Marco Polo and Weifang kites

体裁 说明文 文章词数 386 难度 ★★ 建议用时 7 min

难词探意

1. enthusiast /ɪn'θjuːziæst/ n. 爱好者；热烈支持者

2. spectacle /'spektəkl/ n. 壮观的景象；奇观

3. headquarters /,hed'kwɔːtəz/ n. 总部；大本营

4. renowned /rɪ'naʊnd/ adj. 有名的

The city of Weifang, Shandong Peninsula, has a special relationship to the kite. The city is namely home to the International Kite Association, and holds the Weifang International Kite Festival from April 20th to 25th each year. Kiteenthusiastsin the thousands, from all corners of the globe, descend upon the city of Weifang at this time each year to participate in the kite competitions. Tourists flock just to watch this majestic and colorfulspectacle.

In the expansion of spreading Weifang kites to the world,Marco Polo made an important contribution.It was in the city of Weifang that Marco Polo,in1282,supposedly witnessed the flying of a manned kite. According to Marco Polo's travel diary,there existed a tradition in Weihai at the time for testing the wind with a kite in order to determine if an imminent voyage would be good or not.

When he returned to Italy, Marco Polo brought with him a Chinese kite, and soon, thanks to the Silk Road, the Chinese kite became known throughout Europe, and from Europe, it would of course travel to the New World, the Americas.

In 1989, during the Sixth International Kite Festival, the International Kite Federation was founded by representatives from China, the USA, Japan, the UK, Italy, and other twelve countries. Weifang is theheadquarters.

Weifang also has a museum dedicated to the history of the kite. The Weifang Kite Museum is a place to go to learn about kites all over the world. It has twelve galleries with models and kites from China's ancient past to modern times and kites from around the world.

The first exhibition hall mainly gives an introduction to the historical and cultural development of kites, and explains about the various schools and styles, competition rules for kites, and the Weifang International Kite Festival. The second exhibition hall is Weifang Fine Kites Exhibition. This exhibition hall mainly introduces the history and characteristics of Weifang kites.

There are also exhibition halls that mainly present the brief history and displays of kites from China and around the world.

Weifang isrenownedas the World Capital of Kites and is becoming more of a tourist area. It has a long history as China's number one kite making area, and the city is famed for its kite craftsmanship.

Reading Check

1. How did Marco Polo spread Chinese kites to Europe?

2. According to your understanding, what is the significance of Weifang Kite Museum?

Language Study

Difficult sentence

It was in the city of Weifang that Marco Polo, in 1282, supposedly witnessed the flying of a manned kite.

【翻译】

【点石成金】本句中，It was...that...为强调句型。强调句型的用法为“It be(注意时态)＋被强调的部分＋that/who＋原句其他部分”来强调说话人的意愿。 被强调的部分为“人”时用who或that，为“物”时用that。