself and enjoy who you are by bringing out the bling. Here are some examples:

Pink bling mobile phone cover

Mobile phone covers allow you to change your phone's appearance daily. This pink bling cover glimmers in the sunshine. If you are between 13 and 19, get it. Older than that? I say, no. For any passers-by, it looks more childish than bling.

Available: B2, 77 Street, Xidan, Xicheng District

Price: 70 yuan

Big brands necklace

"For the fashionist who wants to have all of his or her bases covered, this bling bling medallion from Chi Ha Paura melds together virtually every corporate logo you can think of into one gold-plated talisman that is most definitely guaranteed to bug Naomi Klein," the owner says on her Website.

Netizens have already discovered several logos: Coca Cola, Nike, Camel, Camel, Kellogg's, Diesel, Gucci, Davidoff, Leica, Nescafe, Rolex ... wow, so many big names on one piece of jewelry-this certainly epitomizes the spirit of bling-bling.

Available: weblogsinc.com

Price: unsettled

---

Pink bling pencil

Even your way of writing can adopt bling. This automatic pencil has more than 100 small artificial diamonds on it, all man-made. Actually they are all simply shiny stickers, but it does not prevent you from adding bling to your drab life.

Available: B2, 77 Street, Xidan, Xicheng District

Price: 10 yuan

Backstage9 Double Dear Head Tee

Though black and white may not be the best colors to represent the bling-bling style, these T-shirts still convey the idea of expressing an individual's own thoughts. When you walk around wearing it in the bright sunshine, the black and white patterns still blast the bling-bling into other people's eyes if you hold your head high and demonstrate pure confidence.

Available: F2, 77 Street, Xidan, Xicheng District

Price: 280 yuan

---

BenQ Bling-Tech series

BenQ is the first brand to introduce the bling-bling style into computer science. It held BenQ parties in several Chinese cities at the end of last year. Many small diamonds, stones, jewelry and other shiny decorations are carved into the surface of the cold tech-machines, like computers, laptops, cameras and mobile disks.

When the cold tech meets this fashion style, it becomes more individualized and personalized. BenQ also emphasizes the spirit of bling-bling, which is to be more confident and passionate about life.

Available: any computer company downtown

Price: vary according to the products

Shining bicycles

I do not think that you can buy this kind of bicycle in China. For most people, bling bicycles are always associated with "bad boys," "gangsters" or "hot girls." See if you can catch the police's attention with this sweet bling.

Available: thisnext.com

Price: unsettled

Bling bling origin

The funny phrase originates in music. It first appeared in a song called "Cash Money Records" by B and then in 1998 Lil Wayne sang another song called "Millionaire Dream", "I got 10 around my neck and 20 on my wrist, bling!" The word "bling-bling" is a case of reduplication. It is a sound to evoke a new idea, or it describes the way jewelry shines. In 2002 the term was added to the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. Later it became the fashion statement connected to a material life and symbolized a positive attitude towards life since looking for wealth and success requires confidence, courage, patience and hardwork.

It became popular in China in late May of last year and predictions say it will be in full force this summer. Karl Lagerfeld described the style this way: "to let it shine from the inside, you have to bling from the outside first".

]]> 2008-05-29 11:24:14 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719496.htm

Thai food in Shanghai often comes with a gimmick, whether it's a stage of scantily-clad dancers or a wandering band of singing performers pestering you while you try to enjoy your pad thai. BaanThai distinguishes itself by placing the focus directly on the food. Fresh spices, imported ingredients, attention to flavor. Here, freshness and authenticity is key.

The freshness is apparent, notably in the homemade hand-ground curry and fragrant chili oil, which are both made on-site with ingredients imported from Thailand. BaanThai aims to be the best and the dishes we sampled were ample claims to that goal.

Starting strong with a fantastic pomelo salad (yam som-o), memories of the old standard - the comparably boring papaya salad - were tossed out the window. What a difference importing makes: the sweet chunks of ripe pomelo were crisp, refreshing and juicy, adding a nice citrus blast to the crunchy shrimp, chicken strands and chopped onion. Paired with the handmade prawn cakes (tod man goong), which were chewy and filling, we could have been satisfied on starters alone.

The curry was fragrant without being too hot, allowing the flavors of the spice to seep into our tongues without numbing our taste buds. The yellow seafood curry (gaeng gari talay) was slightly sweet, filled with a generous portion of assorted sea life (cuttlefish, prawns, mussels, fish). The red chicken curry (gaeng phed gai) was one of the best representations I've had, the coconut milk and spicy chili balanced nicely with tender bites of chicken.

The morning glory (phad phag boong BaanThai) was an unexpected surprise. Also known as kongxin cai, the unassuming vegetable was stir-fried in red chili and shrimp paste, which made a world of difference. That small touch elevates the simple peasant vegetable into a must-have dish and it would be a crime to skip it.

Venturing away from standard fare, we were treated to stir-fried beef with mango (nue phad mamuang), topped with fresh basil, sweet onions and crunchy cashews. The unconventional combination was excellent, the flavors of the tender and savory beef slices mixing pleasantly with the sweet mango strips. If you want to be adventurous but are too timid to order these random dishes from the menu, the general manager will be happy to pick an entire meal guaranteed to please.

As evening settles over the city, a quiet and peaceful candlelight glow illuminates BaanThai's outdoor terrace. Within the garden walls, the noise of the city fades away and diners are allowed to fully appreciate the high quality freshness and vivid flavors of the food on their table. All of this serves as ample reason to treat yourself to a visit to BaanThai, avoiding the glut of noisy, Disney-fied Thai establishments in Shanghai.

Baan Thai
Location: 1479 Middle Fuxing Road, by Middle Huaihai Road
64336955

]]> 2008-05-29 10:57:12 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719507.htm

Thai food in Shanghai often comes with a gimmick, whether it's a stage of scantily-clad dancers or a wandering band of singing performers pestering you while you try to enjoy your pad thai. BaanThai distinguishes itself by placing the focus directly on the food. Fresh spices, imported ingredients, attention to flavor. Here, freshness and authenticity is key.

The freshness is apparent, notably in the homemade hand-ground curry and fragrant chili oil, which are both made on-site with ingredients imported from Thailand. BaanThai aims to be the best and the dishes we sampled were ample claims to that goal.

Starting strong with a fantastic pomelo salad (yam som-o), memories of the old standard - the comparably boring papaya salad - were tossed out the window. What a difference importing makes: the sweet chunks of ripe pomelo were crisp, refreshing and juicy, adding a nice citrus blast to the crunchy shrimp, chicken strands and chopped onion. Paired with the handmade prawn cakes (tod man goong), which were chewy and filling, we could have been satisfied on starters alone.

The curry was fragrant without being too hot, allowing the flavors of the spice to seep into our tongues without numbing our taste buds. The yellow seafood curry (gaeng gari talay) was slightly sweet, filled with a generous portion of assorted sea life (cuttlefish, prawns, mussels, fish). The red chicken curry (gaeng phed gai) was one of the best representations I've had, the coconut milk and spicy chili balanced nicely with tender bites of chicken.

The morning glory (phad phag boong BaanThai) was an unexpected surprise. Also known as kongxin cai, the unassuming vegetable was stir-fried in red chili and shrimp paste, which made a world of difference. That small touch elevates the simple peasant vegetable into a must-have dish and it would be a crime to skip it.

Venturing away from standard fare, we were treated to stir-fried beef with mango (nue phad mamuang), topped with fresh basil, sweet onions and crunchy cashews. The unconventional combination was excellent, the flavors of the tender and savory beef slices mixing pleasantly with the sweet mango strips. If you want to be adventurous but are too timid to order these random dishes from the menu, the general manager will be happy to pick an entire meal guaranteed to please.

