By Huma Sheikh
http://www.cctv.com/english/20090502/101057.shtml
BEIJING, April 30 (Xinhuanet) -- Clearing the skies has been a major cause for concern for Beijing. The capital city has recently put in place a new pollution limits regulation for cars in Beijing to control climate-changing gases. Thousands of cars a day add to the list of Beijing's millions of vehicles, setting the stage for more pollution and traffic jam woes. The capital city is the hardest hit by the sweeping number of cars and during the peak time, a five-kilometer stretch could take a passenger a couple of hours to cover it. The new traffic rule follows the earlier Olympic and post-Olympic restrictions on vehicles. In order to help improve air quality during the Olympics and Paralympics last year, Beijing restricted use of vehicles through a system based on odd, even numbers. The system, which was in place from July 20 to September 20 in 2008, allowed cars with even number as their last digit on the number plate to hit the roads on even number days while cars with an odd last digit number would run on odd number days. The rule applied to an odd-even license plate system alternately. The rules were, however not applied to public buses, taxis, long-distance transportation and police cars, fire trucks, ambulance, wrecking cars or Olympic-used cars. During the two-month period, the system helped limit 45 percent cars and cleared the skies. But as the ban was lifted on September 20, traffic jams resumed. The government, after Olympic regulations showed promise, came up with another six-month rule to cut release of climate-changing pollution, especially carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels. It adopted a regulation with relatively fewer restrictions. In post-Olympics car restrictions, from October 11,2008 to April 10, 2009, cars with number plates ending one or six were off the roads on Mondays, while those ending with two or seven on Tuesdays, three or eight on Wednesdays, four or nine Thursdays and five or zero Fridays. Weekends were free of the ban. The ban was effective from 6 am to 9 pm each day, excluding weekends. The ban also applied to government vehicles as 70 percent of them would take turns to run on roads on weekdays. However, it did not apply to police vehicles, ambulances, fire engines, buses, taxis and other public service vehicles. While the environmental protection regulation generated remarkable results-- removing more than a million vehicles from the streets each day--people were confused about the one-month rotation of the rules. In other words, a car owner who was off the roads on Mondays in the previous month had to drive on Mondays in the current month and the process rotated the same way throughout the six-month rule. The current rules, which took effect from April 10, 2009 and last a year, are designed to address confusion of people. Now a person can stick to his same off-day schedule for 13 weeks in a row than the four-week regulation previously while the number-based regulation will remain the same; cars with license plates ending with zero or five will be banned from the roads on Monday, plates ending with one or six on Tuesday, two or seven on Wednesday and so on.
There has been another change in the new traffic regulation. The ban will be effective from 7am to 8 pm on weekdays instead of the previous 6 am-9 pm rule.
The new rules are expected to take off the roads 20 percent of the city's 3.61 million vehicles each day, excluding on weekends.
"I felt like I saw the sky in Beijing for the first time during the Olympics. The sky would always be hazier in Beijing, but during the Olympics, I actually saw the blue sky. I liked it so much. It was such a visible and clear sky. I hope the government make the current rules as stricter as during the Olympics," said Pliny, a colleague of mine at Xinhuanet. Chris, another colleague, said the new rules are more convenient for people, especially for car owners. The two-hour relaxation from the previous regulation has given a chance to car owners to avail the time. In other words, they can enjoy early morning drive until 7 am and drive for a few hours after 8 pm.
"I am in favor of traffic rules in Beijing, given the terrible traffic situation here. It is a great relief from huge traffic jams, even though some car owners are troubled by the regulation," said Amy.
Karl said: " I fully support the current traffic rules. Although I don't own a car, seeing less cars on the streets while I walk down to my university and work place, presents a better picture of traffic management in Beijing besides providing a cleaner environment."
"I feel bad because I can't drive everyday now. But it is a wake up call for all of us, especially when climate change caused by gas emissions is increasingly threatening lives of people. It is high time that we all kept our environment clean and look for a chance to contribute to it in one way or the other," says a car owner.
Another car owner said: "before Olympics, I hardly realized how hard it was for people in public buses to travel amid serpentine line of cars. But when I started using public transportation it opened my eyes to the reality. The explosion in number of cars in Beijing is a major contributor to Beijing's hazier skies."
Saturday, May 2, 2009
"Satisfying your taste buds in China"
By Huma Sheikh
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-04/14/content_11183997.htm
BEIJING, April 13 (Xinhuanet) -- When thinking of some fine dining experience, China comes to mind! The country offers great cuisines of the world cooked in myriad ways. You can find world's best platter on table in China and dine on foods you have ever eaten anywhere. China's unique variety of cuisines represents different customs and style based on different parts of China. For example, each province in China has different kinds of cooking style and specialties. Some of the best-known Chinese cuisines today are Cantonese, Shanghai, Mongolian-Shandong, Sichuan-Hunan and Beijing. The Beijing (Peking) duck is one of the national foods of China. The roast duck is the famous attraction of the visitors from across the world, which is served thin and crispy in a duck-shaped platter and sliced before diners by the cook.
