From baking pumpkin pie to celebrating the moon, here’s how autumn is celebrated across the globe.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the biggest and most widely celebrated harvest festivals in the world. It is held on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. In many Asian countries including China, the festival is celebrated as a public holiday, with families gathering and giving thanks for the harvest and full moon.
Oktoberfest is another major autumn celebration that, while originating in Germany, has inspired local versions around the globe. The world’s largest folk festival begins in September and runs for about two weeks, featuring traditional Bavarian food, music, clothing, and most importantly, lots of beer!
Thanksgiving is also an important celebration for Americans that takes place in late November every year, with seasonal dishes like yams smothered and pumpkin pies always having a place at the Thanksgiving dinner table. Walks, hikes and trips to see the changing foliage are also hugely popular, with locations like Asheville and North Carolina, boasting of some of the most beautiful autumn scenery around.
There are also several cultural and religious events that occur throughout October and November. Dia de Los Muertos, on the 1st and 2nd November, is a Mexican celebration that honours the lives of those who have passed away with food, drinks and activities that those loved ones enjoyed when they were alive. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is another spiritual celebration of the victory of light over darkness, and good over evil, which falls on 14th November. Lighting candles all around the house and hoping for health and wealth are the chief rituals of the festival.
1. Which festival features food and trips?| A．The Mid-Autumn Festival. | B．Oktoberfest. |
| C．Thanksgiving. | D．Dia de Los Muertos |
| A．They will enjoy full moon. |
| B．They will have traditional Bavarian food. |
| C．They will eat pumpkin pies. |
| D．They will light candles. |
| A．They are celebrated for harvest. |
| B．They are held all over the world. |
| C．They are cultural and religious celebrations. |
| D．They fall in autumn. |
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【推荐1】Food festivals are a common occurrence in the UK and take place in all sorts of places and at all sorts of times. Whatever your taste, there’s a food festival to match -no matter how specialized.
Meatopia
This three-day, London-based festival takes place at the end of August and is a meat lover’s paradise. In addition to a range of meat products, from burgers to steaks, attendees can listen to live music, watch butchery shows, and attend informal meat-based workshops.
Vegfest
If you prefer a festival that will help you meet your five a day, then Vegfest fest is for you. This vegan-friendly event takes place several times a year. Here you can enjoy a wide selection of freshly prepared vegetables, learn cooking tips and hear talks on nutrition to help you make the most of your plant-based search.
The Marmalade Festival
Held in Cumbria, this festival has been running for 13 years. It includes a competition to find the best homemade marmalade. There are thousands of entries from over 30 different countries across the globe.
The Ginger (姜) and spice Festival
The Ginger and spice Festival, held in Market Drayton, celebrates its town’s historic connection to Robert Clive, who returned from India with ginger. Because of this, they specialize in baking gingerbread, but also sell a range of spices from mild to hot.
The National Honey show
It started in 1921 and is the largest event of its kind. This three-day event attracts over 2000 participants to their traditional competition, and offers lectures and workshops on beekeeping and, of course, that syrupy golden honey.
While people’s tastes are different from each other, the UK has something to offer most people. From large-scale festivities, to the smaller gatherings, one thing is certain: people are passionate about their food. And while some of the products on offer might be strange to someone, when food is given that much attention, it’s unlikely to leave a bad taste in anyone’s mouth.
1. Which is TRUE according to the passage?| A．People can enjoy a wide selection of meat in Vegfest. |
| B．Meatopia falls on August 31 every year. |
| C．The Marmalade Festival is just known by the British. |
| D．Robert Clive took ginger to the UK from India. |
| A．Meatopia | B．The Ginger and spice Festival, |
| C．Vegfest. | D．The National Honey show. |
| A．Voice & views. | B．Science & Technology. |
| C．Culture | D．Sports. |
【推荐2】In America, if you see a group of students wearing crazy hats or summer T-shirts in the middle of winter, don’t be surprised. They may be celebrating their School Spirit Week (校园精神周).
The School Spirit Week is a time for students to show their pride in their school. This is not a break, but the festival. It can be held during any week of the year. The celebration works with students of all ages, from elementary to high School, as long as you keep the themes (主题) simple for the younger kids.
Spirit weeks often have a central theme that is followed throughout the week. During the week, students wear school colors and decorate the classrooms. Every day, there is a different theme. This is also students’ favorite part. They take part in different competitions and have fun together.
