1 . Traveling without a map in different countries. I find out about different ways of giving directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”

Foreign tourists are often puzzled in Japan because most streets there don’t have name signs. In Japan, people use landmarks (标志性建筑) to give directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the comer. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”

People in Los Angeles, the US, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance by time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “It’s about five minutes from here.” You don’t understand completely. “Yes, but how many miles away is it, please?” To this question you won’t get an answer, because most probably they don’t know it themselves.

People in Greece sometimes do not even try to give directions because tourists seldom understand the Greek language. Instead, a Greek will often say, “Follow me.” Then he’ll lead you through the streets of the city to the post office.

Sometimes a person doesn’t know the answer to your question. What happens in the situation? A New Yorker might say. “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” People there believe that “I don’t” is impolite. They usually give an answer, but often a wrong one. So a tourist can get lost very easily in Yucatan! However, one thing will help you reach your destination everywhere in the world. It’s body language.

1. Which of the following is probably an example of Japanese directions?

A．“The post office is at Street Kamira.”

B．“Turn right at the hospital and go past a school.”

C．“The post office is about five minutes from here.”

D．“Go south two miles. Turn west and then go another mile.”

2. Why don’t people in Los Angeles give directions in miles?

A．They prefer to lead you the way.

B．They prefer to use body language.

C．They use landmarks to give directions instead of distance.

D．They often have no idea of distance measured by miles.

3. How do Greeks give directions?

A．Using street names.	B．Leading the way.
C．Using landmarks.	D．Giving people a wrong direction.

4. According to the last paragraph, we can learn that ______.

A．people in Mexico know street names well

B．body language makes you get lost in Yucatan

C．people in Mexico prefer to use body language

D．people in Yucatan sometimes give wrong directions

2 . The exhibit, Digital Dunhuang — Tales of Heaven and Earth, which was held at the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, brought to Hong Kong more than 100 exhibits including the visual murals and other related programs that could allow visitors to learn about the art and history of the Mogao Caves in a fun way.

“Dunhuang was an international city, a place where East met West, on the old Silk Road. So the Mogao Caves, which were completed in a period of over 1,000 years, record the ways of life and beliefs of the different peoples that crossed paths there,” explained Fion Lin of Hong Kong Heritage Museum.

Visitors can now get up close and personal with these faraway treasures without having to step into the caves, thanks to the digitization project of the Dunhuang Academy, a pioneer that has made great progress in the digitization and 3D scanning of the Dunhuang treasures.

“Studies have shown that in a cave, both temperature and CO₂ concentration level can rise with 15 tourists inside for ten minutes. As a result, the wall paintings are going to eventually fade. Digital technology has helped to strike a balance between sharing the treasures and protecting them,” said Lin.

However, digitization of the caves faces many challenges such as poor lighting and rough wall surfaces. On average, 40,000 pictures have to be taken to cover 300 m². Great amount of efforts have been made to piece the pictures together. What the exhibition presented is the result of years of hard work.

During the exhibition period, a mini display on Dunhuang music culture was also being held at the Museum for public participation.

1. What could visitors see at the Digital Dunhuang exhibit?

A．The Mogao Caves.	B．About 40,000 Dunhuang pictures.
C．Digital Dunhuang wall paintings.	D．Ancient records of Dunhuang.

2. What is the significance of the digitization project of the Dunhuang Academy?

A．It helps Dunhuang become an international city.

B．It lets people better appreciate the Dunhuang art.

C．It is effective in cutting the CO₂ level in the caves.

D．It attracts more tourists from East and West to Hong Kong.

3. What do we know about the Dunhuang wall paintings?

A．They are brightly lit.	B．They are very rough.
C．It is very hard to protect them.	D．It is impossible for the tourists to see them.

4. Where can you find the evidence that supports “digitization of the caves isn’t easy”?

A．In paragraph 2.	B．In paragraph 3.
C．In paragraph 4.	D．In paragraph 5.

3 . 假定你是李华。你校外籍教师Peter计划在暑假期间回国，他想送给母亲可以代表中国文化的礼物。请你给他写一封邮件，向他推荐礼物。内容包括：
1.推荐礼物：旗袍、中国结、茶叶等；
2.推荐原因；
3.表达祝福。
注意：
1.词数100左右。2.可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
参考词汇：旗袍Qipao   中国结Chinese knot
Dear Peter,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yours,

Li Hua

4 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写一段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

Last year at Christmas time, my wife, three children and I were on our way from Paris to Nice. Somehow everything went wrong. Our hotels were “tourist traps” and our rented car broke down. On Christmas Eve, when we checked into a dirty hotel in Nice, there was no Christmas spirit in our hearts.

It was raining and cold when we went out to eat. We found a small restaurant poorly decorated for the holiday. Only five tables in the restaurant were taken. There were two German couples, two French families, and an American sailor, by himself. They were eating in stony silence except the sailor. He was writing a letter, and a half-smile lighted his face. In the corner a piano player was listlessly (无精打采地) playing Christmas music.

