FESTIVAL

As you know, VietNam has lots of festival. Festivals in Vietnam offer visitors the best opportunity for getting close and personal with the myths, customs and fun-loving spirit of this proud nation. Despite undergoing modern developments, Vietnam is still a predominantly traditional country, with thousands of pagodas and shrines dedicated to Buddha as well as various deities and iconic figures. There are also plenty of cultural events that are only celebrated during certain times of the year (or years).

Lunar New Year, locally called Tet, is the biggest festival of the year with the whole country downing tools for family get-togethers. Principally a religious celebration, don’t expect too much of a wild party, but it’s still a fascinating time to visit Vietnam and you’ll certainly find locals lighting fireworks, visiting temples with their families, and the interesting sight of many flower stalls set up as giving flowers is customary during Tet.

Vietnamese people usually return to their families during Tet. Some return to worship at the family altar or visit the graves of their ancestors in their homeland. They also clean the graves of their family as a sign of respect. Although Tết is a national holiday among all Vietnamese, each region and religion has its own customs.

Tết in the three Vietnamese regions can be divided into three periods, known as Tất Niên (penultimate New Year's Eve), Giao Thừa (New Year's Eve), and Tân Niên (the New Year), representing the preparation before Tết, the eve of Tết, and the days of and following Tết, respectively.

Vietnamese people celebrate the Lunar New Year annually, which is based on a lunisolar calendar (calculating both the earth's movement around the sun and the moon around the earth). Tết is generally celebrated on the same day as Chinese New Year, except when the one-hour time difference between Vietnam and China results in new moon occurring on different days. It takes place from the first day of the first month of the Vietnamese calendar (around late January or early February) until at least the third day. Many Vietnamese prepare for Tết by cooking special holiday food and cleaning the house. These foods include bánh chưng, bánh dày, dried young bamboo soup (canh măng), giò, and sticky rice. Many customs are practices during Tết, such as visiting a person's house on the first day of the new year (xông nhà), ancestor worship, wishing New Year's greetings, giving lucky money to children and elderly people, and opening a shop.

Tết is also an occasion for pilgrims and family reunions. They start forgetting about the troubles of the past year and hope for a better upcoming year. They consider Tết to be the first day of spring, and the festival is often called Hội xuân (spring festival).

With me, Tet is an opportunity for me to express me gratefulness to my parents, grandparents and to help my mother cook traditional foods. I hope Tet will be a tradition of VietNamese people and won’t be ....................

FAVORITE FOOD

VietNamese cuisine is really abundant and I love it so much. It’s very hard to choose which is my favorite one. But, well, I’ll choose Pho. Because if we talk about VietNamese cuisine, we will think about Pho first, right?

The main ingredient of pho is noodles and broth with sliced beef or chicken. The extra ingredient are pepper, lemon, fish sauce, chili ... They are added depending on the taste of each person

The first time when I ate Pho is when I was 7 years old. I joined a writting contest and after the contest, my mother took me to a small foodstore, then I was attracted by Pho. I was a little bit suprised, because I heard lots of things about Pho but I haven’t taste it at all. Pho had a good impression with me.

When I was a student in primary school, I ate Pho twice a week, because my mother used to take me to the market with her, so I can eat it very often. But now, my family have another member, my little brother, and my school life is much busier so I just can eat Pho about twice a month.

To cook Pho, we need lots of things : vegetables, spices, beef ( or chicken )... and the cooking section is also really complex so I can’t cook it...

I’m so pride, because VietNam has a traditional dish like Pho and I hope, in the future, I can spread Pho and VietNamese culture to foreigners.

WATER SPORTS

Recreational diving or sport diving is a type of diving that uses scuba equipment for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment. In some diving circles, the term "recreational diving" is used in contradistinction to "technical diving", a more demanding aspect of the sport which requires greater levels of training, experience and equipment.

