2 . The Double-Seventh Day refers to the seventh day of the seventh month on the Chinese lunar calendar.

In ancient times, the Double-Seventh Day was a festival especially for young women. Girls, whether from rich or poor families, would put on their holiday best to celebrate the annual meeting of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl. Parents would place an incense burner (香炉) in the courtyard and lay out some fruit as offerings. Then all the girls in the family would kowtow to Niu Lang and Zhi Nu and pray for ingenuity (灵巧).

In the Tang Dynasty about 1,000 years ago, rich families in the capital city of Chang’an would set up a decorated tower in the courtyard and name it the “Tower of Praying for Ingenuity”. They prayed for various types of ingenuity. Most girls would pray for outstanding sewing or cooking skills. Girls and women would gather together in a square and look into the star-filled night sky. They would put their hands behind their backs, holding a needle and thread. At the word “start”, they would try to thread the needle. Zhi Nu, the Weaver Girl, would bless the one who succeeded first. The ladies would also show off their fried cookies made in many different shapes. They would invite the Weaver Girl to judge who was the best. In the past these were important virtues for a woman.

1. The Double-Seventh Day is usually celebrated on ________.

A．July the seventh

B．New Year’s Day

C．the 7th day of the 7th month on the Chinese lunar calendar

D．the meeting day of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl stars

2. The underlined word “best” can be replaced by “________”.

A．best food

B．best skills

C．best clothes

D．best ingenuity

3. In the Tang Dynasty most girls would pray to Niu Lang and Zhi Nu for ________.

A．a good marriage	B．meeting the Cowherd or the Girl Weaver
C．high officials	D．outstanding sewing and cooking skills

4. Zhi Nu, the Weaver Girl, would bless the one ________.

A．who was the winner in the compition of threading the needle

B．whose family had a tower to pray in

C．who kowtowed to Niu Lang and Zhi Nu for ingenuity

D．whose family lay out most fruit as offerings

5 . Learning the word for fish in Chinese can be a highly useful skill. Knowing how to say “fish” in Chinese is both practical and helpful in understanding cultural values.

The Chinese Character for Fish

The Chinese character for “fish”, written in the traditional form, is 魚 .       1     No matter what form it is written in, the word for fish in Chinese is pronounced like “yu”.

Cultural Importance of Fish in China

The pronunciation of fish in Chinese, “yú” is a homophone (同音字) for “abundance (充裕).”     2     As such, fish are a common symbol in Chinese art and literature, and they are very important in Chinese mythology (神话).

    3    The characters for this fish are 鲤鱼, pronounced “lǐ yú”. Pictures of this fish are also a common decoration for the Chinese New Year.

Fish in Chinese Mythology

One of the most interesting Chinese myths about fish is the idea that a carp (鲤鱼) that climbs the waterfall on the Yellow River (known as the Dragon Gate) changed into a dragon.    4    In reality, each spring, carp come together in great numbers in the pool at the base of the waterfall.     5       It has become a common saying in China that a student facing examinations is like a carp trying to jump the Dragon Gate.

A．The simplified form is 鱼.

B．But very few make the climb.

C．Surprisingly, a lot of them are not related to fish at all.

D．This addition suggests that fish is most useful to humans.

E．The dragon is another important symbol in Chinese culture.

F．For example, Asian carp are the subject of many Chinese stories.

G．This similarity has led to fish becoming a symbol of abundance in Chinese culture.

7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入一个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

There is a special festival in Thailand that people and animals celebrate together. It’s a festival for Thailand’s elephants—the Surin Elephant Round-up and Elephant Show,     1    takes place in the third week of November. People in Surin are good at training elephants. The festival aims     2     (show) the importance of elephants to Thailand and people’s good relationship    3    them.　

    4    attracts tourists most is the elephant parade. People     5     (dress) in traditional Thai clothes and they decorate their elephants colourfully. After the parade, the elephants gather at a place to enjoy breakfast. They will eat up all the fruit     6     (serve) to them within minutes.   

There are many other interesting activities at the festival, too. For example, soccer     7     (match) and dancing are held among elephants to show their     8     (strong) and skills.   

Elephants have always played     9    important role in Thailand’s history and culture. People used to use them in wars and they are now important for the logging industry and tourism. An elephant can carry about 500 kg logs. They are     10     (environment) friendly compared to machines.

8 . Vidal first experienced Brazil’s carnival celebrations as a baby living in Salvador, the capital of Bahia State. Before he was even one year old, his mother took him to his first carnival event.

The cultural traditions of Salvador have stuck with him. And, Vidal, a trained musician, now performs the typical music of Bahia in the U.S. He often plays in the Washington area.

February is the carnival season in Brazil and other countries around the world. Even the Washington area celebrates the season. Last week,Vidal and other musicians performed here for a carnival celebration. Performing in Washington and other U.S. cities has helped Vidal stay close to his Brazilian roots(根).

“Living in the U.S. now and not being able to enjoy carnival as I used to in Brazil with my friends and family is really heartbreaking. And that was the reason why I decided to start making my own events—carnival parties—just to get connected to my roots, to my happiness.”

It may come as a surprise, but Washington is said to have one of the largest followings for Brazilian culture in the U.S. This year alone, there are more than twelve carnival celebrations in the Washington area. Here, the season isn’t celebrated on city streets as in Brazil, where it is warm summer. February is one of Washington’s coldest months. So, the events take place at theatres, restaurants and other places.

Carnival is one of the world’s biggest celebrations. In many countries, activities take place for a few weeks each year and include huge parades(游行) and street parties with live music. Carnival goers wear colourful, themed clothing and masks(面具).

1. What do we know about Vidal from the passage?

A．He didn’t enjoy carnival at first.

B．His mother trained him to be a singer.

C．He encouraged Americans to celebrate carnival.

D．Brazil’s traditional cultures influenced him greatly.

2. How did Vidal feel during the carnival season in the U.S.?

A．Excited.

B．Sad.

C．Proud.

D．Anxious.

3. Why are the carnival celebrations in Washington held indoors?

A．Because weather conditions are not good.

B．Because American carnivals fall in hot summers.

C．Because they want to make carnivals different.

D．Because few people celebrate carnivals in Washington.

9 . 古人云：百善孝为先，天之经也，地之义也，人之行也，德之本也。孝是中国人的传统美德。请根据以下提示，谈谈你对“孝”的理解。
提示：
(1)你认为“孝”是什么？
(2)以你自己或身边人的事例说明。
注意：
(1)词数80左右，文章开头已给出，不计入总词数；
(2)文中不得透露个人和学校信息。
参考词汇：孝顺 filial piety

It is universally accepted that filial piety is an important virtue in China.

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