If you have seen the short play “I've got much money(不差钱)”, you must have been impressed by the way Xiao Shenyang dressed 1 . The dress he wore is called the kilt（苏格兰方格呢短裙）. There is a famous 2 in Scotland. It says, “ A man in s kilt is a man and a half.” This saying shows how 3 the kilt is for Scottish people. The kilt is a special dress. Most Scottish men 4 it. Why do Scottish men wear 5 and what's the history of this special dress?

 It's said that in the 16th century, the Scottish highlands were  6 , so the roads were always full of mud（泥）. The mud made it very difficult for soldiers to  7  around. Slowly people found that the soldiers in kilts could move more  8  than those in trousers because kilts were much more flexible（灵活的）. What's more, soldiers could use the kilts on cold nights  9  a blanket.

 In modern times, the kilt  10Scottish pride. People wear kilts for  11 events, weddings and traditional sporting events, for example. But that's not all. The colors of a kilt also show a person's  12  history. Each Scottish family has a different pattern. So a Scotsman is wearing not only the national dress of his country,  13 the pride of his family.

 Today, fashion designers are trying to make the kilt 14  more modern and fashionable to catch more eyes. Besides cloth, the designers are trying some  15  materials such as paper and leather（皮革）.

    Some British and American people like to invite friends for a meal at home. You should not be upset  1 your English friends don't invite you home. 2 doesn't mean they don't like you. Dinner parties usually start 3 7 and 8 p.m. and end at about 11 p.m.

    Ask your hosts what time you should arrive. It's polite to bring flowers, chocolates or a bottle of wine 4 a gift.

    Usually the evening starts with drinks and snacks. If you want to be extra polite, say how much you like the room, or the 5 on the wall. But remember－it's not polite to ask how much things 6.

    In many families, the husband sits at one of the table and the wife sits at the other end. They eat with their guests.

    You'll probably start the meal with soup or something small, then you'll 7 meat or fish with vegetables, and then dessert, followed by 8. It's polite to finish 9 on your plate and to take more if you want it.

    Did you enjoy the evening? Call your hosts the next day, 10 write them a short "thank you" letter. British and American people like to say "thank you" all the time!

    Lofton (洛夫顿) is a little village not far from Manchester (曼彻斯特). Like many 1 villages near towns or cities, it's clean and quiet. Not many families 2 there, so the people all know 3. Most of them are friendly and helpful. Their homes are in Lofton, 4many people have jobs in Manchester. Some work in big factories. 5 work in shops or offices. Most of these people go to work by train. It usually takes them about 6 to go from Lofton to Manchester.

    In the evening a lot of people enjoy 7 TV. If they want to see a film or to listen to a concert, they 8 go to Manchester. There are no cinemas in Lofton.

    Life in Lofton may not be so exciting as life in the 9 cities, but it can be just as 10 as that in them. That's why people in Lofton love their village.

    One day, I heard an American boy say to a Chinese girl student ,"You speak very good English. "But the girl answered, "No, no. My English is very poor". The foreigner was quite1at the answer. Thinking he had not made2understood or the girl had not3him clearly, he said, "Yes, indeed, you speak very well. "4the girl still kept saying,

    "No. "In the end, the American boy could not understand and didn't know 5to say.

    What's wrong with the girl's answer? She didn't6a compliment (恭维)in the same way as the American people do. She should answer, "Thank you" instead of "No". She7 understood what the American boy had said, but she thought she should be modest(谦虚的).

    In the8,people will feel proud and 9when they are praised(表扬).So if someone says the 10you have cooked are very delicious, you shou ld say , "Thank you. "

    In our country we think being modest is a virtue(美德)and being proud is a bad thing.

    But in my opinion, being confident does not 11 being proud, so sometimes you should be confident 12being modest.

     13you are modest and say, "No , I'm afraid I can't do it well" ,while working in a western country, the others may think that you really cannot do it. If you often s ay "No", you will certainly be looked down upon by 14. When asking for a job, if one says something  like "Yes, I can certainly do it" instead of "Let me have a try" ,he or she will 15 to get it.

    So in the west, you should be brave to show your self-confidence.