All of us were interrupted by an old French flower woman through the front door. She had a worn overcoat and her old shoes were wet. Carrying her basket of flowers, she went from one table to another. No one bought any. Exhausted and sad, she sat down at a table.

The sailor finished his meal and got up to leave. Putting on his coat, he walked over to the flower woman’s table.

“Merry Christmas,” he said, smiling and picking out a handful of flowers. “How much are they?”

“Two francs, sir.”

The sailor put a twenty franc note in the woman’s hand.

“I don’t have change, sir,” she said. “I’ll get some from the waiter.”

“No, ma’am,” said the sailor, leaning over and kissing the ancient cheek. “This is my Christmas present for you.”

注意：
1．所续写短文的词数应为80左右；
2．续写部分的开头语已为你写好；

Then the sailor headed for our table with the flowers in his hand.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5 . There is more of a connection between food and culture than you may think. On an individual level, we grow up eating the food of our culture. It becomes a part of who we are. Many associate food from our childhood with warm feelings and good memories and it ties us to our families, holding a special and personal value for us. Food from our families often becomes the comfort food we seek as adults in times of frustration and stress.

On a large scale, traditional food is an important part of culture. It also operates as an expression of cultural identity. Immigrants bring it wherever they go, and it is a symbol of pride in their culture and means of coping with homesickness.

Many immigrants open their own restaurants and serve traditional dishes. However, the food does not remain exactly the same. Some materials needed to make traditional dishes may not be readily available, so the taste and flavour can be different from what they would prepare in their home countries. Additionally, immigrants do not only sell dishes to people from the same countries as them, but to people from different countries. Therefore, they have to make small changes in the original dishes to cater to a wider range of customers. Those changes can create new flavours that still keep the cultural significance of the dishes.

We should not only embrace our heritage (传统) through our culture’s food, but also become more informed about other cultures by trying their food. It is important to remember that each dish has a special place in the culture to which it belongs, and is special to those who prepare it. Food is a window on culture, and it should be treated as such.

1. What’s the function of food mentioned in the text?

A．To help motivate homesickness.

B．To show cultural identity.

C．To reflect a country’s history.

D．To show a community’s superiority.

2. What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A．The specific traditional food.

B．The national culture.

C．A traditional expression of food.

D．The old-fashioned taste.

3. Why do some immigrants have to change the original dishes in their restaurants?

A．To attach cultural importance to their dishes.

B．To announce the beginning of their life on foreign soil.

C．To make the dishes popular among customers.

D．To present their own food culture in a new way.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards different food cultures?

A．Negative.

B．Balanced.

C．Unfair.

D．Unchangeable.

6 . Maybe you have heard the expression—when in Rome, do as the Romans do. So when you want to do business in France, you have to get to know French culture, to make marketing plans, and to run your business by local laws.

    1     The French take great pride in their language, so anyone who does not speak it may run the risk of being disrespected by his French colleagues or business partners. Also, another reason why learning French is important is that it is a great way to show every possible French business partner that you care and respect their country's culture and language.

The first thing you should do when meeting someone new is to shake his hand firmly and always look the person in the eye. In social meeting with friends, kissing is common.

Use first names only after being invited to.     2     The French will sometimes introduce themselves using their surname first, followed by their first name.

Dress well.     3     Your business clothing is a reflection of your success and social status. Always try to be tasteful and stylish. Women are advised to dress simply but elegantly. Wearing make-up is practised widely by businesswomen.

The French are passionate about food, so lunches are common in doing business in France, which usually consist of an appetizer (开胃菜), a main meal with wine, cheese, dessert and coffee, and normally take up to two hours.     4    

Do not begin eating until the host says “bon appetite”. Pass dishes to the left, keep wrists above the table and try to eat everything on the plate.     5     This may suggest that you find the food tasteless. If eating in a restaurant, the person who invites always pays.

A．The French draw information about people based on their appearance.

B．This is a time for relationship building.

C．Remember to be as polite as possible.

D．Language should be the focus of anyone planning to do business in France.

E．Be careful with adding salt, pepper or sauces to your food.

F．Use Monsieur or Madame before the surname.

G．Make an appointment with your business partner in advance.

7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

Xuan paper, known as one of the Four Treasures of Study, first came into     1     （exist）in Xuan Prefecture in the Tang Dynasty. The traditional skill of making the paper     2     hand has been passed down through generations. The process takes as many as 108 steps, all of     3     require a level of delicacy.

Take papermaking master Zhou Donghong for example. He uses a fine screen to filter（过滤）a mixture of water and fibers. He lifts it up, and it's a sheet of paper. It takes him and his partner only 15 seconds     4     （form）and shape it, but they've devoted     5     （they）to perfecting the skills for decades.

