After our early morning wake-up, we are still a couple of
hours away from the overlooks.It is pitch black.I can feel the
heavy humid fog left behind my last night's rain. This is why
the tour memo listed "flashlight". Unfortunately; the majority
of our hiking party of nine must have missed the memo, so we
have only four flashlights between us.
An hoar later,we are on the trail. It is dark, foggy, wet and the rocks are alippery.We alternate places between the flashlights "haves" and "have-nots". As we march, the only voices heard are from the "haves": "Step up, step down, watch out for the rock on your left."
We reach Intipunku with only 15 minutes to spare. The view at sunrise is not what we were told in the travel brochures. Three feet in front of our faces is a white substance called "fog".
As we walk towards the Machu Picchu ruins, my
anticipation is mounting. When will the fog lift? Slowly, as if someone is cranking up a curtain, Huayna Picchu begins to appear,overlooking Machu Picchu. First there are fleeting glimpses, and then finally, there is, in its full splendor.
When I envisioned going to Machu Picchu, I always thought of mysterious ruins and the famous postcard picture looking toward Huayna Picchu. But there is more to this man-made / natural wonder of the World. It is the adventure of getting there. I knew I wanted to experience the feel of the Inca culture and the energy of this sacred valley, I also knew I didn't want to take the train, but needed to hike. Depending on your starting point,the Inca Trail is 25 to 33miles of semi-arid desert, breathless mountain passes and stunning tropical cloud forest. Our hike took us four nights and 25 miles to finish.
Our local guide MaurO keeps telling us "no worries, the hike is 90 percent mental and only 10 percent physical. "I am not convinced that the physical percentage is correct, but I definitely become more and more excited as we are now getting closer to Machu Picchu.By getting myself into good shape, running 20 miles and hiking a 500-foot-high hill five to seven times per week before I left for Peru, I was able to enjoy the beauty of the hike and not worry much about aching muscles and lungs.
小题1: About flashlights, which of the following statements is true?
| A．The local guide had asked them to take flashlights for the hike. |
| B．They had taken enough flashlights for the hike. |
| C．Before they got to Intipunku, they depended a lot on their flashlights. |
| D．They used flashlights all the time. |
小题2: Put the following events into the right order.
a. They reached Intipunku,
b. They read the travel brochures.
c. They walked on the trail in the dark.
d. They advanced to get closer to Maehu Picchu.
e. They enjoyed the splendor of Huayna Picchu.
| A．ebade | B．bacde | C．abced | D．bcaed |
小题3: What does the underlined word "anticipation" in Paragraph Four mean?
| A．expectation | B．excitement | C．disappointment | D．enthusiasm |
小题4: What can NOT be inferred from the text?
| A．The writer made good preparation for the tour. |
| B．The Inca Trail took them four nights. |
| C．Machu Picchu is in the country of Peru. |
| D．They reached Intipunku ahead of time. |
小题5: According to the writer, what attracted him most in the tour?
| A．Mysterious ruins. | B．The famous post-card picture. |
| C．The hiking. | D．The Inca culture. |