China is a country with a long history. It has great traditional culture, especially Chinese characters. Chinese characters usually have more than one meaning and some of them are very interesting. Here are six ones. We use "pinyin" here because “pinyin”is the Chinese spelling way for the characters. For example, "fu" is the “pinyin” for good luck in Chinese. “pinyin”"fu”is only the phonic part of the character and if you want to know the meaning of good luck “fu”, you must read Chinese character 福 because “fu” also represents(代表) other Chinese characters that sound the same.

“fu”means blessing, good fortune, good luck. Chinese character “fu”is one of the most popular ones used during Chinese New Year. Chinese people often put up "fu”upside down on the front door of a house or an apartment. The upside down "fu" means good luck comes since the character for upside down in Chinese sounds the same as the character for “come”.

“lu”is used to mean official's a pay in old China. “shou” means long life, age or birthday. "xi" is happiness, The doubled character "xi” means double happiness. It is usually put up everywhere at Chinese weddings. "cai" is weath or money. Chinese often say “ money can make a ghost turn a millstone”. It is to say money really can do a lot of things. But, money can't buy everything. "he" is an important part of Chinese culture. It means good relations with other people, when you have “he”, things will be a lot easier for you.

The top six lucky Chinese charaters. “fu”"lu”"shou”"xi"“cai" "he”,are particularly loved by Chinese people.

When you come to Auckland (奥克兰), you will easily find a pub (酒吧)either in small towns or in big cities. In these pubs many different kinds of drinks such as wine, beer, coke, coffee and juice are served. You can find out the local (当地的) culture. However, if you don't know the pub culture, you may lose face or even get into trouble(惹上麻烦).

    Most pubs in Auckland have no waiters, so you have to go to the bar to you're your own drinks. If you don't know this, you may wait a very long time until you know you have to go and get your own drinks. When you are standing in front of the bar waiting for service(服务). you are able to talk with others. The bar is the only place where you can talk freely. But while you are talking with others or talking about what you want to order, you must be careful.

    Remember, you'll never go into the pubs unless you are over 18.

Welcome to London! Now let me tell you something about this wonderful city. London, the capital of the United Kingdom, is the biggest city in Western Europe with over 7 million people. It sits by the River Thames. London has a history of more than 2,000 years. People all over the world are familiar with the city's red double-decker（双层的）buses and black taxis.

People

    The British Empire used to rule around the world, so many people from around the world moved to London. They have brought with them their own languages and cultures. More than 300 different languages are spoken in London.

Culture

    London is known for its museums. One important museum is British Museum. It is the oldest public museum in the world. There are two main art museums in London: the National Gallery and the Tate Gallery. Besides, London is also home to arts, such as theatre and music. The Globe Theatre, which was popular in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, was opened for performances of William Shakespeare's Central London.

Tourist attractions

    London has many wonderful places to visit. For example, the well-known Clock Tower, a 320-foot-high tower, was called the Big Ben. Another famous London building is Buckingham Palace. The members of royal（皇家的）family of England live there. Besides, Hyde Park is the largest open area in central London.

根据短文内容，选择正确答案。

    Can you speak English? Maybe you know a lot of English words. You can read, speak and understand English, but there is another kind of language—the language of the body. All over the world, people "talk" with their hands，their heads and their eyes. When Japanese people meet, they bow. When Indians meet, they put their hands together. When British and American people meet someone for the first time, they shake hands. They do not usually shake hands with their friends. Women sometimes kiss their women friends, and men kiss women friends on the cheek(脸颊). When a man meets a man friend, he just smiles, and says "hello". Men do not kiss each other, or hold hands. Even fathers and sons do not often kiss each other.

    My parents have always said that they never felt comfortable traveling by train when they were my age. It's always a mystery to me when they talk about the crowded and noisy train compartments*, wheels clicking on the rails, and the boring and tiring journeys.

However, train travel is quite a different experience today, especially after high--speed rail was widely put into service in China. Nothing can match train journeys for the comfort and speed. Few things could be more impressive than China's high--speed rail system, especially the speed at which it developed—and is still developing. Such speed is known as "China speed".

    China speed means a lot to the country. The past 30 years have witnessed China's rapid development in various areas, like the economy and technology. We've seen dozens of tall buildings appear almost overnight, with roads and highways connecting every comer. And mobile payments and online shopping are playing increasingly important roles in everyone's life. China speed has changed our country and impressed the world. But as we enjoy the benefits of China speed, the problems it brings us can't be ignored, such as the air pollution or traffic problems. As a high price is being paid, maybe we should think about what China speed will bring us in the next 30 years. We need to know that our future depends on the choices we make today, so it is our duty to give China speed a new definition. If you pay close attention to the word "speed", you might notice that each letter stands for something interesting: Society, Progress, Economy, Environment and Development. Our society's progress depends largely on the balance among our economy, the environment, and the development of our future. That is what we need to keep in mind as China continues to speed ahead.

Nature in Art

    Many artists paint and use nature in their works, but the results are very different. Here are four of them.