The people of Reykjavik are used to lying down for the winter, when each day brings with it only a few hours of sunlight. February coming, they’re more than ready to wake up from hibernation（冬眠）and welcome the first signs of spring. The local authorities decided this was a good time of a year to try to raise people’s spirits, and in 2002 they set up the Winter Lights Festival（February 7 to 10）. Starting out as Museum Night, when museums waived their fees and stayed open until midnight, the festival has grown to an event that marks the coming return of daylight. For a few days, the city comes alive with bright lights, street performances, theater, dances, and live music. Shops, cafés, outdoor hot pools and the museums stay open until 12:00 pm and they’re all free of charge, with free bus services provided. Here are another two things about Reykjavik that will help you celebrate the coming end of winter.

The Blue Lagoon is Iceland’s most famous tourist attraction. Being an amazing place at any time of day, it is magical at dusk, when the steamy, ice blue waters shine in color. Little wooden bridges and walkways connect smaller pools with a larger pool, which contains geothermal（地热的）seawater heated from 37℃ to 39℃. The Lava Restaurant has great views over the waters. Basic entrance to the lagoon costs $ 44.

The Imagine Peace Tower, Yoko Ono’s memorial to John Lennon, was first lit by Ono on October 9, 2007, Lennon’s birthday, and shone until December 8, the date he was killed in 1980. It’s lit on the same date every year, as well as New Year’s Eve and spring equinox, which in 2013 is on March 20. The tower contains 15 searchlights that send a column of lights 4,000m up into the night sky. Guided tours are available（可获得的）with pick-up from your hotel for $ 39.

【小题1】The Winter Lights Festival was set up to _______________.

A．attract tourists	B．light the city up
C．cheer people up	D．wake people up

【小题2】The underlined word “waived” in the first paragraph probably means “_________________”.

A．kept	B．gave up
C．raised	D．cut off

【小题3】According to the Paragraph 2, what can we know?

A．You can only visit the Blue Lagoon at dusk.

B．The water of the Blue Lagoon is beautiful.

C．The Lava Restaurant is Iceland’s most famous restaurant.

D．$ 44 can cover all the costs when you visit the Blue Lagoon.

【小题4】When did John Lennon pass away?

A．On October 9, 2007.	B．On March 20, 2013.
C．On December 8, 1980.	D．On New Year’s Eve in 1980.

C
Hilversum is a medium-sized city between the major cities of Amsterdam and Utrecht in the Gooi area of North Holland, the Netherlands. Unlike most of the Netherlands, Hilversum is actually in a hilly area with the soil mostly consisting of sand. Once called the Garden of Amsterdam, it still attracts travelers to come over to cycle and walk through the surrounding forests. They visit it for a relaxing day off from the urban madness. For Dutch people, Hilversum is all about textile (纺织) and media industries, and modern architecture.
In history, Hilversum was largely an agricultural area. Daily life was marked by farming, sheep raising and wool production. A railway link to Amsterdam in 1874 attracted rich traders from Amsterdam to Hilversum. They build themselves large villas (别墅) in the wooded surroundings of the town. One of the families moving in was the Brenninkmeijers, currently the wealthiest family of the Netherlands. They moved in after big success in the textile industry and aided a substantial textile industry in Hilversum. But the textile boom lasted only several decades. The last factory closed in the 1960s.
The change to a media economy started in 1920, when the Nederlandse Seintoestedllen Fabriek (NSF) established a radio factory in Hiversum. Most radio stations called in the large villas in the leafy areas of the town. Television gave another push to the local economy. Hilversum became the media capital of the Netherlands, and Dutch televison stars moved into the leafy neighborhoods surrounding the town.
In the early 1900s, modern architcts W.M. Dudok and J. Duiker placed hundreds of remarkable buildings in Hilversum. These modern architectural masterpieces (杰作) are so many that Hilversum almost feels like an open air museum. Dudok alone shaped most 20th century Hilversum and approximately 75 buildings in 1928-1931. It has wide international fame and is included in many architecture textbooks. The building has a remarkable shape and looks like a combination of “blocks”. Actually, one may start his journey of modern architecture by walking or biking the W.M. Dudok Architectural Route in Hilversum.
【小题1】Hilversum is different from most of the Netherlands in that ______.

A．it has a large population

B．it is cut off from big cities

C．it has many beautiful gardens

D．it is in a hilly area with sandy soil

【小题2】What was the greatest contribution of the Brenninkmeijers to Hilversum?

A．Building a railway link to Amsterdam

B．Helping its textile industry to develop

C．Constructing large villas for the poor

D．Assisting its agricultural industry

【小题3】The beginning of the media industry in Hilversum was marked by the establishment of ______.

A．a radio factory

B．the medial capital

C．a radio station

D．a TV station

【小题4】What is known about W.M. Dudok’s Hilversum Town Hall?

A．It consists of approximately 75 buildings

B．It looks like an open air museum in the city

C．It is a classic example in architecture textbooks

D．It has shaped most of 20th century Hilvesum.

