In recent years, learning Chinese{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(become) popular among people around the world. Last month, I received an email from my cousin Jack in Canada. He said he was enthusiastic{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Chinese, and asked me to find him some books{#blank#}3{#/blank#}(intend) for Chinese beginners. I was very pleased to do{#blank#}4{#/blank#}a favor. So I went from one bookstore to{#blank#}5{#/blank#}, hoping to find something suitable for him.{#blank#}6{#/blank#}（final） I selected a set of Chinese textbooks among {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(vary) similar ones. Then I went to a post office to have them delivered by air without delay. Several days later, I received Jack's email,{#blank#}8{#/blank#} (say) that he really appreciated the books I had sent. I'm very glad that Jack is beginning to learn Chinese just like many other{#blank#}9{#/blank#}(foreign) abroad,{#blank#}10{#/blank#}I know it may be an enjoyable challenge for him.

    When police found Barely, 19 years old, living in a tent, instead of a dormitory in Gordon State University, they were prepared to drive him away.

    Then they heard his story. Barely {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(plan) to walk to college {#blank#}2{#/blank#} he couldn't afford a bus ticket, but it would be too {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(tire). So he rode six hours from his hometown on his little brother's bike, {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(carry) all his possessions—a bag, a tent, two bottles of water {#blank#}5{#/blank#} a box of food—in order to start his second year {#blank#}6{#/blank#} a biology major. He arrived early to look for a job, but no luck. {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(touch) by his story, Officer Richard and his partner put Barely up at a motel with their own money. Word spread and soon people donated clothes; school supplies and money {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(cover) the rest of his motel stay—he was even given a job. And then there was Casey, who started a GoFundMe page for Barely after spending time with him. "This kid, though weak in {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(appear), rode a bike for 6 hours in the hot weather. I thought that he is determined." She wrote on her Facebook page. The fund reached $184,000, all of {#blank#}10{#/blank#} went into an education trust for Barely.

    Smiling

    Smile is a universal language, which is widely used throughout the world. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}, the meaning of a smile in different cultures may be different. Depending on different cultures, smiling can express joy and {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(amuse), but it can also indicate embarrassment. The following examples show this point of view:

    In an attempt to be open and {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(friend), people in the United States smile a lot. Every one smiles at each other and this nonverbal communication shows being polite in the United States. But in China, smiling is not only {#blank#}4{#/blank#}expression of happiness, but also a way to avoid {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(laugh) at. Chinese people like smiling when they are embarrassed in order to avoid embarrassment. Smiling is a kind of good will but not sneer (嘲笑). For example: When a child{#blank#}6{#/blank#}(fall) off from a bike, the adults in China may smile, {#blank#}7{#/blank#}is a kind of gentle encouragement and may not be a kind of impolite laugh.

    Related {#blank#}8{#/blank#}the smile is the laugh. Also, different cultures have different {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(meaning) about laugh. Americans can enjoy a very heartfelt belly (腹部) laugh that comes from the deepest emotions while most Chinese may think {#blank#}10{#/blank#}silly to laugh that way.

    It is well known that the Chinese have great respect for their elders, and here is an occasion to show it-the Chongyang Festival. It falls {#blank#}1{#/blank#} the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. In Chinese, nine {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(regard) as the number of "yang". The ninth day of the ninth month is the day that has two "yang" numbers, and "chong" in Chinese means double, which is {#blank#}3{#/blank#} the name "Chongyang" came into being.

    The festival can date back to the Warring States Period. However, it was not {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (formal) set as a festival until the Tang Dynasty. In 1989, the Chinese government {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(declare)the ninth day of the ninth lunar month to be Seniors' Day-a day to respect {#blank#}6{#/blank#} elderly and to let them enjoy {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(they).

    Traditionally, people climb mountains, drink chrysanthemum (菊花) wine, and eat double-ninth cakes. Since cake in Chinese is pronounced "gao" meaning"high", people consider climbing a high mountain to be the same as eating cake in the hope of {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (promote) to high positions. And people often think that chrysanthemum wine can get rid of all kinds of diseases and {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(disaster).

    Today many activities are held {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(show) respect for the seniors like organizing a trip for them, sending them gifts and more on the day of the festival.

Yangshuo, China

    It was raining lightly when I {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (arrive) in Yangshuo just before dawn. But I didn't care. A few hours {#blank#}2{#/blank#} I'd been at home in Hong Kong, with {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (it) choking smog. Here, the air was clean and fresh, even with the rain.

    I'd skipped nearby Guilin, a dream place for tourists seeking the limestone mountain tops and dark waters of the Li River {#blank#}4{#/blank#} are pictured by artists in so many Chinese {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (painting). Instead, I'd headed straight for Yangshuo. For those who fly to Guilin, it's only an hour away {#blank#}6{#/blank#} car and offers all the scenery of the better known city.

    Yangshuo {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (be) really beautiful. A study of travelers {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (conduct) by the website Trip Advisor names Yangshuo as one of the top 10 destinations in the world. And the town is fast becoming a popular weekend destination for people in Asia. Abercrombie &.Kent, a travel company in Hong Kong, says it {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (regular) arranges quick getaways here for people {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(live) in Shanghai and Hong Kong.