【推荐2】Famous American poet Robert Frost once said, “Poetry is what gets lost in translation.” Although it is not impossible to translate poetry, Xu Yuanchong, a well-known Chinese translator, has striven to convey the beauty of ancient Chinese poetry throughout his life.   

His teacher Qian Zhongshu commented on his poetry translation, “You are dancing while chained by rhyme (押韵) and rhythm, but the dance shows amazing freedom and beauty, which is quite extraordinary.”

Xu has just turned 100 years old. On April 1, China Translation and Publishing House published a series of commemorative (纪念的) books about his life and career to pay tribute to this centenarian.

Since 1978, Xu has published more than 100 translated novels, anthologies (选集) and plays in Chinese, English and French, reaching potentially millions of readers at home and abroad. Most notably, he translated Chinese poems into rhymed verses in both English and French. He is also the first Asian winner of the “Aurora Borealis Prize” for Outstanding Translation of Fiction Literature.

Xu is known to be very fastidious in his work. He has dedicated his life to“[translating] beautifully”. For him, English is a “scientific” language that demands accuracy, while Chinese is an “artistic” language that includes a wider range of content. Following this principle, Xu not only keeps faithfulness in sense but beauty in sensibility in his translation.

Through Xu’s translations, time-honored Chinese wisdom has made an impact on Western societies and the world at large.

For instance, when former US president Barack Obama tried to begin a controversial healthcare reform during his presidency, some senators (参议员) were opposed at first. But after reading the poem titled Fishing in Snow (《江雪》) translated by Xu, one senator was so impressed with the fisherman’s independent, non-conformist (不墨守成规的) thinking that he chose to part with the party line to support Obama, noted NewsChina.

Having made such great achievements, the 100-year-old remains diligent. He lives alone in an old house near Peking University. In his simple room, decorated with Chinese traditional furniture, he maintains a routine. Every day he translates roughly 1,000 words, working till 3 to 4 am, sleeping about 3 hours and getting up at 6 am to continue.

“Translation is a means of communicating with the writer’s soul. A sudden flicker (闪现) of [a] good word or [a] good line thrills every pore (毛孔) and every inch of my skin,” Xu told NewsChina.

【推荐3】Choosing where to lay your head in London can be a tricky affair. But with a lot of fashionable design hotels to choose from, you can surely book into a satisfying one. Trust us.

The Ham Yard Hotel

If you need to be in Mayfair or Soho, Ham Yard is perfectly located as it's housed in an “urban village” setting at the bottom of Regent Street. The light-filled modern building is decorated with signature Kit Kemp inside.

Doubles from £ 662 per night

The Hoxton Hotel

East London's first "destination" hotel opened in 2006 and it's since won fans for its affordable rooms in a great location. Sure, its “shoebox" rooms are on the small side, but they're smartly designed and you'll get a fridge filled with snacks, a cool phone to use and fast WiFi.

Doubles from £ 138 per night

The Artist Residence Hotel

Occupying a handsome five-storey terrace in Pimlico, this hotel's grand surroundings cover up its cool inside. You'll find other artist living houses in Brighton, Penzance and Oxfordshire, but the touches to this London branch make it a must-visit.

Doubles from £ 225 per night

The Great Northern Hotel

London's first railway hotel has just got a multi-million-pound redecoration. Dating back to 1854, the Great Northern Hotel now stands proud between the Eurostar's St. Pancras terminal and King's Cross. Mini rooms modelled on sleeper carriages sit beside store rooms filled with tea, coffee and cakes, but the main attractive thing is the extra hours' sleep you'll get being so close to the train platform ----we calculate it as a three-minute dash.

Doubles from £ 188 per night

【推荐2】What makes one a great person? The legendary volleyball coach Lang Ping gave the answer in the recent documentary The Iron Hammer, titled after her nickname for her powerful strikes.

The documentary features Lang' s inspiring journey from her gold medal victory as a volleyball player in the 1984 Olympics to her unparalleled (无可比拟的)career as a successful coach for both Team USA from 2005 to 2008 and China since 2013. She led the US to a silver medal finish and China to a gold medal triumph in the 2008 and 2016 Olympic Games, making her the first person to win Olympic volleyball gold as a player and coach.

Lang Ping revealed the secret to such remarkable achievements in the documentary. “I believe volleyball was my destiny," she said.

But success and challenges go hand in hand. Troubled by severe injuries to her cervical vertebra (颈椎),back, waist and knees, caused by intense exercise and hard work, the 60-year-old has undergone more than 10 surgeries. “No parts of my body function well," she joked.

But illness is certainly not the only difficulty Lang has faced throughout her career. In 2005, she struggled with balancing raising her daughter Lydia Bai Lang, who lived in the US, and her coaching career, according to China Sports Daily. She eventually decided to work for USA Volleyball that year and this decision aroused a lot of negative comments back in China.

“I'm proud of being Chinese.” Lang responded in an interview. Later, she returned to head the Chinese women 's volleyball team in 2013, leading the team successfully defending its World Cup crown with a perfect record of 11 straight wins last year.

There is no doubt that Lang is one of the greatest players and coaches in history. As an athlete commented in the documentary, “Lang Ping is like Michael Jordan in our minds.”

【推荐3】Being highly successful in any field is pretty rare. It takes a combination of natural talent, luck, determination, and plenty of outside support for someone to make it big in sports, entertainment, or business. But what if competing is all that matters to you, whether you are likely to succeed or not? This was the goal of Michael Eddie the Eagle Edwards, and that he reached that goal was an amazing achievement.

Born in the U.K. in 1963, Michael was an enthusiastic downhill skier whose dream was to compete for Britain in world-class competitions. He would have liked to represent his country in the 1984 Winter Olympics, but there were a large number of downhill competitors, and Edwards didn't qualify. Seeing his chance elsewhere, he switched to ski jumping. Ski jumping didn't cost nearly as much, and there was almost no competition for a place on the Britain team.

But number of hurdles (障碍)could have meant the end of Edwards' dream. He weighed more than most competitors, which put him at a disadvantage. He had no financial support for his training. Poor eyesight meant that he had to wear glasses under his goggles (护目镜)- not a good thing when they steamed up at high altitudes. But he couldn't let any of this discourage him. He saw himself as a true lover of the sport who simply wanted the chance to compete. Winning wasn't the point. Having the opportunity to try was all he cared about. And nothing could stop him from trying.

In the end, Edwards took 55th place in the 1987 World Championships. He then went on to the Calgary Olympics in 1988, where he finished last in both of his events. Many athletes would have been embarrassed by this result, but he is proud of his achievement to this day. His determination to fight against all the odds made him a global hero, and in 2016, the inspiring film Eddie the Eagle was made about his life.