1 . Many people may think the Forbidden city, or the Palace Museum as it’s also called, is     1     great, old-fashioned museum.     2    , in recent years, the museum has been working hard     3     (promote) Chinese cultural heritage among the young people.

The museum’s online store now offers special cultural and creative     4     (product). For example, in 2014, it     5     (begin) to sell earphones that look like the necklaces worn by ancient officials, which even brought in     6     (rough) 1 billion yuan a year.

Last year, a documentary     7    (name) Masters in the Forbidden City became popular online. It is about the people     8     job is to repair the relics in the museum. Many of these workers are very young and some are even     9     their 20s.

Some other museums across the country, such as the National Museum of China,     10     (inspire) by the Palace Museum’s efforts and are working on similar projects of their own.

China creates Harvest Festival for farmers

Recently China has set up a special day for farmers to celebrate the yearly harvest．It is the first festival     1       (create)by China specially for the country’s farmers．

“The country will celebrate the Chinese Farmers’Harvest Festival on the autumnal equinox(秋分)of China lunar calendar from this year，”said Han Changbin，minister of agriculture and rural affairs，at     2     press conference．Autumnal equinox usually     3    (fall)between September 22 and 24，     4     the country’s agricultural harvest season．

The festival will give greater     5     (important)to rural work and push for     6     (fast) development of agriculture and rural areas．

A variety of celebrations will be organized         7     (display)the agricultural harvest，rural technology achievements and farmers’creativeness．Farmers     8    (encourage)to   involve in activities related to their work and life，    9     waste should be avoided in the   celebrations．

The rural economy is a key part of China’s efforts to develop a modernized economy．By     10       (develop)its vast rural areas，China expects to see a strong agricultural sector，a beautiful countryside and wealthy farmers．

California is     1    the Pacific coast of South America.    2    （attract）people from all over the world , it is the most multicultural state. The first people     3    （arrive）in this land were the native Americans.    4    the difficult times, they lived a happy life     5    the Europeans arrived. They were killed, or forced into slavery or died from the diseases.    6    , some survived and lived in     7    we call America now. once it belonged to Mexico after the people of Mexico gained their     8    （depend）from Spain. Later arrivals included countries from all over the world. It was the     9    （build）of rail network that brought large numbers of Chinese to Canada.    10    is believed that in the future there is a mixture of many races and cultures in California.

The Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, is a much-visited and much-photographed tourist    1    (attract). This Chinese palace with a history of about 600 years     2    (receive) millions of visits every year and lots of TV programs have shown the place in recent years.

However, it still has secrets, and a new program    3    (design) to explore those unknown areas and the stories within is set to show the palace in a new light. The variety show, Shang Xin Le Gu Gong, broadcast its first episode (一集) on Beijing TV and online streaming media site, iQiyi. com, on November 9. That first episode won wide acceptance from audiences and    4    (think) highly of on Douban. com. "It brings many elements(元素)together, and everything in the show is    5    (perfect) matched and turns out amazing," said     6     online user. "It brings me the thrill I felt when I stepped into the Palace Museum for the first time.”

In each one-hour-long episode, the actors and actresses switch between playing guides and historical     7     (figure) like emperors and royal family members of the Qing Dynasty(1644—1911). They focus on areas which are still not accessible     8     the public and the stories     9    (surround) them. In the show, the actors and actresses are also joined by designers     10     will create products based on what they see. The most popular ones, based on an online vote, are to be turned into souvenirs for sale.

If you visit a supermarket in the UK in March or April, you will notice a strange thing: Shelf after shelf is filled with large, brightly-colored eggs.

Look a little     1     (close) and you will discover something else. These eggs aren’t real. In fact, they     2     (make) of chocolate. And that can mean only one thing — it’s Easter time again.

Easter is a festival     3     has been celebrated in Britain for thousands of years. These days we mark the occasion (场合) by     4     (give) each other chocolate eggs, or Easter eggs. But what are the roots of this     5     (tradition) event?

For Christian people Easter is a religious festival. According     6     the Bible, Jesus Christ was killed by the Romans     7     came back to life three days later. That is     8     Easter is seen as a time of rebirth.

However, some people suggest that Easter has its origins in pre-Christian times. They say that the very earliest societies celebrated the end of winter and the beginning of spring — the time     9     life returns to the land.

Whatever its origins, Easter is big business. The UK’s biggest retailer (零售商) of Easter eggs sold more than 20 million units last year and some Easter eggs     10     cost more than £20!

The   use of chopsticks has been    1    big part of Chinese food culture for centuries.

When cooking food or picking it up, a pair of chopsticks always comes for use.

