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巴比伦空中花园
2008-05-12 23:45:14
巴比伦空中花园
tier on tier...On all this, the earth had been piled...and was thickly planted with trees of every kind that, by their great size and other charm, gave pleasure to the beholder...The water machines(raised) the water in great abundance from the river, although no one outside could see it. ——Diodorus Siculus
ruits and flowers... Waterfalls... Gardens hanging from the palace terraces... Exotic animals...This is the picture of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in most people's minds.It may be surprising to know that they might have never existed except in the minds of Greek poets and historians!
Location
On the east bank of the River Euphrates, about 50 km south of Baghdad, Iraq.
History
The Babylonian kingdom flourished under the rule of the famous King, Hammurabi[2] (1792-1750 BC[3]).It was not until[4] the reign of the Neo-Babylonian dynasty that the Mesopotamian [5] civilization reached its ultimate glory.Nebuchadnezzar II[6] (604-562 BC) is credited for building the legendary Hanging Gardens.It is said that the Gardens were built by Nebuchadnezzar to please his wife or concubinewho had been "brought up in Media[7] and had a passion for mountain surroundings".
While the most descrīptive accounts of the Gardens come from Greek historians such as Berossus and Diodorus Siculus,Babylonian records stay silent on the matter.Tablets from the time of Nebuchadnezzar do not have a single reference to the Hanging Gardens,although descrīptions of his palace, the city of Babylon, and the walls are found.Even the historians who give detailed descrīptions of the Hanging Gardens never saw them.Modern historians argue that when Alexander[8] 's soldiers reached the fertile land of Mesopotamia and saw Babylon, they were impressed.When they later returned to their rugged homeland, they had stories to tell about the amazing gardens and palm trees at Mesopotamia...About the palace of Nebuchadnezzar... About the Tower of Babel[9] and the ziggurats.And it was the imagination of poets and ancient historians that blended all these elements together to produce one of the World Wonders.
It wasn't until the twentieth century that some of the mysteries surrounding the Hanging Gardens were revealed.Archaeologists are still struggling to gather enough evidence before reaching the final conclusions about the location of the Gardens, their irrigation system, and their true appearance.
注释：
1．Babylon：古代西亚两河流域的最大城市，古巴比伦王国与新巴比伦王国的首都。位于幼发拉底河中游，距今巴格达南约89公里。“空中花园”位于新巴比伦王国的都城中。2．Hammurabi：汉谟拉比（公元前1792~1750）古巴比伦王国第六代国王。他在位其间，重新统一了两河流域。实行中央集权统治，兴修水利，发展经济。颁布有名的《汉谟拉比法典》。
3．BC：BC是“公元前”、AD是“公元后”。你知道为什么有公元前和公元后之分吗？其实公元记年是由后来的一位知识渊博的大主教发明的，以基督（Christ）的出生为分界线来划分。BC 就是Before Christ；而AD来自拉丁文anno Domini(=Since Christ was born)。
4．It was not until...：这个句子看起来挺让人迷惑，其实这是...not ...unitil...（直到……才……）的强调句型。It is ...that...是英语的情调句型。比如：It's man that counts.（出自《实用英语语法》）起作用的是人。强调...not ...unitil...时，是把not和 until引导的从句放在that 前。
5．Mesopotamian：美索不达米亚，西亚一古地区，地处幼发拉底河和底格里斯河之间，是世界文明发祥地之一。公元前4000年苏美尔人在南美索不达尼亚建立起世界最早的文明，约公元前2340年，阿卡帝国首次兴起，此后巴比伦和亚述两帝国相继崛起。
6．NebuPage: 1 chadnezzar II：尼布甲尼撒二世（前605~前562），新巴比伦王国国王。即位后，大举进攻腓尼基和巴勒斯坦，与埃及争夺势力范围。公元前586年攻陷耶路撒冷，灭犹太王国，俘虏大批犹太居民。前567年远征埃及，并掠夺大量财富，是为新巴比伦王国鼎盛时期。
7．Media：米底，西亚古国，在今伊朗西部和阿塞拜疆东部地区。
8．lexander the Great：亚历山大大帝（前356~前323）马其顿国王。前334年以无敌之师大举东进，入小亚细亚，转埃及，建立亚历山大城，挺进两河流域，入侵中亚细亚，南下印度。后因气候不适，士兵厌战而退兵巴比伦。前324年，建立了以亚历山大城为中心的东起印度河、西至尼罗河与巴尔干半岛领域的古代大帝国——亚历山大帝国。
9．the Tower of Babel：巴别塔，据《圣经·旧约》，诺亚在巴比伦的子孙想建造一座“塔顶通天”的塔以扬名，同时反抗上帝。上帝便变乱他们原来统一的语言，使之互不相通，结果塔未能建成，而人类分散到世界各地。
巴比伦的空中花园
通往花园的道路象山坡一样倾斜着，建筑物的几个部分一层一层地向上交错排列着……泥土在这些上面堆积着……并且浓密地种植着各种各样的树木，它们以其巨大的身躯和其他一些魅力，令观赏者赏心悦目……抽水的机器把大量的水从河中（提升到）上面，尽管没有人从外面能看到它。 ——Diodorus Siculus水果与鲜花……、瀑布……、花园高悬在宫殿的阳台上……、奇异的动物……，这是大多数人想象中的巴比伦空中花园。让人吃惊的是空中花园除了在希腊的诗人和历史学家的头脑中出现过外，可能从来就没有存在过。
位置：
位于幼发拉底河的东岸，距伊拉克的首都巴格达南约50公里。
历史：
古巴比伦王国在著名的国王汉谟拉比（公元前1792~1750）的统治下曾经繁荣一时。但是直到新巴比伦王朝，美索不达米亚文明才达到了它的鼎盛时期。人们相信传说中的空中花园是由尼布甲尼撒二世（公元前604年~562年）建造的。据传，尼布甲尼撒为了取悦于其在米底亚长大并对山景怀有深厚感情的王后或者是妃子而建造了空中花园。
虽然对花园最详尽的记述是出自Berossus 和 Diodorus Siculus等希腊历史学家笔下, 但巴比伦的历史记录却对此事只字未提。尽管在尼布甲尼撒时期存留下的各种书写板上发现了对他的宫殿、巴比伦城以及巴比伦的城墙的种种描述，但这些书写板上却没有一处提到过空中花园。甚至那些对空中花园进行过详细描述的历史学家们也从没有亲眼目睹过它们。现代历史学家争论说：当亚力山大的士兵们到达了富饶的美索不达米亚地区并看到了巴比伦时，他们深为（眼前的美景）所震撼。当他们后来回到崎岖不平的家乡时，带回了有关美索不达米亚的令人惊叹的花园和椰子树……、有关尼布甲尼撒的宫殿……以及有关巴别塔和金字型神塔的各种故事。是诗人和古代历史学家的想象力把这所有的元素混合在一起制造出了世界奇观之一。
直到二十世纪，围绕着空中花园的一些不解之迷才被揭示出来。在得到关于花园的地理位置、灌溉系统，和真正面目的最终结论之前，考古学家们仍在努力地收集足够的证据。
永远的维纳斯
Venus de Milos
The Aphrodite of Melos is made of[1] marble and represents vivdly the goddess Aphrodite. This statue had earned it's name the Venus de Milo or Venus de Melos, because in 1820, a peasant had found it on the Greek island of Melos and it was named afte
r[2] the island where it was found.The statue shows Aphrodite semi-nude and with a robe wrapped around her legs. For hundreds of years the statue had remained buried in an underground cavern. On account of[3] this, the statue had suffered significant damage and it was found in two parts. Later it was replaced together and sent to France, because the Marquis de Riviere had brought the statue and had given it to Louis XVIII of France[4]. Pieces of arms and a pedestal with an inscrīption, were also found in the cave, but these were later lost and never found again.
No one knows who created the statue of the Aphrodite of Melos. It is probably the work of the Greek artist Alexandros of Antioch. This name was inscribed on the block of stone on the pedestal that was later lost, but this is doubted from scholars because it may not have been the corrected block with the Venus de Milo, so this had erased the attribution to Alexandros. Some scholars had attributed the work of the statue to Praxiteles[5]. It is said that it was sculpted around the second century B.C.
米洛的维纳斯
“米洛的阿芙洛狄特”是由大理石制成的，惟妙惟肖地刻画了女神阿芙洛狄特。在1820年，一位农民在希腊的米洛岛上发现了这尊雕像，此后它就以这个岛而得名，被称为“米洛的维纳斯”。
雕像展示了阿芙洛狄特半裸的形象，一条长袍遮住了她的双腿。数百年来，这尊雕像被深埋于一个地下洞穴中。因此，雕像严重受损，当它被发现时已经断为两截。后来它被修复在一起，并送往了法国，因为马尔凯斯·德里维尔已购买了这尊雕像，把它送给法国国王路易十八。在洞中也发现了雕像胳膊和刻有铭文的底座的残片，但是后来这些东西均被丢失，而且从此再未找到过。
没有人知道谁创作了雕像“米洛的维纳斯”。它可能是希腊雕刻家，安屈克亚的亚历山德罗斯的作品。因为在那块后来丢失的雕像底座上刻着这个名字，但是学者们对此表示怀疑，因为这可能不是真正的“米洛的维纳斯”的底座，这就使亚历山德罗斯是否是雕像的作者产生置疑。一些学者认为这尊雕像是普拉克西特利斯的作品。它据说是作于公元前2世纪左右。
注释：
1． be made of：made 后接不同的介词短语，表示不同的意思。比如：a. A Stew can be made with vegetables. 这句表示蔬菜只是焖菜中的一种成分。 b. A stew can be made of vegetable. 这里表示蔬菜是焖菜中的主要成分。c. The wine is made from graps. Made from 指用……加工制成，经过加工，成品已非原来的样子。
2． be named after：name 除了作名词，也可作动词，表示“命名；以……名字命名（after）”，例如：They named their son John. 他们给婴儿取名为约翰。She was named after her grandmother. 她是根据她祖母的名字命名的。
3． on account of：是“因为，为……的缘故”。例如：I was absent from school on account of illness. 另外有关account的词组还有：on all accounts （无论如何，不管怎样）；on no accont （不管什么理由，决不）。
4． Louis XVIII：路易十八（1755~1824），法国国王。1795年路易十七死后，自立为路易十八。1814年4月跟随反法联军回到法国，恢复波旁王朝的统治。拿破仑百日王朝时又逃亡到国外。1815年滑铁卢战役后再次回到巴黎，重登王位。
5． Praxiteles：普拉克西特利斯（？前四世纪中叶）雅典雕刻家。希腊最有创造性的艺术家之一。以其大理石雕像闻明。其作品将神话人物纳如平凡的日常生活而加以抒情描写，风格柔和细腻，确立了当时希腊雕塑的特征。其著名作品现仅存大理石雕像《赫尔墨斯》。
World Cup History 世界杯历史
The first World Cup
On 26 May 1928, at a meeting in Amsterdam, the Fifa congress decided that a new tournament open to all its members should be played. A year later in Barcelona it was agreed that Uruguay, the Olympic champions and the era's footballing superpower, should celebrate 100 years of independence by hosting the first World Cup the following year.