As evening settles over the city, a quiet and peaceful candlelight glow illuminates BaanThai's outdoor terrace. Within the garden walls, the noise of the city fades away and diners are allowed to fully appreciate the high quality freshness and vivid flavors of the food on their table. All of this serves as ample reason to treat yourself to a visit to BaanThai, avoiding the glut of noisy, Disney-fied Thai establishments in Shanghai.

Baan Thai
Location: 1479 Middle Fuxing Road, by Middle Huaihai Road
64336955

]]> 2008-05-29 10:57:12 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719482.htm

Cocktail enthusiasts saddened by the state of affairs at Tara 57 can take heart: Kiitos has arrived, bringing exacting standards and a sense of showmanship back to the neighborhood.

Part of the Japanese micro-bar trend, this small, smoky lounge has a maximum capacity of about 15 guests. But unlike its older cousin, Constellation Bar, Kiitos enjoys an expanded repertoire of both classic and original cocktails.

Furthermore, the pared-down whiskey selection and increased emphasis on calvados (RMB 45-RMB 60) and grappas (RMB 60-RMB 70) make this lounge seem somehow more female-friendly. Adding to this impression is the gracious owner herself; Maiko left The Chinoise Story to open Kiitos, and we couldn't resist her charms as she violently shook our Manhattan (RMB 55) with a demure smile.

In short, Kiitos is an excellent choice for discerning drinkers who relish an intimate, low-key atmosphere.

Kiitos
Tue-Sun 7pm-12mn.
127 Yongfu Lu, by Fuxing Xi Lu
6431 3787

]]> 2008-05-29 10:54:34 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719485.htm

Cocktail enthusiasts saddened by the state of affairs at Tara 57 can take heart: Kiitos has arrived, bringing exacting standards and a sense of showmanship back to the neighborhood.

Part of the Japanese micro-bar trend, this small, smoky lounge has a maximum capacity of about 15 guests. But unlike its older cousin, Constellation Bar, Kiitos enjoys an expanded repertoire of both classic and original cocktails.

Furthermore, the pared-down whiskey selection and increased emphasis on calvados (RMB 45-RMB 60) and grappas (RMB 60-RMB 70) make this lounge seem somehow more female-friendly. Adding to this impression is the gracious owner herself; Maiko left The Chinoise Story to open Kiitos, and we couldn't resist her charms as she violently shook our Manhattan (RMB 55) with a demure smile.

In short, Kiitos is an excellent choice for discerning drinkers who relish an intimate, low-key atmosphere.

Kiitos
Tue-Sun 7pm-12mn.
127 Yongfu Lu, by Fuxing Xi Lu
6431 3787

]]> 2008-05-29 10:54:34 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719360.htm  ]]>

This tiny restaurant features a cozy upstairs dining area and a downstairs butcher, stocked with a selection of well-marbled Shandong steaks that can be purchased to cook up at home.

We first ordered one of Pullman's specialty items, the 500g Steak of Pride (218 yuan) but were told it was out of stock, so we settled on a 450g T-Bone (208 yuan) and a 180g Tenderloin (98 yuan), both served with a tasty red wine sauce, mashed potatoes and vegetables.

While we asked for the T-Bone to be cooked medium-rare, the steak was done medium-well, still quite good, but not what we ordered. For those in need of more vegetables in their diet, Pullman's Garden Green Salad (36 yuan) was crisp and fresh.

Although we enjoyed our meal, seeing as how Pullman's butcher sells the same meat the chefs are about to cook for roughly half the price, we'd sooner return just for the meat than to eat.

Pullman Steak
Tel: 85871055
Add: 2-109 China View, Gongti Donglu

]]> 2008-05-29 10:21:58 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/29/content_6719340.htm  ]]>

This tiny restaurant features a cozy upstairs dining area and a downstairs butcher, stocked with a selection of well-marbled Shandong steaks that can be purchased to cook up at home.

We first ordered one of Pullman's specialty items, the 500g Steak of Pride (218 yuan) but were told it was out of stock, so we settled on a 450g T-Bone (208 yuan) and a 180g Tenderloin (98 yuan), both served with a tasty red wine sauce, mashed potatoes and vegetables.

While we asked for the T-Bone to be cooked medium-rare, the steak was done medium-well, still quite good, but not what we ordered. For those in need of more vegetables in their diet, Pullman's Garden Green Salad (36 yuan) was crisp and fresh.

Although we enjoyed our meal, seeing as how Pullman's butcher sells the same meat the chefs are about to cook for roughly half the price, we'd sooner return just for the meat than to eat.

Pullman Steak
Tel: 85871055
Add: 2-109 China View, Gongti Donglu

]]> 2008-05-29 10:21:58 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6718134.htm

It's no secret that Beijing has Bund envy. No venue in the capital could really compare with the stunning, iconic views from places like Three on the Bund. Until now, that is.

The opening of the Yin Bar on top of The Emperor Hotel delivers cocktail party colonial chic that even Face can't muster. The view-taking in the Forbidden City, the dagoba in Beihai Park, Jingshan Hill and even the lights of Tiananmen-isn’t hype, it’s for real. The terrace is multileveled, with sets of MC Escher stairs leading to little alcoves and spacious patios outfitted with tables and chaise lounges.

And yes, there is a Jacuzzi up there for all the bikini babies. Both times we’ve been the service has been attentive, and prices are what you’d pay at a hotel bar in the West (57 yuan Qingdaos, 67 yuan cocktails).

With government leaders living in the area, you’re never going to get wild late-night bacchanalians, but with an imperial view of the heart of Beijing, Yin is a strong contender for bar of the summer.

Yin Bar
Tel: 6526-5566
Add: Emperor Hotel, No.33 Qihelou Street

]]> 2008-05-28 15:29:23 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6718140.htm

Like an oasis in the desert, a good cafe in Shanghai should provide shelter and indulgence. I spent Monday afternoon hunting down such a rumored oasis, GZ Cafe, located in the alley between Nanjing Xi Lu and Weihai Lu, across from the Isetan side entrance. While the general locale is much traveled by both locals and foreigners, GZ is one of those elusive spots that cannot be stumbled upon, only searched out by those in the know.

Apparently, no one is really in the know yet, as I was the only customer throughout my hour long stay during the lunch rush. Question is, even if more people are informed about this place, should it be sought out? That depends on whether you are looking for shelter or indulgence. It offers the former but is lacking in the latter.

The English menu presented to me had a limited range of food and drinks. They make three types of spaghetti, half a dozen deserts, and some type of breakfast set that I couldn't decipher. For drinks, main options consist of the basic coffees -- Americano, espresso, latte, mocha, or tea -- lemon, Ceylon, and Turkish apple. I decided to take a risk with my drink (Oreo milkshake) and play it safe with my food (Spaghetti Bolognese). As soon as I placed my order, the friendly server scurried off to the kitchen, actually a converted tool shed in the villa's garden, to get cooking.

---

The milkshake arrived first, looking incredibly promising but ultimately resulting in dissatisfaction. Isn't an Oreo milkshake just a few Oreos, ice cream and milk? I swear mine was two Oreos, milk and possibly water. The drink was not cold, creamy or refreshing; it barely caused any kind of condensation on my glass. I took a few sips and put it aside, relegating the rest of my hopes to the spaghetti. No improvement. The noodles were overcooked and the sauce was lacking in everything but water.

Now, I am not a food snob -- I recognize and appreciate good food -- but will tolerate the less than perfect without throwing a hissy fit. That said, do not come to GZ Café looking for a delicious drink or snack because they still need to work on it a bit. However, if it's a quiet nook for relaxing and getting work done that you’re looking for, this is the spot. Also, its proximity to budding arts area Weihai Lu could make this quite the trendy hangout.

