BEIJING, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- The opening ceremony of the Beijing Paralympics will be rehearsed on Thursday evening.
About 6,000 actors and actresses, some of whom disabled, will stage performances at the ceremony which lasts about two hours and 50 minutes, sources said.
No fireworks display will be held during the rehearsal.
The 13th Paralympics are scheduled to open at 8:00 p.m. Saturday in the National Stadium, known as the "Bird's Nest". Around 4,000 athletes worldwide will compete in 20 events at the Games which run till Sept. 17.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
2200 Volunteers Ready for Paralympic Sailing Competition
2200 volunteers are ready for the Paralympic Sailing Competition which will be held from 8th to 13th in September.
These volunteers will be assigned to work in posts mainly providing services at Paralympic venues. Their work will include helping with guest reception, language translation, transportation, security and medical services, among other designated areas.
Systematic training has been organized, focusing on volunteers' abilities to help people with disabilities. Over 90 percent of the Paralympic volunteers had also served for the recently concluded Olympic Sailing Competition. All Paralympics volunteers are determined to be "promoters of the Olympic spirit" and "practitioners of the volunteer service concept," as well as "representatives of China's peaceful development image." Their patient, friendly attitudes will help deliver people-oriented services for the approaching Paralympic Games in the hopes of creating a warm and comfortable environment for athletes.
These volunteers will be assigned to work in posts mainly providing services at Paralympic venues. Their work will include helping with guest reception, language translation, transportation, security and medical services, among other designated areas.
Systematic training has been organized, focusing on volunteers' abilities to help people with disabilities. Over 90 percent of the Paralympic volunteers had also served for the recently concluded Olympic Sailing Competition. All Paralympics volunteers are determined to be "promoters of the Olympic spirit" and "practitioners of the volunteer service concept," as well as "representatives of China's peaceful development image." Their patient, friendly attitudes will help deliver people-oriented services for the approaching Paralympic Games in the hopes of creating a warm and comfortable environment for athletes.
Charm of the Sailing City at Night
Brilliantly Illuminated Terminal Building of Liuting Airport
the Unique Illuminated "Little Fish" Hill
the Illuminated Triumph Gate at Fuzhounan Road
A Sector of the Illuminated Hong Kong Road 
the Brilliant Donghai RoadThe impression of Qingdao at night to most people is its tranquility.
The starry sky, the murmuring wave, variegated shade of tall plane tree under road lamp? after the sunset, the city will wind up the bustle of the day time and return to its unique placidity and peace at night.
While it comes to the summer of 2008, when the Olympic Sailing Regatta debut here, this placidity of the city is stirred up by an unconquerable passion.
Sailboat set sail on many facet of skyscrapers, showing a dynamic beauty of the streets at night; the roadside lamp posts, decorated by the auspicious wind tell you the Olympic emotion surging in the city by the exciting red colour; to say nothing about the lamps in the Olympic Sailing Center, which resemble the expecting gaze of this city.
Through these images, we can feel that because of the Olympic Sailing Regatta, the city is seared with new mark.
The city becomes more and more comprehensive in these changes.
The starry sky, the murmuring wave, variegated shade of tall plane tree under road lamp? after the sunset, the city will wind up the bustle of the day time and return to its unique placidity and peace at night.
While it comes to the summer of 2008, when the Olympic Sailing Regatta debut here, this placidity of the city is stirred up by an unconquerable passion.
Sailboat set sail on many facet of skyscrapers, showing a dynamic beauty of the streets at night; the roadside lamp posts, decorated by the auspicious wind tell you the Olympic emotion surging in the city by the exciting red colour; to say nothing about the lamps in the Olympic Sailing Center, which resemble the expecting gaze of this city.
Through these images, we can feel that because of the Olympic Sailing Regatta, the city is seared with new mark.
The city becomes more and more comprehensive in these changes.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
A WORD IN YOUR EAR: KEEP IT SLOW AND SIMPLE
A WORD IN YOUR EAR: KEEP IT SLOW AND SIMPLE
By Michael Skapinker 2008-09-04
When I spoke to a recent Brussels conference of business translators, one of them asked me if the Financial Times had any plans to publish a separate edition in simplified English. Not that I knew of, I told him, although it was an interesting idea.
We have thousands of readers who are not native English speakers but whose knowledge of the language is sufficient to take in these pages every day. But there must be many others who grasp the financial concepts but find the English too complicated.
