1 . A music festival is a community event focusing on live performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme. On the list are the music festivals for fans around the world. Find your favorite now!

Field Day

January 1, 2023, Sydney

Field Day means New Year’s Day for young people in Sydney. Seen as the city’s original multi-stage party, it’s a gathering of friends coming together for a great fun-filled first day of the year. There’s an air of hope and positive energy on a perfect summer’s day.

The Envision Festival

February 27—March 6, 2023, Uvita

The Envision Festival is an annual gathering in Costa Rica that aims to provide an opportunity for different cultures to work with one another to create a better community. The festival encourages people to practice art, music, dance performances, and education. Meanwhile, our connection with nature is expected to be strengthened.

The McDowell Mountain Music Festival

March 2—4, 2023, Phoenix

The McDowell Mountain Music Festival is Phoenix’s musical celebration of community culture. Since its foundation in 2004, it has been the only 100% non-profit music festival designed to support, entertain and educate the community. The festival attracts thousands of visitors each year from around the country, and it is an opportunity to experience true culture.

The Old Settler’s Music Festival

April 20—23, 2023, Dale

The Old Settler’s Music Festival is a nationally known music festival for American music. The festival is held in the country of Texas at the height of the wild flower season. The Old Settler’s Music Festival offers great music and activities for the whole family.

2 . There is more of a connection between food and culture than you may think. On an individual level, we grow up eating the food of our culture. It becomes a part of who we are. Many associate food from our childhood with warm feelings and good memories and it ties us to our families, holding a special and personal value for us. Food from our families often becomes the comfort food we seek as adults in times of frustration and stress.

On a large scale, traditional food is an important part of culture. It also operates as an expression of cultural identity. Immigrants bring it wherever they go, and it is a symbol of pride in their culture and means of coping with homesickness.

Many immigrants open their own restaurants and serve traditional dishes. However, the food does not remain exactly the same. Some materials needed to make traditional dishes may not be readily available, so the taste and flavour can be different from what they would prepare in their home countries. Additionally, immigrants do not only sell dishes to people from the same countries as them, but to people from different countries. Therefore, they have to make small changes in the original dishes to cater to a wider range of customers. Those changes can create new flavours that still keep the cultural significance of the dishes.

We should not only embrace our heritage (传统) through our culture’s food, but also become more informed about other cultures by trying their food. It is important to remember that each dish has a special place in the culture to which it belongs, and is special to those who prepare it. Food is a window on culture, and it should be treated as such.

3 . Many Westerners have the idea that everyone in China knows how to do kung fu. This is, of course, a silly belief. But it is true that kung fu is a big part of Chinese culture.

Like most people from the West, I was first introduced to kung fu through Hong Kong action films. Stars like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan made kung fu popular in the Western world. The flashy and impressive performances they gave in films like Rumble in the Bronx and Enter the Dragon made them household names in the U.S. and elsewhere.

However, my own personal interest in kung fu was actually inspired by a hip hop group. Wu－Tang Clan, founded in the early 1990s in New York City, is one of the most influential hip hop groups in history.

In their songs, they sometimes mention philosophical concepts that come from Wudang quan — a classic Chinese martial art from which they take their name — and Shaolin Temple. I was just a teenager when I first started listening to Wu－Tang Clan — little did I know that I would actually end up living in China later in my life!

I myself do not practice kung fu. However, the concepts behind it are quite interesting to me. There is a Bruce Lee quote that I often think of when I'm struggling with challenges in life. “Be formless, shapeless, like water,” he once said. By this, he meant that you should be ready to adapt to and change your attitudes or beliefs when you face difficulties. I think this is a good way to deal with life.

The Mid-Autunn Festival, also     1    （know）as the Chinese Moon Festival, brings families together to celebrate the harvest under a full moon. The holiday is all about giving     2    （thank）and joyful reunions with loved ones.

The Mid-Autumn Festival     3    （take）place every year with the full moon that falls on the 15th day of the     4    （eight）month on the lunar calendar. The Mid-Autumn Festival's iconic（标志性）food are sweet，rich moon cakes that are     5    （usual）gifted among friends and family. Making your own moon cakes at home leads     6     an incredibly pleasant experience for family celebration.

Lantern making is a     7    （tradition）Chinese art that's kept alive in classrooms and at home craft table during the days before     8     holiday. It's a valued and widely-practiced children's activity that's really easy to keep alive at home. If you lack（缺少）time, it may be more convenient     9    （buy）a Mid-Autumn Festival lantern, rather than making it. Depending on your preference, you can either stay attracted to tradition     10     choose more modern design with some online shopping.

