Tayka Hotel De Sal
Where: Tahua, Bolivia
How much: About $95 a night
Why it’s cool: You’ve stayed at hotels made of brick or wood, but salt? That’s something few can claim. Tayka Hotel de Sal is made totally of salt—including the beds (though you’ll sleep on regular mattresses (床垫) and blankets).The hotel sits on the Salar de Uyuni, a prehistoric dried-up lake that’s the world’s biggest salt flat. Builders use the salt from the 4,633-square-mile flat to make the bricks, and glue them together with a paste of wet salt that hardens when it dries. When rain starts to dissolve the hotel, the owners just mix up more salt paste to strengthen the bricks.
Green Magic Nature Resort
Where: Vythiri, India
How much: About $240 a night
Why it’s cool: Ridding a pulley(滑轮)-operated lift 86 feet to your treetop room is just the start of your adventure. As you look out of your open window—there is no glass!—you watch monkeys and birds in the rain forest canopy. Later you might test your fear of heights by crossing the handmade rope bridge to the main part of the hotel, or just sit on your bamboo bed and read. You don’t even have to come down for breakfast—the hotel will send it up on the pulley-drawn “elevator”.
Dog Bark Park Inn B&B
Where: Cottonwood, Idaho
How much: $92 a night
Why it’s cool: This doghouse isn’t just for the family pet. Sweet Willy is a 30-foot-tall dog with guest rooms in his belly. Climb the wooden stairs beside his hind leg to enter the door in his side. You can relax in the main bedroom, go up a few steps of the loft in Willy’s head, or hang out inside his nose. Although you have a full private bathroom in your quarters, there is also a toilet in the 12-foot-tall fire hydrant outside.
Gamirasu Cave Hotel
Where: Ayvali, Turkey
How much: Between $130 and $475 a night.
Why it’s cool: This is caveman cool! Experience what it was like 5,000 years ago, when people lived in these mountain caves formed by volcanic ash. But your stay will be much more modern. Bathrooms and electricity provide what you expect from a modern hotel, and the white volcanic ash, called tufa, keeps the rooms cool, about 65℉in summer.(Don’t worry—there is heat in winter.)What is the similarity of the four hotels?
| A．Being expensive. | B．Being beautiful. |
| C．Being natural. | D．Being unique. |
What does the underlined part “Sweet Willy” refer to?
A. The building of Dog Bark Park Inn B&B.
B. The name of a pet dog of the hotel owner.
C. The name of the hotel.
D. The name of the hotel owner.Which of the hotel makes you have a feeling of living in the far past?
| A．Tayka Hotel De Sal |
| B．Green Magic Nature Resort |
| C．Dog Bark Park Inn B&B |
| D．Gamirasu Cave Hotel |
The following are a few cities with cheap attractions or restaurants in California, the US.
Cathedral City
The Indian Oven in the city will give you a high-quality dining experience. It’s a restaurant with traditional Indian dishes. All of the lunch specials are $5.95 and are served from 11:30 am to 2:00 pm. The windows of the restaurants give you the beautiful views of desert mountain scenes. You need to call 92234(760)770-3918 to book a table.
Palm Desert
Palm Desert, a city in Riverside County, has a number of free desert hiking trails(小径). They are named after famous Western Hollywood cowboys. The trails are fun to hike on. At some points they go up very high and you can get a bird’s-eye view of the surrounding desert cities. The paths are dusty, so bring some good hiking boots and hats. Do bring some water and your phone. It’s great for an afternoon hike after 2 pm. Call 92260(760)340-0574 or 92253(760)564-4712 to learn more.
Lake Cahuilla
Away from the busy streets of the city of Palm Springs, Lake Cahuilla is a great recreational(娱乐的) area you can visit in La Quinta. It is at the foot of the Santa Rosa Mountains. It costs $3.00 for per person to enter the area, but a half for kids under 7. The activities include: camping, fishing, bicycling, and horseback riding. If you want to save on rooms, you can stay in an RV. Call 92278(760)664-7215 and you’ll learn something else.The desert hiking trails__________.
| A．are named after some famous people |
| B．reach the top of some high mountains. |
| C．provide visitors with free water and food. |
| D．have attracted many well-known cowboys. |
If you want to know more about the restaurants in Lake Cahuilla, you can call __________.
| A．92260(760)340-0574 | B．92278(760)664-7215 |
| C．92234(760)770-3918 | D．92253(760)564-4712 |
We can learn from the passage that ________.
| A．the Indian Oven must be a well-known restaurant in India. |
| B．kids enjoy the hiking trails in Palm Desert at half price. |
| C．Palm Desert has been badly polluted by human activities. |
| D．staying in an RV costs less than staying in a hotel room. |
The ancient city is in Pingyao county, Shanxi Province. The city wall was first built during the Zhou Dynasty. Since 1997, it has been listed as a World Heritage Site. Now Pingyao city is the only one in China completely protected as it was hundreds of years ago.
