Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a country in Northern Europe. Sweden borders (与......接壤) Norway and Finland, and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel. At 450,295 square kilometers, Sweden is the third-largest country in the European Union by area, with a total population of about 9.6 million. Sweden has a low population density (密度) of 21 persons per square kilometer with the population mostly living in the southern half of the country. Southern Sweden is mainly agricultural, while the north is heavily forested.

      Sweden was discovered as an independent country during the Middle Ages. In the 17th century, the country became bigger to form the Swedish Empire. The empire grew to be one of the great powers of Europe in the 17th and early 18th centuries. The eastern half of Sweden, present-day Finland, was lost to Russia in 1809. The last war in Sweden was in 1814. Since then, Sweden has been at peace, remaining a largely neutral (中立的) nation. The country played a good role during World Wars I and II, taking in refugees (难民) from German occupied Europe. With the ending of the Cold War, Sweden joined the European Union.

    Itzhak Perlman is famous violinist. He was born 1945. He once gave a concert in New York City. Getting on stage was difficult for him he is disabled. The audience sat (quiet) while he made his way across the stage to (he) chair. Then he picked up the violin, (put) it under his chin (下巴) and started to play. But this time, when he finished the (one) part, one of the (string) on his violin broke. , he continued to (play) the music. The music he played with three strings sounded even more wonderful than it was played with four strings.

    Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA. I'm Faith. This Thursday is a day for families and friends to share a special holiday meal and think about what they are 1 for. We will ask some people to share their 2 memories of Thanks giving Day.  

    Jim Green: "I'm from Tennessee. I remember my parents were 3, so we often didn't get to have Thanksgiving together. But we always had pumpkin pies, and if we were really 4, a little bit of cream would be at the top. And it was just a wonderful day."

    Ann Geiger: "I'm from Arizona. Thanksgiving is 5 for our family. Because many of our family members live around the country and we usually 6 for Thanksgiving."

    Joel Smith: "I'm from Tennessee. Thanksgiving is always a 7 time for our family. Usually, on that day we would 8 a family Thanksgiving dinner. The 9 would get to play. The men would always watch a football game on TV and the women 10 food for the whole family. And that was just a really, really happy time."

    OK, that's all for today's programme. Our program was produced by Caty Weaver. Welcome to join us again next week.

      I first met Windy, a six-year-old girl, on the beach near where I lived. She was building a sand house there. She looked up, and her eyes were as blue as the sea. Every time when I felt unhappy, I drove to the beach.  

      "Hello, Miss Agnes," she said. I answered, but I didn't really want to stop her. "I'm building," she said. I saw that.

    "What is it?" I asked her. "Oh, I don't know. I just like the feeling of the sand." Oh, that's good, I thought, and took off my shoes to join her. A sandpiper (一种叫做鹬的水鸟) flew by. She told me that it would make me happy. I felt better then.

      A week later on my next visit, I learned that Windy lived in a cottage (小屋) and didn't go to school. Soon after that, my mother died, and I rushed to the beach to be alone. I didn't want to say anything when Windy came up to me. "Why?" she asked.

      I turned to her and shouted, "Because my mother died!" "Oh," she said quietly, "then today is a bad day."

      A month later, I went to the beach but couldn't find Windy. I missed her so much that I visited her house. I learned that Windy had died of leukemia (白血病), but she left a picture of a sandpiper for me.

    Generation Show was held in Belgium at first. With the introduction of the foreign hot show mode, Shenzhen TV organized the programme and made it popular.

    It is reported that Generation Show includes several programmes. Each programme is made up of five different age groups (60, 70, 80, 90, 00). They show the skills in their own area through the years about their own story.   

    In the show, the stars from different ages will be invited, and tell stories about their little-known and interesting events of the past. Shenzhen TV spent huge money inviting more than 300 stars and the television production team. It nearly took one and a half years to build it. This show is an entertainment programme, which includes game contests, music performances and fashion shows.

In the show, people will see five generations (一代人). In order to find a deep feeling among different people, guests of these programmes have athletes, artists, singers, actors and so on. On the stage, they will be asked to answer questions, show their special skills and tell their stories of the times.

    The host Zhao Yiou, with a good sense of humour, is very popular. His style is also a great change and achieves a great turn in Shenzhen TV.