1 . Once a year in a small mountain village, the Mande people gather to hear the folk stories of their traditions. The man playing an instrument called Sosso-Bala while singing is the storyteller. He holds all the folk knowledge of the Mande people.

Most of us don’t have a musical instrument that ties us together, but we have someone in our lives who’s the keeper of our folk knowledge. Often it’s a grandmother, who keeps all our stories of wisdom ready to tell upon request.    1     .What’s the best way to get a baby to sleep? Where do I come from? What’s my moral compass? The stories provide an answer, and it’s useful to speak with someone who knows how things are done.

    2     Researchers have documented folk knowledge in other species whales returning to parts of the sea that they’d abandoned a generation before; monkeys that communicate hunting skills to their offspring (后代). Folk knowledge is not only culture, it’s also survival.    3    

Traditionally, we share it in small units—families sharing around a dinner table.    4    Look at any social median, and you’ll see folk knowledge at work and at play. It’s exploded as we’re trained to look for information online, rather than from within. In this case, chances are that our questions can be answered with misinformation.

But we don’t gather once a year to reality check our “folk stories” as the Mande people do; nor do we center our folk traditions around a musical instrument. The internet has no reality except its own and, left unchecked, its wisdom has no rhythm(节奏).    5    

2 . My mom is an immigrant from China. She speaks Mandarin. She is culturally and ethnically Chinese. She cooks Chinese food every night. She even complains when the local restaurants are not authentic — according to her, most of them are awful.

But weirdly enough, she also enjoys American Chinese food. When she wants to meet with her friends, who are also Chinese immigrants, she likes to have lunch with them at P. F. Chang’s. She likes Panda Express, and she is quick to point it out whenever we are at a food court with one.

Why, then, does American Chinese food seem to have a bad reputation among Chinese Americans? I see this kind of sentiment on the Internet: how American Chinese food, like Panda Express, isn’t “real” Chinese food, how it’s so much worse than actual Chinese food, how it’s “fake” and “unauthentic,” or when people joke about how eating it would be a disgrace to their family. While a lot of these things are technically true, they give American Chinese food too much flack.

American Chinese food deserves to be seen as its own legitimate cuisine. It’s important to distinguish American Chinese food from authentic Chinese food. They are not the same cuisine and should not be treated the same.

Like American Chinese food, many foods are borrowed from different cultures. Ramen (拉面) originated from China, but we associate it with Japan because Japanese people made their own version of the dish. Japan also has its own form of curry (咖喱). Should we avoid Japanese ramen and Japanese curry, then? Of course not, and American Chinese cuisine isn’t even the only variation of Chinese cuisine that exists: Indian Chinese cuisine is a popular fusion spin-off, for example.

In fact, American Chinese food is often created by Chinese immigrants themselves adapting their cuisine to cater to the American taste palette. It’s not necessarily a bad thing to have to adapt, as people from different countries will always have differences in taste; that’s just how it is. So there’s nothing wrong with going out to an American Chinese restaurant, because chances are that you’re supporting a “real” Chinese business. In this way, American Chinese food actually is real Chinese food.

3 . With a few hours until curtain call, a quiet but noticeable energy fills the backstage dressing room of the famous Sunbeam Theatre, known as “Hong Kong’s Grand Palace for Cantonese Opera” Tonight, it’s the annual Rose family performance.

Some of the performers are eating takeout boxes of food, sure to sustain them through the bows-long show ahead. Others are getting a head start on their make-up. A few are being helped into their colorful costumes by eager assistants.

But there is something unexpectedly unusual about this particular performance that becomes obvious as soon as the curtains rise some of the people on stage aren’t Chinese.

Mike Brady, who comes from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, stands on stage in full costume. But he has never seen a Cantonese Opera, let alone been in one. As a background character, he has no spoken lines.

This unlikely actor owes his first performance to Lyle Rose, a fellow American who stands next to him in a similar costume. When it comes to performing, Lyle, a native New Yorker who now lives in Hong Kong, is not as green of a performer as Mike; in fact, he is the mastermind behind tonight’s show.

The entire Rose family is on stage. Mike himself is actually a new addition to the group: his daughter recently married Lyle’s younger son.

Cantonese Opera is a family affair for Lyle. Every year, Lyle, his wife, Cynthia Hu-Rose, a Hong Konger, and two sons put on a performance to raise money for local charities. But their true purpose for doing it is simply to introduce people to it. Though Cantonese Opera remains an important part of Hong Kong culture, it has to compete with many other forms of entertainment for the attention of younger generations, who associate n with their grandparents. “We love Cantonese Opera,” Lyle said. “We want people of all ages to come and watch.”

