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Chapter 28 History History Humanities (5)
On display are the souks. Red dates can be purchased here. They are dry and crunchy, less sweet than the others; the semi-sweet ones have all the shades of orange; the brown and the black ones are very soft, and their sugar seems to dissolve in your mouth.
If the Nile yields simple, raw materials, the inspiration of its people gives rise to one of the most perfumed, flavorsome and colorful cuisine in North Africa. Food in Egypt is hot and spicy, drenched in sauces.
The national dish is fouhl, a fragrant soup of beans which is sold on every street corner.
Egyptians tend to wash down these libations with black tea. Non-Muslims also enjoy the fine local wines and beer, whose origins are actually Egyptian. Ever since the third dynasty drinking it while eating bread was considered a good omen.
What we are seeing is the village near Luxor, which is characterized by the typical houses built with mud and straw.
Some of these houses have been painted with colorful drawings, which are very curious. Aeroplanes, departures, ships and scenes from journeys. These painted walls tell us about the Islamic custom of going on a pilgrimage to Mecca. A duty which should be carried out At least once in a lifetime, an event that is to be passed down to descendants with a vivid fresco.
The population on the Nile has grown at a dizzying rate, giving rise to a great metropolis of the size of Cairo the second most populous city in the world.
To see the swarming crowds in the capital it would seem that the lesson of Ramese II, whose colossal state is located near Cairo's Central Station, is still alive in Egypt. Ramses II had more than a hundred children and in Egypt today a baby is born every 20 seconds. The population is very young and half of its 54 million inhabitants are under 20 years old.
The crowds in Cairo, the hustle and bustle of the typical souk, are an unmissable spectacle for people arriving in Egypt, a brilliant contrast to the mysterious charm of the monuments of the Pharaohs. These solemn states are almost participants in modern life. almost find your ideas about the Nile reflected in their eyes.
Vocabulary
Flourish ["flauri?] n. Flourishing; flourishing;
vt. boast; brandish

vi. to prosper; to prosper; to thrive

Fertile ["f?: tail] adj. Rich, fertile

n. fertile, productive

element ["elim?nt] n. element; ingredient; element; principle; natural environment
annual ["?nju?l] adj. annual; annual

n. Yearbook, yearbook; annual plant
miraculous [mi"r? kjul?s] adj. incredible, miraculous

luxuriantly [l? g"? u? ri? ntli] adv. richly; luxuriantly

presupposition["pri:s?p?"zi? ? n] n. Anticipation; Assumption; Guess
souk [su: k] n. (Muslim countries) open-air theater
Crunchy ["kr? nt? i] adj. Fragile; crunchy

Dissolve [di"z? lv] vt. to dissolve; to liquefy; to decompose

vi. dissolve; dissolve; disappear
perfume [p? "fju: m] n. perfume; fragrance

vt. Sprinkle perfume on...; make... smell
Pilgrimage ["pilɡrimid?] n. roaming; pilgrimage

vi. worship; roam

Descendant [di"send? nt] n. descendants, juniors

inhabitant [in"h? bit? nt] n. residents; occupants

solemn ["s? l? m] adj. Solemn, serious; grand, solemn

Practice
1. The longest river in the world is the .

2. The first great capital of Egypt is ．

3. Red dates are dry and , less sweet than the others.

4. Food in Egypt always drenched in .

5. Egyptians often wash down libations with .

6. Now is the capital of Egypt．

Translation
The longest river in the world, the Nile, flows through northwestern Africa and finally flows into the Mediterranean Sea.

Most great human civilizations originate on both sides of rivers, but the most splendid and mysterious civilization in human history is the ancient Egyptian civilization that began on the Nile River.

The Nile Valley has plenty of fresh water and sunlight, which were regarded as gods by the ancient Egyptians. They respectfully called the sun AMON and the Nile River APIS.

Memphis was the first capital of Egypt and it was established as an independent kingdom in 3000 BC.Centuries ago, the flood of the Nile destroyed the ancient capital.

But after all, the Nile gives far more than it takes.As the ancient Greek historian Herodotus said: Egypt is a gift from the Nile.

Every year after floods, the land is left with a layer of silt, which is a natural and excellent fertilizer that allows crops to thrive.