The perimeter(周长) of this square city is 6.4km long and the city wall is the earliest and largest city wall in China. It is 12 m high with width of 5 m. The wall was built with earth and covered with bricks. Outside the city wall there is a river, 4 m wide and 4 m deep.
There are several gates of the city, two each on the east and west and one each on the south and north side. All the gates have two doors each. This has given the city the name “Turtle City” with the two gates on the south and north standing for the head and tail of the turtle and four gates on the east and west as the four legs. The doors on the south and north stand opposite each other, like the head of the turtle extending out and two wells just beyond southern gate are like a turtle’s two eyes.
Located on the trade route between Beijing and Xi’an, Pingyao developed into a merchant center where the local people set up the nation’s earliest banks. These banks were the first in China to use checks.
Several old courtyards have been turned into museums, most of which were homes and offices of Pingyao’s old banks. One of the most unusual aspects of a visit here is realizing that this place was very important to China’s financial(金融的) history. What does the passage mainly talk about?
| A．The ancient city—Pingyao. |
| B．China’s ancient financial center—Pingyao. |
| C．The city wall of Pingyao. |
| D．The museums in Pingyao. |
How many gates are there in Pingyao city?
| A．Four. | B．Five. | C．Six. | D．Seven. |
Which gate in Pingyao city stands for the head of the turtle?
| A．The gate on the north. |
| B．The gate on the south. |
| C．The gate on the east. |
| D．The gate on the west. |
It can be inferred from the last two paragraphs that__________.
| A．Pingyao city played an important role in ancient China’s finance. |
| B．museums in Pingyao city are now used for bank offices. |
| C．Pingyao city was one of the largest cities in ancient China. |
| D．old banks in ancient Pingyao city used checks only. |
We always read reports about costs of oil going up and we will think this is our most valuable material. However, water is the most valuable resource(资源). People in the Middle East are more worried about this than oil. Maybe the next war will be about water.
In the future, to control the quality and quantity(数量), you will use different water for different usages. The water used to wash your car, water your flowers or wash your clothes doesn’t need to be as clean as the water you drink.
One in five people live in countries without enough fresh water and in 25 years, the number is believed to be one in every three people. Our world population is increasing. What do you suppose this will suggest for us in the future? Population control?
Traditional management of the water industry has been out of date since the 1990s. When technologies develop so rapidly in the world, we have loads of information for technologies in the business world, but in the water industry we don’t have any.
Britain and France have already taken measures to successfully improve their water industries. All the water services in Britain have been provided by private(私有的) companies since 1991. Since then, improvement has been made in the rules for their water quality and pricing.
What can you do now for the future? Using water more efficiently(有效地) in your house can make a great difference not only to the world but to your money. Even if you don’t have to pay much now, you will when you start to pay big prices for different water usages.Water shortage is getting more serious because ______________.
| A．the world population is growing up. |
| B．there will be more wars about water. |
| C．people don’t have efficient management of the water industry. |
| D．water services will be provided only by private companies. |
Britain has improved their water quality by ___________.
| A．raising the price of water. |
| B．reducing water pollution. |
| C．changing the management of the water industry. |
| D．opening more private companies for water services. |
Which is the author’s suggestion for us?
| A．Paying less money for water |
| B．Buying more water for future use. |
| C．Using different water for different usages. |
| D．Using as little water as possible in cooking. |
Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Save water and save money |
| B．Easy ways to cut down on your water usage |
| C．Why you should teach your children to save water |
| D．Water is our precious resource—start to save it now |
Planning to go to a gym? If you are one of those who have spent many days planning to join a gym or to attend it regularly, then why not choose some home exercise? Here are some home exercises without equipment.
