初级 西方节日
Chapter Thirteen: Independence Day
The most animated American festivity is the Fourth of July or Independence Day. It is the nation's birthday. The Fourth of July is a salute to freedom
and democracy. It is a time to remember America's ideals of liberty , equality and opportunity for all.
What happened on 4 July?
In the 1700's the thirteen American colonies belonged to Great Britain.
The colonists did not want to be governed by Britain. They wanted to be independent and to choose their own government. They wanted a democracy.
Britain imposed high taxes and there were many rebellions.
On 4 July, 1776 a group of patriots wrote the Declaration of Independence . The Declaration proclaimed independence from Britain and democracy and justice for all. With the Declaration of Independence the thirteen colonies created their own nation, the United States of America. The Liberty Bell is a symbol of Independence Day.
The Americans fought against the British in the American Revolution.
After years of war the British were defeated in 1781 in Yorktown,Virginia.
Today Americans celebrate the Fourth of July in many different ways.
There is an American flag on every flagpole and many people put a flag outside their window. Americans call their flag "the Stars and Stripes."
Every city and town organises its own celebration. Red, white and blue decorations fill the streets.
Traditional Fourth of July events are patriotic speeches, parades, baseball games, competitions, a lot of music, dancing and picnics. These picnics are an old American tradition. The typical picnic consists of hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, chocolate cake and ice cream.
The festivities usually end with a brilliant fireworks show.
In the West rodeos are a favourite event. A western rodeo is a spectacular event to watch!
In Virginia there are historic parades with people in 18th-century costumes.
In New York City the top of the Empire State Building is illuminated with red, white and blue lights!
In Flagstaff, Arizona, American Indians celebrate with a three-day pow-wow, a rodeo and tribal dances.
Bridgeport, California is a small town in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Bridgeport celebrates Independence Day in an old-fashioned way.
Before the 10 o'clock parade someone reads the Declaration of Independence to the town. Then cowboys and Indians from nearby ranches come to the town on their beautiful horses. Children ride decorated bicycles in the parade. There is a big pie-eating competition. After a delicious picnic of barbecued meat, there is a baseball game. In the evening there is country music and dancing.
Chapter Fourteen: Notting Hill Carnival
The Notting Hill Carnival of London is the second biggest carnival in the world and the biggest street festival in Europe! It is always on the last Sunday and Monday in August which is a Bank Holiday (a public holiday)
in the United Kingdom. On Sunday there is the Children's Carnival. The Carnival takes place in Notting Hill, West London.
When did the first Carnival take place?
In the 1950's people from the Caribbean, and in particular from Trinidad,emigrated to Britain. They took their customs and traditions with them.
People remembered the great Carnivals held in the West Indies and in 1964 a street festival took place in Notting Hill.
There were few people in costume dancing in the streets and carrying steel drums in this first festival. However, it was a great success. Since then Carnival has taken place every year in Notting Hill and it has grown into an enormous multicultural arts festival.
Carnival celebrations normally take place before Easter, in the month of March. However, in Britain the celebrations take place in August when the weather is warmer. During the year the West Indian families prepare their beautiful costumes and practise playing their steel drums. They also work on their floats.
On the days of Carnival, Notting Hill is full of colour, excitement, music,
noise and people. About two million people go to Carnival every year!
People with wonderful costumes dance in the streets and steel bands play Calypso, the traditional music of the West Indies.
They also play Soca, the traditional music of Carnival, a mixture of Soul and Calypso .
It is also possible to hear reggae , hip-hop and jazz . A parade with colourful floats travels seven and a half kilometres through the streets of London. There is a prize for the best float. It is sometimes almost impossible for the public to walk along the streets - the only way to move is to dance!
In the streets food vendors sell meat and vegetable patties , salted fish and other delicious West Indian specialities .
Everyone has a good time!
中级 百万英镑
Part Two: An Unusual Bet
The two old gentlemen were brothers. For several days, they argued about a very strange subject. They decided to end their argument with a bet,as the English usually do. The following was the subject of the bet.
The Bank of England issued two banknotes of a million pounds each for a public transaction with a foreign country. England used one banknote and the other remained in the bank. At this point, Brother A said to Brother B,"If an honest and intelligent stranger arrives in London without a friend and without money, except for the ￡1,000,000 banknote, he will starve to death ."
