2 . Ecofriendly replacement products for single-use plastics are appearing everywhere. But have you heard of edible (可食性的) straws? Now EQUO, a new eco-friendly company in Vietnam has come up with a natural edible solution to plastic or paper straws.

The edible straws are completely plastic free, nontoxic, chemical free, and 100 percent biodegradable according to a company press release.

“It’s well known that plastic straws are harmful to the environment. Most of the 500 million used every day in America end up in oceans where they pollute water and harm marine life. Currently over eight billion straws pollute the world’s beaches,” said Marina Tran-Vu in the press release. “Although there are some plastic and paper straw alternatives on the market, most are environmentally harmful, and we were also unsatisfied with the quality and lasting of paper straws.”

All of the materials are locally from regions that support sustainable farming according to the company’s website and they struggle to have zero-net influence by” using the power of mother nature”. The name of the company was created by combining “ECO” — meaning environmentally friendly — with “STATUS QUO” — meaning the existent state. EQU stands for creating products that have minimal influence on the environment. The company was first shown on Kickstarter on May 18 and hit their funding goal in only 30 days.

Many countries are banning single-use plastics. The EU banned 10 single-use plastic products including straws that will take effect in 2021. Other items that will no longer be made of plastic include cutlery (餐具), and balloon sticks. These 10 items make up a large percentage of ocean waste that harms marine life.

So do your part, use biodegradable cutlery — you can carry your own , edible straws, and reusable water or coffee cups. These small items can contribute to reducing plastic waste.

During the 2023 May Day holidays, Yemeni student Al-Sayaghi Waleed Mohammed Saleh Ahmed and his Chinese friends experienced the ancient way of transferring money in China’s earliest bank in the Pingyao ancient city, North China’s Shanxi Province.

“There are numerous cultural relics in China’s ancient cities     1     have made me to learn more about the country’s past,” the Yemeni said. China has dozens of well-preserved ancient cities. In recent years, these historical sites     2     (become) new darlings of curious tourists with thriving culture and tourism industries newly developed. Xinzhou ancient city in Shanxi, with     3     history of more than 1,800 years, boasts over 500 stores, many of which are time-honored, able to provide various services related     4     cultural relies, including catering, accommodation and sightseeing.

During the five-day May Day holidays, Xinzhou ancient city received more than 400,000 visitors.     5     (actual), 40 percent of the tourists were from other provincial-level regions. Multiple ancient city scenic spots in China have tapped into     6     (it) cultural resources amid this year’s tourism boom.

Cultural elements are the major ones     7     (attract) visitors to ancient cities. As an important carrier of the country’s intangible cultural heritages and traditional culture, ancient cities have stepped up their cultural     8     (preserve) and restoration efforts alongside their booming tourism development.

In 2022,     9     (promote) the protection of cultural relics, the National Cultural Heritage Administration issued a document on encouraging and supporting social forces to participate in protection and utilization of cultural architecture. “With this document, we can better protect     10     develop historical relics in the ancient city,” said Su Yawei, manager of the Taiyuan Ancient County scenic area.

9 . Now we are small, but when we grow up then we can teach our little brothers and sisters, the younger generation, to understand what is good and what is bad.

Shamima is from Bangladesh. She is seventeen years old. She ________ people living in her community about safe water.

Many people living near Shamima do not have ________ or latrines in their homes. They do not have a clean supply of drinking ________ And there is a lot of rubbish in the river where people ________ their water. Many people are sick in Shamima’s community because of the ________ water situation. But, Shamima plans to ________ that.

Shamima ________ many homes. She carries with her a simple set of directions and a ________ that she made herself. The picture has two sides. Shamima calls one side good and the other side bad. She shows people her picture and ______ what a healthy community looks like.

She makes sure each family is drinking ________ water from the well. She also teaches them ______ to make drinking water safe. She asks if they are using toilets or latrines. She tells them where to throw their ________ . And she teaches them the importance of washing their ________ before eating or preparing food. Shamima is ________ the bad water situation in her community.

“I am the one who has hands and feet and mind. And AIDS is only something that is inside my ________ . So it will try to rule the inside. But outside I will be the boss. I will be in control,” said Shamima.

10 . In Greece, a culture guide named Persephone welcomes travelers to the Alistrati Cave. Persephone is a human-sized robot that can smoothly guide tourists through the first 150 meters of the cave, talking about it in 33 different languages. However, it can only answer 33 questions in Greek. After the first part of the tour, a human guide takes over for the remaining 750 meters.

Nikos Kartalis, the scientific director of the Alistrati site, came up with the idea of creating a robot guide after seeing one on television at an art show. The robot was built by the National Technology and Research Foundation and cost around 139,000 dollars. The creators are considering ways to increase its speed, as it can only guide visitors to the first three of eight stops. Nonetheless, many foreign visitors find it fascinating that Greece has the ability to build a robot and use it as a guide in the cave.

Persephone has a white body, black head, and two bright eyes, moving on wheels. It starts the tour by introducing itself: “My name is Persephone. I welcome you to the Alistrati Cave.” It has become a popular attraction, with some visitors coming back to see the robot guide again.

Evdokia Karafera, a human guide who partners with Persephone, finds it helpful that it can speak many languages. She notes a little delay in the touring but most find it fascinating. However, Karafera believes that robots cannot replace humans everywhere, even though they may take over many jobs in the future.

Overall, Persephone the robot guide is a great example of how technology can enhance tourism experiences.