1 . The dragon is a great animal in Chinese culture. It brings the wind and rain. It is said that every year on the second day of the second lunar month the dragon wakes up from its winter sleep and raises its head. Because of this, the day is called “Dragon Head-raising Day (Longtaitou) ”. This year, it falls on March 4.
Old people believed that after Longtaitou, there would be more rain. And rain is very important to farming. So Longtaitou was the start of spring and farming.
People have many ways to celebrate the Longtaitou Festival. The most popular one is to have a haircut. Many believe that a haircut during the first lunar month may bring bad luck to your uncles, mainly your mother’s brothers. They hope getting a haircut on Longtaitou sweeps away bad luck.
Among Chinese people’s festival traditions, there is always a place for food. During the Longtaitou festival, people eat food named after dragons. Noodles are called dragon’s beard (longxu) . Dumplings are dragon’s ears (long’er) . And spring rolls are dragon’s scales (鳞片) (longlin) .
People also have activities like dragon dancing on the day. In some places in Shandong Province, people make dragon lanterns too. Small boats go down the rivers and carry the lanterns, which stand for people’s best wishes and good luck.
1. Which is NOT TRUE about the time of Longtaitou Festival?| A．It falls on Mar. 4 this year. |
| B．It’s on February 2 every year. |
| C．It comes on a different day every year. |
| D．It comes on the second day of the second lunar month. |
| A．It was the start of farming. | B．It was the end of Spring Festival. |
| C．It meant the weather would become windy. | D．It was a good time for bringing people luck. |
| A．It may bring more rain. | B．It may help their hair grow. |
| C．It’s believed it will get rid of bad luck. | D．It’s believed it will bring good luck to their uncles. |
| A．Spring rolls are called dragon’s beard. |
| B．Dragon dance is held before and after the festival. |
| C．There are different traditional food and activities on the festival. |
| D．Noodles and dumplings are the only traditional food of the festival. |
2 . I like challenges, but this one was almost too difficult. I had begged Mom to take me on a completely new adventure for my sixteenth birthday. Now, here we were, just Mom and me with our guide, Milo, standing on the shore of Lake Arenal in Costa Rica.
Milo helped us onto our horses. Getting on the back of my horse was difficult, but controlling it was a little easier. We started on our ride. The guidebook said we would cross three rivers. As we tried to go through a gentle stream, I asked hopefully, “Is this the first river?” “I don't think so, Katie,” Mom said.
Soon enough, we came to a real river. I felt sick to my stomach when I saw that the far shore was half a football field away! The four-foot-deep river flowed over large rocks. So much for dry shoes or jeans.
After two more rivers, the path got steeper and muddier. The rainforest was splendid and absolutely beautiful. But I wondered whether my horse could keep its balance in knee-high mud. Three frightening hours later, we came to a corral (畜栏). I wondered whether we were stopping. To one side was a wonderful view of the lake and volcano, and to the other, a brightly painted restaurant. “OK,” I laughed nervously. “That was frightening, but I'm so glad we did it! ”
1. Why did the author want to have an adventure?| A．To take up a challenge. | B．To get close to nature. |
| C．To celebrate her birthday. | D．To explore the rainforest. |
| A．The horse always lost its balance. | B．The path became steeper and muddier. |
| C．There was more than one river to cross. | D．She found it difficult to cross the first river. |
| A．It was peaceful but tiring. | B．It was interesting and relaxing. |
| C．It was frightening and unpleasant. | D．It was was dangerous but worthwhile. |
| A．A travel blog | B．A science book. |
| C．A museum guide | D．A news report |
3 . A wildlife photographer was waiting, hoping to get a shot of a relatively rare bird, a particular kind of heron(鹭). He’d waited several frustrating hours in the woods, but with no luck at all. Suddenly, to the photographer’s delight, a heron settled on a branch right in front of him. The photographer raised his camera and took the shot. Feeling particularly pleased, the photographer looked at the image. To his astonishment, he saw that behind the heron, his photograph had also captured a very, very rare woodpecker flying past. He hadn’t seen it, but without even trying, he’d photographed an even rarer bird than the one he was aiming for. This is an example of serendipity.
Cases of serendipity can be found in numerous fields, such as science. Back in the 1800s, a man called Wellswas at a demonstration (演示) of laughing gas. After being given the gas, the patient started laughing, as expected. But then he suddenly fell over and cut his le g rather badly. To everyone’s surprise, the man reported that he couldn’t feel any pain. Wells hadn’t been looking for it, but he’d made a medical discovery — certain gases reduce and can even almost eradicate pain. Had Wells not been there that night, anesthesia (麻醉) might have taken longer to be discovered.
Most of us can probably think of at least one example of serendipity in our own lives. Jane, a friend of mine,was trying to come up with an idea for an article but got completely stuck. Frustrated, she decided to go out to a local café. As she was sipping her coffee, she heard two people talking behind her. A man was telling a story that sounded so unbelievable that she knew it had to be true. She asked the people if she could interview them for the article. They agreed and her article turned out to be one of the top trending articles of the week.
1. The word “serendipity” in paragraph 1 means the fact of __________.| A．observing rare birds in person | B．achieving important aims in time |
| C．finding valuable things by chance | D．taking interesting photos by mistake |
| A．The gas’s hidden damage. | B．The gas’s pain-killing effect. |
| C．The patient’s scientific discovery. | D．The patient’s balance-losing moment. |
| A．To take a break. | B．To meet a friend. |
| C．To write an article. | D．To do an interview. |
| A．To explain a concept. | B．To promote a culture. |
| C．To introduce a person. | D．To recommend a method. |
4 . Life! It’s a lot of fun but it can also be challenging.
