2 . The list of music festivals seems to double each year, so we think we’d save you some time by presenting our picks that reflect a deep sense of place.

New Orleans Jazz Festival

This week-long festival was established in New Orleans, America in 1970 to celebrate the city’s status as the birthplace of jazz. Headliners that attended the first celebration included singer Mahalia Jackson and pianist Duke Ellington. Over the years, this festival has grown to showcase much more than jazz. Attendees have long enjoyed the latest hit-makers alongside booths and exhibits featuring Louisiana’s native cuisine, arts, and crafts.

Newport Folk Festival

Founded by George Wein in 1959 and best known for introducing the world to the likes of Joan Baez and Bob Dylan, Newport Folk Festival is one of the oldest music festivals in America. Like New Orleans Jazz Festival, this Rhode Island event gives a false impression about the types of music one can expect to find, although it has been remaining true to its roots.

Interceltic Festival

When most people hear the word “Celtic”, they think of Ireland. But this festival takes place each summer in the heart of the seaport town of Lorient in northwestern France. While emphasizing music and dance, the ten-day festival also provides a platform for colorful expressions of Celtic art, food and drink, theater, literature, and sports.

Roskilde Music Festival

England’s Glastonbury, Hungary’s Sziget, and Denmark’s Roskilde are Europe’s three biggest music festivals. Roskilde stands out not only for its impressive and eclectic music, but for its nonprofit approach. All concert incomes are donated to support charities, music and cultural programs since its founding in 1971. With lake swimming, an on-site skate park, and an annual “naked run”, the event has earned a name for being a week-long summer camp for adults.

5 . Spring Festival means a lot for Chinese people. However, given the sporadic COVID-19 outbreaks in different places, many cities ________ residents in any city with confirmed COVID-19 cases not to travel during the holiday in order to prevent any more outbreaks. ________, I stayed in Beijing during the Spring Festival of 2022. It was my first Spring Festival in China. I ________ it with my Chinese friends.

Several of Ralph’s coworkers came to our apartment to have ________ with me. They brought the meat and dough (面团) to make the ________ dumplings. While I was not ________ in making them, I certainly did enjoy eating them. As soon as all the food was ready, we ________ to enjoy the delicious foods.

Linda brought me Spring Festival couplets ________ good wishes and asked me to paste them on the door. Scott ________ me with many firecrackers. Some students gave me paper cuts to ________ my windows.

Eric invited me to ________ his family to spend New Year’s Eve together. Among the many ________ at dinner, they served a ________ fish. However, I was told we would only be eating half the fish that night because the ________ of it would be eaten the next day. This was done to ________ the good fortune over into the following year since leftovers are thought to be a ________ of prosperity. After dinner, we watched the Spring Festival Gala together. A martial art performance ________ me deeply. The show entitled “Walking Clouds, Flowing Water” starred three tai chi ________ practicing their moves on top of landmark buildings in three cities: Shanghai, Chongqing and Guangzhou of Guangdong province, which was amazing. I went to my ________ at midnight.

It was a very happy time and we have many good ________ of this festival holiday.

Han Guorui, a folk artist specializing in making Dongming grain pictures, is generally busy in autumn as he needs to collect materials for his work. This year, he has been even busier, as he has attended fairs to demonstrate his skills and promote grain art.

The grain pictures, which take their name from Dongming county in Heze, Shandong province, are a traditional folk craft with a history of more than 200 years. The practice was listed as a provincial intangible cultural heritage(非物质文化遗产) in 2016 by the Shandong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism.

After being treated to prevent decay and insect infestation, grains, grass and vegetable seeds are glued together to form a picture.

“We use the different shapes and colors of grains and seeds, which are all collected from the field,” says Han.

Born in Dongming, a county along the banks of the Yellow River, he attended a regional fair in mid-October. His pictures attracted many children who asked questions, such as, “will these seeds sprout”, and “can these grains be eaten?”

Han answered the children’s questions while showing them how to use grains and seeds to make a picture.

“Only now, when food is sufficient, can people make a picture with surplus grain,” he says.

