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.
1. In which city can people enjoy a fun New Year’s Day?| A．Phoenix. | B．Uvita. | C．Sydney. | D．Dale. |
| A．It encourages people to receive education. | B．It is not aimed at making money. |
| C．It provides an opportunity for friend gathering. | D．It focuses on cultural exchanges. |
| A．Field Day and the Envision Festival. |
| B．The Envision Festival and the McDowell Mountain Music Festival. |
| C．The Old Settler’s Music Festival and the McDowell Mountain Music Festival. |
| D．The Envision Festival and the Old Settler’s Music Festival. |
Spring Festival is the most important traditional festival for Chinese people.They always spend several days
Some of Spring Festival customs have been changed.In the past,elders
No matter how Spring Festival customs change,the significance of Spring Festival for the Chinese people
3 . Ancient China produced many types of beautiful works of art. Among them, calligraphy, poetry and painting are the most famous. Often they would be put together in art.These became important starting with the Song Dynasty.
Calligraphy is the art of handwriting. In the old times the Chinese considered writing as an important form of art. Calligraphers would practice for years to learn to write perfectly, but with style. Each of the over 40,000 characters needed to be written correctly. And each stroke (笔画) in a character had to be written in a certain order.
Poetry is also an important form of art. Great poets were famous all over the country, and all educated people were expected to write poetry. During the Tang Dynasty poetry was so important that writing poetry was part of the examinations to become a civil servant (文官) and work for the government.
Chinese painting is often connected with calligraphy. It is one of the oldest artistic traditions in the world. The most traditional way of Chinese painting is known as “national painting” or “native painting” which is quite different from Western painting. People can draw mountains, buildings, birds, trees and water.
1. Calligraphers needed to write over ______ characters correctly in the old times.| A．10,000 | B．20,000 |
| C．30,000 | D．40,000 |
| A．Painting. | B．Calligraphy. |
| C．Writing poetry. | D．Playing music. |
| A．Chinese art. | B．Chinese examinations. |
| C．Chinese history. | D．Chinese dynasties. |
1. What did the British businessman want to sell in China?
| A．Spoons. | B．Chopsticks. | C．Knives. |
| A．They relied on vegetables. |
| B．They lived on meat. |
| C．There was a lot of industry in China. |
| A．People start to eat at the same time. |
| B．People don’t eat until all the dishes are served. |
| C．Respect must be given to the elderly. |
5 . 24 Solar Terms: 8 things you may not know about Frost’s Descent
The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. Frost’s Descent (霜降), the 18th solar term of the year, begins this year on Oct 23 and ends on Nov 6.
Frosty autumn
Eating fruit
Eating persimmons during Frost’s Descent can help people resist the cold and protect their bones. In the countryside, people believe that their lips will crack if they don’t eat persimmons during this period. The apple is one kind of recommended fruit during Frost’s Descent. Apples can moisten the lungs, quench one’s thirst and help one’s digestion.
Eating duck
It’s a custom to eat duck on the first day of Frost’s Descent in south Fujian province. There is a saying in Fujian which goes, “Even nourishing all year is not as good as nourishing the human body on the first day of Frost’s Descent.”
People in areas such as Daxin county in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region celebrate the first day of Frost’s Descent. In the Frost’s Descent Festival, the Zhuang people offer sacrifices, dance and sing folk songs. With a history of more than 360 years, the festival is to commemorate Cen Yuyin, a heroine in battles against foreign aggression.
| A．Eating chestnuts |
| B．Frost’s Descent Festival |
| C．But eating too many could be harmful |
| D．Frost’s Descent is the last solar term of autumn |
| E．Eating duck is a way for people there to gain weight |
| F．The pear is another recommended fruit during Frost’s Descent |
| G．Frost consists of white ice crystals of frozen water vapor near the ground |
6 . Celebrating the Harvest Around the World
A harvest festival is a celebration of the fall months and the harvest that often accompanies these months. Many countries celebrate harvest festivals in different forms.
Canada
In Canada, people celebrate their harvest on Thanksgiving. This tradition is said to date back to the 16th century. The English explorer Martin Frobisher(1535—1594) came upon the land, searching for the “New World”. As he arrived in Canada in 1578, he celebrated surviving the long journey by holding a formal celebration and eating salt beef and peas. Today, it has become a recognized holiday in the country that falls on the second Monday in October. On Thanksgiving, most return home to gather with their family. One of the highlights(高潮) of the holiday is a big Thanksgiving Day meal, which usually includes turkey and bread, which are prepared and presented in a unique Canadian way.
The United Kingdom
Harvest festival activities are considered a special time for communities to come together in celebration. The harvest festival may start with carrying baskets of fruits and vegetables to a local church where people sing praise songs for a healthy harvest while praying for future harvests. A special effort may be made to give food to the less fortunate. Large dinners may also be hosted where each member brings a special dish to share with each other.
China
In 2023, the Farmers’ Harvest Festival was launched in China. It’s held on the day of the autumn equinox(秋分), which falls roughly on Sept. 22 or 23. Every year, a range of events are organized nationwide. In Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, farmers brought 100 seed varieties to the main site of the ceremony in Hanhu District and placed them in a wall to mark the achievements of the seed industry. In Heilongjiang Province, the festival was combined with local traditions of the Daur people and the locals danced around bonfires.
