3 . Millions of people crowded onto trains, airplanes and buses across China last week. They were hurrying home, to be with their families for China's most important holiday, Chinese New Year. More than one billion people around the world are celebrating the New Year.

The Chinese New Year is celebrated at the second new moon after the winter solstice (冬至). According to an ancient legend, Buddha(佛祖) asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. 12 animals came, and Buddha named a year after each animal. The animals were: the mouse, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.

Buddha announced that people born in each animal's year would have some of that animal's personality. If you were born in 1959, 1971, 1983 or 1995, you were born in the year of the Pig. People who were born in these years are believed to be polite, honest, hardworking and loyal. They are also supposed to be lucky, which is why many Chinese like to have babies in a Pig year. They are said to get along best with people born under the year of the Rabbit, Goat, Tiger, Dragon, Horse and Dog.

On Chinese New Year's Eve, the Chinese celebrate with fireworks, family gatherings, and feasts. One of the most popular ways to celebrate the holiday is the lion dance. The lion is regarded as a holy (神圣的) animal. During celebrations, dancers dressed as lions (or holding up paper lions in the air) perform to bring good luck to the people they visit at their homes or businesses. People often wear in red, which symbolizes fire. Legend has it that fire can drive away bad luck. The 15day New Year season is celebrated with firecrackers, dragon dances and visits to friends and relatives. The celebrations end with the Lantern Festival, when brightly colored lanterns are hung in parks around China.

With time     1     (pass) by, most of the written characters have lost in history,     2     Chinese characters are still full of vitality. Chinese characters are     3     (current) more than just written characters for communication or a form of traditional art     4     we enjoy in calligraphy. They have become     5     new eye-catching image of contemporary art. Get a load     6     that! An exhibition, Evolution of Chinese Characters which is the     7     (mix) of tradition and modernity,     8     (display). Even if you do not understand    9     these characters mean, you can still be    10     (fascinate) by Chinese culture.

5 . Boxing day is on December 26th, the day after Christmas, and is celebrated in Great Britain and in most areas settled by the British except for the United States of America, including Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Despite(尽管) its name, Boxing Day has nothing to do with competition sports. While the exact origins of the holiday are unclear, it is likely that Boxing Day began in England during the Middle Ages. Some historians say the holiday developed because servants(仆人) were asked to work on Christmas Day, but took the following day off. As servants prepared to leave to visit their families, their employers would present them with gift boxes. Another theory is that centuries ago, on the day after Christmas, members of the merchant(商人) class would give boxes containing food and fruit, clothing and money to businessmen and servants. The gifts were an expression of thankfulness, much like today when people receive bonuses(奖金) from their employers because of a well-done job. These gifts, given in boxes, gave the holiday its name, “Boxing Day”.

Traditionally, Boxing Day is a day when families get together. It is a day of watching sports games with family. In the past, hunting was one of the favourite activities on this day. People usually went hunting for wrens or foxes. Today, Boxing Day is spent with family and friends with lots of food and sharing of friendship and love. Government buildings and small businesses are closed but the malls are open. Shopping is a popular Boxing Day activity, and the malls are usually filled with bargains. Besides these activities, many businesses, organizations and families try to keep the traditional spirit of Boxing Day alive by donating their time, services and money to aid Food Banks, providing gifts for the poor, or helping an individual family that is in need. Boxing Day has mainly become an extension of the Christmas holiday, giving working families one more day as the happy time of a year.

Lunar New Year, or the Spring Festival, is celebrated in China and much of Asia. It has many origin stories, one of    1     is a legend that the celebrations began in order to scare away a beast    2     (call) “Nian” who appeared each spring, attacking people. Because Nian was afraid    3     loud noises and the color red, people    4     (use) firecrackers and red paper to frighten the creature. Celebrations for Lunar New Year     5     (determine) by the phases of the moon. Technically, the holiday begins during the second moon after the winter solstice(冬至). As     6     result, it falls on different dates each year. Food and family play a(an)     7     (significance) role. In China, food is central to the celebrations, with family member    8     (prepare) dumplings together. In Vietnam some families make “mut tet” with sweets as a sign of respect to    9     (ancestor). In Korea, many eat “tteokguk”, a rice cake soup symbolizing that they are officially a year    10     (old).

10 . Strangest Festivals around the World

Through the years, people have found many ways to celebrate important occasions in their lives. If you’re looking for an interesting and off-the-beaten-path tourist site, here are some most wonderful and unusual festivals from around the world.

Each year in February, a battle takes place in this Italian town among thousands of tourists who throw oranges at each other during a 30-minute fight. The aim is to try and knock down other people by attacking them with oranges so that they cannot stand any longer.

Rather than being held at a typical concert hall, the Underwater Music Festival takes place on the seabed in July. Aiming to protect the sea lives, this unique custom features musicians playing music below water level. 100 feet deep in clear water, talented musicians wear diving equipment, performing free concerts for sea creatures and humans alike.

The Rayne Frog Festival is held every fall in Rayne, Louisiana. The festival features all things frog: frog races, frog jumping, and the selection of the Frog Derby Queen. Besides music performance, it also holds a variety of frog-themed runs, fairs and other activities. If you are into frogs, there’s no other place you’d rather be in mid-November.

Night of the Radishes is a celebration that takes place every December 23rd in Oaxaca, Mexico. It features all kinds of radish sculptures (雕塑). The tradition began when local radish growers began carving their produce in order to attract customers. But radishes are just radishes after all, and the sculptures don’t last.