I like the casual and laid back atmosphere of GZ as opposed to the uptight sterility that pervades most cafes in Shanghai. Seating includes big tables for groups and couch space to curl up on. Bookshelves are lined with magazines, books, and games (all in Chinese). Wireless internet is also available. It was rather quiet during my stay, no crowds of people walking by, no honking, dogs barking, etc...

Check out this café if you're in the area and in need of a hideaway. Chances are you'll probably have this little nook to yourself.

Drinks around 15-30rmb, food around 20-30rmb.

GZ Cafe
5213 2139
Lane 1025 Nanjing Lu, House # 162, near Weihai Lu

]]> 2008-05-28 15:29:35 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6718143.htm

It's no secret that Beijing has Bund envy. No venue in the capital could really compare with the stunning, iconic views from places like Three on the Bund. Until now, that is.

The opening of the Yin Bar on top of The Emperor Hotel delivers cocktail party colonial chic that even Face can't muster. The view-taking in the Forbidden City, the dagoba in Beihai Park, Jingshan Hill and even the lights of Tiananmen-isn’t hype, it’s for real. The terrace is multileveled, with sets of MC Escher stairs leading to little alcoves and spacious patios outfitted with tables and chaise lounges.

And yes, there is a Jacuzzi up there for all the bikini babies. Both times we’ve been the service has been attentive, and prices are what you’d pay at a hotel bar in the West (57 yuan Qingdaos, 67 yuan cocktails).

With government leaders living in the area, you’re never going to get wild late-night bacchanalians, but with an imperial view of the heart of Beijing, Yin is a strong contender for bar of the summer.

Yin Bar
Tel: 6526-5566
Add: Emperor Hotel, No.33 Qihelou Street

]]> 2008-05-28 15:29:23 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6718082.htm

Famous hotpot restaurant, Hotpot Shanghai, a longtime fixture in an elegant building in Gubei, is rich in antique furniture and artifacts. Tables are roomy and well-dressed, and there are varying sets of chinaware for different dishes.

Abalone has long been appreciated by the Chinese, even regarded as one of eight gastronomic treasures by Ming- and Qing-Dynasty gourmets. Here, it is hotpot with style. Live Australian abalone is cut into thin slices and thrown into a soup base created from expensive ingredients that include duck, seahorse, chicken, and winter melon. The seafood sauce does the abalone justice. Other dishes on the menu are equally exotic, like Kobe beef (tongue), exquisitely marbled and wonderfully tender (the cows are fed on been); and pork from American black pigs. These are free-range and thus produce tender meat.

Bird's nest and shrimp ball don't rate as exquisite in taste, more in look. Hotpot aside, the restaurant is also famous for sashimi, especially toro and fresh Australian abalone sashimi. Toro sashimi is made from the choicest cut of the tuna belly. Smooth and rich, it seems to have been created in some kind of a god’s kitchen.

An impressive wine list that puts many Western restaurants to shame. Cognac, whisky and Chinese sorghum spirits are also available.

Professional and attentive, especially in helping patrons with advice on hotpot dishes.

Hotpot Shanghai
Location: 2378 Jianhe Road
Tel: 62376218

]]> 2008-05-28 15:15:27 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6718085.htm

Famous hotpot restaurant, Hotpot Shanghai, a longtime fixture in an elegant building in Gubei, is rich in antique furniture and artifacts. Tables are roomy and well-dressed, and there are varying sets of chinaware for different dishes.

Abalone has long been appreciated by the Chinese, even regarded as one of eight gastronomic treasures by Ming- and Qing-Dynasty gourmets. Here, it is hotpot with style. Live Australian abalone is cut into thin slices and thrown into a soup base created from expensive ingredients that include duck, seahorse, chicken, and winter melon. The seafood sauce does the abalone justice. Other dishes on the menu are equally exotic, like Kobe beef (tongue), exquisitely marbled and wonderfully tender (the cows are fed on been); and pork from American black pigs. These are free-range and thus produce tender meat.

Bird's nest and shrimp ball don't rate as exquisite in taste, more in look. Hotpot aside, the restaurant is also famous for sashimi, especially toro and fresh Australian abalone sashimi. Toro sashimi is made from the choicest cut of the tuna belly. Smooth and rich, it seems to have been created in some kind of a god’s kitchen.

An impressive wine list that puts many Western restaurants to shame. Cognac, whisky and Chinese sorghum spirits are also available.

Professional and attentive, especially in helping patrons with advice on hotpot dishes.

Hotpot Shanghai
Location: 2378 Jianhe Road
Tel: 62376218

]]> 2008-05-28 15:15:27 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6717976.htm

In the early years the people of Beijing would eat noodles out of huge bowls, commonly referred to as "sea bowls". This traditional Beijing restaurant is called the "Huge Bowl Restaurant". Because its structure resembles the bowls they use in the old days. The reddish brown wooden door beneath the giant "Hai Wan Ju" restaurant sign is covered with intricate patterns depicting a square marble table seating eight and a red wooden bench. It creates a vivid image of the people in old Beijlng, gripping a huge bowl of noodles in both hands, chat—ting away while eating and enjoying their meals to the fullest.

At Hai Wan Ju, you not only get the chance to try many traditonal Beijing delicacies, you can also enjoy a sumptuous cultural feast. As you step inside, the first thing you will experience is an enthusiastic greeting. The waitstaff shout out with a Beijing accent that reverberates throughout the whole restaurant, followed by a cheerful response from every corner of the restaurant: "You have arrived!", making visitors feel that they have arrived at the Beijing of long ago. In the main dining area, the walls are lined with calligraphy and paintings depicting the long gone street scenes of old Beijing and the teahouses serving local delicacies. The famous 16-meter long painting Riverside Scene at Qing Ming Festival, lends a simple and unsophisticated feel to the restaurant.

Hai Wan Ju's traditional Beijing "Zhajiangmian", or noodles with fried bean sauce, provldes the most authentic taste around. using top quality soy paste, partly lean and partly fatty diced meat, and a mouth—watering fried bean sauce. The noodles are handmade from superb wheat flour, and great care is taken when selectlng the diced vegetables accompanying the noodles?with eight different varieties including bean sprouts, celery, green soybeans, cucumber shreds, sweet turnips slices, Chinese cabbage slices, leeks, and garlic. Needless to say, the noodle soup served here is exceedingly fresh. Aside from their masterful zhajiangmian, Haiwanju also serves a variety of other Beijing-style noodles as well as a hearty selection of authentic Beijing snacks. guaranteeing you will be dazzled as you eat yourself silly.

Hai Wan Ju
Location: 11 zengguang Lu, Haidian District
Tel: 010-82070488

]]> 2008-05-28 14:51:00 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6717979.htm

In the early years the people of Beijing would eat noodles out of huge bowls, commonly referred to as "sea bowls". This traditional Beijing restaurant is called the "Huge Bowl Restaurant". Because its structure resembles the bowls they use in the old days. The reddish brown wooden door beneath the giant "Hai Wan Ju" restaurant sign is covered with intricate patterns depicting a square marble table seating eight and a red wooden bench. It creates a vivid image of the people in old Beijlng, gripping a huge bowl of noodles in both hands, chat—ting away while eating and enjoying their meals to the fullest.

At Hai Wan Ju, you not only get the chance to try many traditonal Beijing delicacies, you can also enjoy a sumptuous cultural feast. As you step inside, the first thing you will experience is an enthusiastic greeting. The waitstaff shout out with a Beijing accent that reverberates throughout the whole restaurant, followed by a cheerful response from every corner of the restaurant: "You have arrived!", making visitors feel that they have arrived at the Beijing of long ago. In the main dining area, the walls are lined with calligraphy and paintings depicting the long gone street scenes of old Beijing and the teahouses serving local delicacies. The famous 16-meter long painting Riverside Scene at Qing Ming Festival, lends a simple and unsophisticated feel to the restaurant.