“There are a lot of tricks of filtering the fibers, and timing is     6     （difficult）part of all. We have only one chance to filter the right amount of fibers, and only the proper weight guarantees the paper is neither too thin nor too thick, and the margin（差额）for error is     7     （extreme）small," said Zhou. With just the right degree of thickness, top quality Xuan paper holds ink and water tightly.

The skill of papermaking,       8     （recognize）as a national treasure, has also proven to be an international one. We felt     9     great sense of pride as it was listed as a world intangible cultural heritage（非物质文化遗产）by UNESCO in 2009. Since then, in Jingxian County, the making of Xuan paper     10     （teach）in schools.

8 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（不多于3个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。

China is a big old country,     1    has a history of more than five thousand years. We are proud of     2     (it) culture and part of the culture even influences the world     3     (great), for example, the thought of Confucius(孔子). As Chinese economy develops very fast and plays     4    important role in the world, more and more     5     (foreign) learn Mandarin(普通话) in Confucius institutions.

The Chinese traditional culture can     6     (test) by the time. It unites the whole nation and no matter what kind of disaster comes, we will fight together for the country’s future. Today, many young people lose faith in traditional culture and they are crazy     7    the western culture. They follow the western fashion,     8     (think) we are old style. But some day, they     9     (realize) it is wrong     10    them to ignore traditional culture.

9 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

The art of paper-cutting in China may date back to the second century, since paper    1    (invent)by Cai Lun in the Eastern Han Dynasty in China. As paper became more affordable, paper0cutting became one of the most important    2    (type) of Chinese folk art. Later,    3     different regions adopting their own cultural styles, this art form spread to other parts of the world.    4     (usual), the artworks are made of red paper, as red is associated with    5    (happy) in Chinese culture, but other colors are also used.

With    6    (it) long history, paper-cutting,    7    originated in China, has been very popular among the ordinary Chinese people. People put up papercuts on walls, windows and doors at wedding ceremonies or festivals     8    (strengthen) the cheerful atmosphere.

Chinese papercuts are rich in content. The auspicious（吉祥的）designs symbolize good luck and the avoidance of evil. The child, lotus and bat designs suggest a family with    9    large number of children and grandchildren. Birds, livestock, fruit, fish and worms are also familiar objects    10    (accept) by Chinese farmers. In a word, papercuts used in different occasions have different meanings.

10 . Durga and Amiko became best friends shortly after Durga's family moved to Texas from India. Amiko, who was Japanese American, enjoyed hearing Durga describe her life in India. Amiko also loved being invited for dinner at Durga's house. The spicy Indian dishes that Durga's mother cooked were delicious. Durga wanted to know about life in Japan. Amiko explained that her grandparents had come to the United States from Japan but that she had never been there herself. One Saturday at the public library, Durga and Amiko saw a flyer(广告传单) about the Festival of Cultures. After reading the flyer, the two girls decided that the festival would be a great way to learn about each other's cultures as well as various cultures in other countries.       

The Festival of Cultures
11–14 August
City Park

The Festival of Cultures is an annual event to celebrate the wide range of cultures found in our great state. People representing 40 cultural groups will share their traditions and customs. Here are just a few of the festival's many activities.

Crafts: See the fine art of basket weaving from Vietnam and Zimbabwe. Watch the delicate art of making paper umbrellas from Thailand and the decorative craft of papel picado, or paper cutting, from Mexico. All craft demonstrations provide a firsthand view of how things are made. You will appreciate the process involved in making these products.

Music and Dance: Experience musical instruments that you have never heard before. Listen to the music of a shô from Japan, a bull-roarer from Australia, a sitar from India, and a chakay from Thailand. You will also be entertained by folk dances from around the world, such as the troika from Russia and the mayim mayim from Israel. From 1:00 p.m. to3:00p.m. On14August, specialfolk-dancingclassesforchildrenwillbeoffered. Children ages 6–8 can learn the kinderpolka from Germany. Children ages 9–12 can learn the raspa from Mexico.

Storytelling:Listen for hours as professional storytellers charm you with captivating tales. Fables, folktales, and ballads from various countries will be told. Back by popular demand is Gwendolyn Washington, a famous African American storyteller.

Food: Enjoy irresistible foods from other countries, such as gyros from Greece, seafood paella from Spain, crêpes from France, and tandoori chicken from India. These tasty dishes will be difficult to pass up.

The Festival of Cultures is sponsored by the World Marketplace. For more information about the festival, call (800) 555-0199.

1. For a family with children ages 6–12, which day would be the best bargain for visiting the festival?

A．11 August.

B．12 August.

C．13 August.

D．14 August.

2. Durga's mother most likely cooks ______.

A．gyros

B．seafood paella

C．crêpes

D．tandoori chicken

3. The first paragraph is mainly about ______.

A．how Durga and Amiko wanted to learn about other cultures

B．that Durga and her family moved to Texas from India

C．how Amiko's grandparents came to the United States

D．what kinds of spicy Indian dishes Durga's mother cooked