1 . Psychologists tell us that there are four basic stages that human beings pass through when they enter and live in a new culture.

Culture begins with the “honeymoon stage”. This is the period of time when we first arrive in a country where everything about the new culture is strange and exciting. We may be suffering from “jet lag” but we are thrilled to be in the new environment, seeing new sights, hearing new sounds and language, eating new kinds of food.

Unfortunately, after we have settled down into our new life, we can become very tired and begin to miss our homeland and our family, friends, pets. All the little problems in life seem to be much bigger and more disturbing when you face them in a foreign culture.

The third stage comes when you begin to realize that things are not so bad in the host culture. Your sense of humor usually becomes stronger and you realize that you are becoming stronger by learning to take care of yourself in the new place. Things are still difficult, but you are now a survivor.

The fourth stage can be called “at ease at last”. Now you feel quite comfortable in your new surroundings. You can cope with most problems that occur. You may still have problems with the language, but you know you are strong enough to deal with them.

There is a fifth stage of culture shock which many people don’t know about. This is called “reverse culture shock”. Surprisingly, this occurs when you go back to your native culture and find that you have changed and that things there have changed while you have been away. Now you feel a little uncomfortable back home. Life is a struggle!

2 . Being called “nerd (书呆子)” was a bad thing in the past.

That is happily different now, says Sarah Jane, director at the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center, which is home to the exhibit “Obsessed: The Art of Nerd-dom” through March 15. “I think the majority of my friends are nerdier than I am,” she said, “and I mean that in a my friends are cooler than I am kind of way.”

Jane said the development of the Internet certainly helped blossom (兴旺) connecting people with shared interests across geographies. Now, it’s almost mainstream-exhibitions of nerd culture fill convention halls, comic book superheroes and science fiction stories are the focus of blockbuster (重磅) movies, and more.

“It has made being a nerd less of an isolating experience, and more of a community experience because you’re connecting with other people who have that shared interest, “she said.

Holladay, the co-curator (副馆长) spoke up in a meeting about what the coming exhibition season would look like. “I knew of another nerdy exhibition that had happened in LA recently. . . and I just thought ‘you know, I bet there are nerdy artists on the(Olympic)Peninsula and in Washington who have really quality work, where the subject matter might not fit into most exhibits’, “she said.

And she wasn’t surprised when they received plenty of recommendations. “My theory was that nerds are everywhere, “she said. “Once I got in touch with the right people, everyone was coming out of the woodwork.”

The exhibit features comic art, and things like Pokemon cards arranged in a collage (拼贴画). One work invites viewers to imagine the unique talents and abilities they have as superpowers they bring to the world. Holladay says the evolution of the idea of nerd culture has been positive over the past several years.

4 . Psychologists tell us that there are four basic stages that human beings pass through when they enter and live in a new culture.

Culture begins with the “honeymoon stage”. This is the period of time when we first arrive in a country where everything about the new culture is strange and exciting. We may be suffering from “jet lag” but we are thrilled to be in the new environment, seeing new sights, hearing new sounds and language, eating new kinds of food.

Unfortunately, after we have settled down into our new life, we can become very tired and begin to miss our homeland and our family, friends, pets. All the little problems in life seem to be much bigger and more disturbing when you face them in a foreign culture.

The third stage comes when you begin to realize that things are not so bad in the host culture. Your sense of humor usually becomes stronger and you realize that you are becoming stronger by learning to take care of yourself in the new place. Things are still difficult, but you are now a survivor.

The fourth stage can be called “at ease at last”. Now you feel quite comfortable in your new surroundings. You can cope with most problems that occur. You may still have problems with the language, but you know you are strong enough to deal with them.

There is a fifth stage of culture shock which many people don’t know about. This is called “reverse culture shock”. Surprisingly, this occurs when you go back to your native culture and find that you have changed and that things there have changed while you have been away. Now you feel a little uncomfortable back home. Life is a struggle!

5 . It’s been nearly two decades since the traditional clothing style Hanfu first started to reemerge in China. Since then it has gone from a small cultural movement celebrating an ancient fashion to a trend that is booming on social media, having been adopted by China’s Generation Z as a means of connecting with their past. Instead of following other cultures blindly, Generation Z now have different opinions about what trend is by promoting local culture while having an objective view of exotic cultural products.

