NEWS

New Milestone for China-S.Korea Ties

July 3， Seoul： Chinese President Xi Jinping and South Korean President Park Geun-hye greet children waving the two countries’ national flags during a welcome ceremony at South Korea’s presidential Blue House. For his first visit to the neighboring country since taking office， Xi made the unusual move of visiting only South Korea； it is rare for China’s top leaders to visit a single country in a single trip. Accompanied by a large business delegation composed of several of the country’s leading telecommunications tycoons， the tightly scheduled trip focused primarily on economic cooperation and strategic communication amidst a changing situation in northeast Asia. The two sides confirmed over 90 cooperative programs covering 23 fields， including a deal to establish arrangements for the Chinese yuan’s clearance in Seoul， and agreed to push for the completion of negotiations on a free-trade agreement by year-end， which will not only deepen bilateral ties but also greatly promote the process of economic integration among Asian countries.

Kim Hong-Ji/REUTERS

Merkel Explores Sichuan Cuisine

July 6， Chengdu， Sichuan Province： German chancellor Angela Merkel learns to cook kung pao chicken， a spicy Sichuan dish made with chicken， peanuts， vegetables， and chili peppers， from a Chinese chef at a traditional Sichuan restaurant during her visit to Chengdu. Earlier， Merkel experienced Chengdu street life as she visited an open market and bought a bag of broad bean paste for 5 yuan （$0.8）. Invited by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang， Merkel started her 3-day visit to China on July 6. With business cooperation in mind， she chose Chengdu as her first stop， a place that German companies regard as a springboard to relatively underdeveloped western regions of China， and visited the Chengdu FAW-Volkswagen Factory. This is Merkel’s seventh visit to China. CFP

Paving the BRICS’ Road Ahead

July 15， Fortaleza： Chinese President Xi Jinping （2nd R）， Russian President Vladimir Putin （L）， Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi （2nd L）， Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff （C） and South African President Jacob Zuma （R） pose together during the 6th BRICS Summit. Leaders of these five countries held their annual summit in Brazil from July 15 to 16， where they signed a deal to create a New Development Bank. Headquartered in Shanghai， the bank will have an initial authorized capital of US$100 billion， and its initial subscribed capital of $50 billion is equally contributed by its founding members. With the move， BRICS countries are a step closer to having a bigger say in the world’s financial system. Xinhua

What a Rush！

June 30， Jiyuan， Henan Province： Tourists admire water gushing from the Xiaolangdi Reservoir into the Yellow River， China’s second-longest waterway， during a sand-washing operation. Xiaolangdi Water Control Project， a world-class water project， is noted for the longest dam and biggest storage capacity on the Yellow River. Since its inception in 2002， the operation has been performed 14 times before. By discharging water from the reservoir， excessive sediment in the Yellow River can flow into the sea and the waterway is cleared. Before the operation， because the water carries tons of sand and the silt deposits build up throughout the year， the river bed rises and the water flow in the lower reaches slows. The Yellow River has been plagued by related problems frequently. To showcase the splendid scene created by the operation， the Yellow River Xiaolangdi Waterfall-Watching Festival has been held annually since 2005. Every year it attracts thousands of domestic and foreign visitors. This year the festival kicked off on June 30， lasting until July 5. The rushing water stunningly seemed to “come from the sky”. IC

Slick Police Recruitment Posters

July 2， Chengdu， Sichuan Province： A recruitment poster inspired by Hong Kong action films is released by the Chengdu Police Department on their official Weibo account， featuring a SWAT team with weapons drawn. Chengdu Police reportedly aims to fill 359 positions in their police force， including 174 posts in an integrated management team and 100 posts in special armed forces and SWAT teams. Within these teams， 11 to 20 positions are reserved for females. Another 8 of the 100 special armed forces posts are specifically tailored for veterans of the People’s Liberation Army or Chinese Armed Police Force. Candidates are required to perform well in wrestling， kickboxing， shooting， and climbing and should have knowledge of military tactics. Also， 21 posts require talent in various sports， such as basketball， football， volleyball and swimming. IC

Embracing the Age of Robots

July 9， Shanghai： Visitors watch a robot solve a Rubik’s cube. China seems ready to embrace the age of robots if attendance at the three-day China International Robot Show is any indication. Visitors left even more confident about China’s thriving robotics industry. The expo， encompassing some 16，000 square meters， attracted more than 200 companies from over 50 countries and regions. Many global heavyweights took part in this year’s show， including Comau Group from Italy， Staubli Robotics from Switzerland and Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. from Japan. China became the world’s largest robotics market last year with a total of 27，000 industrial robots sold in the country by overseas companies， up 20 percent year-on-year. Noting the industry’s rapid changes， President Xi Jinping reiterated Wednesday that the technical level and manufacturing capability of Chinese robots should improve as soon as possible in order to secure the lion’s share of the market. Ding Ting/Xinhua

Beating Heat with Floating Mahjong

July 8， Chongqing： Splashing could become a new mahjong strategy to distract competitors. Some Chongqing residents have begun to play mahjong at a water park to have fun while cooling off. The hottest summer days usually hit China in the month of July. When xiaoshu （“a little hot”） on the Chinese lunar calendar， July 7 this year， passed， every Chinese person began expecting the year’s worst heat waves. Chongqing Municipality in southwestern China issued an orange alert， the third highest level on a fourth-tiered color-coded warning system， on Tuesday， with the temperature in some areas reaching 37 degrees Celsius. CNS

Dining in the Sky

July 9， Shanghai： Diners eat at 50 meters above Lujiazui Financial District in Pudong for the China premiere of Dinner in the Sky. All diners were tightly bound to their chairs by seat belts. After 4 years of planning and preparation， Four Seasons Hotel Pudong teamed with the Belgian brains behind the novel concept and a local partner， Events in the Sky （Asia） Ltd.， to launch the China premiere of a formidable public relations stunt high above solid ground. For 1，888 （US$302） to 8，888 yuan （US$1，430） per person， patrons get a fancy， close and personal view of the skyline. IC

Quotes

“Some say I’m the adopted son of Premier Zhou Enlai， which is not exactly true because Premier Zhou and Aunt Deng took in many martyrs’ children. They cared for a lot of children of other fallen comrades.”

-Li Peng， former Chinese Premier， in his new memoir

“To this day I have never bought a single item on Taobao.com. And I have never used Alipay， either – I don’t even know how to use it. However， I strain my ears to hear people’s comments about whether it’s good or not. ”

- Jack Ma， chairman of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.， giving a commencement speech at the Graduation Ceremony for Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management

Quotes

“I never trim my fingernails because I save them for biting. It’s a pity I can’t reach my toenails. If I could， I would definitely do it.”

-Ning Caishen， a popular Chinese screenwriter， describing to journalists his manic episodes while writing. Heavy loads of writing pushed him to turn to drugs for inspiration. Ultimately， he was busted by police.

Buzzwords

BMW族 BMWer （Commuters by bus， metro and walking） >>>

BMW is an abbreviation for Bus/Bicycle， Metro and Walking. In metropolises like Beijing， many live far from their workplaces because of sky-high housing prices. Every day， they take a bus or bicycle just to reach the nearest metro station. After taking the subway， they walk another ten to twenty minutes to finally reach their destination. Commuters spend considerable time and energy on such a long 3-legged journey， yet the tally of “BMW” commuters continues growing.