1.腊八节(theLabaFestival)在农历最后一个月的第八天庆祝，标志着春节庆祝活动的开始。“腊”指“腊月(the12thlunarmonth)”，是农历第十二个月，“八”指的是数字8。腊八节通常在1月中旬。大多数汉族人遵循腊八节喝腊八粥(Labariceporridge)的习俗。腊八粥最早在宋朝传入中国。据史料记载，一些大型寺庙会为穷人提供腊八粥来表达对佛祖(Buddha)的虔诚。明朝时，腊八粥成为皇帝在此节日赏赐群臣的神圣食物。
翻译：LabaFestivaliscelebratedontheeighthdayofthelastlunarmonth,markingthebeginningofcelebratingtheChineseSpringFestival.Lameansthe12thlunarmonthandbameansthenumbereight.Thedateusuallyfallsinmid-January.ThemajorityofpeoplefromHannationalityhasfollowedthetraditionofeatingLabariceporridgeontheLabaFestival.LabariceporridgewasfirstintroducedtoChinaintheSongDynasty.Accordingtohistoricalrecords,somelargetempleswouldofferthepoorLabariceporridgetoshowtheirfaithtoBuddha.IntheMingDynasty,itbecameaholyfoodthatemperorswouldusetoawardtheirofficialsonthefestival.
2.筷子(chopstick)起源于中国古代，一直是中国饮食文化重要的一部分。我们的祖先喜欢吃蒸煮食物，但用勺子很难舀(spoonout)到汤里的蔬菜，所以发明了筷子。从此，筷子成为他们生活中最为方便的餐具(tableware),标志着饮食文明的到来。如今，筷子除了具有餐具功能外，增添了很多新功能。熟练手艺人在筷子上描绘美丽的风景，使之变成精美的艺术品。许多人热衷于收集筷子作为藏品。
翻译：ChopsticksoriginatedinancientChinaandhavebeenanimportantpartofChinesefoodculture.Ourancestorslikedtohavesteamedorboiledfood，butitwasdifficultforthemtospoonoutvegetablesfromthesoup,sotheyinventedchopsticks.Thuschopstickshavebecomethemostconvenienttablewareintheirlifeandmarkedthecomingoffoodcivilization.Nowadays，chopsticksareaddedmanynewfunctionsbesidesbeingusedasonekindoftableware.Skillfulcraftsmenpaintbeautifulsceneriesonthemtomakethemlooklikefineartworks.Manypeoplearekeentogatherthemastheircollections.
3.长期以来，饮酒(whitespirit)在中国人的生活中一直扮演着重要的角色，无论是帝王还是百姓。饮酒是中国文化的一部分。中国人的祖先在作诗、写散文时喜欢饮酒，在宴会上还会向亲戚朋友敬酒。但饮酒不仅属于文化人，也是普通人生活中不可缺少的一部分。人们在各种场合饮酒，如生日宴会、饯行宴会、婚礼宴会(weddingbanquet)等。搬进新房或生意开业时，也会邀请人们来吃饭、饮酒。
翻译：DrinkingwhitespirithasbeentakinganimportantroleinChinesepeople'slifefromemperorstoordinarypeopleforalongtime.DrinkingwhitespiritisapartofChineseculture.Chineseancestorsenjoyeddrinkingwhitespiritwhilewritingpoemsorprosesandtheyalsotoastedtheirrelativesandfriendsatthefeast.Butdrinkingwhitespiritisnotonlyforscholars，itisalsoanindispensablepartofChineseordinarypeople'slife.Peopledrinkwhitespiritonvariousoccasions,suchasthebirthdayparty，farewelldinner，weddingbanquet,etc.Whensomeonemovesintoanewhouseorstartsdoingbusiness，he/shewillinvitepeoplefordinneranddrinkingwhitespirit.
4.为了促进教育公平，中国已经投入360亿元，用于改善农村地区教育设施和加强中西部地区农村义务教育。这些资金用于改善教学设施、购买书籍，使16万多所中小学收益。资金还用于购置音乐和绘画器材。现在农村和山区的儿童可以与沿海城市的儿童一样上音乐和绘画课。一些为接受更好教育而转往城市上学的学生如今又回到了本地农村学校就读。(2014年6月真题)
翻译：Inordertopromoteequityineducation,Chinahasinvested36billionyuanfortheimprovementofeducationalfacilitiesinruralareasandstrengtheningofruralcompulsoryeducationMidwest.Thesefundswereusedtoimprovetheteachingfacilities,purchaseofbooks,sothatmorethan160,000primaryandsecondaryincome.Fundsarealsousedtopurchasemusicandpaintingequipment.Nowchildreninruralandmountainousareaswithchildren'scoastalcitieslikemusicandpaintinglessons.Somereceiveabettereducationforthecityschoolstudentsnowtransferredbacktothelocalruralschoolsnow.
5.农历五月初五的端午节(theDragonBoatFestival)是个盛大的节日。它的另一名称——“重五节”就来源于这个日期。这个节日根据一个广为流传的故事，演变为纪念战国时期(theWarringStatesPeriod)楚国伟大爱国诗人屈原的日子。如果事实果真如此，那么端午节已经有大约2500年的存史了。端午节最盛行的活动是赛龙舟和吃粽子(ricedumpling)。自2008年以来，端午节在中国巳不仅仅是一个传统节日,还是公共假期。
翻译：TheDragonBoatFestivalisagrandfestivalcelebratedonthe5thdayof5thmonthoftheChineselunarcalendar.ThisisthesourceofthealternativenameofDoubleFifthFestival.Accordingtoawidelystatedstory,thefestivaldevelopedtocommemoratethegreatpatrioticpoetQuYuanofChuStateinWarringStatesPeriod.Ifthatistrue,DragonBoatFestivalhasahistoryofabout2,500years.ThemostpopularactivitiesofDragonBoatfestivalareracingdragonboatsandeatingricedumplings.Since2008，DragonBoatFestivalhasbeencelebratednotonlyasafestivalbutalsoapublicholidayinChina.
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