When I was thirteen, my family moved from Boston to Tucson, Arizona.  36  the move, my father  37  us in the living-room on a freezing January night. My sisters and I sat around the fire, not   38  that the universe would suddenly change its course. "In May, we're  39  to Arizona."

     The words, so small, didn't seem  40  enough to hold my new life. But the world changed and I awoke on a tram moving across the country. I watched the  41_  change from green trees to flat dusty plains to high mountains as I saw strange new plants that  42  mysteries(奥秘) yet to come. Finally, we arrived and  43  into own new home.

     44  my older sisters were sad at the loss of friends, I   45   explored(探索) our

new surroundings.

     One afternoon, I was out exploring  46  and saw a new kind of cactus(仙人掌). I crouched (蹲) down for a closer look. "You'd better not  47  that."

     I turned around to see an old woman

     "Are you new lo this neighborhood?" I explained that I was,  48 , new to the entire state.

     "My name is Ina Thorne. Have you got used to life in the  49 ? It must be quite a   _50  after living in Boston."

     How could I explain how I  51  the desert? I couldn't seem to find the right words.

     "It's vastness," she offered. “That vastness  52  you stand on the mountains overlooking the desert -- you can  53  how little you are in comparison with the world.  _54 , you feel that the possibilities are limitless.”

     That was it. That was the feeling I'd bad ever since I'd first seen the mountains of my new home. Again, my  55  would change with just a few simple words.

     "Would you like to come to my home tomorrow? Someone should teach you which plant you should and shouldn't touch."

What a woman! I just wonder how she managed to keep smiling after all that she had ________.

_____ the mountain flood, the old woman insisted _____ remaining in her house.

A. Though; on           B. Because of; to

C. In spite of; on         D. For; in

Handshaking, though a European practice, is often seen in big cities of China．Nobody knows exactly when the practice started in Europe. It is said that long long ago in Europe when people met, they showed their unarmed (无武器的) hands to each other as a sign of goodwill. As time went on and trade in cities grew rapidly, people in cities began to clap each other’s hands to make a deal or to reach an agreement. This practice was later changed into shaking hands among friends on meeting or leaving each other. “Let’s shake (hands) on it” sometimes means agreement reached.

Do the Europeans shake hands wherever they go and with whomever they meet? No. Sometimes the Chinese abroad reach out their hands too often to be polite. It is really very impolite to give your hand when the other party, especially when it is a woman, shows little interest in shaking hands with you and when the meeting does not mean anything to him or-her. Even if, for politeness, he holds out his unwilling hand in answer to your uninvited hand, just touch it slightly- There is generally a misunderstanding (误解) among the Chinese that westerners are usually open and straightforward, while the Chinese are rather reserved (保守的) in manner. But in fact some people in western countries more reserved than some Chinese today. So it is a good idea to shake hands with a westerner only when he shows interest in further relations with you.

64．In the old days in Europe, people put out their unarmed hands to each other ______.

A．to make a deal                                 B．to greet each other

C．to show friendliness                          D．to reach an agreement

65．The first paragraph mainly tells us ______.

       A．where handshaking was first practised

B．how handshaking came about

C．about the relationship between handshaking and trade

D．about the practice of handshaking both in Europe and in China

66．According to the text. which of the following statements is true?

A．Westerners are more reserved than the Chinese.

B．Westerners are unwilling to shake hands.

C．We should make a judgement before shaking hands.

D．We shouldn’t shake hands with European women.

67．The main purpose of the text is ______.

A．to tell us some differences between the East and the West

B．to offer us some important facts about handshaking

C．to introduce us to some different customs in the West

D．to give us some advice before we travel abroad

As you know, Mark Twain was a famous American author and James Whistler was a famous American painter. Twain liked Whistler’s works very much, and there’s a story about the day he visited Whistler in his studio. Whistler was a rather serious person, but Twain enjoyed a joke.

Twain walked round the studio looking at Whistler’s wonderful paintings.

“I like this picture of the sea, ”Twain said.

“Yes, I painted it some time ago. It’s called Angry Sea. ”

“The colours are beautiful, ” Twain said. Then he pointed at another picture. “I like the way the woman is standing in the picture. I like the way she’s looking out of the window. Yes. This picture is quite wonderful. ”

“Thank you, ”Whistler said.

“What are you painting at the moment? ” Twain asked.

“This, ”Whistler said and he showed Twain an unfinished picture. “This is going to be the best picture I have ever painted. ”

“Yes, it is. ”Twain said. “It’s so beautiful. I must touch it. ”

Twain put out his hand to touch the picture and Whistler got very angry.

“Don’t touch it, ”he cried. “The paint isn’t dry yet. ”

“I know, ”Twain said, “but it’s quite all right. I’ve got my gloves on. ”

1. The subject talked about in this text is _______.

A. Mark Twain was a famous American author

B. James Whistler was a famous American painter

C. Mark Twain’s visit to James Whistler

D. where Mark Twain visited James Whistler

2. Angry Sea___________.

A. was a name of a sea

B. was a place of interest

C. was painted by Mark Twain

D. was a wonderful painting painted by James Whistler

3. Which of the statements is TRUE according to the text?

A. Mark Twain visited James Whistler at James’ studio.

B. Mark Twain was rather serious.

C. James Whistler was very happy when Twain touched the painting.

D. Mark Twain touched the painting with his bare hands.