外国人最想和你聊的文化话题：西方节日

　Realize the Western festivals　认识外国节日
     1　中外节日对比
     When we meet this topic, at first we should know that we don't just want to remember the names of the western festivals, but we should have an insight into their culture and history, their religion and beliefs. So we must compare their festivals with our own.
     The prevalence of western festivals in China is related to the manifestations of the difference between the western festivals and the traditional Chinese ones. Chinese festivals mainly originated from the celebration, worship and other activities. However, most of the western festivals are related to the religions. For instance, Christmas is related to Christianity and Halloween is related to the Catholic. Many young people love western festivals usually not because of their cultural connotation, but because of more life fun. In their opinions, it is not important to know what cultural connotation is about Valentine's Day, Thanksgiving Day and so on.
     Then we should know the advantages of the western festivals compared with ours. For example, look at the difference between Christmas and the Spring Festival. On Christmas, people prepare Christmas cards, Christmas trees and so on. Then they hold Christmas evening, both spending a little money and having a good time. However, during the Spring Festival, people who live in the city watch television or play with friends. People in rural areas are busy paying a New Year's call and so on. Generally speaking, people are linked with blood relation. There is no atmosphere of the formation of the same cultural roots. Due to spending a lot of money, time and energy, many people wish that there be no the Spring Festival. Look at western Valentine's Day and Chinese one, Chinese people are quite shy and rarely directly express their feelings, while the Western are enjoying themselves on their festivals. Festivals mean a feast to their heart while a suffering to the Chinese.
     In addition, western festivals have different backgrounds. Every festival hides more than one feelingly stories which attract young people. Also some festivals supply vacant feature in China. For example, the Valentine's Day add fresh mind in Chinese, which our ancestor dare not to think. The festival spreads seeds in every corner of China and call on people to seek lover and truly life belonging to themselves. This is what people expect for century. In the mean time, we still keep our excellent traditional festival. Have you noticed that people rush home no matter how crowed the train is during the Spring Festival? They celebrate the festival not in the form but in the deep heart.
     Whether you like it or not, you can not ignore the motivation they have brought to us. We are paying more attention to thanks-giving and emotions not the food and money. It has make great contributions to rich our culture.
     2　主要节日
     元旦 ( New Year's Day )
     圣瓦伦丁节 ( St. Valentine's Day ) 又称"情人节"( the lovers' day )
     复活节 ( Easter Day, Easter Sunday )
     愚人节 ( April Fool's Day )
     母亲节 ( Mother's Day )
     父亲节 ( Father's Day )
     国庆节 ( Independence Day )
     劳动节 ( Labor Day )
     万圣节 ( Halloween; Eve of All Saint's Day )
     感恩节 ( Thanksgiving Day )
     圣诞节( Christmas Day )
     随着人们生活水平的提高，享受主义逐渐加强，对节日的重视度越来越高，不管是外国的还是本国的，人们都能找到不同的方式来庆祝。外国节日的大量引进，正冲击着传统节日的地位。
Part 2　Key words ＆ Sentences　关键词语全知道
     Every February, candy, flowers and gift exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. Valentine's Day is a special day of love. It is a day to celebrate love. In that day, chocolates and roses are necessary.
     每年二月，糖果、鲜花和情人之间的交换礼物都在情人节的名义之下进行着。情人节是关于爱的特别的一天。这一天用来庆祝爱。在这一天，巧克力和玫瑰是必要的。
     Easter is the most important religious feast for the Christian, Christians believe that Jesus was resurrected from the dead two days after his crucifixion, and celebrate this resurrection on Easter Sunday, two days after Good Friday.
     复活节是基督教最重要的宗教节日，基督徒相信耶稣是在死后两天复活的。他们在周日庆祝这个复活节，这一天是周五后的第二天。
     April Fools Day is a notable day celebrated in many countries on April 1st. The day is marked by the practical jokes on friends, family members, enemies and neighbors.
     愚人节是一个特别的日子，在许多国家，人们在4月1日庆祝。这一天的特点是对朋友、家人、敌人和邻居做恶作剧。
     Thanksgiving Day is the most truly American of the national Holidays in the United States and is most closely connected with the earliest history of the country. The pattern of the Thanksgiving celebration has never changed through the years. The big family dinner is planned months ahead. On the dinner table, people will find apples, oranges, chestnuts, walnuts, grapes and so on. But the best and most attractive among them are roast turkey and pumpkin pie. They have been the most traditional and favorite food on Thanksgiving Day throughout the years.
     感恩节是最地道、最美国的国家假日，而且和美国早期历史关系最密切。感恩节的庆祝模式许多年来从未改变。在大家庭中，人们很早就准备丰盛的家宴。在餐桌上，人们可以吃到苹果、橘子、栗子、核桃、葡萄等。但是，最好的和最有吸引力的是烤火鸡和南瓜馅饼，它们一直是感恩节中最富传统和最受人喜爱的食品。
     Mother's Day is a day honoring mothers, In the USA, Mother's Day is celebrated on the 2nd Sunday of May.
     母亲节这一天用来纪念母亲，在美国，母亲节是在五月的第二个星期日庆祝。
     The carved pumpkin lit by a candle inside and trick-or-treat are most prominent symbols of the Halloween in America. Trick-or-treat is a custom for children on Halloween, Children proceed in costume from house to house, asking for treats such as confectionery, or sometimes money.
     雕刻南瓜灯笼和"招待还是恶作剧"的口号是美国万圣节最突出的特征。"招待还是恶作剧"是孩子们在万圣节的习俗，孩子们穿上特别的服装挨家挨户要求"招待"，比如糖果，有时是零用钱。
     Christmas is the feast of the nativity of Jesus, is on 26th, December every year. But nobody knows the actual birthday of Jesus. On Christmas Eve the children will hang their stockings at the foot of the bed. On the next morning, their stockings will be full with Christmas gift from Father Christmas.
     圣诞节是耶稣诞生的盛宴，在每年的十二月二十六日。但是，没有人知道耶稣的实际生日。圣诞节前夜，孩子们会在床头挂袜子。第二天早晨，他们的袜子被圣诞老人的圣诞礼物装满。