4. The passage is mainly about ________.
A. an art museum called the Louvre
B. an Italian artist named Leonardo da Vinci
C. a king of France named Francis I
D. the best-known painting in the Louvre
1-4 DCDA
No. 5
Ecotourism
The
latest buzzword in the tourism industry is “ecotourism”-responsible,
environmentally sound vacationing.Ecotourism, or “green tourism,” means taking care
of natural resources, protecting endangered species, and preserving and
contributing to local communities.
Armed with
this “checklist,” I booked a vacation in an “ecoresort.” The brochure looked
appealing---a hotel right on the beach, with a large swimming pool and golf
course, in acres of unspoiled rain forest.
Unfortunately,
the only way to get to this resort was a 12-hour flight followed by a long taxi
ride.I was
relieved to see the hotel at the end of the road.It was a low-rise building, made out of local
stone.But as
I later found out, in order to build the resort, the wealthy owner had bought
up 30,000 square kilometers of unspoiled rain-forest.
Sunbathing
by the glorious swimming pool, enjoying the sound of sprinklers on the golf
course, I suddenly realized that this was an area where water is scarce.
So
far, not so eco-friendly.I decided to try some of the trips to nearby
conservation projects, to give the resort another chance to convince me.
Although
it was the breeding season for turtles, we didn’t see any.Apparently the
large groups of tourists who arrive at the beach to see the turtles laying
their eggs have driven the turtles away.A boat ride to a marine park was also
disappointing.The
noise of the boats means that the alligators (短吻鳄) are afraid to lie in the sun.The tourists,
expecting to see some action, throw stones at the alligators in the water, in
the hope of getting them to move.
The
trip to the “authentic” local village was pleasant.The resort has
turned the local homes into picturesque cottages.However, they are so charming that tourists are
buying them, and the locals now live in small towns of badly built houses in
the poorest areas of town.
All in
all, my vacation didn’t meet any of the standards for ecotourism.But there are
many projects around the world where you can have a genuinely “green ”
experience.My
next trip is to a mountain village, as a paying guest in a local family’s home.
I will
miss the swimming pool and the golf, though.