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    Hi! We are Lucy and Lily. We are sisters. We are studying in a high school. We are always wanting the weekends to come. Because on weekends there are different kinds of outdoor activities, such as going to the park, going shopping, playing ball games and so on.

    We usually go to the park on Saturdays. We often take some bread, meat, water and milk with us. It's Saturday today. We are in the park again. Father is fishing in a boat on the lake(湖). Mother is sitting and reading under the tree. We are flying a kite. Now we are drinking some water. Do you think we are happy?

This is my first time in Japan. One day some new colleagues invited me to eat out. At first, I felt quite pleased and learnt to use chopsticks with them, but later the problems started.

My cold was not quite finished and my nose was still running a little so I took out a tissue (纸巾)，turned away from the table and blew my nose(抠鼻涕). My colleagues, who were talking

about how to arrange (安排) the final exams of pupils, were looking at me strangely. They explained to me that in Japan, people don't blow their noses in public especially at the table.

When I was trying to stick my chopsticks in my bowl of rice, one of my colleagues said, “Don't do that. Just leave them on the table.” Later, I found that leaving your chopsticks in your rice means death in Japanese culture!

The next time I needed to blow my nose, I left the table and went to the toilet. When I returned, it was nearly time to leave. I noticed there were some little bowls of tea with lemon next to everybody's place on the table. It was hot, and I started drinking it before it got cold. Then I noticed some of my friends were covering their mouths and looking at each other. They were trying not to laugh. “What's wrong?” I asked the friend next to me. “That's not for drinking,” he explained. “It's for washing your fingers.” For a moment, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

    On December 3rd, 2017 a program by CCTV called National Treasure(国家宝藏)was shown to people all over the country. It became popular with both the old and the young as soon as it came out.

    The show took 27 pieces of cultural relics(文物)from nine museums across the country, such as the Palace Museum, Shanghai Museum, Shanxi History Museum and so on. The show expected to bring life to the national treasure. They invited 27 actors and another 27 common people to tell the" old and new life stories" of the relics. The actor acted in a short play about the history of each relic. The other person told his or her own story in relation to the relic.

    More and more people are interested not only in the relics themselves, but also in enjoying the stories behind those relics. There are a lot of jokes online about the show. They also help the show by bringing the museums and relics closer to the people.

    Why did the show become so successful? "By telling stories and inviting famous stars, it has turned the old culture into interesting stories. It's a really creative program, "said Yin Hongru, a teacher from Tsinghua University.

    "The social value(社会价值)of the show is more important than anything else, "said Yu Lei from the program. "We just want more people to go to the museums and take a look at the country's most fantastic treasures."

Happy New Year

    Lots of fun is waiting foryou on New Year's Eve!

    Chinese food

    Beijing Restaurant: 5:00 p.m. ~ 7:00 p.m.

    Lion & dragon dance from

    Guangdong and Fujian

    Central Square(中心广场), 1:00p.m. ~ 5:00 p.m.

    Fireworks

    Central Square, 8:00 p.m. ~ 11:00 p.m.

    The New Year parade(游行)

    Tianjin Street, 2:00 p.m. ~ 4:00 p.m.

    Chinese music & dance

    Central Square, 5:00 p.m. ~ 8:00 p.m.

    Sunday Date: Sunday, January 22nd, 2012

    Place: Chinatown

    More programmes(节目) are on CCTV. Let's welcome the New Year together!

My Favorite Sweater

——by Taylor Brown

My favorite sweater grew too small.

I love that sweater best of all.

My grandma made it when(当) I was three.

She made that sweater just for me.

I picked the yam(纱线), a special blue.

The color of bluebells, wet with dew(露珠).

When I was three, I was very small.

But now I'm five and much too tall.

I have a new jacket now that's green.

So I gave my sweater to our cat Queen.

Queen just had kittens out in the shed(小屋).

My favorite sweater is now their bed.