So how did chopsticks come into being?   It’s   said   that a leader of ancient China, Dayu,           2       helped his people fight floods, invented them. In those days, people     3    (eat) only   with their hands. But Dayu was busy     4       (prepare) for flood control work and often had     his meals in the wild. In the summer    5     particular, he hurried to deal with unexpected   accidents and didn’t want to wait to eat. The meat     6    (cook) in the pot was too hot to pick up with his hands. So one day Dayu picked up some twigs(细枝)    7    (help) him hold the meat. Then the twigs    8    (final) became the chopsticks we know today.

But of course, this is just a story. The    9    (early) chopsticks archaeologists(考古学家) have found so far are more than 3,000 years old, dating back to the Shang Dynasty. The six bronze chopsticks were found in Yinxu,   one of China’s   oldest archaeological    10    (place), in Anyang, Henan province.

Throughout the history of mankind, people have been communicating with body languages. In many     1    (situation), the way you say something is far more important than what you say.    2    (communicate) better with others, you are expected to pay attention to eye contact. It can signal friendliness or unfriendliness, interest or boredom, and understanding or confusion.

In Western cultures, keeping eye contact in conversations is     3    (particular) important. As a matter    4     fact, a westerner might consider a lack of eye contact as a lack of interest. In Spain, Italy and Greece,    5    people stand close together talking to each other, eye contact is more frequent and lasts     6    (long).

In many Asian cultures, avoiding direct eye contact is one of the ways to show respect. It is done during the talk with anyone older. Habits like this can cause problems when people do not understand them. For example,    7     Asian might close his eyes in concentration or look down while     8     (listen) to a speaker. A Western speaker might think the man is not interested,

However, in both West and Fast, totally avoiding eye contact might be considered a lack of     9    (polite), but staring at others is also considered rude and should     10    (avoid).

Spending the holidays at home can give you     1     (much) time than you’re used to.     2     (keep) from getting bored, you can do fun things you’ve been wanting to try.

Cook a holiday meal. Holidays at home provide the perfect chance to cook new or classic     3     (dish). For example, look up recipes (菜谱) online for baking a ham for a spring holiday or frying a turkey for a fall holiday.

Decorate for the holiday. A key way to make sure that you will enjoy the holidays at   home   is by     4     (decorate) for the holidays. Filling every   room       5     holiday decorations will make your home feel more celebratory.

Watch   holiday   movies. You can   look online for lists of popular movies     6     go with whatever holiday you’re celebrating to get you in the holiday spirit.

Host folks   at your home. You   can also throw a holiday     7     (celebrate) of your own.     8     (simple) having a few people over can be enjoyable. Potlucks (百味餐) are especially easy. Let guests know what you’ll be making ahead of time so they don’t bring     9     same thing. It can also be     10     (interest) to plan an activity.

On January 25,2020,over a billion people in China and millions around the world will celebrate the Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival. The ancient tradition,    1     date is determined by the lunar calendar and falls somewhere between January 21 and February 20 each year is the longest and       2    important of all Chinese festivals.

The preparations will     3    (official)begin with Little Year on January 17,2020 .It is observed with a day of memorial and prayer ceremonies.    4    ,cleaning the house     5    (sweep)away bad luck and hanging spring couplets(春联）on doorways for wealth are also common activities observed by people. Since red     6    (believe)to keep misfortune and evil spirits away, it can be noticed in everything from clothing to lanterns used to decorate houses.

Often     7    (consider)the most important meal of the year, is the reunion dinner is both delicious and rooted in Chinese tradition.    8     whole chicken symbolizes family togetherness, while long uncut noodles show longevity(长寿）.Wealth is represented by dumplings and spring rolls. Children receive red envelopes filled     9    money and inspiring messages from elders and are often allowed to stay up late to watch the     10    （amaze)fireworks shows.

The two-week long celebrations will end on February 8-the day of the full moon-with the Lantern Festival.

Liu Qingshan, 60, comes from a family of stone carvers(雕刻师) in Quyang county, Hebei Province. At 12 he started learning the handicraft(手艺) from his father and eight years later he    1    (join) in some big projects such as Yunnan Nationalities Village and Beijing Zhongguan Village. Now he works at a stone carving factory    2     six other craftsmen in Tiangang town, Jilin Province. They usually create stone lions and stone figures.

    3    (carve) a stone lion, there are five steps：firstly, they draw the shape on a stone; secondly, they cut the unnecessary part with hammer and drill; thirdly, they give shape to details,    4    (include) hair, eyes, nose; fourthly, they carve them    5    (careful) ; lastly, they polish the sculpture,    6    requires much patience and about 15 days’ work.

“In my eyes, the stone creatures have    7    (they) own life and soul,” said Liu. Liu had    8    (dozen) of students but now only four remain. “In recent years many craftsmen and students do not want to take on this difficult profession,” said Liu.

The stone carving as    9    old handicraft is gradually going out of fashion. Nevertheless, Liu    10    (decide) to hold on straight to the end.