Go for Luxury Watches, Fashion Watches, Discount Watches

The city of Heihe in Heilongjiang Province, taking border tourism as its pillar industry, in 1998 witnessed a remarkable grown in the number of travelers, income and profits compared with the same period of 1997. The number of visitors to the Heihe River increased to 118,087 by the end of last October, an increase of 10. 6% over the same period of 1997.

Heihe and Russia's Amur Region are only separated by the river. With the advantageous geological conditions, the Heihe government has further expanded its opening, including border tourism. While improving its environment for economic development, the local government has also attached importance to speeding up the construction of tourist scenic spots. As a result, its tourism is thriving with unique border characteristics and a special national flavour, thus extending domestic and overseas tourist routes.

Now, the city has built more than 40 good hotels and restaurants to attract more tourists.

B. Guilin

As a beautiful and historical famous world city, Guilin is located in South China's Guanxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Featuring karst topography, it has long been renowned for having the most beautiful scenery in China. It is endowed with scenery characterized by lovely hills, weirdly shaped peaks, winding rivers with limpid waters, grotesque rocks and exotic caves.

Tourism has become the pillar industry in the city. A multi-functional and multi-level industrial structure and a tourist receiving system have been formed.

The city has 31 star hotels, including two five-star hotels, three four-star hotels and 15 three-star hotels. It has 18 international travel agencies and nearly 1,000 interpreters in 20 foreign languages.

The beauty of the city and the hospitality of its people have drawn tens of millions of visitors from more than 100 countries and regions during the past twenty years.

C. Marine Eco-Tour Booms in Guangdong

In recent years, marine ecological tourism has been rapidly developed in coastal Guangdong Province. It is expected to become a new economic growth point at the beginning of the new century.

Statistics show that the Pearl River Delta, with a population of more than 20 million, is the largest and most stable tourist market in this regard. For example, Dong'ao Tourist Comprehensive Development Zone, in the central part of Wanshan Archipelago, covers an area of only 4.62 square km. However, the zone was visited by 50,000 travelers in the first nine month of 1998, earning an income of 20 million Yuan from the tourist industry.

The booming marine eco-tourism has changed the lives of the local fishing community, who look upon the new industry as one way out of poverty.

To promote the level of service and to meet the needs of the world market, we have taken some measures, as follows:

1. Promoting the reliability of rockets. Quality is the foundation of reputation and the lifeline of international commercial satellite launching. The successful launches of the retrievable satellite in October 1996, the East-Is-Red No. 3, the Wind-and-Glouds

No. 2, the Philippines' and the Asia-Pacific No. 2 R satellites and the test flight of the iridium satellite in 1997, have proved that the measures taken to promote quality are correct. Should we persist in the improvement, we can promote the quality of our product and the level of service continuously.

2. Promoting coordinate capabilities in launching services. Shorten the cycling period of time in production and launch. Improve the facilities for launching.

3. Creating a reliable image in the minds of clients and insurance circles. Whatever may happen in launches in the future, success or failure, the process and result should be promptly and accurately relayed to them.

4. Improving measures for security control and salvage. And promote handling capabilities in urgent situation.

5. Promoting the quality of personnel and the level of management so as to further promote our service to gear up with the practice on the world market. Promoting personal business, technological and managerial levels, and creating conditions for clients and insurance circles and satellite producers to have a good understanding of China. And improving gradually the living conditions for launching service.

6. In the development of the world market, we should positively cooperate with the powerful corporations in the world in various forms.

Q: What share has China obtained of the international launching market? And how can it develop itself in the domain of astronomic trade in the future?

A: From our first business satellite launch in 1990 to July of 1996, we held about 7 to 9 percent of the total shares of the market. In 1997, we have carried out the planned launch of the Philippine's and the Asia-Pacific No. 2 R satellites. As planned, the iridium satellite will also be launched this year. The iridium satellite system is a perigee orbiting communications system in synchronism with the moving earth, consisting of 66 satellites. China has entered contracts for 11 launches of 22 of these satellites.

The launch plan for 1998 also includes the Chinese satellite No. 8, Xin Nuo No. 1 and the scientific experimental satellite carrying a load from China and Brazil, all to be launched by LM-3B rockets.

According to the long-term agreement signed between the corporation and the American Hughes Co., the world's largest commercial satellite supplier, in June 1997, in the period from the second half of 1998 to 2006, a total of 10 satellites made by Long March rockets. Five of them will be positioned and the other five selective. The Great Wall Corporation has also concluded a memorandum with the American Lora Co. for a number of launching services, and the latter has promised to purchase two rockets from the Great Wall Corporation.

The successful launches by the LM-3B rocket in 1997 have created favourable conditions for China to acquire more contracts for launching satellites orbiting in synchronism with the moving earth. China's perigee orbiting commercial satellite system will enter the practical use stage. The development of the moving and wide-band alternative communications system has shown the broad visa for the average and low altitude orbit satellite market. We must make more efforts to develop this market. Moreover, we will also intensify outer-space technology cooperation with our counterparts in the world to promote the country's export of satellites and parts and components.

