UNIT 8.

WONDERS OF THE WORLD

I. Choose A, B, C or D that best fits each blank in the following sentences
1. In these times of high unemployment everyone thought my giving up my job was _____ madness.
A. sheer B. steep C. high D. deep
2. With your qualifications, there will be no _____ of firms willing to employ you.
A. want B. inadequacy C. deficiency D. shortage
3. The project will be kept _____ until the new manager comes.
A. in order B. off and on C. on ice D. off the peck
4. It would set a bad _____ if we changed the rules just for one student.
A. precaution B. infringement C. precedent D. manifestation
5. To make a profit, we’ll have to add a few thousand new customers to our list, which is _____.
A. a piece of cake B. out of order C. out of our depth D. a tall order
6. Peace talks between the two countries _____, with neither side able to agree on terms.
A. collapsed B. collaborated C. collared D. compromise
7. The problem with losing weight is that, if you succeed, all your clothes need to be _____.
A. cut down B. taken in C. made down D. let down
8. Even though it had _____ a great deal of support, the political party suffered a resounding defeat.
A. flinched B. endowed C. downplayed D. rallied
9. Unconditional acceptance was the principle _____ his core philosophy.
A. snagging B. underpinning C. conspiring D. limping
10. As a _____, politicians and other public figures should avoid making direct statements that could be used against
them.
A. show of hands B. word of mouth C. rule of thumb D. change of heart
11. I’m sure there’s a definite _____ of envy in her nasty comments about you.
A. factor B. ingredient C. component D. element
12. In the _____ of just two days, her whole life changed.
A. interval B. space C. spell D. duration
13. The thieves took _____ when they heard a police car approaching.
A. retreat B. flight C. escape D. getaway
14. Afterwards, when I _____ on the events of that day, I could hardly believe what had happened.
A. contemplated B. reviewed C. reflected D. weighed
15. There was a huge _____ of applause when the star of the show appeared.
A. bout B. stint C. round D. spate
16. As he accepted the award, his voice _____ with emotion.
A. quivered B. flinched C. cringed D. winced
17. Rose has always had a _____ interest in matters to do with the environment.
A. fierce B. sharp C. grave D. keen
18. By the _____ of it, the economy will improve over the next few months.
A. face B. impression C. evidence D. look
19. Tim and Alan have never got on well and there is a lot of _____ feeling between them.
A. cross B. adverse C. ill D. vile
20. Peter has now arrived late for work three days in a _____.
A. line B. sequence C. series D. row
21. As we entered the farmyard we were met with a(n) _____ of animal sounds.
A. alacrity B. cacophony C. depravity D. intermingling
22. Only when she has realized that the only thing standing in her way is her _____ lifestyle can she make progress in
her career.
A. sycophant B. sybaritic C. unwieldy D. inbreeding
23. He is a(n) _____ young man who shows no respect for gods.
A. impious B. ludicrous C. precipitous D. capacious
24. Mark decided to follow in his father’s _____ and become a dentist.
A. advice B. way C. road D. footsteps
25. They’re having serious problems. Their relationship is on the _____.
A. cliffs B. rocks C. stones D. grass
26. In his _____ days, he was quite dandy.
A. salad B. green C. fruit D. vegetable
27. My manager is a typical working mother who has to deal with _____ activities every day.
A. miscellaneous B. multifarious C. many D. manifold
28. Naylor was one of those men who _____ to the challenge of danger.
A. raise B. rise C. ride D. arise
29. Like more and more women, she believes marriage would _____ her style.
A. restricts B. impedes C. obstructs D. cramps
30. He’s not nearly such a good writer as he’s _____ up to be.
A. creased B. cracked C. lined D. valued
II. Choose A, B, C or D that best fits each blank in the sentences
1. She had an unclear ________ of him in her mind, although she knew he would be old.
A. sight B. picture C. vision D. figure
2. Those without the major studios’ huge spending ________ are not convinced by the argument that marketing movies
can double their budget.
A. force B. strength C. weight D. power
3. The outcome was a ________ circle whereby women’s work, perceived as low status, was poorly rewarded and
therefore regarded as unimportant.
A. relentless B. vicious C. brutal D. merciless
4. The best travel books of this year fall into three main categories: _________ informational, narrative, and anecdotal.
A. truly B. fully C. literally D. purely
5. People are dying for _________ of medical treatment. = for a lack of
A. need B. absence C. want D. shortage
6. With just a little preparation and regular feeding and watering, you can guarantee that you have a ________ of colour
throughout the summer.
A. disturbance B. riot C. demonstration D. rally
7. Through a series of protestations and exclamations, coyness and giggling, I ________ that she was talking to her
boyfriend.
A. assembled B. amassed C. harvested D. gathered
8. Sheila often borrowed wellingtons from her sisters, even though they were about three ________ too big.
A. sizes B. figures C. pairs D. numbers
9. Use Cafélux Descaling Granules, available from your ________.
A. provider B. seller C. supplier D. contractor
10. My profession allows me to both satisfy my own curiosity about the world and also to _______ some measure of
international understanding.
A. prolong B. advertise C. promote D. elevate
11. I knew my mother would ________ a face the minute she saw my new haircut.
A. drag B. lift C. pull D. race
12. When she started borrowing my clothes without asking, I had to put my ________ down.
A. stamp B. show C. fish D. foot
13. If you are going to town, keep your eyes ________ for that book I was telling you about.
A. peeled B. clean C. wide D. fresh
14. He was a tall, intimidating person, with a firm tone of voice and a very short ________.
A. fuse B. line C. patience D. temperament
15. Peter was ________ of revealing the company’s future plans to the reporter.
A. circumspect B. wary C. prudent D. cautious
16. I’d just met his parents for the first time so I was on my best ________.
A. manners B. conduct C. behaviour D. demeanour
17. As his whole family were doctors, it was in his ________ to take up that profession.
A. blood B. spirit C. soul D. heart
18. She tried to ________ Tom’s importance to the company in order to gain a promotion for herself.
A. diminish B. swindle C. reduce D. shrink
19. I hate the way Tony ________ around looking so self – important.
A. struts B. scampers C. slithers D. slinks
20. Most frequently, the earthquake lasts 30 to 60 seconds, so usually there is no time to avert the mortal ________
once the shaking starts.
A. upkeep B. upturn C. upshot D. upswing
21. The Higg Boson become hot ________ talk following the release of a series of Hollywood movies based loosely
around the discovery of a so-called ―Good Particle‖.
A. common B. topic C. table D. subject
22. A few of older campers were sent home after a week as they were ________.
A. lenient B. unruly C. erratic D. indulgent
23. The barriers suddenly collapsed and the crowd of supporters ________ forward on to the pitch.
A. swirled B. gushed C. trickle D. surged
24. Archaeology is one is one of the most interesting scientific ________.
A. divisions B. disciplines C. matters D. compartments
25. The projects has progressed in ________ and starts due to a constant change in funding.
A. wits B. bits C. fits D. sits
26. It’s as if that silly argument we had has driven a ________ between us and we’ve lost all our old closeness.
A. ledge B. beam C. plank D. wedge
27. The country is an economic ________ with chronic unemployment and rampant crime.
A. lost cause B. false dawn C. dark horse D. basket case
28. I ________ and drew my foot out quickly. The bath water was so hot.
A. tingled B. ached C. writhed D. pained
29. We managed to ________ the last economical depression by cutting down our workforce.
A. mount B. override C. float D. weather
30. The renewed in Elizabethan times is evident in the ________ of new Hollywood films set during that period.
A. transience B. spate C. hypocrisy D. demise
31. We weren’t close friends but she ________ me well when I left college.
A. hoped B. boded C. wished D. bade
32. I don’t want to be too ________ on Alice, but I think I should tell her that her work isn’t good enough.
A. stringent B. stern C. strict D. hard
33. The management are making ________ to increase the company’s efficiency.
A. measures B. steps C. moves D. deeds
34. I was told yesterday that the car had been fixed but it’s broken down ________ again!
A. up B. still C. yet D. on
35. The anthology contains________ the work of modern poets, but it includes a few significant older works as well.
A. mostly B. most C. at most D. uppermost
36. Son: ―This herb smells horrible!
Mom: ―Be that as it may, it will do you a ________ of good.
A. power B. wealth C. strike D. visit
37. As a matter of ________, we have six security guards on the premises at all times.
A. wisdom B. prudence C. foresight D. acumen
38. It was such a sad movie that we were all reduced ________ tears.
A. for B. with C. into D. to
39. She marched into the shops, as bold as ________, and demanded for her money back.
A. bass B. grass C. brass D. glass
40. Jane is out in the garden mulling________ a problem to do ________work.
A. over/ with B. away/ without C. in/to D. into/for
41. He was absolutely _______ with anger when he found that I had scratched his car.
A. burned B. carmine C. fickle D. livid
42. I don’t think Paul will ever get married — he’s the stereotypical ________ bachelor.
A. settled B. confirmed C. fixed D. determined
43. I cannot think who had _______ the gaff, but it seems everyone knows that Nicole and I are planning to get married.
A. burst B. blown C. split D. banged
44. As we were in an urgent need of syringes and other medical equipment, the aid organization promised to deliver
them _______ the double. (at/on the double = very quickly, w/out delay)
A. at B. in C. with D. round
45. She was so ill that it was ________ whether she would live or not.
A. win or lose B. come and go C. touch and go D. on and off
46. ―Have you got a copy of Gone with the Wind?
―You’re ________ luck. We’ve just one copy left‖
A. by B. with C. in D. on
47. When I got stuck in the elevator, I was scared out of my ________.
A. brains B. head C. wits D. nerves
48. All traffic is being _________ because of the military parades.
A. diverted B. converted C. changed D. altered
49. As he was running for a charity which was ________ to his heart, he felt even more determined to complete the race.
A. warm B. near C. next D. close
50. On completing her fifth Atlantic race, she decided to ________ herself a new challenge.
A. set B. make C. fix D. accept
III. Fill in each blank with one of the provided words

