Question

    In July, 2018, my mom asked me to accompany her to her 2019 school reunion in Malaysia. “I’d prefer to travel with you due to my bad eyes,” she said. “What do you think?” I was busy, but figured 2019 was ages away. “Sure!” I said, and forgot all about it.

Then, in June, my mom reminded me of my promise, but I’d totally forgotten about it by then. Did I have the time? Did I have the money? Did I have the will?

I’d walk into a fire for my mom, but we’re very different travelers. I usually travel alone with a backpack, whereas mom never travels alone, and takes so many carry-on bags that she looks like a Christmas tree. There was also the boredom. Mom’s childhood town is lovely, but we saw everything there years ago.

“Are you sure you need me to come with you?” I asked over the phone. Silence. Then Mom screamed at me not to worry about it and she wasn’t going any more. I screamed at her not to be silly; she screamed “Fine”; I screamed “Fine”. Then I felt bad and booked our flights and hotel immediately.

At first, it was fine. We drove past the apartment where she grew up, ate great food, then met her friends for yum cha (早茶). After a few days of this, however, I was bored. I’d grown tired of hearing the non-stop gossip about people I didn’t know. On the night of the reunion, I convinced mom to go by herself.

While she was out, I swam, caught up with work, and stared at the ceiling. When she came back, I was in a good mood. She was in an even better one, telling me about the reunion in ways that made me cry with laughter. All we’d needed was time apart.

The next day, as we shopped together, my mom laughed loudly as she pointed at a perfume (香水) bottle with the name “Si” on it – Si means faeces (粪便) in Cantonese. Mom put some of the perfume on, as we both cried with laughter.

She’ll never be the most well-matched person for me to travel with, but covered in Si, she reminded me that she’s definitely the funniest.

1.When the author’s mother first asked him to travel with her, he ______.

A.was so busy that he forgot to reply

B.agreed to the plan immediately

C.was worried that he wouldn’t have money

D.advised his mother not to go because of her bad eyes

2.During the first days of their journey, the author ______.

A.met his friends for yum cha happily

B.had several quarrels with his mother

C.was a good companion to his mother

D.regretted traveling together with his mother

3.What happened when the author and his mother separated for some time?

A.The author was happy but his mother was upset.

B.The author was bored but his mother enjoyed the reunion.

C.Both of them enjoyed the time apart.

D.They both decided to travel apart later on.

4.What is the key message the author intends to convey with this article?

A.It is boring to travel with parents.

B.It is important to make plans before traveling.

C.It is difficult to communicate with parents due to the generation gap.

D.It is possible to be happy with who you’re traveling with even if you’re different.

Answer

1.B

2.C

3.C

4.D

【解析】

本文是一篇记叙文，讲述了作者陪妈妈旅行的一次经历——他俩的旅行风格完全不同，结果却很开心。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段中的““Sure!” I said”可知，当作者的妈妈让他陪她去马来西亚参加她2019年的校友会时，作者马上就答应了，故B项正确。

2.细节理解题。根据第五段中的“At first, it was fine. We drove past the apartment where she grew up, ate great food, then met her friends for yum cha”可知，起初，一切都很好，作者和妈妈开车经过她长大的公寓，吃了很多美食，和她的朋友一起吃早茶，由此可知，在旅行之初，作者把妈妈陪得很好，故C项正确。

3.推理判断题。根据第五段中的“I convinced mom to go by herself.”可知，作者说服妈妈她俩单独行动，再根据第六段中的“When she came back, I was in a good mood. She was in an even better one”可知，当妈妈回来时，作者的心情很好，妈妈的心情则更好，由此可知，在分开的那段时间，他们俩都很开心（他们俩都很享受分开的时光），故C项正确。

4.推理判断题。根据文章内容，特别是根据最后一段“She’ll never be the most well-matched person for me to travel with, but covered in Si, she reminded me that she’s definitely the funniest.”可知，作者原先认为妈妈永远不会是适合和他一起旅行的人，但妈妈往身上抹Si牌香水那件事提醒作者她绝对是最搞笑的，由此可知，作者写这篇文章是想告诉我们：即使是两个旅行风格完全不同的人一起去旅行也可能会很开心，故D项正确。