A beautiful and very successful actress (女演员) was the star for a new musical show. Her home was in the countryside, but she did not want to go back there every night, so she bought an expensive house in the centre of the city, got some beautiful furniture and got a man to paint the rooms in new colours.

    It was very difficult to get tickets for her show, because everybody wanted to see it. So she decided to give the painter two of the best seats. She hoped that this would make him work better for her. He took the tickets without saying anything, and she heard no more about them until the end of the month, when she got the painter's bill (帐单). At the bottom of it were these words: “ Four hours watching Miss Hall sing and dance : 3 pounds,” with this note: “ After 5 p.m. I get 15 shillings (先令) an hour instead of 10 shillings.”

    The Parthenon(帕特农神庙) in Athens is a building with a long and complex(复杂的) history. Built nearly 2,500 years ago as a temple celebrating the Greek goddess Athena, it was for thousands of years the church of the Virgin Mary of the Athenians, then a mosque (清真寺), and finally a ruin. The building was changed and the sculptures(塑像) much damaged over the centuries. By 1800 only about half of the original sculptural decoration remained.

    Between 1801 and 1805, Lord Elgin, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire(奥斯曼帝国), which controlled Athens, acting with the full knowledge and permission of the Ottoman authorities，removed about half of the remaining sculptures from the fallen ruins and from the building itself. Lord Elgin loved Greek history and transported the sculptures back to Britain. The arrival of the sculptures in London had a huge effect on the European public, greatly increasing interest in ancient Greek culture and influencing contemporary artistic trends. These sculptures were gained from Lord Elgin by the British Museum in 1816 and since then they have all been on show to the public, free of charge.

    Since the early 1980s, however, the Greek government has argued for the return of all the Parthenon sculptures in the British Museum. They have also challenged the British Museum Board of Trustees' legal title to the sculptures.

    The British Museum, however, insists that it exists to tell the story of cultural achievement throughout the world, from the dawn of human history over two million years ago until the present day. The museum considers itself an important resource for the world: the breadth and depth of its collection allows the world public to re-examine cultural identities and explore the complex network of interconnected world cultures.

    It also says that, within the context of this unparalleled collection, the Parthenon sculptures are an important representation of ancient Athenian civilization. Each year millions of visitors admire the artistry of the sculptures and gain insights on how ancient Greece influenced — and was influenced by — the other civilizations that it came across.

    Leonardo da Vinci, one of the greatest thinkers in the world, began his career as an artist. Very little is known about Leonardo's early life. He was born in 1452 in the town of Vinci. As a boy, Leonardo showed a great interest in drawing, sculpting and observing nature.

    However, because Leonardo was born to parents who were not married to each other, he was barred from some studies and professions. He trained as an artist after moving to Florence with his father in the 1460s. It was an exciting time to be in Florence, one of the cultural capitals of Europe. Leonardo trained with one of the city's very successful artists, Andrea del Verrocchio. He was a painter, sculptor and gold worker. Verrocchio told his students that they needed to understand the body's bones and muscles when drawing people.

    Leonardo took the teacher's advice very seriously. He spent several periods of his life studying the human body by taking apart and examining dead bodies. While training as an artist, Leonardo also learned about and improved on relatively new painting methods at the time. One was the use of perspective(透视) to show depth. A method called “sfumato” helped to create a cloudy effect to suggest distance. “Chiaroscuro” is a method using light and shade as a painterly effect.

    Leonardo's first known portrait now hangs in the National Gallery in Washington, D. C. He made this painting of a young woman named Ginevra de' Benci around 1474. The woman has a pale face with dark hair. In the distance, Leonardo painted the Italian countryside.

    He soon received attention for his extraordinary artistic skills. Around 1475 he was asked to draw an angel in Verrocchio's painting “Baptism of Christ.” One story says that when Verrocchio saw Leonardo's addition to the painting, he was so amazed by his student's skill that he said he would never paint again.

    If you have a long holiday to spend, where can you go?

