The best UK cottages for Christmas and New Year

Victorian gatehouse, County Antrim

It’s a solid little Victorian gatehouse outside Ballycastle. It has an association with Irish nationalist Roger Casement. Close to the Causeway Coast, the closest beach is five minutes’ drive away. It is a good choice for those who want to avoid stairs, since all the main rooms are on the ground floor.

Sleeps 2 adults + 2 children, £730 a week at Christmas or New Year (three nights from £389), 353 1 670 4733, irishlandmark.com

Lindisfarne retreat, Northumberland

It is located in a peaceful island, where a priory (修道院) was built 1,400 years ago. Guests at Coastguard’s Cottage, the latest addition to English Heritage’s portfolio (代表作品集)of holiday houses, can explore the priory ruins. The attractive whitewashed house is decorated with calming tones and contemporary furnishings and has views of Lindisfarne Castle.

Sleeps 6, £1,600 a week from 19 Dec, 0370 333 1187, english-heritage.org.uk

Wildlife sanctuary, East Sussex

It sits on a 350-acre private nature reserve. Surrounded by woodlands, wetlands and wild meadows, it’s a heaven for wildlife. You might meet a few animals on a walk around the reserve. Built by local craftsmen using natural materials, it is a light-filled living space with huge windows, a woodburner (燃炉) and other essential for winter evenings — a home cinema system.

Sleeps 6, £1,430 a week from 29 Dec, 01580 720770 kentandSussexcottages.co.uk

Farmhouse kitchen, Suffolk

In snowy winter, the quiet 16th-century cottage near Stowmarket is like a perfect picture on Christmas cards. The inside is also appealing, with a big farmhouse kitchen, antique furniture, comfortable carpets and an impressive fireplace. A good selection of films, music and books are provided. Approached via a single track lane, the cottage sits in three acres of wild meadow, surrounded by plenty of farmland.

Sleeps 5, £1,003 a week from 30 Dec (three nights £725), 01787 211115, grove-cottages.co.uk

1.How much will be charged if a couple with two children stay in Victorian gatehouse for a week at Christmas?

A. £389.B. £730.C. £1,430.D. £1,600.

2.Who will probably book the cottage in Northumberland?

A. Disabled people in a wheelchair.

B. Those who want to explore some ruins.

C. Those who are interested in wildlife.

D. Those who enjoy the scenery of farmland.

3.Which cottage will you be advised to book if you are a zoologist?

A. Victorian gatehouse, County Antrim.

B. Lindisfarne retreat, Northumberland.

C. Wildlife sanctuary, East Sussex.

D. Farmhouse kitchen, Suffolk.

4.If you want to book Farmhouse kitchen in Suffolk, you can go to the website _______.

A. irishlandmark.com

B. english-heritage.org.uk

C. kentandsussexcottages.co.uk

D. grove-cottages.co.uk

知识点运用

1.We are in complete __________ (ignore) of your plans.

2.There is __________ (dusk) light inside the cave.

3.There are __________ (add) charges.

4.What did he __________ (actual) say?

5.__________ (base), my knowledge of physics is pretty limited.

6.Over the past 12 years, American and Chinese leaders have met __________ (frequent) to discuss a whole host of issues.

7.He's involved in the __________ (organize) of a new club.

8.Those are __________ (wool) blankets.

9.His father is a leader with courage and __________ (determine).

10.The President was leaving for a four-day __________ (office) visit to China.

11.That's an __________ (entire) different matter.

12.After his __________ (recover) from his illness, he continued his work again.

13.Children all enjoy themselves __________ (outdoor).

14.I felt sick because that fish __________ (agree) with me.

15.How __________ (rely) are the local weather forecasts?

16.__________ __________ (加起来) your scores and see how many points you can get.

17.The boy broke Jack’s window __________ __________ (故意). He wanted to frighten Jack.

18.__________ __________ (和往常一样), she is the first to come to the class.

19.She has __________ __________ __________(担心) her daughter __________ __________ (自从) she heard that she dropped out of school.

20.The country has __________ __________ (经历) too many wars.

21.和睦相处可以建立你们之间的良好关系。

You can build up good relationship by __________ __________ well with each other.

22.事实上,父母亲的态度对我作出这样的决定起着重要的作用。

As a matter of fact, my parents’ attitude __________ __________ __________ __________ in my making such a decision.

23.我们必须充分利用时间来学习。

We must __________ __________ __________ __________ our time to study.

24.他很顽固,他一旦下定决心做某些事情,什么都改变不了。

He is very stubborn and once he __________ __________ __________ __________ __________ to do something, nothing can change it.

25.曾经有段时间我非常厌倦学习。

__________ __________ __________ __________ __________ I got __________ __________ study.

26.昨晚我妈妈直到半夜才睡觉。

__________ __________ __________ __________ midnight __________ my mother went to bed last night.

A great French writer says that we should help everyone as much as possible because we often need help ourselves. The small even can help the great. Then he tells a simple story. An ant is drinking at a small stream and falls in. She tries to reach the side but makes no progress at all. The poor ant, almost exhausted, is still doing her best when a bird sees her. Moved with pity the bird throws a blade of grass into the water. It supports(支撑) the ant like a boat, and the ant reaches the bank. When she is having a rest in the grass, she sees a man walking along barefooted and carrying a gun in his hand. He wants to kill the bird nearby. When he raises his gun to fire, the ant bites him in the foot. So he stops to look down and the bird flies away quickly. It is an animal much weaker and smaller than herself that has saved her life.

