英国和美国的文化差异英语作文【汇总20篇】

Dear Tom

I am very happy to receive your letter. I am fine these days but a bit busy. I am always busy with my study and there are lots of homework to do every day. I work hard and I am interested in all the subjects so I can alwasy get good grades. I often do sports for about twenty minutes after school because its good for my health and it can help me relax. I am going to take an important exam so that I can get into senior high. So I will try as hard as I can. How about you?

Yours

Lily

Nowadays, if you search the Internet, you may find the weird situation that people say they are rich not because they own a lot of money, but tea eggs. This is the hot topic in the latest days; the topic originated from a Taiwan TV talk show, a scholar said Mainland was so poor that people there couldn’t buy a tea egg to eat. Then people in the Mainland laughed at what the scholar said, they showed off a lot of tea eggs in the Internet, leaving the words that they were lucky to have tea eggs. Though Taiwan is part of China, because of the history issues, people don’t real get to know each other, so culture misunderstanding always happen. Some people in Taiwan think the Mainland is very poor, so they say we couldn’t afford a tea egg. People need to get more communication between Taiwan and Mainland, we are a family, we should know each other, such misunderstand should be eliminated.

现在，如果你上网，你可以发现一个很奇怪的现象，人们讲自己很富裕，并不是因为有很多钱，而是因为他们有茶叶蛋。这是最近很火的一个话题，这个话题是由台湾的一个访谈节目引起的，节目中的一位学者说大陆很贫穷，人们吃不起茶叶蛋。然后大陆的人们取笑这位学者所讲的，纷纷在网上晒茶叶蛋，并留言他们很幸运拥有茶叶蛋。虽然台湾是中国的一部分，但是由于历史问题的原因，人们彼此之间并不了解，所以文化误读经常发生。一些在台湾的民众觉得大陆很贫穷，因此才会将我们买不起茶叶蛋。台湾和大陆之间应该多交流，我们是一家人，我 们应该了解彼此，这样的误会应该要消除。

Visitors to the United States are often surprised to learn the great distance from the east coast to the west coast. The continental United States stretches 4,500 kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean on the east to the Pacific Ocean on the west. It borders Canada on the North,and reaches south to Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico. A fast train,travelling 96 kilometers an hour, takes more than 48 hours to cross the country. A jet plane crosses the continental United States from east to west in about five hours.

Including the states of Alaska and Hawaii,which are not seen in this map of the continental United States, the country covers an area of 9,363,123 square kilometers. Of the fifty states of the country Alaska is the largest in area,and Hawaii is the newest. The former borders on northwestern Canada: the latter lies in the Pacific.

传统文化剪纸消失英语作文应该怎么写？我们要保护传统文化，一起看看下面的作文吧！

传统文化剪纸消失英语作文（一）

Since the big country has been found at October 1st of 1949, the People’s Republic of China has gone through a history of 62 years. Looking back at the 62 years, especially in recent 30 years, we have made many great achievements in different fields. And China has been the second largest economy in the world in 2010. And as a Chinese, I am so proud of our mother country.

However, on the other hand, we also have been losing many other good things such as beautiful environment and traditional culture when the GDP has increased quickly. And we also know that the traditional culture is the soul of an ancient nation. It is the most important thing. But we Chinese seem to ignore this. And that many things happened in this year like to remind us to be awake of this phenomenon. The accident of our high speed trains had taken many people’s lives away in July. And that the 2-years-old girl had been hurt to die while 18 passers should to save her.

And in my opinion, the culture and civilization are so important that we can’t lose them. However the economy and technology have been developed, we will have nothing when we lost the important things. As a student, I have no idea that what should I do. And I just want to say, we must develop our traditional culture but not to abandon them.

传统文化剪纸消失英语作文（二）

Hello, everyone, my topic today is “we are losing our traditional culture”.

After seeing the movie Kung Fu Panda, I was impressed deeply by its advanced cartoon technology and its abundant characters, but what impressed me most was the series of Chinese elements in the film, such as buildings of Chinese style, calligraphy, Tang suits and so on. I had to admit that the film makers, those Americans, seemed to know our Chinese traditional culture even more than most of us Chinese, which should made us ashamed. To be honest, the movie Kung Fu Panda made many contributions to spreading our traditional culture, but we should not be pleased at all, we Chinese should play the most important role in spreading our own traditional culture. Kung Fu is ours, panda is ours, but Kung Fu Panda is not ours, how terrible it is!

That all, thank you for your listening and it’s time for your questions now.

