题目内容
The hostess told us it was ________ that caused her to serve dinner an hour later than usual.
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I hated dinner parties. But I decided to give them another shot because I'm in London. And my friend Mallery invited me. And because dinner parties in London are very different from those back in New York. There, “I’m having a dinner party” means: "I'm booking a table for 12 at a restaurant you can't afford and we'll be sharing the checque evenly, no matter what you eat." Worse, in Manhattan there is always someone who leaves before the bill arrives. They'll throw down cash, half of what they owe, and then people like me, who don’t drink, end up paying even more. But if I try to use the same trick, the hostess will shout: "Where are you going?" And it's not like I can say I have somewhere to go: everyone know I have nowhere to go.
But in London, dinner parties are in people's homes. Not only that, the guests are an interesting mix. The last time I went to one, the guests were from France, India. Denmark and Nigeria; it was like a gathering at the United Nations in New York. The mix is less striking. It's like a gathering at Bloomingdale's, a well-known department store.
For New Yorkers, talking about other parts of the world means Brooklyn and Queens in New York. But at Mallery's, when I said that I had been to Myanmar recently, people knew where it was. In New York people would think it was a usual new club.
【小题1】What does the word "shot" in Paragraph 1 probably mean?
A.Choice. | B.Try | C.Style. | D.Goal |
A There is a strange mix of people. B. The restaurants are expensive.
C. The bill is not fairly shared. D. People have to pay cash
【小题3】What does the author think of the parties in London?
A.A bit unusual | B.Full of tricks. |
C.Less costly. | D.More interesting. |
A.Easy-going. | B.Self-centred. | C. Generous. | D.Conservative. |
If you are ever lucky to be invited to a formal dinner party in Paris,remember that the French have their own way of doing things, and that even your finest manners may not be “correct” by French custom.For example,if you think showing up promptly(迅速地)at the time given on the invitation,armed with gifts of wine and roses,complimenting(称赞)your hostess on her cooking,laughing heartily at the host’s jokes and then leaping up to help the hostess will make you the perfect guest,think again.
Here Madame Nora Chabal,the marketing director of the Ritz Hotel in Paris,explained how it works.
The first duty of the guest is to respond to the invitation within 48 hours.And,the guest may not ask to bring a guest because the hostess has chosen her own.
Flowers sent ahead of schedule are the preferred gift.They may also be sent afterwards with a thank–you note.It is considered a very bad form to arrive with a gift of flowers vase when she is too busy to do with that.
See,that’s the logic!The type of flowers sent has a code of its own,too.One must never send chrysanthemums(菊花)because they are considered too humble(谦卑)for occasion.Carnations(康乃馨)are considered bad luck,and calla(马蹄莲)are too reminiscent(令人联想)of funerals(葬礼).A bouquet of red roses is a declaration of romantic intent.Don’t send those unless you mean it,and never to a married hostess.And though the French love wine,you must never bring a bottle to a dinner party.Why?It’s as if you feared your hosts would not have enough wine on hand,and that’s an insult(侮辱).You may,however,offer a box of chocolates which the hostess will pass after dinner with coffee.
If an invitation is for eight o’clock,the considerate guest arrives at a quarter past eight.Guests who arrive exactly on time or early are mere thoughtless ones who are not giving the hostess those last few minutes she needs to deal with details and crises.
【小题1】Which of the following is right about sending gifts?
A.If someone in France is dead, send chrysanthemums or calla. |
B.If someone in Paris is ill in hospital, send carnations. |
C.If you are invited to a dinner party in UK, never bring a bottle of wine, because that’s an insult. |
D.If you are invited by a single French hostess whom you love, send red roses. |
A.thoughtful | B.shameful | C.respectful | D.grateful |
A.compliment your host on his cooking |
B.arrive fifteen minutes behind schedule |
C.hurry to help the hostess |
D.show up promptly at the time given on the invitation |
A.Different flowers have different meanings |
B.How to send flowers |
C.Good manners at a French dinner party |
D.Different countries have different manners |
What makes a house a home?
Not size, of course.I've been in some of the grandest houses in America, and it's readily apparent no one lives there.Earlier this year, I had dinner in a mud hut in Ethiopia, where we sat on chairs next to the hostess' bed -- a home that had more warmth than any house I've been in since.
Now John Edwards is exploring what makes a house a home in his just-released Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives.There Edwards writes, " This is a book about homes, the values they rest on, the dreams they are filled with, and the people they have shaped.The houses and circumstances are different, but much of what you find inside will be familiar."
Whether you're sitting in an airport right now, waiting to fly to your childhood home for Thanksgiving, or in your own home waiting for the relatives to arrive, you know what he's talking about.
We've lived in our townhouse for 21 years.The loose windows that make noise in the wind.The fireplace so shallow it holds only one log.The kitchen window that offers a view of the world passing by.It's where friends sit on the kitchen counter drinking wine while dinner is being fixed.I lived there for only 18, but it will always be my true home.Even the lamp in the west living room window, which I could see far down the road when driving home late at night, still shines.
While all this talk about childhood memories can be warm and comforting, home is whom you're with, not where you are.As Edwards writes, "Home is family.Home is safety.Home is faith."
Happy homecoming.
1.What would be the best title for the text?
A.Home Means Everything |
B.What's Inside Makes Us Feel at Home |
C.Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives |
D.The Importance of the Home |
2.The purpose of the second paragraph is to __
A.mean the author likes living in grandest houses |
B.prove the author got along well with the hostess |
C.mean the feeling of home isn't related to the size |
D.show the author's different feelings about houses |
3.About the book Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives, we know that __
A.it was the description of Edwards' houses |
B.it is mainly about houses |
C.it helps us understand the concept of home |
D.it was written by the author of the text |
4.What did the author mainly mean when he mentioned the loose windows and the shallow fireplace ?
A.His house was too old to live in. |
B.He missed the feelings of home. |
C.He hated living there. |
D.He missed his old friends too much. |
5.It can be inferred according to the text that __
A.the author's family were very rich |
B.every happy home is the same |
C.the author has been living a hard life |
D.the author and Edwards hold similar ideas |