During Spring Break I was in San Francisco's Chinatown. The headlines of the Chinese and English Language Chinese newspapers were all about the visit of the Olympic torch to San Francisco. The mayor had stated that the course of the Olympic torch relay would remain secret until the last moment. Further, it would, in all likelyhood, not pass through Chinatown.
Is this a Free Speech issue, an international government issue, or an Olympic Games issue?
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Olympics 080808
04/09/2008 03:38 AM
#1
Olympics 080808
What does the date of the opening of Beijing Olympic mean in Chinese language? Maybe you can find the answer here....
The following article is from TRAVEL CHINA GUIDE.COM, and the link is:
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/social_customs/lucky_number.htm
Just like people all over the world, people in China traditionally associate luck with various things and numbers. If you remember this, you will gain an understanding of Chinese manners and customs and will not embarrass yourself or your Chinese friends.
As a rule in day-to-day life in China, it is customary to regard even numbers as being more auspicious than odd numbers. In China, traditionally gifts are given as a part of the celebration for all occasions. Thus, guests will always give even-numbered presents. As the number two (Er), usually suggests germination and harmony, at wedding celebrations, decorations are invariably setout in pairs: a pair of red candles, a pair of pillows, and couplets hung on two sides of the hall. Six, pronounced as 'Liu', conveys indirectly its homophony's meaning – Do everything smoothly; and eight, 'Ba' in Chinese has a similar sound to 'Fa', which means to make a fortune. All business men favor this number very much. However four, is the exception to the even number rule as it sounds like 'Si' (death). So when people choose car license tags, phone numbers, and room numbers, they try to avoid it.
For odd numbers, seven implies anger and abandon, but nine, sometimes means longevity and eternality.
Based on these notions, it is the fashion for young lovers to send roses. One rose represents that 'you are my only love'; two, 'only we two in the world'; three, the three moving words 'I love you'; and nine, 'everlasting love'. The Chinese zodiac is also related to lucky numbers, as well as 'fengshui', a set of principle to the layout of furniture and the structure of the house.
I grew up in a Chinese neighborhood and family in the US. I have never been to China (yet). I still remember that at track meets, everyone wanted the number 8, 18, or some for of 8 because of the superstition. No one wanted 4 which sounds like the word "die." I wasnt one bit surprised the Olympics start on 8/8/08 at 8 pm.