Putuo Mountain

Putuo Mountain, one of the Four Holy Buddhist Mountains, covers an area of 12.5 square kilometers. The highest peak, the Fudingshan Mountain is 300 meters high above the sea level. Temples, monasteries, nunneries are spread all over the mountain.
According to the annals of Putuo Mountain, after the construction of “Unwilling-to-go” Guanyin Temple, people began to build up temples in large scales. The remained ten ancient architecture complex and historical sights were built in Song, Yuan, Ming, Qing. Putuo Mountain once had 82 temples, 128 huts, accommodating 4,000 monk and nuns at its heyday. When you walk on the paths, you probably can come across monks in kasaya. The glorious sceneries as well as the glamour concerned with Buddhism make it a sacred mountain. 
Puji Temple, Fayu Temple, and Huiji Temple are the three largest in the twenty temples in Putuo. Puji Temple, covering 11,000 square meters, was first built in Song Dynasty, and is the main temple devoted to the Goddess of Guanxin. Fayu Temple was first built in Ming. It sits along the mountain with different layers on it. Numerous large trees stand in the mountain, qualify the temple for a quiet and deep place. Huiji Temple is on the Foding Peak, so gets a name after that, Foding Peak Temple.
Bizarre rocks and queer cliffs can be seen everywhere. The most famous twenty are Qingtuo Rock, Rock of Two Tortoises Listening to Preaching, Rock of Buddhist Heaven on Sea, etc. Along the line where the mountain connects with the sea, many spectacular caves are very attractive. Chaoyin Cave and Fanyin Cave are the two top ones.

Tower of London

The tower of London is a group of stone buildings in London, among which are a dark prison and former royal residence. It stands in the East End, on the north bank of the Thames.
This old and famous group of buildings is surrounded by a shallow river, and a high stone wall. Inside are the buildings with great thick walls. The walls are so strong that in the old days it could stop a whole army. The British War Department now uses the buildings mainly as a show palace and as a museum. The great collection of armor in the museum was started by Henry VIII in the 1500’s.
The Tower of London holds a leading place in English history. Many famous persons were held in its prison. Lady Jane Grey was hung there, and young Edward V and his brother, the Duke of York were killed there by order of their uncle, Richard III.
The Tower of London also has the royal jewel office. Here the crowns, scepters, and other royal treasures of the English rulers are closely guarded. Even today people from foreign counreies come to the Tower of London to see its unusual history.

Tree-planting Day

Today is Tree-planting Day. We went to plant trees in Daning Greenland. As soon as we arrived, we began to work. First, we chose the place where we would plant a tree. Second, we chose a small tree. Third, we dogged a hole into the earth. Fourth, we put the tree in the hole. Fifth, we covered the root of the small tree with soil and then watered the small tree. After that, we have finished planting a tree.

We all know trees are very useful to man. Growing trees means saving man himself. We all worked very hard. When the sun went down, we came back home. Although we were very tired, we felt very happy.

夕阳下的淡水镇

    台北市民休闲有两大去处：阳明山和淡水镇。这两个地方满足着久居闹市的民众亲山近水的向往。

    与阳明山相比，淡水镇更远郊一些，位于台北县地界。淡水镇位于淡水河岸，发源于台湾北部山区的新店溪与基隆河汇流成淡水河经这里奔向大海。傍河近海之故，早在16世纪，淡水镇就已成为福建渡海而来的先民最早的开垦（kěn）地；特殊的水路之便，又使之成为先民最早对大陆、乃至对日本人的贸易码头。数百年来，古镇历经风雨沧（cāng）桑（sāng）与世道更迭（dié），显示出独特的韵（yùn）味。淡水河尽头，但见河海相接，海天相连，“淡水夕阳”成为台北一景。

    周休日，记者乘车来到淡水，在黄昏中走入古镇。

    淡水以水驰名，水面浩荡，河水清粼。夕阳由烈转柔，江风拂面，暑意渐消。河岸古榕（róng）下，人们谈天品茗（míng）；岸堤上，恋人坐拥窃（qiè）语；浅水边，人们甩杆垂钓；江中心，飞艇劈（pī）波遨游……好一幅动静相宜的黄昏剪影。如果说，亲水是人们的自然心境，那眼前动人的场景，则显露出台北人的浪漫情调。他们守望着宜人的山水，守望着柔静的落日余晖（huī），也守望着平和美好的心情与生活。

    淡水老街保持着古镇的风貌。黄昏中的淡水老街，店面稠（chóu）、人头多、生意旺，似乎刚刚苏醒，有如早市般热闹。淡水镇有两大名产：“铁蛋”和“鱼酥（sū）”。“铁蛋”即卤（lǔ）蛋，从鸡蛋、鸭蛋，到鸽子蛋、鹌（ān）鹑（chún）蛋无一不有，包装精美。因渔港之故，这里的鱼酥历史悠久，闻名台湾。两种特产都现做现卖，店主无不尽力推销产品，或标榜正宗，或慷（kāng）慨（kǎi）赠（zèng）尝，让人欲拒不忍。空气中充溢（yì）着诱人的香味，古镇上弥漫着浓郁的生活气息。游玩了一天的人们走进一家家餐馆，享用淡水古镇的晚餐。各家餐馆的招牌上，时常可见“福州鱼丸”、“嘉（jiā）兴肉粽（zòng）”等等，让人感到亲切。

    和台湾各地一样，淡水老街随处可见祠堂庙宇。紧靠大街有一座飞檐（yán）翘（qiào）角、气势不凡的“福佑（yòu）宫”，为妈祖庙。庙里香火很盛，烧香敬拜者络(luò)绎(yì)不绝。光绪皇帝御（yù）赐（cì）匾（biǎn）额“翌（yì）天昭（zhāo）佑”悬挂在“福佑宫”的正殿上，成为镇宫之宝。

