1 . As one of the city’s most popular free outdoor events, the Cape Town Carnival is a multicultural celebration which focuses on social inclusion and bridging the divide between the diverse communities of the Western Cape and specifically Cape Town. It’s a celebration of the many diverse cultures which makes Cape Town stand out from the most world-famous cities. The carnival is considered a community participation event by the Western Cape Government and draws bigger crowds each year.
The event serves a platform for local performance groups, designers, musicians and artists to showcase their talents to the world. Every year, it may create over 1, 000 part-time jobs. The long-term vision, however, is to create more programmes focusing on skills development, thus permanently employing people. Since 2010 when the carnival was held on Long Street, it has become the festival of the year, and has grown from 17, 000 spectators to as many as 55, 000. This year, the carnival will be held on the Fan Walk in Green Point.
And its theme is Mother City, Mother Nature, exploring two of Cape Town’s greatest assets, its natural beauty and its people. The festival will showcase what makes the Mother City one of the most unique cities in the world. Over 2, 000 shining costumed performers and musicians will take to Cape Town’s Fan Walk, entertaining viewers with floats (花车) and dynamic dance routines. The parade (游行) will be followed by a grand street party, showcasing some of South Africa’s hottest musical talent.
Fans and tourists are encouraged to join in the street festivities anytime from 16: 00, when it will turn into a pedestrian walkway with 2km of food stands and festive hospitality (好客) areas. Later in the evening Cape Town will up the pace with the most appealing and festive open air party, the Cape Town Carnival Street Party! This Culture Comer: A Glimpse of Cape Town, was contributed by Marilyn Steward. I’m Rich Claymount. Stay tuned and see you next time.
1. What sets the Cape Town Carnival apart?| A．Its friendly people. | B．Its unique landscape. |
| C．Its wide participation. | D．Its cultural diversity. |
| A．To build up a platform for local talents. | B．To create Africa-based businesses globally. |
| C．To expand programs to secure employment. | D．To deepen cultural links between countries. |
| A．Green Point is famous for floats and music. | B．Cape Town is proud of its nature and people. |
| C．The carnival happens on Long Street annually. | D．The street party is mostly favored by the tourists. |
| A．An interview. | B．A brochure. | C．A reality show. | D．A radio program. |
2 . 4 Most walkable cities in Europe
Seville, SpainSeville in Spain takes the top spot as Europe’s most walkable city, offering the shortest walking route between the top four tourist attractions.Visitors can explore the impressive Plaza de Espana public square, before wandering over to the UNESCO-listed palace of Real Alcazar and Seville Cathedral. After that, it’s only a short trip on foot to visit the beautiful Barrio Santa Cruz neighbourhood.
Venice, ItalyVenice is well-known as a heaven for pedestrians (行人), so it’s no surprise it ranks as the second best location for walkable city breaks. There are endless alleyways to explore, as well as plenty of beautiful bridges over the crisscrossing canals that the city is famous for. Just under half an hour of walking here will take you on a tour of the impressive Grand Canal, Doge’s Palace, St Mark’s Square, Basilica and bell tower, all in only 1.3 miles.
Porto, PortugalNestled along Portugal’s picturesque coast, Porto comes in third with its top attractions all covered by a 30-minute walking route. Meander along the Dom Luís I Bridge over the Douro River, head to the Clérigos Church Bell Tower and enjoy a riverfront walking place along the Cais da Ribeira. The Stock Exchange Palace is also just a short walk away.
Florence, ItalyFlorence, Italy, secures its place as the fourth most walkable city in Europe thanks to its stunning attractions that can be seamlessly explored on foot. A 1.6 mile route covers the awe-inspiring Piazzale Michelangelo; the famous Uffizi Gallery; the Piazza del Duomo where you will be amazed at the magnificent Florence Cathedral; and the Galleria dell’Accademia, home to Michelangelo’s masterpiece, the statue of David.
1. How long is probably the walking route in Seville?| A．1.1 miles. | B．1.3 meters. | C．1.6 meters. | D．1.8 meters. |
| A．Seville. | B．Venice. | C．Porto. | D．Florence. |
| A．To compare the four cities. |
| B．To show the benefits of walking. |
| C．To stress the importance of traveling. |
| D．To attract visitors to walk in these cities. |
Despite its rapid industrialization, there are still some corners in China that have maintained its original color.
Ancient towns and villages in China are places
Black soybean is often added to its local food to create an
It usually takes a day or two to tour around the old town due to its small size, but you can always stay
Chongqing is a city different from other Chinese cities. With beautiful natural scenery and places of historical interests, Chongqing
When the night falls, decorative lights, lanterns, roadside lamps, bridges and towers all combine to form a number of ever-burning lights, each one
As
5 . In the 1960s, while studying the volcanic history of Yellowstone National Park, Bob Christian-sen became puzzled about something that, strangely, had not troubled anyone before he couldn’t find the park’s volcano. It had been known for a long time that Yellowstone was volcanic in nature—that is what accounted for all its hot springs and other steamy features. But Christian-sen couldn’t find the Yellowstone volcano anywhere.
