Town twinning is also known as partnering towns or sister cities. It refers to the idea of pairing cities across the world as a way to build human and cultural links (联系) among nations. The first official town twinning happened in 1930 between the cities of Klagenfurt, Austria and Wiesbaden, Germany. However, town twinning actually didn't become popular until after World War Ⅱ.
Developed in Europe as a way of creating friendship and understanding between the countries suffering from the war, town twinning quickly spread outside Europe as well. In 1944, Vancouver became the first city to be paired with a transatlantic(横渡大西洋的) sister city, when it was linked to Odessa, in Ukraine. The pairing was a great way for both cities to provide support to each other during the war.
Town twinning is considered so important that the European Union spends about 12 million Euros a year to support it. This often leads to cultural exchange, trades and student exchanges.
Town twinning often pairs cities with a lot in common, such as similar population, same names, or similar development problems. For example, Toledo, Spain and Toledo, America, are twin cities. Certain countries have preferences when choosing cities. For example, 50 percent of the town twinnings founded in the United Kingdom are with France.
There're no agreed rules as to the number of town twinnings a city can have. For example, the city of Las Vegas has only one town twinning, pairing with Banes, Cuba. On the other hand, New York City has fifteen twin cities: Tokyo, Beijing, Cairo, Rome, Sydney, London, and so on.
Town twinning is a very popular system with students and young people, as youth clubs，junior colleges, and voluntary groups often organize exchanges between the paired cities. Most cities have a town twinning association，which deals with anything that has to do with exchanges between the sister cities.
6．The first official town twinning was founded ________.
A.before World WarⅡ B．during World WarⅡ
C．at the end of World WarⅡ D．after World WarⅡ
解析：选A。 细节理解题。根据第一段的“The first official town twinning happened in 1930 ...”可知，第一个官方的城市结对是在1930年，因此是在二战前，故选A项。
7.In the beginning, most sister cities were created to ________.
A．fight against the war B．develop their trade
C．support each other D．rebuild their cities
解析：选C。 细节理解题。根据第二段的第一句和最后一句可知，刚开始城市结对的目的是促进饱受战争之苦的国家之间的友谊和理解，使得他们在战争中相互扶持。
8.According to the text, the European Union________.
A．tries to prevent town twinning
B．cares little about town twinning
C．mainly encourages links between the UK and France
D．supports town twinning very much
解析：选D。 推理判断题。根据第三段中的“... the European Union spends about 12 million Euros a year to support it”可知，每年欧盟都要花很多钱来支持城市结对，由此可以推断欧盟是非常支持这种做法的，故选 D项。
9. What is Paragraph 4 mainly about?
A．How to increase town twinnings.
B．How to choose a sister city.
C．The problems of town twinning.
D．The history of town twinning.
解析：选B。 段落大意题。第四段主要讲述了城市结对的一些特点，也就是说如何选择一个姊妹城市。姊妹城市通常有一些共性的东西，而有的国家在选择姊妹城市时有偏爱。
10. Which of the following are NOT twin cities?
A．Toledo, Spain and Toledo, America
B．Las Vegas, America and Banes, Cuba
C．Beijing, China and New York, America
D．Sydney, Australia and Tokyo, Japan
解析：选D。细节理解题。由第四段第二句以及第五段二、三句可知，澳大利亚的悉尼与日本的东京均与美国的纽约为姊妹城市。而非这两个城市为姊妹城市。故选 D项。
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