1. The hotel we stayed at had a great range of amenities, and, as a result, we barely felt the need to venture out all
week.
2. When we arrived, we were informed that the hotel was full to capacity, and that our room was no longer available
due to an administrative error that had seen it double-booked.
3. A Sunday jaunt to the hills is all the holiday I need to feel refreshed and ready to face another week of work.
4. The government-sponsored junket was ostensibly a trade trip but in reality it was a holiday by any other name.
5. He purchased a traditional drum as a(n) keepsake to remember his trip by.
6. They strolled along the promenade hand-in-hand and watched the sun set over the still ocean.
7. Our Economics lecturer is on sabbatical for the next six months, which means we’ll have someone new teaching us
this semester. (Long paid leave, typically a year for every 7 years)
8. The band took a(n) hiatus for three months to have a much-needed break from one another.
9. He is staying at a(n) retreat up in the mountains for a few weeks; apparently isolating himself from the outside world
is just the form of recuperation he needs right now to help him recover from his breakdown.
10. We changed our itinerary somewhat from the original plan and decided to give ourselves some more
downtime to relax and do nothing; we realised you were right about our schedule being too hectic and unrealistic.
11. This year’s regatta is predicted to be the best-attended for many a year with a crowd of 10,000 expected to
turn out to see the boats off. (Sport boating event)
12. For me, holidays are a welcome diversion from the grim realities of working life.
IV. Give the correct forms of provided words to complete the passage
Holidays for all Workers
Millions of (1. free) freelance and short-term contract workers won the right to (2. pay) paid holidays yesterday in a (3.
ground) groundbreaking ruling from the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. The court’s (4. judge) judgement
will force the government to change laws that regulate how much holiday workers are (5. title) entitlements to.
The judges said the UK had (6. wrong) wrongly implemented an old EU directive when it gave a right to holidays only
after 13 weeks’ (7. continue) continuous employment with the same employer. The (8. restrict) restriction had
excluded millions of freelance and contract employees, including teachers, cleaners and media workers.
Stephen Cavalier, head of employment rights at the trade union law firm Thompsons, said the government should act
(9. prompt) promptly to change the law. As long as it remained (10. change) unchanged, workers who were denied
holidays could claim compensation from the government.

A Great Staycation
Holidays at home are usually a last (0. COURSE) recourse when all other options have been ruled out for one reason or
another, but, in these tough times when money is perhaps tighter than ever before, the grim (1. REAL) reality that the
stay-at-home vacation may be the only realistic (2. ALTER) alternative is one that more and more of us are faced with.
However, this does not have to mean a (3. MISERY) miserable time in the same old (4. ROUND) surroundings you are in
for the other 355-odd days of the year. For those willing to think outside the box a little, there are, in fact, a (5.
MULTIPLE) multitude of possibilities that should be explored.
Ever thought about a house swap, for example? The house swap is the ultimate holiday (6. RECEDE) recession buster.
And there are now websites on which (7. MIND) like-minded individuals, couples and families looking to get a flavour
of the life lived in someone else’s home can hook up and start house swapping.
Okay, so it’s not the two weeks in Gran Canaria you might have hoped for, but staying in someone else’s (8. RESIDE)
residence for a few days at least, whether it be ten, fifty or one hundred miles away, sure beats slouching around at
home on your own sofa.
The Canaries: Don’t let their reputation fool you
We often have a (0 TEND) tendency to buy into what everyone else thinks or the (1. STREAM) mainstream image of
things without ever directly experiencing them or finding out for ourselves. Indeed, my original (2. PERCEIVE)
perception of the archipelago of the Canary Islands is a perfect case in point. The media’s (3. PORTRAY) portrayal of
the islands as solely the domain of the party faithful is, as I found out on a recent visit there, plainly (4. ACCURATE)
inaccurate. Indeed, it is only foreigners who have this horribly (5. GUIDE) misguided perception and most locals
consider themselves especially fortunate to reside in their South Atlantic paradise.
And now that I have spent some proper time there, my opinion of the archipelago has definitely shifted (6.
APPRECIATE) appreciably such that it is now more or less in line with the locally held view. Take, for example, the
notoriously (7. ROW) rowdy island of Gran Canaria. While there are (8. DOUBT) undoubtedly some party hotspots along
the coast, move (9. LAND) inland but a few kilometres and you are rewarded with a virtually (10. TOUCH) untouched
paradise. And that is before an exploration of some of the archipelago’s other gems such as La Isla Bonita (La Palma),
has even commenced. Indeed, the islands are (11. COLLECT) collectively and without exception a nature lover’s
heaven.
V. Choose A, B, C or D that best fits each blank in the passage
THOMAS COOKER
Thomas Cook could be 0. ____ to have invented the global tourist industry. He was born in England in 1808 and became
a cabinetmaker. Then he 1. ____ on the idea of using the newly-invented railways for pleasure trips and by the summer
of 1845, he was organizing commercial trips. The first was to Liverpool and featured a 60-page handbook for the
journey, the 2. ____ of the modern holiday brochure.
The Paris Exhibition of 1855 3. ____ him to create his first great tour, taking in France, Belgium and Germany. This also
included a remarkable 4. ____ - Cook’s first cruise, an extraordinary journey along the Rhine. The expertise he had
gained from this 5. ____ him in good stead when it came to organizing a fantastic journey along the Nile in 1869. Few
civilians had so much as set foot in Egypt, let 6. ____ travelled along this waterway through history and the remains of a
vanished civilization 7. ____ back thousands of years.
Then, in 1872, Cook organized the first conducted world tour and the 8. ____ of travel has not been the same since.
0. A. regarded B. said C. presented D. proposed
1. A. dawned B. struck C. hit D. crossed
2. A. pioneer B. forerunner C. prior D. foretaste
3. A. livened B. initiated C. launched D. inspired
4. A. breakthrough B. leap C. step D. headway
5. A. kept B. took C. stood D. made
6. A. apart B. aside C. alone D. away
7. A. flowing B. going C. running D. passing
8. A. scene B. area C. land D. world

