□陈保君（马来西亚） 邓琳娜（罗马尼亚）

你知道中国是世界非常注重过情人节的国家吗？于一个外国人来说，这是令人印象深刻的，感觉中国人非常浪漫和温柔。

在2月14日，中国人也庆祝情人节，尽管七夕节被认为更重要。所以，与西方一样，很多情侣在这一天出去互相买礼物。

根据历史记载，情人节最早出现在公元三世纪的罗马，当时是克劳迪斯二世皇帝统治时期。 由于他相信单身男子或未婚男子是更好的战士，所以禁止年轻男子结婚，以保证他们注意力集中，免受任何家庭干扰。一位名叫瓦伦丁的年轻牧师认为这项规定不公平，并开始违反皇帝的命令，继续为年轻夫妇主持秘密婚姻。瓦伦丁最终被克劳狄斯抓获，不久后被监禁，并在公元270年2月14日被处决。瓦伦丁被监禁时，爱上了狱卒的女儿。被处决前他给女孩写了一封信，上面写着“来自你的瓦伦丁”，这是我们现在每年这一天使用的标准问候语。

七夕主题互动现场，黄兴广场人流如织。

情人节当天，街道上到处都是心形的装饰品，每扇窗户上都挂着红色的心形纸，每个糕点上都有心形蛋糕的香味。情侣们一起吃饭、看电影、去游乐园，一起玩游戏、散步等。在这段时间里，许多有着异地恋情的夫妇或小情侣都会奔赴去见他们的另一半。所以在机场，可以看到许多男男女女手持鲜花和心形气球相见。

世界各地还有一些另类的情人节传统。例如，复活节，挪威的秘密恋人经常给他们暗恋的人写可爱的短诗，收件人姓名的每个字母上都有一个点，如果接收者能确定是谁写了这首诗，他们就会得到一个复活节彩蛋。如果她不知道这是谁，男人就会现身，承认这首诗是他写的，而女士则必须给他一个鸡蛋。由于鸡蛋是圆形的，和订婚戒指的形状类似，这象征着永恒的爱情。复活节彩蛋，给爱带来许多欢乐。

在德国，情侣们互相准备巨大的心形生姜饼干。饼干上有一条丝带，幸运的人可以把它戴在肩上。纯真的爱情是世界上最美好的东西！

情人节在其他国家持续时间很短。但在中国，情人节似乎持续数周，针对情人节的情侣折扣和各种活动很丰富。这不仅仅是为了商业，而是为人们提供更多表达爱的机会。礼物，只是人们表达爱意的一个小标志。

传统的七夕节和现代的520，不仅将优秀传统继承下来，还将其融入了现代社会。在现代社会中，许多国家忽视了自己的传统，而选择了其他更受欢迎的庆典。

“520”的发音非常接近汉语中的“我爱你”。尽管这不是法定的公共假日，但在这一天，许多餐馆和电影院都非常拥挤。5月20日被认为是中国男性表达对女性爱意的一天，女孩们在这一天收到礼物，甚至一些中国人选择在这个日子举行婚礼。

美轮美奂的央视七夕晚会。图片来源：央视网

更多的中国情侣都庆祝七夕节。七夕节就是中国的情人节。传说天上的织女与地上的牛郎相遇后相爱了。他们结了婚，生了两个孩子，但当王母娘娘得知织女嫁给了一个普通的凡人时，她就把织女带回了天上，并用一条浩瀚的天河（现称为银河系）将两人分开。喜鹊被他们的爱情感动了，于是万只喜鹊搭成鹊桥，让两人过河相聚。后来，王母娘娘终于被他们的爱感动了，同意让他们每年农历七月初七在鹊桥相会。

七夕节这一天，不少情侣在微信朋友圈中晒出与爱人的合照，与好友分享爱意。由于这是中国最受欢迎的爱情节，如果你在这一天走上街头，你会看到很多情侣，所以如果你是单身，最好不要出去，否则你会因为看到所有情侣的甜蜜而感到难受。

The romantic and tender side of Chinese people

Did you know that around the world China is a country who pays a great deal of attention to romantic festivals? For a foreigner this is very impressing, as this shows how romantic and gentle are the Chinese people.

