英语角-圆桌会议 RoundTable1128 - 北京地铁告别2元时代

Topic1 Beijing hikes public transit fares Beijing citizens will say goodbye to the city's low price transportation system next month with the municipal government announcing subway and bus fare hikes.

The new fares, which formally take hold on December 28, put bus fares starting at two yuan (32 cents) and subway fares at three yuan.

The new fares would double the current prices on average, but will include some discount schemes.

Does the new plan make more sense?

How is the pricing plan going to affect everybody?

Topic2 Are Northeasterners a problem in Sanya?

Soon, more seniors from China's northeast, an area known for bitter cold and prolonged winter days, will join in the yearly migration to escape a life largely restricted to the indoors due tochilly weather.

Statistics show the number of migratory seniors in Sanya is approaching 400,000, about half of whom are from northeastern China's Harbin city.

There is perhaps too many northeasterners in Sanya that the city is dubbed as the Sanya city of Heilongjiang Province.

Is there a conflict of interests between northeastern people and Sanya locals?

Topic3 Profile of Chinese luxury car ownersHurun Research Institute recently released a report of the profile of Chinese luxury car owners.

According to the report, Chinese luxury car owners are, on average, 33.5 years old, and they choose selective car brands as status symbols to support their image.

Do you care? Does such a report have any relevance?

Topic4 China's Wealthy Attend Etiquette Classes A CNN report says that the wealthy Chinese are no longer satisfied with looking the part. They're now paying big bucks to learn how to act the part too. Increased global travel, business expansions and mounting interest in Western education has led China's middle and upper classes to seek out etiquette professionals to expand their lifestyle repertoire.

Is there a market?

Topic5 The World's Most Fun Cities A recent study came up with a list of "the World's Most Fun Cities" and Berlin, London, and Paris are ranked as the top 3. Widely-agreed "Party Cities" such as Amsterdam, Las Vegas, and Rio de Janeiro don't rank high surprisingly. And unexpectedly, none Chinese cities are listed.

Is the list surprising to you? What's the standard?