The Two Sessions is upon us once again, "formulat[ing] policies that have significant impact on the world, foreign experts say," according to Xinhua.
You know what else foreign experts say? Watch the above.
Two stories along the same theme here, both from SCMP’s Amy Li. We’ll start with Jackie Chan, who was seen walking toward a black Audi with military license plates. We’re not sure when the picture was taken, but its publication on Sina Weibo has caused the predictable spate of online outrage. “Has our military hired... Read more »
The wonderful folk of Koryo Tours, who aren't responsible for Dennis Rodman but is for so many other Westerners who visit North Korea, passed along this video recently of Americans playing basketball in the DPRK last June. It was the first ever "USA-North Korea basketball exchange."
"Well, I hope this opens up opportunities for the future," participant Luke Elie, founder of Coaches Team International, said. We wonder if he knew, eight months later, Rodman would be there.
Those who use Momo and, to a lesser extent (but not much lesser), WeChat probably already know this, but social Apps are great for finding new and -- how shall we say -- temporary friends. However, if you are cruising around in the great murky sea trawling for bottles or booty, you open yourself up to getting hooked, too. Really open yourself up, actually, because you're going up against professionals.
Yi Ruilong, an extreme sports trailblazer in this country known as China's "first flying man," disappeared on Sunday evening after his hang glider crashed into remote Hanyuan Lake in Sichuan province. You can watch the video of his fateful accident above, in which he loses control while trying to complete a 360-degree turn.
Witnesses aren't sure whether Yi died on the spot, but search crews found no signs of the 70-year-old until two days later, Tuesday night, when they finally dredged up his body.
Recently in Wuhan, a man bit "off" the finger of two people -- an old man and a young boy -- he randomly encountered on the streets. On Monday, that man, surnamed Zhao, 30, was detained in Huangshi, Hubei province.
Police wrapped what appeared to be a cloth muzzle around Zhao's face:
Nine Hong Kong tourists are among the 19 who perished when a hot-air balloon in Luxor, Egypt turned into a fireball and plummeted a few hundred meters to a sugarcane field on the west bank of the Nile river. Only the pilot, who suffered burns on 70 percent of his body, and one other man, believed to be from Hong Kong, survived.
Reuters reports that the cause of the accident, which happened on Tuesday, was a gas explosion:
We were watching the CBA All-Star game on Sunday to see the best that Chinese basketball has to offer, and for the entertainment aspect, and the pageantry (it was a special Lantern Festival game), but, truth be told, what we really wanted was comedy, preferably one of errors, like last year.
The game didn't supply anything, but the dunk contest did. Oh did it ever.
The Taiwanese-born Ang Lee, who previously won Best Director for Brokeback Mountain, has claimed his second Oscar, this time for Life of Pi. He beat out the favored Steven Spielberg, who directed Lincoln, and Michael Haneke (Armour), David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook), and Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild).
In one of the more notable acceptance speech moments this year, Lee thanked the 3,000 people who worked on the film with him, plus Taiwan. He ended with a "thank you" in Chinese and the Indian valediction "namaste."
A few days ago in Hong Kong, a young man was filmed yelling at, kicking and hitting a woman on the subway. The reason? According to Apple Daily English:
A middle-aged woman accidentally kicked a boy's trolley while rushing to get to an empty seat. She blamed the boy for being in the way, and cursed him, telling him to "go tomb sweeping for your family." Offended, the boy began beating the woman, dragging her out of the carriage.
