Welcome to the Sydney Opera House

Ticket Info and Guided Tours

Visitors can enjoy the Sydney Opera House foyer for free, but for a more insightful visit, you'll need to book a tour.

There are several different ways to experience the Sydney Opera House, and multiple tours are available including back-stage passes and walking tours.

Tour Type    Adult （AUD $ ）    Child

Guided Walking Tour    $ 42    $ 22

Guided Walking Tour + Dinner    $ 73    $ 52

Guided Walking Tour + Tasting Plate    $ 82. 20    $ 64. 80

Backstage Tour    $ 175    $ 175

Opening Hours and the Best Time to Visit

The Sydney Opera House is open year-round with the following opening hours：

● Monday—Saturday ： 9am—8: 30pm

●Sunday: 9am—5pm

As for the best time of day, it's recommended to book the earliest Sydney Opera House tour of the day to beat the crowds. To enjoy sunny weather with fewer crowds, try visiting in the shoulder season (October, November, February, or March)

Points of Interest

●The Steps

Before entering the Opera House, take a picture of the building from the steps outside.

●The Sails

Step beneath the sails on a guided tour and enjoy harbor front views.

●The Concert Hall

The Concert Hall is the largest venue with seats for more than 2000 people. It features contemporary live music shows and highly -regarded orchestral (管弦乐的)performances. It is also here that you will find the world's largest mechanical tracker-action pipe organ.

● Opera Bar

After your tour, head to the Opera Bar for a bite to eat or drink in the sun.

● Badu Gili

Badu Gili, which is 'water light' in the language of the Gadigal people-takes place most evenings after sunset at 9pm, 9:30pm, and 10pm. The seven-minute display is free to view.

Cecilia Chiang, whose San Francisco restaurant, the Mandarin, introduced American diners in the 1960s to the richness and variety of authentic Chinese cuisine, died on Wednesday at her home in San Francisco.

Ms. Chiang was not a chef, nor was she a likely candidate to run a restaurant. She was born near Shanghai in 1920 as the seventh daughter in a wealthy family. After her parents died, Cecilia managed the businesses' finances while still in her teens.

Ms. Chiang came to the United States from China to flee the Japanese during World War Ⅱ, traveling nearly 700 miles on foot. Once in San Francisco, she met two Chinese acquaintances who wanted to open a restaurant. Ms. Chiang agreed to put up a huge deposit. But when the two women quit, Ms. Chiang found to her honor that the deposit was not refundable (可退还的). She took a deep breath and decided to open the restaurant herself. "I began to think that if I could create a restaurant with Western-style service and the dishes that I was most familiar with -the delicious food of northern China — maybe my little restaurant would succeed, " she wrote in her book.

The Mandarin , which was opened in 1962 as a 65 -seat restaurant, introduced customers to mainly Sichuan₉ Shanghai and Canton dishes. The early days were difficult. But little by little, Chinese diners, and a few Americans, came regularly. Overnight the tables filled and became a huge success.

Ms. Chiang continued to work as a restaurant consultant into her 90s. " I think I changed what average people know about Chinese food, " Mrs. Chiang wrote. "They didn't know China was such a big country. "

Prince William, second in line to the British throne, gave his first TED Talk on Saturday to launch his Earthshot Prize, a competition that will award five £ 1 million prize money every year for the next decade to those who can come up with solutions to environmental problems.

Any person, group or organization around the world is qualified, and any suggestion is welcome, so long as it is applicable globally. It could be a new technology, a new approach, a new governmental policy or any other ideas toward five environmental goals -fixing the climate, purifying the air, protecting nature, cleaning oceans and handling waste.

"Earthshot" was inspired by John F. Kennedy's "Moonshot," an ambitious 1961 mission to get a man on the moon within a decade. The purpose of the prize is partly to arouse excitement and offer what Prince William called "a bit of catalyst, a bit of hope, a bit of positivity" at a time when the world needs. The money will come from donors around the world. The prize committee includes many celebrities.

Prince William has environmental activism in his blue blood. Both his grandfather, and his father Prince Charles were active environmentalists. Prince William acknowledged his heritage by saying he had always listened, learned and believed what they were saying about the environment. Besides speaking wise words, he also puts forward a good prize. Over a million pounds is significantly more than a Nobel Prize and should inspire some serious and creative thinking about the difficulties of Planet Earth. Unlike the Nobel Prize money, the Earthshot money is supposed to be spent on the winning project. ^“If we achieve these goals, by 2030 our lives won't be worse, and we won't have to sacrifice everything we enjoy. Instead, the way we live will be healthier, cleaner, smarter, and better for all of us," he said.

A joint research team recently have developed a new electronic skin that is similar to human skin in strength, durability(耐久性) and sensitivity. The skin or e-skin may play an important role in next-generation personalized medicine, soft robotics and artificial intelligence.

"The ideal e-skin will mimic(模仿) the many natural functions of human skin, such as sensing temperature and touch, accurately and in real time, " says leading researcher Yichen Cai. However, making suitably flexible electronics that can perform such delicate tasks while also used repeatedly is challenging, and each material involved must be carefully engineered.