A device known as the "Nilometer" was used by ancient pharaohs to predict the likely height of a flood over a certain period of time.The "Nilometer" used to infer whether the harvest is good or not is actually a device for setting tax standards.

The most characteristic of Egyptian agriculture is undoubtedly the date palm.Farmers use it to build roofs, make furniture, and weave baskets.But most importantly, the sweetest fruit in the world grows on this tree - dates.

Red dates are sold in the amphitheatre.Dried dates are not too sweet to taste, but they are crunchy.Semi-sweet dates have an orange tint; brown-black dates are so soft that their sugar seems to have melted into your mouth.

If the Nile provided only simple ingredients, North Africans would turn them into delicacies.Egyptian food is very spicy and drenched in sauces.

FOUHL is a local food, this delicious bean soup can be bought in every street.

Egyptians are used to hangover with black tea.Non-Muslims can also enjoy the delicious local wine and beer, which is actually native to Egypt.As early as the Third Dynasty, drinking wine and eating bread was considered a good omen.

Now we are looking at a village near Luxor.Its iconic houses are made of mud and straw.

Some of the exteriors are painted in color, some very rare.Airplanes, farewells, ships and scenes during the journey, the murals tell the custom of Muslims going to Mecca for pilgrimage.It is a responsibility that believers must fulfill at least once in their life, and the vivid murals will be passed down from generation to generation.

Now, the population along the Nile has exploded, and the capital, Cairo, is already the second most populous city in the world.

Looking at the bustling crowd, it seems to have seen the story of Lebyses II reappear.His statue already stands at Cairo Central Station.Lebyses II had more than 100 children, and a new life is born every 20 seconds in Egypt today.The local population is young, with half of the 400 million people under the age of 20.

Noisy Cairo leaves a deep impression on every visitor.And the solemn pharaoh seems to be participating in the lives of later generations.Perhaps, you can read all kinds of confirmations about the Nile from his eyes.

Exercise
1.The longest river in the world is.

2.The first capital of Egypt was.

3.Dried red dates are not too sweet to eat.

4.Egyptian food is mostly soaked.

5.Egyptians used to hangover.

6.The current capital of Egypt is .

1．Nile　2．Memphis　3．crunchy　4．sauces　5．black tea　6．Cairo
08 The History of the Sandwich
At lunch time, and sometimes at other times in the day, people in the UK often eat a sandwich. This consists of two pieces of bread and a filling. The bread is usually buttered, or spread with mayonnaise, and the filling is usually meat or cheese, often served with lettuce.
However, there are literally hundreds of different types of sandwiches, and each variation has its own flavor. Some of the most popular and famous sandwiches in the UK are: BLT (Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato, usually served with mayonnaise), Plowman's (originating from a tradition among farm-workers, and containing Cheddar cheese, pickle and salad), Tuna, and Egg sandwiches.
Sandwiches of all varieties are extremely popular, and quick and easy to eat. In fact, British people eat 2.8 billion each year—not bad for a population of only 60 million people! Today everyone eats sandwiches, but it was not always like that. Amazingly, the humble sandwich that we know today started life as a snack for England's super-rich! The sandwich has a very interesting, and humorous, history!

In 1762 the first written record of the word “sandwich” appeared in the diary of the English author Edward Gibbons, who remembered seeing the wealthiest elite in the country eating “a bit of cold meat” between pieces of bread. Gibbons did not think this was very appropriate behavior for such men!

The snack was named after the Fourth Earl of Sandwich (an Earl was a wealthy aristocrat, who generally owned a lot of land and had political power). Sandwich was a frequent gambler, and was so addicted to gambling that he would often refuse to stop even to eat meals! To avoid having to stop gambling, the Earl of Sandwich asked the cooks at his gambling club to prepare him a meal consisting of beef between two slices of bread, so that he always had one hand free to play cards and gamble, and his hands wouldn't 't become dirty from the meat.
When other men saw what he was eating, they began to order “the same as Sandwich!”, and so the sandwich was born—beginning as a snack for some of the wealthiest men in England! It quickly became popular and widely spread as a quick and easy food to eat.
(End of this chapter)