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People say the real culture of Beijing lies in the culture of hutong and siheyuan.     1     true it is! They give an understanding of the old lifestyle of ordinary Beijingers. If you want to truly know the real life of Beijingers, a half-day hutong tour     2     (be) a good choice.

Starting during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), hutongs are narrow (狭窄的) streets which     3     (form) by lines of siheyuan, and they are at the center of old neighborhood life in Beijing.

The word “hutong” comes from Mongolian and means “water well”. People in ancient times dug a well and lived around it, so “water well” became the name of the living area and then the name of the narrow streets. From the name of a hutong, you can guess its origin (起源). However, the meaning of hutong has cultural aspects (方面).

If the Forbidden City is     4     symbol of the Chinese royal (皇家的) family, then hutongs are the epitome (缩影) of the life of ordinary Beijing people. They are like museums of folk custom, showing the culture of Beijingers. Every hutong has its story     5     (tell). Neighbors in Beijing hutongs sit down over a cup of tea, catching up with each other’s play, shopping, and conversation.

Many famous operas and dramas are based on the theme of “hutong life”. A visit to hutongs by day plus a drama by the Beijing People’s Art Theatre in the evening will help you     6     (well) understand this basic part of life in Beijing. So don’t miss it.

Have you heard of Tianshui Spicy Hot Pot (麻辣烫)? Recently, a short video on Douyin has made it popular all over China. Tianshui l    1     in the southeast of Gansu Province. Many visitors have hurried to Tianshui on weekends in order to o    2     a bowl of it in the local restaurant. Some of them say Tianshui Spicy Hot Pot is t    3     than that in other areas because of the special way of making it. It is said that the number of people who eat it has i    4     by 190% in the past few weeks.

An owner of the local restaurant told China Daily that he is very tired every day now. He has to work for 14 to 15 hours a day and all of his free time has been taken u    5     by it these days. However, he will do his best to satisfy the need of all the c    6    .

And he will keep providing a high level of s    7     for visitors every day. He also reminds us that we should not eat too much of spicy hot pot. It may make our stomachs feel u    8     and we may get fat easily. The local government also tries its best to provide different ways of transport. You can get around the city by taking a bus or an u    9    .

So far, we have learned some information about Tianshui Spicy Hot Pot. If you want f    10     information about it, please visit Tianshui for yourselves one day.

Harbin is the capital of Heilongjiang Province in China. Located in the northeast of China, it is one of     1     (large) attractions with a long history and varied culture.     2     December 7th, 2023, the city welcomed an Ice and Snow Festival. It attracts     3     (million) of tourists around the world. Today, let’s learn more about the Ice and Snow Festival.

Ice and Snow Festival     4     (influence) by Ice Lantern Festival. In the Qing Dynasty, people often made ice lanterns by     5     (they). Ice lanterns were used as jack-lights in daily life during the winter months.     6     then, people have kept this helpful tradition.

Today, lanterns in Harbin have become     7     symbol of local culture. Every year, many ice sculpture fans from different countries come to Harbin     8     (enjoy) its beauty. Many sporting competitions are also popular, like ice-skating, ice football and so on. Actually, there are other interesting activities.     9     you are interested, you can also see people do folk dances and sing folk songs.

Harbin ice lanterns have been exhibited in most of China’s main cities. For more than 40 years, Ice and Snow Festival has     10     (simple) provided joy and fun for visitors. Why not have a trip in Harbin?

Harbin is the capital of Heilongjiang, the most northern province in China. Over 2024 New Year holiday, China’s Ice and Snow Festival was held in a park in Harbin. Some Chinese-style buildings, bridges and fairy-tale castles were built around the park. It a    1     over five times more tourists than a year ago. Most of them came from the south of China. Some netizens provided h    2     suggestions for these southerners. They helped them pay attention to the need for clothing that protects them from the freezing outdoor temperatures. Soon, the name of “Southern Little Potatoes” became popular and was w    3     used on social media.

The ice and snow season in Harbin lasted for about 2 months. The hotel rooms booked out during February. Many “Southern Little Potatoes” s    4     the Spring Festival with their families in Harbin this year. They went skiing and enjoyed wonderful ice views around the park.