Jumping jacks
This one is the best home workout without weights which is a great exercise that will work your hands and legs. Perform this exercise by standing with your feet placed together and arms at your sides. Now tuck in your abs(收腹) and jump by bending in your knees. At the same time, move your feet apart as much as you can and raise your hands to bring in line with your shoulder. While you come back you must be in a starting position, feet together, hands at sides and knees bent. You must land on your heels and again jump.
Jogging
Jogging is one of the best home exercises without weights. You don’t need to have a lawn or jogging track at home to perform this exercise. There are many benefits of jogging. It will work your entire legs. Moreover, it is a classic cardiovascular(心血管) workout. Make sure you wear jogging footwear even if you are jogging at home to avoid any stress on your feet. Also, you can gradually increase the jogging time and speed.
Rotating(旋转) exercise
Start by rotating your wrists, clockwise(顺时针地) and anticlockwise. Now, alternately rotate your feet in the same fashion. Now place both your hands on the shoulder and start rotating your shoulder clockwise and anticlockwise. Place an exercise mat and lie flat on your back. Now lift your left leg and rotate it clockwise; do not bend you knees. Now rest the left leg, lift your right leg and rotate it anticlockwise.
It is necessary to set a perfect mood for exercise which will help you stick to the exercise routine and excitement. Make sure you wear proper exercise clothes to perform the workout with ease. Also, putting on your favorite music will make your exercise session more lively. If you get bored with exercises, just dance, after all it’s also one of the best home exercises.To carry out jumping jacks effectively, you________.
| A．need to keep your two feet apart at first. |
| B．must stand straight first and bend your abs. |
| C．must use your arms to support your body. |
| D．need to use your heels to touch the ground. |
What can we learn from Paragraph 3?
| A．You may exercise your body entirely by jogging at home. |
| B．It may do harm to your feet to jog at home without shoes. |
| C．You’d better choose a space as the jogging track at home. |
| D．You must stick to a fixed time and speed while jogging. |
What is the right order of your body parts during rotation exercise?
| A．hands—legs---back----legs. |
| B．wrists—hands---feet---shoulders |
| C．wrists---feet---shoulders---legs |
| D．hands---shoulders---knees---legs |
To carry out home exercises continuously, you need________.
| A．a good atmosphere. | B．a good coach. |
| C．a dance teacher | D．a good timer. |
You may have heard of the book Moby Dick(《白鲸记》), written by the American author Herman Melville. You may also know that Moby Dick is considered one of the greatest novels ever written. However, it might surprise you to find out Herman Melville was not always a highly regarded author.
Melville’s first two novels, Typee and Omoo, were widely read and financially successfully. They were both exciting tales of adventures at sea and experiences with people in foreign lands. Melville became quite famous. However, upon the publication of his third book, Mardi, Melville’s popularity began to weaken. He was no longer interested in telling tales of pure adventure, and his writing took on a style that alienated(使疏远) the general reading public of his time.
Melville published Moby Dick in October of 1851. it was an original novel, combining aspects of sociology and philosophy, which confused readers by its complex symbolism. The book sold poorly.
Melville’s next book, Pierre, was almost completely disregarded by the public. Debt frustration and ill health finally forced Melville to take a low-paying job as a customs inspector. Eventually, Melville abandoned prose(散文) and began to write poetry.
The Civil War is the main subject of Melville’s poetry. He and his brother made a trip to the front line, and he published a book of poems, Battle-Pieces and Aspects of War, based on this experience.
Melville died in 1891 at the age of 72. at this point, his work had been completely forgotten by the public. His talent was to go unrecognized for the next thirty years. Then, in 1920s, his reputation began to improve as critics and readers rediscovered his work. Today Moby Dick is one of the best-known novels ever penned by an American author.What were Melville’s first two novels mainly about?
| A．His travel experience. |
| B．His successful communication skills. |
| C．Adventurous experiences in the front line. |
| D．Adventurous voyages and foreign experiences. |
We can learn from the text that Moby Dick________.
| A．sold a little better than Pierre. |
| B．was Melville’s favorite novel. |
| C．was copied from other books. |
| D．made Melville popular again. |
The text may be taken from___________.
| A．a writing guide |
| B．a literary journal. |
| C．a science magazine. |
| D．a critical book on literature. |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．The main works of Melville. |
| B．The skills in Melville’s writing. |
| C．The ups and downs of Melville. |
| D．The reason for Melville’s failure. |