Hai Wan Ju's traditional Beijing "Zhajiangmian", or noodles with fried bean sauce, provldes the most authentic taste around. using top quality soy paste, partly lean and partly fatty diced meat, and a mouth—watering fried bean sauce. The noodles are handmade from superb wheat flour, and great care is taken when selectlng the diced vegetables accompanying the noodles?with eight different varieties including bean sprouts, celery, green soybeans, cucumber shreds, sweet turnips slices, Chinese cabbage slices, leeks, and garlic. Needless to say, the noodle soup served here is exceedingly fresh. Aside from their masterful zhajiangmian, Haiwanju also serves a variety of other Beijing-style noodles as well as a hearty selection of authentic Beijing snacks. guaranteeing you will be dazzled as you eat yourself silly.

Hai Wan Ju
Location: 11 zengguang Lu, Haidian District
Tel: 010-82070488

]]> 2008-05-28 14:51:00 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6717878.htm

]]> 2008-05-28 14:22:39 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6717878.htm

Ric Birch in front of the National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest, during one of his trips to Beijing.

Olympic Games ceremonies maestro Ric Birch is leading a creative workshop in Beijing and his young Chinese students are hanging onto his every word. The Australian asks about the biggest change since China's opening up policy and economic miracle.

There is a long pause.

"Now you can buy bicycles in any color," one young man innocently explains.

"Before, bicycles were black, gray or blue but now there's yellow and orange ... any color you want."

Birch did not see that answer coming, but says it reveals the baffling complexity of the Chinese mindset, which Western critics often fail to understand.

"I often think of this when I hear a Western commentator making pronouncements about China - the reality is that significant change takes longer than one generation," Birch says.

"The fact that China has achieved so much in one generation is so extraordinary that we can't compute it. There has never been an equivalent, so we don't have any bench marks."

Birch, the brains behind the largest and some of the most successful live productions ever mounted, says all these issues of rapid change will "come together for me" in the Beijing Games opening ceremony.

Birch is in the Chinese capital this week once again, as advisor to Beijing ceremonies ringmaster and legendary movie maker Zhang Yimou. Dress rehearsals will begin on June 10.

---

The Olympic cauldron rose from a large pool and was lit by Kathy Freeman during the opening ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

Without revealing any secrets of the opening ceremony, he promises the world will be "gobsmacked".

"Sorry, but I'm not sure how to say that in Putonghua," he jokes.

Zhang is the major creative force behind the opening while Birch advises on specialists for technical and design roles in the Beijing Games opening and closing ceremonies. It is a specialized type of work, which was not exactly taught at the law school Birch attended in his younger days.

Birch's knack at putting on a show was revealed during the spectacular opening and closing of the 1982 Brisbane Commonwealth Games. It attracted the highest TV ratings in Australian history and led to his success at the opening ceremonies for the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.

After LA, the former rock and roll singer formed Spectak Productions, an events management company, which now has offices in Los Angeles, Sydney and Milan. He has consulted for theme park developments in Hong Kong, Japan, Spain and France, and dazzled at the 1990 World Expo in Osaka, the 1992 Universal Exposition in Sevilla, and the 1995 Exposition in Vienna.

In 1990, Birch directed the Singapore Jubilee Spectacular - a multi-million dollar production with a cast of 15,000 performers to celebrate 25 years of the city-state's independence. He was appointed executive producer for the opening and closing ceremonies in Barcelona the following year, with its unforgettable scene of an archer firing an arrow and lighting the Olympic flame.

For more than two decades, Birch was responsible for the creative concepts, planning, organization, budgets, and the selection of personnel for these huge events. He would form international teams, which would continue to top the previous Olympic ceremonies efforts.

But the Sydney 2000 was the jewel in Birch's crown.

---

The opening ceremony featuring fireworks of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

Many hailed the Sydney Olympic opening ceremonies as establishing new standards for creativity, performance and technical production. The Olympic cauldron rose from a large pool and was lit by Aboriginal Australian Kathy Freeman, who later went on to win the 400m gold medal. The ceremony featured a "Dreamtime" indigenous theme of an ancient land, in which the Sydney stadium was transformed into a huge desert.

Performers were magically transported through the air, just like in many kungfu films, and the amazing ceremony cemented Birch's global reputation as the master of ceremonies.

He returns to Beijing this week, as he has many times over the past three years, and is focused on the Middle Kingdom.

"I am overwhelmed by China's two decades of achievements, which were inconceivable back then," he says.

"The Olympic Games represent many human ideals, some of which China has achieved and some of which are unfulfilled, but the way in which China has embraced the Olympics is unparalleled.

"There are Western countries that do not achieve or maintain these same Olympic ideals, so in itself this is not the measure of the success of the Beijing Olympics."

Birch says the speed of China's social progress compared to any other country is the true measure of success and many Beijing Games protesters do not understand the full story.

"Protesters seem to expect China to behave like a sophisticated, media savvy nation, equivalent on every level to Western, participatory democracies because it has made such giant strides, so quickly," he says.

"But no nation in the history of the world has changed its social system so fast or successfully. Think of Russia in 1917, the collapse of the former Soviet Union in 1989, the American Civil War or even China's own history between 1920 and 1948."

Birch has worked with every nationality and describes Chinese production crews very similar in talent and temperament, compared with other international teams.

"Except they are far more polite to me," he jokes.

Matilda, the giant kangaroo featured in the opening ceremony during the Commonwealth Games held in Brisbane, Australia, in 1982. File photo "There is a clearly defined creative hierarchy, without the freewheeling opinions, questions and suggestions in Australia or US, but this is a reflection of the broader Chinese culture."

Several of his team members have studied and lived in Australia and understand their Asia-Pacific neighbor, he says, but he believes most Chinese are not concerned about the rest of the world, "except as spectators to Chinese achievements".

"There is an enormous pride and even amazement at the economic changes in their lives and right now I get the feeling that no Chinese person wants to be anywhere else other than China," he says.

Despite the large contingent of foreigners helping with the Games, Birch has witnessed a commitment among Olympic workers he has never seen before.

"I realized that several members of the creative unit were living on the premises," he says.

"Two of them had moved from New York to Beijing to be part of the Olympics and were working without pay. All they wanted was to contribute their skills to the ceremonies, so they lived in the office building.

"This level of dedication is hard to compete with."

(China Daily 05/28/2008 page18)

]]> 2008-05-28 14:19:09 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6717816.htm

One of the great pleasures of traveling around China is coming across unfamiliar ingredients and unusual cooking techniques.

This was certainly the case on my recent Guangxi trip to the areas of Longji and Yangshuo, in south China.

First, there was rice baked in bamboo tubes (zhu tong fan), which we discovered in a tiny rice terrace village of Ping'an. We had followed the aroma of charred bamboo wood wafting from a barbecue on a back lane.

For this dish, a mature bamboo tube is stuffed with glutinous rice and varying combinations of smoked sausage, pork, chicken and taro. Water is added and the tube sealed with a cork made from what appears to be a corncob. Once cooked, the top of the tube is lifted to reveal the chewy, smoke-scented rice.

My favorite new veggie dish of the trip was stir-fried young bamboo shoots.

I was expecting the pale yellow shoots (zhu sun) familiar to me from Beijing. Instead, we received a plate of vibrant green stalks (sun), very tender and absolutely delicious. Apparently, they are coming into season now across the country, so they are definitely worth looking out for at the market - they make an excellent substitute to the pricier asparagus.

On our first afternoon following a steady ascent of the rice terraces, we were enticed to try some luo han guo and ginger tea, which was guaranteed to soothe sore throats. Having left the smog of Beijing the previous evening, my throat had actually never felt better. Nevertheless, this sweet and fragrant tea was lovely.

