1、Last July, my parents and I went to visit my aunt and uncle in Seattle, a city on the northwest American coast. Dad did some research and had no difficulty in finding us cheap tickets online.On the day of our flight, we had to wake up very early. When we checked our bags in, we found that one bag we
2、ighed too much, so we had to pay a fine. After that, dad insisted that we go and have some breakfast at the airport restaurant. We had a lot of fun watching many different people there. Then we realized it was getting late, so we rushed to the gate. It took one hour for everyone to get on the plane,
3、 but finally the door was shut and we were on our way!I think my favorite experience during our trip was our visit to Mount Rainier, a volcano near Seattle. It was nothing like I had expected. Before we left, my aunt lent us hats to protect us from getting sunburned, so I supposed that it would be v
4、ery hot. Imagine my surprise when we drove up the mountain and I discovered the top was covered with snow and ice!My uncle led us to a small path beyond the main trails to increase our chances of seeing wildlife. We walked over a small hill, and suddenly before us there appeared a field of snow. Sma
5、ll wild flowers grew up through the snow; underneath the snow we could hear rushing watera small stream. Little animals stood still to avoid being noticed; tiny birds rose into the air. It was the most beautiful sight that Id ever seen.21. What ticket did the father buy for the family? A.Bus B. Ship
6、 C. Train D. Airplane22. Why did they pay a fine?A.Because they got up late. B. Because they didnt wait in line.C. Because they came to the airport late. D. Because their bag was overweight.23.What was the writers most impressive experience?A.The flight to Seattle B. The breakfast in the airport C.
7、The visit to Mount Rainier D. The discovery of a small stream24. Why did they choose a small path instead of the main trails?A. To enjoy more of the wildlife B. To take a shortcut to save timeC. To avoid the snowy road D. To avoid being attacked by animalsBIn the United States, when one becomes rich
8、, he wants people to know it. And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That is what “keeping up with the Joneses” is about. It is the story of someone who tries to look as rich as his neighbors.The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Art
9、hur Momand. He told this story about himself. He began earning $125 a week at the age of 23. That was a lot of money in those days. He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood outside New York City. When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding ever
10、y day. When he saw that rich people had servants, Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.It was like a race, but one could never finish his race because one was always trying to keep up. The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer p
11、ay for their new way of life. They moved back to an apartment in New York City.Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich lifestyle of their neighbors. He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories. He called it “Keeping up
12、with the Joneses” because “Jones” is a very common name in the United States. “Keeping up with the Joneses” came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you. Momands series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.People never seem to get tired of（厌烦）
13、keeping up with the Joneses. And there are “Jonses” in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr. Jones always seems to be ahead.25. Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they _. A. want to be as rich as t
14、heir neighbors B. want to be happy C. dont want others to know they are rich D. want others to know or to think that they are rich26. Arthur Momand used the name “Jones” in his series of short stories because “Jones” is _. A. an important name B. a popular name in the United States C. his neighbors
15、name D. not a good name27. According to the writer, it is _ to keep up with the Joneses. A. impossible B. interesting C. correct D. good CHelen Thayer, one of the greatest explorers of the 20th century, loves challenges. She says, “I like to see whats on the other side of the hill.” She has gone alm
16、ost everywhere to do that. In 1988, at the age of 50, she became the first woman to travel alone to the North Pole. She pulled her own sled piled with 160 pounds of supplies, and during her trip no one brought her fresh supplies. Accompanied only by her dog Charlie, she survived cold weather and mee
17、tings with polar bears. In fact, Charlie saved her life when one of them attacked her. Near the end of her trip, a forceful wind blew away the majority of her supplies. The last week of the trip, she survived on a handful of nuts and a little water each day. Helen goes to challenging places not only
18、 for adventure, but also for education. Before her Arctic journey, she started a website called Adventure Classroom. On the site, she shares her adventures in order to motivate （激发） students. She explains, “Although kids often see the world in a negative way, without hope for their future, we work t
19、o inspire them to set goals, plan for success and never give up. . .”Helen grew up in New Zealand. Her parents were athletes and mountain climbers. Following her parents example, she climbed her first mountain at 9. Later, she climbed the highest mountains in North and South America, the former USSR
20、 and New Zealand. In 1996, she took on another challengethe Sahara Desert. She and her husband, Bill, walked 2,400 miles across it! In 2001, she and Bill traveled on foot from west to east through the Gobi Desert in Mongolia. They hope to travel to Sichuan and Tibet in China to study pandas this yea
21、r. Helen plans to continue taking trips. Shell use her explorations, writing, photography and environmental work to create programs for her Adventure Classroom website. She wants to inspire her students never to stop facing challenges!28. What can we learn from Paragraph 2?A. Helen Thayer is the fir
22、st person to reach the North Pole. B. Helen Thayer ate nothing during the last week of her trip. C. Charlie prevented Helen being attacked by polar bears. D. Helen Thayer traveled to the North Pole together with her husband. 29. Why does Helen travel to different places worldwide?A. For education. B
23、. For fun. C. For money. D. For fame. 30. Which is the best title for the text?A. The Woman Who Loves Adventure. B. A Famous Woman. C. A Woman Mountain Climber. D. The Owner of Adventure Classroom. 31. Which of the following places has Helen not visited yet?A. The North Pole. B. The Sahara Desert. C
24、. The Gobi Desert. D. Sichuan and Tibet. DI had to knock on the taxi to get his attention. Finally, the driver, a man about 60, looked up from behind the wheel and apologized, “Im sorry, but I was reading a letter.” He sounded as if he had a cold or a cough.Since I was in no hurry, I told him to fin
25、ish his letter. He shook his head, explaining that he had already read it several times and almost knew it by heart. Curious, I asked whether it was from a child or maybe a grandchild.“This isnt family，” he replied, “though he might just as well have been a regular member of the family. Old Ed and I
26、 grew up together.”They were always friends. But since he moved away from the neighborhood 30 years ago, itd generally just been postcards at Christmas time between them. A couple of weeks ago, Ed died. “I should have kept in touch.” He repeated this, more to himself than to me. To comfort him, I sa
27、id sometimes we just didnt seem to find the time. “But we used to find the time，” he said. “Take a look.” He handed the letter over to me.The first sentence “Ive been meaning to write for some time, but Ive always delayed it.” reminded me of myself. It went on to say that he often thought about the
28、good times they had had together. When I read the part where it said“Your friendship really means a lot to me, more than I can say because Im not good at saying things like that”，I found myself nodding in agreement.We had gone several kilometers and were almost at my hotel, so I read the last paragr
29、aph：“So I thought youd like to know that I was thinking of you.” And it was ended with “Your Old Friend, Tom.”“I thought your friends name was Ed，” I said.“Im Tom，” he explained. “Its a letter I wrote to Ed before I knew hed died. I never put it in the mailbox. I guess I should have written it soone
30、r.” His face was pale as he wiped his eyes with a handkerchief.When I got to my hotel room , I didnt unpack right away, I had to write a letter and post it.32. Who wrote the letter?A. Tom. B. Old Ed. C. The author. D. The drivers grandchild.33. It can be inferred from the passage that the driver reg
31、retted _.A. missing Eds funeralB. moving away from his neighborhoodC. forgetting to send Ed Christmas cardsD. not being able to keep in touch with Ed34. From Paragraph 4, we can learn that the author of the passage _.A. often failed to write to his friendsB. had no intention to write to his friendsC. had many great moments with his friendsD. was good at expressing feelings to his friends35. What message does the passage probably try to convey（传递）?A. Comfort your friends when they are feeling down.B. Life is unpredictable, so live each day as if it wer
