The Water Splashing Festival of the Dai ethnic minority (少数民族),     1     falls in April, is the most important festival for the Dai people in the Dehong area of Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province. It is the New Year for the Dai, a festival to send off the old and greet the new.

During the festival which lasts for three or four days, people     2    (dress) in their best clothes and take part in a     3    (various) of rich and colorful activities. Dragon boat racing, fireworks displays and other     4    (performance) such as peacock dance are held on the first day. And the most popular event is water-splashing on the second day. People splash water on each other,     5    (hope) to take away sickness and disasters. The wetter you get, the     6    (lucky) you will be. The last day is usually for the young people to play games as a way     7    (express) their love for each other.

The Water Splashing Festival     8    (vivid) exhibits the Dai’s respect     9     water and the culture of music and dance, food, and costumes. It is also a cultural bridge between Xishuangbanna and Southeast Asian countries that share     10     same festival culture of water-splashing.

Rivers are one of our most important natural resources. Many of the world’s great cities are located on rivers and almost every country has at least one river     1     (flow) through it, which plays an important part in the lives of     2     (it) people.

Since the beginning of history, people     3     (use) rivers for transportation. The Yellow River and Changliang River play a large role in China. The Mississippi, the     4     (long) one in the United States ever influenced the American people     5     (great) in history. The lifeline of Egypt is the Nile. Rivers provide fresh water     6     drink, grow crops, make electricity and chances to have fun for those     7     live along their banks.

    8     the cities grow in size and industries increase in number, the river water is severely being polluted. It urges all countries to make     9     (decide) and take immediate action to stop it from     10     (pollute) any more.