Recent archeological studies of the isolated region have (1) ___ astounding evidence of Mesolithic hunter-gatherers,
Neolithic farmers and even an aristocratic dynasty which populated the area during the late Bronze (2) ___. The few
centuries before the time of Christ saw the area at its most remarkable. Artefacts, relics and the remains of dwellings,
bear (3) ___ to its importance. An extraordinary sequence of buildings (4) ___ in the erection of a gigantic wooden
structure, at least 40 metres in diameter, which was probably used for ceremonial (5) ___ before it was eventually burnt
to the (6) ___ and subsequently covered over with turf to create the huge mound which is still visible today.
1. A. unburied B. uncovered C. unfolded D. unmasked
2. A. Years B. Period C. Era D. Age
3. A. testimony B. evidence C. witness D. proof
4. A. terminated B. culminated C. finalised D. ceased
5. A. aims B. intentions C. purposes D. targets
6. A. surface B. ground C. earth D. field

Franklin Delano Roosevelt loved to travel, but not by air. A gregarious man who (1) ___ the company of other people, he
preferred to go by rail or ship, savouring the (2) ___ and comfort that these familiar means of transport could provide a
President of the United States with. His physical (3) ___, moreover, made flying difficult; the aircraft of the thirties and
early forties were not (4) ___ to accommodate persons in wheelchairs. ‘I’m in no hurry,’ he once explained. ‘The sooner I
get where I’m going, the sooner people will be wanting something from me.’ So, while Roosevelt (5) ___ in the White
House longer than any President, he made only three trips by air during his entire time in office.
1. A. avoided B. relished C. loathed D. recognized
2. A. leisure B. hardships C. rush D. hassle
3. A. obstacle B. capacity C. hindrance D. handicap
4. A. designed B. done C. promoted D. thought
5. A. evacuated B. occupied C. resided D. prolonged

Visiting Antarctica
For those intrepid travellers who wish to explore every (0) ____ of the globe, Antarctica, which is still considered to be
off the beaten (1) ____ is likely to be high on the list of must-visit destinations. This vast white wilderness attracts
around 35,000 visitors per year, but the experience of (2) ____ at the diversity of wildlife and stunning scenery does not
(3) ____ cheap. A typical passenger on a specially adapted ship can expect to fork out at least £4,000, but if price is no
(4) ____ there are far more expensive alternatives.
Travel agents’ clients who prefer to (5) ____ into the more remote interior can stay in opulent camps that are (6) ____ at
the end of the season. The price tag for such a stay can reach £20,000. No matter what kind of visit is selected, the
Antarctic never fails to (7) ____ on its promise of the holiday of a lifetime on the most (8) ____ populated land mass on
the planet.
0. A. section B. corner C. boundary D. periphery
1. A. lane B. way C. path D. track
2. A. hailing B. marveling C. reveling D. appreciating
3. A. come B. find C. charge D. cost
4. A. reason B. factor C. object D. barrier
5. A. get through B. go by C. take off D. make over
6. A. uprooted B. debunked C. undone D. dismantled
7. A. deliver B. announce C. follow D. succeed
8. A. randomly B. sparsely C. thinly D. finely

APPALACHIA
Steep green wooded hills with alpine meadows (1) ____ to their sides stretched away for as far as the eye could see.
Before me a sinuous road led down to a valley of rolling farms (2) ____ out along a lazy river. It was as perfect a (3) ____
as I had ever seen. I drove through the soft light of dusk, (4) ____ by the beauty. This was the heart of Appalachia, the
most (5) ____ impoverished region of America, and it was just inexpressibly beautiful. It was strange that the urban
professionals of the eastern seaboard cities hadn’t (6) ____ an area of such arresting beauty, filling the dales with
rusticky weekend cottages, country clubs and fancy restaurants.
1. A. holding B clinging C. seizing D. embracing
2. A. spread B stacked C. stood D. sat
3. A. set B scenery C. setting D. scenario
4. A. digested B absorbed C. dissolved D. immersed
5. A. severely B strictly C. sharply D. harshly
6. A. possessed B encamped C. overtaken D. colonised
VI. Fill in each blank with a suitable word to complete the passage
The art of travel
Journeys are the midwives of thought. (1) Few places are more conducive (2) to internal conversations than a moving
plane, ship or train. (3) There is an almost quaint correlation between what is in front of our eyes and the thoughts that
we are able to have in our heads: large thoughts at (4) times requiring large views, new thoughts, new places.
Introspective reflections (5) which are liable to stall are helped along by the flow of the landscape. The mind may be
reluctant to think properly when thinking is all it is (6) supposed to do. The task can be as paralysing as having to tell a
joke or mimic an accent (7) on demand. Thinking improves when parts of the mind are given other tasks, (8) are
charged with listening to music, or following a line of trees.
Of (9) all modes of transport, the train is perhaps the best aid to thought: the views have none of the potential
monotony of (10) those on ship or plane, they move fast enough for us not to get exasperated but slowly enough to
identify objects. They offer us brief, inspiring glimpses into private domains, (11) letting us see a woman at the precise
moment when she takes a cup from a shelf in her kitchen, then carrying us on to a patio where a man is sleeping and
then to a park where a child is catching a ball (12) thrown by a figure we cannot see.

Should I stay or should I go?

Taking a holiday is no longer a (1) matter of just packing a sunhat and heading for the beach. From transport pollution
to the (2) impact on local communities, today’s tourist can no longer ignore a whole raft of ethical concerns that must
be considered before any booking is (3) made. And, of course, tourism does have its environmental cost; (4) by
definition tourism involves travel, and air travel is the most polluting form of transport most people will ever use. Long-
haul flights release tonnes of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere (5) for each passenger they carry.
But that’s not all. Patricia Barnett, director of the organisation Tourism Concern, (6) points out that in a world where
only 3.5 percent of people have travelled to (7) another country, there is something in the essence of tourism itself that
highlights inequality. Growing tourism to developing countries (8) means that the quarter of the world’s population
which lives in the north not only consumes 80 percent of the world’s resources, (9) but is now travelling to the south
and consuming the other 20 percent as well. So perhaps tourism is, (10) in itself, a display of conspicuous
consumption — (11) something which poor people can aspire to, but are unlikely to attain.

