4 of the World's Most Amazing Train Journeys
The Beijing to Lhasa Express, China
Start: Beijing End: Lhasa
Distance: 2,330 miles Duration（时长）: 40 hours
Connecting Beijing with Lhasa, the Z21 train transports its passengers from a modern city to a mysterious land. What's unusual is that the train climbs nearly 16,400 it on its journey to the roof of the world: the Tibetan plateau, where it passes yaks, flying prayer flags and snow—covered mountains.
The Reunification Express, Vietnam
Start: Hanoi End: Ho Chi Minh City
Distance: 1,072 miles Duration: two days
Some railways run through historic cities, others run beside beautiful coastline and a few are famous for the colorful characters on board. The Reunification Express meets all these conditions. It travels over a thousand miles from Hanoi in the north to Ho Chi Minh City in the south. There's no better way of exploring all the glories in between.
The California Zephyr, USA
Start: Chicago End: San Francisco
Distance: 2,438 miles Duration: 52 hrs 40 mins
As for appreciating the breathtaking scenery of the North American continent, nothing compares with Amtrak's California Zephyr train. This journey travels nearly 2,500 miles across prairies, deserts, the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada on its way.
London to Fort William on the Caledonian Sleeper, UK
Start: London End: Fort William
Distance: 509 miles Duration: 13 hrs 30 mins
Starting from crowded central London to the dry and cold air and beautiful views of the Scottish Highlands through one overnight train journey is a perfect example of experiencing the romance（浪漫）of rail travel. It's just a pity that the whole experience—from delicious foods and drinks to being taken into la-la land—feels like it's over very quickly.
My name is Jacob Cramer. I am a freshman at Orange High School.
In 2013, I founded an organization called Love For The Elderly. Many elderly people have no one to care for them, no one to look after them, and no one to love them. The elderly have paved the pathway of success for my generation. They deserve to be shown appreciation and kindness but are often ignored.
I am sure all of you have someone in your heart who has been at a nursing home. Think of them while I say this: they deserve the best and nothing but the best. The elderly are such an outstanding group, and their wisdom can most definitely be learned from. This idea of appreciating the elderly reverberated (回响) inside my head until finally, I decided it was time to step up and make a difference.
My passion for writing led me to create an organization, where people from all across the globe send letters filled with kindness and joy, from Iceland, Romania, Finland, Australia, and more. I then send these letters to senior centers, nursing homes, and retirement communities located all across the country. To this date, I have collected over 1,000 letters, and the response I have received has been truly unbelievable.
This past month, I had the opportunity to receive $100 from KindSpring through their monthly kindness contest to help my organization. This money has been of great help. We do not receive much money, and so it helped to pay for many costs, including postage and envelopes. This gesture of kindness has been very beneficial to my organization, and I could not be more appreciative. Thank you so much to KindSpring for this amazing opportunity. If any of you would like to get involved in my organization, please visit lovefortheelderly.org.
The elderly residents (居民) in care homes in London are being given hens to look after to stop them feeling lonely.
The project was dreamed up by a local charity (慈善组织) to reduce loneliness and improve elderly people's wellbeing. It is also being used to help patients suffering dementia, a serious illness of the mind. Staff in care homes have reported a reduction in the use of medicine where hens are in use.
Among those taking part in the project is 80-year-old Ruth Xavier. She said: "I used to keep hens when I was younger and had to prepare their breakfast each morning before I went to school."
"I like the project a lot. I am down there in my wheelchair in the morning letting the hens out and down there again at night to see they've gone to bed."
"It's good to have a different focus. People have been bringing their children in to see the hens and residents come and sit outside to watch them. I'm enjoying the creative activities, and it feels great to have done something useful."
There are now 700 elderly people looking after hens in 20 care homes in the North East, and the charity has been given financial support to roll it out countrywide.
Wendy Wilson, extra care manager at 60 Penfold Street, one of the first to embark on the project, said: "Residents really welcome the idea of the project and the creative sessions. We are looking forward to the benefits and fun the project can bring to people here."
Lynn Lewis, director of Notting Hill Pathways, said: "We are happy to be taking part in the project. It will really help connect our residents through a shared interest and creative activities."
The traditional Chinese Shaoxing opera has a long history, but these days it seems that young people don't show much interest in it.
Nowadays, as pop music and online films are popular with the public, Shaoxing opera is struggling for its survival. The market of the opera is becoming smaller. It remains popular only with the older generation. According to Zhejiang provincial cultural department, the most of fans of Shaoxing opera, China's second largest traditional opera, are above 40 years old. And many teenagers know nothing about Shaoxing opera and have never been to the theatre.
Yang Jianxin, head of the department, said, "Now, young people are crazy about other art forms but not the traditional operas. The largest problem for Shaoxing opera today is how to become acceptable to the young. "
Actually, not only Shaoxing opera but also many other traditional Chinese operas are in danger. That's really worrying. Luckily, people are trying to protect them. For example, Kunqu has been listed as one of the Masterpieces（杰作）of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO since 2001.