Q: May I take the liberty to ask you another question'? Have any financial allowances been granted by the government for your commercial satellite launching service?

A: No. Not any. Our launching service is completely governed by the market economy.

Oxford is a city renowned throughout the world as a centre of learning. Rich in history and steeped in tradition it has a timelessness which the bustle of the modern city cannot destroy. With its wide streets, mellowed college buildings and lovely quadrangles, Oxford provides a feast of architectural beauty.

During the 12th century students and scholars were attracted to Oxford where they tried to recreate the style of learning they had experienced in Europe. The University was established in 1214 when it received a charter from the Pope and by the end of 13th century four colleges had been founded. Oxford University continued to expand and develop throughout the medieval and the Renaissance periods, meeting the needs of new generation.

Oxford is not only a learned and historic city, it is also one of the great beauty. Here almost every period of architecture is represented with outstanding examples of the works of such masters as Sir Christopher Wren and Nicholas Hawksmoor. Generations of writers have praised Oxford's delights, and indeed it is the present of trees, colorful college gardens and busy rivers which helps to make Oxford what it is.

Over the past few months, customs officers in Beijing, Nanjing and Shenzhen have seized more than 100 dinosaur egg from travelers who tried to smuggle them out of China.

All the fossils came from a basin tucked away in the mountains of Xixia County in western Henan Province, where thousands of dinosaur eggs have been excavated since May.

The discoveries may help solve the most puzzling questions about the dinosaurs' 150-million-year history and their extinction 65 million years ago.

However, there is no reason to celebrate the customs' recent successes.

On the contrary, it must be soberly admitted that the smuggling of precious animal and bird fossils out of China for sale abroad has not been effectively checked.

Moreover, there is also another kind of activity, without criminal intent, which involves destruction of the cultural relics.

Urban construction has already damaged a number of historic sites listed for State protection.

China's Cultural Relics Protection Law seeks to stop thefts and ban sales of finds — including fossils — and any activities that may damage historic sites protected by the government.

What is more, if any cultural relics, for instance, an ancient tomb, are unearthed at a construction site, work should stop until specialized excavation by relics protection departments is done.

Greater concerted efforts should be made by the whole of society, the media in particular, to popularize the Cultural Relics Protection Law and make the people at large ever more relic-conscious.

Few countries will admit officially that they employ spies. However, from time to time, a spy is caught and the public sometimes gets a glimpse of what is going on behind the political scenes. Spies are rarely shot these days. They are frequently tried and imprisoned. If a spy is important enough, he is sometimes handed back to an enemy country in exchange for an equally important spy whom the enemy have caught. Few people have the opportunity to witness such exchanges, for they are carried out in secret.

On cold winter morning on December 17th last year, a small blue car stopped on a bridge in a provincial town in northern Germany. Three men dressed in heavy black coats got out and stood on the bridge. While they waited there, they kept on looking over the side. Fifteen minutes later, a motor boat sailed past and drew

Now the teacher asks the question (c above) again and the students try to answer it: Now you've heard the story, where must the puma have come from! Don't let students shout out the answer. Train them to raise their hands if they think they know the answer. Get one student to answer, then ask the others, How many of you agree with him/her! Put up your hands if you agree with him/her. You don't agree (to another student), so what do you think the answer is! How many of you agree with him/ her! Put up your hands. This keeps the students guessing and involves the whole class. Students should be trained to listen right from the start without 'preparation' or 'translation'. They will soon get used to the sound of English and to understanding the meaning of what they hear.

The traditional 'conversation lesson' is of no value at all if the student is hot ready for it. It is impossible for any student at the post-elementary level to take part in discussions on topics like 'The Cinema Today', for his ideas quite outstrip his capacity for expressing them. The student must first be trained to use patterns in carefully graded aural/oral drills. Only in this way will he finally learn to speak.

Before considering how this can be done, it should be noted that the patterns in a language fan into two distinct categories: progressive and static. For instance, learning how to answer and to ask questions involves the use of progressive patterns. They are progressive because the student's skill in handling these complex forms must be developed over a long period, beginning with a simple response like 'Yes, it is' and culminating in complex responses like 'Yes, I should, shouldn't I'.' A static pattern, on the other hand, like the comparison of adjectives can be taught in a limited number of lessons, not over a long period.

