1     is widely known that Chinese ancient     2     (civilize) has continued all the way through into modern times, despite there were many ups and downs in its history. The main reason     3     this has been the Chinese writing system.

Chinese characters, also     4     (refer) to as Hanzi, are one of the earliest forms of written language in the world, with a history of approximately (大约) five thousand years. It is still difficult to determine the specific time     5     the Chinese characters came into being. At the beginning, written Chinese started from the use of longgu-animal bones and shells     6     symbols were carved. By the Shang Dynasty (around 1600-1046 BCE), these symbols     7     (use) as a well-developed writing system. Over the years, the system developed     8     different forms,   leading to various dialects and characters. However, Qinshihuang changed the situation. After that, the Chinese writing system began to develop in one direction. That writing system is not only of great     9     (important) in uniting the Chinese people and culture, but also an important     10     (mean) by which China’s present is connected with its past.

My time in China was a (n)     1     (enjoy) experience. Every day was a new adventure. I worked out regularly and made     2     (prepare) for Chinese material arts. While I was in Beijing, I climbed the Great Wall of China,     3     visited Tian’anmen Square, the Palace Museum and the Bird’s Nest Olympic stadium. I also     4     (have) the opportunity of being stuck in a Beijing thunderstorm, bargaining in the market, and     5     (ride) the high-speed train. While I was in Tianjin, I studied at Nankai University. I was taking the Chinese language and culture courses.

What I enjoyed most is that whatever I learned in class, I would use it outside     6     (communicate) with people. Having the opportunity to speak Mandarin every day     7     (real) improved my learning. In the afternoon I would have culture classes     8     I would learn about Chinese calligraphy, Beijing opera, Chinese martial arts, Chinese cooking and many other subjects. The mix of learning about the language and culture made each day of class     9     (amaze). I believe that the key     10     studying abroad successfully is the attitude you carry. Going to China, I was open-minded and had a very positive attitude.

Chinese Language Day

Language Days at the Untied Nations seek     1    (celebrate) multilingualism (多语言) and cultural diversity as well as promote equal use of all six official languages throughout the     2     (organize).

The date for the Chinese day was selected from Guyu, which is the     3    (six) of 24 solar terms in the traditional East Asian calendars (日历),     4     (usual) beginning around April 20.

Chinese was established as an official language of the United Nations in 1946.     5    , in early years, Chinese was not commonly used in the work of the United Nations. The situation     6     (improve) after the Peopled Republic of China regained the lawful rights in the United Nations in 1971. In 1973, they     7     (include) Chinese as a working language,     8    was used by more and more UN offices and staff members.

In celebration of United Nations Chinese Language Day 2021, UNSRC Chinese Book Club     9    (be) organizing three events under the theme “Highlighting Pictographs (象形文字)”. The three events focus     10    three types of characters connected with three cultures and three UNESCO World Heritage sites. All the three events will be shown live.

Chinese was formally announced an official language of the United Nations World Tourism Organization     1     January 25.

That means the organization will use the Chinese language,     2     will enhance China’s soft power in global tourism and, by extension, the cultural domain. It will help China’s tourism growth, encouraging other countries     3     (adopt) its policies. Tourist places in China will get more exposure. The number of people learning Chinese will     4     (definite) grow.

There     5     (be) two main reasons for that. First, Chinese cultural and tourism authorities have been promoting Chinese culture for long. As far back as in 2006, Spring Festival was listed as a     6     (nation) cultural heritage (文化遗产) and given special     7     (protect) and promoted. Now, there are many influential festival     8     (list) in the world and almost all of them include the Chinese New Year or Spring Festival: many even list it at the top. Second, the year-on-year growth in the number of Chinese tourists before 2020 has played a part in     9     (promote) the Chinese language and culture. Globally, Chinese faces have become common at scenic spots. That has a lot to do with China’s improving economy and the constantly rising per capital income (人均收入).

With China’s growing comprehensive capabilities, it     10     (hope) that its influence in other soft power domains will also grow.

To my surprise, I learned something new from my little sister yesterday, who    1    (absorb) in exploring the history of commas.

In the third century BC, the full stop (句号)or period was introduced by Greek literary critic Aristophanes of Byzantium. It is used    2    (present) the end of a sentence. However, the full stop has a different meaning to teenagers and those in their early 20s,    3    interpret it as a sign of anger. And there is a reason for that.

The younger generation has grown up using the texts as their primary means of communication. When    4    (send) messages, they tend to break up their thoughts by sending each one as a separate message, instead of using a full stop. They feel the full stop once used in traditional texting    5    (repeat) is not essential at all because the message is now ended just by sending it.

David Crystal, a leading language    6    (special), argues that the usage of full stops is being revised in a really fundamental way. In his book, he says that the full stop has become an emotion marker that    7    (remind) the receiver that the sender is angry or    8    (annoy).

    9    the full stop has taken on a different meaning to the younger generation, experts note that it is important to take language environment    10    account. For example, to use full stops in an email appropriately is perfectly acceptable and is not considered rude.

My time in China was     1     unforgettable experience. Every day was a new adventure. I made life-long friends and     2     (have) many lasting memories. My study abroad program organized trips for us to learn about each city and to visit cultural     3     (sight). While I was in Beijing, I climbed the Great Wall of China, and visited Tian’an men Square, the Forbidden City and the Bird’s Nest Olympic stadium. I also had the opportunity of     4     (be) stuck in a Beijing thunderstorm, bargaining in the market, and riding the high-speed train. While I was in Tianjin, I     5     (study) at Nankai University. I was taking the Chinese language and culture courses.     6     I enjoyed most is that whatever I learned in class, I would use it outside to communicate with people. Having the opportunity     7     (speak) Mandarin everyday really improved my learning. In the afternoon I would have culture classes     8     I would learn about Chinese calligraphy, Beijing opera, Chinese martial arts, Chinese cooking and many other subjects. The mix of learning about the language and culture made each day of class     9     (excite).

I believe that the key     10     studying abroad successfully is the attitude you carry. Going to China, I was open-minded and had a very positive attitude.