Spirit weeks often encourage students to wear fun and fashion clothes, with different outfits for each day of the week. Monday might be funny hat day, followed by Tuesday’s Hawaiian shirt day and Wednesday’s silly T-shirt day. Thursday could be pajama (睡衣) day, followed by Friday’s school color day.
There are also lots of other activities which the students can take part in on School Spirit Weeks. Do you like to have School Spirit Weeks?
1. Students ______ in their school by holding the School Spirit Week.| A．show their pride | B．hang out with parents |
| C．study hard | D．clean up the classrooms |
| A．in any week in winter | B．in any day in winter |
| C．in any week of the year | D．in any day of the year |
| A．throughout the week | B．before the week |
| C．after the week | D．on the weekend |
| A．parties | B．clothes | C．foods | D．glasses |
| A．There are different competitions for students. |
| B．There are lots of activities for students. |
| C．Students can wear crazy clothes. |
| D．Students can rest at home for a week. |
【推荐3】A Computer Helps！
I just got a new laptop. It is very helpful. When Ms. Liu asked us to write a report about Easter, I decided to do all of my research on the Internet. I entered some key words into a search engine to find information on this topic.
What is Easter?
Easter is an important festival in Western culture.
When is Easter?
Easter does not fall on the same day each year. The date depends on the moon.
How do people celebrate Easter?
People celebrate Easter with their family and friends.
| A．But it is always in March or April. |
| B．They eat delicious food together. |
| C．It is one of the biggest holidays in many countries. |
| D．Do you often search for information on the Internet? |
| E．Rabbits and eggs are symbols of new life. |
| F．Here is what I found. |
| G．What do you know about Internet? |
【推荐1】The traditional Chinese solar calendar divides a year into 24 solar terms. The Spring Equinox Chinese (春分), as the fourth term of the year starts on March 21 and ends on April 5 this year.
The Spring Equinox signals the equal length of the day and night time. On the day of the Spring Equinox, sun is directly above the equator. After the equinox, the sun moves northwards, resulting in gradually longer day time in the Northern Hemisphere and longer night in the Southern Hemisphere.
Here are 6 things you may not know about the Spring Equinox.
Swallows fly north
The ancient Chinese people divided the fifteen days of the Spring Equinox into three “hou’s,” or five-dayparts. As the old saying goes, swallows fly back to the North in the first hou; thunder cracks the sky in the second hou; lightning occurs frequently in the third hou, which vividly reveals the climate feature during the Spring Equinox.
Egg-standing games
Standing an egg upright is a popular game across the country during the Spring Equinox. It is an old custom that dates back to 4, 000 years ago. People practice this tradition to celebrate the coming of spring. It is believed that if someone can make the egg stand, he will have good luck in the future.
Flying kites
Spring Equinox is a good time to fly kites. In ancient times, people did not have good medical resources. So to pray for health, they wrote their medical issues on paper kite. When the kite was in the air, people would cut off the string to let the paper kite float away, symbolizing the flying away of diseases.
Later flying kites developed into a popular game of spring. On the Spring Equinox, people write a blessing on the kite, hoping that the gods in the sky would see it.
Eating spring vegetables
Eating spring vegetables during the Spring Equinox is a commonly practiced custom in many regions of China. ‘Spring vegetables’ refers to seasonal vegetables that differ from place to place. The ancient teachings in the Chinese classic, Huangdi Neijing, suggests that people eat seasonal foods to help preserve health and bring good luck.
Sacrifice to the Sun god
During the Spring Equinox, an old tradition practiced by Beijing locals is offering sacrifices to the Sun god. This tradition is called “Zhonghe Festival”. The “Sun Cake”, a round cake made from wheat and sugar, serves as the main offering.
Reward farm cattle
This practice is popular in the southern area of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. As the Spring Equinox comes, farm work starts and both the farmers and the cattle start to become busy. Farmers will reward cattle with sticky rice balls to express their gratefulness. Meanwhile, people will also make sacrifice to birds, to thank them for bringing signals for farm work and to ask them not to eat grains later in the year.