Progressive patterns should be practiced through comprehension exercises which require the student to answer and to ask questions which become in increasing complex as the course proceeds. The student should be trained to give tag answers; make negative and affirmative statements to anger doable motions joined by or; answer general’ questions which begin with question-words like When, Where, How etc. ;and at each stage, the student should be trained to ask questions himself. It is obvious that these skills cannot be dealt with in one air two lessons: the student requires practice of this kind in every lesson. ! '"

'At the same time, static patterns should be practiced by means of drills which make use of language-laboratory techniques. In each of these drills, the teacher seeks to elicit a particular kind of response. He provides the 'student with a stimulus to elicit the new pattern in a series of oral drills until 'the student is able to respond accurately and automatically;

A traffic cop on a busy corner couldn't feel more rushed than the mother who has to get children fed and off to school, and a husband off to work, all in the same short half- hour. That's when the convenience of the Canco disposable milk container means the most to you.

This convenient, modern container is light and square sided. It pours like a pitcher. It's easy for even small children to help them-selves without spilling.

It's easy to open, too. Just a flip of the finger recloses it tightly, keeping out odour from other foods that sometimes give milk an un-appetizing flavor. 68

No just a breakfast time, but all through the day, the Concho losable milk container saves your work. It's compact shape makes it to store — actually increases storage space in crowded used once, and then discarded, there is no washing.

You know Clara Wolk off. She's the girl who always tucks a towel around her waist at the beach. She zips her slacks lying down. She wears her blouses out. She's got 15 pounds to lose and she's lost it. At least 32

times. (A chronic dieter can lose and regain 4801  by the time she's 35.)

Most diets fail because they're unrealistic. They expect you to eat the foods you don't like and resist the ones you do. Psychologically, forbidden foods look better than ever. You cheat. You feel guilty. You

abandon the diet completely. Till the next time.

What Weight Watchers Frozen Meals offers you is 28 dishes specially made for a sensible weight loss program. 28 dishes you never in your wildest dreams thought you could eat without feeling guilty. Dishes like Lasagna. . .

"Lasagna?"you may question with raised eyebrow, skepticism waiting in the wings. Allow us to demystify our Lasagna:

First of all, we serve you a sensible portion. Enough to satisfy you without stuffing you.

Then... we used flavorful ingredients to enhance our dishes, rather than fats and fillers to mask its essence. In France, the mega-chief now tout this form of cooking as la Cuisine Miner. And it works.

So Clara Walk offs of the world, here's some food for thought; let the dishes that always tempted you off your diet, tempt you on. You've got nothing to lose, except maybe a few pounds.

Some foreign teachers mistake Chinese students' reticence for indifference. In fact, these silent scholars are simply the inevitable product of an education style that has changed little since Confucian scholars sat mutely at their masters' feet. Like American children at dinner, Chinese students are to be seen and not heard. They neither ask questions nor answer them, opening their mouth only to disgorge lessons memorized by rote. Like Confucian scholars who lived only for passing the civil ser-vice exam, modern Chinese youth live with only one aim in life — college.

Primary school is one six year cram for middle school; middle school is one big prep for the college entrance exam; and college curriculums are just as regimented, students taking only what course guarantee their sheepskins' at the end of their four year sentence. No less, no more. Not that they don't have outside interests. They simply can't afford them. One of my grad students complained about the dearth of electives, but a classmate countered, "Of course we have electives. They're mandatory electives."

Classroom electives are few, and libraries don't encourage extracurricular studies. Limited library hours, fragmented by long lunches and breaks, preclude the ex-

tended stints of research and concentration so crucial for formative collegiate minds. The facility is closed more often than not. After weeks of haunting its padlocked doors. I understood why students head for karaoke’s instead of carrels.

Mouths arc as muzzled as minds. Kven oral proficiency in foreign languages is sought in silence, as if it look could he mastered like other subjects through osmosis and rote memorization. One of the Chinese teachers confided that Chinese learn grammar much faster than European students, mastering passable reach after only three years, but she qualified her praise,

"They speak and write mechanically. They don't seem to 'feel' the language. They cannot play with the words and structures, so they don't create ... When I give them assignments, half of their compositions are very similar in not only their ideas but in also the way they are expressed."

Modern students, like their Confucian predecessors, reflect the demands of society, of school, and most importantly, of parents. In Old China, large families were the key to prosperity and security in old age. In New China, parents must pin all of their hopes on one child, and classrooms, not fields, are the future. But children plow more hours in the books than their fathers ever did in the fields.

Even for six year olds, homework 3 to 4 hours a day, seven days a week, makes playtime an unaffordable luxury. A few years back, when I was making a teahouse for my sons and the neighbors' children, a Chinese colleague complained. "Why bother? In 6 or 8 years, your boys will be too old for it. Besides, they won't do their homework if they play."

The denial of both creativity and childhood has taken a toll. My silent graduate students are mute testimony that all work and no play, especially 16 years of it. Makes Jack a dull boy indeed.

Some Chinese educators see an alternative in Western progressive education. Having roundly criticized Chinese education. I would also urge that China not throw out the baby with the bath water. Chinese education, for all its faults, has merits, while Western education, however progressive in ideology, is often regressive in practice.