传统文化剪纸消失英语作文（三）

On the Losing of Tyaditional Culture

It is widely noted that lots of traditional culture is dis^ppeBriitg alotig with the development of technology* Many aucient architectures and traditional ways of living have been deserted. It seems that the traditional culture and craftmanship will be replaced in this modem era.

The following reasons can account for the above phenomenon. Firstly, traditional technologies are always considered ineffective while the new sciences are always highly efficient. Secondly, it is costly to protect the traditional culture.

the fund used to protect the ancient culture was instead delivered to the poor, it will be helpful to the improvement of their living standard. Thirdly，modeni science and technology facilitate both our daiJy and academic life a tot. For instance, college students always collect their thesis materials by surfing the Internet instead of borrowing books from the library.

In my opinion, although traditional culture is an ancient heritage, it couldnt keep pace with the development of society. It is the tide of history that the traditional culture and technology will no doubt be eliminated in the end.

[传统文化剪纸消失英语作文

导语：传统文化一直是考试的“常客”，经常出现在各类考卷上，如今正式纳入高考新大纲，中华优秀传统文化的重要性和地位也就不言而喻了。下面是yuwenmi小编为大家整理的作文素材，欢迎阅读与借鉴，谢谢!

前段时间2017年普通高考考试大纲出炉，明确提出，2017年高考将增加中华优秀传统文化的考核内容，充分发挥高考命题的育人功能和积极导向作用。比如，在语文中增加古代文化常识的内容，在汉语中增加文言文、传统节日、民俗等内容，在数学中增加数学文化的内容。

传统文化一直是考试的“常客”，经常出现在各类考卷上，如今正式纳入高考新大纲，中华优秀传统文化的重要性和地位也就不言而喻了。既然高考都将它纳入了考点范围，那怎么能少了四六级呢，这些素材赶紧积累起来，考场上才能沉着应对!

1.长城是人类创造的世界奇迹之一。如果你到了中国却没去过长城，就像到了巴黎没有去看看埃菲尔铁塔，或者就像到了埃及没有去看金字塔一样。人们常说：“不到长城非好汉。”实际上，长城最初只是一些断断续续的城墙，直到秦朝统一中国后才将其连成长城。然而，我们今天看到的长城——东起山海关，西至嘉峪关——大部分都是在明代修建的。

The Great Wall is one of the wonders of the world that created by human beings. If you come to China without climbing the Great Wall, It’s just like going Paris without visiting the Eiffel Tower , or going to Egypt without visiting the pyramids. People often say: "not a true man unless he comes to the Great Wall." In fact, the Great Wall was originally just some off and on the wall, it was not until the qin dynasty unified China after it joined the Great Wall. However, the Great Wall we see today - east of shanhaiguan, west to jiayuguan, most of them are built in the Ming dynasty.

2.饺子是深受中国人民喜爱的传统食品。相传为古代医圣张仲景发明。饺子的制作时包括：(1)擀皮;(2)备馅;(3)包馅水煮三个步骤。其特点是皮薄馅嫩，味道鲜美，形状独特，百食不厌。民间有“好吃不过饺子”的俗语。中国人接亲待客、逢年过节都有包饺子的习俗，寓意吉利。对崇尚亲情的中国人来说，“更岁交子”吃饺子，更是欢度除夕、辞旧迎新必不可少的内容。

Dumpling is a traditional food which is popular with Chinese people. According to an ancient Chinese legend,dumplings were first made by the medical saint Zhang Zhongjing. There are three steps involved in making dumplings: (1) make dumpling wrappers out of dumpling flour; (2) prepare the dumpling stuffing; (3) make dumplings and boil them.With thin and elastic dough skin ,fresh and tender stuffing, delicious taste, and unique shapes, dumplings are worth eating hundreds of times.There’s an old saying that claims,"Nothing could be more delicious than dumplings."During the Spring Festival and other holidays, or when treating relatives and friends,Chinese people like to follow the auspicious custom of eating dumplings. To Chinese people who show high reverence for family love,having dumplings at the monment the old year is replaced by the new is an essential part of bidding farewell to the old and ushering in the new year.