1. Which of the following is true about the Spring Equinox?| A．It falls on March 20 every year. |
| B．The day time is longer than night time. |
| C．After the Spring Equinox, day time is longer in the Northern Hemisphere. |
| D．Before the Spring Equinox, night time is longer in the Southern Hemisphere. |
| A．they could have great fun | B．the kite will fly freely in the sky |
| C．they could get good medical resources. | D．the diseases will fly away with the kites. |
| A．Treatments. | B．Problems. | C．Questions. | D．Instruments. |
| A．playing egg-standing games | B．flying away kites |
| C．eating spring vegetables | D．rewarding farm cattle |
【推荐2】Every year there is a Spring Festival in China. Usually it is in January or February. It is the most important festival in China. So before it comes, everyone has to prepare things. They buy pork, beef, chicken, fruits and many other things. And they often make a special kind of food — “dumplings”. It means “ come together ”. On the day before the festival, parents buy new clothes for their children. Children also buy presents for their parents. On the Spring Festival Eve (除夕), all the family members come back to their hometown. This is a happy moment. Some sing and dance, some play cards and others get the dinner ready. When they enjoy the meal, they give each other the best wishes for the coming year. They all have a good time.
1. Which is the most important festival in China?| A．The Mid-Autumn Festival. | B．The Spring Festival. |
| C．Children’s Day. | D．Dragon Boat Day. |
| A．In March or April. | B．In May or June. |
| C．In January or February. | D．In July or August |
| A．Chicken | B．Dumpling | C．Fish | D．Beef |
| A．Look up. | B．Help yourself. | C．Be happy | D．Come together. |
| A．give each other the best wishes | B．buy each other presents |
| C．sing, dance and play cards | D．get together |
【推荐3】The Four Famous Embroideries (刺绣) of China refer to the Xiang embroidery in Hunan Province, Shu embroidery in Sichuan Province, Yue embroidery in Guangdong Province and Su embroidery in Jiangsu Province.
Xiang embroidery
The earliest piece of Xiang embroidery was unearthed at the No. 1 Tomb of Mawangdui, Changsha City of the Han Dynasty (206 B.C. —A.D. 220). The weaving technique was almost the same as the one used in modern times, which shows that embroidery had already existed in the Han Dynasty. In its later development, it absorbs the characteristics of traditional Chinese paintings and reaches a high artistic level. Xiang embroidery crafts include valuable works of art, as well as products for daily use.
Shu embroidery
Shu embroidery has formed its own unique characteristics: smooth, bright, neat, etc. The works choose flowers, animals, mountains, rivers and human figures as their themes. The craftsmanship of Shu embroidery involves a combination of fine art and practical uses, such as the facings of quilts, pillowcases, coats and screen covers.
Yue embroidery
Influenced by national folk art, Yue embroidered pictures are mainly of dragons and phoenixes (凤凰), and flowers and birds, with neat designs and strong, contrasting colors.
Gold-and-silk thread embroidery is widely used, even for crafts of daily use.
Su embroidery
The weaving techniques of Su embroidery are characterized by the flat surface, dense lines, even pictures and harmonious colors. Su embroidery products fall into 3 major categories: costumes, decorations for halls and crafts for daily use. Double-sided embroidery is an excellent representative of Su embroidery.
1. The unearthed embroidery at Mawangdui shows Xiang embroidery’s _______.| A．time-honoured history | B．excellent designs |
| C．artistic value | D．advanced techniques |
| A．Xiang embroidery | B．Shu embroidery |
| C．Yue embroidery | D．Su embroidery |
| A．All are rooted in folk art. | B．All are valuable artworks. |
| C．All share the same themes. | D．All have practical use. |
【推荐1】Forty-nine years ago, on April 22,1970, twenty million Americans took to the streets to voice their concern about the deteriorating environment. The movement led to Earth Day.
Unfortunately, our planet is in worse shape now than it was when Earth Day was first celebrated. The good news is that it’s still not too late to reverse (转变) climate change if we all do our part. This Earth Day, take the first step towards helping our planet by participating in one of these fun activities.
NASA is putting our planet up for adoption so you and your friend can claim a portion of the planet as your own. The space agency has divided the globe into 64,000 sections, each about 55 miles wide. All you have to do is type your name into NASA’s “Adopt the Planet” site to claim a certificate that will give you the location of your slice of paradise (天堂) complete with details of its environment. NASA hopes that this exercise will stimulate interest and care in our planet.
