Travel can be a lifesaver. But in today’s economy (经济) with airlines adding new fees almost daily and ticket prices sharply on the rise, many have written off travel as too expensive. However, with a few saving tricks and a little research, there are still lots of great deals to be had on airline tickets and more.

Early Bird Gets the Deal.

Travel experts say that there are certain times of day when more deals are available. Airfares can change three times a day as airlines adjust their prices to fill up flights. Early morning is when the fares tend to be lowest.www.zxxk.com

What Wouldn’t a Business Traveler do?

Flying when business travelers don’t can save you big money. Most business travelers fly on Mondays and Fridays, so Tuesday and Wednesday are the best days. Airlines will usually lower their prices on these days to aggressively try and fill empty seats.

Fly to popular places at unpopular times. The slowest time of the year for travel is in the Fall between Labor Day and Thanksgiving. Again, to try and fill more empty seats, the airlines will lower prices and offer better deals to get people to fly during this time of the year.

Package Deals

Many times the best deals on airfare can be found as part of a package rate. Most travel sites have package rates available. Often, the entire package (hotel, airfare, rental car) is cheaper than just the plane ticket on another site. Even if you don’t need the rental car, with the money you’ve saved on the flight, you can afford to take a taxi. These deals are especially good on last minute bookings.

With a little inside knowledge and some good timing, you can get yourself a steal on a ticket to the vacation you thought was out of reach.

1.Which would be the best title for the text?

A. Tips on Vocation Travelling

B. Advice for Business Travelers

C. The Effect of Economy on Airlines

D. Tricks of Finding the Cheapest Flights

2.Many people have to cancel their travel plan because they _____.

A. have no saving tricks                  B. consider economic reasons

C. seldom do research                                   D. can’t have great deals

3.Which of the following can be filled in the blank in the text?

A. Fly to popular places.

B. Don’t Miss the Holydays.

C. Better Avoid the Crowds.

D. Lose No Chance for Travelling.

4.What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A. Saving tricks can make the seemingly impossible vacation possible.

B. Inside knowledge and good timing help you to steal tickets from airlines.

C. Vacation will be out of reach without inside knowledge and good timing.

D. Who thinks the vacation is out of reach never grasps the tricks of saving.

The Taj Mahal

Shah Jahan finished building Taj Mahal in 1648. He was a rich and powerful emperor, and he built the Taj Mahal as a memorial for his wife.  1.  The word “taj” means crown, “Mahal” was the name of his wife. Twenty thousand people worked for 18 years to complete this beautiful domed(圆顶屋) building. A thousand elephants carried huge stones and jewels from all over India and central Asia to the Taj. Shah Jahan wanted this memorial to be a burial place for himself and his wife.

The Taj Mahal is on the Yamuna River in Agra in northern India.  2.   Its picture is in most travel books and brochures. It is open daily from sunrise to sunset. For about fifteen rupees (or about US$0.33), anyone can enter this peaceful and quiet place.

As you enter, you pass through beautiful, silent gardens. From the gardens, you cross a wide courtyard. Suddenly, you see the dome of the main building through a tall, red sandstone gate. At daybreak, the Taj Mahal’s white walls turn rose. At noon, they blaze（发光）white. At dusk, they become dark grey.  3.  

After you pass through the gate, you step onto a wide stone platform. You look over another garden with pools. Everything is arranged carefully in fours.  4.  The garden is divided into four parts. There are straight rows of colorful flowers and trees in each of the parts. At the four corners of the Taj Mahal, there are pointed tall towers. After the gardens, you go down stone steps towards the main building with the tomb and the graves of Shah Jahan and his wife.

After hundreds of years, the Taj Mahal remains a lovely and peaceful place.  5.  