To make pictures that more people like, Han works in the style of Chinese ink and Western oil paintings. Now his grain pictures are not only sold in cities across China, but also to overseas markets, including some European countries, South Korea and Japan, he says.

“Grain pictures have become a cultural product that is helping to enrich farmers living on the Yellow River plain,” says Han.

The Yellow River, the country’s second longest, is considered the cradle of Chinese civilization. For thousands of years, the people living along its banks have nurtured rich and vibrant cultures that have endured to this day.

To give people the opportunity to familiarize themselves with its rich culture and plentiful products, Shandong province has organized fairs named after the river throughout the year, with some events held in communities to involve more people.

At the fairs, intangible cultural heritage items, handicrafts, local delicacies, performances, and agricultural products are available.

At one fair in a community in Jinan, the capital city of Shandong, in late October, more than 10 types of handicrafts were on show, including gourd-carving, paper-cutting, textiles and hemp rope weaving.

“The fair builds a bridge between intangible cultural heritage producers and consumers. Using items that are embodied with traditional culture is a good way to pass on culture,” says Sun Xicai, deputy director of Jinan Folk Literature and Art Association.

At the fair, 60-something Yu Shaoqing, who was selling animal-shaped textile products, attracted a lot of buyers.

“Many young people show an interest in my products. They buy them to decorate their rooms and cars,” says Yu.

Yu, who worked in embroidery design before retiring, designs her products, which take the shape of animals like tigers, rabbits and ducks. Currently, she is working on a dragon design for next year to welcome the Year of the Dragon.

7 . Four European Festivals You Don’t Want to Miss in 2023

Berck-sur-Mer Kite Festival

For over two decades,more than half a million visitors have come to watch the splendid display of kites flying over the seaside town of Berck-sur-Mer. Taking place every March or April,the festival sees giant dragons, whales, and various cartoon characters in the skies over the sandy beach. The festival also plays host to the International Kite Championships of the World every two years. During this time, experts from all over the world compete against the wind and each other.

Cannes Film Festival

Film lovers will no doubt want to head to the world’s most famous movie festival, the Cannes Film Festival. The red-carpet event was created by a French Minister of Education and Fine Arts. He wanted to establish an international cultural event in France to rival(与……抗衡)the Venice Film Festival. And it’s safe to say, he succeeded. More than 30, 000 professionals, such as directors, actors and actresses from all over the world attend the annual festival.

Menton Lemon Festival

Held over two weeks in February, the Lemon Festival celebrates all things concerning lemons in the city of Menton. More than 200. 000 visitors come to watch the colorful floats(花车)and sculptures created from lemons and oranges. During the daytime, parades of fruit-covered floats make their way through the streets as wind musicians and drummers entertain the crowd.

Nice Carnival

10 . In order to kill time, many people have been trying to cope with the boredom by reading books, others have perfected their cooking skills and many others have tried their hands at craft projects, including tie dyeing (扎染).

Whether you think tie-dye is totally stylish or not your style, the unique print from the 1960s is back in a major way. It’s become a hot fashion trend.

“The last several years have seen the resurgence in craftsmanship and handmade goods, popularizing the hobbies in the 1960s (weaving, tie-dyeing), but in a modern way. People would connect with these handmade objects to feel connected to nature,” Stitch Fix color expert Ryen Anderson said to Today. Online searches for “how to crumple (压皱) tie-dye”, a popular technique, are u by 376 percent on Pinterest.

This homestyle creation can easily be made at home. The only things we need to prepare include fabric. light-colored clothes, dye, rubber, and water. In tie-dye, the fabric is colored by tying several parts of the fabric before dying to give certain color effects. While this seems relatively simple, it takes multiple steps and washes.

Some people make tie-dye adjust old-fabrics in an innovative way. Some others use tie-dye technique to create a new pattern as the color of their clothes fades. The typical current trend is that people use natural coloring for tie-dye and combine it with doodles (涂鸦) and natural printing ( eco-printing) by abstracting colors from the leaves.

The dyeing technique has deep roots from Africa. Many immigrants from various African countries brought their skills to the United States during the 1700s to 1800s. The popularity of tie-dye then was quite influential in the 1960s or commonly referred to as “flower power” generation. Tie-dye became a symbol in that times.