3.京剧被誉为“东方歌剧”，是地道的中国国粹。它起源于中国多种古老的地方戏剧，特别是南方的“徽班”。到了19世纪末，京剧形成并成为中国最大的戏曲剧种。京剧是综合性表演艺术，集唱、念、做、打、舞为一体，通过程式化的表演手段，叙述故事，刻画人物。角色主要分生、旦、净、丑四大行当。

Chinese Beijing Opera is known as the "Oriental opera", is the authentic Chinese quintessence. It originated in China where a variety of ancient drama, especially the southern "HuiBan". By the end of the 19th century, Beijing Opera to form the Chinese operas flourishing and become Chinas largest. Beijing Opera is a comprehensive performing arts, sing, read, do, play, dance as a whole, by means of stylized performance means, narrative, and characters. The main types of roles in Beijing Opera are sheng, dan, jing, and chou.

《普罗米修斯的故事》讲述了普罗米修斯同情人类，为人类盗取火种，让人类过了上幸福的生活，自己却被束缚在高加索山上，接受宙斯的惩罚，最后，一位名叫海格里斯的勇士救出了普罗米修斯，让他重获自由。

而《燧氏钻木取火》讲述了大神伏羲同情人类，将火赐给了他们，不过，因为某个人的疏忽，让他们失去了火，重新陷入了黑暗之中，这时，有一位年轻人不畏狂风暴雨，不怕跋山涉水，在伏羲的指引下找到了一种永远不会熄灭的火。

从这两则故事中可以看出两位大神---普罗米修斯和伏羲都富有同情心，可是，同样有关于火的神话故事却隐藏着许多不同点。

从《普罗米修斯的故事》中---“狂风终日在他身边呼啸，冰雹敲打着他的面庞；凶猛的大鹰在他耳边尖叫，用无情的利爪撕裂他的肌体。”这段话表现了普罗米修斯的善良、无私和勇敢，彰显了西方神话故事里神的情感，然而，《燧氏钻木取火》中---“年轻人翻过高山，涉过大河、穿过森林，历尽艰辛，终于来到遂明国……年轻人不灰心，他找来各种树枝，耐心地用不同的树枝进行摩擦。”这段话体现了东方人吃苦耐劳的坚毅品格和人定胜天的壮志雄心，东方神话崇尚以人为主，每个成就都来自于人类自身的努力，刻画出了一个个勇敢鲜活的英雄人物。

两则神话的形成截然不同，相比之下，我更喜爱东方神话，因为在人们遇到困难时，他们是靠自己的努力而成功的，不是靠别人的施舍和给予。

东西方神话各有各的特点，西方神话充满美妙奇幻；东方神话充满艰辛智慧，这也让我明白了世界是多元的、美好的。

My English friend

我的英国朋友

My English friend name is jim.

He is ten, his family in london,he and his family member comes our china to play.he has a cosin,he name is qianyu hi is oniy four years old,but he has a lot of questions.look he is pointing at the chopsticks to ask that my this is anything.

I and jim has become the good friend .several days later jim said that he wanted, he said that i love china .i will forget that you zhou lei, will have free time london to look at me .ok see you jim.see you.

【参考翻译】

我的英国朋友的名字是吉姆。

他10岁了，他的家人在伦敦，他和他的家人来到了中国旅游，他的名字叫千羽喜，仅仅四岁，但他有很多问题.他指着筷子问我这是什么。

我和吉姆已经成为了很好的朋友。几天后，吉姆说，他想要的，他说，我爱中国，我不会忘记你周磊，将有空闲时间来伦敦看我。

Two years after the events of The Avengers,Steve Rogers resides peacefully in Washington,D.C.,struggling to adapt to contemporary society.However,after a is assailed,Steve becomes entangled in a mystery that may endanger the globe.Together with Natasha Romanoff,Captain America attempts to uncover the growing machination while fending off hired hit men.

When the entire scheme is discovered,Captain America and the Black Widow must recruit the aid of the Falcon and soon encounter an unanticipated and powerful adversary — the Winter Soldier.

[美国队长英雄英语作文

根据霍夫斯泰德对文化所下的定义，文化是在同一个环境中的人们所具有的“共同的心理程序”，是由相同的教育背景和生活经历所决定的。因此，各个不同的民族或地域之前会存在文化差异，因为其中的人会受到教育、社会和工作经验的影响。以东西方的文化差异为例，中国是一个崇尚大权力距离的国家，而美国是权力距离相对较小的国家。因此，地位象征对中国人来说尤为重要，认为上级所拥有的特权是理所当然的;而美国人则认为人与人之间是平等的。此外，西方人相对比较个人主义而东方人则更看重集体主义。在个人主义的社会中，人们重视自身的价值和需要，依靠个人的努力来为自己谋取利益，而在集体主义国家，人们把自己融入到一个或几个集体中，在这些集体中找到属于自己的位置，人们在精神上依赖于集体，因此，和谐在这些国家中显得尤为重要。在东西方文化中，还存在以下三个主要的文化差异，即不确定性规避、男性度与女性度以及长期取向与短期取向。

