I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”

    Foreign tourists are often confused in Japan because most streets there don't have names; in Japan, people use landmarks（地标）in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”

    In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”

    People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it's about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don't know.

    It's true that a person doesn't know the answer to your question sometimes. What happens in such a situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don't know.” People in Yucatan believe that “I don't know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!

    Even though it's not the most popular time of year to get married, I allow my thoughts to wander and consider the most unusual marriage habits across the world.

    In some parts of India it is believed that ghosts can stay with certain people of the living world. In general, girls who are born with a baby tooth and girls who are very ugly or have some facial damage are believed to be owned by ghosts. The only way to free from the ghosts is for the girl to marry an animal, typically a goat or a dog. She is free to marry a man later on, when the ghosts are proven to be freed from her. I wonder who makes this decision and how they come to their conclusion.

    In Korea, it is a custom for grooms to request that their successfully married friends carve them wooden ducks as a symbol of great marriage. Hand-carving a wooden duck can't be easy. This leads me to wonder why it's a duck and not another animal.

    Imagine being as young as 5 and already your parents are sending you to a fat farm where you are forced to eat too much food until you vomit (呕吐). Then, the old woman watching you eat forces you to eat that vomit. This is not a TV show. This is really happening in some parts of Africa. Men there want women fat; the fatter the better. It doesn't matter if it ruins their health or make them live shorter lives. All that matters is that the woman is as large as possible in order to sell her for a high price when she reaches the age for marrying.

    US scientists say they have poured cold water on the theory that washing hands with hot water kills more germs (细菌) than unheated water. The small study of 20 people found using water at 15C (59F) left hands as clean as water heated to 38C (100F).

    National Health Service (NHS) recommends that people wash their hands in either cold or warm water. In this study, scientists at Rutgers University-New Brunswick wanted to find out if popular assumptions about the benefits of warm or hot water and official guidance on hot water —given to the food industry in the US - held true. They asked 20 people to wash their hands 20 times each with water that was 15C (59F), 26C (79F) or 38 degrees (100F). Volunteers were also asked to experiment with varying amounts of soap. Before they started the tests, their hands were covered in harmless bugs. Researchers say there was no difference in the amount of bugs removed as the temperature of the water or the amount of soap changed.

    Prof Donald Schaffner said: “People need to feel comfortable when they are washing their hands but as far as effectiveness goes, this study shows us that the temperature of the water used did not matter.”

    However, the researchers accept their study is small and say more extensive work is needed to determine the best ways to remove harmful bacteria.

    In the UK, NHS experts say people can use cold or hot water to wash their hands. They say hands should be washed for at least 20 seconds and stress the importance of using enough soap to cover the whole surface of the hands. Their guidance focuses on rubbing hands together in various .ways to make sure each surface of each hand is clean.

    At 29 years old, Ding Ding, who has cerebral palsy (脑瘫), has been accepted to Harvard University. Ding Ding succeeded in his academic studies and overcoming many of his physical disabilities because of his mother's persistence(坚持不懈) and endless love.

    In 1988, when Ding Ding was found born with cerebral palsy, Doctors suggested to his mother Zou Hongyan that she give up the baby, saying it was worthless trying to rescue him as he would grow up either disabled or with low intelligence. Even the boy's father agreed with the doctors and told Zou that the boy would be a burden for the family for his entire life. But Zou insisted on saving the boy and soon divorced (离婚).

    To support the family and provide treatment for her son, Zou took up several jobs. In her spare time, she regularly took Ding to a recovery hospital. She taught herself how to exercise his muscles, and would also play educational games with him.

    Zou also insisted from the start that her son would learn to overcome his disabilities as far as possible. She insisted on teaching him how to use chopsticks during mealtimes, even though he found this extremely difficult at first, so he would not have to always explain his disability to others when he had meals with them.

    "I didn't want him to feel sorry for his physical problems," she said. "Because he had poor abilities in many areas, I was quite strict on him to work hard to catch up where he had difficulties. "

    Ding graduated with a degree in environmental science from Peking University's school of engineering in 2011. That same year, he took part in a second degree program at the university's international law school. In 2016, after working for two years, Ding was accepted into Harvard Law School.

    "I never dared to dream of applying to Harvard," Ding said. "It was my mother who never stopped encouraging me to give it a try. Whenever I had any doubts, she would guide me forward."

    It seemed like a typical November day, a month after my grandmother had passed away. I was frustrated by everything that was going on around me.

    I was mad and confused about everyone especially when I saw a young girl walking through the store holding her grandmother's hand. The little girl was begging her grandmother for ice cream just like I used to when I was young. I was jealous of the little girl, because she had something I didn't have anymore — a grandmother by her side.

    I had to force myself to ignore the little girl. She was just too happy for me and that was unacceptable at that time in my world.

    I went to the cash register to pay for my things. It was then that my anger quickly shifted from the little girl to the cashier. She took my things to another register. When the cashier gave me my change I didn't say thank you. I simply took my change and left.

    Feeling tired and hopeless, I began walking to my car. As I stood in a public parking lot a million questions formed in my mind. Why did this happen to me? Aren't we supposed to get signs from the people that passed on? Why didn't I feel her presence anymore?

Suddenly, a woman driving right by my side rolled down her window. "Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me," she said loudly. Thinking she was going to ask for my parking spot, I simply pointed to my car. "No, excuse me," she said again.

Then I felt I had no choice but to see what this annoying lady wanted. She reached to the very bottom of her bag and handed me a three-page booklet. "It looks like that you need this," she said calmly with a smile on her face.

I looked down at the used booklet and there were some big bold letters on the front cover reading, "What Hope for Dead Loved Ones?" By the time I looked up she had gone.

    I felt a sense of relaxation as I read the first page. It explained how people pass on and that their spirit remains with us. It was the first time since my grandmother passed away that I had felt her with me. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but I knew that I finally felt happiness from a stranger.

    London's newest skyscraper (摩天大楼) is called the Shard and it cost about 430 million pounds to build. At a height of almost 310 metres, it is the tallest building in Europe. The Shard has completely changed the appearance of London. However, not everyone thinks that it is a change for the better.

    The Shard was designed by the famous Italian architect Renzo Piano. When he began designing the Shard for London, Piano wanted a very tall building that looked like a spire (尖顶). He wanted the glass surfaces to reflect the sky and the city. The sides of the building aren't regular. So the building has an unusual shape. It looks like a very thin, sharp piece of broken glass. And that is how the building got the name: the Shard. Piano says that the spire shape of the Shard is part of a great London tradition. The shape reminds him of the spires of the churches of London or the tall masts (桅杆) of the ships that were once on the river Thames.

    The Shard has 87 floors. At the top, there is an observatory. At the moment the building is empty, but eventually there will be a five­star hotel. There will also be top quality restaurants, apartments and offices.

    Before building work began, a lot of people didn't want the Shard though the plans were approved. Now they are still unhappy about the Shard. Some critics say that such a tall skyscraper might be good in a city like New York, but not in London. They say that the best thing about the Shard is its spire shape. But that is the only thing. There is no decoration, only flat surfaces. The Egyptians did that 4, 500 years ago. They also think the Shard is too big for London. It destroys the beauty of the city.

    Other critics don't like what the Shard seems to represent. They say that the Shard shows how London is becoming more unequal. Only very rich people can afford to buy the expensive private apartments and stay in the hotel. But the people who live near the Shard are among the poorest in London. So the Shard seems a symbol of the division in society between the very rich and the poor.

    The Shard now dominates the London skyline. It is not certain, however, that ordinary London citizens will ever accept it as a valuable addition to the city.