READING Term 1 Form 8

  Read the text. Choose the correct variant. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A       How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B        The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C       When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D       It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E        When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

  how many people die on the road?            

Read the text. Choose the correct variant. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A       How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B        The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C       When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D       It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E        When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

 about feelings people have when they travel?

 Read the text. Choose the correct variant. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A       How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B        The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C       When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D       It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E        When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

  about an injury that she had?                     

Read the text. Choose the correct variant. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A       How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B        The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C       When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D       It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E        When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

about dangerous weather?               

Read the text. Choose the correct variant. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A       How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B        The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C       When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D       It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E        When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

that someone wanted her to see the sights?

 Read the text. Choose the correct variant. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A       How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B        The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C       When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D       It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E        When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

how expensive the trip was?

 Read the text. Choose the correct variant. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A       How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B        The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C       When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D       It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E        When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

   that she thought she might die?                

   Read the text. Choose the correct answers.

Climb every mountain

Stephen Venables’ love of mountains began at nine years old on a skiing trip to the Alps. ‘I was thrilled,’ he remembers. ‘It was actually far more impressive and exciting than seeing the Himalayas for the first time, because when you’re nine it’s all new and you don’t know what to expect.’

From that moment, Stephen knew that he wanted to climb mountains, but he didn’t realise then that one day he would be the first British man to climb Everest without oxygen. However, his record-breaking expedition in 1988 was not an easy one. After years of climbing, he was prepared for this and he knew that the best thing he could do was wait for the weather to change.

‘At first I tried sitting on a rock because rock is warmer than snow, but it wasn’t completely flat. I really wanted to lie down so I decided to cut a ledge in the snow. I did sleep a bit,’ he says. ‘They always say you should stay awake but I was totally exhausted.’ Fortunately, the storm passed, and Stephen managed to climb back down to his camp and enter the record books.

The Everest expedition wasn’t Stephen’s only difficult climb. ‘It was very unlucky that it happened, but I was lucky that there were five of us.’ The group included Chris Bonnington and Stephen’s good friend Harish Kapadia. It took them twelve hours to make camp in a safe place. Then two of the team went for help.

‘I think that was one of the most wonderful moments of my life – finally being in the tent and realising that I could just lie back in my sleeping bag.’ By that time, there was almost no food left. ‘On the last day we had a boiled sweet and we used the last tea bag so many times that it wasn’t actually changing the colour of the water.’ But luckily, the team managed to keep going until help arrived.

   What happened to Stephen Venables when he was nine years old?

  Read the text. Choose the correct answers.

Climb every mountain

Stephen Venables’ love of mountains began at nine years old on a skiing trip to the Alps. ‘I was thrilled,’ he remembers. ‘It was actually far more impressive and exciting than seeing the Himalayas for the first time, because when you’re nine it’s all new and you don’t know what to expect.’

From that moment, Stephen knew that he wanted to climb mountains, but he didn’t realise then that one day he would be the first British man to climb Everest without oxygen. However, his record-breaking expedition in 1988 was not an easy one. After years of climbing, he was prepared for this and he knew that the best thing he could do was wait for the weather to change.

‘At first I tried sitting on a rock because rock is warmer than snow, but it wasn’t completely flat. I really wanted to lie down so I decided to cut a ledge in the snow. I did sleep a bit,’ he says. ‘They always say you should stay awake but I was totally exhausted.’ Fortunately, the storm passed, and Stephen managed to climb back down to his camp and enter the record books.

The Everest expedition wasn’t Stephen’s only difficult climb. ‘It was very unlucky that it happened, but I was lucky that there were five of us.’ The group included Chris Bonnington and Stephen’s good friend Harish Kapadia. It took them twelve hours to make camp in a safe place. Then two of the team went for help.

‘I think that was one of the most wonderful moments of my life – finally being in the tent and realising that I could just lie back in my sleeping bag.’ By that time, there was almost no food left. ‘On the last day we had a boiled sweet and we used the last tea bag so many times that it wasn’t actually changing the colour of the water.’ But luckily, the team managed to keep going until help arrived.

   What is the writer’s purpose in this article?

Read the text again. Match sentences A–E with gaps 1–3. There are two extra sentences.

Climb every mountain

Gap 1

Stephen Venables’ love of mountains began at nine years old on a skiing trip to the Alps. ‘I was thrilled,’ he remembers. ‘It was actually far more impressive and exciting than seeing the Himalayas for the first time, because when you’re nine it’s all new and you don’t know what to expect.’

