For Canadians, backpacking Europe is a special ceremony signifying a new life stage. Unlike package tours, backpacking is a struggle, full of discovery and chance connections. It is about focusing on something different from our own lives and losing ourselves in a new world, if only for a moment.
Well, that's what backpacking Europe is supposed to do. That’s what it used to do before modern communications, social media, and commercial hostelling (旅社). Older Canadians would not recognize the Europe that they backpacked in the 1960s, 1970s and even the 1980s. Far from a rough adventure into foreign cultures, the European experience has been shattered in part by today's technology.
A few years ago, I took my then 60-year-old father on a backpacking trip across part of Europe and Turkey. As he is an experienced traveler and someone who possesses a strong sense of adventure, I decided that we'd travel on a budget, staying in hostel dorms. For him, backpacking through Europe in 1969 was about independence and struggle. But two things surprised him at the end of our journey. First was how technology-based backpacking had become: Young people were so directly connected to home that they were hardly away in any meaningful sense. Second, the lack of connections we made with locals. Instead of making us feel closer to a place, he found commercial hostelling actually made us more alienated (疏远的).
But there was some room for hope. While technology takes our attention away from the beauty and history before us, there were also ways in which it helped us to connect with our surroundings. Websites like Airbnb have made it easier to stay with enthusiastic locals. Couch Surfing helps organize meet-ups between locals and travelers. The online marketplace Dopios offers a chance to meet locals through enjoyable experiences like a personalized city tour.
Backpacking can never be the way it was for our parents’ generation. But doing a little study of history and culture before leaving, and bravely getting rid of any electronic devices while traveling, will help give young travelers a taste of the glory days.
1.The underlined word “shattered” in Paragraph 2 most probably means ________.
A. broadened B. relived C. ruined D. acquired
2.After the recent backpacking trip in Europe, the author’s father finds ________.
A. backpackers connect less with locals than before
B. young people dislike getting in touch with their family
C. a hostel is a nice place for travelers to meet each other
D. backpacking in Europe becomes more difficult than before
3.What’s the author’s attitude towards technology?
A. Negative. B. Objective. C. Uncertain. D. Uninterested.
4.The text mainly discusses the relationship between ________.
A. adventures and cultures B. technology and traveling
C. young people and their family D. Canadian travelers and Europeans
Visitor Oyster cards are electronic smartcards that come fully charged with credit. Whether you're making a one-off trip to London or you’re a regular visitor, using an Oyster travel smartcard is the easiest way to travel around the city's public transport network. Simply touch the card on the yellow card reader at the doors when you start and end your journey.
Advantages of a Visitor Oyster Card
A Visitor Oyster card is one of the cheapest ways to pay for single journeys on the bus, Tube, DLR, tram, London Over-ground and most National Rail services in London:
● Save time----your card is ready to use as soon as you arrive in London.
● It's more than 50% cheaper than buying a paper travel card or single tickets with cash.
● There is a daily price cap----once you have reached this limit, you won’t pay any more.
● Enjoy special offers and promotions at leading London restaurants, shops and entertainment venues----plus discounts on the Emirates Air Line cable car and Thames Clippers river buses.
Buy a Visitor Oyster card
Buy a Visitor Oyster card before you visit London and get it delivered to your home address. A card costs ￡3 (non-refundable) plus postage. Order online and arrive with your Oyster in hand! You can also buy a Visitor Oyster card from Gatwick Express ticket offices at Gatwick Airport Station and on board Eurostar trains travelling to London.
Add Credit to Your Visitor Oyster Card
You can choose how much credit to add to your card. If you are visiting London for two days, you can start with ￡20 credit. If you run out of credit, add credit at the following locations:
● Touch screen ticket machines in Tube, DLR, London Over-ground and some National Rail stations.
● Around 4,000 Oyster Ticket Stops found in newsagents and small shops across London.
● TFL Visitor and Travel Information Centers.
● Tube and London Over-ground station ticket offices.
● Emirates Air Line terminals.
1.When can you use your Visitor Oyster Card?
A. After you become a regular visitor.
B. Only when you end your journey.
C. Once you arrive in London.
D. Before you leave home.
2.What can we learn about the Visitor Oyster card?
A. It can reach you before your journey to London.
B. It requires you to pay as much as the daily price cap.
C. It can provide you a 50% discount at a London shop.
D. It can be delivered to your home address free of charge.
3.Where can you add credit to your Visitor Oyster card?
A. On the Internet. B. At a Tube station ticket office.
C. On Eurostar trains. D. At Gatwick Express ticket offices.
假设最近某校就同学们的习惯养成问题展开了讨论。请你根据下表所提示的信息，用英语写一篇题为A good habit, a successful life 的短文，发表在该校的网站上。
良好的学习习惯 | 1. 上课注意力集中 2. 充分利用课外时间 3. 按时完成作业… |
良好的生活习惯 | 1. 健康的饮食 2. 规律的运动 3. 充足的睡眠… |
养成良好的习惯的好处 | 好习惯对生活有积极地影响 2.… 3.… (请考生结合自身感受补充两点) |
注意：1. 开头已给出。
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
3. 词数100-120。
形成良好的习惯：develop good habits of…
利用：make use of
A Good Habit, a Successful Life
A habit is something that you do often or regularly almost without thinking, especially something that is hard to stop doing.
He was _______(禁止)from attending the meeting.
Rowing__________(recognise) as an Olympic Sport in 1908.
To be a _________(强大的)country, China has a long way to go.