Only 13 nations took part in the inaugural tournament, with a majority of nine coming from South America. All games were played in three stadiums in Montevideo and, as expected, the South American countries dominated, although the European teams did not disgrace themselves.Some 100,000 fans packed into the Centenario Stadium for the final on 30 July to see Argentina throw away a 2-1 half-time lead as Uruguay ran out 4-2 winners.
Jules Rimet, the Fifa president and brains behind the World Cup, presented the trophy to winning captain Jose Nazassi and football's greatest tournament was born.
After a pre-match row over which ball to use for the final, it is believed the Argentine ball was used in one half and the Uruguayan ball in the other. Rumour has it that this is how the phrase "a game of two halves" evolved.
World Cup history - vocabularyFifa congress
The international organisation that controls football is Fifa, which stands for Fédération Internationale de Football Association. A congress is a meeting.era
This word is used to talk about a period of time in the past when something or someone is important.hosting
If a country hosts the World Cup, then the competition is being played in that country.inaugural
This adjective means the very first. It is mainly used when talking about special events and competitions.dominated
If a team dominated it means that they were much stronger and they did much better than the others.did not disgrace themselves
This expression is used to describe good performances by a team that isn't very strong. Although they are a weaker team and didn't win, they did play well.packed into
This expression shows that the stadium was completely full, there was no extra space.brains behind
When someone is described as the brains behind something, then it is that person's idea or plan.row
Another word for an argument or disagreement.Rumour has it
This expression means that what is being told is not a fact, but is what people believe to be true -
女神阿芙洛狄特
2008-05-12 23:42:46
女神阿芙洛狄特
because in 1820, a peasant had found it on the Greek island of Melos and it was named after the island where it was found.
The statue shows Aphrodite semi-nude and with a robe wrapped around her legs. For hundreds of years the statue had remained buried in an underground cavern. On account of this, the statue had suffered significant damage and it was found in two parts. Later it was replaced together and sent to France, because the Marquis de Riviere had brought the statue and had given it to Louis XVIII of France. Pieces of arms and a pedestal with an inscrīption, were also found in the cave, but these were later lost and never found again.
No one knows who created the statue of the Aphrodite of Melos. It is probably the work of the Greek artist Alexandros of Antioch. This name was inscribed on the block of stone on the pedestal that was later lost, but this is doubted from scholars because it may not have been the corrected block with the Venus de Milo, so this had erased the attribution to Alexandros. Some scholars had attributed the work of the statue to Praxiteles. It is said that it was sculpted around the second century B.C.译文：
“米洛的阿芙洛狄特”是由大理石制成的，惟妙惟肖地刻画了女神阿芙洛狄特。在1820年，一位农民在希腊的米洛岛上发现了这尊雕像，此后它就以这个岛而得名，被称为“米洛的维纳斯”。
雕像展示了阿芙洛狄特半裸的形象，一条长袍遮住了她的双腿。数百年来，这尊雕像被深埋于一个地下洞穴中。因此，雕像严重受损，当它被发现时已经断为两截。后来它被修复在一起，并送往了法国，因为马尔凯斯?德里维尔已购买了这尊雕像，把它送给法国国王路易十八。在洞中也发现了雕像胳膊和刻有铭文的底座的残片，但是后来这些东西均被丢失，而且从此再未找到过。
没有人知道谁创作了雕像“米洛的维纳斯”。它可能是希腊雕刻家，安屈克亚的亚历山德罗斯的作品。因为在那块后来丢失的雕像底座上刻着这个名字，但是学者们对此表示怀疑，因为这可能不是真正的“米洛的维纳斯”的底座，这就使亚历山德罗斯是否是雕像的作者产生置疑。一些学者认为这尊雕像是普拉克西特利斯的作品。它据说是作于公元前2世纪左右。Cambridge University 剑桥大学
The University of Cambridge is one of the oldest universities in the world, and one of the largest in the United Kingdom. It has a world-wide reputation for outstanding academic achievement and the high quality of research undertaken in a wide range of science and arts subjects. The University pioneers work in the understanding of disease, the creation of new materials, advances in telecommunications and research into the origins of the universe. It trains doctors, vets, architects, engineers and teachers. At all levels about half of the students at Cambridge study arts and humanities subjects, many of whom have gone on to become prominent figures in the arts, print and broadcast media. The University's achievements in the sciences can be measured by the sixty or more Nobel Prizes awarded to its members over the years.
The University is a self-governing body: the legislative authority is the Regent House, which consists of the three thousand or so members of the teaching and administrative staff of the University and Colleges who have the MA (or MA status) or a higher degree. The principal administrative body of the University is the Council, which consists mainly of members of the academic staff elected by the Regent House. The General Board of the Faculties co-ordinates the educational policy of the University and the Finance Committee of the Council supervises its financial affairs.
As Cambridge approaches its eight hundredth anniversary in 2009, it is looking to the future. The modern University is an international centre of teaching and research in a vast range of subjects: about half of the students study science or technology. Members of the University have won over sixty Nobel Prizes.
It continues to change in response to the challenges it faces. The Vice-Chancellor, for instance, is no longer a Head of College, but is a full-time administrative appointment. A Development Office and associated charitable foundation is successfully seeking funds around the world for new ventures. The 1990s have seen a major expansion of University accommodation for teaching and research. There are many major new buildings either underway or already completed, including the Law Faculty building and the Judge Institute of Management Studies, in March 1996 opened by HM The Queen.Roman Colosseum 意大利罗马大斗兽场
The Colosseum or Flavian Amphitheater was begun by Vespasian, inaugurated by Titus in 80 A.D. and completed by Domitian. Located on marshy land between the Esquiline and Caelian Hills, it was the first permanent amphitheater to be built in Rome. Its monumental size and grandeur as well as its practical and efficient organization for producing spectacles and controlling the large crowds make it one of the great architectural monuments achieved by the ancient Romans.
The amphitheater is a vast ellipse with tiers of seating for 50,000 spectators around a central elliptical arena. Below the wooden arena floor, there was a complex set of rooms and passageways for wild beasts and other provisions for staging the spectacles. Eighty walls radiate from the arena and support vaults for passageways, stairways and the tiers of seats. At the outer edge circumferential arcades link each level and the stairways between levels.
The three tiers of arcades are faced by three-quarter columns and entablatures, Doric in the first story, Ionic in the second, and Corinthian in the third. Above them is an attic story with Corinthian pilasters and small square window openings in alternate bays. At the top brackets and sockets carry the masts from which the velarium, a canopy for shade, was suspended.
The construction utilized a careful combination of types: concrete for the foundations, travertine for the piers and arcades, tufa infill between piers for the walls of the lower two levels, and brick-faced concrete used for the upper levels and for most of the vaults.
Details
The Colosseum was designed to hold 50,000 spectators, and it had approximately eighty entrances so crowds could arrive and leave easily and quickly.
The plan is a vast ellipse, measuring externally 188 m x 156 m (615 ft x 510 ft), with the base of the building covering about 6 acres. Vaults span between eighty radial walls to support tiers of seating and for passageways and stairs.
The facade of three tiers of arches and an attic story is about 48.5 m (158 ft) tall — roughly equivalent to a 12-15 story building.埃及出土3600年历史的法老塑像
Buried for nearly 3,600 years, a rare statue of Egypt's King Neferhotep I has been brought to light in the ruins of Thebes by a team of French archaeologists.
Officials said on Saturday that the statue was unusual in that the king is depicted holding hands with a double of himself, although the second part of the carving remains under the sand and its form has been determined by the use of imaging equipment.
Archeologists unearthed the 1.8 metre (six foot) tall statue, as they were carrying out repairs around Karnak Temple in the southern city of Luxor, Egypt's antiquities chief Zahi Hawass told reporters.
Francois Larche, one of the team that found the limestone statue of the king, whose name means "beautiful and good", said it was lying about 1.6 metres below ground near an obelisk of Queen Hatshepsut, the only woman to have reigned as a pharoah in Egypt, ruling from 1504-1484 BC.
Karnak, now in the heart of Luxor, was built on the ruins of Thebes, the capital of ancient Egypt. The huge temple dedicated to the god Amon lies in the heart of a vast complex of religious buildings in the city, 700 kilometres (435 miles) south of Cairo.
The statue shows the king wearing a funeral mask and royal head cloth or nemes, said Larche. The forehead bears an emblem of a cobra, which ancient Egyptians used as a symbol on the crown of the pharaohs. They believed that the cobra would spit fire at approaching enemies.
Larche said this was only the second time such a statue had been found in Egypt. A similar one was dug up during the excavations of the hidden treasures of Karnak from 1898 to 1904.
But it is not clear when or if the statue will be completely unearthed. It is blocked by the remnants of an ancient structure, possibly a gate.
"In order to pull it out, a structure on top of the statue has to be dismantled and then restored," said Larche, adding that permission from the Egyptian antiquities authorities was needed before the team could go ahead with plans to raise the statue.
"It's up to the Higher Council of Egyptian Antiquities to decide on the fate of the statue of Neferhotep I and whether it will be brought to light or left buried where it was found."
Neferhotep was the 22nd king of the 13th Dynasty. The son of a temple priest in Abydos, he ruled Egypt from 1696-1686 BC.
Experts believe his father's position helped him to ascend the throne, as there was no royal blood in his family.
Neferhotep was one of the few pharaohs whose name did not invoke the sun god, Re. It is written on a number of stones, including a document on his reign found in Aswan.
埃及出土3600年历史的法老塑像(图) 日前，一只法国考古队在埃及南方古城卢克索出土了一尊约有3600年历史的古埃及法老耐夫侯特普一世的石灰岩塑像。
据法新社6月4日报道，埃及最高文物委员会主席哈瓦斯当日表示，这尊塑像非同寻常，其造型为两个耐夫侯特普一世手牵手的样子；尽管耐夫侯特普一世塑像的第2部分还未出土，但通过仪器探测已经确定了它的外形。
考古队在维修位于卢克索的卡尔纳克神庙附近地区时发现了这尊高达1.8米的耐夫侯特普一世塑像。据考古队成员拉奇介绍说，这尊塑像被埋藏在古埃及女法老哈奇苏特的方尖碑附近地区1.6米深处。塑像上，耐夫侯特普一世的前额处有一个眼镜蛇图案。古埃及认为，眼镜蛇可以在袭击敌人时喷射火焰，因此它是古埃及法老王冠的标志物。
但何时出土塑像的第2部分还不得而知。拉奇说，塑像的剩余部分被一座据推测是一扇门的建筑物挡在了地下，“为了把它拖出来，顶部的建筑物必须先被拆除然而再复原”，因此是否将塑像第2部分挖掘出来还要由埃及最高文物委员会来决定。
报道说，这是第2次在埃及发掘出耐夫侯特普一世塑像。1898年至1904年，考古队在挖掘埋藏在卡尔纳克神庙附近地区的宝藏时，也出土过一尊纳弗尔霍太普一世塑像。
耐夫侯特普一世是古埃及第13王朝(公元前1783年至公元前1640年)第22位国王，其统治时期为公元前1696年至公元前1686年。这位国王的父亲是一座神庙的大祭司。在古代埃及，神庙大祭司代表国王行使宗教职责，享有很大的权力。因此，考古学家认为，耐夫侯特普一世的父亲帮助了没有王室血统的耐夫侯特普一世继承了王位。耐夫侯特普意为”美丽和善良”。报道说，耐夫侯特普一世是埃及少有的几个在名字里没有涉及到太阳神的。
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各国节日9
2008-05-12 23:40:26
Spring Festival（春节）
The New Moon on the first day of the new year-- the full moon 15 days later
Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon（新月）on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon（满月）15 days later. The 15th day of the new year is called the Lantern Festival（元宵节）, which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and children carrying lanterns in a parade.