Luo han guo literally means "monk's fruit". The fruit grows on vines to a size just smaller than a tennis ball. Normally, they are not eaten fresh but dried until leathery brown in the oven, and used frequently in traditional Chinese medicine for respiratory problems.

---

Interestingly, the extract of the fruit is said to be 300 times sweeter than sugar, and has been used for centuries as a low-calorie sugar substitute in China.

The fertile winding rivers of Guangxi are home to many types of freshwater fish and we took full advantage of this.

Yangshuo's local specialty is Beer Fish (pijiu yu), which was particularly delicious as we lunched on a wooden terrace perched on the Yulong River, following a rather muddy morning cycle.

I was delighted to learn that this is a relatively simple dish to re-create. It is a sure winner at home (the alcohol from the beer evaporates during cooking, so it is fine for children and drivers alike).

To cook it: Take any freshwater white fish, slice open along the bottom and score the flesh. Fry on either side in a small amount of peanut oil until golden brown. Add sliced red and green peppers, two sticks of sliced celery, one sliced chili pepper, a few cloves of chopped garlic and an equivalent amount of ginger.

Pour in 300 ml of local beer until it covers the fish. Bring this to boil and add a pinch each of sugar, white pepper and salt, and a teaspoon of oyster and soy sauce. Cook for five minutes, then add two chopped tomatoes and turn the fish over.

Mix a pinch of cornstarch in half a cup of water. After three minutes, add this to the wok along with some chopped spring onion and a few drops of sesame oil.

Cook for two more minutes before serving it with rice and something leafy, such as amaranth (xian cai) or Shanghai pak choi (qing cai).

This nutrition-related column is written by Nina Lenton, a qualified dietitian living and working in Beijing. Contact her at nina_lenton@hotmail.com.

(China Daily 05/28/2008 page19)

]]> 2008-05-28 14:12:01 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6717605.htm

 

]]> 2008-05-28 11:07:26 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/28/content_6717605.htm

No matter how much one believes in horoscopes, many readers still wrinkle their noses at the same series of lines recycled in every listing. But the story of the 12 zodiac animals that control human lives has been an inspiration to generations of artists. Recently, several Chinese artists have taken on the challenge of bringing a new look to the millenia-old designs.

From lines to art

Xue Juefang, 17, is a high school student. Like many girls of her age, she believes that the zodiac controls her personality and love.

"I read the newspaper every day or check some horoscope Web sites to see what will hapen to me the next day," she said. "Over time, I noticed that the pictures that stand for each sign all look alike!" It was one of the reasons Xue decided to create her own.

She first thought of several simple lines of each star sign. For example, two horns represent Aries, a line with two balanced triangles represents Libra and a bow and arrow stands for Sagittarius.

"Those simple lines were just too outdated. Every magazine uses some simple lines, and none are good," Xue said. She decided to paint a series of female portraits on each sign.

Her second collection of pictures was more mature. "I made two identical girls appear in one picture, for Gemni, and in others, I sketched out some women augmented with animal features," she said. A lion's nose on a female face was her sign for Leo.

"I am still not satisfied with my pictures-especially after I saw those drawn by others. I mean, our ideas were practically identical," Xue said. "Still, I am only interested in the zodiac signs. It is a great system to make life more enjoyable."

Xue's drawing are popular with her classmates. Some have demanded Xue draw a picture "just for their constellation."

---

Beyond the animal

However, Luo Shaoxiang, 27, a professional comic illustrator, disagreed with Xue.

"I have seen Xue's pictures, but I think tracking the features of each animal sign onto the picture is not enough,” he said.

Luo said his pictures show "more characteristics of each sign.""To give one example, many people believe Leos require companionship. I showed this by drawing similar dolls around the main character," he explained.

His drawing of the Scorpio girl puts her in a bar to show she is a party animal. The Libra carries an apple in each hand to show her characteristic blance.

Luo said his pictures of the zodiac animals describe girls' lives. He updates the horoscope for each sign each week. "If Leos are in for bad luck in love this week, you will see it reflected in my pictures," he said.

"But don't believe in it. I myself believe only half at most. It is just for fun, and I pay more attention to the pictures themselves".

Make his own business

"Feizhi," a sophomore in Beijing Forestry University took up an interest in comics when he was in middle school. His portraits of the zodiac signs are based on his own experiences. 

In his picture of Aries, a child runs desperately to catch a carrot. He said his Aries friends all had good goals and worked very hard. Feizhi's sister and ex-girlfriend were both Tauruses. He considered them demanding and material, so his Taurus character is a girl carrying a sack of money and brandishing a hip.

He considered publishing an album of his own,and has been very critical of the many albums, which he said are made poorly, in the market.

Feizhi said he is considering cooperating with some companies to produce a series of necklaces with the shapes he designed for each of the zodiac animals.

]]> 2008-05-28 10:59:02 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6715251.htm

Beijing's ladies are no strangers to the healing properties of a facial, but regular spa visits can deplete the wallet. Those who turn to a DIY approach find that cloth facemasks are a great way to cleanse and moisturize one’s skin without coating the bathroom in gunk. Applying the moist cloth directly onto your face ensures that hydration is locked into the skin; in less than 30 minutes, when you peel it off and dispose of it, you can sit back and enjoy your fresh, glowing visage. Fiona Zhang

Fancl Moisture Lock Mask

(RMB 140/3pcs)

This preservative-free mask is recommended for dry, sensitive skin. The mask's ingredients penetrate deep into the skin, replenishing and locking in moisture. Besides the long-lasting hydration, this mask claims to improve your skin's texture and reduce fine lines.

H2O Caviar Mask

(RMB 450/6pcs)

The caviar concentrates in this mask seek to revive and rejuvenate tired, mature skin. The mask’s instant-lifting effect is a boost, and it helps to firm and diminish fine lines. Other benefits include protection against free radical damage.

Clinique Moisture Surge Facial Sheet Mask (RMB 360/6pcs)

Clinique’s Moisture Surge promises to rapidly hydrate skin and restore moisture balance levels thanks to the aloe-activated water within. The result is smoother skin, and a reduction in puffiness and dark circles under the eyes.

]]> 2008-05-27 14:49:31 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6715248.htm

Hunky, fresh-scrubbed undergrads define the look at UCLA. Sold under the auspices of the namesake university, a savvy school board foresaw the commercial value of exploiting the UCLA crest way back when the institution was founded in 1919.

The UCLA menswear line was first introduced to China in 2004, targeting a rising generation of highly-educated, America-attuned youth who embraced the insignia-splashed gear and attributed air of academic cool. The brand recently opened a second store in Shanghai, ushering in its new-look global image (think breezy Los Angeles beach life mixed with black and white portraits of the campus buildings and football team) and a summer collection of preppy striped shirts, vests and blazers along with baggy sweatpants and hoodies that are great for weekend lazing. For actual UCLA alumni, the new boutique offers personal image consulting and free coffee, too.

UCLA
5/F, Brilliance Shimao International Plaza, 829 Nanjing Dong Lu
63511804
www.uclastore.com.cn

]]> 2008-05-27 14:49:25 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6715257.htm

Hunky, fresh-scrubbed undergrads define the look at UCLA. Sold under the auspices of the namesake university, a savvy school board foresaw the commercial value of exploiting the UCLA crest way back when the institution was founded in 1919.

The UCLA menswear line was first introduced to China in 2004, targeting a rising generation of highly-educated, America-attuned youth who embraced the insignia-splashed gear and attributed air of academic cool. The brand recently opened a second store in Shanghai, ushering in its new-look global image (think breezy Los Angeles beach life mixed with black and white portraits of the campus buildings and football team) and a summer collection of preppy striped shirts, vests and blazers along with baggy sweatpants and hoodies that are great for weekend lazing. For actual UCLA alumni, the new boutique offers personal image consulting and free coffee, too.