Most of us, when we talk about volcanoes, think of the classic cone(圆锥体)shapes of a Fuji or Kilimanjaro, which were created when erupting magma(岩浆)piled up. These can form remarkably quickly. One day in 1943, a Mexican farmer was surprised to see smoke rising from a small part of his land. In one week he was the confused owner of a cone five hundred feet high. Within two years it had topped out at almost fourteen hundred feet and was more than half a mile-across. Altogether there are some ten thousand of these volcanoes on Earth, all but a few hundred of them extinct. There is, however, a second less known type of volcano that doesn’t involve mountain building. These are volcanoes so explosive that they burst open in a single big crack, leaving behind a vast hole, the caldera(火山口).Yellowstone obviously was of this second type, but Christian-sen couldn’t find the caldera anywhere.
Just at this time NASA decided to test some new high-altitude cameras by taking photographs of Yellowstone. A thoughtful official passed on some of the copies to the park authorities on the assumption that they might make a nice blow-up(放大的照片)for one of the visitors’ centers. As soon as Christian-sen saw the photos, he realized why he had failed to spot the caldera: almost the whole park—2.2 million acres -was a caldera. The explosion had left a hole more than forty miles across-much too huge to be seen from anywhere at ground level. At some time in the past Yellowstone must have blown up with violence far beyond the scale of anything known to humans.
1. What does the underlined word “its” in paragraph 1 refer to?| A．The ground. | B．The nature. |
| C．The volcano. | D．The park. |
| A．A single big crack was forming there. | B．Someone was burning stalks there. |
| C．A volcano was erupting underneath. | D．There were some hot springs there. |
| A．By looking at the photographs. | B．By analyzing its steamy features. |
| C．By researching historical documents. | D．By using some advanced equipment. |
| A．Its level is much higher than the surrounding areas. |
| B．The volcano in it involved mountain building. |
| C．It is a large hole left by the explosion. |
| D．Its shape is much like a cone. |
6 . A 2020 study in the journal Science concluded that marine heat waves have increased more than 20-fold as a result of climate warming. The authors found that in the first decade after satellites began recording ocean temperatures (i.e., after 1981), there were 27 large marine heat waves, with an average duration of 32 days and an average peak temperature anomaly of 8.5°F; in the 2010s, there were 172, which lasted 48 days on average with an average peak temperature almost 10°F above normal.
Much remains unclear about marine heat waves. For example, explains Nicholas Bond, research scientist at the University of Washington and Washington’s state climatologist, there is the question of why so many persist for weeks or months. “There must be something else going on that helps maintain them,” he says. He notes that one explanation is that as the ocean surface warms, it radiates heat into the atmosphere that prevents cloud cover from forming, exposing the seawater to increased sunlight and further warming.
However, enough is known about marine heat waves for scientists to be gravely concerned about their potential impacts. Of special note is the fact that those impacts can last long after the heat waves have disappeared. After three years of the Blob, the waters of the northeastern Pacific began to cool in 2016; but years later, scientists are still determining the extent to which the region’s ecosystem is likely to return fully to its pre-Blob status. Similarly, notes Scannell, who is a data scientist with Jupiter Intelligence, Inc., following the 2010-11 Western Australia event, “lots of kelp(巨藻) forests died, and it takes literally decades for those ecosystems to bounce back”.
Eric Oliver, a scientist from Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, Canada, expressed his own opinion about the potential impact of the heat waves in tropical waters. “I think that’s really a tough issue,” he says. Life in the tropics, he notes, is adapted to “quite a narrow range of temperatures. So that’s where things can get really messy. We can have complete shifts in tropical systems.”
1. What can we infer from the figures listed in para. 1?| A．The problem of marine heat waves is becoming worse. |
| B．The satellites enable scientists to record ocean temperature precisely. |
| C．Climate change is the main cause of the marine heat waves. |
| D．Marine heat waves have been found by scientists for about 30 years. |
| A．Various factors that lead to marine heat waves. |
| B．The possible impacts of a warm ocean surface. |
| C．The possible reason why marine heat waves last long. |
| D．Scientists’ efforts in exploring the causes of heat waves. |
| A．The impact will disappear shortly after the sea water cools. |
| B．It takes long before the ecosystem makes a complete recovery. |
| C．Scientists have known enough to restore the impact. |
| D．The northeastern Pacific and Western Australia are the worst cases. |
| A．Concerned. | B．Indifferent. | C．Doubtful. | D．Optimistic. |
7 . Wales is home to some of the UK's most beautiful drives.Narrow lanes criss-cross the land. meaning travel can be slow-but there's no need to rush.
