2 . A family attempting to travel to Australia without flying have arrived in the country after a three-and-a-half-month journey. Shannon Coggins, Theo Simon and their daughter Rosa, 19, left England to begin their 10 thousand-mile trip to Sydney on 16 August. The family was hoping to make it in time for Ms. Coggins’ sister’s wedding on 28 December.
The family saved up for several years to pay for the trip, which has cost them much more than air tickets would have done. They travelled through Kazakhstan, China, Laos, Thailand and Indonesia, and finally arrived in Dili, hoping to find a boat to cross the Timor Sea to Darwin, Australia. From there they planned to take a bus to Sydney.
“The world is a huge thing, and one personal thing that I do will never make the difference that we need but I want to live by my principles,” Ms. Coggins said. “I want a clean world for my daughter when she’s growing up in the future and the grandchildren. But the world is getting hotter. There is so much going on in Australia here at the moment with floods and fires, and I think we’ve all got to take that seriously.”
“All three of us have campaigned in different ways for action on climate change, so we decided our journey to Australia would have to be as low-carbon as practical,” Mr. Simon said.
The family arrived on the other side of the world just in time. But they said there were many moments during their journey across continents and oceans when they thought they might not make it to Australia. A conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and the danger of travelling through Iran, forced them on a four day detour (绕行) through Russia where Mr. Simon almost get arrested.
“It hasn’t always been easy, but it was worth it”, Mr. Simon added. “We want to keep this beautiful planet, don’t we?”
1. Why did the family travel to Sydney?
| A．To take a global tour. | B．To attend a wedding. |
| C．To explore the nature. | D．To advocate saving energy. |
2. Why did the family decide to take on the journey without flying?
| A．They couldn’t afford the air tickets. |
| B．They joined a nationwide campaign. |
| C．They were afraid of the terrible weather. |
| D．They tried to reduce their carbon footprints. |
3. What can be inferred from paragraph 5?
| A．Mr. Simon was arrested when going through Russia. |
| B．The family was discontent with the adventurous trip. |
| C．The family’s journey was not quite straightforward. |
| D．The family didn’t manage to reach Australia at last. |
4. How does Mr. Simon think about the travel?
| A．Tough but worthwhile. | B．Smooth but expensive. |
| C．Relaxing and incredible. | D．Inappropriate and disappointed. |
