“Traveling to China seems like traveling to another world. Its many famous scenic attractions impressed me     1     (great),”an American said. The following is     2     he wrote on his website.

My friends and I had a family visit in Xi’an,     3     old city with a long history in China. The hosts were retired or stayed at home without a job, and they were friendly to     4     (visit) from different countries coming their homes.

We     5     (taste) the true home-cooked dishes in the home of the family that we visited. For in-homing dinner, the host would prepare a list of menus in advance (提前). Our tour guide asked     6     (we) for advice about the food, so the host would try to cook what we wanted     7     (eat) at his home. We just enjoyed the locally cooked dishes. It was quite a different and exciting experience.

Many foreigners enjoy     8     (learn) how to make Chinese dumplings. We were also     9     (offer) a general cooking class in the local family. The host taught us to make dumplings step by step with lots of patience. And we didn’t need to pay any money     10     this. Travel China Guide offers this kind of service free of charge.

The family visit in Xi’an was a good chance for us to get to know Chinese people’s daily life.

5 . Driving to a friend’s house on a recent evening,I was attracted by the sight of the full moon rising just above my friend’s rooftops.I stopped to watch it for a few moments,thinking about what a pity it was that most city people,myself included,usually miss sights like this because we spend most of our lives indoors.

My friend had also seen it.He grew up living in a forest in Europe,and the moon meant a lot to him then.It had touched much of his life.

I know the feeling.Last December I took my seven-year-old daughter to the mountainous jungle of northern India with some friends.We stayed in a forest rest-house with no electricity or hot water.Our group had campfires outside every night,and indoors when it was too cold outside.The moon grew to its fullest during our trip.Between me and the high mountains lay three or four valleys.Not a light shone in them and not a sound could be heard.It was one of the quietest places I had ever known,a bottomless well of silence.And above me was the full moon,which struck me deeply.

Today our lives are filled with glass,metal,plastic and fibre-glass.We have televisions,cellphones,heaters,ovens,air-conditioners,cars and computers.

Struggling through traffic that evening at the end of a tiring day,most of it spent indoors,I thought:before long,I would like to live in a small cottage.There I will grow vegetables and read books and walk in the mountains.I may become an old man there,and wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled and measure out my life in coffee spoons.But I will be able to walk outside on a cold silent night and touch the moon.

6 . When the first visitors to Yellowstone tried to report what they saw, news magazines responded, “Thank you, but we do not print fiction.” Established in 1872 and located primarily in Wyoming, Yellowstone National Park (YNP) was famous for its natural scenery and biodiversity. As America’s first national park, it remains one of the most popular tourist attractions.

This year, YNP has reported that it had the most-ever September visitors. The increase contrasts sharply with May, when visitation rates were 90% lower compared to the same month last year. The park recorded about 837,000 visits in September, a rate 21% higher than September 2019 and 15.6% higher than the park’s second-busiest September on record in 2018, when it hosted 724,000 people.

Yellowstone was closed due to the coronavirus pandemic from March 24 to May 18, when its two Wyoming entrances reopened. In June, the park opened its three other entrances and visitation rates improved slightly. The park reported a 32% decline in visitors compared to the same month last year. Visitation rates through June were down 49% compared to numbers from the first six months of 2019. However, a rapid uptick saw an increase of 2% in visitation rates in July compared to the same month last year. The park hosted 955, 645 visitors in July compared to 534,000 people in June.

The national park’s peak season is typically from May through September. Most lodges, restaurants, stores and other services close for the year in October, followed by all park roads in early November.

Sara Fleming, a spokesperson for the Gardiner Chamber of Commerce, said the increase in tourists could be caused by an increase in the amount of young people who have visited the park in recent months. She said more young people between 20 and 50 have visited the park than in previous summers.

7 . Mother Nature is a cruel mistress. Why? Read on to find the answer.

Venice

This iconic city is sinking rapidly. The canals that make up the streets of Venice rise 2 mm every year, making relics of history go under the surface of water and destroying architecture. Experts warn that without intervention, this city will disappear back into the water at an even faster rate, consumed by rising sea level from melting polar ice caps.

