Америка в прошлом и настоящем. Часть I. Горчакова Е.П - 27 стр.

Montezuma welcomed the stranger. Cortes, through his Indian interpreter
Dona Marina, offered gracious1 thanks.
     Four days later, we went to visit the main plaza of the city. As soon as we
arrived we were filled with wonder. We had never seen so many markets, nor
such a great crowd of people. There was every kind of meat and fruit. Gold,
silver, jewels, feathers, embroidered blankets, pottery, and carved wooden
objects were everywhere. In one special area, Indian slaves were being
offered for sale.
     Finally, Montezuma invited us to climb to the top of one of the sacred2
pyramids. From there, we gazed at the splendid city, with its towers,
pyramids, lakes, canoes, plazas, bridges, and crowds. Among us were
soldiers who had been in many parts of the world. But they all said that they
had never seen such a sight.

          Reading Comprehension
          Choose the best answer for the following:
    1.   The subject of the historical background reading is
         a. the voyage of Columbus.
         b. early explorations to the Americas.
         c. how America got its name.
    2.   From what we are told in paragraph 1, and from what we learned in Unit 2,
         we may assume that
         a. Prince Henry hated Muslims.
         b. Prince Henry was afraid of the Mediterranean.
         c. Prince Henry wanted to trade directly with India and the Orient.
    3.   As they sailed down the African coast, the sailors were afraid of all of the
         following except
         a. African natives.
         b. unfamiliar stars.
         c. strange wind patterns.
    4.   When Bartholomew Dias returned, King John was very happy because
         a. he disliked Columbus.
         b. he thought he had made the right decision.
         c. Bartholomew Dias had brought back the spices everyone wanted.
    5.   Columbus set sail confidently because
         a. he thought the journey to America would be short.
         b. he thought the journey to the Orient would be long but easy.
         c. he thought the journey to the Orient would be short.


1
    gracious: very polite
2
    sacred: holy

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