The Coastal WayThis route(路线）covers the entire length of Cardigan Bay, and spoils travelers with its remote beaches and charming seaside towns.
Comb the sand for fossils,shells at Aberdaron Beach,and then hit the road,heading cast toward Porthmadog. Here you can hop on a heritage steam train, a relic of the region's mining history,to give Snowdonia's skyline your undivided attention.
The Cambrian WayThe Cambrian Way, which cuts north to south through the heart of Wales, is a fantastic place, thanks to its patchwork fields, dense forests and rolling, sheep-dotted hills.
The route becomes increasingly wild and rough as it weaves north into Powys. Spend the night in Rhayader, and you'll need plenty of energy for hiking or mountain biking along the trails.
The North Wales WaySpanning Wales' short but scenic north coast, this route offers road trippers a chance to encounter Welsh history, language and culture in a splendid setting.
Head west through the uncrowded Clwydian Hills until you reach Ruthin, a little town brimming with history,where you can see its restored castle, century-spanning museum and Victorian Ruthin Gaol. Border Country
Tracing the dotted line that separates England and Wales on a map,this border-hugging route will take you to some of Wales' most underrated sites slowly, if you stick to the narrow back roads.
Starting in the border town of Chepstow in Southeast Wales,make your way northward.You can top to admire the roofless ruins of Tintern Abbey and lesser known castes Skenfrith and Grosmont
1. Which route best suits people who enjoy mountain scenery?| A．The Coastal Way. |
| B．The Cambrian Way. |
| C．The North Wales Way |
| D．Border Country. |
| A．It enables travelers to visit a castle. |
| B．It is an area of scenic beauty. |
| C．It offers a glimpse into Welsh culture. |
| D．It is a crowd-free escape from big cities. |
| A．To introduce road trips in Wales. |
| B．To introduce the Welsh landscape. |
| C．To tell about Wales' history. |
| D．To advertise Wales 'tourism industry. |
The Xi’an City Wall is the most complete city wall that has survived China’s long history. It
We accessed the wall through the South Gate. The wall is 12 meters high and from here you can see streams of people moving inside and outside the City Wall.
After
We
9 . For those looking to explore these natural wonders, all around the world there are volcanoes you can get up close to.
Vesuvius, Italy
Obviously the most famous volcano in the world, Vesuvius is considered currently dormant(休眠的), but that doesn't mean that it won't erupt at some point.Visiting Vesuvius is more about Mount Vesuvius's past, particularly the destruction of Pompeii in A.D. 79. Though the volcano.seems harmless, the destruction of Pompeii was during a dormant phase of Vesuvius as well.
Elevation(海拔): 4,203ft
White Island, New Zealand
Making headlines recently for an eruption that killed at least five people, White Island, which is uninhabited, is usually a popular tourist attraction. It is also central to New Zealander culture,playing an important role in Maori legends. To access the island, one must take a boat tour, and then one can hike.
Elevation: 1,053 ft
Kilauea, Hawaii
The most active volcano in the world is in Hawaii where volcanoes hold local cultural legends.Nearby is also the Thurston Lava Tube which can be visited, as well as the surrounding lush jungles. The volcano is located on the Big Island, so visiting other attractions, such as Honolulu is a good choice.
Elevation: 4,009 ft
Sakuraji'ma, Japan
Less than 5 miles away from the city of Kagoshima, Sakurajima erupts almost every day.
Visiting the area is very easy, with ships leaving the city every 15 mins. Once there, Visitors can take a hike or visit the observatory, which is the closest spot to safely view the eruption. The lava has created interesting produce, including the world's largest carrot and the smallest orange.
Elevation: 3,665 ft
1. Which volcano is the highest?| A．Sakurajima, Japan | B．Kilauea. Hawaii. |
| C．Vesuvius, Italy. | D．White Island. New Zealand. |
| A．They belong to New Zealand. | B．They have jungles around them. |
| C．They become headlines recently. | D．They are very important in local culture. |
| A．Taste the smallest orange. |
| B．Enj oy destruction of Pompeii. |
| C．Listen to local cultural legends. |
| D．Go to attractions of the city of Kagoshima. |
Dujiangyan is the oldest man-made water system in the world, and a wonder in the development of Chinese science. Built over 2,200 years ago in
In ancient times, the region in which Dujiangyan now stands suffered from regular floods
Li designed a series of channels built at different levels along Mount Yulei
After eight years of work, the 20-meter-wide canals had been carved through the mountain.
Once the system was finished, no more floods
