Passage 2 Choose the BEST option to complete each of the following two passages. Note: the five
blanks have different answers.
__36__ The professor had just talked about joining a group of young anthropologists to
conduct research in Nepal. “But I don’t even know where Nepal is!... And besides, I’ve hardly ever
been outside my country. How can I abandon my friends and my family to live in a country where
the tap water is polluted and there is malaria?
Deep down, I sensed that this invitation marked a radical change in direction that would
continue for years to come, and--as I felt with a sort of wrench in my stomach—would have major
implications for the rest of my life. __37__ So I accepted the invitation even though I felt homesick
at the very thought.
__38__ In short, I fell in love with Nepal and its culture, and since then I have been back ten
times to do fieldwork. Sixteen years later, I find myself in a foreign university with a job as a
researcher in anthropology, specializing in Nepalese religion and society. I have lived in several
different countries and the experience has opened my eyes to a great deal about the world outside
my small, beloved but problematic country.
__39__ Naturally, it is hard to visualize what life would have been like, but I feel it would have
been more stable. I would not have traveled so much; I would have got married, had children, and
cooked meals for my family. And now I would be leading a quiet life in my own house, sitting in
front of a fireplace, with a book in my hands and a cat on my lap… or would I?
I have met a great many wonderful people on my travels. But I think that any period of living
abroad is a bitter-sweet experience, and involves a degree of loneliness, isolation and nostalgia for
home. But do I regret it? No. __40__ I cannot imagine myself without the experiences I have had,
even the most painful ones. 【題組】38. (A) I closed the door behind me, my mind buzzing with doubts and confusion.
(B) That visit proved to be decisive turning point in my life.
(C) Every path has both advantages and limitations.
(D) Curiously, something inside me was intrigued by the idea of traveling and exploring—it
might be exciting too.