Search giant Google is also trying to engage the public with an updated Google Earth focused around Earth Day events. Through a new Voyager feature, users will be able to discover stories from around the world, learn about new places by reading “Knowledge Cards” and send postcards.
If you happen to be anywhere near the nation’s capital on April 22, join the millions that are expected to participate in the Earth Day March at the National Mall. The mission of the event that will feature guest speakers and musical performances is to mobilize (动员) citizens into taking action by promoting this year’s Earth Day theme: climate and environmental science literacy.
While participating in the above-mentioned activities is a great idea, it is just the beginning. All that is required are small lifestyle changes. Planting a tree or two, going meatless just one day a week, or switching your plastic water bottle for a reusable one will go a long way to help reverse the damage we have caused.
1. The underlined word “deteriorating” is the closest in meaning to ________.| A．cleaner | B．better |
| C．worse | D．colder |
| A．air quality | B．ancient history |
| C．local customs | D．tourist attractions |
| A．They can create “Knowledge Cards” online. |
| B．They can discover stories from around the world. |
| C．They can receive postcards coming from Google. |
| D．They can adopt a slice of paradise in the world. |
| A．dream big | B．fly high |
| C．go meatless | D．start small |
【推荐2】English is the most widely used language in the history of our planet. One in every seven human beings can speak it. More than half of the world’s books and three quarters of international mails are in English. Of all languages, English has the largest vocabulary — perhaps as many as two million words.
However, let’s face it: English is a crazy language. There is no egg in an eggplant, neither pine nor apple in a pineapple and no ham in a hamburger. Sweetmeats are candy, while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.
We take English for granted. But when we explore its paradoxes (探讨它的矛盾), we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, public bathrooms have no baths in them.
And why is it that a writer writes, but fingers don’t fing, grocers don’t groce, and hammers don’t ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, shouldn’t the plural of booth be beeth? One goose, two geese — so one moose, two meese?
How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee be opposites, while quite a lot and quite a few are alike? How can the weather be hot as hell one day and cold as hell the next?
English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects (反映) the creativity of human beings. That’s why, when stars are out, they are visible (能看见的); but when the lights are out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my watch, I start it; but when I wind up this essay, I end it.
1. According to the passage ______.| A．boxing rings should be round |
| B．pineapples are the apples on the pine tree |
| C．there should be an egg in an eggplant |
| D．sweet-meats and sweetbreads are different things |
| A．Beeth. | B．Meese. |
| C．Geese. | D．Tooth. |
| A．Quite a lot and quite a few. |
| B．Overlook and oversee. |
| C．A wise man and a wise guy. |
| D．Hot as hell and cold as hell. |
| A．lazy | B．crazy | C．clever | D．stupid |
【推荐3】The sky is blue, and the sunshines on the street in Paris, where Mr. Gallais has been selling old classic books to tourists for more than 30 years.
Locals and tourists around the world would come to Mr. Gallai’s shop and 230 other open-air booksellers’ to buy book. However, because of the lockdown regulations to control the COVID-19 pandemic, the booksellers had to face the problem of losing the business and living difficulties these years.
“Sales have decreased by an average of 80 percent this year,” Mr. Gala is said, “which is throwing many booksellers into dangerous situations.” Still, some booksellers want to work. They are eager to keep the tradition that dates back to the l6th century. Many of the booksellers are retired workers living on pensions (养老金). They gather literature books and magazines. A growing number of people in their 30s and 40s have joined their ranks. They want to feel free from working outside an office in rain or shine.
Even before the pandemic, the booksellers were fighting with the cultural changes that people don’t read paper books as much as they used to. If they do read paper books, most readers will often choose Amazon.com to buy ones.
1. How long has Mr. Gallais been selling old classic books along the bank?| A．More than 16 years. | B．More than 19 years. |
| C．More than 23 years. | D．More than 30 years. |
| A．The booksellers’ competition. | B．The lockdown regulations. |
| C．The trend of a new profession. | D．The popularity of E-books. |
| A．They are not willing to accept advances. |
| B．They are eager to live a challenging life. |
| C．They want to feel free from working outside. |
| D．They can earn a large amount of money. |
| A．Mr. Gallais isn’t a bookseller. |
| B．Middle-aged people don’t join the ranks. |
| C．Retired booksellers don’t gather literature books and magazines. |
| D．Booksellers make efforts to keep the bookselling tradition. |