Most e-skins are made by putting an active sensor on the surface that attaches to human skin. However, the connection between them is often too weak, which reduces the durability and sensitivity of the material; otherwise, if it is too strong, it won't be flexible enough, making it more likely to break the circuit.

"The landscape of skin electronics keeps shifting at a remarkable pace," says Cai. "The discovery of 2D sensors has accelerated efforts to turn these quite thin but strong materials into functional, durable artificial skins. "

The new man-made skin built by the researchers could sense objects from 20 centimeters away. It could further make a quick response when touched in less than one tenth of a second." It is a striking achievement for an e-skin to maintain toughness after repeated use, " said Shen, "which mimics the softness and rapid recovery of human skin."

This type of e-skin could monitor a range of biological information, such as changes in blood pressure, which can be detected from movements of arms and legs. This data can then be shared and stored on the cloud via Wi-Fi.

"One remaining problem to the widespread use of e-skins lies in mass production of high-resolution sensors," adds group leader Vincent Tung" however, the latest technology offers new promise."

How to Start a Habit of Making Art

Making art can reduce stress and anxiety and improve your mood. But you don't have to be a fulltime artist to get those health benefits.  And the more you do it, the better. Here are the things you need to know to kick-start your creative art habit.

 In fact, there are no differences in health outcomes between those who identify as experienced artists and those who don't. So no matter what your skill level is, you'll be able to feel all the good things coming with making art.

It's good to figure out your way of creative expression. Start with what you enjoy. Anything that engages (引起) your creative mind is good for you. You can do that through many activities: finger painting, cooking, baking, oil painting. And don't feel like you have to stick to one thing.

You can think about making art like any healthy habit, such as eating well or exercising. Just as you make time to work, exercise and hang out with friends, you should make time for your artistic creation. Doing just 10 minutes of art each day can do wonders. In addition to carving out time, you can also carve out a physical space in your home for art.  If space is an issue, put it all in a container that's easily accessible.

The more you're able to make art a regular habit, the more you're likely to get this great reward: this wonderful thing that happens when you're in the zone. We can feel that flow when filling in lines with color, inking and when drawing pleasing backgrounds, such as jungle or garden scenes.

A. Scientists call it "flow".

B. Do whatever you're interested in.

C. All you need to do is just make art.

D. It frees me up to explore new ideas.

E. Set up a corner table for your art supplies.

F. Making art helps us make sense of feelings.

G. Everyone has the ability of creative expression.

I had no idea what meditation (冥想) was until I went to Thailand in 2013. I had divorced my husband after four years of 1 and went away to cure my 2 One day I went on a trip with some friends to a beautiful temple, where the monks 3 us to do meditation. I was asked to 4 down on a cushion in the lotus position (盘腿), close my eyes and 5 my breath. The position caused me some 6. All I could think about was how sour my knees were. I couldn't 7 for it to end. It went on for two hours, but when I walked out afterwards, I felt so aware and alert and relaxed. It was 8.

Back in London, I found a meditation 9 and started going once a week. I bought meditation CDs and books and a 10 so I could practise at home. I11went out on a Christmas retreat (静修) a week. There, Christmas Day was just like any other day. There were 12 any decorations, or cards. We spent the morning 13 nature, doing yoga or reading in the garden. And there was meditation in the afternoon. In the evening, there would be a talk, then we would meditate again.

I found the retreat 14 and hard to adapt to at first. However, the more I practised meditation, the more I could feel myself 15. It helped me understand myself better and accept my 16 , I used to be 17 into self-doubt, thinking only about my weaknesses. Stilling my mind helped me to feel 18and deal with those negative 19 better. Meditation helped me gain my 20 and live a better life.

Rarely has a sports team in China received praise and (admire) as enthusiastically as the Chinese women's volleyball team. It has a great effect  Chinese people from all walks of life.

Director Peter Chan's film Leap shines a spotlight on the struggles of several generations of the Chinese team in their attempts  (achieve) glory for their country. Chan brought out into open the difficulties behind production. For example, the crew built  volleyball training base in Beijing by taking apart and moving the original  (wood) floor from the base in order to recreate the original atmosphere. "The floor still shows the blood, tear and sweat (leave) by the women's volleyball team members back in the 1980s," Chan noted.

"The people love the Chinese women's volleyball team, not only because they ( win) the championship several times so far, but also because of the spirit of putting the motherland first and never giving up," the spirit (praise) by Chinese President Xi Jinping,  greeted Team China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on September 30.

(sure), that spirit will live on.

增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧）, 并在其下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：1．每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；

2．只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

Virtues are jewel of great price. I find honesty is most valuable virtue in my heart. And it is always accompany my growth.

As a child, I was constantly told the story naming The Wolf Is Coming, which obviously has a lasting influence. Over time, I've increasing realized the importance of honesty and try to carry it out. Only then I'm honest and reliable, will I be trusted with others.

Actually. being honest. I've found it more easier to make friends. The virtue of honesty will help me open the door to success of our career and life.

1）劳动体验；

2）感受。

注意：1）词数100左右；

2）短文题目已为你写好。提示词:labor education （劳动教育）