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　　Fifteen years after the fall of the Berlin wall, a private museum is rebuilding a 200-metre section of it．The site, close to Checkpoint Charlie, the famous Cold War border crossing, is meant to satisfy tourists．The new copy consists of large concrete(混凝土)pieces taken from the actual wall．But it must follow a slightly different course because of new buildings on the site of the original wall．

　　Alexandra Hildebrandt, the manager of the Checkpoint Charlie museum, said it would remind people of the history when East and West Berlin were separated by the wall．Some young people tend to forget it．

　　After World War II, Berlin was divided into four parts：the Soviet, US, UK, and French．Each had a part of the city under its control．At first, the citizens of Berlin were allowed to move freely．However, as the Cold War continued, movement became restricted(受限制的)．The border between West Germany and East Germany was closed in 1952．

　　Work on a wall around the three western parts began on August 13, 1961 in East Berlin．It was backed by the Soviet Union．The wall was a 155-kilometre-long wall with an average height of 3.6 meters．West Germany would hold their babies above the wall for relatives to see．

　　After 28 years of separation, travel restrictions on East Germans were lifted by the East German Government on November 9, 1989．Tens of thousands of people immediately went to the wall, where the border guards opened passages and allowed them through．November 9 is considered the day when the wall fell．The fall of the Berlin Wall marked the end of the Cold War．West and East Germany were unified on October 3, 1990．

　　"It's a very strange feeling," Wolfgang Mtiller,53, a worker who used to live in East Berlin, said as he carefully smoothed cement(水泥)on to the blocks, "I never thought I would be building the Berlin Wall again．"

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　　Although gifts play an important role in business around the world, you run the risk of offending(冒犯)a colleague if you present an inappropriate gift．In many eyes, a poor gift choice is worse than not offering a gift at all．

　　Every culture has specific items that are considered taboo(忌讳)or bad luck．Many of these traditions aren't followed as much these days by the younger generations or within more modem and global companies．However, it's a good idea to be careful when you're deciding on a gift, particularly if the recipient is an older person．

　　Here are some gifts that you should avoid in certain parts of the world：

　　Europe：Red roses symbolize a romantic relationship in many parts of Europe．An arrangement containing 13 flowers is considered bad luck in Germany and Switzerland．In addition, the preference is for flower arrangements to have an even number of flowers．

　　China：Sharp objects symbolize the cutting off of the relationship．Clocks are not appropriate because the Chinese phrase to give a clock sounds the same as to attend a dying parent．Handkerchiefs imply sadness．Never give an odd(奇数)number of an item; odd numbers symbolize separation, loneliness, and death．Do not bring food when you're invited to a meal because that implies your host cannot provide enough food．

　　The Middle East：Buying alcohol is forbidden in the Islamic faith, so don't present wine to your host．Pigs are banned because they're considered scavengers, so you shouldn't bring pork products, either．

　　India：Cows are sacred in India, so items made from cowhide are very offensive．

　　Latin America：Since some of the world's finest leather goods are made in Latin America, it would be insulting to bring leather from another country．Also, chrysanthemums(菊花), white asters, carnations(康乃馨), and yellow and purple flowers are sent only for funerals(葬礼)．

　　Korea and Japan：Don't give items in groups of four or nine．The words in Korean and Japanese that sound the same as the words for four and nine are related to death．In Japan, individual flowers are only for courting, death, or an illness．

　　Germany, Switzerland, and Scandinavia：Keep your gifts simple．Large and expensive gifts are considered tasteless．