On the Eurostar back to London, I pondered what a simplified FT might look like. The first issue to tackle, I thought, would be vocabulary. In his book The English Language, David Crystal says that a medium-sized English dictionary has about 100,000 words in it. Even native speakers know only a fraction of these.
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“How many words does you know?” Ali G, Sacha Baron Cohen's faux-na?f television creation, once asked the linguistics luminary Noam Chomsky. Prof Chomsky said that mature humans usually knew tens of thousands of words. “What is some of them?” Ali G demanded. As the unsuspecting Prof Chomsky spluttered in amazement, Ali G told him: “Me know loads of words: parachute, photograph, spaghetti, camera.”
Mr Crystal, in his book, recounts an attempt to work out how many words the average native English-speaker does know. This involved taking a sample of entries from different parts of a dictionary and asking the subject to count how many she recognised. Extrapolating her answer to the whole dictionary suggested she understood 38,300 words and regularly used 31,500.
How many words would a non-native speaker need to understand a simplified form of English? Several people have investigated this over the years and have come up with a similar answer: fewer than 1,000. One of the pioneers of simplified language, Charles Kay Ogden, devised what he called Basic English in the 1920s. It used only 850 words – sufficient, he said, to communicate.
The Aerospace and Defence Industries Association of Europe, a champion of simplified English, has devised a system that uses no more than 900 words. The association's involvement demonstrates what often drives simplified English: the need for safety.
When pilots or sailors from different countries talk to each other, they usually do so in English. English is the international language and, in spite of challenges from Spanish or Mandarin, is likely to remain that way throughout our lifetimes.
Air traffic controllers, pilots and sailors began speaking to each other in English and soon developed a language they could all understand. A limited but effective vocabulary was one part of it, but they also needed forms of speech that they could all recognise. Misunderstandings meant people could die.
So in 1980, Mr Crystal writes, a project was set up on Essential English for International Maritime Use. Also known as Seaspeak, this relied on standard, easily understood phrases. So instead of “What did you say?” or “I can't hear you” or “Please repeat that”, sailors and coast guard officials were told to opt for “Say again.”
The European aerospace association's effort began a year earlier when the Association of European Airlines asked aircraft manufacturers to improve the comprehensibility of maintenance manuals. Many airline technicians were not native English speakers and found the documents difficult.
In 1986 the manufacturers issued their first guide to Simplified Technical English, which was then adopted by the Air Transport Association of America and has since become an international standard.
The standard is specific in its instructions, which aim to ensure that once someone has learnt a word in one form, they will not encounter it in another. So manufacturers are told the word “follow” should always mean “come after” and not “obey”. So you can say “obey the safety instructions” but not “follow the safety instructions”.
You can see why this might be useful in aircraft maintenance books but it would be unnecessarily restrictive in reporting the credit crisis.
But at least one news organisation has developed a simplified English service, and it did it some time back. The Voice of America broadcast its first programme in what it calls “Special English” in 1959.
This has a slightly bigger vocabulary – 1,500 words. It also has style rules: use short sentences that contain only one idea. Use the active voice. Do not use idioms. And above all, speak slowly. Special English broadcasters speak at two-thirds of normal speed.
To a native speaker, the effect is soporific. To a non-native speaker, the increase in comprehension must be thrilling. Simplified English may not be for everyone, but with the rise in the number of people around the world working in English, I suspect we will see more of it.
By Michael Skapinker 2008-09-04
When I spoke to a recent Brussels conference of business translators, one of them asked me if the Financial Times had any plans to publish a separate edition in simplified English. Not that I knew of, I told him, although it was an interesting idea.
We have thousands of readers who are not native English speakers but whose knowledge of the language is sufficient to take in these pages every day. But there must be many others who grasp the financial concepts but find the English too complicated.
On the Eurostar back to London, I pondered what a simplified FT might look like. The first issue to tackle, I thought, would be vocabulary. In his book The English Language, David Crystal says that a medium-sized English dictionary has about 100,000 words in it. Even native speakers know only a fraction of these.
document.writeln("");
“How many words does you know?” Ali G, Sacha Baron Cohen's faux-na?f television creation, once asked the linguistics luminary Noam Chomsky. Prof Chomsky said that mature humans usually knew tens of thousands of words. “What is some of them?” Ali G demanded. As the unsuspecting Prof Chomsky spluttered in amazement, Ali G told him: “Me know loads of words: parachute, photograph, spaghetti, camera.”