The Chinese calendar is based on a combination of lunar and solar movements. The lunar cycle（月运周期）is about 29.5 days. In order to "catch up" with the solar calendar the Chinese insert an extra month once every few years (seven years out of a 19-yearcycle). This is the same as adding an extra day on leap year （闰年）. This is why, according to the solar calendar, the Chinese New Year falls on a different date each year.
New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are celebrated as a family affair, a time of reunion and thanksgiving. The celebration was traditionally highlighted with a religious ceremony given in honor of Heaven and Earth（万物）, the gods of the household and the family ancestors.
The sacrifice to the ancestors, the most vital of all the rituals（仪式）, united the living members with those who had passed away. Departed relatives are remembered with great respect because they were responsible for laying the foundations for the fortune and glory of the family.
The presence of the ancestors is acknowledged on New Year's Eve with a dinner arranged for them at the family banquet table. The spirits of the ancestors, together with the living, celebrate the onset of the New Year as one great community. The communal feast called "surrounding the stove" or weilu. It symbolizes family unity and honors the past and present generations.
The Origin of Chinese New Year
The Chinese New Year is now popularly known as the Spring Festival because it starts from the Begining of Spring (the first of the twenty-four terms in coodination with the changes of Nature). Its origin is too old to be traced. Several explanations are hanging around. All agree, however, that the word Nian, which in modern Chinese solely means "year", was originally the name of a monster beast that started to prey on people the night before the beginning of a new year.
One legend goes that the beast Nian had a very big mouth that would swallow a great many people with one bite. People were very scared. One day, an old man came to their rescue, offering to subdue Nian. To Nian he said, "I hear say that you are very capable, but can you swallow the other beasts of prey on earth instead of people who are by no means of your worthy opponents?" So, it did swallow many of the beasts of prey on earth that also harrassed people and their domestic animals from time to time.
After that, the old man disappeared riding the beast Nian. He turned out to be an immortal god. Now that Nian is gone and other beasts of prey are also scared into forests, people begin to enjoy their peaceful life. Before the old man left, he had told people to put up red paper decorations on their windows and doors at each year's end to scare away Nian in case it sneaked back again, because red is the color the beast feared the most.
From then on, the tradition of observing the conquest of Nian is carried on from generation to generation. The term "Guo Nian", which may mean "Survive the Nian" becomes today "Celebrate the (New) Year" as the word "guo" in Chinese having both the meaning of "pass-over" and "observe". The custom of putting up red paper and firing fire-crackers to scare away Nian should it have a chance to run loose is still around. However, people today have long forgotten why they are doing all this, except that they feel the color and the sound add to the excitement of the celebration.
Traditional New Year Foods
Probably more food is consumed during the New Year celebrations than any other time of the year. Vast amounts of traditional food is prepared for family and friends, as well as those close to us who have died.
On New Year's Day, the Chinese family will eat a vegetarian dish called jai. Although the various ingredients in jai are root vegetables or fibrous vegetables, many people attribute various superstitious aspects to them.
Other foods include a whole fish, to represent togetherness and abundance, and a chicken for prosperity. The chicken must be presented with a head, tail and feet to symbolize completeness. Noodles should be uncut, as they represent long life.
In south China, the favorite and most typical dishes were nian gao, sweet steamed glutinous rice（糯米）pudding and zong zi (glutinous rice wrapped up in reed（芦苇）leaves), another popular delicacy.
In the north, steamed-wheat bread (man tou) and small meat dumplings were the preferred food. The tremendous amount of food prepared at this time was meant to symbolize abundance and wealth for the household.
The 15-Day Celebration of Chinese New Year
The first day of the Lunar New Year is "the welcoming of the gods of the heavens and earth."Many people abstain from meat on the first day of the new year because it is believed that this will ensure long and happy lives for them.
On the second day, the Chinese pray to their ancestors as well as to all the gods. They are extra kind to dogs and feed them well as it is believed that the second day is the birthday of all dogs.
The third and fourth days are for the sons-in-laws to pay respect to their parents-in-law.
The fifth day is called Po Woo. On that day people stay home to welcome the God of Wealth. No one visits families and friends on the fifth day because it will bring both parties bad luck.
On the sixth to the 10th day, the Chinese visit their relatives and friends freely. They also visit the temples to pray for good fortune and health.
The seventh day of the New Year is the day for farmers to display their produce. These farmers make a drink from seven types of vegetables to celebrate the occasion. The seventh day is also considered the birthday of human beings. Noodles are eaten to promote longevity and raw fish for success.
On the eighth day the Fujian people have another family reunion dinner, and at midnight they pray to Tian Gong, the God of Heaven.
The ninth day is to make offerings to the Jade Emperor.
The 10th through the 12th are days that friends and relatives should be invited for dinner. After so much rich food, on the 13th day you should have simple rice congee and mustard greens (choi sum) to cleanse the system.
The 14th day should be for preparations to celebrate the Lantern Festival which is to be held on the 15th night.
Coming-of-Age Day （日本成人节）
The second Monday of January is Coming-of-Age Day, a national holiday to encourage those who have newly entered adulthood to become self-reliant members of society. The holiday used to be on January 15, but in 2000 it was moved to the second Monday of the month.
Municipal governments host special coming-of-age ceremonies for 20-year-olds, since an "adult" in Japan is legally defined as one who is 20 or over. They gain the right to vote on their twentieth birthday, and they're also allowed to smoke and drink. But along with these rights come new responsibilities as well, and so age 20 is a big turning point for the Japanese.
Coming-of-age ceremonies have been held since time immemorial in Japan. In the past boys marked their transition to adulthood when they were around 15, and girls celebrated their coming of age when they turned 13 or so. During the Edo period（江户时代）(1603-1868), boys had their forelocks cropped off, and girls had their teeth dyed black. It wasn't until 1876 that 20 became the legal age of adulthood.
These days, males generally wear suits to their coming-of-age ceremony, but a lot of females choose to wear traditional furisode（振袖，状似和服的长袖）--a special type of kimono（和服）for unmarried women with extra-long sleeves and elaborate designs. For unmarried women, furisode is about the most formal thing they can wear, and so many of them don it to the event marking the start of their adult life.
The number of children in Japan is shrinking. For instance, about 1.74 million (890,000 males and 850,000 females) joined the ranks of grown-ups in 1999; this is 80,000 fewer than the year before and represents 1.4% of the total population.
Dr. Martin Luther King Day（马丁•路德•金纪念日）
It was December, 1955, and Martin Luther King, Jr. had just received his doctorate degree in theology（神学）. He had moved to Montgomery（ 蒙哥马利）, Alabama to preach at a Baptist church. He saw there, as in many other southern states, that African-Americans had to ride in the back of public buses. Dr. King knew that this law violated the rights of every African-American. He organized and led a boycott（联合抵制）of the public buses in the city of Montgomery. Any person, black or white, who was against segregation（种族隔离）refused to use public transportation. Those people who boycotted were threatened or attacked by other people, or even arrested or jailed by the police. After 382 Days of boycotting the bus system, the Supreme Court（最高法院）declared that the Alabama state segregation law was unconstitutional.
African-Americans were not only segregated on buses throughout the south. Equal housing was denied to them, and seating in many hotels and restaurants was refused.
In 1957, Dr. King founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference（南
方基督教领导会议）and moved back to his home town of Atlanta, Georgia. This was the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement（民权运动）. In the years following, he continued to organize non-violent protests against unequal treatment of African-American people. His philosophy remained peaceful, and he constantly reminded his followers that their fight would be victorious if they did not resort to bloodshed（流血）. Nonetheless（尽管如此）, he and his demonstrators were often threatened and attacked. Demonstrations which began peacefully often ended up in violence, and he and many others were often arrested.On August 23, 1963, a crowd of more than 250,000 people gathered in Washington, D.C. and marched to the Capitol Building（国会大厦）to support the passing of laws that guaranteed every American equal civil rights. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was at the front of the "March on Washington." On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial（林肯纪念堂）that day, Dr. King delivered a speech that was later entitled "I Have a Dream." The March was one of the largest gatherings of black and white people that the nation's capital had ever seen... and no violence occurred.
One year later, the Civil Rights Act（民权法案）of 1964 was passed. It was not the first law of civil rights for Americans, but it was the most thorough and effective. The act guaranteed equal rights in housing, public facilities, voting and public schools. Everyone would have impartial hearings（申诉的机会）and jury trials. A civil rights commission would ensure that these laws were enforced. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and thousands of others now knew that they had not struggled in vain（徒劳）. In the same year Dr. King won the Nobel Peace Prize for leading non-violent demonstrations.
In 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated while he was leading a workers' strike in Memphis, Tennessee. White people and black people who had worked so hard for peace and civil rights were shocked and angry. The world grieved the loss of this man of peace.
The Making of a Holiday
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s death did not slow the Civil Rights Movement. Black and white people continued to fight for freedom and equality. Coretta Scott King is the widow of the civil rights leader. In 1970, she established the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Center in Atlanta, Georgia. This "living memorial" consists of his boyhood home and the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King is buried.
On Monday, January 20, 1986, in cities and towns across the country people celebrated the first official Martin Luther King Day, the only federal holiday commemorating an African-American. A ceremony which took place at an old railroad depot（铁路仓储）in Atlanta Georgia was especially emotional. Hundreds had gathered to sing and to march. Many were the same people who, in 1965, had marched for fifty miles between two cities in the state of Alabama to protest segregation and discrimination of black Americans.
All through the 1980's, controversy surrounded the idea of a Martin Luther King Day. Congressmen and citizens had petitioned（请求）the President to make January 15, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday, a federal holiday. Others wanted to make the holiday on the day he died, while some people did not want to have any holiday at all.
January 15 had been observed as a public holiday for many years in 27 states and Washington, D.C. Finally, in 1986, President Ronald Reagan declared the third Monday in January a federal legal holiday commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday.
Schools, offices and federal agencies are closed for the holiday. On Monday there are quiet memorial services as well as elaborate ceremonies in honor of Dr. King. On the preceding Sunday, ministers of all religions give special sermons（布道）reminding everyone of Dr. King's lifelong work for peace. All weekend, popular radio stations play songs and speeches that tell the history of the Civil Rights Movement. Television channels broadcast special programs with filmed highlights of Dr. King's life and times
Lantern Festival（元宵节）
The 15th day of the 1st lunar month is the Chinese Lantern Festival because the first lunar month is called yuan-month and in the ancient times people called night Xiao. The 15th day is the first night to see a full moon. So the day is also called Yuan Xiao Festival in China.
