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　　Elephant ride

　　See the real Bail on the Sumatran elephant!Pass through tropical plantations(种植园)of mangoes, bamboos and coconuts．The most wonderful part of the trip is to be invited into the home of a local farmer where you will enjoy a drink of fresh coconut．When you return to the camp, enjoy a delicious Balinese 3-course menu at the“Trunk‘n’Mahout”valley-view café．

　　Cost：

　　＄60/Adult ＄40/Child

　　Jungle trekking(长途跋涉)

　　Trek into the tropical rainforest, near the lake village of Bedugul．Cross the calm lake in a traditional canoe．This 3-hour trek into the heart of Balinese nature offers outstanding and natural beauty．

　　The number of minimum participants：2 persons

　　Cost：＄40/person

　　White-water rafting(皮划艇运动)

　　Get picked up in the morning at 6：00 and taken to the scenic Anyang River for an unforgettable white-water rafting experience．Expert and experienced guides will give you an insight into the river ecology．Discover hidden waterfalls, swim in the clear water and feel the trills of the paradise river．

　　What to bring：a towel, extra clothes, sunscreen

　　Cost：＄30/Adult ＄23/Child

　　Sunset Dinner Cruise(乘船巡游)by Bali Hai cruise

　　There's no better way to spend a tropical evening than on Bali Hai's evening Dinner Cruise．As the sun goes down, we set off on a relaxing cruise around the harbour．

　　Cost：＄40/person

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　　I walked up and down the aisles of the bicycle shop, fighting back tears．Michael was supposed to be here with me, I thought．

　　Two months ago, my husband, Michael, died in a car accident．I tried desperately to keep a brave face for our two young boys but his death left much pain in my heart．Michael had promised to buy our younger child a new bicycle for his eighth birthday．Now, here I was, doing it alone．It was just another reminder of all the other things I'd experience by myself．Birthdays, holidays, even our 18th wedding anniversary which was just in three weeks time．How would I get through those days without Michael?

　　Suddenly, a bright red bike caught my eye．It was perfect for my son．On my way to the register(登记处)I found another red bike－an adult one．My bicycle was unsafe for keeping up with two active boys, so I treated myself．

　　“Don't forget to buy chains and locks．”The salesman said．I found easily a set of chain and lock matching the bike I had just bought for my little son, but I looked all around the store and couldn't find a set for mine．“Lord, Michael was so good at this thing．Help me．”I prayed．Just then, on the bottom shelf, I found a set of red lock and chain, a perfect match．

　　On the day of our wedding anniversary I'd never felt more lonely．I could've stayed in bed all day．But Michael wouldn't have wanted that, I thought．I couldn't let children feel upset．“Kids, let's go for a bike ride!”I brought out our three bicycles from the garage．I casually(无意地)picked up a pen with which I wrote down the combination：38,18,38, which I didn't know why．But those numbers I knew well．Michael and I would both have been 38 years old on our 18th anniversary this year．

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　　In many parts of the world cars play an essential role in daily life and many societies would stop to function without them．So the claim that in 20 years' time no one will own cars may be hard to believe．But this is the prediction made by a team of transport researchers who are taken seriously not only by governments but also by car manufacturers．

　　The Human Science and Advanced Technology Institute at Loughborough in the UK is part of an international research program．The team there believes that by 2020 all cars will be computerized, which will mean extremely large fuel savings, no accidents and better use of roads．The super-intelligent car of the 21st century will drive itself and it will not be owned by on individual．Instead, we will have a choice of cars and change them as frequently as we change our clothing．

　　According to Dr．David Davis, who leads the research team, these predictions are based on the rising cost of the car culture, which had blocked up our cities, polluted our air and caused more deaths than both world wars put together．

　　Davis says cars will be fitted with intelligent cruise control devices to regulate the distance between one car and another．Brakes and accelerators(加速器)will become redundant(多余的)because the car will automatically speed up or slow down to match the speed of the car in front．Computers are much safer drivers than people, so cars in a road train will be able to drive much closer together than cars driven by people．

　　By 2010 Dr．David Davis believes car technology will give motorists a clear view of the road whatever the weather conditions by projecting an image of the road ahead onto the car's windscreen．And by 2020 cars will travel in convoy linked to each other electronically．Cars will be connected by an electronic tow(牵引)bar to the car in front to form“road-trains”．“The front vehicle in such a train burns the ordinary fuel”says Davis．“But all the others in the train would burn about ten percent of the normal amount and so produce about ten percent of the pollution．”

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　　Drunken driving－sometimes called America's socially accepted form of murder－has become a national epidemic(流行病)．Every hour of every day about three Americans on average are killed by drunken drivers, adding up to an incredible 250,000 over the past ten years．A drunken driver is usually referred to as one with 0.10-blood alcohol content or roughly three beer glasses of wine or shots of whisky drunk within two hours．Heavy drinking used to be an acceptable part of the American manly image and judges were lenient in most courts, but the drunken killing has recently caused so many well-publicized tragedies, especially concerning young children, that public opinion is no longer so tolerant．