语法填空

The Dujiangyan is the oldest man-made water system in the world, and a wonder in the development of Chinese agriculture. 【小题1】（build）over 2,200 years ago in what is now Sichuan Province in Southwest China, this amazing engineering 【小题2】（achieve）is still used today.

In ancient times, the region where Dujiangyan now stands 【小题3】（suffer）from regular floods from the Minjiang River. 【小题4】（help）the victims of the flooding, Li Bing, 【小题5】 region governor, together with his son, decided to find a solution. Li designed a series of channels built at different levels along Mount Yulei that would take away the floodwaters while leaving the river flowing naturally. 【小题6】（good）still, the extra water could be directed to the dry Chengdu Plain, making 【小题7】 suitable for farming.

Once the system 【小题8】（finish）, no more floods happened and the people were able to live 【小题9】（peaceful）. Today, Dujiangyan is admired by scientists from around the world because of one feature. Unlike modern dams, 【小题10】 the water is blocked with a huge wall, Dujiangyan still lets waterflow through the Minjiang River naturally, making the ecosystem（生态系统）and fish populations exist in peace.

Australia is the smallest continent in the world. It is a little smaller than China. It is on the Southern Hemisphere of the earth. Australia is big, but its population is small. The population of Australia is nearly as large as that of Shanghai.
Enough laws have been made to fight against pollution. The cities in Australia have little air or water pollution. The sky is blue and the water is clean. You can clearly see fish in the rivers. Plants grow very well.
Last month we visited Perth, the biggest city in Western Australia, and went to a wild flower exhibition. There we saw large numbers of wild flowers on show, most of which we had never seen before. We had a wonderful time. Perth is famous for its beautiful wild flowers. Every year in spring Perth has a wild flower exhibition. After visiting Perth, we spent a day in the countryside. We sat down and had a rest near a path at the foot of a hill. It was quiet and we enjoyed ourselves very much. When we heard bells ringing at the top of the hills, we looked up, but what we saw made us pick up all our things and run back to our car as quickly as we could. There were about three hundred sheep coming towards us along the path.
Australia is famous for its sheep and kangaroos. After a short drive from any town, you will find yourself among the white sheep. Sheep, sheep, everywhere you can see sheep.
【小题1】Which country is the writer most possibly from?

A．Japan	B．Canada
C．China	D．America

【小题2】We can learn from the passage that _________.

A．Australia is the smallest country in the world

B．Australia is the same size of Shanghai.

C．Australia is in the northern part of the earth.

D．The people in Australia are as many as those in Shanghai.

【小题3】Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Australia has enough laws to fight against pollution.

B．Perth is the biggest city in Australia.

C．The wild flowers in Perth must be different from what the author sees in his/her country.

D．The author enjoyed his/her visit in the country.

London’s newest skyscraper (摩天大楼)is called the Shard and it cost about 430 million pounds to build. At a height of almost 310 metres, it is the tallest building in Europe. The Shard has completely changed the appearance of London. However, not everyone thinks that it is a change for the better.
The Shard was designed by the famous Italian architect Renzo Piano. When he began designing the Shard for London, Piano wanted a very tall building that looked like a spire (尖顶)• He wanted the glass surfaces to reflect the sky and the city. The sides of the building aren’t regular. So the building has an unusual shape. It looks like a very thin，sharp piece of broken glass. And that is how the building got the name: the Shard. Piano says that the spire shape of the Shard is part of a great London tradition. The shape reminds him of the spires of the churches of London or the tall masts (桅杆）of the ships that were once on the river Thames.
The Shard has 87 floors. At the top, there is an observatory. At the moment the building is empty, but eventually there will be a five-star hotel. There will also be top quality restaurants, apartments and offices.
Before building work began, a lot of people didn’t want the Shard though the plans were approved. Now they are still unhappy about the Shard. Some critics say that such a tall skyscraper might be good in a city like New York, but not in London. They say that the best thing about the Shard is its spire shape. But that is the only thing. There is no decoration, only flat surfaces. The Egyptians did that 4,500 years ago. They also think the Shard is too big for London. It destroys the beauty of the city.
Other critics don’t like what the Shard seems to represent. They say that the Shard shows how London is becoming more unequal. Only very rich people can afford to buy the expensive private apartments and stay in the hotel. But the people who live near the Shard are among the poorest in London. So the Shard seems a symbol of the division in society between the very rich and the poor.
The Shard now dominates the London skyline. It is not certain, however, that ordinary London citizens will ever accept it as a valuable addition to the city.
【小题1】London’s newest skyscraper is called the Shard because of ._____

A．its cost

B．its size

C．its shape

D．its height

【小题2】When he designed the Shard, Piano wanted it to _____

A．change London’s skyline

B．inherit London’s tradition

C．imitate the Egyptian style

D．attract potential visitors

【小题3】The critics who refer to social division think the Shard_______ .

A．is only preferred by the rich

B．is intended for wealthy people

C．is far away from the poor area

D．is popular only with Londoners

【小题4】Which would be the best title for the passage?

A．The Shard: Cheers and Claps

B．The Shard: Work of a Great Architect

C．The Shard: New Symbol of London?

D．The Shard: A Change for the Better?