    Nikoi Island, Indonesia

    Less than 85 km-but somehow a whole world away-from Singapore's shining skyline lies Nikoi Island. Surrounded by white sandy shorelines and vivid coral reefs, Nikoi's centre is hidden in rainforest, resulting in amazing biodiversity seen in its native plants, animals and bird life. Marrying traditional Indonesian craftsmanship with contemporary design, Nikoi boasts just 15 stilted（建于支柱上的）beach houses, all with breathtaking sea views, guaranteeing privacy and total escape from the daily routine.

    Amanpulo, Philippines

    The only property on Pamalican Island, the luxurious Amanpulo resort offers extremely impressive accommodation, with only access to over five kilometres of clean coral sand beach. Designed to resemble local Bahay Kubo homes, Amanpulo's beachside, treetop and hillside villas all feature comfortable decks（木质平台）with hammocks（吊床）from which to enjoy the spectacular views of the greenish-blue sea below. Fill your schedule with Amanpulo's signature adventures (including diving, windsurfing and sailing), recharge in the award-winning spa or feast on locally caught seafood-the choice is yours.

    Song Saa, Cambodia

    Song Saa's incredible ocean views, and breathtaking sunsets are a very typical example of pure paradise. Its 24 villas—each with their own sea-view private plunge pool-are designed to reflect the natural beauty of Cambodia's coastline; built from recycled wood with straw roofs and driftwood furnishings, these presences are stylish proof of Song Saa's admirable commitment to sustainability and conservation. You can choose to do as much or as little as you want here. With rainforest tours, island safaris and reef snorkeling（徒手潜水）, it just offers some of the activities that show this spectacular destination.

    The purpose of keeping fit is to avoid illness ,resist the mental and physical fatigue（疲劳）that make us more likely to contract infections ,and above all to feel more pleasure in being alive. Research has shown the value of a balanced diet ,fresh air, sunshine ,enough rest and some forms of regular exercise for everyone .If everyone followed this plan ,the number of people visiting the doctor and going to hospital would be considerably reduced.

    Unfortunately, although most people acknowledge the importance of physical fitness, not enough of us put this into practice .We spend too much time watching others from the comfort of an armchair or a seat in the stand at a sports stadium.

    One reason why people who are physically fit to live longer is that they do not put the heart under excessive strain（过度劳累）and so they reduce the risk of heart and blood vessel（血管）diseases .They also avoid suffering the consequences of weakened muscles ,which are the cause of a great deal of back and abdominal（腹部的）trouble.

    About 640 muscles for about 45% of our body's weight, they must have the ability to store energy and be continually supplied with fuel by the blood .Sensible exercise, suited to each individual and preferably undertaken on the advice of a doctor, is the best insurance of meeting these requirements.

    A study of 27, 000 men showed those skipping (不吃) breakfast were at a greater risk of heart problems. The British Heart Foundation said breakfast helped people resist (抵制) sugary snacks before lunch.

    The men, aged 45-82, were studied for 16 years. During that time there were more than 1, 500 heart attacks or cases of deadly heart failure. However, people who skipped breakfast were 27% more likely to have heart problems than those who started the day with a meal. The researchers took into consideration other lifestyle risk factors (因素) such as smoking and exercise.

    Researcher Dr. Leah Cahill told the BBC: "The take-home message is to eat in the morning when you wake up, preferably within an hour. The results show that something is better than nothing, but it's always better to have something healthy and balanced."

    She said the timing of the meal seemed to be key and waiting until lunch rather than "having breakfast" may be straining (损伤) the body over time. This could be increasing the risk of high blood pressure and fatness which could in turn damage the heart. "Don't skip breakfast," Dr. Cahill suggested.

    Victoria Taylor, an expert with the British Heart Foundation, said: "These researchers only looked at men aged over 45, so we would need to see further research to prove that breakfast has the same effect on the heart health of other groups of people. What we do know is that a healthy breakfast can make that mid-morning biscuit less tempting, as well as giving you another opportunity to widen the variety of foods in your diet. Cereals (谷类食品) with low fat milk are a good way to start the day. Try a banana or dried fruit on top and you'll be on your way to a fine day before you've even left the house."