According to the Chinese tradition, at the very beginning of a new year, when there is a bright full moon hanging in the sky, there should be thousands of colorful lanterns hung out for people to appreciate. At this time, people will try to solve the puzzles on the lanterns and eat yuanxiao (glutinous rice ball) and get all their families united in the joyful atmosphere.
History
Until the Sui Dynasty in the sixth century, Emperor Yangdi invited envoys from other countries to China to see the colorful lighted lanterns and enjoy the gala（节日的，庆祝的）performances.
By the beginning of the Tang Dynasty in the seventh century, the lantern displays would last three days. The emperor also lifted the curfew（宵禁令）, allowing the people to enjoy the festive lanterns day and night. It is not difficult to find Chinese poems which describe this happy scene.
In the Song Dynasty, the festival was celebrated for five days and the activities began to spread to many of the big cities in China. Colorful glass and even jade were used to make lanterns, with figures from folk tales painted on the lanterns.
However, the largest Lantern Festival celebration took place in the early part of the 15th century. The festivities continued for ten days. Emperor Chengzu had the downtown area set aside as a center for displaying the lanterns. Even today, there is a place in Beijing called Dengshikou. In Chinese, Deng means lantern and Shi is market. The area became a market where lanterns were sold during the day. In the evening, the local people would go there to see the beautiful lighted lanterns on display.
Today, the displaying of lanterns is still a big event on the 15th day of the first lunar month throughout China. People enjoy the brightly lit night. Chengdu in Southwest China's Sichuan Province, for example, holds a lantern fair each year in the Cultural Park. During the Lantern Festival, the park is literally an ocean of lanterns! Many new designs attract countless visitors. The most eye-catching lantern is the Dragon Pole. This is a lantern in the shape of a golden dragon, spiraling up a 27-meter -high pole, spewing fireworks from its mouth. It is quite an impressive sight!
Origin
There are many different beliefs about the origin of the Lantern Festival. But one thing for sure is that it had something to do with religious worship.
One legend tells us that it was a time to worship Taiyi, the God of Heaven in ancient times. The belief was that the God of Heaven controlled the destiny of the human world. He had sixteen dragons at his beck and call and he decided when to inflict drought, storms, famine or pestilence（瘟疫）upon human beings. Beginning with Qinshihuang, the first emperor to unite the country, all subsequent emperors ordered splendid ceremonies each year. The emperor would ask Taiyi to bring favorable weather and good health to him and his people. Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty directed special attention to this event. In 104 BC, he proclaimed it one of the most important celebrations and the ceremony would last throughout the night.
Another legend associates the Lantern Festival with Taoism. Tianguan is the Taoist god responsible for good fortune. His birthday falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month. It is said that Tianguan likes all types of entertainment. So followers prepare various kinds of activities during which they pray for good fortune.
The third story about the origin of the festival is like this. Buddhism first entered China during the reign of Emperor Mingdi of the Eastern Han Dynasty. That was in the first century. However, it did not exert any great influence among the Chinese people. one day, Emperor Mingdi had a dream about a gold man in his palace. At the very moment when he was about to ask the mysterious figure who he was, the gold man suddenly rose to the sky and disappeared in the west. The next day, Emperor Mingdi sent a scholar to India on a pilgrimage（朝圣）to locate Buddhist scrīptures. After journeying thousands of miles, the scholar finally returned with the scrīptures. Emperor Mingdi ordered that a temple be built to house a statue of Buddha and serve as a repository for the scrīptures. Followers believe that the power of Buddha can dispel darkness. So Emperor Mingdi ordered his subjects to display lighted lanterns during what was to become the Lantern Festival.
Yuanxiao
Besides entertainment and beautiful lanterns, another important part of the Lantern Festival,or Yuanxiao Festival is eating small dumpling balls made of glutinous rice flour. We call these balls Yuanxiao or Tangyuan. Obviously, they get the name from the festival itself. It is said that the custom of eating Yuanxiao originated during the Eastern Jin Dynasty in the fourth centuty, then became popular during the Tang and Song periods.
The fillings inside the dumplings or Yuansiao are either sweet or salty. Sweet fillings are made of sugar, Walnuts（胡桃）, sesame, osmanthus flowers（桂花）, rose petals, sweetened tangerine peel, bean paste, or jujube paste（枣泥）. A single ingredient or any combination can be used as the filling . The salty variety is filled with minced meat, vegetables or a mixture.
The way to make Yuanxiao also varies between northern and southern China. The usual method followed in southern provinces is to shape the dough of rice flour into balls, make a hole, insert the filling, then close the hole and smooth out the dumpling by rolling it between your hands. In North China, sweet or nonmeat stuffing is the usual ingredient. The fillings are pressed into hardened cores, dipped lightly in water and rolled in a flat basket containing dry glutinous rice flour. A layer of the flour sticks to the filling, which is then again dipped in water and rolled a second time in the rice flour. And so it goes, like rolling a snowball, until the dumpling is the desired size.
The custom of eating Yuanxiao dumplings remains. This tradition encourages both old and new stores to promote their Yuanxiao products. They all try their best to improve the taste and quality of the dumplings to attract more customers.
Mardi Gras（四旬斋前的狂欢节）
Mardi Gras is a traditional holiday celebrated in many of the southern states of the USA. The most famous celebration takes place in New Orleans, Louisiana. The people there enjoy this celebration by going to parades where they catch "beads, doubloons, cups, and trinkets" that are all thrown from floats.
They have masquerade balls and dress up in costumes for these events. King Cakes are eaten during this holiday. Mardi Gras is known as the "biggest free show on earth."Mardi Gras came to New Orleans through its French heritage in 1699. Early explorers celebrated this French Holiday on the banks of the Mississippi River. Throughout the years, Orleanians have added to the celebration by establishing krewes (organizations) which host parades and balls. Carnival quickly became an exciting holiday for both children and adults.
Mardi Gras means "Fat Tuesday" and of course is celebrated on that day of the week. The date can fall between February 3 and March 9 depending on the Lunar calendar, used by the Catholic Church to determine the date of Easter. Mardi Gras is always 47 days before Easter Sunday.
The official colors for Mardi Gras are purple, green, and gold. These colors where chosen in 1872 by the King of Carnival, Rex. He chose these colors to stand for the following:
Purple represents justice
green stands for faith -
各国节日8
2008-05-12 23:35:31
Constitution Day in Norway（挪威宪法日）
After being under Danish rule for some 400 years Norway had her own revolution in 1814. A very peaceful revolution consisted of calling a constitutional convention which declared that Norway is a free kingdom.
The constitution of the Kingdom of Norway proclaimed by the Constituent Assembly at Eidsvold on the 17th of May 1814.
The Constitution day is still the most celebrated in the nation. But it is not celebrated - as independence day in other nations - with large military parades with arms and weapons.
Norway's birthday is celebrated with party-clothed children and adults who walk in a parade singing.
Songs, Banners & Parades
Children march down the streets singing national songs. On the morning of May 17th children meet at the school early in the morning and march down to a specific place. While they march, they sing the national songs. They also make banners which are called faner in Norwegian.
Graduating Students Celebrate
The "Russ" are students who are just about to graduate from secondary school, so they are about 17/18 years old. The "Russ" stay up all night and wear funny hats and red and blue outfits. They drive around in a red or blue bus, which they have bought themselves. Unfortunately there's a lot of drinking during this celebration. The "Russ" also make something called "Russekort". "Russekort" are cards on which there is a picture of them, and they have written something like a joke, their biggest accomplishment or something they want to achieve. Some print thousands of cards which they pass out to children or anyone who wants them.
Shavuot（五旬节）
The Yom Tov begins at sundown of the 5th day of Sivan (息汪月, 即犹太教历3月,犹太国历9月,在公历5、6月间,共30天), exactly fifty days after Passover (犹太教的逾越节).
Shavuot, the Feast of the Weeks, is the Jewish holiday celebrating the harvest season in Israel. Shavuot, which means "weeks", refers to the timing of the festival which is held exactly 7 weeks after Passover. Shavuot is known also as Yom Habikkurim, or "the Day of the First Fruits", because it is the time the farmers of Israel would bring their first harvest to Jerusalem as a token of thanksgiving.Shavuot also commemorates the anniversary of the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses (十诫, 犹太教、基督教的诫条) and the Israelites at Mount Sinai (西奈山,基督教《圣经》中记载的上帝授予摩西十诫之处).
Many of the traditions and customs of Shavuot have evolved from the legends and stories describing the experiences of the Israelites at Mount Sinai. According to tradition the Israelites actually overslept on the morning of God's visit. To compensate for this negligence, Jews hold a vigil on the eve of Shavuot. They stay awake from dusk to dawn, keeping themselves busy with the readings of the Torah (律法，圣经旧约之首五卷) and the Talmud (犹太法典). A digest of readings has evolved called Tikkun Leil Shavuot, the "Restoration of Shavuot Eve," which includes selections from the Torah, the Prophets, the Talmud, and the Zohar (《光明篇》,犹太教神秘主义对摩西五书的注疏).
Another Shavuot custom is the eating of dairy foods. One explanation states that this comes from a passage in the Torah which reads: "And He gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey".
Another explanation comes from a legend stating that before the visit from God the Jews did not keep kosher (指食物、饮食店等合礼的,符合犹太教规戒律的) or follow the Kashrut (dietary) laws. It was on this first Shavuot that they found out that their utensils were nonkosher and thus unfit for use. So finding themselves without kosher meats or utensils the Israelites were forced to eat only dairy foods. Today Jews celebrate Shavuot by eating blintzes, cheesecake, and other dairy dishes.
Another legend tells the story of the Israelites finding Mount Sinai blooming and lush with greenery and flowers. From this legend grew the custom to decorate the Jewish home and synagogue with tree branches and flowers. Some temples decorate the Torah scrolls with wreaths of roses.
Earth Day（世界地球日）
Earth Day was first observed in Spring of 1970. An estimated 20 million people nationwide attended festivities out of which came the largest grassroots environmental movement in U.S. history, and the impetus for national legislation like the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts. By the twentieth anniversary of that event, April 22, 1990, more than 200 million people in 141 countries participated in Earth Day celebrations.
Former U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, Earth Day's co-founder, modeled Earth Day on anti-Vietnam War demonstrations, called "teach-ins," that were common on college campuses. "At a conference in Seattle in September 1969, I announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment," says Nelson. "The response was electric. Telegrams, letters, and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country." As many as 20 million Americans participated in environmental rallies, demonstrations and other activities in the 1970 Earth Day.Since the first Earth Day, however, the environmental movement has increasingly transformed itself from a largely grassroots, citizen crusade to a professionally-organized, established special interest.
Arbor Day（植树节）
In many countries it has long been the tradition to hold an annual tree or forest festival. The origin of such celebrations dates back to antiquity and is in the dawn of religious feeling and awe for what trees represented. However, Arbor Day, as it is commonly known today, is of American origin and evolved from conditions peculiar to the Great Plains. It was first observed in Nebraska in 1872.
