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When you go to St. Petersburg, the number of attractions can seem overwhelming. If you’re short on time, or just want to make sure to hit the highlights, these are the top must-see sights in St. Petersburg.
The Hermitage Museum
The Hermitage Museum is one of the most important sights to see for any visitor to St. Petersburg. There you can see lots of different paintings of old masters inside the Hermitage. Prepare to come face-to-face with classic Western artists.
The Russian Museum
The Russian Museum holds one of the largest collections of Russian art in the world. View Russian art creations through the ages, from Byzantine (拜占庭)-style icons to the Socialist Realism of Stalin’s times.
Kizhi Island
Kizhi Island is an open-air museum of wooden buildings from the Karelia Region of Russia. These impressive structures are made without any nails (钉子) — the wood fits together with joints and grooves (沟槽).
Peterhof
Peterhof is as beautiful as it is fun. You’ll be charged for admission (门票), but go to Peterhof when the fountains (喷泉) are working — during the day in the summer. They are shut off in winter as well as in the evenings.
The Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood
Love it or hate it, the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood is an attractive must-see sight. The beautiful look may make your eyes brighten, and the paintings inside the church will make you say “Wow!”
The Bronze Horseman Statue
The Bronze Horseman is a part of Russian Culture and a symbol of St. Petersburg. Made famous by Alexander Pushkin (普希金), this statue of Peter the Great sitting on his horse can truly show Peter the Great’s influence on the Russian idea of greatness.
1.If you’re interested in paintings, you’d better go to _____.
A.the Hermitage Museum and Peterhof
B.the Hermitage Museum and the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood
C.Kizhi Island and the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood
D.the Russian Museum and Kizhi Island
2.The man on the Bronze Horse refers to _____.
A.Peter the Great B.Alexander Pushkin
C.Byzantine D.Stalin
3.The main purpose of this passage is to _____.
A.show the wonderful history of Russia
B.introduce the famous buildings in Russia
C.persuade artists to study St. Petersburg
D.attract tourists to visit St. Petersburg
难度: 困难查看答案及解析
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About five years ago I started at a new school when my family moved to Iowa. I was just a little excited, but I worried I would never fit in with the other sixth graders.
Lucy, a girl in my class, who I thought was not ready for change, didn’t like me from the start. In fact, I was pretty sure she hated me. I would ask her a question, and I could tell she thought I was a total fool.
My teacher made us sit by each other for the last term. Lucy was horrified (惊骇的). I didn’t wear make-up (化妆品), and I didn’t wear those terrible bell-bottom pants. I didn’t exactly look like the coolest girl. But, I kept smiling at her, though she rolled her eyes, and I kept telling her she looked beautiful, even when she was angry.
Finally, Lucy let me talk to her, even in sight of her “cool” friends. She started telling me how beautiful I looked. I still remember that first time when she smiled at me saying that, and I smiled right back, telling her thanks. Lucy invited me over to her house for a party, and talked to me all the time instead of her other friends. Lucy, the girl who hated me, called me her best friend. After that, we still were good friends a whole year later.
I may have moved to Arizona after that, but I will never forget Lucy. It’s funny — I still remember her birthday. She was a great friend. And to think, she considered me her enemy at first. Though it was hard, and it felt like I was wasting my time, and losing my dignity (尊严), I still smiled at Lucy when she made fun of me. I’m not stupid, I didn’t think she was right in doing those things, but I still put up with it. And we became great friends.
About two weeks ago, I read a sentence by Abraham Lincoln: “Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?” Immediately, I smiled, thinking of Lucy. That sentence just reminded me how great it was for me to change Lucy into my friend in that state of Iowa five years ago.
1.When the author started at a new school in Iowa, she worried ________.
A.she looked stupid when asking questions
B.she didn’t look like the coolest girl in her class
C.she was not ready for change at all
D.she couldn’t get along well with her classmates
2.How did the author change Lucy’s attitude towards her?
A.By wearing make-up.
B.By keeping smiling at Lucy.
C.By wearing bell-bottom pants.
D.By sitting beside Lucy in class.
3.From Paragraph 5, we know the author thought ________.
A.it was right of her to suffer when making friends
B.it was a waste of time to make friends with Lucy
C.it was a shameful thing to put up with what Lucy did
D.it was foolish of her to smile at Lucy all the time
4.What is the main idea of this passage?
A.Patience is important in making friends.
B.Friendship needs to be cared for.
C.Making friends means losing enemies.
