Imagination Stage is a children's theater in the state of Maryland. A special performance is put on for children with autism (自闭症) each day. People with autism have difficulty communcating and socializing with other people. Children in the theater are allowed to move around during the performance. It's OK if they shout out or hold their ears when the music is too loud. These special performances are sometimes the only thing that a family can go to the theater together to see if a child has autism.

    That is the same idea with Autism on the Seas. This company organizes vacations for families of children with autism, especially vacations on cruise ships. Jamie Grover is director of group development in Autism on the Seas. He said, “With our staff on board, parents know that they are going to be able to relax, enjoy their vacation, and participate in ship activities. They know that their children are well taken care of.”

    The benefit of such vacations organized by Autism on the Seas is not waiting in huge lines on departure day. The company has staff to help in the ports. Waiting in long lines or being in the middle of big crowds can cause problem behavior in children with autism. Autism on the Seas helps families avoid situations like that.

    Autism on the Seas works with the help of cruise companies like Royal Caribbean. Special times or places are arranged for families to play video games, go skating or rock climbing, or eat dinner. Autism on the Seas also directs families to organizations that can help them pay for these vacations.

    Bambi Van Woert from the state of Michigan went on a cruise with her 7-year-old Ben, who has autism. She said, “I would never do something like this myself. I cannot take Ben shopping by myself at this point, so for me to try to do a cruise without help would be absurd.”

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

    Actually, long-distance bicycle camping is one of the most pleasurable activities I have ever experienced.

    I generally sleep poorly at night, but in the woods on a tour, I sleep like a baby, falling asleep with the music of insects. In the morning, I am awakened by the cheeps of birds. I eat a snack before getting up, and then I quickly pack my sleeping bag, air mattress (垫), tent, and other things and get on with my road. I'm slower in the morning, having less speed but a greater desire to stop at pleasant spots and enjoy the beautiful scenery. Traveling by bike allows me to stop anywhere, such as grasslands, lakes, woods, and scenic spots. Near lunch, I find a small grocery and buy some bread, sandwiches and fruit. Then I will find a town park or other shady spots to wait out the high mid-day sun. In the afternoon, my speeds are higher, and I spend less time on stops. In the late afternoon, I start riding more slowly, and I start thinking about where I will stop. I finally find a place in the early evening, cook a simple meal and have a rest. As it starts to get dark, I put up my tent, crawl in and fall asleep.

    There are exciting times and difficult times as well. Visiting strange or famous places and accomplishing goals are always exciting to me. I meet and talk with interesting people along the way, sometimes other traveling cyclists. Appreciating beautiful views, meeting wild animals, and traveling up and down hills also. On the other hand, I may run into a rainy or hot spell(一段时间), have to repair my bike, or just find myself in a bad mood. The problems are infrequent and are easy to deal with. The pleasures remain in my mind for years.

    We all love bank holidays. In the UK, we only get eight bank holidays in one year, and at least five of those occur around Christmas time and Easter time! A bank holiday is a British English term. This is an official day that is decided by the government, when banks, shops and offices close for the day even though it's a weekday—usually a Monday, and a lot of people have a day off work.

    Bank holidays are different in Colombia—firstly, they are called “festivos”. There are twenty festivos for the whole country in one year! In Britain ，people get more holiday allowance(津贴)than Colombians but fewer bank holidays. There can be even more festivos in Colombia, depending on which region of Colombia you live in. This is because different regions have their own holidays. For example, some regions have a patron saint(守护神) in their region, so they have an extra festivo to celebrate that saint.

    However, there are some days that are national holidays for historical reasons. There is an Independence Day celebration on July 20 every year. This is just like Bastille Day in France on July 14, or Independence Day in the United States on July 4. Other important festivos in Colombia are :Labour Day, on May 1, and Columbus Day on October 12. Columbus Day is a historical bank holiday that almost every county on the continent of America celebrates. This includes Colombia, Chile, Peru, Argentina, Mexico and the United States. It is a memorialization of the day that the Italian sailor, Christopher Columbus, first reached land on the continent in the year 1492. Many people criticize this day and say it is not something to celebrate because of the way Columbus and his teams treated the people that were already living there.

