Oxford（牛津）is a city in the UK. It's in the west of the UK and it's famous for the University of Oxford. It's an old university—about 900 years old. It has a longer history than Cambridge（剑桥）University, It's the oldest university in English-speaking world.

    There are about 20, 000 students and they are from all over the world. Many students go to school by bike. There are 31 colleges（学院）in the University of Oxford, but Cambridge University has only 31 colleges（学院）. There are 104 libraries in the University of Oxford. Stephen Hawking was a student of the University of Oxford. He's a great scientist. Clinton（克林顿）, the 42nd American president was also a student of the University.

    Some people in the West like to stay at home during their weekends. They work in the garden, visit their friends, read books or watch television. Many families take their lunch to a park or some where far from the city. They like to eat under some trees or near a nice lake. If they live near the sea, they often go to the seaside. There they can fish, swim or enjoy the sunshine.

    Some people in the West like travelling. They think travelling and outdoor activities are interesting and exciting. They work hard to save money, but their main purpose is to travel.

    Most Western students often make use of their weekends to camp. There are thousands of interesting camp bases in Western countries. They can swim, go fishing, attend lectures, and take part in many other activities there. It can help them quest for the secrets of nature and teach them how to be self-reliant(自立的).

    Zheng He was an amazing man. He was born in 1371. Ten years later, he was caught by the army of a rich young man called Zhu Di and made to work for him. Over time the rich man saw that Zheng He was very clever and strong and they became close friends. In 1403 Zhu Di became the king of China and he asked Zheng He to join his government.

    The king wanted to learn more about the world and show other countries his power. He ordered many new ships to be built and made Zheng He their leader. Between 1405 and 1433, Zheng He led some sea trips to different parts of the world. He certainly travelled to India, Africa and the Middle East. A few people think his ships have even reached South America and Australia.

    Each trip lasted more than one year and it is believed he sailed more than 50,000 kilometres during the years of his travels. Zheng He led a fleet with about 28, 000 men and over 250 ships, such as boats for food, water and even soldiers horses.

    On these trips he took many Chinese goods like silk and medicine with him to give to foreign kings or to sell for local goods. He returned from each trip with boats which were filled with expensive things such as gold and treasures, foreign guests and strange animals like a giraffe.

    It is a pity that we may never learn everything about Zheng He's travels. The Columbus of the East, Zheng He, died in 1433. After that. The new king had these trips stopped and he burned almost all the books about Zheng He's travels, because he believed the trips were unlucky and too expensive. It is only in the last 50 years that historians have begun to carefully study the adventures of great Zheng He.

    Most English people have three names: a first name, a middle name and a family name. Their family names come last. For example, my full name is Jim Allan Green. Green is my family name. My parents gave me both of my other names.

    le don't use their middle name very much. So "John Henry Brown" is usually called "John Brown". People never use Mr., Mrs. or Miss before their first names. So, you can say John Brown; but you should never say Mr. John. They use Mr., Mrs. or Miss with the family name but never with the first name.

    Some people ask me about my name. "Why do your parents call you Jim? Why do they choose(择)hat name for you?" The answer is they don't call me Jim. They call me James. James is the name of my grandfather.

    In England, people usually call me Jim for short. That's because it is shorter and easier than James.

    Everyone has a family name. My name is Jane Armstrong. Armstrong is my family name. What does Armstrong mean (意思)? Does it mean my arms are strong? But I am a slim (苗条的) girl. I don't like strong arms. My best friend is Lucy Long. Is she a tall girl? No, she isn't. She is short. But she has long hair. Some family names come from jobs. My friend's name is James Cook. Does it mean he can cook(烹饪)? No, it doesn't. And he doesn't like cooking at all. He only likes eating nice food. And he likes the TV show A Bite of China(《舌尖上的中国》) because it is all about nice food. Some people get family names from places. Ann Hill is my classmate. Is there a hill near her home? Yes. There is one hill behind( .....后.面) her home. But her uncle, Tom Hill, lives 20 km from a hill.

    How important is your appearance? Although everyone wants to be good-looking, are beautiful people always happier people? For example, it must be a problem to be a really beautiful woman, because some people may be more interested in looking at you than talking to you. They think of you as a picture rather than a person.

    Some people think that women who are exceptionally(格外地) pretty and men who are particularly handsome must be stupid. They believe that only unattractive(无魅力的) people can be intelligent(智慧的).

    On the other hand, no one wants to be really ugly, and have a face that even your mother doesn't want to look at; and no one wants to be plain, either--that is, to be neither attractive nor unattractive, and have a face that is easily forgotten. Being attractive is like being rich. It can help you find happiness, but it doesn't always make you happy.

    So maybe the best thing is not to worry too much about how you look, but simply try to be an interesting person. For interesting people have interesting faces, and interesting faces are almost always attractive.