THE ISLAND WHERE DREAMS CAME TRUE

Ellis Island in New York -that extraordinary entrance to a new land and a new life which received, processed and
dispatched millions of arriving immigrants (1) between 1892 and 1924 - has been turned into a museum. (2)
Having lain derelict for years after its official closure, the island’s huge purpose-built reception centre has been
restored. It has (3) become a place of pilgrimage for the descendants of the desperate people who filed through its
cavernous main hall to answer questions and fill in the forms in whatever halting English (4) they possessed. To get to
Ellis Island, you take a ferry from the southernmost tip of Manhattan. (5) As you sail past the Statue of Liberty and pull
up to the dock outside the enormous entrance to that imposing reception building, it is impossible (6) not to reflect on
(7) how it must have looked to those hordes of people who clambered off the boats with their children clinging (8) to
them and their belongings packed into baskets and bags.
(9) It was only the poorest who had this experience. First and second-class passengers were (10) dealt with by a far
more civilized and expeditious system. (11) considering that it was just third class and steerage travellers who had to
(12) go through the Ellis Island application and sifting procedure, it is significant that 40 per cent of present-day
Americans are descended (13) from people who were processed there on arrival in the US.
VII. Read the text and complete the tasks below it
Choose the correct heading for sections A, B, and C
List of Headings
i. The expansion of international tourism in recent years
ii. How local communities can balance their own needs with the demands of wilderness tourism
iii. Fragile regions and the reasons for the expansion of tourism there
iv. Traditional methods of food-supply in fragile regions
v. Some of the disruptive effects of wilderness tourism
vi. The economic benefits of mass tourism
The Impact of Wilderness Tourism
A. iii
The market for tourism in remote areas is booming as never before. Countries all across the world are actively
promoting their wilderness’ regions – such as mountains, Arctic lands, deserts, small islands and wetlands – to high
spending tourists. Q4 The attraction of these areas is obvious: by definition, wilderness tourism requires little or no
initial investment. But that does not mean that there is no cost. As the 1992 United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development recognized, A these regions are fragile (i.e., highly vulnerable to abnormal pressures)
not just in terms of their ecology, but also in terms of the culture of their inhabitants. Q5 The three most significant
types of fragile environment in these respects, and also in terms of the proportion of the Earth’s surface they cover, are
deserts, mountains and Arctic areas. An important characteristic is their marked seasonality, with harsh conditions
prevailing for many months each year. Consequently, Q6 most human activities, including tourism, are limited to quite
clearly defined parts of the year. Tourists are drawn to these regions by their natural landscape beauty and the unique
cultures of their indigenous people. And poor governments in these isolated areas have welcomed the new breed of
adventure tourist’, grateful for the hard currency they bring. For several years now, tourism has been the prime source
of foreign exchange in Nepal and Bhutan. Tourism is also a key element in the economies of Arctic zones such as
Lapland and Alaska and in desert areas such as Ayers Rock in Australia and Arizona’s Monument Valley.
B. v
Once a location is established as a main tourist destination, B the effects on the local community are profound. When
hill-farmers, for example, can make more money in a few weeks working as porters for foreign trekkers than they can
in a year working in their fields, it is not surprising that many of them give up their farm-work, which is thus left to other
members of the family. Q7 In some hill-regions, this has led to a serious decline in farm output and a change in the
local diet, because there is insufficient labour to maintain terraces and irrigation systems and tend to crops. The result
has been that many people in these regions have turned to outside supplies of rice and other foods.
Q8 In Arctic and desert societies, year-round survival has traditionally depended on hunting animals and fish and
collecting fruit over a relatively short season. However, as some inhabitants become involved in tourism, they no
longer have time to collect wild food; this has led to increasing dependence on bought food and stores. Tourism is not
always the culprit behind such changes. All kinds of wage labour, or government handouts, tend to undermine
traditional survival systems. Whatever the cause, the dilemma is always the same: what happens if these new, external
sources of income dry up? The physical impact of visitors is another serious problem associated with the growth in
adventure tourism. Much attention has focused on erosion along major trails, but perhaps more important are the
deforestation and impacts on water supplies arising from the need to provide tourists with cooked food and hot
showers. In both mountains and deserts, slow-growing trees are often the main sources of fuel and water supplies
may be limited or vulnerable to degradation through heavy use.
C. ii
Stories about the problems of tourism have become legion in the last few years. Yet it does not have to be a problem.
Although tourism inevitably affects the region in which it takes place, the costs to these fragile environments and their
local cultures can be minimized. Indeed, it can even be a vehicle for reinvigorating local cultures, as has happened with
the Sherpas of Nepal’s Khumbu Valley and in some Alpine villages. And a growing number of adventure tourism
operators are trying to ensure that their activities benefit the local population and environment over the long term. In
the Swiss Alps, communities have decided that their future depends on integrating tourism more effectively with the
local economy. Local concern about the rising number of second home developments in the Swiss Pays d’Enhaut
resulted in limits being imposed on their growth. There has also been a renaissance in communal Q10 cheese
production in the area, providing the locals with a reliable source of income that does not depend on outside visitors.
Many of the Arctic tourist destinations have been exploited by outside companies, who employ transient workers and
repatriate most of the profits to their home base. But some Arctic communities are now operating Q11 tour businesses
themselves, thereby ensuring that the benefits accrue locally. For instance, a native corporation in Alaska, employing
local people, is running an air tour from Anchorage to Kotzebue, where tourists eat Arctic food, walk on the tundra and
watch local musicians and dancers. Native people in the desert regions of the American Southwest have followed
similar strategies, encouraging tourists to visit their pueblos and reservations to purchase high-quality handicrafts and
artwork. The Acoma and San Ildefonso pueblos have established highly profitable Q12 pottery businesses, while the
Navajo and Hopi groups have been similarly successful with Q13 jewellery. Too many people living in fragile
environments have lost control over their economies, their culture and their environment when tourism has penetrated
their homelands. Merely restricting tourism cannot be the solution to the imbalance, because people’s desire to see
new places will not just disappear. C Instead, communities in fragile environments must achieve greater control over
tourism ventures in their regions; in order to balance their needs and aspirations with the demands of tourism. A
growing number of communities are demonstrating that, with firm communal decision-making, this is possible. The
critical question now is whether this can become the norm, rather than the exception.

YES/ NO/ NOT GIVEN

4. The low financial cost of setting up wilderness tourism makes it attractive to many countries. Y
5. Deserts, mountains and Arctic regions are examples of environments that are both ecologically and culturally fragile.
Y
6. Wilderness tourism operates throughout the year in fragile areas. N
7. The spread of tourism in certain hill-regions has resulted in a fall in the amount of food produced locally. Y
8. Traditional food-gathering in desert societies was distributed evenly over the year. N
9. Government handouts do more damage than tourism does to traditional patterns of food-gathering. NG

