TEST 8 PAPER 1: READING Part 3 FCE PRACTICE TESTS (with key)

 

FCE PRACTICE TESTS (with key) TEST 8 PAPER 1: READING Part 3 (QUESTIONS 16-30)

 

You are going to read an article in which four people talk about train journeys they have been on. For questions 16-30 choose from the people (A-D). The people may be chosen more than once. When more than one answer is required they may be given in any order. Mark your answers on the separate answer sheet. Which person or people: was disappointed by the experience?       16   learnt something interesting while on the journey?       17   did this journey more than once?       18   did this journey with one friend?       19   thinks the price was too expensive?       20   chose to do the journey because of the low price?       21   says this was the first time they had been on a journey like this?       22   have good memories of their journey? 23     24   took this journey because of advice from friends?       25   says they felt geared at one point on the journey?       26   mentions something which irritated them while on the train?       27   went on the longest journey?       28   talk about what they could see outside the train? 29     30     A London to Brighton (UK) I spent over ten years doing this journey every day of the week. I’m very relieved I am retired now. I still do the same journey sometimes but now I don’t have to travel in the rush hour and if there are delays it doesn’t matter so much. The journey when it went well wasn’t bad at all. It wasn’t too long and I was usually able to sit down and read the newspaper. It was quite pleasant as long as there were no annoying people having loud phone conversations. But generally it was fine and not a bad way to begin and end a busy day in the city. The problems and stress came with the all too frequent delays and cancellations. It was extremely frustrating, especially as I was paying so much money for my ticket. The cost was much too high in my opinion. I am glad I don’t have to pay that anymore. B Moscow to St Petersburg (Russia) The most memorable train journey I have ever been on was between Moscow and St Petersburg in Russia. We were about 17 years old and on a school trip to see the places we were studying in our Russian history lessons. We spent three days in Moscow then took the overnight train to St Petersburg. I remember feeling really excited about it. I had never been on an overnight train journey before. We went to the theatre on our last evening in Moscow and then went straight to the station to get on the train at about 11 pm. There were four of us in each room and our whole group occupied about two carriages of the train. Our teachers were very aware of the dangers of travelling by train at night in Russia and warned us never to walk around the train on our own. They told us to go in groups of three to the toilets so that two people could wait outside together while one person went in. That frightened us a little but nothing happened. I don’t think we slept much; we stayed up most of the night talking, but I remember waking up in the morning and realising it was daylight outside and that we were in a completely new city. It was amazing. C Casablanca to Marrakech (Morocco) We decided to travel by train because it was cheap and it only took three hours. Also, I thought a train journey through the desert would be interesting and different. In reality it wasn’t quite as much fun as I had hoped. We got to the station in plenty of time and got our tickets without too much difficulty. The chaos started when we went out to the platform. It appeared that everyone else in the station was also planning to get on the same train as us. It was really crowded. When the train arrived it was a real fight to get on and all the seats were occupied in seconds.; My friend and I got separated in the confusion but there was no way we could move so we just had to stand where we were and hold on. My friend managed to sit down after about an hour but I had to stand for the whole three hours. The scenery was quite spectacular in places but the train was hot and uncomfortable. D Cairns to Karanga (Australia) I went on this train journey while I was visiting some friends who lived in Australia. I went away for a few days on my own and before I left, my friends had recommended this trip; it was definitely worth it. It used to be an old mining train that took miners to work every day. It starts on the coast and goes right up the side of a mountain. It is very steep and the views are fantastic looking back out to sea. There is lots of information in the different stations about the people who built the railway originally. It was a very dangerous job and many of them died while they doing it, either through accidents or disease. The whole journey only takes about an hour but you see all sorts of amazing things on the way. At one point it even goes through a tropical rainforest and there are some really beautiful plants. It is a wonderful trip to do as a tourist, but I’m sure the miners didn’t enjoy it quite so much.

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