The idea, conceived by J.S. Morton, then a member of the Nebraska State Board of Agriculture, was one of forest conservation. It was a move to promote replanting, following deforestation, and to plant up treeless areas. The idea has spread widely to other lands where it is variously celebrated as the 'Festival of Trees', 'Greening Week' of Japan, 'The New Year's Days of Trees' in Israel, 'The Tree-loving Week' of Korea, 'The Reforestation Week' of Yugoslavia, 'The Students' Afforestation Day' of Iceland and 'The National Festival of Tree Planting' in India. Arbor Day in its various forms is now recognised in more than fifty countries.THE IMPORTANCE OF ARBOR DAY
On Arbor Day, particular attention is drawn to the part trees play in our lives. It's not just a day to plant trees and then forget the gesture for another twelve months. Planting a tree one day is no credit to us if, during the rest of the year, we neglect to care for it and those already growing. Our thought on Arbor Day should be an expression of enduring feeling, thought and action and not just one single, isolated flame of interest.
In schools and other community groups, this day can be celebrated in many different ways.
·By planting trees or shrubs in school grounds, along neighbouring streets or in civic parks.
·By 'adopting' a patch of bush, with the landowner's consent, and caring for it by removal of weeds, rubbish, etc, by preparing firebreaks and by fencing and making paths to reduce trampling.
·By presenting a play or mime about trees in the history of Australia.
·By completing a project about certain types of trees (eg. jarrah, boab, karri) or a famous tree like the Gloucester Tree near Pemberton.
·As a class activity or common interest group go on a visit to a bush area with a spokesperson to explain the characteristics of plant species and their niche in the natural environment.
·Collect some tree seeds, germinate them in a classroom, and plant out the seedling.
·Carry out identification of trees in a specific part of your school or neighbourhood. A tree labelling ceremony could also be arranged.
·Compile a list of everyday objects that are made of wood or wood-based materials, and find out how the wood was processed, where it came from and whatever else you can.Trees and shrubs, whether native or introduced to WA, provide opportunities for the interest and study by the whole community, and when we walk around our own neighbourhood or drive through the countryside, we can appreciate the importance of such a diversity of plants to the well being of humanity.
Easter Day（复活节）
The meaning of many different customs observed during Easter Sunday have been buried with time. Their origins lie in pre-Christian religions and Christianity. All in some way or another are a "salute to spring," marking re-birth. The white Easter lily has come to capture the glory of the holiday. The word "Easter" is named after Eastre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring. A festival was held in her honor every year at the vernal equinox （春分）.
People celebrate the holiday according to their beliefs and their religious denominations （命名）. Christians commemorate Good Friday as the day that Jesus Christ died and Easter Sunday as the day that He was resurrected （复活）. Protestant settlers brought the custom of a sunrise service, a religious gathering at dawn, to the United States.
This year Easter will be celebrated on Sunday April 11, 2004. On Easter Sunday children wake up to find that the Easter Bunny has left them baskets of candy. He has also hidden the eggs that they decorated earlier that week. Children hunt for the eggs all around the house. Neighborhoods and organizations hold Easter egg hunts, and the child who finds the most eggs wins a prize.
The Easter Bunny is a rabbit-spirit. Long ago, he was called the" Easter Hare." Hares and rabbits have frequent multiple births so they became a symbol of fertility. The custom of an Easter egg hunt began because children believed that hares laid eggs in the grass. The Romans believed that "All life comes from an egg." Christians consider eggs to be "the seed of life" and so they are symbolic of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Why we dye, or color, and decorate eggs is not certain. In ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome and Persia eggs were dyed for spring festivals. In medieval Europe, beautifully decorated eggs were given as gifts.
Egg Rolling
In England, Germany and some other countries, children rolled eggs down hills on Easter morning, a game which has been connected to the rolling away of the rock from Jesus Christ's tomb when he was resurrected. British settlers brought this custom to the New World.
In the United States in the early nineteenth century, Dolly Madison, the wife of the fourth American President, organized an egg roll in Washington, D.C. She had been told that Egyptian children used to roll eggs against the pyramids so she invited the children of Washington to roll hard-boiled eggs down the hilly lawn of the new Capitol building! The custom continued, except for the years during the Civil War. In 1880, the First Lady invited children to the White House for the Egg Roll because officials had complained that they were ruining the Capitol lawn. It has been held there ever since then, only canceled during times of war. The event has grown, and today Easter Monday is the only day of the year when tourists are allowed to wander over the White House lawn. The wife of the President sponsors it for the children of the entire country. The egg rolling event is open to children twelve years old and under. Adults are allowed only when accompanied by children!
Traditionally, many celebrants （司仪神父） bought new clothes for Easter which they wore to church. After church services, everyone went for a walk around the town. This led to the American custom of Easter parades all over the country. Perhaps the most famous is along Fifth Avenue in New York City.
Good Friday is a federal holiday in 16 states and many schools and businesses throughout the U.S. are closed on this Friday.
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各国节日7
2008-05-12 23:32:52
Deaf-Blind Awareness Week（海伦•凯勒周）
June 27, 2000, is the 120th anniversary of the birth of Helen Keller, and each year the week in which her birthday falls is recognized as Deaf-Blind Awareness Week. In honor of Helen Keller -- and other members of the deaf-blind community, this week is dedicated to the deaf-blind.
Every year the last week of June is devoted to one thing--recognition of the deaf-blind people in our midst. While the purpose of Deaf-Blind Awareness Week is to pay homage to Helen Keller, the deaf-blind woman who was born that week, the week focuses on increasing public awareness and understanding of deaf-blindness.According to the Helen Keller National Center (HKNC), about 70,000 people have hearing and vision loss. More than a decade ago, Deaf-Blind Awareness Week became an event officially recognized by the Federal government.
The story of Helen Keller is well known. Born on June 27, 1880, the healthy infant was developing normally. But at the age of 19 months, an illness left her deaf and blind. When Helen was six, her equally famous teacher, Anne Sullivan, was able to teach her to communicate. Helen Keller went on to excel in all aspects of her life: graduating from college with honors and writing, lecturing, and inspiring people worldwide.
The next is the proclamation of Helen Keller Deaf-Blind Awareness Week made by US president Ronald Reagan:
Proclamation 5214 -- Helen Keller Deaf-Blind Awareness Week
June 22, 1984
By the President of the United States of America
Our eyes and ears provide vital ways of interacting with the world around us. The lilt of laughter, the beat of a brass band, the smile of a friend, and the poetry of a landscape are but a few of the life blessings that our senses of sight and hearing help us to enjoy. But for some 40,000 Americans who can neither see nor hear, the world can be a prison of darkness and silence.Inadequate education, training, and rehabilitation for those who are deaf and blind may prevent these Americans from becoming independent and self-sufficient, thereby greatly limiting their life potential and imposing a high economic and social cost on the Nation.
We must prevent such problems among our deaf-blind citizens by fostering their independence, creating employment opportunities, and encouraging their contributions to our society. Crucial to fulfilling this urgent national need is research on the disorders that cause deafness and blindness. Toward this end, the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke and the National Eye Institute as well as a number of voluntary health agencies are supporting a wide range of investigative projects that one day may provide the clues to curing and preventing these devastating disorders.
On June 27 we commemorate the 104th anniversary of the birth of Helen Keller, America's most renowned and respected deaf-blind person. Her accomplishments serve as a beacon of courage and hope for our Nation, symbolizing what deaf-blind people can achieve.
In order to encourage public recognition of and compassion for the complex problems caused by deaf-blindness and to emphasize the potential contribution of deaf-blind persons to our Nation, the Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 261, has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation designating the last week in June 1984 as ``Helen Keller Deaf-Blind Awareness Week.''
Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the week beginning June 24, 1984, as Helen Keller Deaf-Blind Awareness Week. I call upon all government agencies, health organizations, communications media, and people of the United States to observe this week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-second day of June, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and eighth.
Ronald Reagan
World Environment Day（世界环境日）
World Environment Day was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. Another resolution, adopted by the General Assembly the same day, led to the creation of UNEP（联合国环境规划署United Nations Environment Programme）.
World Environment Day can be celebrated in many ways, including street rallies, bicycles parades, green concerts, essay and poster competitions in schools, tree planting, recycling efforts, clean-up campaigns and much more.Heads of State, Prime Ministers and Ministers of Environment deliver statements and commit themselves to care for the Earth. More serious pledges are made which lead to the establishment of permanent governmental structures dealing with environmental management and economic planning. This observance also provides an opportunity to sign or ratify international environmental conventions.
World Environment Day, commemorated each year on 5 June is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action.
The World Environment Day theme selected for 2004 is Wanted! Seas and Oceans - Dead or Alive? The theme asks that we make a choice as to how we want to treat the Earth's seas and oceans. It also calls on each and every one of us to act. Do we want to keep seas and oceans healthy and alive or polluted and dead?
The main international celebrations of the World Environment Day 2004 will be held in Barcelona, Spain in close collaboration with the Universal Forum of Cultures. UNEP is honoured that the City of Barcelona, the Catalan Regional Government and the Government of Spain will be hosting this important United Nations day.
Previous Themes
2003 Water - Two Billion People are Dying for It! 水－20亿人生命之所系！ 2002 Give Earth a Chance 使地球充满生机！ 2001 Connect with the World Wide Web of Life 用全球网络联接世界万物！ 2000 The Environment Millennium - Time to Act 环境新纪元，时候已到，行动起来！ 1999 Our Earth - Our Future - Just Save It! 拯救地球就是拯救未来！ 1998 For Life on Earth - Save Our Seas 为了地球上的生命，拯救我们的海洋 1997 For Life on Earth 为了地球上的生命 1996 Our Earth, Our Habitat, Our Home 我们的地球、我们的生境、我们的家园 1995 We the Peoples: United for the Global Environment 我们世界各族人民：为保护全球环境而携手努力！ 1994 One Earth One Family 我们的地球－我们的家园 1993 Poverty and the Environment - Breaking the Vicious Circle 贫困与环境－打破这一恶性循环 1992 Only One Earth, Care and Share 只有一个地球－让我们关爱和分享它 1991 Climate Change. Need for Global Partnership 需要为应付气候变化而建立全球伙伴关系 1990 Children and the Environment 儿童与环境
Flag Day（美国国旗日）
National flags are not merely symbols of a country. Their colors and designs convey past history and future goals. Flags have powerful connotations（内涵）. They speak to the people and politicians. People of one country will burn the flag of another with whose politics they do not agree. To show their anger, students display their own nation's flags with the design altered or cut out completely. Dictators fly flags; dissidents（持不同政见者） rip them down. In every country of the world, the treatment of a flag displays an opinion or statement.
Americans take the treatment of their flag seriously and in the 20th century this has become an important issue. Included in the code of ethics are such rules as the national flag cannot be used for advertising. It cannot cover a monument or any ceilings. It must not be folded while being displayed. No one should write on an American flag. Ships can lower their flags slightly in greeting each other, but otherwise should not be dipped for any other object or person.
In the late 1960s, American students wore small flags sewn to the back of their jeans, symbolically insulting the American government and protesting its involvement in the Vietnam War. They burned the American flag in front of the Capitol Building（国会大厦）in Washington as a statement of protest. In the early 1990s, senators suggested an amendment to the Constitution（宪法）that would make this treatment of the flag illegal. The proposition（提议、议案）was opposed because many others felt that this change would be a violation of Americans' constitutional rights to express their opinions freely.
