1 . Many families take their children on vacation. They will usually travel for a few days or weeks during school breaks. But Julie and Tim Smith have planned a longer vacation with their two children. The Smith family is on a one-year trip around the world .They plan to visit 30 countries in all. Right now, the four travelers are about halfway through their trip.
Ms. Smith says they are trying to see as much of their world as they can. Mr. Smith says one of the most interesting experiences of the trip has been meeting new people. He says people have been extremely friendly, very welcoming and love their kids. Eleven-year-old Tyler says he has enjoyed learning about the people they have met. He says, “I learned in Africa that people have very different lifestyles than in America."His sister, 9.year-old Kara, discovers that she likes Thai food. Ms. Smith says that the trip teaches the children a lot.
It took the family a year to prepare for the trip. They had to sell their house and cars. Ms. Smith left her job and her husband is using unpaid leave. They carry small bags filled with lightweight clothing and whatever else they need. Ms. Smith says she enjoys being able to carry everything she needs on her back. .She says she does not miss the things she has back home. “What has become more important is making these memories as a family and taking ”those” with us instead.”
The Smiths will continue to head east for the next six months.
1. In what way is the Smith family’s trip different from many others’ according to Paragraph1?| A．They take their children on vacation. |
| B．They travel around the world for a year with children. |
| C．They travel during school breaks with children. |
| D．They travel for a few weeks with children. |
| A．Living in Africa. | B．learning different Lifestyles in America. |
| C．Having Thai food. | D．Learning about the people they have met. |
| A．They left their jobs. | B．It took the Smith family a year. |
| C．They sold their house and cars. | D．They put lightweight clothing in small bags. |
| A．The small bags they carry. | B．The memories of the family. |
| C．The things on her back. | D．The things back home. |
2 . The Torch Festival (火把节) is a traditional festival which is celebrated among some ethnic groups in southwestern China, such as the Yi, Bai, Hani, Lisu, and Lahu, etc. It usually falls on the 24th or 25th of June, with three days of celebrations. The festival came from worship (崇拜) of fire by ancestors (祖先). For some ethnic groups, it’s a tradition in the festival for elders to share farming experience with young people and educate them about taking care of crops.
During the festival, big torches are made to stand in all villages, with small torches placed in front of the door of each house. When night falls, the torches are lit and the villages are bright. At the same time, people walk around the fields and houses, holding small torches and placing the torches in the field corners. Inside the villages, young people are singing and dancing around the big torches that keep burning throughout the night. Other activities like horse races are also held during the festival.
In a horse race of the Yi people in Yunnan, torches are used to form hurdles for riders to get through. The Hani people in Yunnan traditionally tie fruits to torches with strings. When the strings are broken after the torches are lit, people struggle for the fruits for good luck.
For the Lisu people in Sichuan, the festival is an occasion for holding torch parades. Big torches are carried by teams of people, which is like a fire dragon. If different teams meet, it’s a tradition to exchange the big torches with one another.
1. What can we know about the Torch Festival from the first paragraph?| A．It has nothing to do with farming. |
| B．Its celebrations usually last two days. |
| C．It is a traditional festival of all China. |
| D．It is a festival to show worship of fire. |
| A．ancestors. | B．young people. |
| C．elders. | D．ethnic groups. |
| A．Why the festival is enjoyed. | B．Where the festival is celebrated. |
| C．How the festival is celebrated. | D．What torches are used for the festival. |
| A．Holding torch parades. | B．Tying fruits to torches with strings. |
| C．Struggling for fruits for good luck. | D．Using torches as hurdles for a horse race. |