In 2006, Shaoxing opera, for the fist time in history, entered the pub（酒吧）. It was really a good try to attract the youth. Besides, a Shaoxing opera group opened a Shaoxing opera blog on the Internet to invite people, especially the young, to express their opinions about this traditional art form.
Why Is Volunteering Important?
When it comes to service work, it's important to realise that the actual goal should be getting the most out of your volunteering work.
● Gaining new social experience
Volunteering allows students to get involved with new things and develop social and academic skills that couldn't be learned in a classroom environment.
● Giving back and helping others
Volunteers create better environments for others; they create healthier communities and they brighten lives. Jill, a senior student, has been a volunteer in her community for more than three years. "They always tell me how great we sound and how they wish they had taken time to learn an instrument in their youth."
● Creating connections with people
Not only does the volunteer work you do show who you are as a person, but it reflects many positive qualities that possibly employers and admission officers want to see. Volunteering allows you to meet a wide variety of people from all sorts of walks of life.
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Volunteering isn't one of the most attractive jobs, but it is one of the most beneficial and uplifting(令人振奋的). It's taking some time out of your day and helping others. Volunteer work makes us feel good. It builds selfconfidence and lifts up the spirits.
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A. Building career choices B. Volunteering means a lot more. C. Developing a sense of achievement D. Building relationships with people is very important. E. She volunteers by performing in concerts for senior citizens. F. Volunteering is an excellent way to improve your independence. G. Volunteering allows you to experience different environments and situations. |
When I was eight years old, Mother told me to put my coat on because we were going to go someplace1. Usually, that meant we were going to see someone important or2I would at least get a new toy. I asked which one it would be that day, and she told me that I would be getting something3than a toy. She said I would get "access to a world of toys".
But we did not4at any toy store. Nor did we finally see anyone we knew.5, Mother6her car at Marcy Public Library. Mother led me directly to the reception desk. "I'd like to get my daughter a library card，" she told the man7the desk. He asked her to fill out a form and smiled at me. "What kind of books do you like？" he asked. I was too shy to8then. I simply smiled back and shrugged my shoulders. "Well, you'll figure it out9," he said.
I do not remember what I10that first day, but I know that in the years that11I read everything I could find12at that old library. I read through all the Nancy Drew books before advancing to Judy Blume, then the13: Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, Shakespeare. Then I read books on history, books of poetry, and books about art. The library opened up a world that I14knew existed.
So Mother was15. Getting a library card was like getting access to a world of toys.
Tu Youyou is universally acknowledged as a scientist of great(achieve). Born in Ningbo, China, on 30 December 1930, Tu Youyou graduated from Peking University Medical School in 1955. In 1967, she was chosen into a research team was formed by the government with the aim of discovering a new treatmentmalaria and two years later she became the head of the project in Beijing. She and he teammates examined over 2,000 old medical texts,(evaluate) 280,000 plants for their medical properties, and tested 380 distinct ancient Chinese medical treatments that showed promise in the fight against malaria. As a(commit) and patient scientist, she never acknowledged defeat whatever difficulty she met. After failing to draw out useful extract by(boil)the sweet wormwood, she began even(careful) thinking and research work. She drewconclusion that boiling the sweet wormwood destroyed (it) medical properties. So she used a lower temperature(draw) out the extract and finally she succeeded.
Once upon a time, there were two brothers who lived on two adjoining (相邻的) farms. The elder brother is John and the younger one is Jack. One day they got a problem. It was the first serious disagreement in 40 years of farming side-by-side, sharing machines and using goods as needed. Clearly they could not get on well with each other like before and the long-time good relationship fell apart. It began with a small misunderstanding and then it grew into a big difference. Finally, they had words with each other followed by weeks of silence. No one was willing to be the first to accept mistakes or forgive each other.
One morning there was a knock on John's door. He opened it to find a man with a carpenter's toolbox. "I'm a carpenter(木匠), and I am good at making chairs, tables, and even bridges. Now I'm looking for a few days' work," the man said. "Perhaps you would have some small projects and I could help. Could I help you?"
"Yes," said John. "I do have a job for you. Look across the river at that farm. That's my neighbor. In fact, it's my younger brother! There was a piece of grassland between us. However, he recently brought his bulldozer (推土机) and now there is a river between us. Well, he may have done this to upset me on purpose, but I'll do more. See the wood over there? I want you to build a fence (篱笆), an eight-foot-long fence, so I won't need to see his place or his face anymore."
The carpenter said, "I think I understand the situation. Show me the materials（材料） and I'll be able to do a job that pleases you." John had to go to town to buy something for his farm, so he helped the carpenter get the materials ready and then he left.
Paragraph 1:
The carpenter worked hard all that day.
Paragraph 2:
The two brothers stood at each end of the bridge.
