In England recently three foreign gentlemen came to a bus stop and waited . About five minutes later, the bus they wanted came along. They were just going to get on when suddenly there was a loud noise behind them. People rushed onto the bus and tried to push them out of the way . Someone shouted at them. The bus conductor came rushing down the stairs to see what all the trouble was about. The three foreigners seem all at sea and looked embarrassed (窘迫的 . No one had told them about the British custom (习惯)of lining up for a bus that the first person who arrives at the bus stop is the first person to get on the bus .
Learning the language of a country isn't enough. If you want to have a pleasant visit, find out as much as possible about the manners and customs of your host country. You will probably be surprised just how different they can be from your own. A visitor to India would do well to remember that people there consider it impolite to use the left hand for passing food at table. The left hand is supposed to be used for washing yourself. Also in India, you might see a man shaking his head at another to show that he doesn't agree. But in many parts of India a shake of the head means agreement. Nodding (点头) your head when you are given a drink in Bulgaria will most probably leave you thirsty .
In that country, you shake your head to mean 'yes'— a nod means 'no' . At a meal in countries on the Arabic Peninsula, you will find that your glass is repeated refilled as soon as you drink up . If you think that you have had enough , you should take the cup or glasses in your hand and give it a little shake from side to side or place your hand over the top.
In Europe it quite usual to cross your legs when you are sitting talking to someone even at an important meeting. Doing this in Thailand, however, could bring about trouble . Also, you should try to avoid (避免)touching the head of an adult (成人) ——it's just not done in Thailand .The British people tried to push the three gentlemen out of the way, because the gentlemen______
A.were foreigners | B.didn't have tickets |
C.made a loud noise | D.didn't line up for the bus |
According to the article, if you want to have a pleasant journey in a foreign country, you should ____
A.learn the language of the country |
B.understand the manners and customs of the country |
C.have enough time and money |
D.make friends with the people there |
In India it is considered impolite ___________.
A.to use the right hand for passing food at table. |
B.to pass food with the left hand. |
C.to eat food with your hands. |
D.to help yourself at table. |
To cross one's legs at an important meeting in Europe is _______.
A.a common (平常的) habit | B.an important manner |
C.a serious (严重的) trouble | D.a bad manner |
Here is a 2-way student exchange. Fred, 19 , spent last year in Germany with George’s family. In turn, George’s son Mike spent a year in Fred’s home in America.
Fred knew little German when he arrived. But after 2 months of studying, the language became easy for him. School was very different from what he had looked forward to and it was much harder. Students stood up politely when the teacher came into the room. They took 14 subjects while American students usually took 6 in the US.
Family life, too, was different. The father’s word was the law(法律) . All the children had to do their activities with their family. Fred also missed having a car. In Germany, you should walk to go out to have a good time.
At the same time, in America, Mike was forming his own ideas. He says,’ American schools are too easy for our level but I have to say that I like it a lot in Germany , we do nothing except study. Here we take part in many other activities.
Differences between American school life and German school life |
||
Items |
American students |
German students |
Class rules |
They don’t have to stand up when their teacher come in |
They have to __ |
____ |
They do their own things alone. |
They have to listen to their __ |
School ___ |
They have six and they are very easy for them |
They have 14, but the lessons are much more _ |
Going out |
They can _ |
They have to ___ |
School activities |
They have____ |
They have to ___ |
Young people and older people don’t always agree. They sometimes have different ideas about living, working and playing. But in one special programme in New York State, adults and teenagers live together in a friendly way.
Each summer 200 teenagers and 50 adults live together for eight weeks as members of a special work group. Everyone works several hours each day. They do so not just to keep busy but to find meaning and enjoyment in work. Some teenagers work in the woods or on the farms near the village. Some learn to make things like tables and chairs and build houses. The adults teach them these skills.
There are several free hours each day. Weekends are free, too. During the free hours some of the teenagers learn photo taking or painting. Others sit around and talk or sing. Each teenager chooses his own way to spend his free time.
When people live together, rules are necessary. In this programme the teenagers and the adults make the rules together. If someone breaks a rule, the problem goes before the whole group. They talk about it and ask, “Why did it happen? What should we do about it?”
One of the teenagers has this to say about his experience, “You stop thinking only about yourself; you learn to think about the group.”In one special programme in New York State, young and older people _______ .