The first love festival is Valentine’s Day, which is always on February 14. Valentine’s Day is also celebrated in China, even though the Qixi Festival is considered more important. Like in the west, many couples go out on this day and buy gifts for each other.

According to historical facts, Valentine's Day first appeared in Rome in the third century, under the rule of Emperor Claudius II. As a result of his belief that single men or unmarried men were better warriors, Claudius forbade young men from getting married in order to keep them focused and free from any familial distractions. A young priest by the name of Valentine thought the rule was unfair and started disobeying the emperor’s order by continuing to officiate secret marriages for young couples. Valentine was eventually captured by Claudius, imprisoned shortly after, and executed on February 14, 270 AD. While incarcerated, Valentine fell in love with the jailer's daughter. Before his execution he wrote a letter and signed "From your Valentine"; which is the standard greeting we now use on this day of the year.

On Valentine’s Day, streets are filled with heart-shaped decorations, big red paper hearts are on every window, huge fluffy bears are on sale, in every pastry there is the sweet smell of heart shaped cakes. Couples have dinner, watch movies, go to the amusement park, play games together, take a stroll and do so many other fun activities together. During this time, many couples that have a long-distance relationship travel so they can meet their significant other. Thus, at the airport, for example, there can be seen many boys and girls waiting for each other and holding flowers and heart shaped balloons.

There are also some weird Valentine’s Day traditions around the world. For example, on Easter, secret lovers in Norway often write cutesy short poems to the person they want, with a dot for each letter of the recipient's name as the sole indication of who they are. The receiver gets an Easter egg if they correctly determine who wrote the poem. If she doesn’t know who it is, the man reveals himself, admitting he wrote the poem and the lady has to give him an egg. Egg are rounds, exactly as the shape of the engagement rings and symbolize a love that last forever. The Easter eggs bring joy and happiness.

In Germany, couples prepare for each other giant heart-shaped ginger biscuits. The biscuits have a ribbon attached so the lucky person may wear it over their shoulders. The ribbon is usually red as red is the color of true love and with white flowers that are a symbol of purity. A pure and genuine love is the most beautiful thing in the world!

Valentine's Day has a short period of time in other countries. But in China, Valentine's Day seems to last for weeks, with couple discounts and a plentifulness of events for this celebration. It's not just about business, it's about offering people the right opportunities to express their love. Gifts are just a small symbol of their feelings.

The traditional Qixi Festival and the modern 520 not only kept the rich tradition, but also integrate it into the modern society. In modern society, many countries ignore their own traditions in favor of other highly demanded celebrations.

“520” sounds phonetically very close to “I Love You” in Chinese. Even though it is not an official public holiday, many restaurants and cinemas are very crowded on this day. 20 May is considered a day of opportunity for men to express their love for girls in China. On this day, girls receive gifts, and even some Chinese people choose to hold weddings on this day.

Furthermore, more Chinese couples celebrate Qixi Festival. This is the Chinese Valentine’s Day. Legend says that the Weaver Girl in the sky and the Cowherd on the ground fell in love after they met. They got married and had two children, but when the Queen Mother found out that Zhinhu had married an ordinary mortal, she took Zhinhu back to the sky and used a vast Tianhe (nowadays known as the Milky Way), to separate the two of them. The magpies were touched by their love, so 10,000 magpies built a bridge of magpies to let the two meet across the river. Later, the Queen Mother finally understood their love and agreed to let them meet at the Magpie Bridge every year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.

During Qixi Festival, many couples post photos with their lover on WeChat, to share their love with their friends. As this is the most popular love festival in China, if you go out on the streets on this day, you will see many couples, so if you’re single, it is better you not go out or you will feel worse from seeing so much sweetness from all the couples.

指导老师：刘海明 王小杨