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

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