2 . The National Gallery

Description:

The National Gallery is the British national art museum built on the north side of Trafalgar Square in London. It houses a diverse collection of more than 2,300 examples of European art ranging from 13th-century religious paintings to more modern ones by Renoir and Van Gogh. The older collections of the gallery are reached through the main entrance while the more modern works in the East Wing are most easily reached from Trafalgar Square by a ground floor entrance.

Layout:

The modern Sainsbury Wing on the western side of the building houses 13th- to 15th-century paintings, and artists include Duccio, Uccello, Van Eyck, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli and Memling.

The main West Wing houses 16th-century paintings, and artists include Leonardo da Vinci , Cranach, Michelangelo, Raphael, Bruegel, Bronzino, Titian and Veronese.

The North Wing houses 17th-century paintings, and artists include Caravaggio, Rubens, Poussin, Van de Dyck, Velázquez, Claude and Vermeer.

The East Wing houses 18th- to early 20th-century paintings, and artists include Canaletto, Goya, Turner, Constable, Renoir and Van Gogh.

Opening Hours:

The Gallery is open every day from 10 am to 6 pm (Fridays 10 am to 9 pm ) and is free, but charges apply to some special exhibitions.

Getting There:

Nearest underground stations: Charing Cross (2-minute walk), Leicester Square (3-minute walk), Embankment (7-minute walk), and Piccadilly Circus (8-minute walk).

4 . When you are travelling in Thailand, which means of transport is the best choice?

You can rent a variety of motorbikes or bikes in Thailand. It seems to be very popular in most of the beaches and islands along the places in the north. The most popular bikes are the little 125 cc Honda Dream which you can get for about 150 baht (铢)a day or as little as 3,000 baht per month, making it the cheapest way to tour Thailand for the people from other countries.

Sometimes you will have to go somewhere by taxi. When you are in cities in Thailand, especially in Bangkok, always remember to get a taxi that is traveling on the roads. Some drivers outside hotels refuse to use the meter (计程表). They will ask a price which is several times the price when they use the meter!

The quality of the roads in Thailand is generally pretty good, so renting cars is another way to get around. The big car rental companies may offer you slightly older cars at a very reasonable price. It is a little surprising considering that the cost of buying a car in Thailand is more than that in the West. Petrol is also reasonably priced in Thailand, more expensive than American prices, but much cheaper than what is paid in Europe. In the past, Bangkok could be a difficult place to drive in—signs were generally in Thai (泰语)only, making it a hard job to find exactly where you were by looking around. But now, the situation is improved. In a lot of places, even the farthest corners of the country, street signs are in both Thai and English.

5 . Beijing will provide COVID-19 vaccinations(接种疫苗）for certain groups in nursing homes, including the elderly and caregivers, on a voluntary basis to prevent a renewed outbreak at nursing homes during autumn and winter, the local government said.

Those who will receive the vaccines include nursing home kitchen workers, security guards and cleaners. Beijing Daily reported on Friday.

Xing Yinli ,director of Jingkangyuan, a nursing home in Fengtai district with about 290 elderly residents(居民），said they have received the document(文件）recently and will strictly follow its guidance.

It’s our top duty to strengthen prevention and control.,"Xing said,adding they have been using methods such as keeping detailed records of resident contacts outside the nursing home,and encouraging online visits for family members..

As to vaccinations, she said they will ask for permission from residents,their family members and workers before giving vaccines.

In late October,Shaoxing,Zhejiang province carried out an emergencyCOVTD-19 vaccine program,allowing the public to ask for injections(注射）in advance,with key groups first. A similar program was also organized in Jiaxing,Ningbo and Yiwu in Zhejiang.

Nationwide,emergency use of home grown COVID-19 vaccines was approved in June and launched in late July. China now has four coronavirus candidate vaccines in the third stage clinical trials(临床试验）.

The document from Beijing also said nursing homes should conduct nucleic acid testing(核酸检测） every month among kitchen workers and residents who leave the nursing homes to see a doctor. Tests will cover all people in nursing homes considered at high risk if new infections are reported in the city. Besides, routine disinfections (消毒） should be strengthened in kitchens, storerooms and restrooms, it said. The document also recommended noncontact visits from family members.

6 . Vietnam aims to solve the relations between economic development and cultural preservation. Vietnamese cultural departments and activists have tried to preserve the historical and cultural relics in the country.

Vietnam now has more than 40,000 historical relics. These relics of various forms and history are treasures for future generations.

However, hundreds of relics are severely damaged due to the negative influence of time, war and human activities. Head of Hanoi Relics Management Board, Nguyen Doan Tuan, says rescue work must preserve the relics’soul: “We cannot replace ruined construction with new materials. We must preserve its shape, size and style. We need to pay attention to every brick replaced so that it looks exactly like the original.”

Most relics have to rely on tourist fees for repair and rescue work. Director of Van Mieu Cultural and Science Center, Dang Kim Ngoc, says that the relics must be promoted widely to attract more visitors and bring in more income for repair and preservation: “We provide constant guide services for visitors so that they understand more about our relics. At the same time, a natural surrounding of the relic has been ensured, including the grass field and garden to improve its scenic value.”

The local government agreed that the relics must be turned to the community for shared efforts in the preservation work. Director of Vietnam Revolution Museum Dang Quoc Quan, said that the community must be guided in the preservation and protection, “The UNESCO aims to let local community take part in the preservation of relics. We have seen limitations in the preservation of relics, especially festival-related groups of buildings. This requires management and guidance by the government.”

