The Monkey Buffet Festival is on the last Sunday of November. It is a great day for monkeys in Thailand (泰国). The festival has a history of 25 years. People there think monkeys can bring good luck to them. So, to thank monkeys, they have this special festival.

    On that day every year, people put lots of fruit, vegetables, cakes and even drinks on the tables outside. They are all for monkeys. Many people come to see the monkeys on that day.

    During the festival, there are a lot of interesting activities about monkeys. Young people always dress like monkeys and they sing and dance and play some music on the street.

    Monkeys always live in groups. Most of them live in the trees. They are good at running and jumping. They eat fruit, vegetables, flowers and birds' eggs. Monkeys are clever. Do you think so?

    People in Britain and the USA are taking more interest in modern dance. Dance classes of all kinds are popular; the number of people going to watch modern dance companies is also larger. And perhaps the most popular modern dance company in Britain is the Ballet Rambert.

    The Ballet Rambert is Britain's oldest dance company which began in 1926. In the 1960s, the company didn't have enough money to put on big performances. The directors wanted to encourage new dancers and to keep up their high standards.

    A change of direction was necessary. They decided to give the ballet a "new look" in 1966. The aim was to provide a chance for new talent—for musicians and designers as well as dancers—and to show dance as a modern art form. And although some of the company's fans disliked the change, new audiences came to see the performances. The modern dance pieces and modern music found unexpected popularity. In 1968, the Ballet Rambert was a great success in London's West End. The company became a good choice for new, progressive talent in the arts.

    Later, the Ballet Rambert started to introduce young people to modern dance by giving performances at schools, which again, was a success. The Ballet Rambert has managed to make modern dance popular while creating performances different from the old ones. It is considered the oldest dance company in Britain and at the same time one of the most modern!

My husband, Tyler, and I decided to raise a guide dog puppy (幼犬). After attending several meetings with Anina Green, the guide dog club leader, I eagerly signed up to become a raiser and patiently waited for the arrival of my puppy. Then, one day, Anina informed me that I would get my puppy on April 27.

That day, Tyler and I went to Anina's house. In the kitchen, we saw the puppy. Escort, sleeping on the floor. Holding him for the first time was magical. He was so soft and sleepy—and huge! Escort was larger than a lot of full-grown dogs.

We attended a weekly puppy kindergarten to learn how to train Escort. From the time we got the puppy until he was about 6 months old, he was on a leash (牵引绳). When we were watching TV on the sofa or brushing teeth, the leash was always in our hands. During the first eight weeks. Tyler and I mostly stayed at home, taught Escort orders, and held his leash.

The guide dog club is really like a family—a family with a lot of wonderful, well-behaved dogs. We traveled to various places together with these dogs. Escort's first group outing was a trip to tour the city museum. We also went to a shopping mall, a baseball game. a fire station, and the airport to practice going through security. With all the help from our club, Escort went from a sleepy little puppy to a dependable companion (伙伴) when he was 8 months old.

When Escort was one year old, he could walk with a perfect loose (松的) leash, follow our orders and always make the right choices. It was time for us to drop him off at the Guide Dogs for the Blind campus to go through more formal (正式的) guide training and get matched with someone who needed him. We had fallen in love with the puppy and couldn't bear giving him away. but we had to say goodbye to him.

When I see pictures of Escort with the woman he has been placed with. I feel very happy. It doesn't hurt that he's not with me—seeing him going on adventures with his new owner every day makes it all worth it. The thought that he will improve her life makes me very proud.

Every year, on January 5th, the city of Harbin in northeast China changes into a winter wonder- land. Tourists from all around the world come to visit this wonderful ice and snow festival. 

The festival started in 1963 and began as a winter party. The festival often lasts for one month. However, if the weather stays cold and dry, it will go on for a few more days. Temperatures are usually very cold. They can go down to –17℃. 

Ice sculptors (雕塑家) use different tools to carve (雕刻) the hard ice and snow. These sculptors display (展示) their works in two main areas. "Sun Island" has huge snow sculptures (雕塑) of people and animals. "Ice and snow World" has sculptures of buildings. At night, these buildings light up with colorful lights. 

Visitors can do a lot of other activities, such as skiing and ice sliding. They can also go swimming in the icy waters of Songhua River. 

 There once was a king. He decided to do an experiment (实验) like a scientist. He made someone put a big rock right in the middle of the road to see who would move it out of the way. 

 First, some rich people walked by. They walked around the rock, complaining (抱怨) that the king didn't look after the road very well. 

 Then a farmer came over. He was going home with his arms full of food for his family. When he saw the rock, he put his things down and went to move it away. The rock was heavy. It took him some time to move it, but he made it at last. 

 When the farmer was about to leave, he found a bag lying near his things. He opened the bag to find that it was full of money, along with a letter from the king. It said that the money was a reward(报酬) for him because he spent the time and energy moving the rock out of the road. What he did helped others. 

 If you see a job in front of you, don't leave it to the next person. Instead(代替, 而不是), get the job done to help the people who come after you.