For nearly a thousand years, tea stayed the secret of the East. Then, in the 1500s, the Portuguese       1       (gradual) arrived in China. They’d travelled to the Far East hoping to control the spice trade. But soon         2     tasting the brew for the first time, the         3         (explore)quickly realized its potential and decided to focus on exporting tea instead. The Portuguese called the drink cha, just like the people of southern China did. From the port of Canton, the Portuguese shipped the       4     (process) leaves down through Indonesia, under the southern tip of Africa, and back up to         5     (west) Europe.

But long before the root word “cha” made     6       (it) way across the oceans to Portugal, another trade route called the “Tea-Horse” road       7       (spread) tea westward.       8     bricks of tea packed up high on the carriers’ backs, the leaf travelled to India via Persia,       9       the Chinese “cha” turned into the Persian “chay”. Depending on the region of India, most Indian dialects use some variation of the root word “cha”       10       (describe) tea.

2 . You may have heard of the word “pub” . It is short for public house. There are around 60,000 pubs in the U.K. One of the oldest pubs，Ye Olde Fighting Cocks in St. Albans，Hertfordshire，is located in a building that dates back to the eleventh century.

    1     People talk，eat，drink，meet their friends and relax there. Pubs often have two bars，one usually quieter than the other，and many have a garden where people can sit in summer. Children can go into pub gardens with their parents.

Groups of friends normally buy “rounds” of drinks.    2     It is sometimes difficult to get served when pubs are busy：The bar staff will usually serve those who have been waiting the longest at the bar first.

Most pubs offer a complete range of beers，local and imported，with German，Belgian and French beers being in demand.    3     As a matter of fact，pubs sell soft drinks，too.

The legal age to purchase alcohol is 18 in the UK. People aged 16 and 17，with the license's permission，may have only one glass of wine during a meal.    4     It is illegal to sell alcohol to someone who already appears drunk. A fourteen-year-old may enter a pub unaccompanied by an adult if he orders a meal. Children may enter a pub with their parents until 9 p．m.，which lets families enjoy reasonably priced pub meals together.     5    Customs in British pubs differ from those in American bars. In most pubs in the U.K.，you must go to the bar to order drinks and food and pay for your purchases immediately.