While Northern food is a little spicy, Sichuan cuisine is highly spicy with peanuts as its special ingredient for most of the dishes. Hunan cuisine is also hot but with moderate use of chili pepper.
Mongolian food is served in large meat chunks to be eaten with Mongolian-style knife or else barbequed or roasted. Cantonese food is defined by its variety, the freshness of its ingredients and its delicate sauces and seasoning. Fruit, vegetables, and seafood, such as crabs, prawns, abalone, and squid, are its popular cooking ingredients.
Shanghai cuisines, on the other hand, are delicately seasoned. The special feature of Shanghai food is sugar -- more sugar is used in its dishes than in any other part of China.
Hot pot, a bubbling broth container simmering in the middle of the dining table, is a popular dish in almost every part of China. The meat is cooked in the hot water along with vegetables. Both together are then dipped in spicy sauces and condiments and eaten with round sesame buns.
Then there is another uniqueness found in Chinese cuisine.
A simple dish of spinach and eggs cooked in various styles tastes so different that you won't feel you just had eaten the same dish an hour ago in another restaurant. The knack of Chinese chefs for cooking wide range of specialties in different styles is amazing.
But it was different on this day!
Had it not for Mr Zhang, an overseas Chinese, who called the Aquatic Wildlife Protection Center (Guangzhou), the nurse shark would have found its place on the luxurious food menu of the China restaurants.
A Guangzhou restaurant had invited more than 70 clients to dine on a nurse shark on March 18. As the stage was set for the grand banquet, Mr Zhang informed the protection center and was even ready himself to donate ten thousand yuan to save the animal. The environmentalists intervened and recovered the nurse shark after shelling out 130 thousand yuan. The shark was kept for ornamental use for some time.
But due to the deteriorating health of the shark because of lack of quality water and food, it was not immediately released in the ocean. Guangzhou Ocean World provided the animal free medical service and kept the shark in a little pool during the observation. The shark was released a few days ago in the seawaters.
China has so much to serve to satisfy food cravings of people from across the world and the shark incident cannot cause much of the exuberance about the Chinese delicacies to evaporate. As the saying goes, "there are two great cuisines in the world -- the Chinese and the French. And the Chinese cuisine is traditionally much older than the French".
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-04/14/content_11183997.htm
BEIJING, April 13 (Xinhuanet) -- When thinking of some fine dining experience, China comes to mind! The country offers great cuisines of the world cooked in myriad ways. You can find world's best platter on table in China and dine on foods you have ever eaten anywhere. China's unique variety of cuisines represents different customs and style based on different parts of China. For example, each province in China has different kinds of cooking style and specialties. Some of the best-known Chinese cuisines today are Cantonese, Shanghai, Mongolian-Shandong, Sichuan-Hunan and Beijing. The Beijing (Peking) duck is one of the national foods of China. The roast duck is the famous attraction of the visitors from across the world, which is served thin and crispy in a duck-shaped platter and sliced before diners by the cook.
While Northern food is a little spicy, Sichuan cuisine is highly spicy with peanuts as its special ingredient for most of the dishes. Hunan cuisine is also hot but with moderate use of chili pepper.
Mongolian food is served in large meat chunks to be eaten with Mongolian-style knife or else barbequed or roasted. Cantonese food is defined by its variety, the freshness of its ingredients and its delicate sauces and seasoning. Fruit, vegetables, and seafood, such as crabs, prawns, abalone, and squid, are its popular cooking ingredients.
Shanghai cuisines, on the other hand, are delicately seasoned. The special feature of Shanghai food is sugar -- more sugar is used in its dishes than in any other part of China.
Hot pot, a bubbling broth container simmering in the middle of the dining table, is a popular dish in almost every part of China. The meat is cooked in the hot water along with vegetables. Both together are then dipped in spicy sauces and condiments and eaten with round sesame buns.
Then there is another uniqueness found in Chinese cuisine.
A simple dish of spinach and eggs cooked in various styles tastes so different that you won't feel you just had eaten the same dish an hour ago in another restaurant. The knack of Chinese chefs for cooking wide range of specialties in different styles is amazing.
But it was different on this day!
Had it not for Mr Zhang, an overseas Chinese, who called the Aquatic Wildlife Protection Center (Guangzhou), the nurse shark would have found its place on the luxurious food menu of the China restaurants.
A Guangzhou restaurant had invited more than 70 clients to dine on a nurse shark on March 18. As the stage was set for the grand banquet, Mr Zhang informed the protection center and was even ready himself to donate ten thousand yuan to save the animal. The environmentalists intervened and recovered the nurse shark after shelling out 130 thousand yuan. The shark was kept for ornamental use for some time.
But due to the deteriorating health of the shark because of lack of quality water and food, it was not immediately released in the ocean. Guangzhou Ocean World provided the animal free medical service and kept the shark in a little pool during the observation. The shark was released a few days ago in the seawaters.
China has so much to serve to satisfy food cravings of people from across the world and the shark incident cannot cause much of the exuberance about the Chinese delicacies to evaporate. As the saying goes, "there are two great cuisines in the world -- the Chinese and the French. And the Chinese cuisine is traditionally much older than the French".
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