Nguyen Thi Minh Ly from the Department of Heritage says the community should be guided in proper behaviors towards relics: “This will ensure the protection of cultural relics in later generations Creative restoration (修复) must be based on previous(先前的) values.”

Experts have called for a systematic(系统的)guidance by the state in local level preservation while promoting creative thinking in restoration for each relic.

7 . March 23, 2016 — Rescue workers found a family in their RV on Tuesday after 17 snowy days in the mountains near the Oregon coast.

Peter Stivers, Marlo Hill Stivers, their two children Sab, 9, and Gab, 8, and Hill Stivers's mother and stepfather, Elbert and Becky Higginbotham, were in the vehicle. On their way home from a trip along the coast, the family got lost in the mountains at an elevation of about 3,800 feet. What’s worse, they were trapped in four feet of snow.

“We had fuel and food, but we were running short,” said Elbert Higginbotham. “We were rationing (定量配给).” When the family was reported missing, rescue teams from Oregon and California searched likely routes to the coast. But with no leads and no idea where the family was heading, those conducting the unsuccessful search eventually called it off.

In the evenings, Sab and Gab entertained the adults by reading jokes from Reader’s Digest aloud. The family members survived mostly on dehydrated (脱水的) food.

On Monday, Hill Stivers and her busband decided to go for help. They packed a tent, wool blankets, tuna fish, honey, and hand-warmers to take into the wilderness with them. The children stayed safe in the RV with their grandparents.

The couple were found the following day by a US Bureau (局) of Land Management worker. A rescue team in a helicopter located the rest of the family. The family was driven out of the snowbound area on snow machines. Parents and children were happily reunited.

“They enjoyed it,” Peter Stivers said of his children’s experience. “They didn’t know we were in trouble.” For the adults, it was quite an ordeal (考验). They had to worry about survival and rescue, and about keeping everyone calm. “I’m so proud of my family,” said Elbert Higginbotham. “They stuck together. They didn’t lose it.”

8 . 90-Second Newbery Film Festival

The 90-Second Newbery Film Festival is a yearly video contest in which young filmmakers create short movies that tell the entire stories of Newbery award-winning books in about a minute and a half.

Who can make movies for this film festival? It's a big range：elementary school kids, junior high school students, high school students, even college students.

We show the best movies we receive at special-event screenings in many cities.

Here are the rules:

Your video should be about 90 seconds.

Your video has to be about the story in a Newbery award-winning book.

We're looking for full-on movies with mostly child actors, who manage to tell the entire story of the book in 90 seconds.

Upload your videos to any video website and send us the link.

Sending the link to us gives us the right to post it on our blog and to other websites where we sometimes post content.

The general deadline for the tenth annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival is January 15, 2021.

9 . The spa town of Cheltenham sits on the edge of the Cotswolds, in the county of Gloucester. Below is a look at four fabulous attractions that make Cheltenham such a terrific place to visit.

Cheltenham Festival

The festival is an annual, four-day feast of racing and, on the last day, features the famous Cheltenham Gold Cup Steeplechase. It's a dramatic race of around 3 miles and 2.5 furlongs. and the horses have to clear 22 fences. Anything can happen. In 2020,this last day of the festival drew in a crowd of 68,859.

Pittville Park

If you visit Pitville Park, you'll find it divided into two main parts by the Evesham Road. The eastern side is home to the children's play area and is where people can view wildlife. Meanwhile, on the western side of the road, you'll find the larger area of the park and small areas of woodland. There's also a lower lake at which you can fish during fishing season. That's not the only activity, however. There's a skate park, tennis courts and a small children's play area.

Holst Birthplace Museum

Cheltenham was the birthplace of the 19"century English composer Gustav Holst, and visitors can visit the home in which he was born. You'll receive a taste of what Victorian life was like, as the home boasts a working Victorian kitchen, scullery, and nursery. The museum also allows you to discover the composer's life and times by allowing you into his music room. Here is where he composed The Planets.

Sudeley Castle

This private castle, which is surrounded by views of the Cotswolds, holds the claim to fame of being the only castle in England to have a queen buried in the grounds. The castle has witnessed all sorts of drama throughout its history and is one of the most interesting Tudor castles you'll ever visit.

If you would like more information on Cheltenham Town, please visit the website: www.ctladiesyouth.co.uk.

10 . Recently, an unhappy event has happened in a kindergarten in Chongqing. Most primary schools suggest that parents should come along with their children to school and guard the school gates from 7:40 to 8:00 in the morning. Opinions on this problem are different from person to person.

Sun Zhenyao, 13, Jiangbei

Safety comes first. I don’t think it’s a big problem for parents. They just have to stay at the school gate for a little longer. Also, it’s very crowded around school gates in the morning. Traffic accidents can happen. Depending only on school guards is not enough. If parents can help, there will be fewer accidents.

Li Minyi, 14, Yubei

On weekdays, guarding schools and keeping students safe should be the schools’ responsibility – not the parents’. Also, the time during which they have to stand guard is usually about 7:40 to 8:00 am, the morning rush hour. Some parents might get caught in a traffic jam and be late for their work. I don’t think this task should fall on the parents.

Sun Run, 14, Beibei

This request is not just about children’s safety, but also supporting the school. It is a good way to improve relations between parents and schools. Secondly, parents can set a good example for their kids by working selflessly for their society.

Huang Xi, 15, Jiulongpo

Most of these parents are office workers. They have their own things to do. They hurry to go to work every morning. To meet this new request, some may have to ask for time off. This will affect their work performance.