Choose ONE WORD from the Reading Passage for each answer.
The positive ways in which some local communities have responded to tourism
People/Location Activity
Swiss Pays d’Enhaut Revived production of 10 cheese
Arctic communities Operate 11 tour businesses
Acoma and San Ildefonso Produce and sell 12. pottery
Navajo and Hopi Activity
Produce and sell 13. jewellery
VIII. You are going to read an extract from a newspaper article about coral reefs. Six paragraphs have been removed
from the extract. Choose from the paragraphs A-G the one which fits each gap. Reef Encounter
Tropical fish look very colourful to our eyes, but is that how they look to each other? Our reporter Penny Gosh met the
man who may have the answer.
If you’re snorkeling around a coral reef, you’ll see the local marine life in all its carnival colours. But the show clearly
isn’t just a tourist attraction. For the fish that live on the reef, it’s more a matter of life and death. As with any other
creature, the survival of a fish species depends on two things - food supplies and breeding success.
(1) D The trouble is that eating and not being eaten both need stealth. Therefore, it is helpful for a fish to
blend into the background. To attract a mate, on the other hand, requires a certain flamboyance.
Seeing a coral reef in all its glory, you can’t help feeling that fish have completely failed to solve this dilemma. The
picture, however, only comes into focus when you take the fish’s-eye view. For fish, according to Justin Marshall from
the Vision, Touch and Hearing Research Centre at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, see things differently.
(2) B This is because our visual system is a primate one, he says. It’s very good at seeing yellows and reds
versus greens. However, 30 metres below sea level there is no red light. So fish tend to see blues and
ultraviolets well - and to be less sensitive to reds and yellows.
This means that the carnival looks quite different to the marine life itself. To help him discover exactly how different it
looks, Marshall has designed a unique underwater spectrophotometer’, which analyses the colours of things
objectively in terms of their physical reflection. He is also measuring the light available in different micro-habitats.
(3) A Together with information about the visual sensitivity of individual fish species and their behaviour, this
equipment enables him to begin seeing things as fish do. And it is starting to reveal how the showy and
the shy can make use of the same bright colours.
The general shift towards the blue end of the spectrum in underwater light explains why most nocturnal reef fish, such
as the soldierfish, squirrelfish and big-eyes, are mainly red in colour. According to Marshall, some reef fish might see
red, in which case they could capitalise on the colour blindness of others and use red markings for private
communication. But in most cases, red species are surprisingly inconspicuous.
(4) F During the day, such fish hide in reef crevices. Once there, they may look obvious to human eyes, but to
other fish, they blend into the dark background.
As any snorkeler will know, lots of reef fish display the sort of colour combinations that suggest camouflage is the last
thing on the fish’s mind. The bright blues and yellows that are most common, however, are only conspicuous at a
certain range. They fade to grey at a distance, because the colours are so close together that they merge.
(5) G Even in fish which sport fine stripes, such as parrotfish and wrasse, the different shades are distinct for
only one metre and certainly no more than five. Beyond this, they too blend into the general sea colour
around the reef.
Wider colour bands will be visible much farther away, of course, but still the fish’s-eye view is different from ours. Most
recently, Marshall has discovered that fish may see hardly any contrast between the blue of many species, such as
tropical angelfish, and the colour of the water around a tranquil reef. More surprisingly, says Marshall, a fish with blue
and yellow stripes can be just as well camouflaged, as even this distinct pattern will merge into some backgrounds.
When the fish are all together in a shoal, it’s hard for a predator to spot where one individual starts and another ends.
It’s what Marshall calls ‘the zebra effect’. If Marshall is correct, then a fish with bold blue and yellow markings can
either advertise or hide itself by simply adjusting its behaviour.
(6) C The striking bands of colour seem to shout ‘come and get me’ to a potential mate when displayed
against a plain background or close up. But put them up against a background of solid contrasting
colours and they work on the same principle as the disruptive camouflage used for concealment of
military equipment.
In other words, one set of colours can send out very different signals depending on the setting. To complicate things
further, most reef fish can vary their colours, whilst it is common for species to change colour from night to day or as
they grow older. Colours may even change with a fish’s mood - whether it’s fighting or fleeing from predators.
IX. You are going to read a magazine article about white-water rafting. Seven paragraphs have been removed from
the extract. Choose from the paragraphs A-H the one which fits each gap. There is one extra paragraph which you do
not need to use.
A Wet and Wonderful Ride
Cameron Wilson is swept away by the thrill of Tasmania’s formidable Franklin River
Tasmania’s Franklin River is a renowned rafting destination, both for the beauty and remoteness of the country through
which it flows and for the challenge it presents the rafter, I’d been told by one of the guides on my trip that ‘portage’ is
an indispensable word in the river rafter’s lexicon. It derives from the French where it means physically carrying boats
between two navigable stretches of a river’.
(1) B
Such is the challenge of expedition rafting and the truth is, I was loving every minute of it. I glanced over at Brendan, at
twenty-one the younger of our two river guides, and his grin confirmed that he too was having a ball, despite appearing
in imminent danger of being swept off his feet and into the torrent. ‘Mate,’ he yelled over the roar of the rapids, ‘like I
keep telling them... this is not a holiday!’
(2) G
A measure of respect, therefore, seemed in order, as I psyched myself up for rafting through the heart of the wilderness
that had been so hard fought for. I was one of a group of ten - eight clients plus two guides - mustered over an early
breakfast in Collingwood Bridge, two and a half hours north-west of the Tasmanian capital, Hobart.
(3) E
A light drizzle was beginning to close in as we donned helmets and life-jackets, and pushed off into the gentle currents
of a calm tributary. It was plain sailing so far, but I knew these tranquil waters would carry us on down to the raging
Franklin. The afternoon was spent becoming acquainted with our raft buddies, or with pressing Shaun and Brendan for
stories about Franklin expeditions from days gone by.
(4) D
Thanks to the light but steady rain, however, the river level turned out to be high enough for us to glide over small
rocks, and portage comfortably around the bigger ones, on the way to our first campsite. Conditions there turned out to
be typical of those for the entire trip; the ravine drops steeply to the river and there is not much level ground, so rock
overhangs make handy shelters.
(5) H
The summit is more than half a vertical mile above the Franklin. It’s the perfect spot from which to take in the unspoilt
beauty of the country we’d been travelling through, its mountains, forests, high-country lakes and tarns.
(6) F
Ironically enough, it was not until we struck one of the less celebrated stretches of white water that our only real rafting
drama occurred. Shaun and his crew had wrapped their raft around a boulder and there it stayed for twenty minutes,
held in place by the fast-flowing white water.
(7) A
As the river widened, such white-knuckle experiences became fewer and further between, and as we eased into a
leisurely paddling rhythm, twice I caught sight of platypus crossing the river. The silences grew longer and more
comfortable, and as we slipped along under a blue sky the quiet was broken now and then by Shaun enquiring: How’s
the serenity?’ On each occasion it was well above par.
A. Having hung gamely on for a minute or two, Simon, a tax auditor from Brisbane, was finally dragged away for a
bumpy solo ride to the bottom of the cascades. He came up bruised but smiling. I think it summed up how we were all
feeling about the trip at that point.
B. I had reason to reflect upon this information as I scrambled about on a slippery rock, trying to carry a heavy
rubber raft between two boulders. The gap was too narrow and I was under constant assault from thousands of litres
of white water. However expressed, this was a skill you couldn’t do without if you were going to raft down the Franklin.
C. It just went to prove how right our guide had been. A Franklin expedition is not a joy ride. It is, however, an
opportunity to experience life on a river that, thanks to those who campaigned to save it, survives as one of the world’s
great wilderness journeys.
D. Some of the stretches we’d be doing could be rafted straight through apparently, with the boulders under two
metres of water. At other times the river gets so low we’d have to do a high portage - unload the gear, deflate and carry
the lot through the forest. But you never knew because the river presents a new challenge each and every time.
E. The moment arrived to pack our gear and supplies into barrels and dry bags and lash these to aluminum
frames, which were then secured in the two rafts. Our trip leader, Shaun, briefed us on how to handle a difficult portage
or riding a rugged set of rapids, and talked us through ways of getting back into a raft from which you’ve just tumbled.
F. The next few days saw both raft crews functioning superbly as we traversed the next section of river,
responding as one to commands, as we bounced off logs and boulders through rapids. These were evocatively
referred to by names such as ‘The Cauldron’, ‘Nasty Notch’ and ‘Thunderush’.
G. There was no doubting the truth of this assertion. I’d chosen this trip for a number of reasons, not least the
fact that the Franklin is famous for the events of 1983. That’s when thousands of people took to the streets or chained
themselves to bulldozers to save it from being dammed and flooded, in what remains one of the largest environmental
campaigns in Australia’s history.
H. Roused by Brendan, we’d be coaxed from our cocoons each day with the aroma of fresh coffee. On the day of
our third such awakening, the sky had cleared beautifully, which meant fleece jackets and waterproofs could give way
to dark glasses and sunscreen. The conditions were ideal for the long day’s hike to Frenchman’s Cap.
X. You are going to read an article about travel and people’s perceptions and attitudes towards it. Choose from the
sections (A-D). The sections may be chosen more than once.
Which person expresses each of these opinions about travel?
1. Travel undertaken through necessity is never pleasurable. A
2. Staying with friends is preferable to hotel accommodation. A
3. Extensive travel takes its toll on the body. A
4. Holidays are pointless if you can’t recharge your batteries. C
5. Travel is a truly educational exploit. B
6. The logistics of travel are rarely enjoyable. D
7. Travel makes us appreciate our lot. D
8. It must provide respite from the daily grind. C
9. It is a means to encounter unusual minority groups. B
10. Not showing an interest in other cultures is frowned upon. C
A. Samuel
It’s a common misconception that those of us who have jobs which involve clocking up air miles are the lucky ones.
There is nothing worse than spending countless nights in a string of faceless hotels, because no matter what the
standard is, they are still totally devoid of that Q2 essential element of homeliness which is present in your own
