If you enjoy looking through travel books by such familiar authors as Arthur Frommer or Eugene Fodor，it will not surprise you to lean that travel writing has a long and venerable history. Almost from the earliest annals of recorded time individuals have found ready audiences for their accounts of journeys to strange and exotic locales. ¹
　One of the earliest travel writers，a Greek geographer and historian named Strabo，lived around the time of Christ. Though Strabo is known to have traveled from east of the Black Sea west to Italy and as far south as Ethiopia，he also used details gleaned from other writers to extend and enliven his accounts. His multivolumed work Geography provides the only surviving account of the cities，peoples，customs，and geographical peculiarities of the whole known world of his time.

    Two other classic travel writers，the ltalian Marco Polo and the Moroccan Ibn Battutah，lived in roughly the same time period. Marco Polo traveled to China with his father and uncle in about A.D.1275 and remained there 16 or 17 years，visiting several other countries during his travels. When Marco returned to ltaly he dictated his memoirs，including stories he had heard from others，to a scribe，with the resulting book II milione being an instant success. Though difficult to attest to the accuracy of all he says，Marco"s book impelled Europeans to begin their great voyages of exploration. ²

    lbn Battutah"s interest in travel began on his required Muslim joumey to Mecca in 1325，and during his lifetime he journeyed through all the countries where Islam held sway. ³ His travel book

    The Rihlah is a personalized account of desert journeys，court intrigues，and even the effect of the Back Death in the various lands he visited . In almost 30 years of traveling it is estimated that Ibn Battutah covered more than 75，000 miles.

词汇:

venerable／"venərəbəl／adj.庄严的，值得尊敬的

enliven /in"Iaivən/v．使生动

account／a"kaunt／，z．记述                    

voyage /" vɔiidʒ /凡．航行

exotic／ig"zɔtik/V．异闰的，外来的

注释:

1. Almost from the earliest annals of recorded time individuals have found ready audiences for their accounts of journeys to strange and exotic locales. 几乎从最早有时间记载开始，人们就发现，他们对去一个陌生地方旅行的记录是不乏读者的。
2. …Marco"s book impelled Europeans to begin their great voyages of exploration.……马可的书促使欧洲人开始了他们伟大的航海探索之旅。
3. …he journeyed through all the countries where Islam held sway.……他去了所有yī sī lán jiāo 掌权的国家旅行。

Ibn Battutah traveled____.

A:to China B:to Ethiopia C:throughout the Muslim world D:for 16 0r 17 years

In October 1961 at Crowley Field in Cincinnati Ohio, an old deaf gentleman named William E. Hoy stood up to throw the first ball of the World Series. Most people at Crowley Field on that day probably did not remember Hoy because he had retired from professional baseball 58 years earlier in 1903. However he had been an outstanding player and the deaf people still talk about him and his years in baseball.
William E. Hoy was born in Houckstown Ohio on May 23, 1862. He became deaf when he was two years old. He attended the Columbus Ohio School for the deaf. After graduation he started playing baseball while working as a shoemaker.
Hoy began playing professional baseball in 1886 for Oshkosh (Wisconsin) of the Northwestern League. In 1888 he started as an outfielder with the old Washington Senators. His small figure and speed made him an outstanding base runner. He was very good at stealing bases during his career. In the 1888 major league season he stole 82 bases. He was also the Senators’ leading hitter in 1888. Hoy was clever and he threw right-handed and batted left-handed. On June 19, 1889 he threw out three batters at the plate from his outfield position.
The arm signals used by judges today to show balls and strikes began because of Hoy. The judge lifted his right arm to show that the pitch was a strike and his left arm to signal that it was a ball.
For many years people talked about Hoy’s last ball game in 1903. He was playing for Los Angeles of the Pacific Coast Winter League. It was a memorable game because Hoy hit a wonderful ball which won the game. It was a very foggy day and therefore very hard to see the ball. In the ninth inning with two men out, Hoy managed to catch a fly ball to make the third out in spite of the fog. Los Angeles defeated their opposition and won the game.
After he retired, Hoy stayed busy. He ran a dairy farm near Cincinnati for 20 years. He also became a public speaker and traveled giving speeches. Until a few years before his death he took 4～10 mile walks several mornings a week. On December 15, 1961 William Hoy died at the age of 99.