The information revolution， the development of mass media and the achievements in science and technology have doubtlessly ushered us in a rapidly progressing society， where we may have no time to talk about our traditional culture. In the city， no one can escape from the fast pace.We eat the popularized fast food and enjoy the popularized "fast food" culture. Since we get so used to such fast things that many traditional things have been neglected， some people believe that the traditional culture will gradually be lost， but I think it will never be lost.

Although entertainments are in abundance nowadays， traditional cultures still continue to dominate.We still regard going to a concert as a luxury. Many classic books touch a string from generation to generation in spite of time and space.And we are still moved by the inspirational spirits of our great ancestors.Traditional festivals remind us of our disposition to the traditional culture. Our relief in traditional culture gets ready to revive at any time.

To some traditional cultures that are on decline， we have taken active measures to conserve them. Experts have come up with proper advice on protecting such cultures. Many volunteers have dedicated themselves to studying them. First and foremost，more and more people have discerned the importance of the traditional culture. Therefore， we are sure that our efforts will lead to a brilliant future.

If a culture wants to gain an eternal life， it should change itself to cater to the people in its age. So does our traditional culture. Traditional cultures adhering to modern means appear rigorous. For example， we make CDs for classic music so that it can not only meet modern needs but also spread further and more successfully in the modern world. The appearance of traditional culture changes， but the essence will never change and will be well accepted.

There is no need to worry about whether our traditional culture will be lost. It is an important heritage of the whole human race. No culture， no mankind. We cherish the traditional culture as we cherish our blood in our body. The traditional culture lies in life， forever continuing.

简评

信息厚炸，科技革命，快餐文化……人们身不由己，无暇他顾.这些无疑会引发人们对传统文化的担忧.作者针对这一现象斩钉截铁地提出自己的论点：传统文化不会消亡.然后作者运用了生活中许多为人们所熟知的例子，以及一些良好的排比句式，分段逐层推进，列举、讨论了人们对待传统文化中不同内容的态度和做法，并展望了前景，从而较好地完成了论证的任务.

全文思维活跃，条理井然，可见作者是位细心之人，有一个善于思考的头脑和一颗善感的心.只是在有些语句的表达上还可进行雕琢，以免艰涩难懂.

[传统文化不会消亡优秀英语作文

前几天，我读了两篇神话——读《普罗米修斯的故事》和《燧氏钻木取火》后，我深有感触。

《普罗米修斯的故事》讲了普罗米修斯同情人类，为人类盗火结果被宙斯惩罚。《燧氏钻木取火》讲的是一个叫燧氏的年轻人在伏羲的指引下发现了钻木取火的方法。

读了两篇神话后，我发现了它们有相同点，也有不同点。相同点在于他们都是由一位天神帮助人类，带给人类光明，而且都很同情人类。不同点有两点，第一点：东方神话——《燧氏钻木取火》，伏羲同情人类，直接赐火给人类，然后将火熄灭再给出提示，告诉人类火在哪里，有人类自己寻找方法，从这里可以看出东方天神的博爱。而西方神话——《普罗米修斯的故事》我认为西方既有善良、勇敢的神，就比如普罗米修斯，他同情人类，于是冒险去见宙斯，请求宙斯把火赐给人类，可宙斯却说：“不给就是不给！”但他为什么不愿意把火给人类呢？因为宙斯自私，他希望人类永远愚昧无知，这样他就可以通知世界了。由于宙斯不赐火给人类，那么普罗米修斯也只好去盗火，结果被宙斯发现，普罗米修斯被捆在了高加索山的最高峰上，受尽折磨，这就说明了普罗米修斯的勇敢，可也写出了宙斯的自私、残酷无情。将东西方神话一对比，我发现东方天神很博爱，也很智慧，他将提示给人类，让人类自己找方法。

第二点是：《燧氏钻木取火》，伏羲指引年轻人，让他找到了永不熄灭的火种——钻木取火的方法，说明东方人民注重的是方法，方法是靠人想出来的，也就是说人们只相信人自己的力量。《普罗米修斯的故事》是普罗米修斯为人类盗火，这样会让人类觉得——神什么都可以做到，便养成了一种依赖。这说明西方的人民相信神，认为神可以给人一切。

