Reading Pre-Int 8

Read the text. Match paragraphs A–E of the text with questions 1–7. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

1 How many people die on the road?

Read the text. Match paragraphs A–E of the text with questions 1–7. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

2 About feelings people have when they travel?

Read the text. Match paragraphs A–E of the text with questions 1–7. There are two extra questions.

The most dangerous journey

A How do you feel about car journeys? Do you get a bit bored, ask the driver how long it’s going to take, and then fall asleep? Or do you get extremely anxious? This is exactly how I felt last month, when I took a trip down the most dangerous road in the world.

B The North Yungas road in Bolivia goes from La Paz, which is a very large city to the town of Coroico in the mountain region of the Amazon rainforest. The road is about 69 km long, but in that short distance it goes down from about 4,650 m high to 1,200 m. Although it is only about three metres wide and there are no guard rails, cars travel in both directions. The views are amazing, but between two and three hundred travellers are killed every year when they drive off the side of this road. In Spanish it is called El Camino de los Muertos – the Road of the Dead.

C When I went to visit my friend Jacqueline in La Paz, I had no idea how dangerous the North Yungas road was. I was very excited about the trip to the Amazon rainforest that she wanted to take me on. When we got on the bus, Jacqueline let me sit by the window to get the best view. I didn’t feel suspicious at all.

D It was only when the journey started that I began to feel frightened. The bus drove right to the edge of the road many times, and when I looked over, I could see the forest about 600 m below us. We drove on quickly through thick cloud – how do you know where you’re going when you can’t see? I held on to Jacqueline’s hand. Then we drove under a waterfall that was slowly washing the road away. I was shocked!

E When we met another car coming the other way, we drove so close to the edge of the road that a wheel seemed to go off the edge. This happened several times and I started thinking that we might not reach our final destination. When we finally got to Coroico, I felt so relieved. I let go of Jacqueline’s hand and saw that it was red. I was a bit embarrassed, but so happy that we were not on that road any more.

In which paragraph does the writer tell us ...

3 About an injury that she had?