四、閱讀測驗【請依照段落上下文意,選出最適當的答案】 We’d heard about a women’s correctional institution in Chiang Mai which runs a program providing inmates with a
stepping stone back into being productive members of society.That stepping stone in Thailand is Thai massage,so we signed
up, intrigued to see what the place and people were like.
We were led into the massage room, which consisted of 10 mattresses on the floor and a number of inmates. Quickly
scanning the room, there was no outwardly discernible common thread to the girls. Some looked very young, were tiny and
couldn’t have looked more innocent if they tried! Others, a little older and streetwise. We wondered what they had done to end
up in the prison. What crime had our masseuses committed? What would they think of us?
A quick welcoming ‘Sabaidee’ and I was led to the back of the massage room to change my clothes. As for my massage:
no aromatherapy oils, no soothing music to drift off to, no hot towels. Just me, a mattress and a female inmate ready to soothe
away my aching muscles, or so I thought. What came next was an hour of intense Thai massage, the most brutal, but best, I
had experienced. My masseuse must have taken great delight in bending me in ways I didn’t imagine possible, and laughing at
me when my lack of flexibility became apparent.
On more than one occasion the massage almost descended into wrestling, with the masseuse clambering on top of me,
wrapping her legs around mine and stretching out muscles I never knew I had. All the while she was happily chatting away to
her fellow colleague.
An hour later it was all over. We thanked our masseuses, changed back into our civilian clothing and we were back on
the street walking past beautiful temples and cafes again.
In the end we chose to believe in the worthy endeavors of rehabilitation for the inmates. It seems everyone wins; we get
a cheap Chiang Mai massage and the inmates get training for their eventual re-integration back into society. If you ever fancy
a Chiang Mai massage it’s worth checking out!
【題組】47. Which of the following does the word “inmates” in the second paragraph refer to?
(A) Girls
(B) Crimes
(C) Prisons
(D) Mattresses