Page 40 - Index

2023 ‫מועד חורף‬ - 39 - ‫ פרק ראשון‬- ‫אנגלית‬

Reading Comprehension

This part consists of two passages, each followed by several related questions. For each
question, choose the most appropriate answer based on the text.

Text I (Questions 13-17)

(1) In today's world of fast, efficient communication such as email and WhatsApp, why
would anyone bother with stamps and envelopes? Indeed, "snail mail" – as the regular
postal system is often called – may eventually become obsolete. Some post offices have
radically streamlined the services they provide or have closed altogether. However, a

(5) few are flourishing – thanks to their surprising locations.

One of the most unusual post offices is found in Vanuatu, a country comprising
many islands in the South Pacific Ocean. Located in Hideaway Island Marine
Sanctuary, the world's first underwater post office lies fifty meters offshore and three
meters below the water's surface. A flag flown above the site announces when the

(10) postal workers – trained divers who swim to work wearing scuba equipment – are on
duty. An estimated 100,000 tourists have used the post office since its opening in 2003.
Visitors who choose to dive can purchase waterproof postcards on shore and swim out
to mail them (non-divers have the option of placing them in a mailbox located in a
hotel). Vanuatu Post encourages visitors to literally look below the surface.

(15) Another postal facility that owes its fame to its location is the Penguin Post Office,
the most popular tourist attraction in Antarctica. Run by the United Kingdom Antarctic
Heritage Trust, the world's southernmost post office is situated at Port Lockroy, on tiny
Wiencke Island, 1100 kilometers from the tip of South America. The post office
operates only during the four months of summer, when thousands of tourists arrive on

(20) cruise ships to enjoy Antarctica's natural beauty, watch Port Lockroy's huge colony of
gentoo penguins in action, and send postcards – 80,000 annually – to relatives and
friends back home. The four-person staff is replaced every year. Despite the remote
location, cold weather, minimal salary, and crude living conditions, more than fifty
people eagerly apply each year to the Heritage Trust for the privilege of undergoing this

(25) singular experience.

Questions

13. What do the two post offices described in the text have in common?

(1) They are in convenient locations.
(2) They provide a unique experience.
(3) They may soon have to close.
(4) They have streamlined their services.

)‫© כל הזכויות שמורות למרכז ארצי לבחינות ולהערכה (ע"ר‬
.‫ בלא אישור בכתב מהמרכז הארצי לבחינות ולהערכה‬- ‫ כולה או חלקים ממנה‬- ‫ או ללמדה‬,‫אין להעתיק או להפיץ בחינה זו או קטעים ממנה בכל צורה ובכל אמצעי‬