Europeans are being dug out from heavy snow after a week of very cold weather. The snowstorm is the harshest to hit Europe. Airports were shut down. And schools have been closed for a week.
Until Wednesday, at least 400 people across Europe had died because of the cold temperature. Several countries have said a state of emergency. In Ukraine, temperatures dropped as low as -33℉.
Although the situation is bad, at least one country is hoping the weather will last a little longer. In the Netherlands, the government is preparing for the country’s “11 Cities Tour”. The 125-mile ice-skating marathon will be held along a network which joins 11 towns and cities together in Friesland Province.
The ice along the way must be inches thick for the event. Up to 2 million people are thought to cheer on the race’s 16,000 competitors.
On Wednesday, Dutch soldiers joined in the preparations. They cleaned snow along the way. This will be the 16^th time that the event has taken place since the first race in 1909. Dutch General Hans said his soldiers were happy to lend a hand. “We want to do our bit for this national party.” he said.
【小题1】What is “11 Cities Tour”?

At least two ________ people were injured in the earthquake.

1. A.
   hundreds
2. B.
   hundred
3. C.
   hundreds of
4. D.
   hundred of

阅读理解

Dear editor( 编辑),       

Can't your newspaper do something about the custom (习惯) of hitchhiking?

A short time ago, on a car travel I counted at least 50 people standing beside the road, asking for rides. Many of them were young women.

Don't they understand how dangerous it is to get into the car driven by a stranger? How much do they know about the driver? Is he a good driver or not? They know nothing!

Many of these young hitchhikers may come from good families. Don't their parents teach them anything about the world? I always taught my children not to talk to strangers. I never let them take rides from people they didn't know.

Isn't there enough crime (犯罪) today without asking for trouble by hitchhiking? On the other hand, hitchhiking may bring some traffic trouble. Don't you think what I said is true?

A Worried Grandfather

1.The word "hitchhiking" means         .

2. The Worried Grandfather            .

3. The Worried Grandfather            .

4. The Worried Grandfather wrote the letter to tell          .

5. What do you think a good editor is going to do after he gets the letter?

At least 24 people         in the earthquake in Yingjiang on March 10th.