environment or even when being put up by friends. The night-time accommodation is Q1 only one of the aspects of
imposed travel that I abhor. I always travel Business or First, the intention being that I lose no unnecessary time
catching up on sleep and the dramatic shifts from day to night have minimal impact on my sleep patterns. But no level
of comfort can compensate for regular sleep! Q3 There is no way round the fact that if on a weekly basis you change
time zone four times, - and we’re not talking just a couple of hours’ time difference - you are going to feel and see the
side effects. Bloating, bad skin, hormonal imbalances, not to mention fatigue. Added to that, the disagreeable reality
that office work left behind has to be dealt with on my return. No, when my holiday comes round, the prospect of an
exotic destination holds zero appeal. I’d rather cycle round the park.
B. Phoebe
I’m definitely a traveller, not a tourist. My ultimate aim when seeking new travel experiences is to expand my
understanding of different cultures. To that end, hotels are out for me. I don’t care much for them anyway and on the
kind of budgets that I move around on, they are not really accessible. I tend to find accommodation with local families;
that way I get a better understanding of the real people, their habits, customs and the accepted forms of behaviour for
me and them. It also allows exposure to language in a different way. I might hear unrestricted slang used in a real
context. You’d never find that in a language learning book. Language and culture are my passion and the more I travel,
the more I see connections. It’s true we are all somehow connected. I would never have realised half of these things
from reading books. Q9 I’ve worked with small indigenous communities on four continents and in ten different
countries. Every single experience has been unique, precious and taught me something new about myself. Q5 It’s a
cliche, but travel really does broaden the mind.
C. Myriam
Destination is of tittle importance, what matters to me is the setting when I reach it. Coastal, hot, clean, luxurious, those
are the boxes that must be ticked. Aside from that, it really is irrelevant. My requirements are a holiday involving
relaxation, comfort and security. I go away up to three times a year but always on all-inclusive deals which offer good
value for money. Q10 The prospect of leaving the resort or complex holds no appeal for me. Do I sound ignorant,
uncultured, chauvinistic even? Not at all, I’m a working mum! Q8 My everyday life is a hellfire of fatigue and a relentless
treadmill of activities. When I get my time off, all I want to do is put my feet up and enjoy the cocktails, no visiting,
cooking, cleaning, worrying. The kids love the kids’ clubs and I love the sun. When I come to the end of my holidays, I
feel rested and ready to go again. I have friends who holiday independently with their offspring, only to come back and
need a week’s recovery period. Q4 What’s the point of that? Holidays are for unwinding. Try out my tried-and-tested
formula before you criticise.
D. Marvin
Honesty seems to have come with age. Were I absolutely truthful with myself, then I would admit that any holiday or
trip is always greatly improved by hindsight. When I look back at photos or read my travel diary or discuss experiences
with old travelling companions, I realise that the memories are better than the actual reality. Q6 Travelling is tiresome.
Flying is exhausting. Constantly making whimsical decisions on what to visit, where to eat, how to choose is irritating
because you feel a constant pressure: Is this the right thing to do? Are we missing something? Are we being swindled
or taken for a ride? All these insecurities of the traveller are swept away when we think back, but when we’re living
them, we ask ourselves why we took steps to immerse ourselves in an alien culture, with an alien language and
peculiar customs. Perhaps it’s because we want to force ourselves to battle with new experiences and manage, or
maybe it simply Q7 serves as a point of reference from which we can safely conclude that home is best and we are
truly lucky. Travel is an essential part of life, if only to see what we are not missing.
XI. You are going to read an article about an annual flower show. Choose from the sections (A-E). The sections may
be chosen more than once.
In which section are the following mentioned?
1. garden features whose popularity has not diminished E
2. an activity that did not immediately capture the public's imagination D
3. the apparent absence of new experiences for visitors B
4. an eagerness to proceed which paid off C
5. an aim to spur on the ordinary gardener E
6. the timing of an event to coincide with a busy spell for leisure-time horticulturalists A
7. a period when cost cutting did not lead to a reduction in quality D
8. a concern that proved to be unfounded B
9. times at which the show is not open to the general public C
10. lively floral compositions designed by top horticulturalists A
 THE CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW
A. The world-famous Chelsea Flower Show, organised by the Royal Horticultural Society, is not just an event for
gardening enthusiasts, it is an integral part of London's annual social scene, where flamboyant garden designers rub
shoulders with royalty and celebrity spotting is very much part of the entertainment. Held every May in the grounds of
the Royal Hospital Chelsea, the show is a grand celebration of all things horticultural, Q10 featuring a series of
ambitious show gardens, inspirational small gardens and vibrant horticultural displays created by a stellar line up of
renowned gardeners. The show itself dates back over 150 years to 1862, when the Great Spring Show, as it was
originally known, was first held in gardens in Kensington. Q6 The date of the show was chosen so that it would take
place during the peak period for amateur gardening, and it flourished, with nurseries exhibiting plants from their stock.
The show soon became an annual event and was relocated to the larger Temple Gardens on the Embankment.
B. In 1912, the show was cancelled to make way for the Royal International Horticultural Exhibition, which the
RHS was instrumental in organising. Council member Harry Veitch arranged for the exhibition to be staged in the Royal
Hospital Grounds. Initially, it was thought that the sizeable grounds, which were twice as big as those at the Temple,
would be Q8 too far off the beaten track to attract visitors. However, the exhibition exceeded all expectations and the
following year the annual Chelsea Flower Show was established on the same site. The first show in 1913 was much
smaller than today's event and Q3 although it was claimed that there was a lack of novelty, it soon became a talked
about event. In September of that year, a play called Sealed Orders opened in London's Drury Lane, with scenes set at
the Chelsea Flower Show.
C. Throughout the decades the show has become a regular fixture in the royal calendar and today, in her role as
patron of the Royal Horticultural Society, the Queen regularly attends the opening of the show, which begins with Press
Day on the Monday followed by two private views for RHS members. However, Q9 over the last century the show has
had to survive periods of adversity which ultimately led to its cancellation in 1917,1918 and the six successive years
prior to 1947. In that year the majority of exhibitors expressed their preference for a postponement since stocks of
plants were low, staff numbers depleted and special permits were required for greenhouse fuel, but Lord Aberconway
(then RHS president) together with the RHS and its council Q4 were keen to resume the show as quickly as possible.
Their enthusiasm was rewarded as the show was considered a great success.
D. Another challenge for the show's organisers has been the constant changes in horticultural fashion. In 1925
the show was extended to five days. This meant that nearly all the plants on display were growing rather than cut
flowers, which were previously the norm. The following year there was a additional tent for pictures of flowers and
gardens. During the 1930s, Q2 Constance Spry introduced the art of flower I arranging, but this did not really catch on
until the end of the following decade, when flower gardening came to the fore. In the 1950s, Q7 emphasis was on easy
and cheap gardens without lowering horticultural standards. Chelsea's famous show gardens have also mirrored the
changing enthusiasms of garden designers - from the Japanese and topiary gardens of the early days (Japanese
bonsai trees first appeared in 1913), through the rock garden craze of the 1940s and the paved back yards and cottage
gardens of the 1980s, to the contemporary sculptural gardens of the present day.
E. Since the 1970s, high-profile companies, newspapers such as the Times and the Telegraph as well as charities
like Age UK and Teenage Cancer Trust have started sponsoring show gardens. Different categories have also been
introduced, including Urban and Fresh Gardens. Q1 At the heart of Chelsea is the exhibition of plants staged by
nurserymen and women, professionals and amateurs. For the 100th anniversary of the show, five-time gold medal
winner Christopher Bradley-Hole created a garden inspired by the English landscape and the Japanese approach to
garden making. One the other hand, Roger Platts looked back over the previous 100 years, focusing on classics that
have stood the test of time such as shrub roses and hardy perennials. While the garden designs and the plants used to
create them may have changed, Q5 visitors have always been encouraged to go away feeling they could do something
similar. Spread over 11 acres, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show is now where trends start, new styles of design are
exhibited and where new plants and garden products are launched.
XII. Answer by choosing from the sections of the article (A-G) for each piece of information. Some of the choices
may be required more than once.
In which section or sections are the following mentioned?
1. the established route up the mountain being crowded D
2. the primary concern being to complete the climb without injury A
3. cautionary advice being given about particular dangers G
4. the uplifting nature of the place E
5. the climbers being unable to find their way at the base of the mountain C
6. the writer joining a colleague’s group of climbers D
7. a particular mountaineering technique being pioneered on a new route B
8. reaching the summit more quickly than anticipated E
9 + 10. a sudden decision to take a different route C+D
11. the irrational behaviour of the writer’s colleague A
12. the ill effects of climbing at height being greater in that particular area B
13. the complete silence of the area E
14. the mistaken assumption that they had reached the top F
15. the writer beginning to consider climbing all seven mountains D
16. the journey to the region having a dual-purpose G
17. the disappointment felt at being unable to see the view from the mountain top E
18. an attempt to make a charge for entering the area F
Seven Up
Mountaineer Doug Scott shares with his readers the mystical experience of conquering the highest peak on each
continent: the Seven Summits.
My quest to climb the Seven Summits came late in life. I will take them in the order of my climbing them.
A. Mt. Everest, Asia (8,848m)
We were in a snow cave 91m below the summit when my climbing partner, Q11 Dougal Haston, began a conversation
with Dave Clark, our Equipment Officer, about the relative merits of various sleeping bags. I thought this was strange,
as only Dougal and I were present. Putting this down to oxygen deprivation, I then found myself talking to my feet.
Already the cold was getting into the balls of my feet and I recalled other climbers who had lost fingers and toes from
frostbite.
Q2 It wasn’t survival that was worrying us so much as the quality of our survival.