1.According to the French writer, we often need help from others, so we should ________.

A. not help others

B. help those who may be helpful to us

C. get as much help as we can

D. help others as much as possible

2.The ant finally got on the bank ________.

A. when the water pushed her

B. with the help of a piece of wood

C. with the help of a piece of grass

D. when the bird reached out a leg for it

3.The French writer tells the story in order to show ________.

A. how an ant saved a bird

B. how brave the ant was

C. how clever the ant was

D. even the small can help the great

4.Though the poor ant was too tired, she ________.

A. lost hopeB. stopped trying

C. stopped to restD. didn’t give up

People born in winter are more likely to suffer mental health disorders, according to a recent study carried out by researchers at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.

Researchers raised baby mice from birth to weaning (断奶) in either “summer” light cycles of 16 hours of light and 8 hours of dark or “winter” cycles of 8 hours of light and 16 hours of dark. A third group experienced 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark a day.

Then half the winter mice stayed in a winter cycle, while half switched to a summer schedule. The summer mice were similarly split. The mice raised in equal periods of light and dark were split into three groups, one of which stayed on the 12?hour schedule, one of which joined the winter group, and one of which joined the summer group.

After 28 days, it turns out the summer?born mice behaved the same whether they stayed on the summer cycle or switched to winter. But among the winter?born mice, those stayed in winter kept their previous schedule, while those that switched to summer stayed active for an extra hour and a half, which indicates that mice born and weaned in a winter light cycle showed dramatic disruptions(破坏) in their biological clocks.

The finding is the first of its kind in mammals, and it could explain why people born in winter are at higher risk for mental health disorders.

“We know that the biological clock regulates(管理) mood in humans,” said study researcher McMahon. “If the mechanism (机制) similar to the one that we found in mice operates in humans, then it could not only have an effect on a number of behavioral disorders, but also have a more general effect on personality.”

1. How many groups of mice are there finally in all in the experiment?

A.Four. B.Five. C.Six. D.Seven.

2.What's the main idea of the text?

A.The biological clock regulates mood in humans.

B.People born in winter are at higher risk for physical health disorders.

C.Being born in winter has a negative effect on people's mental health.

D.The length of light will influence the behavior of the mice.

3. The underlined word “split”(Paragraph 3) can be replaced by ________.

A.divided B.torn C.hit D.ended

4.Who is probably the reader of the passage?

A.A job?hunter.

B.A student in the university.

C.A newly?married couple.

D.An experienced dentist.

阅读下面的短文,从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

I lost my sight when I was four years old by falling off a box car in a freight(货运) yard in Atlantic City and landing on my head. Now I am thirty-two. I can slightly the brightness of sunshine and what color red is. It would be wonderful to see again, but can do strange things to people.

It to me the other day that I might not have come to love life as I do if I hadn't been . I believe in life now. I am not so sure that I would have believed in it so , otherwise. I don't mean that I would prefer to go without my . I simply mean that the loss of them made me the more what I had left.

Life, I believe, asks a continuous series of _ to reality. The more readily a person is able to make these adjustments, the more his own private world becomes. The adjustment is never easy. The hardest I had to learn was to believe in myself. That was , If I hadn't been able to do that, I would have and become a chair rocker on the front porch(门廊) for the rest of my life.

It took me years to discover and this believe. It had to start with the most elementary things. Once a man gave me an indoor baseball. I thought he was at me and I was hurt. "I can't use this," I said. " it with you," he urged me, "and roll it around." The words stuck in my head. "Roll it around!" By rolling the ball I could hear it went. This gave me an idea how to achieve a goal I had thought : playing baseball. At Philadelphia's Overbrook School for the Blind I invented a successful variation of . We called it ground ball.

All my life I have set ahead of me a series of goals and then tried to reach them, one at a time. I had to learn my . It was no good to try for something I knew at the start was wildly out of reach because that only invited the bitterness of . I would fail sometimes anyway but on average I made progress.

1. A. forget B. seeC. ignore D. remember

2. A. happinessB. fortune C. misfortuneD. wealth

3.A. occurred B. happenedC. agreed D. applied

4.A. cleverB. blind C. foolishD. luckily

5.A. hardly B.quicklyC. roughly D.deeply

6.A. Hands B. armsC. eyes D.legs

7.A. appreciate B. arriveC.believe D. accept

8.A. employmentsB. investmentsC. settlementsD. adjustments

9.A. meaningful B. painfulC. fearfulD. careful

10.A. pleasureB. lesson C. enjoyment D. trouble

11.A. unnecessary B. horribleC. unpractical D. essential

12.A. broken outB. broken throughC. broken downD. broken off

13. A. strengthen B. weakenC. shorten D. darken

14.A. smilingB. laughingC. wonderingD. glaring

15.A. BringB. BorrowC. TakeD. Lend

16.A. where B. when C. whyD. how

17.A. possibleB. potentialC. probable D. impossible

18.A. basketball B. baseball C. football D. volleyball

19.A. conversationsB. limitationsC. congratulationsD. educations

20.A. achievementB. process C. successD. Failure

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