Mr Crystal, in his book, recounts an attempt to work out how many words the average native English-speaker does know. This involved taking a sample of entries from different parts of a dictionary and asking the subject to count how many she recognised. Extrapolating her answer to the whole dictionary suggested she understood 38,300 words and regularly used 31,500.
How many words would a non-native speaker need to understand a simplified form of English? Several people have investigated this over the years and have come up with a similar answer: fewer than 1,000. One of the pioneers of simplified language, Charles Kay Ogden, devised what he called Basic English in the 1920s. It used only 850 words – sufficient, he said, to communicate.
The Aerospace and Defence Industries Association of Europe, a champion of simplified English, has devised a system that uses no more than 900 words. The association's involvement demonstrates what often drives simplified English: the need for safety.
When pilots or sailors from different countries talk to each other, they usually do so in English. English is the international language and, in spite of challenges from Spanish or Mandarin, is likely to remain that way throughout our lifetimes.
Air traffic controllers, pilots and sailors began speaking to each other in English and soon developed a language they could all understand. A limited but effective vocabulary was one part of it, but they also needed forms of speech that they could all recognise. Misunderstandings meant people could die.
So in 1980, Mr Crystal writes, a project was set up on Essential English for International Maritime Use. Also known as Seaspeak, this relied on standard, easily understood phrases. So instead of “What did you say?” or “I can't hear you” or “Please repeat that”, sailors and coast guard officials were told to opt for “Say again.”
The European aerospace association's effort began a year earlier when the Association of European Airlines asked aircraft manufacturers to improve the comprehensibility of maintenance manuals. Many airline technicians were not native English speakers and found the documents difficult.
In 1986 the manufacturers issued their first guide to Simplified Technical English, which was then adopted by the Air Transport Association of America and has since become an international standard.
The standard is specific in its instructions, which aim to ensure that once someone has learnt a word in one form, they will not encounter it in another. So manufacturers are told the word “follow” should always mean “come after” and not “obey”. So you can say “obey the safety instructions” but not “follow the safety instructions”.
You can see why this might be useful in aircraft maintenance books but it would be unnecessarily restrictive in reporting the credit crisis.
But at least one news organisation has developed a simplified English service, and it did it some time back. The Voice of America broadcast its first programme in what it calls “Special English” in 1959.
This has a slightly bigger vocabulary – 1,500 words. It also has style rules: use short sentences that contain only one idea. Use the active voice. Do not use idioms. And above all, speak slowly. Special English broadcasters speak at two-thirds of normal speed.
To a native speaker, the effect is soporific. To a non-native speaker, the increase in comprehension must be thrilling. Simplified English may not be for everyone, but with the rise in the number of people around the world working in English, I suspect we will see more of it.
Smiling volunteers win another Olympic gold for Beijing
As China's 600-strong Olympic team fight for medals on the home soil, a separate team nearly 3,000 times its size are trying to snatch another gold for their country -- with friendly smiles.
A volunteer (C) reads colorful notes bearing wishes of citizens on a message board at a volunteer station in Beijing, capital of China, July 30, 2008. About 400,000 city volunteers provide tourist services at 550 volunteer stations in Beijing from July 1 to October 8.
Of the host city's 1.7 million volunteers, about 100,000 are working at the Games sites -- mainly the competition venues and the Olympic villages -- or on the bus fleet shuttling between these sites.
The host city actually looks younger with these smiling young men and women, mostly in their early 20s and all wearing blue "Beijing 2008" T-shirts.
"Visitors to the Olympics can be forgiven for thinking that China is a land of unnatural youthfulness where nobody is older than 30," said New York Times reporter Charles McGrath.
Close as they are to the Games, few of these volunteers can sit back and enjoy the competition. Even the lucky ones working at the competition venues may not witness all the historic moments.
Pan Xingyu, 21, works at the National Aquatics Center, or the Water Cube, but has never caught a glimpse of her idol Michael Phelps. "He always competes in the morning but I always work afternoon or night shifts."
She also missed the excitement of the diving competitions -- in which China has won all the four golds offered so far, because she was either on duty at the entrance or maintaining order at the spectators' stand.
