On Nov.18th, 1908, three men went up in a balloon. They started early in London. The headman was Auguste Gaudron, and the other two men were Tannar and Maitland. They had a big balloon and they were ready for a long way.

Soon they heard the sea. They were carrying the usual rope, and it was hanging down from the basket of the balloon. At the end of the rope they had tied a metal box. This could hold water, or it could be empty. So they were able to use the box to change the weight of the balloon. The three people were also carrying some bags of sand.

After the sun rose, the balloon went higher. It went up to 3,000 metres, and the air was very cold. The water in the balloon became ice. Snow fell past the men's basket, and they could see more snow on the ground. The men tried to throw out some more sand; but it was hard. They tried to break the icy sand with their knives, but it was not easy. The work was slow and they were still falling, so they had to drop some whole bags of sand. One of them fell on an icy lake and made a black hole in the ice.

　　At last they pulled the box into the basket. It was still snowing; so they climbed to get away from the snow. They rose to 5,100 metres! Everything became icy. They were very cold and  they decided to land. They came down in Poland　heavily but safely. They had travelled 1,797 kilometres from London!

1.Where did they start their travel on Nov.18th, 1908?

2.What was the metal box used for?

3. Why did they have to drop some whole bags of sand during the travel?

4. How long did they travel in the end?

5.

What do you think of the three people and their travel? (请自拟一句话作答)

完形填空（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）

Having a few days off always sounds so great. Everyone needs a   1 . And so does US President.US President Barack Obama went on holiday with his family in   2  in 2011. Where did they go and did the first family enjoy   3 ? Now, Obama is trying to   4  his experience (经历) with us. Let’s listen to him.

“We travelled to Honolulu, Hawaii, in December 2011 for   5 . Of course we went there by air. We spent 17 days there. Hawaii is my hometown. We had a wonderful time there. This was one of the   6  vacations in my life.

My wife Michelle and I visited US Marines (海军) and their families in Hawaii on Christmas Day. I   7  held the eight-month-old baby of a captain in my arms.

I also spent part of Christmas Eve playing golf with my old friends from Hawaii and some White House staff.

I went to Hanauma Bay Nature Park with my   8  daughters. That’s our favourite place. We dived there,   9  set four sea turtles free.

We all had a good time. And both my daughters said that they wanted to go there for a   10 time later.”

1.                A．friend          B．weekend        C．job  D．vacation

2.                A．winter         B．autumn         C．summer  D．spring

3.                A．himself         B．themselves      C．ourselves D．yourselves

4.                A．tell            B．show           C．share D．solve

5.                                  A．Easter B．Christmas

C．Halloween                        D．Thanksgiving Day

6.                A．sweetest        B．worst          C．saddest   D．cheapest

7.                A．too            B．still            C．even D．as well

8.                A．one           B．two            C．three D．four

9.                A．or             B．so             C．but  D．and

10.               A．fourth         B．third           C．second    D．first

Mr. and Mrs. Green had different ideas about where to go last weekend. Mrs Green wanted to go to Florida(佛罗里达州) to see her sister, but Mr Green didn’t like to go there. He wanted to go to Maine(缅因州).

     “Florida is too hot in summer,” Mr Green said to Mrs Green.

     “Maine is quite cold,” said Mrs Green, “I like swimming, but the water in Maine is usually not warm enough.”

      “Florida is too far,” said Mr Green, “We don’t have enouh time to drive there. It’ll take us more than two days.”

      Just then, the telephone rang. Mr Green answered the phone. It was his mother. “Is that Jim speaking? Please cme quickly. I need help. I’m calling from the hospital in Boston.” She said.

     They stopped the discussion(讨论), and they left for Boston at once.

1.Where did Mr Green want to go last weekend?

  A.Florida.            B.Maine.           C.Boston.           D.London.

2.What did Mrs Green want to do last weeekend?

  A.To do some shopping.                   B.To drive to Maine.

 C.To see her sister.                       D.To watch TV.

3.Who called them when they were talking?

  A.Mr Green.       B.Mr Green’s wife.       C.Mr Green’s mother       D.Mr Green’s son

4.Where did Mr Green’s mother live?

 A.Florida.            B.Maine.           C.Boston.           D.London.

5.Where did they go in the end?

  A.Boston            B.Maine.           C.Florida.            D.London

“Where did they go on vacation?”“________.”

1. A.
   She stays at home
2. B.
   She visited her uncle
3. C.
   They went to New York City
4. D.
   She wants to go to Hainan