A:became famous B:led a relaxed life C:traveled around the world D:was in good physical condition

Men have traveled ever since they first appeared on the earth.
In primitive times they did not travel for pleasure but to find new places where their herds could feed, or to escape from hostile neighbors, or to find more favorable climates. They traveled on foot. Their journeys were long, tiring, and often dangerous. They protected themselves with simple weapons, such as wooden sticks or stone clubs, and by lighting fires at night and, above all, by keeping together.
Being intelligent and creative, they soon discovered easier ways of traveling. They rode on the backs of their domesticated animals; they hollowed out tree trunks and, by using bits of wood as paddles, were able to travel across water.
Later they traveled, not from necessity, but for the joy and excitement of seeing and experiencing new things. This is still the main reason why we travel today.
Traveling, of course, has now become a highly organized business. There are cars and splendid roads, express trains, huge ships and jet airliners, all of which provide us with comforts and security. This sounds wonderful. But there are difficulties. If you want to go abroad, you need a passport and a visa, ticket, luggage, and a hundred of other things. If you lose any of them, your journey may be ruined.

A:They had to arm themselves with wooden sticks when they travelled. B:They protected themselves with stone clubs when they travelled. C:They had to travel in groups. D:They never traveled at night.

Passage Two
Men have traveled ever since they first appeared on the earth.
In primitive times they did not travel for pleasure but to find new places where their herds could feed, or to escape from hostile neighbors, or to find more favorable climates. They traveled on foot. Their journeys were tong, tiring, and often dangerous. They protected themselves with simple weapons, such as wooden sticks or stone clubs, and by lighting fires at night and, above all, by keeping together.
Being intelligent and creative, they soon discovered easier ways of traveling. They rode on the backs of their domesticated animals; they hollowed Out tree trunks and,’ by using bits of wood as paddles, were able to travel across water.
Later they traveled, not from necessity, but for the joy and excitement of seeing and experiencing new things, This is still the main reason why we travel today.
Traveling, of course, has now become a highly organized business. There are cars and splendid roads, express trains, huge ships and jet airliners, all of which provide us with comforts and security. This sounds wonderful. But there are difficulties. If you want to go abroad, you need a passport and a visa, ticket; luggage, and a hundred of other things. If you lose any of them, your journey may be ruined.

A:they had to arm themselves with wooden sticks B:they protected themselves with stone clubs C:they had to travel in groups D:they never traveled at night

Passage Two Men have traveled ever since they first appeared on the earth. In primitive times they did not travel for pleasure but to find new places where their herds could feed, or to escape from hostile neighbors, or to find more favorable climates. They traveled on foot. Their journeys were tong, tiring, and often dangerous. They protected themselves with simple weapons, such as wooden sticks or stone clubs, and by lighting fires at night and, above all, by keeping together. Being intelligent and creative, they soon discovered easier ways of traveling. They rode on the backs of their domesticated animals; they hollowed Out tree trunks and,’ by using bits of wood as paddles, were able to travel across water. Later they traveled, not from necessity, but for the joy and excitement of seeing and experiencing new things, This is still the main reason why we travel today. Traveling, of course, has now become a highly organized business. There are cars and splendid roads, express trains, huge ships and jet airliners, all of which provide us with comforts and security. This sounds wonderful. But there are difficulties. If you want to go abroad, you need a passport and a visa, ticket; luggage, and a hundred of other things. If you lose any of them, your journey may be ruined.

A:they had to arm themselves with wooden sticks B:they protected themselves with stone clubs C:they had to travel in groups D:they never traveled at night

A:traveled B:closed C:spent D:lasted

　8 New York Students Have Swine Flu 　　The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 51 of swine flu in eight students at a New York preparatory school, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Sunday. The students have had only 52 symptoms and none have been hospitalized, he said. Some of the students have already recovered. 　　More than 100 students were absent from 53 due to flu-like symptoms last week. New York health officials tested samples for eight students Saturday and determined the students were probably 54 from swine flu, and the CDC confirmed the 55 on Sunday, Bloomberg said. 　　The announcement brings the 56 of confirmed swine flu cases in the United States to 20. Bloomberg and New York Health Commissioner Tom Frieden said there is no 57 of a citywide outbreak of the flu, and no sign of a potential 58 of swine flu at other schools. 　　Some students at the school 59 spring break1 in Mexico, Bloomberg said, but authorities have not determined 60 any of the students with a confirmed case of swine flu was in Mexico. Someone who traveled to Mexico may not have had any flu symptoms but 61 on the flu to someone else, he noted. 　　Frieden called 62 students who are home sick to stay home for 48 hours after their symptoms subside. 　　If symptoms are normal for a regular kind of flu, there is 63 need to go to a hospital, said Bloomberg. If symptoms become severe, as with any 64 , people should go to the hospital, he said. 　　St. Francis, which has 2,700 students, announced it will remain closed for two days. 65 whether the students’ illnesses have been minor because they’re young and healthy or because it is a minor strain of the virus, Frieden responded, "We don’t know."

A:spent B:made C:took D:traveled

下面的短文有15处空白，请根据短文内容为每处空白确定1个最佳选项。

A:traveled B:closed C:spent D:lasted