We'll be publishing another Film Friday tomorrow, but until then have the sort of HSK test that makes grown men cry. How hard is this test exactly? Let's just say that Echo took it and managed to get less than perfect. When she confronted Gail about this, Gail sat down to prove her wrong and flubbed a different question, a not insignificant accomplishment since she wrote the damn thing. "That was a long time ago," Gail shifted defensively, "and the questions really are tricky...."

So there you have it. If you manage to get perfect on this test, your Chinese is officially better than anyone we have working for us. So let us know where to send the certificate of total fluency, and consider yourself hired if you're in Beijing and looking for work. We will roll out the red carpet.

A lot of Shanghai residents are genuinely baffled that other Chinese citizens consider them a curiosity. But it doesn't take much time elsewhere in the country to discover why exactly Shanghai bears the brunt of so many jokes. Not sure yourself? We think you'll understand after listening to our lesson for today, a gritty look at the wild side of the Shanghai streets. This is a lesson based on a true story: Brendan's personal experience running into a gang fight on the Shanghai metro.

Our HSK test for today covers a new type of question you'll find on the new HSK exam released this year. In addition to the older HSK test's multiple-choice fill-in-the-blank questions, on the new test you'll find questions where you are given both the incomplete sentences along with the missing words themselves. The challenge is to match the suggested entries to the correct sentences. And while this might seem simple, these questions are actually quite tricky.

Do you need to worry about this new question type? If you're planning to take the HSK outside China this year the answer is a resounding yes: the test you take will have these questions on it. If you're inside China and planning to take the exam in 2010 you will still have a choice of which version of the HSK to take. So see how you do on this HSK test and explore our archives to decide which you prefer for yourself.

"Is Echo really sleeping?" Apple had to raise her voice to overpower the sound of Pierce Brosnan's distant crooning. A moment later as the chorus to Super Trouper kicked in, she tossed down her pen and turned to face the rest of us. "Honestly," she said in her best no-nonsense voice, "I'm finding it hard to concentrate with all of this Greek music...."

The constant presence in our Popup Chinese headquarters these last few weeks has been the soundtrack to Mamma Mia. After stumbling across the Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan version of the famous ABBA musical, Echo has had the music on constantly. And the musical has found its way into everything we've done, including today's lesson for Absolute Beginners. So join us as we share an effective strategy for avoiding work in China. Use this whenever you need to take the afternoon off to catch a broadway show.

Are you still suffering from Avatar withdrawal? Atone for your sins by joining Brendan, David and Echo today for a show that's more entertainment than education. The premise behind our Film Friday series is very simple: listen up as we play a short clip from a recent Hollywood film dubbed into mandarin and write us if you think you know the source. We enter everyone who guesses correctly in a draw for a free month of premium access to Popup Chinese, so this is definitely worth your time. Good luck!

When the definitive history of twentieth century cinema is written, there will be a few actors and actresses we believe will stand out from their peers as titans of the screen and stage. Yet while the talents of such stars as Gregory Peck, Marlon Brando, Meryl Streep and others have brought them well-deserved recognition, there remain a legion of working actors and actresses who continue to shine in lesser roles. Our podcast today is a tribute to one such actor.

So join us in this podcast as we pay a humble Popup Chinese tribute to one of the most underrated thespians of our generation. You may not have noticed the delicate emotional shading he adds to otherwise straightforward roles. Once we point him out though, we think you will join us in praise. So strap on your iPod and listen in as we spill the beans on our celebrity pick, and then share a Chinese grammar point or two.

It had taken two hours of gruelling hand-to-hand combat, but Jeremy had finally won the competition. As he tossed his controller down on the bedsheet and lay back with satisfaction though, he caught sight of his girlfriend looking at him aghast. Lauren was taking the HSK with him tomorrow morning, and had been sitting at her desk cramming for almost as long as he'd been online. "Aren't you the least bit concerned about taking the HSK tomorrow?"

"The test itself doesn't care how long you've been preparing," he sighed. "I started studying for this months ago, and cramming isn't an effective study method anyway." Truth be told, Jeremy wasn't the least concerned by the prospect of taking the mandarin proficiency test. As he lay there basking in the glory of his victory, he was more preoccupied with whether there was time for a rematch before calling it a night.

HSK Tip No. 832: if you're looking for an easy way to schedule several months of HSK tests in preparation for the exam, drag-and-drop them into your life using your personal calendar.

There are plenty of Chinese textbooks that claim to teach basic Chinese but are in fact utterly useless in everyday situations like the one we found ourselves in about a month ago, when our new colleague Nicole arrived back from lunch slightly the worse for the wear....

Nicole had just crossed the threshold and was bending over to take off her shoes when Echo, having successfully maneuvered herself behind the coffee table, finally broke the ice. "Did you have a good lunch," she asked? "Oh lunch," Nicole faltered. "I almost forgot all about that in the excitement...."

It was your last Western breakfast, eaten in haste before an early morning flight over the pole. You had pancakes and syrup. Yoghurt. Apples, oranges, bananas, lychee and watermelon. Toast of both the French and non-French varieties. Various cereals hot and cold with scrambled eggs, bacon, fried mushrooms and onions. And all of it topped-off by carrot juice and left-over pizza.

China may be an exciting place to live, but even its strongest proponents have to admit the country is still catching up to the rest of the world when it comes to the most important meal of the day. So join us in this Elementary podcast as we cover a very practical tip for making the memories last....

When Hegel wrote that history repeats itself, perhaps he was thinking of our seemingly infinite capacity to rationalize cruelty in the pursuit of power and wealth. For are not the pages of history filled with corporations which have sacrificed workplace health and safety on the altar of progress, throwing away human lives like so much chaff in an unquenchable drive for power and market share?

While we may be a small company here at Popup Chinese, we cannot help but look upon this recurring pattern of industrial tyranny and ask the obvious question: why not us? And as Brendan and Echo share in this podcast, we're willing to let Google take the high road. Our path to glory involves conscripting our staff into forced labor in the construction of a giant monument to the glory of our cause and long-term tourist revenue. Perhaps some of this language will be useful to you too.