　　Twenty states have raised the legal drinking age to 21, reversing a trend in the 1960s to reduce it to 18．After New Jersey lowered it to 18, the number of people killed by 18-20 years old drivers more than doubled, so the state recently upped it back to 21．

　　Reformers, however, fear raising the drinking age will have little effect unless accompanied by educational programs to help young people to develop“responsible attitudes”about drinking and teach them to resist peer pressure to drink．

　　Though new laws have led to increased arrests and tests in many areas already, to a marked decline in accidents, some states are also punishing bars for serving customers too many drinks．A bar in Massachusetts was fined for serving six or more double brandies to a customer who was“obviously drunk”and later drove off the road, killing a 9-year-old boy．

　　As the accidents continue to occur daily in every state, some Americans are even beginning to speak well of the 13 years national prohibition of alcohol that began in 1919, which President Hoover called the“noble experiment”．They forgot that legal prohibition didn't stop drinking, but encouraged political corruption(腐败)and organized crime．As with the booming drug trade generally, there is no easy solution．

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　　A long weekend is a great opportunity to do something a little different．Many people use a long weekend for a getaway, a short trip to leave the stress of their everyday lives behind and explore, learn, or relax．

　　Many hotels and resorts feature something special to start the getaway, such as champagne, flowers, or a fruit basket in the room on arrival．Getaway packages usually include a room with something special, a heart shaped bed, for example．Additional benefits could be room service meals or other private dining, plus tickets or discounts for local attractions．

　　Spa getaways can take place at a location that focuses only on spa services or at a hotel that offers a spa as one of its features．Some spas emphasize treatments fit for their geographic area or a local attraction．A spa in a grape growing region might provide grape juice masks, or a hotel near a hot spring could offer mineral baths．Most spas offer a range of massage, health and beauty treatments, so a spa getaway can be relaxing with other benefits．

　　A long weekend may not be enough time to become an expert at something new, but it provides a way for people to begin their explorations．Some organizations offer intensive courses that last two or three days．People with special interests can get away from their routines while learning such things as how to make beer, speak a new language, or take better photos．

　　Some organizations cooperate with businesses to have accommodations(住宿)and activities for short-term volunteers．Most volunteer vacations involve ecology friendly or charity activities．A volunteer getaway is a way to relieve stress and help others at the same time．

　　For those who want to relax in a rural environment, a national park fits the bill．Most national parks provide camping areas for tents and trailers．Several have cabins(小屋)within the parks available to rent．A getaway to a national park provides privacy, stress relief, and the time to get to know some important natural resources．

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　　When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Dr．Gibbs．He didn't look like any doctor I'd ever known．He never yelled at us for playing in his yard．I remember him as someone who was a lot nicer than most of the adults in our community．

　　When Dr．Gibbs wasn't saving lives, he was planting trees．His house sat on ten acres, and his life's goal was to make it a forest．

　　The good doctor had some interesting theories concerning plant care and growth．He never watered his new trees, which flew in the face of conventional wisdom．Once I asked why．He said that watering plants spoiled them so that each successive tree generation would grow weaker and weaker．So you have to make things rough for them and weed out(淘汰)the weaker trees early on．

　　He talked about how watering trees made for shallow roots, and how trees that weren't watered had to grow deep roots in search of moisture．I took him to mean that deep roots were to be treasured．

　　So he never watered his trees．He planted an oak and, instead of watering it every morning, he'd beat it with a rolled-up newspaper．Smack!Slap!Pow!I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree's attention．

　　Dr．Gibbs passed away a couple of years after I left home．Every now and again, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I'd watched him plant some twenty-five years ago．They're extremely tall, big and robust since they have deep roots now．However, the trees in my garden trembled in a cold wind although I had watered them for several years．

　　It seems that adversity(逆境)and suffering benefit these trees in ways comfort and ease never could．I stood there deep in thought．

　　Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons．I stand over them and watch their little bodies, the rising and falling of life within．I often pray for them．Mostly I pray that their lives will be easy．But I think it's time to change my prayer(祷词)because now I know my children are going to encounter hardship．

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　　A man was on the side of the road hitchhiking(搭便车)on a very dark night in the middle of a terrible rainstorm, with no cars on the road．The storm was so strong that the man could hardly see a few feet ahead of him．Suddenly, he saw a car come towards him and stop．The man, without thinking about it, got in the car and closed the door and only then did he realize that there was nobody behind the steering wheel(方向盘)!