读完这两篇神话后，解决了我的一个问题——为什么中国的发展比其它国家快，因为中国人相信自己的力量，而西方人民相信神。

前几天，我们在课堂上学了《普罗米修斯的故事》和《燧氏钻木取火》，我对东西方文化也有了新的看法。

《普罗米修斯的故事》讲的是普罗米修斯同情人类，为人类盗取了天火，结果被宙斯惩罚。《燧氏钻木取火》讲的是一个叫燧氏的年轻人在天神伏羲的指引下找到了钻木取火的办法。

他们有着相同点和不同点，他们的相同点是：《普罗米修斯的故事》中普罗米修斯发现人们住在山洞里饥寒交迫；人们被野兽捕食，甚至彼此猎食——人们实在是一切生物中最可怜的了。而《燧氏钻木取火》中大神伏羲想让人知道火的用处。从这里可以看出火的起源都是人类不知道怎么用火、也不知道火是什么时候开始的。所以天神同情人类、可怜人类，想帮助人类。

他们的不同点一：《普罗米修斯的故事》中普罗米修斯他把几个冷得发抖的人从山洞中叫出来，为他们生了火，叫他们用火取暖的方法。从这里可以看出普罗米修斯是直接把火种给了人类。而《燧氏钻木取火》中伏羲大展神通，在山林中降下了一场雷雨，雷电劈在树木上，树木燃烧起来，很快就变成了熊熊大火。从这里看出伏羲是想让人类自己去发现这种叫火的东西。

第二个不同点：西方神话中的西方天神有的是自私、有的是博爱的。宙斯就是自私自利的，而普罗米修斯就是博爱的。在普罗米修斯向宙斯索要火种时，宙斯冷酷无情地说不给，所以在宙斯不同意后，普罗米修斯为了让人类生活条件变好，只好去盗取火种。但东方文化中，东方天神是智慧的，伏羲大神而是教会人们如何得到火种。《燧氏钻木取火》中的燧氏学会了取火的方法，他找来各种树枝，耐心地用不同的树枝进行摩擦。终于树枝上冒烟了，然后钻出火了。这样人类就找到了取火的方法——钻木取火。

从这里可以看出东方是智慧的，什么事都是要自己来想办法的。而西方是自私的、博爱的，什么事都是神来为你受罚。所以东方更相信人的力量，而西方是更崇尚神的力量。

The lunar new year is a great occasion to the chinese people. it lasts about the first four days of the year,during which people do not work except for the workers on duty. students do not go to school,and shops are closed.

several days before the new year,people begin to prepare. farmers kill pigs,sheep,cocks and hens. city dwellers buy meat fish and vegetables. houses are cleaned; coupletsare posted on the doors. colourful lanterns are hung at the gate.

On the eve of the new year,each family has its members gatherd together and eats a family reunion dinner. after the meal they watch tv until the clock strickes twelve. then every family sets off long strings of small firecrackers and other fire works to welcome the new year. on the first day of the new year,almost everyone is dressed in his or her best. when people meet on the way,they say to each other “happy new year”. friends and relatives pay new year calls and gives presents to each other. children indulge themselves in games.

Last year, I went to Guilin for travel, it was a great trip for me. I not only had a look at the beautiful scenery, but also made friends. I knew a lovely girl from America, we met each other on the train. As we were almost at the same age, we communicated a lot. We shared our opinion about the culture and learned a lot. When our train reached the destination, we needed to separate, we promised to keep in touch by the Internet. Now a year has passed, we make our promise and keep in touch all the time. I have improved my English and she is so interested in China. It seems that we can never finish our topic, because we always have so much to share with each other. I am so lucky to make a good friend.

去年,我去了桂林旅游,对我来说这是一次完美的旅行。我不仅看了美丽的风景,也交到了朋友。我认识了一个可爱的来自美国的女孩,我们在火车上相遇。由于我们几乎在同一个年龄,我们交流了很多。我们分享各自的文化,学到了很多。当火车到达目的地时,我们要分开了,我们承诺通过网络保持联系。现在一年过去了,我们旅行了承诺,保持着联系。我提高了我的英语,她对中国也感兴趣。似乎我们总有说不完的话题,因为我们总是有那么多东西要相互分享。我很幸运交到了一个好朋友。

[一位来自美国的朋友英语作文

Old People in America

In the old days，American families were bigger。 People had more children，and grandparents and great-grandparents lived with their families。 But now， families are smaller， and many old people

live alone。 At the same time， Americans are living longer and longer。 The number of old people is always growing。