    当地人都说，淡水看夕阳，最佳“红毛城”。淡水八景之一的“戍（shù）台夕照”，指的就是在“红毛城”观赏落日余晖。“红毛城”是17世纪荷兰人入侵台湾时修筑的古堡。记者登上位于淡水河北岸的“红毛城”，俯瞰四周，但见襟（jīn）山带海，壮美无比。余晖下的淡水镇，迷幻而亲切、温和又从容。

    海天相连处，太阳已由橙（chéng）转红，于视野尽头徐徐沉落，在与海的交融中放射出迷人的光晕。最后的光芒返照着“红毛城”——这当地位置最高、古镇夕阳的最后守望者。

    小小“红毛城”，浓缩了台湾饱经沧桑的近代史，300多年来，经荷兰、明朝、清朝、英国等数国更替易手，直到1980年，英国人才把她交回到她的主人——台湾人民手中。台湾人民及所有中国人，才得以登临此地，观望夕阳，沐浴余晖。

    走下“红毛城”时，山道已亮起灯光。淡水之夜，想必又是另一番迷人的情景。

A helpful boy

Mark's father owned a provision shop. Many people bought things from his shop. When Mark was free in the morning in the shop, he dusted and wiped the shelves. He arranged the items in neatly.

Sometimes he weighted things for the customers. He also collected money from customers and put it in a drawer behind the counter.

Mark's father closed the shop at seven in the evening. Then Mark would help to sweep the floor and count the money collected for the day. After dinner, Mark would do his schoolwork .Mark was truly a helpful son. He was a good example for others to follow.

骆驼的驼峰里藏着什么?

Visited the Grand Opera House

The art of growing dwarf trees, or “bonsai” as their Japanese creators call them, is increasing in popularity in the Untied States. Growing bonsai can make a fascinating hobby for anyone who enjoys plants and creating beautiful effects with them; elaborate equipment is not required to grow these lovely and tiny trees, but time, patience, and a sense of natural beauty are.

 There are four important guidelines to follow in growing bonsai. First, one must be careful in choosing the type of tree. Not all species of trees can be made into bonsai, since the growing conditions are unusual. Varieties of pine with small needles and hardwood trunks are especially suitable.

Second, one must be careful in choosing the size of the container the bonsai will be in. This is necessary because the major growth of bonsai is kept confined to the tree's trunk and leaves, not its root system——a process quite unlike what is done with other plants.

Another thing the bonsai-grower must do is trim the roots and branches of the tree periodically. Unless this is done, the plants will not have the proper proportions and will look unnatural. The Japanese ideal for bonsai is to have trees which are just like normal trees in everything but size.

The last thing one must do is to be careful to keep the miniature trees well-watered. Because bonsai are grown in smaller-than-usual containers, they often need more water than ordinary houseplants do.

As one can see from the above, the art of bonsai-growing is one which requires a certain amount of time and effort. The satisfactions that growing bonsai brings can be great, however. Imagine a stately pine tree, 100 years old, standing two feet high; imagine having such a tree in your living room and passing it down through several generations of your family. That is actually what bonsai-growing is all about: establishing a tradition of beauty which lasts for years and years and is a symbol of the beauties of the natural world.

Hot springs scenic area

The Hot Spring of the Yellow Mountains of nationwide fame, was discovered and tapped more than a thousand years ago. Its clear waters remain at 42`C all the year round and can be used for drinking and bathing. Baths and swimming pools have been built around the spring.
Huangshan Hot Spring, which had ever been called as "Ling Spring", "Tang Spring", "Vermilion Spring", is celebrated for its fresh, clean and cool nature, and it can serve various purposes, such as drinking, bathing; it is a wonder of Huangshan. MT.Huangshans is the watershed of the two main rivers, Yangtze River and Qiantang River. The special geographic position has cultivated the development of 36 big canyons, the sources of 36 branches, therefore, Huangshan is also famous for its waterfalls, and some famous ones are "Inverted V Falls (Renzi Falls)", "Hundred Feet Waterfall", and "Nine Dragons Waterfall".


Six hundred and thirty meters above the sea level, the Hot Spring has a large tourist complex, including the Yellow Mountain Guest house, Taoyuan Hotel, Xuanyuan Hotel, the Hot Spring Bath, the Hot Spring Swimming Pool, the Postal Telecommunications Building, villas and tourist shops. The scenic area straddles the Peach Blossom Brook that flows between Purple Cloud Peak and Peach Blossom Peak. Across the brook are the Purple Cloud Bridge, the Scenery Watching Bridge, the Famous Spring Bridge and the White Dragon Bridge. Scattered around are the Fish Watching Pavilion, Falls Watching Pavilion, Peach Blossom Land Pavilion, and the Falls Watching Tower. Here one can watch Hundred Feet Spring and Inverted V Falls as well as Celestial Capital Peak, Lotus Peak, Cinnabar Peak, Purple Cloud Peak and Purple Rock Peak. Going up along the brook, one will see such scenic spots as Roaring Lion Rock, Dragon Head Rock, Tiger Head Rock, the Red Well, Intoxicated Rock, Sword Testing Rock as well as Green Dragon Pool, White Dragon Pool, Three Folding Spring and Ringing String Spring. 
Departing from the Hot Spring, travelers can take two routes for mountain sightseeing: One is to ascend the imposing and steep mountain front and then descend the picturesque back mountains and then return to the Hot Spring. The other is just to take the opposite route.