In the deep blue sea, there lived a fish called Rainbow (彩虹) Fish. He was not just a common fish, but the most beautiful fish in the ocean. There are some shining scales (闪光鳞) among his colorful scales. He thought himself so beautiful that he never played with others.

One day, a little blue fish asked for one of his shining scales. However, the Rainbow Fish refused and shouted, “Get away from me!” Shocked, the little blue fish just swam away. From then on, no one would have anything to do with the Rainbow Fish. They turned away when he swam by.

Now the Rainbow Fish was the loneliest fish in the ocean. So he went to an old fish for help. “This is my advice,” said the old fish. “Give a shining scale to each of the other fish. You will not be the most beautiful fish anymore, but you will find out how to be happy.”

The Rainbow Fish took the advice. First, he gave the smallest scale to the little blue fish. Then, when the other fish were all around him, he shared his scales left and right. Finally the Rainbow Fish had only one shining scale left, yet he was very happy.

The goal of the Chinese Bridge Competition is to make the world better understand Chinese language and culture. It also builds a communication bridge between young people of China and other countries. This year, 23 Egyptian (埃及的) students joined in the Chinese Bridge Competition on May 14. Liao Liqiang, a reporter, interviewed (采访) some of them.

Aya Ibrahim, who won the first prize, said, “Through the competition, I learned a lot, got friendships and improved myself.” Ibrahim said she found Chinese very difficult to learn at first, but then she joined in different kinds of Chinese activities and her Chinese improved a lot.

Aya Magdy, another top prize winner, said the Chinese language has changed her character. “I used to be shy. Learning Chinese turned me into an outgoing girl,” she added.

As for Sandra Ghattas, a second-prize winner, she is interested in Chinese songs. “Singing Chinese songs helped me a lot with my Chinese learning and understanding of Chinese culture,” said Ghattas.

This year is the 66th year since Egypt built a relationship with China. “The development of the China-Egypt relationship needs the two peoples to work together, especially the young of both countries,” Liao said.

The Dragon Boat Festival is on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month. Chinese people celebrate it in memory of Qu Yuan. There are many different traditions in different areas.     36    

Dragon boat racing

As the most popular activity during the festival, dragon boat racing shows the importance of team work and the spirit of competition.     37     It is said that the winning team will have good luck and a happy life in the coming year.

    38    

A very popular dish during the Dragon Boat Festival is zongzi. The tradition of zongzi is meant to feed the fish in Miluo River so that they would not eat Qu Yuan. It is made of rice dumplings with meat, peanuts or other delicious food in bamboo leaves.     39     They are very delicious.

Tying five-color string（系五彩绳）

    40     On the festival, parents usually put five-color string around their children’s neck or some other parts of the body. They believe it can protect their children. Children shouldn’t speak while their parents tie the five-color string for them, nor can they untie（解开）it until a certain time.