Some old people like to stay in their old homes。 They do not want to move from their old homes。 They do not want to move from their hometown。 They are near their 。friends and family。 But some do not have a lot of friends。 They want to meet new people。 They want to live in a quiet place with other

people of their age。

A large number of old people are moving to the South。 It is warm there。 You do not have to walk through the snow in winter，or pay a lot of money for heating。

A large number of old people are moving to the South only for old people。 One of these is Sun City， near Phoenix， Arizona。 All the families in Sun City must have one person over the age of 50 ，and children under 18 years old cant live there。

美国的老人

以前美国都是大家庭。人们孩子很多，祖父母和曾祖父母都和家人在一起生活。但现在，家庭越来越小，许多老人独自生活。与此同时，美国人越活越长。老年人的数目总在不断增长。

有些老人喜欢呆在他们原来的房子里。他们不愿意从旧房子里搬出来。他们不想离开家乡。他们想住在朋友和家人附近。但是有些老人朋友不多，他们想结交新人，他们想和其他同龄的老人共同居住在一个僻静的地方。

很多老人正在迁往南部，那里天气暖和。冬天的时候不需要在雪中走路，也不需要交大笔取暖费。

很多老人正在迁往只允许老人居住的南部城市。其中之一就是亚利桑那州菲尼克斯附近的太阳城。太阳城居住的所有家庭都必须有一个成员在50岁以上，18岁以下的孩子能住在那里。

The Spring Festival is our Chinese nation from ancient to modern times, the

most cautious Chinese traditional festival, during the Spring Festival time,

always waiting for the one family reunion together, talking about the years

harvest, for the New Year filled the bright vision. The children enjoy the

tightened and joyful holidays.

Watch the Spring Festival is coming, this years mother had said but

antithetical couplet, let me down, a few family, it is not a "project" ah, ha

ha. Two days before the Spring Festival, I began to get busy, small

"calligrapher" to start the project, through my huihaopomo, less than half of

the martial arts, home with the red antithetical couplet, "by mountains and

rivers show signs, ushered in the" spring "; drop thousands of monforts million

flowers, Huan, script the script, a piece of art was born, watching the house

full of Spring Festival couplets, mom repeatedly praise not shut up.

Thirty in the morning, I and mom posted antithetical couplet window

Ronaldo, look at my work on the door, red, a new sub population; we took the

mother to the hometown of antithetical couplet posted on my hung Wen, see the

two father, repeatedly said good, a grandfather of the past grace. At that time

I grandfather calligraphy is quite a New Year couplets, all relatives, the house

is filled with grandpa wrote. The subsequent to the lady home, home to the lady

on the wall, see my work has been useless, I really felt flattered.

This year the Spring Festival, two aunt aunt, our three family members

accompany lady together; of the Spring Festival last year, we raised the glass,

not a firecracker loud, not a fireworks shine, but in the beautiful blessing of

new years day, the night is so calm and peaceful. 20---- I had a special spring

festival.

The Americans are much in love with food. This is part of being American too. Baseball is Americans national pastime1, but whats a ball game without hot dogs, peanuts2 and Cracker Jacks (sweetened popcorn3)? Hollywood is Americas symbol of glamour4 and excitement all over the world, but who would watch a movie in America without asking for an extra large bag of popcorn? And the astronauts took instant orange drink [Tang] with them.

Americans love all kinds of food, Italian, Chinese, Mexican, Greek, French, Japanese and many others. The Americans are in fact

“The UN of Food.”

To get familiar with the American eating custom, one must know two things. First, one must know the sequence5 of service. There is something special in terms of the sequence, or order, of dish service in America compared with ours. Here is the order:

1. Aperitif6—a small cup of alcoholic drink to increase ones appetite7. The host or hostess will ask: “Do you like a cup of aperitif?”

2. Hors doeuvre8—some tasty food offered in small quantities at the beginning of a meal.

3. Appetizer —or called starter, it is a small serving of juice, fruit or seafood or something else, at the beginning of a meal, to stimulate9 peoples appetite.

4. Now the main course is under way:

a) Soup—it is usually the first course in a dinner.

b) Fish—it is usually served after the soup and before the entree10 in a formal meal.

c) Entree—the third course of a meal, generally it is made up of a hot meat.

d) Savory11—the last course in a formal meal, it is something pleasant to eat but with a salty rather than sweet taste.