"I had a peep or two when the audience roared in excitement. But it's better to watch TV later on," she said.
At the end of a noisy, tiring day, Pan and her colleagues are always eager to get back for some rest, but their team leaders sometimes call them together to play games, hoping to help them relax and enhance cohesion of the group.
An engineering major at the prestigious Tsinghua University, Pan admitted her excitement at the job is subsiding. "It is very tiring and stressful. Sometimes you need to deal with tough issues and people would complain if you're not doing well enough," said the soft-spoken junior student. "But when I graduate from school, I guess I won't be afraid of any tough job (with this experience)."
For Pan and her peers, some of whom stand for several hours in the scorching sun to point the way for the Olympic visitors, all their hard work pays off when they are given a heartfelt "thank you" and compliments in return.
Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara, who attended the Beijing Olympics opening on Aug. 8, said he was "especially moved" by the volunteers because of their enthusiasm and good manners. "Chinese young people have dreams...They deserve our expectation and admiration," he said in an interview earlier this week.
A senior official with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) also paid tribute to the Beijing Games' volunteers at a press conference on Wednesday. "All the volunteers are dedicated... we have to say they are doing a fantastic job," said IOC's Olympic Games executive director Gilbert Felli.
Khalid Malik (L), United Nations Resident Coordinator in China, gives out the certificate of honor to Olympic volunteer Liang Su at a ceremony held in Beijing, Aug. 7, 2008. A celebration, co-hosted by UN's China offices and Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the 29th Olympiad, was held on Thursday to encourage and show gratitude to volunteers devoting to Beijing Olympics and China's social development.
These volunteers, many of whom are trained to be engineers, journalists or doctors, are doing a wide variety of temporary jobs created by the Games: running errands and distributing games results, conducting security checks, driving golf carts, housekeeping at athletes and media villages, or simply standing there and greeting everyone.
Frankly speaking, not everyone speaks good English and many, particularly the freshman students, lack the adequate problem solving skills their jobs demand. But they are certainly doing their best to help, and are hoping this hard-won opportunity will help prove their capability and enrich their experience, which might be a positive element in their future employment.
Xu Zhou, 19, has one of the "boring" jobs that is totally irrelevant to what she is trained to be -- a communication engineer.
She travels at least 20 times a day on a media bus commuting between the Main Press Center and the North Star Media Village, a 20-minute ride, to provide language assistance for foreign reporters aboard and answer their questions.
Most of the days, Xu, as well as 2,000 other volunteers who work for the media bus fleet, can only catch a glimpse of the ongoing competitions on TV during their breaks. But Monday was a red-letter day for the bespectacled sophomore from Beijing Communications University: she had a day off and she got a ticket to the Olympic Green Tennis Center through a lucky draw on campus.
To fully exploit the hard-won chance, she arrived at 5 a.m. and didn't leave until midnight, watching as many games as possible as the ticket was valid for all 65 matches played in the day.
"It was exciting to see Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal play," said Xu, adding that she was happy to be among a home crowd that cheered Lu Yen-hsun from Chinese Taipei on to a hard victory against British Andy Murray.
Starting her service on July 25, Xu said she would stick to her position until the assignment is over by Aug. 25. "My job here might be a trivial detail in the running of the whole Games, but details matter in the Games' final success," she said.
Besides the 100,000 volunteers directly serving the Olympians and journalists, the other 1.6-million-strong volunteers in the Chinese capital have seldom come under the spotlight.
Among them are pensioners -- the oldest one already 103 years old -- that patrol streets and communities, students that answer tourists' questions at roadside information kiosks, skilled taxi drivers who have been handpicked to access the locked Olympic area in northern Beijing, and chefs selected from renowned Beijing hotels to help cook the Olympic dishes.
But a set of snapshots, showing a young female volunteer holding a foreigner, who fainted shortly in the street probably for a slight sunstroke, in her arms and feeding him water, spread quickly in China's vast Internet community, and stirred up a great sensation.
"You look so beautiful when you extend your helping hands. You are the embodiment of the traditional virtues of the Chinese -- hospitable and caring," read an online comment seen on qq.com.
At 103, Beijing resident Fu Yiquan still patrols the street near the Temple of Heaven in downtown Beijing as a "security volunteer," a job he has been doing for 30 years.