From that moment, Stephen knew that he wanted to climb mountains, but he didn’t realise then that one day he would be the first British man to climb Everest without oxygen. However, his record-breaking expedition in 1988 was not an easy one. ¹___ After years of climbing, he was prepared for this and he knew that the best thing he could do was wait for the weather to change.

‘At first I tried sitting on a rock because rock is warmer than snow, but it wasn’t completely flat. I really wanted to lie down so I decided to cut a ledge in the snow. I did sleep a bit,’ he says. ‘They always say you should stay awake but I was totally exhausted.’ Fortunately, the storm passed, and Stephen managed to climb back down to his camp and enter the record books.

The Everest expedition wasn’t Stephen’s only difficult climb. ²___ ‘It was very unlucky that it happened, but I was lucky that there were five of us.’ The group included Chris Bonnington and Stephen’s good friend Harish Kapadia. It took them twelve hours to make camp in a safe place. Then two of the team went for help.

‘I think that was one of the most wonderful moments of my life – finally being in the tent and realising that I could just lie back in my sleeping bag.’ ³___ By that time, there was almost no food left. ‘On the last day we had a boiled sweet and we used the last tea bag so many times that it wasn’t actually changing the colour of the water.’ But luckily, the team managed to keep going until help arrived. 

Read the text again. Match sentences with gaps 1–3. There are two extra sentences.

Climb every mountain

Gap 2

Stephen Venables’ love of mountains began at nine years old on a skiing trip to the Alps. ‘I was thrilled,’ he remembers. ‘It was actually far more impressive and exciting than seeing the Himalayas for the first time, because when you’re nine it’s all new and you don’t know what to expect.’

From that moment, Stephen knew that he wanted to climb mountains, but he didn’t realise then that one day he would be the first British man to climb Everest without oxygen. However, his record-breaking expedition in 1988 was not an easy one. ¹___ After years of climbing, he was prepared for this and he knew that the best thing he could do was wait for the weather to change.

‘At first I tried sitting on a rock because rock is warmer than snow, but it wasn’t completely flat. I really wanted to lie down so I decided to cut a ledge in the snow. I did sleep a bit,’ he says. ‘They always say you should stay awake but I was totally exhausted.’ Fortunately, the storm passed, and Stephen managed to climb back down to his camp and enter the record books.

The Everest expedition wasn’t Stephen’s only difficult climb. ²___ ‘It was very unlucky that it happened, but I was lucky that there were five of us.’ The group included Chris Bonnington and Stephen’s good friend Harish Kapadia. It took them twelve hours to make camp in a safe place. Then two of the team went for help.

‘I think that was one of the most wonderful moments of my life – finally being in the tent and realising that I could just lie back in my sleeping bag.’ ³___ By that time, there was almost no food left. ‘On the last day we had a boiled sweet and we used the last tea bag so many times that it wasn’t actually changing the colour of the water.’ But luckily, the team managed to keep going until help arrived. 

Read the text again. Match sentences with gaps 1–3. There are two extra sentences.

Climb every mountain

Gap 3

Stephen Venables’ love of mountains began at nine years old on a skiing trip to the Alps. ‘I was thrilled,’ he remembers. ‘It was actually far more impressive and exciting than seeing the Himalayas for the first time, because when you’re nine it’s all new and you don’t know what to expect.’

From that moment, Stephen knew that he wanted to climb mountains, but he didn’t realise then that one day he would be the first British man to climb Everest without oxygen. However, his record-breaking expedition in 1988 was not an easy one. ¹___ After years of climbing, he was prepared for this and he knew that the best thing he could do was wait for the weather to change.

‘At first I tried sitting on a rock because rock is warmer than snow, but it wasn’t completely flat. I really wanted to lie down so I decided to cut a ledge in the snow. I did sleep a bit,’ he says. ‘They always say you should stay awake but I was totally exhausted.’ Fortunately, the storm passed, and Stephen managed to climb back down to his camp and enter the record books.

The Everest expedition wasn’t Stephen’s only difficult climb. ²___ ‘It was very unlucky that it happened, but I was lucky that there were five of us.’ The group included Chris Bonnington and Stephen’s good friend Harish Kapadia. It took them twelve hours to make camp in a safe place. Then two of the team went for help.

‘I think that was one of the most wonderful moments of my life – finally being in the tent and realising that I could just lie back in my sleeping bag.’ ³___ By that time, there was almost no food left. ‘On the last day we had a boiled sweet and we used the last tea bag so many times that it wasn’t actually changing the colour of the water.’ But luckily, the team managed to keep going until help arrived.