Going to Mount Huangshan reminds me of the popular Beatles’ song “The Long and Winding Road”.     1     is so breathtaking about the experience is the out-of-this-world scenes. The rolling sea of clouds you see once you are at the top will remind you how tiny we     2     (human) are.

The hot spring at the foot of the mountain is something you must try after the climb. It will     3    (undoubted) help you get refreshed! The amazing thing about the spring is that the colder the temperature gets, the     4     (hot) the spring! Strange, isn’t it? But that’s how nature is — always leaving us     5     (astonish).

What comes next is the endless series of steps. You can’t help wondering how hard it     6     (be) for the people then to put all those rocks into place. Though it is the only unnatural thing on your way up the mountain, still it highlights the whole adventure     7    offers a place where you can sit down to rest your     8     (ache) legs.

As the song goes, this long and winding road “will never disappear”, and it will always stick in the visitor’s memory. It sure does in     9     (I). While you’re in China, Mount Huangshan is     10     must to visit!

Ecotourism is commonly regarded as low impact (影响) travel to undisturbed places. It is different from traditional tourism because it allows the traveler to become     1     (educate) about the areas - both in terms of geographical conditions and cultural characteristics, and often provides money for conservation and benefits the     2    (develop) of the local areas.

Ecotourism has     3    (it) origin with the environmental movement of the 1970s. It was not widely accepted as a travel concept     4     the late 1980s. During that time, increasing environmental awareness made it desirable.

Due to     5     growing popularity of environmentally-related and adventure travel, various types     6     trips are now being classified as ecotourism. Actually, a true eco-friendly trip must meet the following principles:

·Minimize the impact of     7    (visit) the place.

·Build respect for and awareness of the environment and cultural practices.

·Provide     8    (finance) aid and other benefits for local peoples.

·Make sure that the tourism provides experiences for both the visitors and the hosts.

Komodo National Park, officially recognized in 1980, is popular for ecotourism because of its unique biodiversity.    9    (activity) there range from whale watching to hiking (远足) and accommodations aim     10    (have) a low impact on the natural environment.

The Xi’an City Wall is the most complete city wall that has survived China’s long history. It     1     (build) originally to protect the city     2     the Tang dynasty and has now been completely restored (修复). It is possible       3     (walk) or bike the entire 14 kilometers.

We accessed the wall through the South Gate. The wall is 12 meters high and from here you can see streams of people moving inside and outside the City Wall.

After     4     (spend) some time looking at all the defensive equipment at the wall, we decided it was time for some action and what     5     (good) than to ride on a piece of history!

We     6     (hire) our bikes from the rental place at the South Gate. My bike was old and shaky     7     did the job. It took us about 3 hours to go all     8     way around the Xi’an City Wall. Supposedly you can do it in two hours, but we stopped at the different gates and     9     (watchtower) to take pictures or just to watch the local people going about their     10     (day) routines.

Demand on tourism burst as the Minsu market’s recovery sped up during the May Day holiday. Oceans of tourists flooded into Zibo in China’s Shandong Province for its BBQ,     1     drove its Minsu market to boom. According to the online booking site Tujia, Minsu’s average room price remained lower than the national average level, but     2     (it) booking number increased three times in Shandong Province during the May Day vacation.

    3     (base) on Tujia statistics, other cities in Shandong Province also showed remarkable performances on Minsu bookings. Qingdao and Weihai were among China’s top ten tourism destinations.     4     former even surpassed (超过) Chengdu and Chongqing for the first time to take the number one spot.     5     (additional), the booking numbers in Yantai, Jinan, Rizhao and Tai’an of Shandong Province also     6     (see) a good performance.

The Minsu in rural areas still gain     7     (popular), with the booking number     8     (account) for nearly 40% of the total, according to Tujia.

Among customers booking the Minsu in rural areas, the “post-80” and “post-90” generations are still the mainstream. The     9     (hot) types of accommodations are lofts, inns, and single-family villas. Besides, fruit and vegetable picking, DIY activities, and food-tasting events are the top choices     10     holiday activities.

The local government of Zibo issued two open letters to all citizens. The government extended its gratitude for the citizens’     1     (warm) and hospitality toward visitors coming to enjoy the city’s signature barbecue,     2     has recently become a hit across the country.

Since early March, Zibo local barbecue     3     (cause) a sensation online. But how did Zibo rise to fame? From July 2022 to February 2023, Zibo organized many trips to the city for university students. Despite reaching peak visitation numbers, there was no sense of panic. Instead, several supportive     4     (policy) were promptly introduced, such as establishing a “Golden Stove Award”, forming a barbecue association, creating a map of Zibo barbecue restaurants,     5     launching 21 dedicated tourist routes that go beyond just barbecue.

Zibo’s sudden boom in popularity also resulted     6     the post-pandemic tourism revival China has experienced. The city aims to restore     7     (it) tourism industry and ensure sustainable growth.     8     (achieve) this goal, it has created     9     welcoming environment with convenient services for young people, particularly university students. The city has also invited students from distinguished universities to visit Zibo for free,     10     (signal) its eagerness to attract talented young individuals.

I’ve had my fair share of travelling around China, and a recent week-long trip to Guizhou was my first time to the province. I tried looking up the meaning and significance of the name Guizhou before the trip,     1     (basic)to have a reasonable idea of what was in store for me. But that was     2     hard task so I inquired from a Chinese colleague on the trip. From what she said, initially the province     3     (name)after a famous mountain called “Gui”, sort of noble in literal translation and “zhou”, which simply means province in Chinese.     4     (keep)that in mind I set out on a journey of discovery and     5     I found was mind-blowing, a photographer’s paradise. Generally     6     (describe)as a mountainous province in southwestern China, with Guiyang as     7     (it)capital, the province is truly one of nature’s best kept secrets. Compared to other leading     8     (province)in China, with regard     9     development, Guizhou has some catching-up to do. However, the province remains unique not only for its amazing landscape,     10     for the role it played in the political history of modern China and the role it is to play in the world.