The new tastes of Generation Z—young people born after 1995—are well represented on Bilibili. In the recent New Year’s Eve gala presented by Bilibili, it attracted more than 100 million views within 48 hours with a colourful set of programmes ranging from Peking Opera to classical Chinese cartoons. The same is also true of movie industry. Last year, for the first time, the top 10 most viewed films in China were all domestic films, while the ticket sales for imported films have dropped to only 16.28 percent.

”Generation Z grew up with the rapid development of China and under good economic conditions. With the development of the Chinese Internet industry, they have more access to diverse international information and culture, which bring them a much broader vision and makes them more open and confident in analyzing foreign culture. Apart from taking pride in China’s rapid development, this generation also pursues individuality and values devotion to the country,“ Professor Zhang Yiwu said.

He also noted that the popular rock and punk culture pursued by the 70s and 80s generation is more of a challenge against real life and local culture. Some people who were born in the 1970s and 1980s did not grow up in the Internet age—they experienced the transformation of China going from poor to rich first-hand. This kind of longing and admiration of the West came from a lack of confidence.

However, Generation Z now have the confidence to look at Western culture with equal status. This kind of cultural confidence will result in China being more active and creative in its development on the international stage in the future.

8 . There is an old saying in China that goes, “The days of the Sanjiu period are the coldest days.” “Sanjiu period”, which is in Minor (较小的) Cold, refers to the third nine-day period (the 19th to the 27th day) after the day of the Winter Solstice (冬至). There are many different customs related to Minor Cold in China.

Eating hotpot

During Minor Cold people should eat some hot food to benefit the body and defend against the cold weather. Winter is the best time to have hotpot and braised mutton with soy sauce. But it is important to notice that too much spicy food may cause health problems.

Eating huangyacai

In Tianjin, there is a custom to have huangyacai, a kind of Chinese cabbage, during Minor Cold. There are large amounts of vitamins A and B in huangyacai. As huangyacai is fresh and tender, it is fit for frying, roasting and braising.

Eating glutinous (黏的) rice

According to tradition, the Cantonese eat glutinous rice in the morning during Minor Cold. Cantonese people add some fried preserved (腌制的) pork, sausage and peanuts and mix them into the rice.

Eating vegetable rice

In ancient times, people in Nanjing took Minor Cold quite seriously, but as time went by, the celebration of Minor Cold gradually disappeared. However, the custom of eating vegetable rice is still followed today. The rice is steamed and is unspeakably delicious. Among the ingredients (原料), aijiaohuang (a kind of green vegetable), sausage and salted duck are the specialties in Nanjing.

10 . The wedding tradition of “something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue” has been around for hundreds of years. The tradition of carrying or wearing one of each item is said to bring luck and fortune to the newly married couple. Have you ever stopped to think what the saying really means? What is its origin and what does each item represent?

The original saying dates back to the Victoria times and states, “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a silver sixpence in your shoe.”

Something old A bride may wear or carry something old to represent her continued ties to her family and her old life. Many brides wear a piece of family jewelry as their old item. Some brides wear the wedding dress worn by their mother or grandmother. In many cases, something old may also be something borrowed.

Something new Wearing something new is supposed to represent success and hope in the bride’s new life and in her marriage. If the bride purchases her wedding dress, it may represent her new item, but any item that is new may be used. Something “new” is usually the easiest kind to fill.

Something borrowed The borrowed item should be something borrowed from a friend that is happily married. It is said that their happiness will rub off on you and bring lasting happiness to your marriage. Some brides borrow an item of clothing, a piece of jewelry, a handkerchief or perhaps a beaded (饰以珠子的) purse.

Something blue Wearing something blue dates back to ancient times when a blue wedding dress was worn to represent purity, fidelity and love.

A silver sixpence Placing a silver sixpence in the bride’s left shoe is said to be a symbol of wealth. This not only refers to financial wealth, but also a wealth of happiness and joy throughout her married life. Since most brides probably don’t even know what a sixpence is, this part of the tradition is not used very often in modern times. However, if a bride would like to include it in her wedding, she can purchase a silver sixpence from many companies that sell bridal supplies such as garters (袜带) and invitations.