Marco Polo and Weifang kites

體裁 說明文 文章詞數 386 難度 ★★ 建議用時 7 min

難詞探意

1. enthusiast /?n'θju?zi?st/ n. 愛好者；熱烈支持者

2. spectacle /'spekt?kl/ n. 壯觀的景象；奇觀

3. headquarters /,hed'kw??t?z/ n. 總部；大本營

4. renowned /r?'na?nd/ 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.

【翻譯】

【點石成金】本句中，It was...that...為強調句型。強調句型的用法為“It be(注意時態)＋被強調的部分＋that/who＋原句其他部分”來強調說話人的意愿。 被強調的部分為“人”時用who或that，為“物”時用that。