UCLA
5/F, Brilliance Shimao International Plaza, 829 Nanjing Dong Lu
63511804
www.uclastore.com.cn

]]> 2008-05-27 14:49:25 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6715254.htm

Beijing's ladies are no strangers to the healing properties of a facial, but regular spa visits can deplete the wallet. Those who turn to a DIY approach find that cloth facemasks are a great way to cleanse and moisturize one’s skin without coating the bathroom in gunk. Applying the moist cloth directly onto your face ensures that hydration is locked into the skin; in less than 30 minutes, when you peel it off and dispose of it, you can sit back and enjoy your fresh, glowing visage. Fiona Zhang

Fancl Moisture Lock Mask

(RMB 140/3pcs)

This preservative-free mask is recommended for dry, sensitive skin. The mask's ingredients penetrate deep into the skin, replenishing and locking in moisture. Besides the long-lasting hydration, this mask claims to improve your skin's texture and reduce fine lines.

H2O Caviar Mask

(RMB 450/6pcs)

The caviar concentrates in this mask seek to revive and rejuvenate tired, mature skin. The mask’s instant-lifting effect is a boost, and it helps to firm and diminish fine lines. Other benefits include protection against free radical damage.

Clinique Moisture Surge Facial Sheet Mask (RMB 360/6pcs)

Clinique’s Moisture Surge promises to rapidly hydrate skin and restore moisture balance levels thanks to the aloe-activated water within. The result is smoother skin, and a reduction in puffiness and dark circles under the eyes.

]]> 2008-05-27 14:49:31 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6715155.htm

Among other things, 2008 is an auspicious year for weddings. Some men will inevitably succumb to being married and most will attend a wedding or two. Reject the example of local grooms and best men who appear at their wedding as they do when meeting a particularly influential client. But complex rules governing formal attire are alien to Beijingers and foreigners here tend to be of the defiantly laid-back type. What often remains is the dubious project of blending East and West in wedding attire. Even weddings between foreigners often attempt to incorporate Chinese influences in attire, so we might forgive a Westerner trying to show the bride’s family cultural sensitivity with a dragon or phoenix adorning his lapels.

With a standard single-breasted, peaked lapel, one-button coat – the best cut for formally festive occasions – the two basic ways of incorporating Chinese elements involve silk highlights and closing methods. Silk fabric with a Chinese style texture or print on the lapels, matching the stripes on the trousers will wow discerning peasants. Similar silk as piping on the pockets, trousers, or covering on the buttons is a subtler option, while the concealed route is to use this silk under the collar instead of felt or as a lining for the coat. An attractive and traditional choice is to simply substitute a Chinese toggle closure for the button.

Actual Chinese cuts should be approached with caution. The China Hand who normally lacks panache risks becoming “Sino-Chump” when he dons a Mandarin collared jacket for his wedding, especially one with a Chinese pattern. Only the slim, tall, and unconventionally stylish should attempt this, and even these men should avoid overly “Chinesey” fabrics. Mao suits are only appropriate for marriages to Party members.

Those determined to economize must rely on custom accessories. Commission a bow tie and matching cummerbund or vest in a black pattern. A white silk self-patterned pocket square or red socks with dragons might also do the trick. An old standard, the detachable pigtail, will sinicize any outfit.

One basic guideline remains: Wedding attire is determined by season and time of day. Never wear a full black ensemble prior to sunset. Formality gives way between May and September and lighter colors should be worn for daytime weddings. For the coming summer months, a white or khaki linen suit is preferable to a business suit for daytime weddings.

In conclusion, be subtle. Remember, weddings are about the bride and these Chinese touches run the risk of having the groom outshine her through his quirkiness, even if they do impress her earthy relatives from Miyun or Henan.

]]> 2008-05-27 14:29:35 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714947.htm

]]> 2008-05-27 14:07:25 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714947.htm

]]> 2008-05-27 14:06:41 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714947.htm

Occasionally, you may get slight pains in your head, arms or waist for an instant and tell yourself it is nothing serious. But have you ever thought that these little pains could be warning signs that something is wrong with your body? Here we find Leanna Skarnulis's new health cure research and has some some suggestions for readers.

*Headache

If you have a serious headache, get medical attention immediately. "If you have a cold, it could be a sinus headache," Sandra Fryhofer, spokeswoman for the American College of Physicians said. "But you could have a brain hemorrhage or even a brain tumor." With any pain, unless you're sure of what caused it, get it checked out.

*Chest, throat, jaw, shoulder, arm or abdominal pains

Chest pain could be the sign of a heart attack. Be aware that heart conditions typically appear as discomfort, not pain. "Don't wait for pain," cardiologist Jerome Cohen, says. "Heart patients talk about pressure. They'll clench their fist and put it over their chest or say it's like an ant sitting on their chest.”The discomfort associated with heart disease could also be in the upper chest, throat, jaw, left shoulder, arm or abdomen, and might be accompanied by nausea.

"I'm not too concerned about 18-year-old, but if a person has unexplained, persistent discomfort and knows they're high risk, they shouldn't wait," Cohen said. "Too many of people delay because they misinterpret it as heartburn or GI (gastro-intestinal) distress. Call the doctor or get to an emergency room or physician's office. If it turns out to be something else, that's grea but don't take chances."He told the health Web site WebMD that intermittent discomfort should be taken seriously as well. “There might be a pattern, such as discomfort related to excitement, emotional upset or exertion. For example, if you experience it when you're gardening, but it goes away when you sit down, that's angina. It's usually worse in cold or hot weather. "A woman's discomfort signs can be more subtle," Cohen, who is director of preventive cardiology at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, said. 

This disease can masquerade as GI symptoms, such as bloating, GI distress or discomfort in the abdomen. It's also associated with feeling tired. Risk for heart disease increases dramatically after menopause. It kills mor women than men, even though men are at higher risk at any age. Women and their physicians need to be on their toes.”

*Lower back or between the shoulder blades pain

"Most often it is arthritis," Brangman, a professor and chief of geriatrics at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York, said. Other possibilities include a heart attack or abdominal problems. "One danger is aortic dissection, which can appear as either nagging or sudden pain. People who are at risk have conditions that can change the integrity of the vessel wall. These would include high blood pressure, a history of circulation problems, smoking, and diabetes"

*Abdominal pain

Still have your appendix? Don't flirt with the possibility of a rupture. Gall bladder and pancreas problems, stomach ulcers and intestinal blockages are some other possible causes of abdominal pain that needs attention.

*Calf pain

One of the lesser known dangers is deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot that can occur in the leg's deep veins. It affects 2 million Americans a year, and it can be life-threatenin. "The danger is that a piece of the clot could break loose and cause pulmonary embolism (a clot in the lungs), which could be fatal, Sandra Fryhofer, said. Cancer, obesity, immobility due to prolonged bed rest or long-istance travel, pregnancy and advanced age are among the risk factors.

"Sometimes there's just swelling without pain," Brangman said. "If you have swelling and pain in your calf muscles, see a doctor immediately".

*Burning feet or legs

Nearly one-third of the 20 million Americans who have diabetes are undiagnosed, according to the American Diabetes Association. "In some people who don't know they have diabetes, peripheral neuropathy could be one of the first signs," Brangman said. "It's a burning or pins-and-needles sensation in the feet or legs that can create nerve damage".

*Vague, combined, or medically unexplained pains

"Various painful, physical symptoms are common in depression," psychiatrist Thomas Wise said, "Patients will have vague complaints of heahes, abdominal pain or limb pain, sometimes combined."

