Living in the foreign culture can be exciting, but it can also be confusing. A group of Americans who taught English in other countries recently discussed their experiences. They discussed that miscommunications were always possible, even over something as simple as “yes”and“no”.
     On her first day in Micronesia, an island in the Pacific, Lisa thought the waitress wasn't paying any attention to her. The day was hot she went into a store and asked, "Do you have any cold drinks?" The woman there didn't say anything. Lisa repeated the question again. Still the woman said nothing. She later learned that the woman had answered her: She has raised her eyebrows, which in Micronesia, it means, "yes".
     Jan remembered an experience she had in Bulgaria, a country in Europe. She went to a restaurant that was known for its cabbage. She asked the writer,“Do you have cabbage today?”He nodded his head. Jan waited, but the cabbage never came. In that country, a nod means "no".
     Tom had a similar problem when he arrived in India. After explaining something in class, he asked his students if they understood. They answered with different nods and shakes of heads. He thought some people hadn't understood, so he explained again. When he asked again, they did the same thing. He soon found out that his students did understand. In India, people nod and shake heads in different ways. It depends on where they come from.

“Chicken” idioms（习语）

    The word “chicken” is used in so many English idioms. Do you know the following?

    Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

    The expression“Don't count your chickens before they hatch”means “Don't expect that all your eggs, which have been laid, will hatch. “Hatch” is a verb, meaning the baby chicken breaks open the shell of the egg and comes out successfully. So the expression mainly means “Don't depend on things working out just as you want them to.” this saying appears in the story The Milkmaid and Her Pail in Aesop's Fables.

    A chicken-and-egg situation

    In history, philosophers（哲学家）and scientists have met this dilemma（困境）: Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Aristotle thought that both the bird and the egg must have always been there. However, more recently, scientists such as Stephen Hawking have argued that the egg came before the chicken. In common speech, the term “a chicken-and-egg situation” means a situation where it is impossible to say which of two things appeared first and which caused the other one.

    Don't be such a chicken

    There seems to be an idea in English, somehow, that a chicken is a scared bird. Maybe that's not fair as most birds will probably fly away from you if you go towards them. But “Don't be such a chicken” means “Don't be so scared and get a bit more courage.” So if your friend fear to do something, you can say to him or her, “Don't be such a chicken. Just have a try!”

    The Spring Festival is the biggest festival for Chinese people all around the world. The celebration usually last for 15 days. There is a lot to do.

    On the eve of the Spring Festival, family members get together and have big meals. Their favorite dish on this day is dumplings.

    Days before the Spring Festival, families will clean their homes. People think cleaning sweeps away bad luck. It makes the house ready for good luck.

    The color red is everywhere during the Spring Festival. People think red is a happy color and will bring them a bright future. People wear red, too. They decorate(装饰) their homes with pieces of red paper. Kids get a lot of hongbao. It is a paper bag with money in it .Usually, older people give younger ones hongbao. They think it brings good luck.

    The Spring Festival is the time to make everybody happy. So don't say any bad words or do anything that will bring unhappiness to other people.

    For instance(例如), you'd better not say any bad words like "death". Don't break anything. People think that it means your luck is running out.

    Also, don't borrow money on these days. If you have borrowed money, return it before the Spring Festival.

    In many English homes people eat four meals a day: breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner.

    People have breakfast at any time from seven to nine in the morning. They eat porridge, eggs or bread. English people drink tea or coffee at breakfast. Lunch comes at one o'clock. Afternoon tea is from four to five in the afternoon and dinner is about half past seven. First they have soups, and then they have meat or fish with vegetables. After that they eat some other things, like bananas, apples or oranges. But not all English people eat like that. Some of them have their dinner in the middle of the day. Their meals are breakfast, dinner, tea and supper and all these meals are very necessary.

    Mother's Day is a holiday for mothers. It is celebrated in the United States, England, India and some other countries. In a short time, it becomes widely celebrated Mother's Day falls on the second Sunday in May. On that day many people send gifts of love to their mothers. Those whose mothers are still living often wear a pink or red rose or carnation(康乃馨), while those whose mothers are dead wear a white one.

    The idea of a day for mothers was first given by Miss Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia As a result of her hard work, the celebration of the first American Mother's Day was held in Philadelphia on May 10, 1908. Soon the holiday became popular all over the country and around the world.

    In China, people do the same on the day for mothers, And, in some cities, people sometimes ask a song to be broadcasted for his or her mother only. This might cost a little money for some of them, but, as it is said, "Love is invaluable."

    On May 8, 1999, just the day before the Mother's Day that year, a Chinese mother, a heroic(英雄的) mother was killed in criminal bombing(罪悉轰炸)in Yugoslavia(南斯拉夫). Her name is Shao Yunhuan, a reporter who wrote lots of articles(文章)for Chinese newspapers. All the Chinese will remember her forever.