Over the next two days I relived our time spent on the summit ridge. I realised that I couldn’t have been there with a
better man than Dougal Haston. He inspired great confidence in me and by now I was climbing with a calm
presentiment that somehow or other it was all going to work out. I realised I had to get a better rhythm going in order
to reach the summit - which is what I did.
B. Mt. McKinley, North America (6,194m)
This mountain is regarded as the most treacherous in the world. In April 1976 Dougal and I arrived at the Kahiltna
Glacier and spent four days humping equipment and food up to the base. Only after the first day of climbing did we
realise the enormity of our undertaking. On the lower face we followed a route put up in 1967, but at half height we
pursued a new route, as planned, heading directly for the upper snow basin and the summit. Q7 We decided to climb
‘alpine style’, with our equipment and food on our backs. It would be the first time a major new route had been climbed
here in such a way.
We climbed up the compressed snow of an avalanche scar to camp under a rocky cliff and by the third day my
sleeping bag was sodden. We spent the third night on a windswept ridge; by now we were both suffering. Q12 Mt.
McKinley, because the air pressure in the polar regions is lower, has an impact on the body out of all proportion to its
altitude. It seemed to us that we were up at around 7,000m, instead of 6,100m. We packed our bags and finally
staggered onto the summit and down the other side, triumphant.
C. Kilimanjaro, Africa (5,895m)
In September 1976, Paul Braithwaite and I flew to Nairobi with the intention of climbing Mt. Kenya. It was through the
unexpected offer of a free ride to the Tanzanian side of Kilimanjaro that we came to climb Africa’s highest mountain.
Q5 On our approach we got ourselves lost in the dense jungles of the lower slopes. Our situation became serious
because water is scarce. On the second day we came across luminous arrows painted on trees and a trail of rubbish
which brought us to a rock pool. Never before had I been so pleased to find rubbish on a mountain.
We attempted a direct start to the breach wall, which is a 305m-high icicle. Q9 After a deluge of falling rock and ice we
prudently retired and opted instead for the Umbwe route to gain the surrealistic summit.
D. Aconcagua, South America (6,960m)
The original and now standard route up Aconcagua is little more than a walk. In January 1992, I arrived with my wife,
Sharu, at Punta del Inca and was pleasantly surprised to meet fellow mountaineer and guide, Phil Erscheler. Q6 He was
taking a party up the mountain via the Polish Glacier, away from the busy standard route, and suggested that we go
with them.
After three days of sitting out bad weather, we left base camp. The Polish Glacier stretching up to the summit had been
swept by vicious winds and glistened with pure ice. With a time limit to get back to Buenos Aires for our flight, we
decided to miss out on the glacier. Q10 Instead we went across the north ridges towards the standard route and Q1
joined the large number of people wandering along the path. The wind was strong as we walked the last few metres to
the summit and just before it got dark we camped outside the refuge.
Back at base camp we met eight members of the Jakarta Mountaineering Club. Q15 They were planning to climb the
Seven Summits and felt, when they learnt that I had already climbed four, that I should do the same. This was the first
time I had seriously thought about such goal- orientation - something I had previously tried to avoid.
E. Vinson Massif, Antarctica (4,897m)
When I learnt that climbing Vinson Massif was just a matter of guiding enough people in order to finance the cost of
getting there, attempting all of the Seven Summits became a reality. Our team left Britain towards the end of November
1992 and travelled the thousands of kilometres to the South Pole. At this time of the year the sun is always well above
the horizon, throughout the day and night’, Q13 and when the wind stops blowing it is utterly quiet. As in other polar
regions, in the keen, clean air, Q4 there is such an invigorating atmosphere that the spirits are raised just by being
there. On December 7 we left camp and headed off towards the summit. Q8 Against expectations, with winds gusting
at around 80 kms per hour and temperatures below minus 50°C, we all got to the top within 8 hours. Q17 Our elation
was somewhat tempered by visibility being down to just a few metres in the storm.
F. Elbrus, Europe (5,633m)
Our team assembled in St Petersburg during the early summer of 1994. On our arrival at the settlement of Terskol,
beneath Elbrus, Q18 a commission was demanded from our guide for bringing foreigners into the valley, though this
was later waived.
After a few days’ acclimatising, the group set off up Elbrus by cableway to 3,900m. From there we walked to the refuge
at 4,200m. Two days later, the wind buffeted us as we crossed open slopes, some of them glassy ice. Q14 By mid-
afternoon we reached what we thought was the summit. But we found there was another kilometre-long ridge to the
actual summit. As night fell, we returned to the refuge and the next day descended this, fortunately extinct, volcano.
G. Carstensz Pyramid, Australasia (4,883m)
On our expedition to Carstensz Q16 we hoped not only to establish a new route but to spend as much time as possible
with the aboriginal Dani people. The largest gold mine in the world is cutting into the mountain, regarded as sacred by
the local tribespeople.
Q3 We had been warned that we might be taken hostage or even killed by bandits but, undeterred, we left our hut by
midmorning and walked down winding lanes towards the jungle. On May 12 we started climbing. The weather
improved and two of the team hared ahead. We were slower, since Sharu was filming. Climbing in rock shoes, we
reached the summit by 11 am. I was given a standing ovation on this, my seventh summit. Mission accomplished!
XIII. Read the text and complete the tasks below it
Case Study: Tourism New Zealand website
New Zealand is a small country of four million inhabitants, a long-haul flight from all the major tourist-generating
markets of the world. Tourism currently makes up 9% of the country’s gross domestic product, and is the country’s
largest export sector. Unlike other export sectors, which make products and then sell them overseas, tourism brings its
customers to New Zealand. The product is the country itself - the people, the places and the experiences. In 1999,
Tourism New Zealand launched a campaign to communicate a new brand position to the world. The campaign
focused on New Zealand’s scenic beauty, exhilarating outdoor activities and authentic Maori culture, and it made New
Zealand one of the strongest national brands in the world.
A key feature of the campaign was the website www.newzealand.com, which provided potential visitors to New
Zealand with a single gateway to everything the destination had to offer. The heart of the website was a database of
tourism services operators, both those based in New Zealand and those based abroad which offered tourism services
to the country. Q8 Any tourism-related business could be listed by filling in a simple form. This meant that even the
smallest bed and breakfast address or specialist activity provider could gain a web presence with access to an
audience of long-haul visitors. In addition, because participating businesses were able to Q1 update the details they
gave on a regular basis, the information provided remained accurate. And to maintain and improve standards, Tourism
New Zealand organised a scheme whereby organisations appearing on the website underwent an independent
evaluation against a set of agreed national standards of quality. As part of this, the effect of each business on the Q2
environment was considered.
To communicate the New Zealand experience, the site also carried features relating to famous people and places. One
of the most popular was an interview with former New Zealand All Blacks rugby Q3 captain Tana Umaga. Another
feature that attracted a lot of attention was an interactive journey through a number of the locations chosen for
blockbuster Q4 films which had made use of New Zealand’s stunning scenery as a backdrop. As the site developed,
additional features were added to help independent travellers devise their own customised itineraries. To make it
easier to plan motoring holidays, the site catalogued the most popular driving routes in the country, highlighting
different routes according to the Q5 season and indicating distances and times.
Later, a Travel Planner feature was added, which allowed visitors to click and bookmark places or attractions they were
interested in, and then view the results on a map. The Travel Planner offered suggested routes and public transport
options between the chosen locations. There were also links to Q6 accommodation in the area. By registering with the
website, users could save their Travel Plan and return to it later, or print it out to take on the visit. The website also had
a `Your Words` section where anyone could submit a Q7 blog of their New Zealand travels for possible inclusion on the
website.
The Tourism New Zealand website won two Webby awards for online achievement and innovation. More importantly
perhaps, the growth of tourism to New Zealand was impressive. Overall tourism expenditure increased by an average
of 6.9% per year between 1999 and 2004. From Britain, visits to New Zealand grew at an average annual rate of 13%
between 2002 and 2006, compared to a rate of 4% overall for British visits abroad.
The website was set up to allow both individuals and travel organisations to create itineraries and travel packages to
suit their own needs and interests. On the website, visitors can search for activities not solely by geographical location,
but also by the particular nature of the activity. This is important as research shows that activities are the key driver of
visitor satisfaction, contributing 74% to visitor satisfaction, while Q10 transport and accommodation account for the
remaining 26%. The more activities that visitors undertake, the more satisfied they will be. It has also been found that
Q11 visitors enjoy cultural activities most when they are interactive, such as visiting a marae (meeting ground) to learn
about traditional Maori life. Many long-haul travellers enjoy such learning experiences, which provide them with stories
to take home to their friends and family. In addition, it appears that visitors to New Zealand don’t want to be ‘one of the
crowd’ and find activities that involve only a few people more special and meaningful.
It could be argued that New Zealand is not a typical destination. New Zealand is a small country with a visitor economy
composed mainly of small businesses. It is generally perceived as a safe English-speaking country with a reliable
transport infrastructure. Because of the long-haul flight, most visitors stay for longer (average 20 days) and want to
see as much of the country as possible on Q13 what is often seen as a once-in-a-lifetime visit. However, the underlying
lessons apply anywhere - the effectiveness of a strong brand, a strategy based on unique experiences and a
comprehensive and user-friendly website.
Complete the table below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Section of website Comment
Database of tourism services - easy for tourism-related businesses to get on the list
- allowed business to (1) update information regularly - provided a
country-wide evaluation of businesses, including their impact on the (2)
environment.
Special features on local topics - e.g. an interview with a former sports (3) captain, and an interactive tour
of various locations used in (4) films.
Information on driving routes - varied depending on the (5) season.
Travel Planner - include a map showing selected places, details of public transport and
local (6) accommodation.
Your words’ - travellers could send a link to their (7) blog.

