Longmen Grottoes

Set on the banks of the Yi River, 12km south of the current Luoyang City, the Longmen Grottoes are ranked first of the Four Great Grotioes in China, together with Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, Yungang Grottoes in Datong and Mount Maiji Grottoes in Tianshui. They were also listed in the World Cultural Heritages and Relics by UNESCO in 2000.

    1     (Locate) between the Xiangshan Mountain and the Longmen Mountain, with the YiRiver flowing below, the Longmen Grottoes are     2     (harmony) with mountains, forests and rivers displaying a peaceful atmosphere. Viewing it at a distance, it looks like     3     natural gate, which gave it the name “Yi Que (the gate of the Yi River)”. According to legend,     4     Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty climbed on Mount Mang north of Luoyang, he was very pleased and ordered the eastern capital     5     (build) here with its palace gate opposite the Yique. Thus, it came to be named, Longmen Gate.

Longmen Gate also houses     6     (rough) 2860 stele inscriptions (碑刻), making     7     a treasure for ancient calligraphy study. In total, more than 100,000 Buddhist statues and niches     8     (carve) into the cliffs by ancient Chinese people ranging from the largest one, the Vairocana Buddha with a     9     (high) of 17.14 meters,     10     the smallest one of 2 centimeters.

Wandering in the Longmen Grottoes, one is amazed by the delicate carving skills, deep Buddhist culture and great art achievements of Chinese people.

Jingdezhen, known as the “Porcelain Capital (瓷都)” of China, has a history of more than 2,000 years and a magnificent culture.     1     (locate) on the south of the Yangtze, between the Huangshan Mountain range and the plains of Poyang Lake, it is regarded as one of the four famous towns     2     Chinese history.

Endowed(赋予) by nature with a network of rivers, hills and adequate sunshine, sufficient rainfall and obvious distinctions between the four seasons, the city gained its reputation for producing fine porcelain     3     (date) back to the Eastern Han Dynasty. During the Song Dynasty the Jingdezhen workshop was assigned     4     (produce) porcelain for the imperial court. The porcelain of Jingdezhen has beautiful shapes, various types, rich     5    (decorate) and unique styles. It is     6     (global) famous for its color as white jade, brightness as bright mirror, thinness as paper and sound as music. Qinghua Porcelain, Linglong Porcelain, Fencai Porcelain and Seyou Porcelain altogether     7     (call) Four Traditionally Famous Porcelains in Jingdezhen.

As the most busy and bustling street in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties,     8     Ancient Porcelain Street in the middle of the city is now     9     (fame) for its long history and beautiful traditions that come from its ancient culture. It is composed of three parts, each of     10     fully reflects its prosperous past.

For those looking to escape the concrete jungle, maybe it’s time to dive into the bamboo forests of southern Sichuan.

A natural forest that people in Sichuan province tend     1    (visit) is the Southern Sichuan Bamboo Sea in Yibin. The 120-square-kilometer Bamboo Sea is the     2     (large) bamboo park in China and its average temperature seldom drops below zero degrees Celsius in winter     3     many parts of the country are covered with snow and ice.

Known as one of the country’s 10 most beautiful forests, it     4    (be) a popular tourist attraction since the Oscar-winning Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon     5    (shoot), there in 2001.

Two years later, the bamboo forest received world-wide     6    (recognize) as a bamboo reserve in December 2003,     7    (become) the fourth tourism destination in China to be granted Green Globe 21 certification.

The Bamboo Sea covers Changning and Jiang’an, two counties     8     the authority of Yibin. Amazed at its vast expanse, Huang Tingjian,     9     poet from the Song Dynasty, described it as “bamboo waves”. As Huang was an     10    (influence) man of letters, his description gave rise to the forest’s popular nickname—the Bamboo Sea.

Karakul Lake, which literally means “Black Lake” in the local language, is anything but black. I’ve     1     (personal) witnessed the water changing colors from light purple     2     a glowing blue and it really is spectacular. The lake’s location along the Karakoram Highway near Kashgar makes     3     a wonderfully secluded place     4     very few tourists tend to travel. At the foot of the Muztag Mountain     5     (lie) a small village whose buildings are still made of mud and brick, a great place to buy a hand-made wool carpe t from     6     (local). As always, be prepared to spend the night in a     7     (comfort) yurt (蒙古包). The area     8     (surround) the small Karakul lake isn’t quite as green as the other three lakes, but there is still plenty to do. While every lake offers some sort of horse or camel riding experience, Karakul is one of the few spots where you can completely circumnavigate (环航) the lake in     9     (little) than a few hours on horseback.

It’s also possible     10     (hire) a guide to help you climb the neighboring mountain, but their safety record is 3 deaths in 2008 out of only 300 climbers according to one local.

Yangon is the largest city in Myanmar. As Myanmar’s     1    (commerce) and artistic center, Yangon most reflects the changes that have taken place since the country reopened to the world. There     2    (be) many new restaurants, bars and shops.

But in many ways Yangon has hardly changed at all. The city remains focused     3    Shwedagon Paya, a golden Buddhist pagoda (佛塔). Close to it are the parks and lakes that provide residents with an escape from the surrounding     4    (confuse). Then there is the city center,     5     is home to some of the most impressive colonial (殖民地的) architecture in Southeast Asia.

One of the best places     6    (visit) in Asia is Yangon. Nature lovers will appreciate the city’s beautiful lakes, parks and green trees. This is the reason why it     7    (call) “The Garden City of the East”. However, Yangon has more to offer than its beautiful scenery. Yangon is a melting pot with     8     diversity of cultures and communities.

Yangon     9    (perfect) balances tradition, culture and modernity,     10    (make) it a must-see for anyone who wants to see a different side of Asia.

The Great Wall of the ancient Qi State,the oldest    1    (exist) Great Wall in China, stretches across Shandong for more than 600 kilometers. It    2    (build) during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.

“Historical records say the Qi State built the wall here to defend itself    3    its enemies, as well as to stop flooding    4    (effective),” says An Xingzhu, who worked at the town’s culture station for more than three decades. A key task of the station is    5    (protect) cultural relics.

In the 1970s，parts of the rammed earth wall(夯土墙)were dug out and used by farmers for their land, but since the early 1990s, the local government    6    (start) to take measures to protect the wall.

Rapid development and    7    (construct) have brought many new problems and challenges in protecting the wall.    8    is necessary to provide a solid legal guarantee for its conservation. To tackle the challenges, Shandong Province has passed a regulation protecting the structure    9    will take effect on Jan. 1.

It states that local governments will establish a dynamic conservation system using remote sensing satellites, drones, information platforms and other technological    10    (mean) to monitor the Great Wall.