【正文】 m e Western countri es have very exci ti ng carnicals, whi ch take pl ace forty days before Easter, usual ly i n February. These carnival s m i ght incl ude parades, danci ng i n the streets day and ni ght, l oud m usic and col ourful cl othing of al l ki nds. Easter i s an im portant reli gi ous and soci al festi val for Chi ri stians around the world. It celebrates the return of Jesus from the dead and the i ng of spri ng and new l i fe. Japan’s Cherry Bl ossom Festi cal happens a li ttl e later. The country, covered wi th chery tree fl owers, l ooks as though i t is covered wi th pi nk snow. Peopl e l ove to get together to eat, dri nk and have fun with each other. Festi vals l et us enjoy li fe, be proud of our customs and fet ou work for a li ttl e whi le. A Sad Love Story Li Fang was heartbroken. It was Val etine’s Day and Hu Ji n had sai d she woul d m eet him at the coffee shop after work. But she di dn’t turn up. She coul d be with her friends ri ght now l aughing at him. She said she woul d be there at seven o’ cl ock, and he thought she woul d keep her word. He had l oked forward to m eeting her al day, and now he was alon with his roses and chocolates, li ke a fool . Wel, he ws not going to hol d hi s breath for her to apol ogi ze. H e woul d drown hi s sadnes i n coffe. It was obvi ous that the m anager of the coffee shop was wai ti ng for Li Fang to l eave –he wiped the tabl es, then sat down and turned on the TV – just what Li Fang neded! A sad Chi nese story about l ost l ove. The randdaughter of the Goddess of H eaven vi si ted the earth. H er nam e was Zhi nu, the weavi ng fi rl. Whi le she was on earth she m et the herd boy N i ul ang and they fel i n love. ( “ Just li ke m e and Hu Ji n, ” thought Li Fang.) They got m arri ed secretly, and they were very happy. (“We coul d be li ke that, “ thought Li Fang.) When the Goddess of H eaven knew that her granddaughter was m ari ed to a hum an, she became very angry and m ade the weaving girl return to H eaven. Niul ang tri ed to fol low her, but the river of stars, the Mil ky Way, stopped him. Fi nding that Zhinu was heartbroken, her grandm other fi nal y deci ded to l et the coupl e cross the Mi lky Way to m eet once a year. Magi pies m ake a bri dge of their wi ngs so the coupl e can cross the river to m et on the seventh day of the senveth l unar month. Peopl e in Chian hope that the weather wi l be fi ne on that day, because if i t is rai ni ng, i t m eans that zhi nu i s weepi ng and the coupl e won’t be abl e to m eet. The announcer sai d, “ This i s the story of Qiqiao Festival . When forei gners hear about the story they cal l i t a Chinese Valenti ne’s story. It’s a fine day today, so I hope you can al l m eet the one you love. ” As Li Fang set of for home, he thought , “ I gues H u Ji n doesn’t l ove m e. I’ just throw these flowers and chocol ates away. I don’t want them to remi nd me of her. ” So he di d. As he sadl y passed the tea shop on the corner on his wasy home, he heard a voi ce cal li ng him. There was Huji n wavi ng at him and cal li ng, “Why are you so l ate? I’ ve been wai ti ng for you for a long tim e! An I have a gi ft for you!” What woul d he do? H e had thrown away her Val enti ne figes! She woul d never fi ve him. Thi s would not be a happy Bal enti ne’s Day! Wi nter Carnival i n Quebec A group of very col d touri sts are sitti ng in a cafe i n old Quevec, dri nking hor coffe to try to warm up. The tem perature is 32 degrees bel ow freezi ng. The wi ndows are cobered wi th steam from the heat i nside. O utsi de, snow covers the strets and i s pil ed up al ong the si dewal ks. The musi c and l i ghts of the Carni val continue, but after a whole day of watchi ng parades, ridi ng i n horse carri ages and li stening to the musi c, thei r feet are freezi ng and their noses are red. Every year, hundreds of thousands of peopl e e to Quebec to take part i n the weel l ong wi nter festi val, the bi ggest in the worl d. Everyone who es must be prepared to keep movi ng. As i t i s too col d to stand and watch for long. Early i n the morni ng, you can watch the snowboardi ng petitions on the hil overlooki ng the river. Competitors speed down the track and through the air as though they could fl y. The more brave of heart may try the canoe races. Fi ve or six men padl e each canoe to return, and went back to the l ake. 必修三 Unit 1 Festi vals and cel ebrati ons Festivals and cel ebrations of al kinds have been held everywhere si nce anci ent tim es. Most anci ent festi val s woul d celebrate the end of col d weather,planti ng i n spring and harvest i n autum n. Som etim es celebrati ons would be hel d after hunters had caught anim als. At that tim e peopl e woul d starve i f food was di ficult to fi nd, especi al l y duri ng the col d wi nter m onths. Today’s festi val s have m any ori gi ns, som e reli gi ous, som e seasonal, and som e for speci al people or events. Festi val s of the Dead Som e festival s are held to honour the dead or sati sfy the ancestors, who m ight return either to hel p or to do harm. For the Japanese festi val O bon, peopl e should go to cl ean graves and li ght i ncense i n m em ory of their ancestors. They al so l ight l am ps and pl ay m usi c because they thi nk that thi s wi l lead the ancestors back to earth. In Mexi co, people cel ebrate the Day of the Dead in earl y N ovem ver. O n thi s im portant feast day, peopl e eat food in the shape of skul ls and cakes with “bones” on them . They offer fod, fl owers and gifts to the dead. The Western holi day Hal oween al so had i ts ori gi n i n ol d bel iefs about the return of the spiri ts of dead peopl e. It is now a chi ldren’s festival , when they can dress up an go to thei r neighbours’ hom es to ask for swets. If the nei ghbours do not gi ve any swers, the chil dren m i ght pl ay a tri ck on them. Feti vals to Honour People Festi val s can al so be hel d