6 . Some British and American people like to invite friends for a meal at home. You should not be upset if your English friends don’t invite you home. It doesn’t mean they don’t like you!

Dinner parties usually start between 7and 8 pm and end at about 11pm. Ask your hosts what time you should arrive. It’s polite to bring flowers, chocolates or a bottle of wine as a gift.

Usually the evening starts with drinks and snacks. Do you want to be extra polite? Say how much you like the room, or the pictures on the wall. But remember –it’s not polite to ask how much things cost. In many families, the husband sits at one end of the table and the wife sits at the other end, they eat with their guests.

You’ll probably start the meal with soup or something small, then you’ll have meat or fish with vegetables, and then dessert, followed by coffee. It’s polite to finish everything on your plate and to take more if you want to. Did you enjoy the evening? Call your hosts the next day, or write them a short “thank you” letter. British and American people like to say “thank you, thank you, thank you” all the time!

An organization has taken measures     1     (add) chopsticks to the Shanghai Intangible Cultural Heritage list recently. Xu Hualong, chairman of the organization, says chopsticks are increasingly ignored in modern China despite the fact     2     they are unique Chinese items. China’s neighbor Japan     3     (set) aside August 4th as Chopstick Day already.

Chopstick culture in Shanghai dates back to the Tang Dynasty, when these items     4    (make) in the City God Temple area, enjoyed widespread popularity.

After opening as a commercial port, Shanghai is proud of     5     (have) the first mechanized (机械化的) production line for chopsticks,     6     are not only supplied to Zhongnanhai and Diaoyutai State Guesthouse but also presented to foreign friends     7     gifts.

At least 1.8 billion people     8     (current) use chopsticks worldwide. Chopsticks, though small, serve as     9     means to pass down Chinese civilization.    10    is believed that recognizing the cultural value of the custom matters in the promotion of Chinese traditions.

8 . Every culture on the planet has certain topics that people avoid discussing. But the taboos (禁忌) of one culture may be very different from those of another. You may be ______ that people from other cultures say what you can't talk about.

Paying attention to what people don't ______ can teach us something important about their culture. Their taboo topics give us clues about what they value, respect or even fear. Topics that are considered too personal or too controversial (有争议的) may also be avoided.

America is full of taboo topics. Usually, during a polite conversation, Americans will ______ both politics and religion. They also avoid talking about racial issues.

Why? Because these topics can cause strong opinions and ______. Americans believe it's best to avoid them—especially at social gatherings.

Many Americans also do not feel ______ talking about their personal income, age or health. ______, they prefer to make small talks about the weather, sports or common interests.

What do these taboos tell us about American ______? For one, they show that Americans place importance on ______. America certainly isn't the only place that values it. You will find ______ taboos about asking personal questions in many European countries. "This is especially true in Germany," says Hanna Graf, a German living in Shanghai. "In Germany, you are not supposed to ask about other people's personal business," she says. "But there are no ______ rules about what you can't ask; it's just in people's minds."

In Brazil, ______, almost anything seems open to discussion. "Brazilians talk about all kinds of personal issues," says Mark Quinlan, who grew up in Brazil. But of course, even Brazil has its own taboos. In Brazil, soccer is the one topic that can turn friends into enemies. Brazilians love the sport. Saying anything ______ about soccer can cause big trouble. Even expressing preference for one team over another can be ______.

Like Brazilians, Australians talk freely about almost anything. However, they do not talk about their personal or business ______. They prefer to let people judge them by their actions, not their words. Boasting your achievements will only make you the ______ of other people's jokes.

And what about your taboos? The next time you have a conversation, pay attention to what isn't said. You might be amazed at what you learn about your own culture.

An organization has taken measures     1     (add) chopsticks to the Shanghai Intangible Cultural Heritage list recently. Xu Hualong, chairman of the organization, says chopsticks are increasingly ignored in modern China despite the fact     2     they are unique Chinese items. China’s neighbor Japan     3     (set) aside August 4th as Chopstick Day already.

Chopstick culture in Shanghai dates back to the Tang Dynasty, when these items     4     (make) in the City God Temple area, enjoyed widespread popularity.

After opening as a commercial port, Shanghai is proud of     5     (have) the first mechanized (机械化的) production line for chopsticks,     6     are not only supplied to Zhongnanhai and Diaoyutai State Guesthouse but also presented to foreign friends     7     gifts..

At least 1.8 billion people     8     (current) use chopsticks worldwide. Chopsticks, though small, serve as     9     means to pass down Chinese civilization. It's believed that recognizing the cultural value of the custom matters in the     10     (promote) of Chinese traditions.