Le Mat Snake Festival Over the years, Le Mat Village in Long Bien District, Hanoi has been famous nationwide for not only snake catching and breeding, but also its unique festival. The festival is annually held on March 20-24 of the lunar calendar to worship the village’s tutelary god of the Hoang Family. Legend told that one day while the daughter of King Ly Thai Tong (1072-1127) was boating with her maids on the Duong River, a big snake, which was considered a water monster, overturned the boat and caught the princess. The crew could do nothing to protect the princess. But a young man in the Hoang Family from Le Mat Village dove into the water, fought against the monster and, in the end, succeeded in killing it and saving the princess. King Ly Thai Tong was deeply impressed by the young man’s feat and gave him a reward in gold and court titles. But the hero graciously rejected the reward and, instead, requested the King to allow him and a number of poor people to reclaim land in the areas west of the capital in Thang Long. When the man passed away, the locals honored him as the village’s tutelary god and every year organize a festival to commemorate him. Le Mat Village Festival consists of many unique rituals and folk activities, such as the water offering ceremony, the snake-killing dance, one of the ten ancient dances in the imperial capital of Thang Long and the ritual of catching carp in the village well. With many ancient cultural features, Le Mat Village Festival is one of the unique festivals in our country, attracting a large number of tourists. I. Find the words in the passage that have similar meaning to these phrases: (0,5pts)

1. unusual or special in some way = ………………………..…….. 2. people who visit a place for pleasure and interest = ……………………………… II. Answer the questions: (1 pt) 1. What is Le Mat snake festival well-known for? @ ________________________________________________________________. 2. Was the monster who caught the princess a dragon? @ ________________________________________________________________. 3. List the activities you can see at the festival. @ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________. 4. Why is Le Mat festival considered one of the most unique festival in our country? @ ________________________________________________________________.