5. Dessert12 —sweet food served toward the end of a meal, usually it is a pudding, chocolate cake, or cheese and biscuits sometimes.

6. Coffee—thats the last stage in a formal present-day European and American dinner. Its served either at table or in the living room.

In a family treatment, the above-mentioned No 1-3 stage may be omitted13, though No 4 is the essential part. And the main course generally includes no more than 5 dishes of nutrient14 food. Ostentation15 is never under consideration.

Another thing to mention is that serving oneself from ones own plate is popular in Europe and America, except for the soup and bread which is taken and enjoyed according to ones need.

The second one we must know about the American eating custom is the taboos at table.

(1) Dont circle your plate with your arm. If you do so, you will become the focus16 of the table. Everyone would wonder: “Is there anything wrong with the food?” This may give a false message that you dont like the food or something like that.

(2) Dont push the plate back when finished. Leave it where it was. Do you mean to remind17 the hostess that youve just completed a labor?

(3)Dont lean18 back and announce that “Im through” or “Im stuffed19.” Just put the fork and knife quietly across the plate, thats all.

(4) Dont cut up everything before you start to eat. Cut only one or two bites20 at a time.

(5) Never take huge mouthfuls of anything. Do you mean to show how hungry you are? Dont do that! Be gentlemanlike or ladylike.

(6) Dont crook21 your finger when picking up a cup or glass. That looks too affected22, far from ladylike!

(7) Never wear too much lipstick23 to the table. It may stain the napkins24 and look gaudy25 and embarrassing on the rims26 of the cup or glass.

(8) Its never acceptable to reach across the table for anything (a serving dish, for example). If the item you want is not at hand, simply ask for the nearest person for help, like “Mrs. Smith, would you mind passing me the butter (or a dish)?”

North side of the Mall, 14th St NW and Constitution Ave; closest Metro Smithsonian.

If you like kitsch, you wont want to miss the bizarre melange of cultural artefacts at theNational Museum of American History. George Washingtons wooden teeth, Muhammad Alisboxing gloves, and the ruby slippers Judy Garland wore in the Wizard of Oz are set amongdidactic displays tracing the countrys development. Its not so much a center for scholarlystudy as a sanctuary for vanishing Americana, incorporating Model T Fords, old post officesand even a restored, turn-of-the-century ice-cream parlor, which still serves up banana splits.

As you enter from the Mall, directly on to the second floor, a sound-and-light displayshowcases the battered red, white and blue flag that inspired the US national anthem - theStar-Spangled Banner itself, which survived the British bombing of Baltimore harbor during theWar of 1812. The worthier exhibits are also on this floor: an account of the rural farm-basedsociety of the early US stands across from an examination of the mass movement of African-Americans from Southern farms to the wartime industries of northern cities. A lunch counterfrom Woolworths in Greensboro, North Carolina, evokes the sit-in of 1960, while "AmericanEncounters" focuses on New Mexico, looking at how tourism has affected communities such asthe pueblo of Santa Clara and Hispanic Chimayo. On the first floor, the "Information Age"gallery traces communications from Morses first telegraph to Apple Macintoshes, whileseparate galleries display in glorious profusion the artefacts and machines that have shapedmodern America - from lightbulbs and motorbikes to trains and atomic clocks. The top floorholds political memorabilia (much of it over a century old), stamp and coin collections, old TVsets and typewriters, though two final outstanding exhibits inject a serious tone - "PersonalLegacy: the Healing of a Nation" brings together some of the 25,000 items left by relatives atthe Vietnam Memorial in DC, while "A More Perfect Union" deals candidly with the shamefulinternment of Japanese-American citizens during World War II.

There is also a huge difference between Chinese and Western people. Chinese people use chopsticks and western people use fork and knife. Usually people who use fork and knife will use fork to hold the meat and cut it by knife and use fork to help to get that piece of meat into mouse. Chinese just use chopstick to pick things and pass it into your mouse.

Chinese people only have three meals during a day. But western people will have more, they have afternoon tea. Usually they would have fruits, homemade cake, tea (black tea) or biscuit with cheese. If you are a housewife and have a lot of time, you may have morning tea as well.

Santa Claus was born in US in the 1860s he was named this as he had a white beard and a belly,so he was named Santa Claus as this was the Dutch word for St Nicholas,Sintaklaas.Although the Dutch had bought him with them in the 17th century,he did not become an important person at Christmas until the Novelist Washington Irving put him in a novel that he wrote in 1809.This first Santa Claus was still known as St.Nicholas,he did smoke a pipe,and fly around in a wagon without any reindeer,but he did not have his red suit or live at the North Pole,he did however bring presents to children every year.