Brother B answered, "No! I don't agree."
Brother A said, "If he goes to the bank or anywhere else to change this big note, the police will put him in prison. Everyone will think he stole it."
They continued arguing for days, until Brother B said, "I'll bet ￡20,000 that the stranger will live for thirty days with the banknote and not go to prison."
Brother A accepted the bet. He went to the bank and bought the ￡1,000,000 banknote. After, he returned home and prepared a letter. Then the two brothers sat by the window and waited for the right man for the bet.
They saw a lot of honest faces go by, but they were not intelligent enough.
Several faces were intelligent, but they were not honest. A lot of faces were honest and intelligent, but they were not poor enough. Other faces were honest, intelligent and poor, but they were not strangers.
When they saw me from the window, they thought I was the right man. They asked me questions, and soon they knew my story.
Finally, they told me I was the right man for the bet. I asked them to explain the bet. One of the gentlemen gave me an envelope. I wanted to open it, but he said, "No, don't open it now. Wait until you are in your hotel room. Then read it very carefully."
I was confused and I wanted to discuss the subject with them. But they didn't. I felt hurt because I was the subject of a joke.
When I left their house, I looked for the pear on the street. It was gone. I was quite angry with those two gentlemen.
Far from their house, I opened the envelope. I saw that there was money inside! I didn't stop to read their letter.
I ran to the nearest eating place. I ate and ate and ate. At last, I took out the envelope with the money, to pay for my meal. I looked at the banknote and almost fainted. It was a banknote worth five million dollars!
I was speechless. I stared at the banknote. The two gentlemen had made a big mistake.
They probably wanted to give me a one-pound banknote.
I saw the owner of the eating place staring at the banknote, too. We were both surprised. I did not know what to do or say, so I simply give him the note and said, "Give me the change, please."
The owner apologized a thousand times. ''I'm very sorry, but I can't change this banknote, sir."
"I don't have any other money. Please change this note." The owner then said, "You can pay for this food whenever you want, sir. I understand that you are a very rich gentleman. You like playing jokes on people by dressing like a poor man. You can come here and eat all you want, whenever you want. You can pay me when you want."
Part Three: The Letter When I left the eating place, I hurried to the house of the two gentlemen.
I wanted to correct the mistake they had made. I was very nervous.
When I arrived, the same servant opened the door. I asked for the two gentlemen.
"They are gone," the servant said.
"Gone? Gone where?"
"Oh, on a journey."
"But, where did they go?"
"To the Continent, I think."
"The Continent?"
"Yes, sir."
"When will they return?"
"In a month."
"A month! Oh, this is awful! How can I talk to them? It's extremely important."
"I can't help you. I don't know where they are, sir."
"Then I must see a member of the family."
"All the family are away. They're in Egypt and India, I think."
"Before leaving, the two gentlemen made an enormous mistake. They will certainly return home tonight. Tell them that I came here to correct the mistake. I will return tomorrow."
"I'll tell them if I see them. But I won't see them! Sir, you must not worry because everything is all right. They will be here on time, and they will see you then. Good-bye."
I was confused. My head was in a fog . I did not understand what the servant told me. The letter I remembered the letter! This is what it said:You are an intelligent and honest man. You are also poor and a stranger.
In this envelope you will find some money. It is yours only for 30 days. At the end of 30 days, return to this house, I have a bet on you. If I win this bet, you can have any job with any salary that you want.
There were no signature, no address, no date on the letter. How strange! I didn't know what to think. I went to a park, sat down and thought about what to do. After an hour, I reached the decision that follows.
The two old gentlemen are playing a game that I don't understand. They are betting on me. (But, at that time, I didn't know anything about the details of the bet.)
If I go to the Bank of England to return the banknote, the bank will ask me lots of questions. If I tell the truth, no one will believe me. They will put me in an asylum. If I tell a lie, the police will put me in prison. I can't even give it to anyone, because no honest person will want it.
I can do only one thing: I must keep the bill for a whole month. And, I must not lose it. If I help the old man to win his bet, he will give me the job I want. The idea of an important job with a big salary made me happy. With this exciting idea in mind, I began walking down the streets of London.
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