“My life’s a mess. I just wish I could disappear”; “Why do these things always happen to me?” Thoughts like these help no one. Overdramatising (过分夸大) a situation only makes it worse. Try and put things into perspective a little, take a step back, sleep on it, or ask a friend for help.
So your teacher didn’t give you the part in the school play that you really wanted. Well, that’s a shame.
No one gets it right all of the time, and that includes you! So don’t expect life to always work out the way you think it should.
| A．So keep these tips in mind. |
| B．Things don’t always go our way. |
| C．Things are never as bad as they seem. |
| D．Open your mind to other possibilities. |
| E．If others let you down, be kind to them. |
| F．There’s nothing you can do to change the past. |
| G．But it doesn’t mean your teacher doesn’t like you. |
5 . Travel with us to the heart of Fiordland National Park and take in the beauty and vastness of remote Doubtful Sound on our Wilderness Cruise (乘船游览). It will take your breath away as you experience its deep wilderness.
There’s no direct road access, so you’ll start with a boat ride across the picturesque Lake Manapouri , followed by a coach (大巴) trip over the epic Wilmot Pass through Fiordland’s rain forest and into the Sound. Along the way, you’ll pause to experience the dense Fiordland rainforest and view Doubtful Sound glistening below. The isolation makes this field a very special place. Only those in the know get to see it. In Doubtful Sound, you’ll board our spacious, purpose-built ship Patea Explorer for a 3-hour cruise.
Things you should know
●Check in 30 minutes prior to your Coach Transfer from Queenstown to Manapouri.
●A highlight is the coach trip through Fiordland’s rainforest and over Wilmot Pass.
●During the cruise, our knowledgeable and friendly nature guides will point out landmarks and provide all the information about the native wildlife you come face to face with, including dolphins, fur seals, and occasionally penguins.
●The trip duration:8 hours.
Extra information
●Picnic lunches available for pre-purchase (预购) up to 7 pm the day before your cruise.
●Snacks and drinks available for purchase on board(cash only).
●Licensed bar on board(cash only).
What to bring
Non-slip shoes/boots, waterproof jackets, warm sweaters, sunscreen, sunglasses, insect repellent and cameras.
1. What can tourists do during the cruise on Patea Explorer?| A．Pick personal guides. | B．View local wildlife. |
| C．Admire Lake Manapouri. | D．Enjoy free drinks and lunches. |
| A．30 minutes. | B．3 hours. | C．7 hours. | D．8 hours. |
| A．A park guidebook. | B．A cruise journal. | C．A boarding notice. | D．A travel brochure. |
For adults who celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year, it’s a time for tying up loose ends, and
For those who haven’t had the
Each item in the tray has
Of course, the Tray of Togetherness is about more than just the sweets
7 . At six o’clock sharp the curtain rises at Southside Cultural Center, in Reno. Two hundred audience members, including the mayor of Reno, look to the stage. Dozens of actors break out into the first number of The Lion King.
But this is not your typical production. The gifted cast is made up of homeless children living at the Volunteers of America family shelter in Reno. The children have been given a chance to live their dreams onstage, thanks to volunteer acting coach Nasya Mancini. “I see so much of myself in these kids,” says Nasya. “I tell them their current circumstance doesn’t have to be their destiny (命运) . If they are determined, they can do anything they want.”
Determination is something Nasya knows all about. She was born prematurely and was given little chance of survival. But Nasya kept fighting. Her very name means “miracle” in Hebrew. Nasya was small, but quickly proved that her talents were as big as her will to survive. She started dancing at two. By six she’d been spotted by an acting coach, who encouraged her parents to enroll her in drama classes. “There was something about being onstage,” Nasya says. “It made my spirit come alive.” She decided that she was going to be an actor.
However, her enthusiasm didn’t sit well with some of her schoolmates. They teased (嘲) her, “You’re a shrimp. You’re not even pretty.” Nasya came home in tears. Her mother hugged her and told her to ignore it. By high school, Nasya was winning awards in theater competitions. She also provided community service by teaching drama to the children at the shelter. Nasya wanted the kids at the shelter to discover the confidence that acting could give. The best way to do that, she decided, was to put on a big play.
The production was a hit. The kids took several curtain calls. Donations to the shelter rolled in. Nasya reminds the kids of something she knows with every part of her spirit to be true: “Believe in yourself. The world is your stage.”
1. What was special about the play The Lion King?| A．It was staged at the local shelter. | B．It was starred by Nasya Mancini. |
| C．It was performed by homeless kids. | D．It was funded by the mayor of Reno. |
| A．Creative and modest. | B．Talented and caring. |
| C．Determined and humorous. | D．Confident and demanding. |
| A．To collect public donations. | B．To build the kids’ confidence. |
| C．To win a local theater competition. | D．To complete her community service. |
| A．Volunteers Make a Difference. | B．Rising from Shelter to Stage. |
| C．The Lion King Is Roaring Back. | D．Sharing Her Dream with Homeless Teens. |
1. What is the woman doing?
| A．Taking a rest. | B．Preparing for exams. | C．Taking notes. |
| A．History. | B．English. | C．Chemistry. |
| A．By bike. | B．On foot. | C．By car. |
| A．Turn on the light. | B．Put on his glasses. | C．Look at some questions. |
