B1 Reading Practice Test 1

Lena had been looking forward to the trip for months. Her grandmother lived in Vienna, and this was the first time Lena was travelling there on her own. Everything went smoothly until the train from Munich stopped for forty minutes because of a signal problem. When it finally arrived in Salzburg, her connecting train had already left. Lena felt worried. The next train was not until nine o'clock, and her phone battery was almost dead. She sat down on a bench and tried to stay calm. Next to her, a boy of about her age was reading a map. "Are you waiting for the Vienna train too?" he asked in English. His name was Marek, and he was from Prague. They started talking, and they soon discovered that they both loved the same band. Marek lent her his charger, so she could call her grandmother and explain what had happened. When the evening train finally came in, the two of them found seats together. Although Lena was tired, she realised that the delay hadn't ruined her day. She had made a new friend, and she wrote in her notebook: "Sometimes the best part of a trip is the part you don't plan."

Octopuses are among the cleverest animals in the sea, even though they have no bones and live alone. Scientists who study them have been amazed by what they can do. In laboratories, octopuses have learned to open jars to reach food inside. Some have even worked out how to unscrew the lid from the inside. In an aquarium, one octopus found a way out of its tank at night, crept across the floor and ate fish from a neighbouring tank. The next morning, the staff were puzzled until they installed a camera. Octopuses also use tools. In the wild, some have been seen carrying half coconut shells and hiding under them, like a portable shelter. Others block the entrance to their home with stones. Part of their intelligence is due to their bodies. An octopus has about two thirds of its neurons in its arms, so each arm can partly decide what to do on its own. This means that an octopus can taste and touch with its arms while its brain is thinking about something else. Unlike many animals, octopuses don't live long. Most species live only one to three years, so they cannot learn from their parents. Everything they know, they have to find out for themselves.

Subject: Your booking at Sunny Hostel, Lisbon Dear Ms Yıldız, Thank you for booking a bed in a four-bed dormitory at Sunny Hostel for three nights, from the fourteenth to the seventeenth of August. This email confirms your reservation. Check-in is possible from two o'clock in the afternoon. If you expect to arrive after ten o'clock at night, please let us know in advance, because the reception desk closes at that time. We can also arrange a late key for you. Check-out is at eleven o'clock in the morning, but you are welcome to leave your luggage in our storage room until the evening. Breakfast, which is included in the price, is served between half past seven and ten. We provide bread, fruit, cereal and coffee, and there is also a kitchen where guests can cook their own meals. Sheets are included, but you will have to bring your own towel or hire one for two euros. The hostel is a ten-minute walk from the central station. We are looking forward to welcoming you. If you need to change or cancel your booking, you must contact us at least forty-eight hours before arrival, otherwise you may have to pay for the first night. Kind regards, Marta Silva Guest Services