Recreational scuba diving grew out of related activities such as snorkeling and underwater hunting. For a long time, recreational underwater excursions were limited by the amount of breath that could be held. However, the invention of the aqualung in 1943 by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and its development over subsequent years led to a revolution in recreational diving. However, for much of the 1950s and early1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited to those who were able to afford or make their own kit, and prepared to undergo intensive training to use it. As the sport became more popular, manufacturers became aware of the potential market, and equipment began to appear that was easy to use, affordable and reliable. Continued advances in' SCUBA technology, such as buoyancy compensators, modern diving regulators, wet or dry suits, and dive computers, increased the safety, comfort and convenience of the gear encouraging more people to train and use it.

Until the early 1950s, navies and other organizations performing professional diving were the only providers of diver training, but only for their own personnel and only using their own types of equipment. There were no training courses available to civilians who bought the first scuba equipment. Professional instruction started in 1959 when the non-profit National Association of Underwater Instructors was formed.

Further developments in technology have reduced the cost of training and diving. Scuba-diving has become a popular leisure activity, and many diving locations have some form of dive shop presence that can offer air fills, equipment and training. In tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world, there is a large market in holiday divers, who train and dive while on holiday, but rarely dive close to home. Generally, recreational diving depths are limited to a maximum of between 30 and 40 meters (100 and 130 feet), beyond which a variety of safety issues make it unsafe to dive using recreation diving equipment and practices, and specialized training and equipment for technical diving are needed.

According to the second paragraph, in the 1950s and early 1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited because _______.

A. divers did not like to take part in any intensive training courses

B. there were not any intensive training courses for divers

C. there were not enough kit for many divers

D. kit and intensive training were too expensive for many people to afford

I. Use the given suggestions to complete sentence.

1. Monitor/ always/ go/ class/ on time/ be/ good example/ class.

2. Sister/ buy/ material/ make/ this dress/ me.

3. Teacher/ be/ please/ improvement/ my work.

4. He/ be/ absent/ work/ yesterday/ because/ he/ ill.

5.Anyone/ be/ home/ when/ everyone/ arrive?

II. Use the given word to write the second sentences in such a way that it is as similar as possible in meaning to the original sentence. do not change the form of the given word.

1. I'll be busy workin while you are on holiday. ( during)

=> ..........................................................................

2. They all joined in singing the Christmas carols. (part)

=> ..........................................................................

3. Both my brother and I scuba-diving. (so)

=> .........................................................................

4. I'll see you at the airport, I expect. (hope)

=> .......................................................................

WATER SPORTS

Recreational diving or sport diving is a type of diving that uses scuba equipment for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment. In some diving circles, the term "recreational diving" is used in contradistinction to "technical diving", a more demanding aspect of the sport which requires greater levels of training, experience and equipment.

Recreational scuba diving grew out of related activities such as snorkeling and underwater hunting. For a long time, recreational underwater excursions were limited by the amount of breath that could be held. However, the invention of the aqualung in 1943 by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and its development over subsequent years led to a revolution in recreational diving. However, for much of the 1950s and early1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited to those who were able to afford or make their own kit, and prepared to undergo intensive training to use it. As the sport became more popular, manufacturers became aware of the potential market, and equipment began to appear that was easy to use, affordable and reliable. Continued advances in' SCUBA technology, such as buoyancy compensators, modern diving regulators, wet or dry suits, and dive computers, increased the safety, comfort and convenience of the gear encouraging more people to train and use it.

Until the early 1950s, navies and other organizations performing professional diving were the only providers of diver training, but only for their own personnel and only using their own types of equipment. There were no training courses available to civilians who bought the first scuba equipment. Professional instruction started in 1959 when the non-profit National Association of Underwater Instructors was formed.

Further developments in technology have reduced the cost of training and diving. Scuba-diving has become a popular leisure activity, and many diving locations have some form of dive shop presence that can offer air fills, equipment and training. In tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world, there is a large market in holiday divers, who train and dive while on holiday, but rarely dive close to home. Generally, recreational diving depths are limited to a maximum of between 30 and 40 meters (100 and 130 feet), beyond which a variety of safety issues make it unsafe to dive using recreation diving equipment and practices, and specialized training and equipment for technical diving are needed.

Holiday divers _________.

A. do not like to dive in tropical and sub-tropical parts

B. can dive as deep as they like because of safety

C. are those who go away from home to dive

D. are limited in tropical and sub-tropical parts

WATER SPORTS

Recreational diving or sport diving is a type of diving that uses scuba equipment for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment. In some diving circles, the term "recreational diving" is used in contradistinction to "technical diving", a more demanding aspect of the sport which requires greater levels of training, experience and equipment.