For all the controversy it is interesting to point out that the United States did not even have a standardized flag until 1912! Called the "Stars and Stripes," or "Old Glory," the flag is one of the most complicated in the world. No other flag needs 64 pieces of fabric to make. The current flag has 13 red and white alternating（交互的）stripes (representing the original 13 states) and 50 stars (each star represents one of the states of the Union) on a blue background.
The American flag has also changed designs more than any other flag in the world. The first flag, called the Grand Union, was first flown at the headquarters of the Continent Army on January 1, 1776. Betsy Ross, a seamstress(女裁缝), is said to have contributed to this design. She had an upholstery（室内装潢）business which made flags for navy ships in Pennsylvania. A legend still persists that she showed George Washington how to make a five-pointed star and suggested thirteen stars in a circle for the first flag. Her descendants claimed that she offered the design. Actually, she and George Washington never met! George Washington did design the Grand Union.
On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress proposed that the United States have a national flag instead of the British Union Jack. The 13 stars of the flag represented the 13 new states. There were few public ceremonies honoring the Stars and Stripes until 1877, when on, June 14, it was flown from every government building in honor of the centennial（百年纪念）of the adoption of a national flag. Schools had unfurled（展示）American flags over their doors or outside the buildings long before this; but in 1890, North Dakota and New Jersey made a law that required their schools to fly the flag daily. The first official Flag Day was observed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1893. New York also proclaimed June 14 as Flag Day 1897. Other states were slow to follow. Some people thought that the day was too close to Memorial Day and Independence Day.
In August 1949, President Harry S. Truman proclaimed June 14 as Flag Day. Since then the President proclaims the commemoration（纪念会）yearly, and encourages all Americans in the country to display the Stars and Stripes outside their homes and businesses. Individual states determine how they will observe the day. In Pennsylvania and American Samoa it is a public holiday. Usually the flag is flown from all public buildings, speeches are made in public places and ceremonies take place in towns or cities
Memorial Day（美国阵亡将士纪念日）
It was 1866 and the United States was recovering from the long and bloody Civil War between the North and the South. Surviving soldiers came home, some with missing limbs, and all with stories to tell. Henry Welles, a drugstore owner in Waterloo, New York, heard the stories and had an idea. He suggested that all the shops in town close for one day to honor the soldiers who were killed in the Civil War and were buried in the Waterloo cemetery. On the morning of May 5, the townspeople placed flowers, wreaths（花环）and crosses on the graves of the Northern soldiers in the cemetery. At about the same time, Retired Major General Jonathan A. Logan planned another ceremony, this time for the soldiers who survived the war. He led the veterans through town to the cemetery to decorate their comrades' graves with flags. It was not a happy celebration, but a memorial. The townspeople called it Decoration Day.
The two ceremonies were joined in 1868, and northern states commemorated the day on May 30. The southern states commemorated their war dead on different days. Children read poems and sang civil war songs and veterans came to school wearing their medals and uniforms to tell students about the Civil War. Then the veterans marched through their home towns followed by the townspeople to the cemetery. They decorated graves and took photographs of soldiers next to American flags. Rifles were shot in the air as a salute to the northern soldiers who had given their lives to keep the United States together.
In 1882, the name was changed to Memorial Day and soldiers who had died in previous wars were honored as well. In the northern United States, it was designated a public holiday. In 1971, along with other holidays, President Richard Nixon declared Memorial Day a federal holiday on the last Monday in May.
Cities all around the United States hold their own ceremonies on the last Monday in May to pay respect to the men and women who have died in wars or in the service of their country.
Memorial Day is not limited to honor only those Americans from the armed forces. It is also a day for personal remembrance. Families and individuals honor the memories of their loved ones who have died. Church services, visits to the cemetery, flowers on graves or even silent tribute mark the day with dignity and solemnity. It is a day of reflection. However, to many Americans the day also signals the beginning of summer with a three-day weekend to spend at the beach, in the mountains or at home relaxing.
In Waterloo, New York, the origin has not been lost and in fact the meaning has become even more special. President Lyndon Johnson proclaimed Waterloo the birthplace of Memorial Day in 1966, 100 years after the first commemoration. Every May 30, townspeople still walk to the cemeteries and hold memorial services. They decorate the graves with flags and flowers. Then they walk back to the park in the middle of town. In the middle of the park, near a monument dedicated to soldiers, sailors and marines, the Gettysburg address is read, followed by Retired Major General Logan's Order # 11 designating Decoration Day. The village choirs sing patriotic songs. In the evening, school children take part in a parade.
Arlington National Cemetery（美国阿林顿国家公墓）in Virginia is the nation's largest national cemetery. Not only are members of the armed forces buried here; astronauts, explorers and other distinguished Americans have all been honored with a special place here. President John F. Kennedy is buried in a spot overlooking Washington, D.C..
Here in the early hours of the Friday morning before Memorial Day, soldiers of the Third U.S. infantry walk along the rows of headstones. Each soldier stops at a headstone, reaches to a bundle of flags he is carrying, pulls one out and pushes it into the ground. These soldiers are part of a special regiment. the Old Guard. Most consider it a privilege to place flags on the more than two hundred thousand graves of soldiers who served in the wars or who died in them. "They have done their job," said one soldier, "and now it's my turn to do mine."
It is an equal honor to guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier all year. There are actually four soldiers buried in this spot: the unknown soldiers of the two World Wars, the Korean conflict, and the Vietnam War. Each soldier represents all of those who gave their lives in the modern wars. Soldiers from the Army's Third Infantry guard the tomb twenty-four hours a day. Wreath-laying ceremonies take place all through the year and people from all over the world come to watch the changing of the guard. On another hill of Arlington Cemetery there is a mass grave of unidentified soldiers from the Civil War.
On Memorial Day, the President or Vice President of the United States gives a speech and lays a wreath on the tombs. Members of the armed forces shoot a rifle salute in the air. Veterans and families come to lay their own wreaths and say prayers. There is a chance that one of the soldiers buried here is a father, son, brother or friend.
Some southern states continue to celebrate Memorial Day on various days, i.e. June 3rd in Louisiona and Tennessee called "Confederate Memorial Day" and on May 10th in North and South Carolina.
Shavuot（息汪月）
Shavuot, the Feast of the Weeks, is the Jewish holiday celebrating the harvest season in Israel. Shavuot, which means "weeks", refers to the timing of the festival which is held exactly 7 weeks after Passover. Shavuot is known also as Yom Habikkurim, or "the Day of the First Fruits", because it is the time the farmers of Israel would bring their first harvest to Jerusalem as a token of thanksgiving.
Shavuot also commemorates the anniversary of the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses and the Israelites at Mount Sinai.Celebrating the Day of the First Fruits
The farmers of Israel would begin their spring harvests with the barley crop at Passover. The harvest continued for seven weeks as the other crops and fruits began to ripen. As each fruit ripened, the first of each type would not be eaten but instead the farmer would tie a ribbon around the the branch. This ribbon signified that these fruits were Bikkurim, or the first fruits.
At Shavuot the farmers would gather the Bikkurim into baskets and bring them to the city of Jerusalem where they would be eaten in the holy city. The farmers living close to Jerusalem would bring fresh fruits, while those who had to travel a long distance carried dried raisins and figs. This joyful occasion was celebrated with the music of fifes, timbres, and drums. As the pilgrims approached the city walls they were greeted by the inhabitants of the city. Sometimes the King himself would join the procession to the Temple Mount. The Bikkurim ritual is no longer practiced in present day Israel.
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各国节日6
2008-05-12 23:29:17
Christmas（圣诞节）
The history of Christmas dates back over 4000 years. Many of our Christmas traditions were celebrated centuries before the Christ child was born. The 12 days of Christmas, the bright fires, the yule log, the giving of gifts, carnivals(parades) with floats, carolers who sing while going from house to house, the holiday feasts, and the church processions can all be traced back to the early Mesopotamians.
Many of these traditions began with the Mesopotamian (美索不达米亚) celebration of New Years. The Mesopotamians believed in many gods, and as their chief god - Marduk (马杜克,古代巴比伦人的主神,原为巴比伦的太阳神). Each year as winter arrived it was believed that Marduk would do battle with the monsters of chaos. To assist Marduk in his struggle the Mesopotamians held a festival for the New Year. This was Zagmuk, the New Year's festival that lasted for 12 days.The Mesopotamian king would return to the temple of Marduk and swear his faithfulness to the god. The traditions called for the king to die at the end of the year and to return with Marduk to battle at his side.
To spare their king, the Mesopotamians used the idea of a "mock" king. A criminal was chosen and dressed in royal clothes. He was given all the respect and privileges of a real king. At the end of the celebration the "mock" king was stripped of the royal clothes and slain, sparing the life of the real king.
The Roman's celebrated their god Saturn. Their festival was called Saturnalia which began the middle of December and ended January 1st. With cries of "Jo Saturnalia!" the celebration would include masquerades (化妆舞会) in the streets, big festive meals, visiting friends and the exchange of good-luck gifts called Strenae (lucky fruits).
"Jo Saturnalia!" was a fun and festive time for the Romans, but the Christians though it an abomination (深恶痛绝) to honor the pagan (异教) god. The early Christians wanted to keep the birthday of their Christ child a solemn and religious holiday, not one of cheer and merriment as was the pagan Saturnalia.
But as Christianity spread they were alarmed by the continuing celebration of pagan customs and Saturnalia among their converts. At first the Church forbid this kind of celebration. But it was to no avail (徒劳). Eventually it was decided that the celebration would be tamed and made into a celebration fit for the Christian Son of God.
Some legends claim that the Christian "Christmas" celebration was invented to compete against the pagan celebrations of December. The 25th was not only sacred to the Romans but also the Persians whose religion Mithraism (密特拉教，奉祀密特拉神的宗教，纪元后最初3世纪内传至罗马帝国) was one of Christianity's main rivals at that time. The Church eventually was successful in taking the merriment, lights, and gifts from the Saturanilia festival and bringing them to the celebration of Christmas.
Thanksgiving Day（感恩节）
Almost every culture in the world has held celebrations of thanks for a plentiful harvest. The American Thanksgiving holiday began as a feast of thanksgiving in the early days of the American colonies almost four hundred years ago.
In 1620, a boat filled with more than one hundred people sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to settle in the New World（新大陆）. This religious group had begun to question the beliefs of the Church of England and they wanted to separate from it. The Pilgrims settled in what is now the state of Massachusetts. Their first winter in the New World was difficult. They had arrived too late to grow many crops, and without fresh food, half the colony died from disease. The following spring the Iroquois Indians（美国纽约州东北部易洛魁族印第安人）taught them how to grow corn, a new food for the colonists. They showed them other crops to grow in the unfamiliar soil and how to hunt and fish.In the autumn of 1621, bountiful crops of corn, barley（大麦）, beans and pumpkins were harvested. The colonists had much to be thankful for, so a feast was planned. They invited the local Indian chief and 90 Indians. The Indians brought deer to roast with the turkeys and other wild game offered by the colonists. The colonists had learned how to cook cranberries and different kinds of corn and squash dishes from the Indians. To this first Thanksgiving, the Indians had even brought popcorn.
