Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year

            Chinese new year has a lot of importance in Chinese . It is as meaningful to Chinese people as Christmas and Easter are to most Westerners .

            People usually celebrate Chinese new year for about a week .Some people use this opportunity to go overseas . However , most people take time off work and travel home to see their families. People work very hard to prepare for the New Year . In fact , some people start to prepare for Chinese new year weeks ahead of time. That preparation includes lots of shopping .

             During this period  , many people visit Taipei's Dihua St. There people can buy presents , decorations, food and clothing . This is one of the busiest shopping times of the year . Around this time  , popular shopping streets receive thousands of customers .
            Aside from shopping , there are lots of other traditional activities during Chinese New Year . For example , most people clean their homes , give out red envelopes , and set off firecrackers .
           Food is a huge part of this holiday  , On New Year's Eve , families get together for a big dinner . Young people usually stay up past midnight. This is supposed to give long life to the elder members of the family . After dinner , people might play mahjong with their relatives , or share late-night snacks .
         Life is often very stressful . Most of us have serious concerns like jobs and schoolwork . It's nice to know that once a year . We can take a break from our usual lives and have fun with our families . That is the best of Chinese New Year . 

Tips :
1. Take time off : 請假
2. Ahead of time : 提前 , ahead 做副詞.
3. Aside from something :除了 ..... 之外.
4. Red envelope: 紅包
5. Firecracker : 鞭炮
6. Stay up : 熬夜
7. Snack : 小吃.

Reference :

1. ABC互動式英語雜誌 115期