A
It was Saturday night in London. I was waiting to catch the bus home with my friend Laura. I was dressed as the cartoon character the Pink Panther, complete with pink cat ears attached to a hairband, a pink tail made of a long piece of pink cloth, and whiskers(猫须)drawn on my face. Laura was dressed as a cat. It was, of course, Halloween(万圣节), and we had been at a Halloween party.
The night of October 31 is a perfect excuse to dress up in silly costumes and have a scary party. Traditionally it was“All Souls’Day”, when the ghosts of the dead rose from their graves.
In the UK, however, it also means the end of British Summer Time. All the clocks are put back one hour on the last Saturday of October. You wake up on Sunday morning thinking that it is 8 am, and then remember with relief that you actually have another hour in bed.
The trouble is, the buses had not changed their timetables. The night bus drivers were still operating according to their original(原来的)hours. However, the day bus drivers had already put their watches back, and were looking forward to that extra hour in bed. So Laura and I waited and waited and waited. People who went past stared, laughed, or made funny comments—“Someone locks the cat out of the house tonight? ”or“Who lets the cat out of the bag? ”
Finally the bus came—three hours later. By that time we had made friends with local shop owners as they opened for morning business, as well as with a friendly tramp(流浪汉)sitting on the street with his dog.
Halloween may be a party night—just don’t forget the practicalities(实际情况)when you’re in the UK. It could get really scary.
【语篇概述】作者在文中介绍了作者跟朋友在万圣节之夜等车时所经历的事情。
1. What can we learn from the passage?
A. People usually dress themselves up on Halloween.
B. Halloween is on the night of Oct. 30.
C. In the UK, Halloween is celebrated in exactly the same way as other countries.
D. On Halloween, the night bus and the day bus both operated according to the original timetable.
【解析】选A。细节理解题。从文章第一段可知, 作者和朋友打扮成卡通动物的样子是因为参加了万圣节聚会, 再结合第二段的内容可知A项正确。
2. Why did the author and her friend have to wait for three hours for the bus that night?
A. Because the bus was delayed.
B. Because it was Halloween that night.
C. Because the clocks were put back.
D. Because they were late for the night bus.
【解析】选C。细节理解题。从文章的第三段和第四段可知, 钟表被拨慢了一个小时, 而夜班车还是按照原来的时间发车, 故C项正确。
3. How did the passers-by react to the author and Laura’s costumes?
A. They were scared.
B. They smiled at them.
C. They were surprised.
D. They thought they were funny.
【解析】选D。细节理解题。从文章第四段最后一句可知, 路人跟他们开玩笑, 觉得他们的打扮很好笑, 故D项正确。
4. What did the author and Laura do while waiting for the bus?
A. They helped the local people.
B. They made friends with local shop owners and a tramp.
C. They helped a tramp.
D. They took care of a homeless dog.
【解析】选B。细节理解题。从文章第五段的“By that time we had made friends with local shop owners as they opened for morning business, as well as with a friendly tramp sitting on the street with his dog. ”可以看出答案。
5. What’s the main idea of the passage?
A. What the author did on Halloween.
B. The origin of Halloween.
C. What bus drivers do on Halloween in the UK.
D. Halloween is scary in the UK.
【解析】选A。主旨大意题。通读全文可以看出, 文章主要讲述作者在万圣节之夜的经历, 故A项最能概括本文主旨。