1. Originally, Thanksgiving was celebrated in Canada for .| A．their harvest | B．finding the new world |
| C．surviving the long journey | D．gathering with their family |
| A．attending a church service | B．donating food to the poor |
| C．sharing food at a dinner party | D．dancing around bonfires |
| A．Different countries celebrate their harvest in different ways. |
| B．There are similarities in celebrating the harvest among different places. |
| C．The Farmers’ Harvest Festival is an annually nationwide thing in China. |
| D．Local traditions are included in celebrating the harvest around China. |
7 . Chinese mooncake is the representative food of the Mid-Autumn Festival. It is a kind of round cookie with various fillings and different artistic patterns on the surface.
In Chinese culture, roundness symbolizes completeness and togetherness. The mooncake is not just a food. It’s a cultural tradition deep in Chinese people’s hearts, symbolizing a spiritual feeling. At Mid-Autumn Festival, people eat mooncakes together with family, and present mooncakes to relatives or friends to express love and best wishes.
As early as the Shang and Zhou dynasties in what today are Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces in east China, there was a kind of “Taishi cake” thick at the center and thin at the edge, which was the origin of the mooncake. In the Han Dynasty, sesame (芝麻) and walnuts were introduced into China, and round cookies filled with these foods appeared. It was not until the Tang Dynasty that the name “mooncake” was used for the first time. In the Northern Song Dynasty, mooncakes got popular in the royal palace. In the Ming Dynasty, the custom of eating these cookies during the Mid-Autumn Festival became popular.
Mooncakes vary according to different regional styles and tastes. Cantonese-style mooncakes are known for their sweetness. Suzhou-style mooncakes have existed for more than a thousand years. They have soft layers of dough (面团) and lots of sugar and lard, making them available in sweet or salty tastes. Beijing-style mooncakes use sweetness delicately and are decorated well. Chaoshan-style mooncakes are usually larger than other mooncakes with common fillings of red bean paste and potato paste.
Most mooncakes contain high amounts of sugar and oil, which are not healthy. To decrease the harmfulness that high fat and calories bring to our body, some foods are recommended to eat together with mooncakes, including tea, sour fruit like grapes, and wine. They help digest and take away fat in our body. Also, do not eat too much at one time.
1. What is paragraph 3 mainly about?| A．The features of moon cakes. | B．The history of the moon cakes. |
| C．The customs of the moon cakes. | D．The meaning behind moon cakes. |
| A．In the Han Dynasty. | B．In the Tang Dynasty. |
| C．In the Ming Dynasty. | D．In the Northern Song Dynasty. |
| A．They contain less sugar. | B．They are generally larger in size. |
| C．They have a much longer history. | D．They feature fine decorative patterns. |
| A．To stress the importance of a healthy diet. | B．To call on people to value traditional culture. |
| C．To tell people how to eat mooncakes healthily. | D．To recommend some new flavors of mooncakes. |
8 . A perfect performance of Chinese Shaolin Kung Fu amazed hundreds of audiences in Bowers Museum in US Southern California on Sunday.
This Kung Fu demonstration by Shaolin monks (僧人) was a highlight of the 2023 Shaolin Cultural Day, a rare cultural event for the Orange County community in Southern California.
“The event offers a unique opportunity for the Orange County community to actively engage with Shaolin culture and gain firsthand experience in various Shaolin activities,” said Anne Shih, chairwoman of the Board of Governors of Bowers Museum. “Whether it’s learning from Kung Fu masters or enjoying interactive Shaolin activities, these experiences will help audiences to experience the Chinese culture and better understand Chinese traditions,” Shih said.
With a history of over 1, 500 years, Shaolin Kung Fu is one of China’s most treasured cultural heritage items, and has been practiced by Kung Fu lovers around the world.
Larry Lee, a 72-year-old resident of Orange County, said he has been practicing Kung Fu for over 50 years. “The traditional Chinese martial arts have deep intelligence in it. They relate to a way of life that goes much deeper than just fighting.” Lee said besides Kung Fu, he is also interested in Chinese medicine and other elements of the Chinese culture.
The 2023 Shaolin Cultural Day served as a fitting finale (场) to the 2023 Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, providing a platform to honor and appreciate the contributions of the AAPI community.
“The event will help people of other communities to be better informed about China and the Chinese culture, and therefore developing understanding and friendship,” said Cultural Counselor (参赞) of the Chinese Consulate General in Los Angeles Wang Taiyu. “We hope through such activities, we can promote friendship between Chinese and American peoples, and contribute to China-US relations.” he said.
1. What can we infer about Shaolin Kung Fu from paragraphs 1 and 2?| A．It was performed on a school’s playground. | B．Orange County didn’t enjoy it often. |
| C．Its performance lasted two weeks. | D．Its attracted vistiors all over the world. |
| A．Helping Southern Californians learn Chinese quickly. |
| B．Helping audiences become Kung Fu masters through practice. |
| C．Helping audiences have a better knowledge of Chinese traditions. |
| D．Helping Orange County attract more Kung Fu lovers around the world. |
| A．They include wisdom in them. |
| B．They focus mainly on fighting. |
| C．They represent Chinese culture and history. |
| D．They inspire you to be expert at Chinese medicine. |
| A．To stress the importance of communities. | B．To advise how to understand each other. |
| C．To compare different cultures. | D．To build up better friendships. |
Guan Yu, an ancient general known for his loyalty and bravery in battles, has been widely worshipped (敬奉). The Temple of Guan Yu in Xiezhou, North China’s Shanxi Province, is the
In 2020, a research institute
Across the country, historical and cultural heritage sites are protected and studied to discover and learn about traditional Chinese culture, amid the nation’s efforts
In Shanxi, with local protection work
注意：1. 词数80左右；2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯：3. 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Professor Williams,
I am honored to give a presentation about Chinese culture to international students at your invitation.
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Sincerely yours,
Li Hua