4 . Books are the most valuable cultural heritage. However, there are many ancient Chinese classics suffering from different degrees of damage due to various reasons.     1    

Bai Yuzhi,a post-90s restorer (修复师) at the Wuhan Library,graduated from Wuhan University in 2016 with a major in restoring ancient books. She is now the fourth generation of restorers at the Wuhan Library, Bai started practicing this technique during her after-class activities at college in 2014.     2     “I’m shy and not good at socializing, so this job suits me very well,” she said

    3     The restoration steps cannot be rushed. When restorers receive an ancient book, their first task is not to directly restore it but to observe it and record the book’s important details. After that, the restorers will open the book,remove every page, and repair it on the back side.     4     It may take one or two days to restore a single page. So it could take at least a month to complete the restoration of a whole book.

Bai has restored about 10,000 pages of ancient books in her over 10 years of work. The most difficult part of the restoration, according to her, is keeping everything under exact control over every stage.     5     If the paste (面糊) is too thin, the repaired pages may easily come off and become broken, which could affect the quality of the restoration. However, if the paste is too thick, the fixed pages will be tough, challenging to open.

With the advancement of science and digital technology, the methods for protecting ancient books have become more various.

6 . Yunnan offers exciting experiences of unique customs. If you are already planning to visit Yunnan, see our festival tours.

The Torch (火把) Festival

Date: July /August (days 24 to 26 of the sixth lunar month)

Location: Lijiang

It is a traditional festival among the Yi, Naxi, and Bai minority (少数民族) groups. According to the ancient rule of the Naxi people, the Torch Festival should last three days, and every family should light a big torch in front of their doors for the three days.

Recommended Tour: 3-Day Ancient Lijiang Tour

The Water Splashing (泼酒) Festival

Date: April 13 to 15

Location: Xishuangbanna

It is the most important festival observed by the Dai people of Xishuangbanna in southen Yunnan. It involves splashing water, lantern floating and other joyful activities.

Recommended tour: 6-Day Xishaungbanna Tour

The Horse Race Festival

Date: May/June (5th of the fifth lunar month)

Location: Shangri-la

Falling on the same date as the Dragon Boat Festival, it is the biggest gathering of Tibetans in Yunnan and usually lasts about 3 days. During the celebrations, traditional performances and competitions like horse racing and wrestling (摔跤) will beheld.

Recommended tour: 8-Day Yunnan Tour of the Nu River and Tengchong

The Third Month Fair of the Bai Group

Date: April /May(days 15 to 21 of the third lunar month)

Location: Dali

It is one of the most important festivals celebrated by the Bai people in Dali in western Yunnan. During the March Fair, the streets of Dali Ancient Town are packed with people selling amazing minority items.

Recommended tour: 6-Day Yunnan Minorities Tour

10 . Today we are going to talk about the expression: A rolling stone gathers no moss (苔藓). Most of you probably know that a stone is the same thing as a rock. But what about moss?

Moss is a very soft, green plant. It has very small leaves and does not flower. It loves shade and water, so moss grows well on wet ground, trees and rocks. In fact, rocks and stones that line shady creeks (小溪) and rivers are often mossy. Moss grows slowly and is a rootless plant. It spreads well over non-moving surfaces. In fact, to prevent moss from growing on stones in your garden, you can just move the rocks around, turning them over now and then.

Why? Just as the saying goes, “A rolling stone gathers no moss.” Writer Shelley Gollust explained that the saying can be understood in a couple of ways. It can mean that a person who never settles down in one place will not gather wealth or long-lasting relationships. The moss that slowly spreads across the rock represents the money and friends we make over time.

But there is another way we use this expression. Think about a rolling stone. It leads a carefree life, on the move with no moss to worry about. People who are “rolling stones” live without the restrictions that come with responsibilities. They go anywhere anytime they want. And they don’t stay anywhere long enough to form attachments (爱恋). A free spirit is also a term we use to describe such a person. They are not tied down with lots of traditional responsibilities.

A rolling stone could also be described as “nomadic (游牧的)”. Experts at the Merriam-Webster online dictionary define (下定义) a nomad as “a member of a group of people who move from place to place”. Often nomads move around to find food. However, these days we can use the word “nomadic” to describe anyone who moves around a lot.