Man Zou. China for the inquisitive

A guide full of interesting facts about the homeland of dragons, fireworks and porcelain. The fourth volume of the "World for the Inquisitive" series.

Why is China called the Middle Kingdom? How many thousand characters does Chinese script have? Why is the Spring Festival in China celebrated in winter? And did the former Chinese martial arts masters really penetrate the walls?

The Chinese are the most numerous nation in the world. And very unusual! They eat hundred-year-old eggs and snow-covered volcanoes, drink tea for three sips, and for their birthday they get pasta instead of cake. They invented the compass, gunpowder, paper, printing and the world's hardest board game. They cycle a lot, feed hungry ghosts on the Feast of the Dead and burn fake money on graves, and when designing larger buildings, they place an opening in the center large enough for a dragon to pass through (if he wanted to, of course).

The World for the Inquisitive series presents the culture of different countries: it tells about places, characters, monuments, dishes and concepts that almost everyone has heard about, but few really know the stories behind them - as well as less known ones that are worth exploring.