CRI英语听力2013年02月（WORD文本）：SNAKE-RELATED-PRODUCTS-POPULAR-IN-CHINA_92.doc

1、A gold cobra, shinning shimmering, splendid sits in a locked, glass display case in a Hong Kong jewelry shop! It will take a chunk out of your wallet, setting you back some $25,600 U.S. dollars. It took artisans about a month to make the snake, which weighs about 380 grams.Retailers in Hong Kong are

2、 stocking up on snake-related products to meet the growing demand ahead of the start of the Lunar New Year.The Chinese New Year, which falls on Sunday, February 10th, heralds the beginning of the Year of the Snake.In the West, snakes are regarded as evil. But many Chinese believe they are clever and

3、 agile. Some even say the little dragon is auspicious.Kent Wong, Managing Director of Chow Tai Fook Jewelry, says traditionally, demand for gold Chinese zodiac products has always been particularly great.For thousands of years, especially during the Chinese New Year, Chinese people haveliked to buy

4、Chinese zodiac animal products because they believe this kind of product can bring them good luck and fortune. Usually, they like to buy some gold jewelry with a snake design.In recent years, the price of gold has risen considerably, as investors have sought more stable investment options rather tha

5、n sink money in troubled markets or global stock exchanges.Despite the price increases, Wong says shoppers still want to invest in gold.People like to buy gold for investment purposes, and its a kind of wealth accumulation. These kinds of purchases are less affected by rising prices.The Year of a Sn

6、ake has been slithering its way into marketing and branding across Hong Kong.One Hong Kong footwear designer has created a pair of heels inspired by the coming Year of the Snake.Gold-colored with two sparkling snake heads on each heel, the shoes are the latest design by Ameersing Luximon, an assista

7、nt professor at the Institute of Textile and Clothing at Hong Kong Polytechnic University.He has combined different elements in the shoes to reflect the joyful atmosphere of the coming year. Luximon says:So, the shoes, first they are gold in color, which means prosperity. I think everyone knows the

8、color gold is related to kings, which means rich. Another thing is they have two heads, on which one pair of shoes there are two heads. So, actually, there are four heads, which means one pair is not alone, so its like a friendship, like a family; and four means like a whole family together. On the

9、back of the shoes, you have two wings. Each shoe has two wings. You dont need one wing to fly. You have two wings, so they can help you fly higher in the scene and achieve success in whatever you want to do.From the feng shui perspective, 2013 is the Year of Fire, which represents happiness and pros

10、perity.Feng shui is a traditional Chinese belief system that combines analysis of the lunar calendar with a series of key elementswood, fire, earth, metal, and wateras well as geographical features and meteorology.Raymond Lo, a feng shui master in Hong Kong, says as 2013 is the start of the fire cyc

11、le, we can expect to see a boost in the global economy, and the snake will charm the stock markets.Since 2008 this is the first time we have had a snake year, which is also the fire year. So, thats why, definitely peoples mood will change. Actually, the stock market (is) very much affected by the co

12、llective mood of the people. And if everybody feels positive, definitely the economic atmosphere will be much more active, more people will invest money, and the stock market will go up. So, thats why we already smell the power of the snake.The Year of the Snake is coming on Sunday, Feb.10th.For CRI, I am Li Dong.