In following years, many of the original colonists celebrated the autumn harvest with a feast of thanks.
After the United States became an independent country, Congress recommended one yearly day of thanksgiving for the whole nation to celebrate. George Washington suggested the date November 26 as Thanksgiving Day. Then in 1863, at the end of a long and bloody civil war, Abraham Lincoln asked all Americans to set aside the last Thursday in November as a day of thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving falls on the fourth Thursday of November, a different date every year. The President must proclaim that date as the official celebration.
Thanksgiving is a time for tradition and sharing. Even if they live far away, family members gather for a reunion at the house of an older relative. All give thanks together for the good things that they have.
In this spirit of sharing, civic groups and charitable organizations offer a traditional meal to those in need, particularly the homeless. On most tables throughout the United States, foods eaten at the first thanksgiving have become traditional.
Symbols of Thanksgiving
Turkey, corn, pumpkins and cranberry sauce（酸果曼沙司）are symbols which represent the first Thanksgiving. Now all of these symbols are drawn on holiday decorations and greeting cards. The use of corn meant the survival of the colonies. "Indian corn" as a table or door decoration represents the harvest and the fall season.
Sweet-sour cranberry sauce, or cranberry jelly, was on the first Thanksgiving table and is still served today. The cranberry is a small, sour berry. It grows in bogs（沼泽）, or muddy areas, in Massachusetts and other New England states. The Indians used the fruit to treat infections. They used the juice to dye their rugs and blankets. They taught the colonists how to cook the berries with sweetener（甜味佐料）and water to make a sauce. The Indians called it "ibimi" which means "bitter berry." When the colonists saw it, they named it "crane-berry" because the flowers of the berry bent the stalk over, and it resembled the long-necked bird called a crane. The berries are still grown in New England.
In 1988, a Thanksgiving ceremony of a different kind took place at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. More than four thousand people gathered on Thanksgiving night. Among them were Native Americans representing tribes from all over the country and descendants of people whose ancestors had migrated to the New World.
The ceremony was a public acknowledgment of the Indians' role in the first Thanksgiving 350 years ago. Until recently most schoolchildren believed that the Pilgrims cooked the entire Thanksgiving feast, and offered it to the Indians. In fact, the feast was planned to thank the Indians for teaching them how to cook those foods. Without the Indians, the first settlers would not have survived.
World Aids Day（世界艾滋病日）
According to UNAIDS（联合国艾滋病规划署）estimates there were 38.6 million adults and 3.2 million children living with HIV at the end of 2002, and during the year 5 million new people became infected with the virus. Around half of all people who become infected with HIV do so before they are 25 and are killed by AIDS before they are 35. 95% of the total number of people with HIV live in the developing world. But HIV still remains a threat to people of all ages and nationalities.
Stigma and Discrimination is the theme of the 2003 World AIDS day. In many parts of the world, discrimination prevents people who are known to have HIV from securing a job or caring for their families. Discrimination can cause isolation and marginalizes（排斥）people who have HIV and AIDS. This can prevent people from being offered or seeking the treatment which could save their lives.In order for HIV to be effectively tackled on an international level, efforts need to be made to
End the discrimination against people with HIV and AIDS.
Educate people in safer sex and drug use, using appropriate media.
Provide condoms freely to people in the developing world.
Provide financial and medical assistance so that people with HIV and AIDS can be treated.Started in 1988, World AIDS Day is not just about raising money, but also about raising awareness, education and fighting prejudice. World AIDS Day is also important in reminding people that HIV has not gone away, and that there are many things still to be done.
Themes for World Aids Day
The theme for world AIDS day 2003 is Stigma and Discrimination. Each year there is a particular theme chosen for World AIDS Day, and for the last fourteen years the themes have been as follows:
2004 Women and AIDS
2003 Stigma and Discrimination
2002 Stigma and Discrimination
2001 I care. Do you?
2000 AIDS : Men make a difference
1999 Listen, Learn, Live: World AIDS Campaign with Children and Young People
1998 Force For Change: World AIDS Campaign With Young People
1997 Children Living in a World with AIDS
1996 One World, One Hope
1995 Shared Rights, Shared Responsibilities
1994 AIDS and the Family
1993 Time to Act
1992 Community Commitment
1991 Sharing the Challenge
1990 Women & AIDS
1989 Youth
1988 CommunicationThe Red Ribbon
The Red Ribbon is an international symbol of AIDS awareness that is worn by people all year round and particularly around world AIDS day to demonstrate care and concern about HIV and AIDS, and to remind others of the need for their support and commitment.
The red ribbon started as a "grass roots" effort, and as a result there is no official red ribbon, and many people make their own. To make your own ribbons, get some ordinary red ribbon, about 1.5 cms wide and cut it into strips about 15 cms long. Then fold at the top into an inverted "V" shape and put a safety pin through the centre which you use to attach the ribbon to your clothing.
Phi Ta Khon Festival（佛诞节）
Everyone loves a good ghost story. The gruesome, the spiritual and the supernatural arouse an instinctive curiosity in all of us. In the west, ghostly fervor reaches a peak with Halloween on October 31. In Thailand, the spirit-world comes closest to us in June with the Phi Ta Khon festival, an event filled with fun, mischief and of course, a touch of the unknown.
The Phi Ta Khon Festival is quite unique to Thailand and unrivalled by any other ghost festival. Held in Dan Sai district of Loei province, about 450 km north of Bangkok, Phi Ta Khon is part of a Buddhist merit-making holiday known locally as 'Bun Pha Ves.' The precise origin of Phi Ta Khon is unclear. But it is believed that the roots of the festival revolve around an important tale of the Buddha's last life, before he reached nirvana.According to Buddhist folklore, the Buddha-to-be was born as Prince Vessandorn, a generous man who gave freely to the people. One day, he gave away a white elephant, a royal creature, revered as a symbol of rain. The townspeople were so angry for fear of drought and famine, that they banished the prince into exile.
The prince left the village for a very long journey. Finally, the king and the people got over their anger and recalled him to the city. When he eventually returned, his people were overjoyed. They welcomed him back with a celebration so loud that even the dead were awakened from their slumbers to join in the festivities.
Phi Ta Khon is held with the arrival of the sixth or seventh lunar month. Young male villagers prepare their ghostly attire and masks, while children roam around town playing tricks. Sheets or blankets are sewn together to look like shrouds while traditional wooden bamboo containers used to store sticky rice (huad), are creatively fashioned into bizarre hats. The huge masks are carved from the bases of coconut trees. The spirit masks are the integral part of the celebrations, which last for three consecutive days.
The first day is marked by a masked procession, accompanied by rejoicing, music and dancing. On the second day, the villagers dance their way to the temple and fire off bamboo rockets to signal the end of the procession. Along the way, they tease onlookers as they accompany a sacred image of the Buddha through the village streets. Monks recite the story of the Buddha's last incarnation before attaining enlightenment.
The festival organizers also hold contests for the best masks, costumes and dancers, and plaques are awarded to the winners in each age group. The most popular event is the dancing contest among those dressed up as ghosts.
On the last day of the event, the villagers gather at the local temple, Wat Ponchai, to listen to the message of the thirteen sermons of the Lord Buddha, recited by the local monks. The ghost dancers then put away their ghostly masks and costumes for another year, return to the paddy fields and continue to earn their living with the onset of the new crop season.
Dragon Boat Festival（端午节）
The Dragon Boat Festival, also called the Duanwu Festival, is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the Chinese calendar. For thousands of years, the festival has been marked by eating zong zi (glutinous rice（糯米）wrapped to form a pyramid using bamboo or reed leaves) and racing dragon boats.
The festival is best known for its dragon-boat races, especially in the southern provinces where there are many rivers and lakes. This regatta（赛舟会）commemorates the death of Qu Yuan , an honest minister who is said to have committed suicide by drowning himself in a river.
Qu was a minister of the State of Chu situated in present-day Hunan and Hubei provinces, during the Warring States Period (475-221BC)（战国时期）. He was upright, loyal and highly esteemed for his wise counsel that brought peace and prosperity to the state. However, when a dishonest and corrupt prince vilified Qu, he was disgraced and dismissed from office. Realizing that the country was now in the hands of evil and corrupt officials, Qu grabbed a large stone and leapt into the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth month. Nearby fishermen rushed over to try and save him but were unable to even recover his body. Thereafter, the state declined and was eventually conquered by the State of Qin.
The people of Chu who mourned the death of Qu threw rice into the river to feed his ghost every year on the fifth day of the fifth month. But one year, the spirit of Qu appeared and told the mourners that a huge reptile（爬行动物）in the river had stolen the rice. The spirit then advised them to wrap the rice in silk and bind it with five different-colored threads before tossing it into the river.
During the Duanwu Festival, a glutinous rice pudding called zong zi is eaten to symbolize the rice offerings to Qu. Ingredients such as beans, lotus seeds（莲子）, chestnuts（栗子）, pork fat and the golden yolk of a salted duck egg are often added to the glutinous rice. The pudding is then wrapped with bamboo leaves, bound with a kind of raffia and boiled in salt water for hours.
The dragon-boat races symbolize the many attempts to rescue and recover Qu's body. A typical dragon boat ranges from 50-100 feet in length, with a beam of about 5.5 feet, accommodating two paddlers seated side by side.
A wooden dragon head is attached at the bow, and a dragon tail at the stern（船尾）. A banner hoisted on a pole is also fastened at the stern and the hull is decorated with red, green and blue scales edged in gold. In the center of the boat is a canopied shrine behind which the drummers, gong（铜锣）beaters and cymbal（铙钹）players are seated to set the pace for the paddlers. There are also men positioned at the bow to set off firecrackers, toss rice into the water and pretend to be looking for Qu. All of the noise and pageantry creates an atmosphere of gaiety and excitement for the participants and spectators alike. The races are held among different clans, villages and organizations, and the winners are awarded medals, banners, jugs of wine and festive meals.
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The American Way： Marriage
2008-05-12 23:23:05
The American Way： Marriage
[1] "I do." To Americans those two words carry great meaning. They can even change your life. Especially if you say them at your own wedding. Making wedding vows is like signing a contract. Now Americans don't really think marriage is a business deal. But marriage is serious business.
[2] It all begins with engagement. Traditionally, a young man asks the father of his sweetheart for permission to marry her. If the father agrees, the man later proposes to her. Often he tries to surprise her by "popping the question" in a romantic way. Sometimes the couple just decides together that the time is right to get married. The man usually gives his fiancée a diamond ring as a symbol of their engagement. They may be engaged for weeks, months or even years. As the big day approaches, bridal showers and bachelor's parties provide many useful gifts. Today many couples also receive counseling during engagement. This prepares them for the challenges of married life.