    There is a story about a man who lost his legs and left arm in an accident. After the accident, only a finger and thumb on his right hand remained.

    He was a brilliant, creative, and educated man. He had gained a lot of experience while traveling around the world, so he became very depressed after his accident. He was afraid that he would spend the rest of his life suffering and would no longer be able to spend his life in a meaningful way. Then, he realized that he still had partial function of his right hand and could still write even though it was very difficult. An idea occurred to him. "Why not write to other people who need encouragement?"

    He wrote to the prison ministry about sending letters to the prisoners. The prison minister replied, "Writing to the prisoners is acceptable, but your letters will not be answered."

    Filled with excitement, the man knew he could write his letters. He began sending one-way messages of God's love, hope, strength, and encouragement. He wrote twice a week, testing his strength and ability to the limit. He poured his heart and soul into his words and shared his experience, sense of humor, optimism, and faith.

    It was difficult to write those letters, especially without hope of a reply. One day he received a letter from the prison ministry. It was a short note from the officer who monitored and checked the prison mail.

    The letter said, "Please write on the best paper you can afford. Your letters are passed from cell to cell until they literally fall to pieces!"

    No matter what circumstances life may present, we all have unique experiences, abilities, and God-given talents. We can discover ways to reach others who desperately need messages of encouragement and strength.

    “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” Similarly, if we drink a little more water every day, we may find that we need to go to the doctor a lot less often. A healthy diet is made up of water and a great many different kinds of foods. We know that healthy foods like fruits, vegetables and fish, are important as they provide us with energy and fiber, without giving us too much fat and sugar. But why is water important?

    The human body needs water to survive. Water is important as it carries poisons and waste out of our bodies. However, doctors advise us to drink plenty of water, much more than the small amount we need to stay alive.

    Some doctors believe that water is important for our health in all kinds of ways. They believe that a great many illnesses and health problems start as a result of dehydration(脱水)—a lack of water in the body. Most people are dehydrated at least some of time, although they probably don't know it. It is surprising to learn that if we feel thirsty, we are already in the first stage of dehydration. In fact, we are advised to drink water before we feel thirsty.

    These doctors think that health problems such as headaches, high blood pressure and asthma(哮喘) could be helped if people drink more water. They also believe that drinking more water can help people who are overweight. Water contains no calories so it will not make us put on weight. If we drink water, we will probably drink less sugary soft drinks such as Coca-cola. Doctors also believe that drinking more water may stop people from overeating. They say that many people think that they are hungry when they are, in fact, thirsty. Doctors suggest, therefore, that we eat less food and drink more water. There are still many health problems that cannot be solved by drinking water, so we should not stop going to seeing the doctor completely. However, if we make a decision to drink water every day, we may find that we need to go to the doctor a lot less often.

Explore Nice in France - how car travel makes for a memorable holiday.

A classic option to explore the celebrated city of France, such as Nice is through hard travel. Cruising through the South of France, there are museums and restaurants to experience. Visiting these attractions is most convenient with a car. As hiring a car in Nice from the airport is simple. One can sit back and drive through the wonderful country lands without a care in the world. The west side has small hills while the east extends to the Mediterranean Sea. Peaceful vineyards, quiet villages at a rich life awaits you if you drive through the countryside.

Restaurants

The kitchen delights that Nice offers are the cities chief attraction. The Cours Saleya market, offers fine delicacies while sipping the Provencal wine is another soothing experience. Overall, Coted' Azur can be put as the gastronomic capital of France.

Beaches

Being along the coastline，Nice offers some really warm and relaxing beaches to its tourists lined with cosy seaside apartments and hotels.

Tips for Hiring a Car

Choose a car which can easily accommodate you and your family without being too big-- Traffic can be a major issue in some cities.

A GPS navigation system aids in traveling without getting lost and also helps in saving time.

Check with various number of car hire companies for the different prices so that you do not end up with an expensive package. Traveling to France has perhaps been on the wish lists of every travel-hungry person. And you can make your trip even more memorable by traveling through the country in the car.