Machu Picchu

These Incan ruins have drawn adventurous tourists into the mountains of South America. The forces of natural erosion have been accelerated by tourism and this landmark laces severe influence from increasing foot traffic. The Peruvian government suggested a cable car that would cut out the intense hike up to the ruins, making the site instantly accessible to millions, but the future of Machu Picchu remains uncertain.

Glacier National Park

Perhaps you've heard that the ice caps are melting. But nowhere is more apparent in the United States than in Glacier National Park. Estimates indicate that the glaciers that are part of the beauty of this national landmark will disappear entirely in the next two decades.

The Great Barrier Reef

Unfortunately, hidden from view beneath the waves, the Great Barrier Reef has been rapidly dying off. Nearly fifty percent of coral which once occupied a large area is gone, destroyed by pollution and disease.

8 . When I was 25 years old, I had a big dream in my mind and lots of things in my backpack. I wanted to travel around Africa with my _______. So I left my hometown with great confidence and _______ in Cape Town on a one-way ticket, not really sure what to do next.

_______, before my trip actually started, I met a kind, old Nigerian man. He gave me the best travel _______ I ever received: “Be like a student on your way around the world.”

It sounds _______, but it really changed my mind about travelling. He helped me _______ that travel is about learning and observing different _______. “It’s far too easy to go into a new country for you and believe your ways are better. But if you study, ask questions, and try to learn from the locals, you’ll have far richer _______, ” he promised me.

On other trips _______ I was on my tour way to Cancun, I didn’t know the man so I was just a ________. I only stayed there for a week to see the sights and places of interest and then left. The culture didn’t ________ me. I left the cities and towns without really knowing anyone or anything. Those people and things ________ in those very places to which I had ________ a visit.

This time, I promised myself that I would be a ________ student traveller. After seven months of ________ travelling from Cape Town to Cairo, I returned home. Having a student-like attitude helped me learn a lot. This trip satisfied me more than any other trip ever did to me.

9 . The world is a big place, and there are many, many different places you can visit.     1    

First of all, traveling allows us to escape our daily routines and expand perspectives, because seeing new places and gaining new experiences can broaden our perspectives.

Traveling is also the most valuable form of learning.     2     It helps us absorb information about other cultures. That is to say, traveling extends our knowledge of the world and lets us know the cultural diversity（多样性）.By doing so, we realize that there is not one way to live, nor is one way correct.     3    

What's more, traveling can have a direct effect on people's sense of happiness, and decrease their stress and anxiety. These improvements don't just disappear the moment travelers return to their daily lives.     4     As a result of travel, people change the way they communicate with others and learn to be more patient with others. Above all, people who frequently travel tend to be healthier and live a longer life.

    5     We can escape our daily stress, expand our worldview, learn about others and ourselves, and improve our health. Many of the benefits people acquire from traveling improve the quality of their overall well-being. It is vital for people to visit different places, meet new people and discover a new way of living. Travelling helps us fully appreciate the beauty of the world and the diversity in it.

10 . Ann started to work last summer. In order to have a holiday, she saved as much as she could and, this January, she booked a package tour to Spain. She left London airport early on the morning of the first Saturday in August. She was very excited, as this was her first trip abroad. When she arrived at Barcelona airport, the weather was beautiful.

At the hotel, she found that her Spanish money wasn't in her handbag. All she had was a small purse with ten English pounds in it!

Ann found a place to change her English money for Spanish money. She would stay here for two weeks. After changing her money, Ann bought some cheese, some bread and some oranges. When she got back to the hotel, she told the tour guide that her doctor had told her not to eat much food, so she'd just have breakfast each day. This was all right, as she knew breakfast was included in the price of hotel.

For the rest of her holiday, Ann swam in the hotel or lay on the beach. She also went for long walks with Jane, a Scottish girl. However, when the others went to interesting places,Ann always said she wasn't well. In fact, her holiday wasn't bad, except that she was always hungry.

On the last day, Jane asked her why she never ate with them in the hotel restaurant. The food was excellent. Ann told her all about her money problem. Jane looked at her for a minute, and then said, “But didn't you know? The price of this tour includes everything!"