Recreational scuba diving grew out of related activities such as snorkeling and underwater hunting. For a long time, recreational underwater excursions were limited by the amount of breath that could be held. However, the invention of the aqualung in 1943 by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and its development over subsequent years led to a revolution in recreational diving. However, for much of the 1950s and early1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited to those who were able to afford or make their own kit, and prepared to undergo intensive training to use it. As the sport became more popular, manufacturers became aware of the potential market, and equipment began to appear that was easy to use, affordable and reliable. Continued advances in' SCUBA technology, such as buoyancy compensators, modern diving regulators, wet or dry suits, and dive computers, increased the safety, comfort and convenience of the gear encouraging more people to train and use it.

Until the early 1950s, navies and other organizations performing professional diving were the only providers of diver training, but only for their own personnel and only using their own types of equipment. There were no training courses available to civilians who bought the first scuba equipment. Professional instruction started in 1959 when the non-profit National Association of Underwater Instructors was formed.

Further developments in technology have reduced the cost of training and diving. Scuba-diving has become a popular leisure activity, and many diving locations have some form of dive shop presence that can offer air fills, equipment and training. In tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world, there is a large market in holiday divers, who train and dive while on holiday, but rarely dive close to home. Generally, recreational diving depths are limited to a maximum of between 30 and 40 meters (100 and 130 feet), beyond which a variety of safety issues make it unsafe to dive using recreation diving equipment and practices, and specialized training and equipment for technical diving are needed.

Recreational underwater excursions used to be limited _______.

A. as underwater hunting was banned

B. because the necessary amount of breath was too expensive to afford

C. because divers could not take enough amount of breath with them

D. because the necessary amount of breath was too heavy to bring

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 36 to 42.

WATER SPORTS

Recreational diving or sport diving is a type of diving that uses scuba equipment for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment. In some diving circles, the term "recreational diving" is used in contradistinction to "technical diving", a more demanding aspect of the sport which requires greater levels of training, experience and equipment.

Recreational scuba diving grew out of related activities such as snorkeling and underwater hunting. For a long time, recreational underwater excursions were limited by the amount of breath that could be held. However, the invention of the aqualung in 1943 by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and its development over subsequent years led to a revolution in recreational diving. However, for much of the 1950s and early1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited to those who were able to afford or make their own kit, and prepared to undergo intensive training to use it. As the sport became more popular, manufacturers became aware of the potential market, and equipment began to appear that was easy to use, affordable and reliable. Continued advances in' SCUBA technology, such as buoyancy compensators, modern diving regulators, wet or dry suits, and dive computers, increased the safety, comfort and convenience of the gear encouraging more people to train and use it.

Until the early 1950s, navies and other organizations performing professional diving were the only providers of diver training, but only for their own personnel and only using their own types of equipment. There were no training courses available to civilians who bought the first scuba equipment. Professional instruction started in 1959 when the non-profit National Association of Underwater Instructors was formed.

Further developments in technology have reduced the cost of training and diving. Scuba-diving has become a popular leisure activity, and many diving locations have some form of dive shop presence that can offer air fills, equipment and training. In tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world, there is a large market in holiday divers, who train and dive while on holiday, but rarely dive close to home. Generally, recreational diving depths are limited to a maximum of between 30 and 40 meters (100 and 130 feet), beyond which a variety of safety issues make it unsafe to dive using recreation diving equipment and practices, and specialized training and equipment for technical diving are needed.

According to the second paragraph, in the 1950s and early 1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited because _______.

A. divers did not like to take part in any intensive training courses

B. there were not any intensive training courses for divers

C. there were not enough kit for many divers

D. kit and intensive training were too expensive for many people to afford

XIV. Use the given word to write the second sentence in such a way that it is as similar
as possible in meaning to the original sentence. Do not change the form of the
given word. (5 pts)
1. Jane always wears jeans. (time)
 ________________________________________________________________.
2. I’ll be busy working while you are on holiday. (during)
 _______________________________________________________________
3. They all joined in singing the Christmas carols. (part)
 ___________________________________________________________________.
4. Both my brother and I like scuba-diving. (so)
 ___________________________________________________________________.
5. I’ll see you at the airport, I expect. (hope)
 _________________________________________________________________

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 36 to 42.