D.Kindness can defeat any enemy.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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John Farish, an engineer who was staying at the St. Francis, one of the city’s finest hotels, remembered the very early morning of Wednesday, April 18, 1906: I was awakened by a loud noise, which might be compared to the mixed sounds of a strong wind flowing through a forest and the breaking of waves against a rock. In less time than it takes to tell, a shake, similar to that caused by a nearby explosion (爆炸), shook the building to its bases and it began a series of the most lively movements. Together with a frightening sound, it was followed by big crashes (碰撞) as the neighboring buildings and chimneys fell to the ground.
A few blocks away, in a comfortable room in the Palace Hotel, the world’s greatest singer, Enrico Caruso, was asleep after a good performance at the Opera House the night before. He awoke to find: Everything in the room was going round and round. The light was trying to touch the ceiling and the chairs were all chasing each other. Crash — crash — crash! It was a terrible scene. Everywhere the walls were falling and clouds of yellow dust were rising. My God, I thought it would never stop!
And at the same moment, in another part of the city, Jesse Cook, a policeman, reported: The whole street was undulating (起伏波动). It was as if the waves of the ocean were coming toward me, and waving as they came.
It was, of course, an earthquake, one of the largest ever to hit North America, and the first of 27 separate quakes that day. The first shock — at 5:12:05 a.m. — lasted more than 40 seconds. It was by far the largest, about 8.3 on the Richter scale; its epicenter (震源) was just off the coast, around the Pacific.
1.When the earthquake happened, Caruso was _____.
A.looking at the waves rushing against the rock
B.giving a performance at the Opera House
C.listening to the sounds of wind flowing
D.sleeping in the comfortable Palace Hotel
2.How did Jesse Cook describe the earthquake?
A.The street was flooded with ocean water.
B.The street was dancing like ocean waves.
C.The chairs in the room were chasing each other.
D.The light was falling to the ground heavily.
3.What can we know about the earthquake according to the passage?
A.It was followed by 26 quakes that day.
B.It caused the most deaths in history.
C.It came from the center of the Pacific.
D.It struck the place at midnight.
4.The purpose of writing this passage is to _____.
A.teach us how to protect ourselves in an earth-quake
B.find out why the earthquake happened
C.describe the happenings of a strong earthquake
D.introduce what harm the earthquake did to people
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Birds don’t need lessons in building nests. Fish don’t need coaching to learn how to swim. All animals have instincts. They’re born with natural abilities to do certain things. Wild animals also learn by copying their parents and practicing. And pets learn through training.
But instincts and training aren’t the only keys to animals’ behavior. Scientists say animals’ thoughts and feelings also influence their actions. Animals often make choices, plans, and sensible changes. They can help others and solve problems. Some even make and use tools!
If animals could talk, what would they say about their thoughts and feelings? A gorilla (大猩猩) born in captivity (关在笼子里) has helped answer that question. Koko, a gorilla, was taught to use sign language. She has learned hundreds of words!
Koko once had a pet cat she named All Ball. “Koko love Ball,” she signed. “Soft good cat.” One time, she blamed the cat for biting her by signing “You bad dirty toilet!” When her pet died, Koko cried. “Sad for sleeping cat,” she signed.
Koko calls herself “fine animal gorilla”. She uses sign language to argue, joke, and ask and answer questions.
“Most animals can’t use words to tell us their thoughts,” says Dr. Jonathan Balcombe. “But Koko shows us that animals have their own ideas and feelings.” Dr. Balcombe is a scientist at the Humane Society of the United States. He says there’s even more to discover about animals through field studies. In field studies, people watch animals in their natural environment.
“Scientists who study animals’ natural behaviors learn how animals live and think,” Balcombe says. “That knowledge can help others respect every animal who shares the planet with us.”
1.The underlined word “instincts” in Paragraph 1 probably refers to the ability that ________.
A.animals copy their parents B.animals learn by practicing
C.animals are born with D.animals learn through training
2.The example of Koko shows that ________.
A.an animal likes to have its own pet B.an animal can learn to speak through training
C.an animal has the natural ability to speak D.an animal can speak its mind
3.According to Balcombe, learning how animals live and think can ________.
A.help people care for animals B.teach animals to use words
C.train animals to use tools D.train animals to be cleverer
4.What might be the best title for the passage?
A.Raising animals as pets B.Understanding animals
C.Training animals to speak D.Protecting animals from danger
难度: 简单查看答案及解析