London’s Chinese community(社区) dates back to the 18^th century, when a small number of Chinese sailors moved to the city to work in Limhouse, east London. As time went on, other Chinese came to this area and Limhouse began to be known as “Chinatown”. However, London’s Chinese community remained every small for many years: at the start of the 20^th century, there were just 545 Chinese people in Britain.
After the Second World War, many farmers in Hong Kong lost their jobs and came to London. As Limhouse had been almost destroyed during the war, they settled (定居) in a different area—a port of central London near Leicester Square. This area is now what Londoners call Chinatown.
At first, the new immigrants found it difficult to get jobs. In the 1950s, however, a small Chinese restaurant opened in London. Many British people visited it and said that Chinese food was wonderful! Suddenly, Chinese restaurants and take-ways started opening in every part of the city. Instead of too little work, the new Chinese immigrants now found that they had too much! They worked as cooks, managers or waiters. Most of them enjoyed their lives and arranged their friends and relatives to join them from overseas.
As time went by, London’s Chinese community became more and more successful. The sons and daughters of the original restaurant workers studied and worked very hard. And most went on to get highly paid jobs. Many Chinese families left Chinatown and moved to more expensive outskirts. Chinatown, however, is still as lively as ever.
【小题1】When did the first Chinese immigrants come to London?
A. In the 1950s.
B. B. More than 200 years ago.
C. C. At the start of the 20 century.
【小题2】Why did many Chinese immigrants come to London in the 1950s?
A. Because it was easy for them to get jobs there.
B. Because many British people enjoyed Chinese food.
C. Because their children could study there and get highly paid jobs.
【小题3】In the 1950s, Chinese immigrants came to London and worked as _______.
A. sailors
B. sailors and farmers
C. restaurant workers
【小题4】Where is London’s Chinatown now?
A. In the east of London.
B. In Limhouse.
C. Not far from Leicester square.
【小题5】According to this passage, if people live in the outskirts of a city, they live ______.
A. in the center of the city
B. in the outer areas of the city
C.in the busiest part of the city.

Marco Polo(马可波罗) was born in Venice in 1254. He was the most famous foreigner to visit Asia（亚洲）during the Middle Ages. He wrote a book about his travels. In his book he wrote all the things he saw and heard. Many people in the west read the book, but few believed what Marco Polo said in the book. He told stories about a lot of strange people and places. But at that time nobody knew these places and the people.
When Marco Polo was still very young, he decided to travel together with his father. It took them more than three years to travel to China, later he became a friend of the Chinese emperor (皇帝) . He learned to speak Chinese when he traveled around, and he talked to many people in Chinese. The emperor liked him and made him a Chinese Official(官员). At that time Marco Polo was only thirty years old. After nearly seventeen years’ travel in the east, Marco and his father wanted to go back home.
When Marco and his father arrived in Venice many years later, their family and friends saw them again. They couldn’t believe their eyes because Marco and his farther were quite old. Marco Polo and his father had been away for almost 25 years.
【小题1】Marco Polo was                             foreigner           the Middle Ages.
【小题2】Marco Polo wrote a famous book ___________ “The Travels of Marco Polo”. He wrote __________           _ he saw and heard in the book.
【小题3】Many people in the west read the book, but ____  _____ believed ________    ____.
【小题4】It took Marco Polo and                  over three years to ________  __________.
【小题5】Marco Polo and his father had been away ____                            .

Western China is a large and beautiful region. It includes one major city, Chongqing, six provinces, and five autonomous regions (自治区). The six provinces are Sichuan, Shanxi, Gansu, Yunnan, Qinghai, and Guizhou. The five autonomous regions are Tibet, Ningxia Hui, Xinjiang Uygur, Guangxi Zhuang, and Inner Mongolia. Among all these provinces and autonomous regions, Xinjiang is the largest region and Ningxia is the smallest region.
Western China has an area of 5,400,000 square kilometers. This is about 56% of the total area of the country. However, there are many mountains, highlands, and deserts, and there are fewer rivers and lakes than in the East. Only around 22% of the population (人口) of China lives in the West, so there are far more people living in the East than living there.
Western China has a lot of natural resources. It is rich in oil and gas and it has many different kinds of minerals (矿). Tourists like to visit the area. There are many famous museums, ancient palaces, tombs (坟墓), and caves (洞), such as the Dazu museum, Shanxi History Museum, the Potala Palace, the Dunhuang Caves, and many other beautiful places such as Yunnan Dali and Sichuan Jiuzhaigou Valley.
Western China
Regions It includes the city of Chongqing, six provinces and five autonomous regions. Among them, Ningxia is 【小题1】         than any other region.
Land
It covers over half of the total area of China, more than five 【小题2】       square kilometers. It has many mountains but 【小题3】         water than that in the East.
Population  Only about 22% of the population of China is here.
【小题4】         resources    It is rich in oil, gas and different kinds of minerals.
Tourism Travellers can visit the famous【小题5】         , old palaces, tombs and caves.

In English the weather is changable. It is a ___1____ subject of conversation. “ Isn’t it a nice day?” “Do you think it will rain?” “I think it’s going to snow. ” People often ___2____ a conversation ___3_____ these words(话).

Many people think they can tell what the weather is going to be like, but they hardly (几乎不) ever agree with each other.

____4___ may say,“Do  you see ____5____ in the east ? It’s going to rain tomorrow . ” Another man will say,“No . It’s going to be fine . ” People often ____6___ the weather they want. When a farmer needs water , he looks for something to tell him. “ It’s going to rain. ” He won’t believe (相信) anything else. When friends have a picnic (举行野餐) , they hope the weather is going to be fine and they can ____7___ under the blue sky . Almost (几乎) everyone ____8____ what the weather (气象预报员) will say. But he doesn’t always __9___ us what we want , and sometimes he makes mistakes (犯错误) . Still he usually  _10_ closer to being correct (正确)  than anyone else.

1.                A．important       B．common        C．interesting D．difficult

2.                A．set off          B．start           C．began    D．stops

3.                A．off            B．by             C．with D．for

4.                A．One people     B．A man          C．Other men    D．Another man

5.                A．it is cloudy      B．cloudy is it       C．cloudy it is D．is it cloudy

6.                A．look for        B．look up         C．look at    D．ask for

7.                A．sits            B．sitting          C．sit   D．to sit

8.                A．hears          B．listens          C．hears from    D．listens to

9.                A．ask            B．tell            C．speak    D．say

10.               A．come          B．comes         C．is coming  D．to come

阅读对话，在方框中选择正确的句子填在下面的横线上。