Because the pain might be chronic and not terribly debilitating, depressed people, their families, and health care professionals might dismiss the symptoms. "Furtermore, the more depressed you are, the more difficulty you have describing your feelings," Wise said, who is the psychiatry department chairman at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Fairfax, Va.

"All of this can lead the clinian astray."Other symptoms must be present before a diagnosis of depression can be made. "Get help when you've lost interest in activities, you're unable to work or think effectively, and you can't get along with people," he said. "And don't suffer silently when you're hurting", The doctor adds there's more to depression than deterioration in the quality of life. "It has to be treated aggressively before it causes structural changesn the brain."

]]> 2008-05-27 13:48:11 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714740.htm

Flashing Christmas lights beckoned us into Kaya. As compensation for the outside lighting, half the inside lights were turned off, although the fake candles dotting the tables helped us to read the menu.

As we pondered the uninspired 60s acid-trip / 90s industrial rave decor, we tasted a Kahlua and milk (35 yuan) and a suspiciously weak Long Island Iced Tea (40 yuan). With Tsingtao at 30 yuan, we splurged on Coronas instead (30 yuan). Although empty, they have enough lime green and tan leather couches to seat 50. Three pool tables upstairs provide a necessary diversion. There is an awkward lack of cohesion to the design with graffiti art ornamenting the green and purple walls complemented by multi-colored bead curtains, exposed rafters and prints of flan, strawberry shortcake and udon noodles hanging on the walls.

Plants potted in broken pots and empty bottles taking up room on the bar shelves of this new bar did nothing to increase its appeal. 

Kaya
Add: No. 528, Fahuazhen Lu
Tel: 3319-9363

]]> 2008-05-27 10:58:18 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714744.htm

Flashing Christmas lights beckoned us into Kaya. As compensation for the outside lighting, half the inside lights were turned off, although the fake candles dotting the tables helped us to read the menu.

As we pondered the uninspired 60s acid-trip / 90s industrial rave decor, we tasted a Kahlua and milk (35 yuan) and a suspiciously weak Long Island Iced Tea (40 yuan). With Tsingtao at 30 yuan, we splurged on Coronas instead (30 yuan). Although empty, they have enough lime green and tan leather couches to seat 50. Three pool tables upstairs provide a necessary diversion. There is an awkward lack of cohesion to the design with graffiti art ornamenting the green and purple walls complemented by multi-colored bead curtains, exposed rafters and prints of flan, strawberry shortcake and udon noodles hanging on the walls.

Plants potted in broken pots and empty bottles taking up room on the bar shelves of this new bar did nothing to increase its appeal. 

Kaya
Add: No. 528, Fahuazhen Lu
Tel: 3319-9363

]]> 2008-05-27 10:58:18 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714658.htm

Gong He Bar is red: red couches, red gauze curtains. If Robert Palmer's "Addicted to Love" transmogrified into a bar, Red House is what that lipstick and swaying would become.

Though the owners do not know Lord Palmer, they do know how to coalesce dozens of red sofas and armchairs with tasteful polyphony in a fantastically large minimal space of concrete floors and white walls, which could just as well suit an art gallery.

Live jazz and variegated lighting heighten a sense of dynamic simplicity. The menu is a photocopy of the Republic's, so patrons can count on those 15 yuan Tsingtao draughts and 25 yuan Mojitos. More in line with the crimson decor and the Miles Davis mood, however, are the Shanghai cocktail (20 yuan) and Bloody Mary (20 yuan). Drink what you may, the modern beatnik will love lounging back on the red upholstery, gazing at an eclectic crowd and wondering which one of the women is most addicted to love.

Red House
Tel: 135-8163-0000
Add: 116 Nanluo Guxiang

]]> 2008-05-27 10:28:24 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714661.htm

Gong He Bar is red: red couches, red gauze curtains. If Robert Palmer's "Addicted to Love" transmogrified into a bar, Red House is what that lipstick and swaying would become.

Though the owners do not know Lord Palmer, they do know how to coalesce dozens of red sofas and armchairs with tasteful polyphony in a fantastically large minimal space of concrete floors and white walls, which could just as well suit an art gallery.

Live jazz and variegated lighting heighten a sense of dynamic simplicity. The menu is a photocopy of the Republic's, so patrons can count on those 15 yuan Tsingtao draughts and 25 yuan Mojitos. More in line with the crimson decor and the Miles Davis mood, however, are the Shanghai cocktail (20 yuan) and Bloody Mary (20 yuan). Drink what you may, the modern beatnik will love lounging back on the red upholstery, gazing at an eclectic crowd and wondering which one of the women is most addicted to love.

Red House
Tel: 135-8163-0000
Add: 116 Nanluo Guxiang

]]> 2008-05-27 10:28:24 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714641.htm

The Shanghai Uncle is far from huge but its interior is luxurious and elegant. With mellow melodies constantly playing and red peony as it decor of choice, the ambience is delightful and soothing.

Traditional smoked egg and Shanghai traditional smoked fish are among the restaurant’s most diners. A special aspect of the traditional smoked egg is that the yolk is still liquid, whilst the traditional Shanghai smoked fish is very fragrant with succulent meat. These two are unmissable. Similarly worth sampling is the salt baked live fish, served on a large plate and wrapped in tinfoil. When you tear the tinfoil open, cubes of salt and the wrapped fish are revealed. The salt bake retains the original flavor of the fish – light and delicious enough to give your taste buds an unforgettable experience. A perfect end to the meal is the red bean ice that makes your dining experience complete.

A wide selection of Chinese spirit and rice wine are available.

The service is efficient and considerate.

Shanghai Uncle Restaurant
Price: 200-250 per person.
Location: 2F, 211 Tian Yao Qiao Road
Tel: 021-64646430

]]> 2008-05-27 10:22:40 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714638.htm

Manhattan Steakhouse is Beijing's first authentic American steakhouse; the walls are covered with pictures of 1930's Manhattan scenery. There's a small wine cellar storing over 150 types of winc from all over the world, and the open-style kitchen allows patrons to freely enjoy the best of American food and drink. Free coffee refills will give you the chance to fully enjoy yourself and chat to your heart's content. The comfortable high-backed bright yellow and dark brown sofas create a dining atmosphere that is both lively and refined.

The open-style kitchen here allows customers to see the whole cooking process. All of the beef is imported from America and Australia, and apart from the steak, the most outstanding dishes available here are the sugar-roasted shrimp and the Angus beef. Cooked with sugarcane, these shrimp are sweet and succulent. Paired with a nice dry white wine, the sweet flavor of these luscious shrimp provides an extraordinary contrast with the slightly bitter taste of wine. The Angus beef, features an enormous amount of beef (at least 450 grams), cooked to about 60-70% well-done. It is tender, juicy, chewy meat you will want to savor one bite at a time.

Manhattan Steaknouse
Location: State Guesthouse,2nd floor. 9 Fuwai Dajie(jia), Xicheng District
Tel: 68005588 ext. 8695

]]> 2008-05-27 10:22:33 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714647.htm

The Shanghai Uncle is far from huge but its interior is luxurious and elegant. With mellow melodies constantly playing and red peony as it decor of choice, the ambience is delightful and soothing.

Traditional smoked egg and Shanghai traditional smoked fish are among the restaurant’s most diners. A special aspect of the traditional smoked egg is that the yolk is still liquid, whilst the traditional Shanghai smoked fish is very fragrant with succulent meat. These two are unmissable. Similarly worth sampling is the salt baked live fish, served on a large plate and wrapped in tinfoil. When you tear the tinfoil open, cubes of salt and the wrapped fish are revealed. The salt bake retains the original flavor of the fish – light and delicious enough to give your taste buds an unforgettable experience. A perfect end to the meal is the red bean ice that makes your dining experience complete.

A wide selection of Chinese spirit and rice wine are available.

The service is efficient and considerate.