TRUE / FALSE/ NOT GIVEN

8. The website www.newzealand.com aimed to provide ready-made user-made itineraries and packages for travel
companies and individual tourists. F
9. It was found that most visitors started searching on the website by geographical location. NG
10. According to research, 26% of visitor satisfaction is related to their accommodation and transport. F
11. Visitors to New Zealand like to become involved in the local culture. T
12. Visitors like staying in small hotels in New Zealand rather than in larger ones. NG
13. Many visitors feel it is unlikely that they will return to New Zealand after their visit. T
XIV. Find 10 mistakes in the following passage and correct them
Life on a small island may look very appeal appealing to the tourists who spend a few weeks there in the summer, but
the realities of living on which what is virtually a rock surrounded by water are quite different from what the casual
visitor imagines. Although While in summer the island villages are full of people, life and activity, once the tourist
season is over many of the shop owners shut up their business and return to the mainland to spend the winter on in
comfort. Those who remain on the island, whether by choice and or necessity, face many difficulties. One of the worst
of these is isolation, with its many attendance attendant problems.
When the weather is bad, which it often does is in winter, the island is cut off entirely; this means not only that people
cannot be delivered goods but also that a medical emergency can be fatal to someone confined to an island. At time
times even telephone communication is cut off, which means that no word from the outside world can get by through.
Isolation and loneliness are the basic reasons for why so many people have left the islands for a better and more
secure life in the mainland cities.
XV. Fill in each blank with one of the given particles
out of, off, into, for, back, on, up, down on, in, out, at, up on
1. The government have decided to cut back spending on health services.
2. He was told to cut down on smoking or he would suffer serious health problems.
3. The announcer cut into the programme to give the alarming news.
4. During the power workers’ strike all the electrical services were cut off.
5. This composition would be better if you cut out the second paragraph.
6. Their house was cut off from the village by the flooding river.
7. Winter is coming. The days are really starting to draw in. (Become shorter)
8. He had to draw on his savings when he was made redundant.
9. She drew the lecture out to nearly three hours although it was supposed to last an hour.
10. The limousine drew up in front of the theatre and the actress got out.
11. Yes, I’ve heard the news. Simon dropped in to tell me this morning.
12. Sales of records and cassettes have dropped off considerably this year.
13. He was forced to drop out of college when his father died.
14. The unforeseen expense ate into my savings but it was worth it.
15. I truly feel for you in your terrible misfortune.
16. She’s trying to get on with her schoolmates but she doesn’t really fit in.
17. They’ve fitted out their workshop with new equipment.
18. I wish you wouldn’t fly at me like that every time I forget something.
19. I’m afraid their business is on the verge of folding up.
20. We’ll have to organise a workers’ meeting if we want to head off a strike.
21. Could you check up on the children and see what they’re up to?
22. We had to wait to check in at the hotel as the receptionist was not at his desk.
23. All guests should check out by 12 o’clock or they will be charged extra.
24. He was cheated out of his full holiday due to a change in company policy.
XVI. Fill in each blank with one of the provided idioms
lose heart ● straight from the horse’s mouth ● hold one’s horses ● go to one’s head ● flog a dead horse ● flew off the
handle ● have so much time on one’s hands ● off the cuff ● have one’s heart in one’s mouth ● lend sb a hand ● take to
one’s heels ● be hand in glove with ● keep things under one’s hat ● make head or tail of ● get out of hand ● get the hang
of ● take st to heart ● a dark horse ● strike gold ● eat one’s heart out ● grey matter ● like the back of one’s hand
1. She has been eating her heart out since her boyfriend started dating her best friend.
2. She has lived here so long that she knows the town like the back of her hand.
3. Would you hold your horses? I’ll be ready as soon as I can!
4. All the praise he’s got from his teachers had gone to his head, now he thinks he’s the best student in the school.
5. I’d appreciate it if you could lend me a hand with these bags; I can’t carry all of them myself.
6. When she told her father she had dented the car, he flew off the handle and told her she could never drive it again.
7. When he failed the exam for the third time he lost heart and decided not to try again.
8. Mary is hand in glove with her supervisor, and as a result knows everything that’s going on in the office.
9. When they heard the sound of sirens the burglars took to their heels and managed to escape.
10. I had the news straight from the horse’s mouth; John himself told me he was planning to change jobs.
11.I don’t dare to tell him my plans; I know he’s incapable of keeping things under his hat.
12. He has so much time on his hands now that he’s retired that he’s taken up several new hobbies.
13. As the politician hadn’t had the chance to prepare a speech he had to deliver one off the cuff.
14. She had her heart in her mouth all the time the firemen were trying to rescue her child from the building.
15. He had such a pronounced foreign accent that no one could make head or tail of what he was saying.
16. Talking this matter over again is just flogging a dead horse; we’ve said everything we can say about it.
17. Someone Is going to have to do something about the violence at football matches before the situation gets out of
hand.
18. You have to drive a car a number of times before you get the hang of it.
19. You should be careful about criticizing her as she takes everything so much to heart.
20. She’s a bit of a dark horse, nobody knew she was a published poet.
21. Everyone says Maria struck gold when she married her millionaire husband.
22. Linda must be lacking in grey matter if she can’t understand this.