[3] At last it's time for the wedding. Although most weddings follow long-held traditions, there's still room for American individualism. For example, the usual place for a wedding is in a church. But some people get married outdoors in a scenic spot. A few even have the ceremony while sky-diving or riding on horseback! The couple may invite hundreds of people or just a few close friends. They choose their own style of colors, decorations and music during the ceremony. But some things rarely change. The bride usually wears a beautiful, long white wedding dress. She traditionally wears "something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue". The groom wears a formal suit or tuxedo. Several close friends participate in the ceremony as attendants, including the best man and the maid of honor
[4] As the ceremony begins, the groom and his attendants stand with the minister, facing the audience. Music signals the entrance of the bride's attendants, followed by the beautiful bride. Nervously, the young couple repeats their vows. Traditionally, they promise to love each other "for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health". But sometimes the couple has composed their own vows. They give each other a gold ring to symbolize their marriage commitment. Finally the minister announces the big moment: "I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss your bride!"
[5] At the wedding reception, the bride and groom greet their guests. Then they cut the wedding cake and feed each other a bite. Guests mingle while enjoying cake, punch and other treats. Later the bride throws her bouquet of flowers to a group of single girls. Tradition says that the one who catches the bouquet will be the next to marry. During the reception, playful friends "decorate" the couple's car with tissue paper, tin cans and a "Just Married" sign. When the reception is over, the newlyweds run to their "decorated" car and speed off. Many couples take a honeymoon, a one- to two-week vacation trip, to celebrate their new marriage.
[6] Almost every culture has rituals to signal a change in one's life. Marriage is one of the most basic life changes for people of all cultures. So it's no surprise to find many traditions about getting married... even in America. Yet each couple follows the traditions in a way that is uniquely their own.
[1]“我愿意。”这句话对美国人来说包含深远的意义。它甚至可以改变一个人的生活，特别是如果你在自己的婚礼上说出这句话。发出结婚誓言就如同签订契约一般。虽然今天美国人并不真正认为婚姻是一宗商业交易，但婚姻确实是件严肃的事。
[2]一切从订婚开始。在传统上，年轻男子先要请求女朋友的父亲允许自己娶她。如果女方的父亲答应，然后男方才能向女方求婚。男方时常尝试以罗曼蒂克的方式“蹦出这个问题”，想给女方一个惊喜。有时双方只是一起决定，该是结婚的时候了。男方通常会送给未婚妻一只钻石戒指作为订婚的象征。订婚期可以持续几个星期、几个月，甚至几年。当大喜的日子临近时，双方各自的好友在婚前派对上会赠送许多实用的礼物。今天，许多未婚夫妻在订婚期间还听取咨询意见，以此为应付婚姻生活的挑战作好准备。
[3]最后就该举行婚礼了。虽然大多数的婚礼沿袭长期以来的传统，但是仍有发挥美国人的个性主义的余地。例如，通常举行婚礼的地点是在教堂，但是有些人却在户外的风景点举行婚礼，少数人甚至在跳伞或骑马时举办仪式！新人可以邀请几百个客人，也可以只邀请几个最要好的朋友。婚礼的色调风格、布置和音乐都由他们自己决定。但有些事情很少会变化。新娘通常都穿一件漂亮的长长的白色结婚礼服。按传统习惯，新娘的穿着要包括“一点旧的，一点新的，一点借来的和一点蓝色的东西”。新郎则穿着一套正式的西装或无尾晚礼服。几位亲密的朋友参与婚礼作为陪伴，包括伴郎和伴娘。
[4]婚礼开始时，新郎和他的陪伴同牧师站在一起，面对着来宾。当音乐响起时，新娘的陪伴入场，后面就跟着美丽的新娘。一对新人紧张地跟着说出他们的誓言。按传统习惯，双方许诺要彼此相爱，“不论情况较好较坏，不论家境是富是穷，不论生病还是健康。”但有时两人也可以编一套自己的誓言。他们互赠金戒指象征婚姻的承诺。最后，牧师宣布重大时刻的到来：“我现在宣布你们成为夫妻。你可以亲吻你的新娘！”
[5]在结婚喜宴上，新娘和新郎向宾客表示欢迎。然后他们切开结婚蛋糕并互喂对方一口。来宾们一边享受蛋糕、混合饮料和其他食物，一边相互交谈。之后，新娘将她的花束投向一群单身女孩。相传抓到花束的女孩会成为下一个结婚的人。喜宴期间，爱闹的朋友用薄纸、锡罐和写着“新婚”的标牌来“装饰”新人的小汽车。宴会结束后，新婚的小俩口就跑向他们“被装饰好的”小汽车，迅速地驶走。许多新人会去度蜜月，即一两个星期的度假旅行，以庆祝他们的新婚。
[6]几乎每一种文化都有仪式来标志一个人生活的变化。婚姻对于各种文化的人而言都是最基本的生活变化之一。因此发现关于结婚有许多传统习俗，就不足为奇了……在美国也不例外。然而每对新人都会以自己独持的方式来继承传统。 -
各国节日5
2008-05-12 23:18:48
International Co-operative Day（国际合作节）
In 1921, at the International Co-operative Congress of World Co-op Leaders wanted to identify and define the growing co-operative movement's common values and ideals to help unite co-ops around the world. They decided to hold a special event to celebrate the movement's growing diversity.
In Essen, Germany in 1922, ICA （国际合作联盟）leaders made plans for the very first international "Co-operators' Day" which was held in July 1923. Since then, on the first Saturday every July, International Co-operative Day has been celebrated. The day is a chance for co-op members and supporters to work together and promote the co-op movement's successes and ideals of international solidarity（团结）, economic efficiency, equality, and world peace. To celebrate the Centennial（百年纪念）of the International Co-operative Alliance, the United Nations declared in 1995 that the first Saturday of July to be celebrated as the United Nations International Day of Co-operatives and requested all member governments to join with their co-operative movements to celebrate the day.Over several years various national movements were trying to register the Rainbow Flag as a trade mark, seeking ICA help in finding out arguments to prove that the flag is a distinctive（与众不同的、有特色的）symbol, reserved to the co-op movement. For us, co-operators it is, but in fact, it has never been registered as the ICA symbol.
After the Basel Congress in 1921, which was the first congress to be held after an interruption of eight years caused by the Great World War and facing the new challenges in Europe, the ICA Executive Committee decided to devote some time to Co-operative Propaganda. The membership had grown dramatically, thus, the idea was to find a point of rally（集合、集会） which would give an identity to movements scattered（分散） from Japan to Canada.
The political map, and most singularly（特别地，异常地）Europe's political map, changed to such an extension that it become urgent to find some common denominator（共同特性）for all the different co-operative traditions. At the same time the established co-operatives suffered attacks from fascist and communist
parties both of which claimed "property rights" on co-op doctrine（主义、学说）and incidentally on co-op assets.In these troubled times, the ICA President, G.J.D.C. Goedhart, questioned himself on the causes which hinder the development of the co-op movement. He detected three: lack of information among the general public, lack of knowledge among members and finally lack of ideological commitment among managers.
"What can be done to remedy （治疗、矫正）these evils? The best means seems to be by general propaganda which must bring to the minds and hearts of outsiders, as in a flash, vivid pictures of the Co-operative Movement, the ideals for which it stands, the real significance of its aims, and how it must necessary give us a much better human society than that in which we live."
And already in 1922 the best support for publicity appeared to him to be a film. However, since not many societies could have supported such a financial investment, he suggested children's books, lantern slides （幻灯片）and other means of visual propaganda such as exhibitions.
"Arrangements should also be made to hold a "Propaganda Day" or "Evening" in every country, town and village on the same day in order to draw the attention of the universe to what we are doing, and also to the whole world"
A special "Co-operators' Day" is necessary for this purpose. You are, therefore, called upon to rally to the Standard of "Each for all, all for each" in a great International Demonstration on the First Saturday in July next, when the first organized attempt will be made to "broadcast" our rejoicings（欢庆）, our ideals, our successes, and our determination to pursue them to their ultimate goal.
Bastille Day（法国国庆日）
Bastille Day is a National holiday in France. It is very much like Independence Day in the United States because it is a celebration of the beginning of a new form of government.
At one time in France, kings and queens ruled. Many people were very angry with the decisions made by the kings and queens.The Bastille was a prison in France that the kings and queens often used to lock up the people that did not agree with their decisions. To many, it was a symbol of all the bad things done by the kings and queens. So, on July 14, 1789, a large number of French citizens gathered together and stormed the Bastille.
Just as the people in the United States celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence as the beginning of the American Revolution, so the people in France celebrate the storming of the Bastille as the beginning of the French Revolution. Both Revolutions brought great changes. Kings and queens no longer rule. The people rule themselves and make their own decisions.
The representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly, believing that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments, have determined to set forth in a solemn declaration the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration, being constantly before all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of their rights and duties; in order that the acts of the legislative power, as well as those of the executive power, may be compared at any moment with the objects and purposes of all political institutions and may thus be more respected, and, lastly, in order that the grievances of the citizens, based hereafter upon simple and incontestable principles, shall tend to the maintenance of the constitution and redound to the happiness of all. Therefore the National Assembly recognizes and proclaims, in the presence and under the auspices of the Supreme Being, the following rights of man and of the citizen:
1 Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only upon the general good.
2 The aim of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescrīptible rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression.
3. The principle of all sovereignty resides essentially in the nation. No body nor individual may exercise any authoritywhich does not proceed directly from the nation.
4. Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no one else; hence the exercise of the natural rights of each man has no limits except those which assure to the other members of the society the enjoyment of the same rights. These limits can only be determined by law.
5. Law can only prohibit such actions as are hurtful to society.Nothing may be prevented which is not forbidden by law, and no one may be forced to do anything not provided for by law.
6. Law is the expression of the general will. Every citizen has a right to participate personally, or through his representative, in its foundation. It must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes. All citizens, being equal in the eyes of the law, are equally eligible to all dignities and to all public positions and occupations, according to their abilities, and without distinction except that of their virtues and talents.
7. No person shall be accused, arrested, or imprisoned except in the cases and according to the forms prescribed by law. Any one soliciting, transmitting, executing, or causing to be executed, any arbitrary order, shall be punished. But any citizen summoned or arrested in virtue of the law shall submit without delay, as resistance constitutes an offense.
8. The law shall provide for such punishments only as are strictly and obviously necessary, and no one shall suffer punishment except it be legally inflicted in virtue of a law passed and promulgated before the commission of the offense.
9. As all persons are held innocent until they shall have been declared guilty, if arrest shall be deemed indispensable, all harshness not essential to the securing of the prisoner's person shall be severely repressed by law.
10. No one shall be disquieted on account of his opinions, including his religious views, provided their manifestation does not disturb the public order established by law.
11. The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.
12. The security of the rights of man and of the citizen requires public military forces. These forces are, therefore, established for the good of all and not for the personal advantage of those to whom they shall be intrusted.
13. A common contribution is essential for the maintenance of the public forces and for the cost of administration. This should be equitably distributed among all the citizens in proportion to their means.
14. All the citizens have a right to decide, either personally or by their representatives, as to the necessity of the public contribution; to grant this freely; to know to what uses it is put; and to fix the proportion, the mode of assessment and of collection and the duration of the taxes.
15. Society has the right to require of every public agent an account of his administration.
16. A society in which the observance of the law is not assure