WATER SPORTS

Recreational diving or sport diving is a type of diving that uses scuba equipment for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment. In some diving circles, the term "recreational diving" is used in contradistinction to "technical diving", a more demanding aspect of the sport which requires greater levels of training, experience and equipment.

Recreational scuba diving grew out of related activities such as snorkeling and underwater hunting. For a long time, recreational underwater excursions were limited by the amount of breath that could be held. However, the invention of the aqualung in 1943 by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and its development over subsequent years led to a revolution in recreational diving. However, for much of the 1950s and early1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited to those who were able to afford or make their own kit, and prepared to undergo intensive training to use it. As the sport became more popular, manufacturers became aware of the potential market, and equipment began to appear that was easy to use, affordable and reliable. Continued advances in' SCUBA technology, such as buoyancy compensators, modern diving regulators, wet or dry suits, and dive computers, increased the safety, comfort and convenience of the gear encouraging more people to train and use it.

Until the early 1950s, navies and other organizations performing professional diving were the only providers of diver training, but only for their own personnel and only using their own types of equipment. There were no training courses available to civilians who bought the first scuba equipment. Professional instruction started in 1959 when the non-profit National Association of Underwater Instructors was formed.

Further developments in technology have reduced the cost of training and diving. Scuba-diving has become a popular leisure activity, and many diving locations have some form of dive shop presence that can offer air fills, equipment and training. In tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world, there is a large market in holiday divers, who train and dive while on holiday, but rarely dive close to home. Generally, recreational diving depths are limited to a maximum of between 30 and 40 meters (100 and 130 feet), beyond which a variety of safety issues make it unsafe to dive using recreation diving equipment and practices, and specialized training and equipment for technical diving are needed.

Holiday divers _________.

A. do not like to dive in tropical and sub-tropical parts

B. can dive as deep as they like because of safety

C. are those who go away from home to dive

D. are limited in tropical and sub-tropical parts

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 36 to 42.

WATER SPORTS

Recreational diving or sport diving is a type of diving that uses scuba equipment for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment. In some diving circles, the term "recreational diving" is used in contradistinction to "technical diving", a more demanding aspect of the sport which requires greater levels of training, experience and equipment.

Recreational scuba diving grew out of related activities such as snorkeling and underwater hunting. For a long time, recreational underwater excursions were limited by the amount of breath that could be held. However, the invention of the aqualung in 1943 by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and its development over subsequent years led to a revolution in recreational diving. However, for much of the 1950s and early1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited to those who were able to afford or make their own kit, and prepared to undergo intensive training to use it. As the sport became more popular, manufacturers became aware of the potential market, and equipment began to appear that was easy to use, affordable and reliable. Continued advances in' SCUBA technology, such as buoyancy compensators, modern diving regulators, wet or dry suits, and dive computers, increased the safety, comfort and convenience of the gear encouraging more people to train and use it.

Until the early 1950s, navies and other organizations performing professional diving were the only providers of diver training, but only for their own personnel and only using their own types of equipment. There were no training courses available to civilians who bought the first scuba equipment. Professional instruction started in 1959 when the non-profit National Association of Underwater Instructors was formed.

Further developments in technology have reduced the cost of training and diving. Scuba-diving has become a popular leisure activity, and many diving locations have some form of dive shop presence that can offer air fills, equipment and training. In tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world, there is a large market in holiday divers, who train and dive while on holiday, but rarely dive close to home. Generally, recreational diving depths are limited to a maximum of between 30 and 40 meters (100 and 130 feet), beyond which a variety of safety issues make it unsafe to dive using recreation diving equipment and practices, and specialized training and equipment for technical diving are needed.

Recreational underwater excursions used to be limited _______.

A. as underwater hunting was banned

B. because the necessary amount of breath was too expensive to afford

C. because divers could not take enough amount of breath with them

D. because the necessary amount of breath was too heavy to bring