Shanghai Uncle Restaurant
Price: 200-250 per person.
Location: 2F, 211 Tian Yao Qiao Road
Tel: 021-64646430

]]> 2008-05-27 10:22:40 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/27/content_6714644.htm

Manhattan Steakhouse is Beijing's first authentic American steakhouse; the walls are covered with pictures of 1930's Manhattan scenery. There's a small wine cellar storing over 150 types of winc from all over the world, and the open-style kitchen allows patrons to freely enjoy the best of American food and drink. Free coffee refills will give you the chance to fully enjoy yourself and chat to your heart's content. The comfortable high-backed bright yellow and dark brown sofas create a dining atmosphere that is both lively and refined.

The open-style kitchen here allows customers to see the whole cooking process. All of the beef is imported from America and Australia, and apart from the steak, the most outstanding dishes available here are the sugar-roasted shrimp and the Angus beef. Cooked with sugarcane, these shrimp are sweet and succulent. Paired with a nice dry white wine, the sweet flavor of these luscious shrimp provides an extraordinary contrast with the slightly bitter taste of wine. The Angus beef, features an enormous amount of beef (at least 450 grams), cooked to about 60-70% well-done. It is tender, juicy, chewy meat you will want to savor one bite at a time.

Manhattan Steaknouse
Location: State Guesthouse,2nd floor. 9 Fuwai Dajie(jia), Xicheng District
Tel: 68005588 ext. 8695

]]> 2008-05-27 10:22:33 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/26/content_6712293.htm

Even if you've never heard the name, you have seen the works of photojournalist Marc Riboud. From newspapers to museum exhibitions to textbooks, Riboud has produced some of the most iconic photographs of the last six decades. In a perfect convergence of France and China, the Paris Beijing Photo Gallery opened their new space with an exhibition of Marc Riboud in China.

Riboud first traveled to China in 157, and he has returned each decade since. Curated by Riboud and gallery directors Romain Degoul and Flore Sassigneux, the exhibition creates a visual narrative of China's changes and growth over the past half century. Riboud's camera has captured the proletariat masses, Mao and post-Liberation culture, as well as China's fast-paced capitalism. "When we opened the gallery, one of our main goals was to exhibit photojournalists who had worked in China," says gallery manager Perrine Pautre, "Who better to represent this than Marc Riboud?"

Riboud has come across troubles photographing Communist China, both in the past and today. There's a picture of Mao at a banquet, alongside a quote from Riboud that reads, "The only foreign photographer present, I was subject to one mysterious restriction. I was forbidden ever to photograph the Great Helmsman from the front. On this particular evening, however, I managed something of a scoop: Mao, full frontal, drinking a glass of Mao Tai." And though things have gotten easier for foreigners today, there are still the occasional snags: A few of the captions originally intended for display were not permitted.

This is only the second exhibition of Riboud's work in China. Like other Western photographers who have exhibited at Paris Beijing, Riboud was selected, in part, for his connection to China. "It is good to first introduce works from Western photographers who have worked in China, to provoke a large interest from our Chinese public," says Degoul. And indeed the Riboud exhibit has achieved this. An elderly Chinese lady approached Pautre at the opening, asking if Mr. Riboud was there. Upon discovering he was still in Paris, she then asked if Pautre would kindly tell Riboud, "Thanks for the memories"

Marc Riboud's photography of China then and now
Where: Paris Beijing Photo Gallery
When: Through June 10

]]> 2008-05-26 15:58:47 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/26/content_6712278.htm

Even if you've never heard the name, you have seen the works of photojournalist Marc Riboud. From newspapers to museum exhibitions to textbooks, Riboud has produced some of the most iconic photographs of the last six decades. In a perfect convergence of France and China, the Paris Beijing Photo Gallery opened their new space with an exhibition of Marc Riboud in China.

Riboud first traveled to China in 157, and he has returned each decade since. Curated by Riboud and gallery directors Romain Degoul and Flore Sassigneux, the exhibition creates a visual narrative of China's changes and growth over the past half century. Riboud's camera has captured the proletariat masses, Mao and post-Liberation culture, as well as China's fast-paced capitalism. "When we opened the gallery, one of our main goals was to exhibit photojournalists who had worked in China," says gallery manager Perrine Pautre, "Who better to represent this than Marc Riboud?"

Riboud has come across troubles photographing Communist China, both in the past and today. There's a picture of Mao at a banquet, alongside a quote from Riboud that reads, "The only foreign photographer present, I was subject to one mysterious restriction. I was forbidden ever to photograph the Great Helmsman from the front. On this particular evening, however, I managed something of a scoop: Mao, full frontal, drinking a glass of Mao Tai." And though things have gotten easier for foreigners today, there are still the occasional snags: A few of the captions originally intended for display were not permitted.

This is only the second exhibition of Riboud's work in China. Like other Western photographers who have exhibited at Paris Beijing, Riboud was selected, in part, for his connection to China. "It is good to first introduce works from Western photographers who have worked in China, to provoke a large interest from our Chinese public," says Degoul. And indeed the Riboud exhibit has achieved this. An elderly Chinese lady approached Pautre at the opening, asking if Mr. Riboud was there. Upon discovering he was still in Paris, she then asked if Pautre would kindly tell Riboud, "Thanks for the memories"

Marc Riboud's photography of China then and now
Where: Paris Beijing Photo Gallery
When: Through June 10

]]> 2008-05-26 15:58:47 http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/citylife/2008-05/26/content_6711824.htm

Keeping tabs on the new Chinese talent (and their names) can be an exhausting exercise in Sisyphusian memorization, particularly in Shanghai where the market is continually re-saturated with emerging artists. As a foil to the overabundance of Chinese art, owner and curator of Art Labor Martin Kemble, is working toward creating a gallery with international texture. "I feel that introducing global perspectives is a requirement in any major city," he says.

Art Labor, a small gallery on Yongjia Lu, has exhibited Chinese and international artists during its two-year tenure. Previous shows include ink paintings by Chinese artist You Si -- the artist's first "China show" in two decades -- as well as NYC based japanese artist Yuichi Hibi.

As for the future? "We are going to have some real nutty shows later this year," says Kemble, "that will put us on the international hip list we hope."

Importing artists is not a simple matter in China where there is a laundry list of regulations with respect to permits, licensing and of course, shipping. But Kemble has a handle on the procedure and Friday evening saw the vernissage for Canandian multi-media artist, Davida Kidd at Art Labor. From families with strollers to the funky New York couple planning to bring vaudville to Shanghai, all sects of Shanghai flocked to view the Vancouverite's multi-media works from the show titled "Baggage."

The source material of "Baggage," which includes photography, painting and collage, and digital media is Kidd’s past-project "Core Dump," for which she arrested various surreal images dancing in her mind's eye and "dumped" them onto the three-dimensional space of a room in Vancouver. Deeply psychological works capture childhood innocence using portraits of young girls in pink and lace surroundings, but the perspective is infused with the dark undertones of adult knowledge -- innocence is impermanent -- purity is on the verge of destruction via forces from the outside world.

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Technically, Kidd displays the profound patience of a graphic artist knitting together images on a computer swatch by swatch, as well as the playfulness of a creator. Kidd stimulates her artistic faculties as an avid collector... of all things. "I surround myself with bought and found objects some of which I will eventually select to work with." I imagine Kidd standing in a room, over-stuffed with garage sale items, trinkets popping out of every nook, a contemplative finger tapping her lips as her eyes rove over the selection, zeroing in on the perfect item for her next project.

When I mentioned my personal frustration with the China art scene to Kidd, she compared current trends in China to the pop art phenomenon in 1960s America. "Like pop-art, there is just so much contemporary Chinese work and you have to sift through really a lot," she remarked. "In twenty years the situation probably will have chan