E. The Taj Mahal is most beautiful by the light of the full moon.

F. To many people around the world, the Taj Mahal is a symbol of India.

G. From the cool, dark gates, the Taj Mahal seems to float between earth and sky.

The Taj Mahal
Shah Jahan finished building Taj Mahal in 1648. He was a rich and powerful emperor, and he built the Taj Mahal as a memorial for his wife.  【小题1】  The word “taj” means crown, “Mahal” was the name of his wife. Twenty thousand people worked for 18 years to complete this beautiful domed(圆顶屋) building. A thousand elephants carried huge stones and jewels from all over India and central Asia to the Taj. Shah Jahan wanted this memorial to be a burial place for himself and his wife.
The Taj Mahal is on the Yamuna River in Agra in northern India.  【小题2】   Its picture is in most travel books and brochures. It is open daily from sunrise to sunset. For about fifteen rupees (or about US$0.33), anyone can enter this peaceful and quiet place.
As you enter, you pass through beautiful, silent gardens. From the gardens, you cross a wide courtyard. Suddenly, you see the dome of the main building through a tall, red sandstone gate. At daybreak, the Taj Mahal’s white walls turn rose. At noon, they blaze（发光）white. At dusk, they become dark grey.  【小题3】  
After you pass through the gate, you step onto a wide stone platform. You look over another garden with pools. Everything is arranged carefully in fours.  【小题4】  The garden is divided into four parts. There are straight rows of colorful flowers and trees in each of the parts. At the four corners of the Taj Mahal, there are pointed tall towers. After the gardens, you go down stone steps towards the main building with the tomb and the graves of Shah Jahan and his wife.
After hundreds of years, the Taj Mahal remains a lovely and peaceful place.  【小题5】  

    7l  People traveled in search of food and shelter or in order to flee from their enemies. Sometimes they were looking for gold or silver in order to become rich. On other occasions they were searching for rich farmland.

    This is not to say that no one ever traveled just for fun. Even in ancient times, some pleasure travel occurred. During a typical season, 700,000 tourists. would crowd into the ancient city of Rome, where animals performed and magicians entertained them.    72    

      73   International tourist arrivals alone reached as many as 546 million in 1994 and are forecast to rise to 937 million in 2010, according to the World Trade Organization.

      74   Probably the most common reason for traveling is related to our physical well-being. Actually, traveling to sports events is one of the fastest growing types of travel. In our fast developing, modern society where stress has become part of people’s life, people can rest and relax by having a change of environment and activities.

      75   No one seems to doubt that travel broadens the mind. In 18th century Europe, young men would go on a Grand Tour to various countries in order to complete their education. Today the desire to travel to different countries is encouraged by modem mass media. People who travel to other countries can at the same time learn more about their own country and culture.

A. But why do people like traveling so much?

B. Throughout history, most travel was not for pleasure.

C. So they travel to a lake for a swim or to a park for a hike.

D. The improvement in transportation has also encouraged people to travel.

E. Wealthy Romans made trips to Greece to take part in the Olympic Games.

F. The growth of tourism has become a modern phenomenon experienced by all countries in the world.

G. Another important reason for traveling is to satisfy our curiosity about different places and cultures.

　　Amtrak（美国铁路客运公司）was experiencing a downswing in ridership（客运量）along the lines comprising its rail system. Of major concern to Amtrak and its advertising agency DDB Needham, were the long-distance western routes where ridership had been declining significantly.

　　At one time, trains were the only practical way to cross the vast areas of the west. Trains were fast, very luxurious, and quite convenient compared to other forms of transportation existing at the time. However, times change and the automobile became America's standard of convenience. Also, air travel had easily established itself as the fastest method of traveling great distances. Therefore, the task for DDB Needham was to encourage consumers to consider other aspects of train travel in order to change their attitudes and increase the likelihood that trains would be considered for travel in the west.

　　Advertisements showed pictures of the beautiful scenery that could be enjoyed along some of the more famous western routes and emphasized the romantic names of some of these trains (Empire Builder, etc.). These ads were strategically placed among family-oriented TV shows and programs involving nature and America in order to most effectively reach target audiences. Results were impressive, the Empire Builder, which was focused on in one ad, enjoyed a 15 percent increase in profits on its Chicago to Seattle route.

(1) What's the author's purpose in writing this passage?

[　　]

A．To show the inability of trains to compete with planes with respect to speed and convenience.

B．To stress the influence of the automobile on America's standard of convenience.

C．To emphasize the function of travel agencies in market promotion.

D．To illustrate the important role of persuasive communication in changing consumer attitudes.

(2) It can be inferred from the passage that the drop in Amtrak ridership was due to the fact that ________.

[　　]

A．trains were not suitable for short distance passenger transportation

B．trains were not the fastest and most convenient form of transportation

C．trains were not as fast and convenient as they used to

D．trains could not compete with planes in terms of luxury and convenience

(3) To encourage consumers to travel by train, DDB Needham emphasized ________.

[　　]

A．the freedom and convenience provided on trains

B．the practical aspects of train travel

C．the adventurous aspects of train trips

D．the safety and cleanliness of train trips

(4) The train ads were placed among family-oriented TV programs involving nature and America because ________.

[　　]

A．they could focus on meaningful travel experiences

B．they could increase the effectiveness of the TV programs

C．their profits could be increased by some 15 percent

D．most travel-lovers and nervous fliers were believed to be among the audiences