1 . Travel by train from London to Edinburgh

If you want to travel from London to Edinburgh by train, you’ve come to the right place —Waverley train station. Click Journey Planner to search for specific travel details.

Time Consumption:

The average journey time is 5 hours and 30 minutes, with around 68 trains per day. The journey time may be half hour longer on weekends and holidays. The fastest services just need 4 hours and 10 minutes when the governors travel between the two cities to be present at conferences.

Services:

There are 68 non-stop trains, though there may be fewer direct services available depending on your exact departure date. The first train leaves at 04:45 a. m. The last train leaves at 23:45.

Discount Train Tickets:

In general, the train ticket from London to Edinburgh is priced at €29.95 each. However, train ticket prices can start from as little as €23.96 when you book 12 weeks in advance online. And cheap tickets can also be gained in other ways.

•Get a Railcard: Save up to 1/3 on eligible(符合条件的) journeys for a whole year.
•Travel Off-Peak: Tickets are usually 15% cheaper than usual during quieter times on weekdays and weekends compared to Peak times.
•Use GroupSave: If you’re travelling in a group of 3-9 people, you can save up to 35% on eligible journeys at Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak times.

Want to check if trains are running? Use our timetable to view live trains.

1. At what possible time do you arrive in Edinburgh if catching the last train on December 24 from London?

A．5:15 a. m on Christmas Day.	B．5:45 a. m on Christmas Day.
C．10:15 a. m on Christmas Eve.	D．10:45 a. m on Christmas Eve.

2. How much can a couple with a Railcard each save on a journey?

A．About €11.98.	B．Some €17.97.
C．About €19.97.	D．Some €20.96.

3. Where is the passage probably taken from?

A．Website.	B．Brochure.
C．Magazine.	D．Advertisement.

2 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. What is wrong with the woman?

A．She gets sunburned.

B．She is too tired.

C．She is ill.

2. Why is Sardinia much hotter than imagined?

A．It is on the coast of Italy.

B．It is too close to Africa.

C．It is near Cagliari.

3. Where did the speakers take a boat?

A．From Tunisia.

B．From India.

C．From Italy.

4. Where will they likely travel next?

A．To Cagliari.

B．Still in Tunisia.

C．To the coast of Italy.

5 . In valleys with thick plants, different-sized round and square buildings with faded yellow clay walls and wooden roofs, tulou lie in mountainous villages in Longyan, Fujian Province. There are more than 23,000 tulou in Yongding, which became well-known after 46 were given World Heritage status by UNESCO in 2008. “The structures were awarded because they are exceptional examples of a building of tradition and function demonstrating a particular type of communal living and defensive organization, and, in terms of their harmonious relationship with their environment, an outstanding example of human settlement,” UNESCO said.

The giant multi-storied tulou were built with wood and mud walls. Constructed from the 15th to 20th centuries, these massive communal homes were sited based on feng shui principles, which claim to use energy forces to harmonize individuals with their environment. Tulou are also purposefully resting amid tea, tobacco, rice plantations and abundant forests of pine and bamboo.

Throughout history, tulou residents have mostly been Hakka — migrants in southern China. Population pressures created conflict between the Hakka and their neighbors, so they built their homes to double as defending. The buildings are mainly four or five stories high. The first floor serves as the kitchen, the second is used for grain storage and the upper floors act as living areas. The structures are mainly symmetrical, and their defensive features include ironclad gates, escape tunnels, narrow openings for weapons under the dark-tiled roofs, and a water well. For their defensive function, only rooms on the third floor and higher have windows, which are very small. With sufficient food, the residents could survive in the event of a lengthy conflict.

Communal living is integrity to these villages, where the closed wall design boosts social interaction. Residents gather in the courtyard for ceremonies such as ancestor worship and weddings. Tulou is such an extraordinary piece of architecture, living up to the title given by UNESCO.

1. What do we know about tulou?

A．Over 23,000 tulou were given World Heritage status.

B．Among 23,000 tulou, only 46 became famous globally.

C．They’re exceptional buildings of tradition and function.

D．Tulou is the most outstanding Chinese human settlement.

2. What is most important for residents during a long period of conflict?

A．Escape tunnels.

B．Enough food.

C．Small windows.

D．Defensive weapons.

3. What is probably the author’s attitude to the protection of tulou?

A．Favorable.

B．Unclear.

C．Negative.

D．Unconcerned.

4. Which of the following could be the best title for the text?

A．Tulou: in Harmony with Their Environments

B．Tulou: Different-Sized Round and Square Buildings

C．Tulou: Given the World Heritage Status by UNESCO in 2008

D．Tulou: a Special Chinese Structure Combining Living and Defending

6 . For people who are planning a trip, a visit to a museum might not be the first thing they think of. After all, there are plenty of ways to appreciate the world’s civilization, gain exciting experiences and spend quality time with family and friends.     1    

Museums are where people learn something new, at every age! Are you interested in something specific?     2    . There, you will find yourself drawn in and inspired! Museums are a fantastic place to learn about a region’s history, scientific achievements, major cultural events, and of course, dinosaurs. They also design exhibitions related to visual arts, industrial innovations and anything that inspires an individual to learn about the past and create new paths to the future.

    3     They will surely be an exciting part of the educational experience with the main purpose to expose children to knowledge of various fields and expand their horizons. To achieve that, museums are working to create meaningful and engaging activities, interactive and knowledge-based.

Museums support tourism. They are tourism promoters in small towns and large cities. Museums aren’t a burden on tax revenue (税收) or a separate concern from other city projects.     4    Statistics show that museums support more than 726, 000 jobs in America.

