Confucious Say…
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free to leave the airport. As they waited for a taxi, Christina asked, “Just how big is the country of China?” Papa pretended to count on an “air” abacus, his fingers flying. “Let’s see: China is so big it covers 50 degrees of latitude. It includes almost four million square miles. It is bordered by 14 different countries. It has a coastline more than 12,000 miles long. And, 20 percent of the people in the world live here.” “Wow!” said Grant. “How did you know all that?” Papa nodded at a poster on a nearby wall. “I read it right there!” “And Beijing is the capital,” said Christina. “Where our pen pals live. I love getting postcards from them with neat stamps.” “Yes,” said Papa. “Your pen pals and more than a billion of their friends live in China!” Grant and Christina were quiet with awe at the massive numbers their grandfather tossed around, as a taxi van pulled up. However, when the taxi doors slid open, both kids began to squeal. “Li!” screamed Christina. “Cong!” shouted Grant.