The perseverance of Fu and tens of thousands of other pensioners in Beijing impressed David Tool, a former colonel of the U.S. Army who now teaches at a Beijing university and hunts awkward translations in his spare time.
"These pensioners are doing a great job. The Beijing Games are a grand occasion. I, too, want to share the excitement," said Tool.
During the Games, he is serving as a volunteer at an information kiosk close to the Sanlitun bar street, one of the areas most frequented by foreigners in eastern Beijing.
"No matter who wins the most medals at the Games, one thing is clear -- these volunteers will win the hearts and minds of visitors to Beijing," Achim Steiner, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said on the eve of the Beijing Games.
Qingdao: Perfection, Ardour and Soft Fragrance
As the completion of the Olympic Sailing Competition, foreign athletes and journalists began to pack up to go home. Before their departure, they gave their appreciation and good wishes to beautifulQingdao.
At the pre-function area of athletes, the last leaving sailboat teams is packing their boats to containers. The successful organization, perfect competition arenas and facilities, ardent volunteers greatly impressed the athletes, coaches and team officials.Simon Smith (technical official of the Italian Team): the facilities are very good, people here are friendly, it is obvious that it is a different cultural environment here, but we adapted well. It is very impressive here, the firework, the stage performance are all good demonstration.
Beanchi (Italian Athlete): the volunteers work are fantastic, they are great help, and we are glad to get their help. At theMediaCenter, most journalists have departed. During the sailing competition, they conveyed the Olympic sailing event and the oriental flavour to each corner of the world through their pens and their cameras. And people in the other part of the world understand more of this sailing city along theYellow Seacoast. The people and the sea here ensure their feeling of home.
Mans Dell (Australian Journalist): The people here are excellent, they can help you in all aspects. When we have problems, we will ask help from the volunteers, who can always help us at the first time. The sailing event is fantastic!
Lichad (a journalist fromFrance) Just as I have said everything is near perfect, people are zealous. We will be back to attend the Paralympics Sailing Event.
At the pre-function area of athletes, the last leaving sailboat teams is packing their boats to containers. The successful organization, perfect competition arenas and facilities, ardent volunteers greatly impressed the athletes, coaches and team officials.Simon Smith (technical official of the Italian Team): the facilities are very good, people here are friendly, it is obvious that it is a different cultural environment here, but we adapted well. It is very impressive here, the firework, the stage performance are all good demonstration.
Beanchi (Italian Athlete): the volunteers work are fantastic, they are great help, and we are glad to get their help. At theMediaCenter, most journalists have departed. During the sailing competition, they conveyed the Olympic sailing event and the oriental flavour to each corner of the world through their pens and their cameras. And people in the other part of the world understand more of this sailing city along theYellow Seacoast. The people and the sea here ensure their feeling of home.
Mans Dell (Australian Journalist): The people here are excellent, they can help you in all aspects. When we have problems, we will ask help from the volunteers, who can always help us at the first time. The sailing event is fantastic!
Lichad (a journalist fromFrance) Just as I have said everything is near perfect, people are zealous. We will be back to attend the Paralympics Sailing Event.
Attracions of Lijiang: Baisha Old Town 白沙古城
Baisha, one of the settlements built by ancestors of Naxi minority, is considered the birthplace of Naxi culture. It is also one of the oldest towns of Lijiang. Here you will find many ancient buildings from the Ming Dynasty such as the Dabaoji Palace, Liuli Temple, and Wenchang Palace. In Dabaoji Palace, there are Murals here dating back over 500 years ago that represent local culture with is derived from a combination of Han and Tibetan cultures.
The town was named Baisha ("white sand" in English) after the white sand in the town. In the Naxi language, it is called "bengshi". The buildings of this town are either used for residence or for cultural sites. The folk residence is called "pengshizhi" which means "Baisha Streets" in the Naxi language. These streets run from north to south with houses and small stores on both sides. A clear stream winds through all the streets in Baisha.
The town was named Baisha ("white sand" in English) after the white sand in the town. In the Naxi language, it is called "bengshi". The buildings of this town are either used for residence or for cultural sites. The folk residence is called "pengshizhi" which means "Baisha Streets" in the Naxi language. These streets run from north to south with houses and small stores on both sides. A clear stream winds through all the streets in Baisha.
Longhua Pagoda and Longhua Temple
Located on the Longhua Road at the south of the city, Longhua Park is famous for the ancient Longhua Temple, Longhua Pagoda, the Evening Bell-Striking Ceremony and the peach blossoms.
