When we think of Christmas, we probably think of 1  , Christmas trees and Santa Claus. But behind all these things lies the true meaning of Christmas: the importance of sharing and giving love and joy to people around us. The story in A Christmas Carol is perhaps the best example of this.

A Christmas Carol is a famous short novel written by British writer Charles Dickens (1812-1870). It is about an old man 2 Scrooge who never laughs or smiles. He only thinks about himself and is3 to share things with others. He doesn't treat others nicely. He just cares about whether he can 4and he hates Christmas. One Christmas Eve, Scrooge sees the ghost of Jacob Marley, his dead business partner. Marley used to be just like Scrooge, so he was 5 after he died. He warns Scrooge to change his ways if he doesn't want to end up like him. He also tells Scrooge to expect 6 ghosts to visit him.

 That  7 , the ghosts visit Scrooge. First, the Ghost of Christmas Past takes him back to his childhood and reminds him  8  his happy days as a child. Then the second ghost, the Ghost of Christmas Present, takes him to see  9  others are spending Christmas this year. Everyone is happy, even poor people. The last one, the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, takes him to the  10 . Scrooge sees that he is dead, but nobody cares. He is so  11 that he wakes up in his bed and finds out it is only the next morning — Christmas Day!

 Scrooge decides to change his life and   12 to be a kind person. He  13  celebrates Christmas with his relatives. He also gives gifts to people in need. He now treats   14  with kindness and warmth, spreading love and joy everywhere he goes. And that is the true   15 of Christmas!

    Every April, there is a special day when people remember and honor their ancestors (祖先). It is called Tomb (坟墓)-Sweeping Day, also known as Qingming Festival. This year, the day 1 on April 4th.

    Tomb-Sweeping Day is a(n)2 Chinese festival. It began over 2,000 years ago. A well-known poem by the Tang Dynasty poet Du Mu 3 the day: “Rains fall heavily as Qingming comes, and passersby with lowered spirits go. A drizzling rain falls on the mourning Day, the mourner's heart is breaking on his way.”

    Tomb-Sweeping Day has been a public 4 on the Chinese mainland since 2008. On this day,5 bring flowers, food and wine to their ancestors' tombs (坟墓). They put food like cakes and fruits in front of the tombs. After that, they 6 the dirt (尘土) off the tombs and remember their dead family members.

    7 do Chinese people do this? That's because people think that visiting tombs during Qingming Festival is to 8 respect (尊重) to their dead family members.

    However, Tomb-Sweeping Day is not only about this. During that time, the weather is getting 9. So Tomb-Sweeping Day also means finally being able to garden and enjoy outdoor activities in China. Families often 10 for outings or fly kites at this time.

    We use body language to send messages to others. It is very 1 because others can understand you easily when you use body language. When you are talking with others, you are not just using words, but also using 2. For example, waving one's hand is to say "Good­bye". Shaking hands means welcome, and clapping hands 3 congratulations(祝贺). Nodding the head means YES, but shaking the head means NO.

    Different countries have 4 body language. For example, when in 5 ， France and Arab countries, people kiss each other when they meet, 6 men in China or Australia shake hands. People in Puerto Rico like touching each other, but people in Britain do not touch each other. People in Arab countries like 7 close to one another when they are talking, but English people must keep a distance away when they are talking. It is very important 8 the meanings of gestures and movements in the foreign country 9 they will help you communicate with people and make you stay there much more 10 and comfortable.

    Welcome to London. You may visit many interesting 1 here.

    The River Thames is a very beautiful river. Many boats and ships come and go 2 it. Many people from other countries go on boat trips here. One of the best boat trips is from Tower Bridge to Westminster Bridge. Boats 3 Tower Bridge every half an hour.

    Tower Bridge is a 4 bridge in the world. Tower Bridge is near the Tower of London. 5 Tower Bridge gets its name. You can 6 Tower Bridge at any time.

    Hyde Park is in the centre of the 7. It's a great city park in the world, It 8 very beautiful. You can enjoy swimming, boating, bike riding and skating here.

    London has a lot of museums and some of 9 are free (免费的). They're good places for you to visit. I'm sure you'll 10 a good time here.

    Ask your foreign friends or teachers whether they experienced" culture shock" upon moving to China. 1 are, they did.

    According to a survey, eighty-five percent of international students have had culture shock. Culture shock is a broad term for the series of personal difficulties that people go through in new places, for the surrounding environment is so different from that where they grow up. It's usually most extreme for those who can't speak the language of the place to which they have 2 or for those who aren't familiar with the social rules, such as what you should do if you meet people for the first time. Both of these things happened to me in China when I moved there in 2011.

    So as you can imagine, naturally, I went through the four well-known3 of culture shock: honeymoon, distress, re-integration and autonomy.

    When I arrived at first, I was 4 and. optimistic, I thought I was well-prepared for this new life in the new country, and I was eager to find out what I was going to experience later. But quickly I became upset by the cultural differences I encountered, missing how things5 back home.

    By the end of my first year, I had totally lost my self-confidence; I was a bitter, clumsy and sensitive person, and I blamed China for making me that way.

    Then, in my second year, I started to6 some language skills, and I found fun activities to do in my spare time, I made great foreign and Chinese friends, and with their help, I tried hard to learn to appreciate the beauty of Chinese history and culture, which was the thing I always wanted to achieve. To my delight, I succeeded in 7 an interest in them. And afterwards, I learned to consider myself a confident and happy laowai.

    Today I'm back in the US, where I'm pursuing a PhD at a university in my hometown. It's been a little 8to readjust to life in my home country, I suffered at first from "reverse" culture shock, experiencing the four stages in the opposite order.

    I started out feeling independent and self-confident, before slowly realizing that I knew my country much less well than I used to. I'd complain loudly about little things, like how I could no longer shout "fuwuyuan!" to get waiters'9 to let them know that I was ready to order in a restaurant.

    But eventually, I came to realize that what I had thought was my "home" had become an entirely new place while I'd been away. That, by itself, was exciting.