It was a hot summer day. My mum     1     (hold) a small note and waving at every taxi that passed along the Suzhou road. We had come here by train     2     Shanghai to visit the classical gardens. But now we had already been standing by this road for over     3     hour. We needed to go to the station to catch     4     (we) train to Shanghai and had asked a local shopkeeper to write down the name of the station for the driver to understand. But every driver who stopped to examine the note drove off without     5     (say) a word. There we were, helpless and     6     (lose) in China.

Luckily, a young lady walked over and found out that the paper only said “xièxiè” —Chinese for “Thank you”. No wonder no one would take us. We     7     (sudden) realized that my father had repeatedly asked the shopkeeper to “write this down, please. Thank you! Thank you!” Apparently, he had assumed us funny foreigners     8     wanted to know the word for “thanks” in Chinese. That explained the     9     (puzzle) expression on the taxi drivers’     10     (face) as they just read “thank you” on the note. Thanks to the help of the passer-by, we were eventually able to catch the train.

10 . It’s a new year with 12 whole months of new travel possibilities—but where are the best places to go? Mirror Travel Editors choose their 4 hotspots.

Sri Lanka

Temples, birds, beaches and culture...and some of the world’s best tea!

The Indian Ocean Island is the size of Ireland but blessed with an outstanding range of things to see and do including an impressive eight UNESCO world heritage sites (世界遗产地) and national parks.

OUR TIP: See the masses of elephants in Uda Walawe national park.

Finland

Rated as one top three countries to visit by Lonely Planet as well as one of National Geographic Traveler’s 21 Best of the World destinations for 2017, there’s even more cause for celebration as next year marks the 100^th anniversary of Finland’s independence.

OUR TIP: With over three million saunas (桑拿) in the country, you could leave Finland in a sweat!

North Wales

The region has heavily financed adventure activities. Add to that white water rafting and surf at the world’s first inland surfing zone which is the size of six football pitches (足球场)—Surf Snowdonia and the splendid view of Mount Snowdon itself.

OUR TIP: The upgraded Bounce Below at ZipWorld looks ridiculously good fun, which is the size of a church.

Canada

Big and beautiful, it’s got just about everything: snow-capped mountains, vast forests rich in wildlife (who doesn’t like bears?!), huge lakes, two ocean coastlines and cities that offer history, culture, fine food and all your 21st century needs.

OUR TIP: Head to Cape Spear in Newfoundland and Labrador. It’s North America’s most easterly point and besides the sunrises and great views you could also see whales.