Museums shape communities. They have activities and exhibitions through which visitors can learn about local history. Museums are places where a shared heritage is celebrated and a collective identity is formed. They provide an interesting public space where people meet and talk to each other.     5    

A．Museums bring out the best qualities in children.

B．Museums often deliver kids-centered exhibitions.

C．Instead, they generate funding and fuel employment.

D．Then, visit a local museum to learn about that subject.

E．Even shopping at the gift shop there is an opportunity for connection.

F．On the contrary, they consume a small percentage of city funds annually.

G．The fact, however, is that museums offer magical benefits in many ways.

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。

Sustainable tourism, which is becoming increasingly popular nowadays, is not just about seeing the sights — it is also about connecting with people and their cultures,     1     (make) a positive impact on the places we visit and enhancing opportunities for the future. So,     2     can we be sustainable tourists?

It is important to travel in     3     environmentally friendly manner. Getting to a tourist destination by airplane, which greatly     4     (increase) our carbon footprint, has a huge impact on the global environment. While avoiding flying is not always     5     (practice), we can help improve the environment by travelling on local public transport or even on foot wherever possible. When at the hotel, we can reduce our impact by cutting back on water consumption and not having our bedding and towels     6     (wash) every day. We also need to protect the local culture. When visiting temples or churches,     7     a strict dress code may     8     (require), we should dress appropriately. While travelling, we should respect the right to privacy. We must ask for     9     (permit) before taking pictures of the local people, who are human beings and not     10     display.

In summary, being a sustainable tourist comes down to respect — for nature, culture and people.

9 . It could have been anywhere, my first intentionally photo-free journey, but it just happened to be Ethiopia. Photographic equipment can be a great physical burden. It may weigh anything from a few hundred grams to several kilos, depending on how seriously one approaches the business of picture-taking. Yet the real burden of photography is mental, not physical; it is the feeling of needing to take photographs, that because you have a camera you must use it.

In the first few days of camera-less travel, there are certainly moments of frustration at letting one great photograph after another go past, but having no camera, and thus being unable to take photographs, surprisingly soon stops the urge to do so. Very quickly, scenes become appreciated for what they are, rather than for the photographs they would have made.

Climbing up the western wall of the Great Rift Valley, on the way to the capital, Addis Ababa, the road emerges from a tunnel onto open, grassy plains — a small piece of uncharacteristically undomesticated countryside, with an even more uncharacteristic population of wild animals. They looked magnificent in the tearing wind, and through binoculars (双筒望远镜) they could be absorbed at leisure — theirs and mine. And thus unseen, I watched them play, free from concerns as to how close I could risk going with my camera without losing the very moment I sought to capture.

Exciting though stalking (跟踪) wild creatures can be, the photographer must obviously stalk as much out of sight as possible, thus being denied any chance of actually watching them. The photographer’s mind is effectively stopped from experiencing any more than the photographic possibilities of the scene. At eye level, the camera not only creates a physical barrier but also isolates the photographer from the joyful reality of the subject, and from everywhere else around them too. Then comes the climax, the press of the button, the pull of the trigger (快门), before more stalking, more photographs and, inevitably, the stalking too far which frightens the animals to flight. The difference between looking in order to photograph and actually seeing what is there is never more distinct than when taking pictures of animals, to the extent that the two become almost mutually exclusive. There is time only for deciding the best way to take the photograph, before addressing more practical technicalities — how to keep the minibus’s wheel out of the shot of lions, or get enough depth of field so all the flamingos (火烈鸟) on the lake are in focus at once.

1. According to the first paragraph, what is the main problem that photographers face while travelling?

A．Moving their heavy equipment about

B．Locating places to purchase batteries.

C．Trying to get the best possible shots.

D．Being under pressure to take photographs.

2. The writer suggests in the second paragraph that people who choose to leave their cameras at home ________.

A．conclude that the decision was unrealistic

B．rapidly lose the desire to take any photographs

C．come to consider previous trips as unsatisfactory

D．appreciate the excellence of other people’s photos

3. What does the writer suggest about the animals he sees?

A．They were too far away to be usefully observed.

B．They were surprisingly unaffected by the closeness of humans.

C．They might have been enjoying the situation for more than he was.

D．They might have become alarmed by the presence of a photographer.

4. The writer questions the value of stalking animals because a photographer ________.

A．can cause the animals to behave aggressively towards people

B．may become too uncomfortable to take reasonable shots

C．may not be able to appreciate the situation fully

D．can easily become distracted from his task

10 . 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。

Mount Wutai, located in the northeastern part of Shanxi province, is 230 kilometers away from the provincial capital city Taiyuan. It was named after five peaks that resemble five giant columns (柱子)     1     (rise) straight from the ground. With its high peaks, snow covers for much of the year. Even in midsummer days it remains cool and pleasant,     2     has given rise to another name: Qingliang Mountain as     3     ideal place for escaping summer heat.

Mount Wutai is a     4     (unique) beautiful mountain landscape with a cultural heritage that is at least as     5     (value) as the mountain’s natural beauty.     6     (refer) to as one of the four sacred Buddhist mountains of China, it is home     7     forty-one monasteries (寺院). Within their walls     8     (be) a rich collection of over 100,000 superb sculptures and paintings, along with a great quantity of Buddhist cultural relics. For example, the east main hall of the Foguang Temple is the highest wooden building in China that     9     (survive) since the Tang Dynasty.

Wutai Mountain displays its outstanding     10     (combine) of the natural landscape and Buddhist culture, religious belief in the natural landscape and Chinese philosophical thinking on the harmony between man and nature.