First built in 242 AD, which is during the period of the Three Kingdoms, Longhua Temple is the oldest temple in Shanghai for its long history of over 1700 years. Because of the several destructions by the wars, most of the buildings in Longhua Temple were reconstructed during the reign of the Emperor Tongzhi and Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty.
Besides its long history, Longhua Temple is the largest temple in Shanghai. It occupies an area of over 20,000 square meters (five acres) and the architectural proportion is about 5,000 square meters (one point two acres). Along the 194 meters long (637 feet) axis are the Maitreya Hall (Miledian), Devajara Hall (Tianwangdian), Mahavira Hall (Daxiongbaodian), Three Sages Hall (Sanshengdian), Abbot's Hall (Fangzhangshi) and the Sutras Keeping Hall (Cangjinglou) which keeps the three treasures of the temple including the Dazang sutras, the gold seals and the Buddhist statues. Accessory halls on the two sides are the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower, both of them are furnished with the same hexagonal windows and the curved eaves. The whole courtyard was built strictly in the style of traditional Buddhist symmetry and it's in accordance with the Chinese concept of beauty.
A venerable copper bell which is two meters in height, one point three meters in diameter and weighs five tons (11,023 pounds) is placed on the three-storied Bell Tower. The Evening Bell-Striking Ceremony on 31st December is regarded as one of the eight great attractions of Shanghai. Welcoming the New Year in the melodious, heavenly sound of the bell is an interesting and memorable experience.
The seven-storied, 40.4 meters high Longhua Pagoda stands in front of the Longhua Temple, the brick body and the wooden staircases make up the main structure of the Longhua Pagoda. Each storey is smaller than the storey below, and all the levels are encircled by balconies and banisters. Bells on each corner of the octagonal eaves make cheerful and lively sounds as the wind passes by. Longhua Pagoda has been rebuilt several times, but the style of the Song Dynasty still remains to today.
In late spring, when the peaches in Longhua Park are in full blossom and the temple fair (on the 3rd March, lunar calendar) is under way, large numbers of tourists and pilgrims will come and the Longhua will become a place of great hustle and bustle.
First built in 242 AD, which is during the period of the Three Kingdoms, Longhua Temple is the oldest temple in Shanghai for its long history of over 1700 years. Because of the several destructions by the wars, most of the buildings in Longhua Temple were reconstructed during the reign of the Emperor Tongzhi and Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty.
Besides its long history, Longhua Temple is the largest temple in Shanghai. It occupies an area of over 20,000 square meters (five acres) and the architectural proportion is about 5,000 square meters (one point two acres). Along the 194 meters long (637 feet) axis are the Maitreya Hall (Miledian), Devajara Hall (Tianwangdian), Mahavira Hall (Daxiongbaodian), Three Sages Hall (Sanshengdian), Abbot's Hall (Fangzhangshi) and the Sutras Keeping Hall (Cangjinglou) which keeps the three treasures of the temple including the Dazang sutras, the gold seals and the Buddhist statues. Accessory halls on the two sides are the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower, both of them are furnished with the same hexagonal windows and the curved eaves. The whole courtyard was built strictly in the style of traditional Buddhist symmetry and it's in accordance with the Chinese concept of beauty.
A venerable copper bell which is two meters in height, one point three meters in diameter and weighs five tons (11,023 pounds) is placed on the three-storied Bell Tower. The Evening Bell-Striking Ceremony on 31st December is regarded as one of the eight great attractions of Shanghai. Welcoming the New Year in the melodious, heavenly sound of the bell is an interesting and memorable experience.
The seven-storied, 40.4 meters high Longhua Pagoda stands in front of the Longhua Temple, the brick body and the wooden staircases make up the main structure of the Longhua Pagoda. Each storey is smaller than the storey below, and all the levels are encircled by balconies and banisters. Bells on each corner of the octagonal eaves make cheerful and lively sounds as the wind passes by. Longhua Pagoda has been rebuilt several times, but the style of the Song Dynasty still remains to today.
In late spring, when the peaches in Longhua Park are in full blossom and the temple fair (on the 3rd March, lunar calendar) is under way, large numbers of tourists and pilgrims will come and the Longhua will become a place of great hustle and bustle.
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