A.don’t work well together. |
B.are friendly to one another. |
C.teach one another new ways of building houses. |
D.spend eight weeks together, working as farmers.. |
All the members work some time every day mainly to _______ .
A.lead a busy life. |
B.learn new skills of farming; |
C.get used to the life on the farms |
D.find value and pleasure in work |
Living together, _________ .
A.the teenagers don’t have to obey the rules |
B.the teenagers have to obey the rules the adults make |
C.the members have no free time on weekends |
D.the members are not allowed to break the rules they make together |
The last programme shows that the teenager thinks his experience in the programme is ____ .
A.unpleasant | B.tiring | C.helpful | D.boring |
The best title for the passage is __________ .
A.The rules of living together |
B.Life in New York State |
C.Teenagers in the special group |
D.Free hours in the special work group |
Each morning a rich man found a poor man sitting on a park bench (长凳). The poor man always sat there, looking at the big hotel in which the rich man lived. One day the rich man got out of his car and said to the poor man, “Excuse me, but I just want to know why you sit here and look at my hotel every morning.” “Sir”, said the poor man, “I am a failure (失败者). I have no money, no family, no home. I sleep on this bench, and every night I dream that one day I'll sleep in that hotel.” The rich man said, “Tonight your dream will come true. I'll pay for the best room in that hotel for you for a whole month.
A few days later, the rich man went by the poor man's room to ask him how he was enjoying himself. To his surprise, he found that the man had moved out of the hotel, back to his park bench. When the rich man asked why, the poor man said, “you see, when I am down here sleeping on my bench, I dream I'm up there, in that big hotel. It's a wonderful dream. But when I was up there, I dreamed I was back to this cold bench. It was a terrible dream, and I couldn't get any sleep at all.”The poor man lived in ________ before he met the rich man.
A.the hotel | B.his home | C.the park | D.the car |
Every morning, the poor man sat on the bench and __________.
A.waited for the rich man |
B.looked at the rich man's hotel |
C.looked at the rich man's car |
D.enjoyed the clean air |
Every night the poor man dreamed of _____________.
A.sleeping in that hotel |
B.becoming rich |
C.owning that hotel |
D.being the rich man's friend |
The poor man moved out of the hotel because __________.
A.he didn't want to live in such a fine room |
B.he didn't like the rich man |
C.he couldn't pay for the room |
D.he couldn't get any sleep at all there |
Michael Jordan is the most famous basketball player in the world. He was born in Brooklyn, New York. He didn't like to talk to other people about himself. He was also very short. He didn't play very well when he joined the basketball team in his high school at first. But the next year things changed greatly for him as he grew much taller.
Michael Jordan became famous when he joined the university basketball team in North Carolina. Michael used his speed and strength (力量) to reach the basket again. He played so well that people called him “Air Jordan”.
After college, Michael became a basketball team member in the Chicago Bulls. The NBA was very surprised at this high-flying player. He was named “Rookie” (新秀) of the year in 1985 and “Most Valuable (价值的) Player” in 1987. He once set a record (创纪录) by getting 63 points in one game.He began to become famous in _____________.
A.the university basketball team |
B.the NBA |
C.his high school at first |
D.the Chicago Bulls |
He is often called“__________”.
A.Rookie | B.the NBA | C.Air Jordan | D.Most Valuable Player |
The NBA was very surprised at the superstar when _________.
A.he was young |
B.he joined the basketball team in his high school |
C.he joined the university basketball team |
D.he joined the Chicago Bulls |
Leeds Castle One of the most popular places of interest in Britain Opening times Open all year round except 7th and 8th November and Christmas Day(25th December)2009. 1 April to 30 September 2009 Open:10:30 am—5:30 pm Gates close at 6pm 1 October 2009 to 31 March 2010 Open:10:30 am—4 pm Gates close at 5pm Prices Adults:£16.50 Students:£9.50 Children under 4:free |
Leeds Castle is closed on _________.
A.7th January | B.8th August | C.25th December | D.1st April |
John and Mary will take their three-year old son to Leeds Castle.How much should they pay?
A.£33. | B.£16.50. | C.£26. | D.£9.50. |
What time does Leeds Castle close on 29th October?
A.6 pm. | B.6:30 pm. | C.5:30 pm. | D.5 pm. |