In 1863 He was given the name Santa Claus and bore the red suit,pipe,and his reindeer and sleigh.

Now Christmas celebrations vary greatly between regions of the United States,because of the variety of nationalities which have settled in it.

In Pennsylvania,the Moravians build a landscape,called a putz - under the Christmas tree,while in the same state the Germans are given gifts by Belsnickle,who taps them with his switch if they have misbehaved.

Early European settlers brought many traditions to the United States.Many settled in the early days in the South,these settlers would send Christmas greetings to their distant neighbors by shooting firearms and letting off fireworks.In Hawaii this practice is still in use as under the sunny skies,Santa Claus arrives by boat and Christmas dinner is eaten outdoors.

In Alaska,a star on a pole is taken from door to door,followed by Herods Men,who try to capture the star.Colonial doorways are often decorated with pineapple,a symbol of hospitality.

In Alaska,boys and girls with lanterns on poles carry a large figure of a star from door to door.They sing carols and are invited in for supper.

中美文化差异

国人见面打招呼时，喜欢问“你吃了吗?”“你去哪呀?”

而西方人对此都感到很怪异。

An American studying in China had an appointment at noon. As he was getting on his bicycle a Chinese friend passed by. "吃了吗?”The young Chinese asked. This, of course, is a common Chinese greeting around meal time and the American merely nodded with a smile, waved goodbye and went off. He realized that his friend’s remark was nothing more than a Chinese way of saying hello or Hi. If the greeting had been put literally into English "Have you eaten yet?" Or “Have you had your lunch? " It would have sounded rather unusual. To Americans, this greeting might mean this: "I havent either. Come on, let’s go together and get something to eat." or "If you haven’t, I was just going to invite you to my place." In other words, it could indicate an invitation to a meal.

Actually , another foreign student who had not been long in China once complained in broken Chinese 你们为什么老问我吃了饭没有?我有钱。To his way of thinking, people were concerned that he was not getting his meals properly because of lack of money. Clearly, he was offended. There is a similar Chinese greeting, such as "上哪儿去啊?""到哪儿去啦?" Which if translated literally, would be "Where are yon going?" Or "Where have you been?" The natural reaction of most English-speaking people to this greeting would most likely be "It’s none of your business!"

Fortunately, not all greetings sound strange or arouse displeasure. Many are similar, some are merely different. While greetings in many languages often indicate the time of day, there may be inconsistencies within a language. English has Good morning, Good afternoon and Good evening but not Good noon. And Good night is not a greeting at all, but an expression of farewell.

greeting 打招呼

一天中午，一个在中国学习的美国留学生有个约会。他刚要骑上自行车，一位中国朋友从旁边走过，问他：“吃了吗?”这是中国人在吃饭前后打招呼的常用语。美国留学生笑着点点头，挥挥手表示告别，就走了。

他知道，中国朋友的话等于英语中的Hello或Hi，但如果照字面译成Have you eaten yet?或Have you had your lunch?外国人听起来就很怪。美国人会以为，这种打招呼似乎是说：“我也没有吃。走吧，我们一起去吃点东西吧。”或者说：“如果没有吃的话，我正要请你到我家去呢。”;总之，这样打招呼有时意味着邀请对方去吃饭 。

发生过这样的事。有一次，一个刚到中国不久的外国留学生结结巴巴地用汉语说：“你们为什么老问我吃了饭没有?我有钱。”他以为人们总问他“吃饭了吗”是因为怕他没钱吃饭。他显然对这种问法感到生气。

再如，汉语中的“上哪儿去啊?”和“到哪儿去啦?”这样打招呼的话直译成英语就是Where are you going?和Where have you been?用这两句英语来打招呼，大部分讲英语的人听了会不高兴，他们的反应很可能是：It s none of your business! 你管得着吗!

幸而，打招呼的话并不都令人感到奇怪或者引起对方反感。有许多打招呼的话是相似的，有些只是说法不同。在许多语言里，打招呼的话往往是相似的，有些只是说法不同。

在许多语言里，打招呼的话往往与时间有关，但即使在一种语言中也有不一致的地方。英语中有Good morning, Good afternoon, Good evening 都相当于汉语中的“您好”，只是说的时间不同而已，但不说Good noon。而 Good night (晚安;明天见;再会)根本不是打招呼的话，这只是告别时说的话。