“I come from Guangzhou. It’s my first experience with real snow. I love this amazing c    5    .” Long Ping, a 19-year-old college student said, “I wish I could have another wonderful holiday here again.”

People often think of China’s water towns as “Venice in the East”. They are famous     1     their old buildings, bridges, canals and ways of life.

Lying in the north of Tongxiang City, Zhejiang Province, the beautiful water town of Wuzhen is one such town. It has     2     history of over 6, 000 years. During those years, Wuzhen didn’t change its name, water system, or way of life. It is just like a living museum for people     3     get much knowledge.

People there built houses     4     were made of black bricks, grey tiles and white walls in the small town along the river. From the far distance it is just like a Chinese ink-wash drawing.

The place is quiet, and     5     are many nice cafes, restaurants and theaters. If you want to run away from the busy city life and relax, you can even have great fun on a boat tour. Wuzhen Water Town is a great choice.

Tianshui lies in the southeast of Gansu Province. Spicy Hot Pot     1     (become) popular all of the network recently. It’s a historic city in the northwest China and one of the most important birthplaces of Chinese civilization (中华文明). We     2     (take) you here through a historical journey of all the ages.

It is known as the “Hometown of Emperor of Fuxi”. Emperor Fuxi     3     (say) to be one of the three emperors in ancient Chinese legend. He created the Eight Trigrams (八卦) on     4     (he) own and opened a new age of human civilization.

According to the legend, Fuxi noticed all things in heaven and earth     5     (change), invented fishing nets and made people’s lives more convenient. He led humans     6     (keep) wild animals. Entering the Fuxi Temple, I feel as I’m     7     (complete) lost in an ancient legend. On the wall of the temple, there are excellent murals (壁画),     8     (describe) Fuxi’s achievements and legends vividly (逼真地).

I feel a strong power of history and culture here. Everything here tells a story from ancient times. The more you learn about Fuxi Temple, the     9     (deep) understanding of Chinese culture you will get. I’m proud of our such Chinese     10     (wealthy). It made us know about how wise and creative our Chinese in ancient times were.

Do you know Tianshui, a big city along the ancient Siłk Road? It is one of the     1     (最古老的) cities in Gansu Province. So people     2     (通常地) visit Tianshui for its history and culture. Things have     3     (改变) these days, however. More and more people are traveling there for its spicy hot pot (麻辣烫). According to Trip.com, bookings for hotels and attractions in Tianshui have risen     4     (四十) percent from a year ago.

In early February, a student posted a video of the spicy hot pot on social media. So far, the video has quickly deceived 1,000,000 likes. Many people said that they wanted to taste the food     5     (他们自己).

What makes the food special in Tianshui? That’s all thanks to the seasonings (佐料).     6     (蔬菜) and meat are cooked with a mix of peppercorns and red pepper oil. The red pepper is grown in Tianshui’s Gangu County (甘谷县). The     7     (气候) there makes the pepper look bright red and taste great. This gives the hot pot an unusual look and flavor.

The city’s increasing popularity has excited the     8     (本地的) government. They hope to follow the examples of Zibo and Harbin and     9     (发展) the city. Since March 11, they have offered two new bus services to take tourists from train stations to dining places. Also, a food festival was     10     (举办) to show the delicious food. They hope to make tourists feel at home.

I came to Shanxi University as an international student from Bangladesh in October 2018. I found myself falling in love     1     Shanxi. And I became more interested in local life and knew more about the city.

    2     I first came here, I found it might be hard to start a new life in a new place. But with the help of my teachers and friends, I could adapt (适应) to the life here. I think their warm-hearted help     3     a main reason for my growing love of China. My experience in Shanxi is a chance to help open my     4     and I find life here is full of surprise. I love visiting different parts of Shanxi by cycling because it can help me have a better understanding of the city and make friends with local people.

With a recorded history of more than 3,000 years, Shanxi is one of the cradles (发源地) of ancient Chinese culture. The province     5     is called “a museum of ancient Chinese culture” has lots of treasures. Having lived in Shanxi for many years, I have been impressed by the Chinese people’s strong sense of pride in their traditional culture. Maybe you will enjoy this place like me.