　　The car started to move very slowly．The man looked at the road and saw a curve(拐弯处)coming his way．Terrified, he started to pray, begging for his life．He had not come out of shock when, just before the car hit the curve, a hand suddenly appeared through the window and moved the wheel．The man, paralyzed with fear, watched how the hand appeared every time the car was drawing near a curve．Finally, although terrified, the man managed to open the door and jump out of the spooky car．Without looking back, the man ran through the storm all the way to the nearest town．In a state of complete horror, the man walked into a nearby bar and asked for two glasses of Scotch whisky．

　　Then, still shaking with fright, he started telling everybody in the bar about the horrible experience he just went through in the spooky car．Everyone in the bar listened in silence and became frightened, with hair standing on end, when they realized the man was telling the truth because he was crying and he was certainly not drunk!

　　About half an hour later, two other young men walked into the same bar and one said to the other,“Hey, there's a stupid man who jumped into the car while we were pushing it!”

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　　In the 1960s, many young Americans were dissatisfied with American society．They wanted to end the Vietnam War and to make all of the people in the U．S．equal．Some of them decided to“drop out”of American society and form their own societies．They formed utopian communities, which they called“communes”, where they could follow their philosophy of“do your own thing”．A group of artists founded a commune in southern Colorado called“Drop City．”Following the ideas of philosopher and architect Buckminster Fuller, they built dome-shaped houses from pieces of old cars．Other groups, such as author Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters, the followers of San Francisco poet Steve Gakin, and a group that called itself the Hog Farm, lived in old school houses and traveled around the United States．The Hog Farm became famous when they helped organize the Woodstock Rock Festival in 1969．Steve Gaskin's followers tried to settle down on a farm in Tennessee, but they had to leave when some members of the group were arrested for growing marijuana．

　　Not all communes believed in the philosophy of“do your own thing”．However, Twin Oaks, a commune founded in Virgiania in the late 1960s, was based on the ideas of psychologist B．F．Skinner．The people who lived at Twin Oaks were carefully controlled by Skinner's“conditioning”techniques to do things that were good for the community．In 1972, Italian architect Paolo Soleri began to build Arcosanti, a utopian city Arizsona where 2500 people will live closely together in one large building called an“archeology”．Soleri believes that people must live closely together so that they will all become one．

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　　The food we eat seems to have profound effects on our health．Although science has made enormous steps in making food more fit to eat, it has, at the same time, made many foods unfit to eat．Some research has shown that perhaps eighty percent of all human illnesses relate to diet and forty percent of cancer relates to the diet as well, especially cancer of the colon．Different cultures are more likely to cause certain different illnesses because of the food that is characteristic in these cultures．

　　That food is connected with illness is not a new discovery．In 1945, about 35 years ago, government researchers realized that nitrates, commonly used to preserve color in meats, and other food additives, caused cancer．Yet, these carcinogenic additives remain in our food, and it becomes more difficult all the time to know which things on the packaging labels of processed food are helpful or harmful．The additives which we eat are not all so direct．Farmers often give penicillin to beef and living animals, and because of this, penicillin has been found in the milk of treated cow．Sometimes similar drugs are given to animals not for medical purposes, but for financial reasons．The farmers are simply trying to fatten the animals in order to obtain a higher price on the market．Although the Food and Drug Administration(FDA)has tried repeatedly to control these procedures, the practices continue．

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　　Twenty-first century humanity has mapped oceans and mountains, visited the moon, and surveyed the planets．But for all the progress, people still don't know one another very well．

　　That brings about Theodore Zeldin's“feast of conversation”－events where individuals pair with persons they don't know for three hours of guided talk designed to get the past“Where are you from?”

　　Mr．Zeldin, an Oxford University professor, heads Oxford Muse, a 10-year-old foundation based on the idea that what people need is not more information, but more inspiration and encouragement．

　　The“feast”in London looks not at politics or events, but at how people have felt about work, relations among the sexes, hopes and fears, enemies and authority, the shape of their lives．The“menu of conversation”includes topics like“How have your priorities changed over the years?”Or,“What have you rebelled against the past?”

　　As participants gathered, Zeldin opened with a speech：that despite instant communications in a globalized age, issues of human heart remain．Many people are lonely, or in routines that discourage knowing the depth of one another．“We are trapped in shallow conversations and the whole point now is to think, which is sometimes painful,”he says．“But thinking interaction is what separates us from other species, except maybe dogs…who do have generations of human interactions．”

　　The main rules of the“feast”：Don't pair with someone you know or ask questions you would not answer．The only awkward moment came when the multi-racial crowd of young adults to seniors, in sun hats, ties and dresses, looked to see whom with for hours．But 15 minutes later, everyone was seated and talking．They would be‘intimate’, continuing full force until organizers interrupted them 180 minutes later．

　　“It's encouraging to see the world is not just a place of oppression and distance from each other,”Zeldin summed up．“What we did is not ordinary, but it can't be madder than the world already is．”

　　Some said they felt“liberated”to talk on sensitive topics．Thirty-something Peter, from East London, said that“it might take weeks or months to get to the level of interaction we suddenly opened up．”