Damascus Reading Answers

Damascus Reading Answers contains 13 questions and belongs to the assessment system of the IELTS General Reading test. Damascus reading section must be answered within 20 minutes. In this IELTS reading passage, you'll encounter question types like Choose the correct letter and Choose one word only. Also, Damascus Reading Answers explores the adventurous life of Freya Stark. To practice reading comprehension passages like this one, candidates are encouraged to explore the IELTS Reading Practice Test section.

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Topic:

Freya Stark was a British explorer and writer who had several works published about her travels in the Middle East and Afghanistan, as well as autobiographies and essays. Born in Paris in 1 893, Freya Stark was raised in Italy and England. As a child, she spoke several languages and her upbringing included many outdoor pursuits, like horse riding and mountaineering. With her mother and grandmother as role models, she developed into an unconventional woman who was as at home in elegant salons as she was able to handle hardship and physical exertion.

In 1912, Stark started studying history in London but left for Bologna, Italy, at the beginning of the First World War, to work as a nurse.

In 1918, her father gave her a small estate in Mortola on the Riviera in northern Italy, where she grew grapes, vegetables and flowers.

But she often travel led to England to take Arabic language courses at the School of Oriental and African Studies. She was nearly thirty by this time. A professor had suggested that she try a non-European language: he recommended Icelandic. Stark, who had been struggling to make a living on the farm in Italy, chose Arabic in the hope that it might provide an opportunity to get away. She had developed a desire to travel to the Middle East and, to this end, applied for the role of governess for the Iraqi princesses at the court of Baghdad, Iraq, but was not successful.

In 1927, she travelled to Lebanon and then on to Damascus, Syria. Travel in the area was restricted at the time, so Stark set off from Damascus in secret on a donkey with a local guide and an English female friend, who had come to join the trip. Stark took pride in travelling without servants or extra belongings, comparing herself favourably in this regard to writer and explorer Gertrude Bell, an Oxford-educated aristocrat who had completed a similar trip with three baggage mules, two tents and three servants. Stark considered herself a more intrepid traveller.

After this, Stark returned to London and went to the Royal Geographical Society to take drawing courses so that she would be able to make her own maps on future trips. In 1 929, she set off again for the Middle East and in 1 930, Stark reached Persia (now known as Iran). She visited the Valleys of the Assassins, at the time still unexplored by Europeans, and carried out geographical and archaeological studies. On the back of a mule, with a camp bed and a mosquito net, and accompanied by a local guide, Freya Stark rode to the valleys near Alamut to see ruins of a mountain fortress castle which had not yet been recorded on her map. Despite malaria, dengue fever and dysentery, she carried on with her trip and her studies.

Stark's books present a combination of adventure and harsh reality. In The Southern Gates of Arabia she tells of following the ancient trade route for the perfumed substance frankincense in the area that is present-day Yemen. Unfortunately, she had to turn back without realising the goal she had set of finding the legendary lost city of Shabwa. In 1944, Stark spent time in New Delhi, India at the court of the British viceroy. During political discussions there she met renowned politicians, Gandhi and Nehru. She was a regular guest at parties and official functions, where she became known for her extravagant clothes as well as her life of adventure.

While she did not make any huge new discoveries as an explorer, Freya Stark gained a high degree of respect for her sharp observations and compelling tales of her travels. She was able to accurately record unmarked villages and mountains, using compass points and photographs, but people read her books for the descriptions of the journey. Often Stark would be the only European woman to have visited the places she travelled to, and often she discovered that the only people available to speak with her were the women. Stark might have approached women as a way of gaining trust and reaching powerful men, but over time she got specialised knowledge of the domestic arrangements, costumes and children's lives in these places thanks to her contact with women.

Stark was not especially interested in politics, beyond a desire to remedy the injustices she saw first-hand on her travels. Her main interest was archaeology. However, her later books such as Rome on the Euphrates, which came out in 1 966, was criticised at the time for being overloaded with history and less in the genre of travel book, which is what readers seemed to want from her. Her last significant trip was to Afghanistan, in 1 968, when she was 75. She went to see a 12th-century minaret that had only shortly beforehand been discovered by archaeologists. Stark kept writing throughout her 80s and early 90s (four volumes of autobiography and eight volumes of letters), the last of which was published in 1 985 when she was 93. She travelled until she was 92 and lived to be 1 00 years of age.

Towards her final years, she took many of her godchildren on trips to inspire and educate them, telling them what she had learned from those she met along the way. Freya Stark produced 22 books in her lifetime and serves as an inspiration to travel writers to this day.

Questions 28-32

Look at the following statements (Questions 28-32) and the list of places below. Match each statement with the correct place, A-F. Write the correct letter A-F.

NB you may use any letter more than once.

28. Stark attended many social events.

Supporting statement: "She was a regular guest at parties and official functions..."

Keywords: attended many social events

Keyword Location: Paragraph 6

Explanation: In New Delhi, Stark joined the viceroy’s court and participated in political discussions and numerous formal functions and parties.

29. Stark suffered from poor health.

Supporting statement: "Despite malaria, dengue fever and dysentery, she carried on with her trip…"

Keywords: poor health

Keyword Location: Paragraph 5

Explanation: During her trip to Alamut, Stark was affected by several serious illnesses but persisted in her exploration, showing resilience despite poor health.

30. Stark failed to gain employment.

Supporting statement: "…applied for the role of governess for the Iraqi princesses at the court of Baghdad… but was not successful."

Keywords: failed, employment

Keyword Location: Paragraph 3

Explanation: She attempted to work as a governess in Baghdad but was unsuccessful, reflecting a failed job opportunity.

31. Stark learnt a craft that would help her on her journeys.

Supporting statement: "…went to the Royal Geographical Society to take drawing courses…"

Keywords: learnt, help on journeys

Keyword Location: Paragraph 5

Explanation: Stark took drawing lessons in London to aid in creating maps during future travels, a skill useful for her expeditions.

32. Stark had to leave without achieving her purpose.

Supporting statement: "…she had to turn back without realising the goal she had set of finding the legendary lost city…"

Keywords: leave, without achieving

Keyword Location: Paragraph 6

Explanation: In Yemen, Stark was forced to abandon her attempt to find the lost city of Shabwa, making it an unfulfilled mission.

LIST OF PLACES

A. Baghdad

B. London

C. Alamut

D. Yemen

E. New Delhi

F. Afghanistan

Questions 33-34

Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

33. What influenced Stark's decision to learn Arabic? NE

A. An academic advised her to choose that particular language.

B. She planned to accompany a friend to the Middle East.

C. She wanted to escape her situation at the time.

D. The language had always held an interest for her.

Supporting statement: "…chose Arabic in the hope that it might provide an opportunity to get away."

Keywords: decision, learn Arabic

Keyword Location: Paragraph 3

Explanation: Stark's life on the farm was difficult, and she hoped that learning Arabic would help her leave that situation, showing her desire for change.

34. How did Stark compare herself to Gertrude Bell?

A. She made the journey from Damascus to Syria in less time than Bell did.

B. She took less baggage on her trip than Bell took.

C. She had a better education than Bell had.

D. She took a more exciting route from Damascus than Bell took.

Supporting statement: "…Bell... completed a similar trip with three baggage mules... Stark considered herself a more intrepid traveller."

Keywords: compare, Gertrude Bell

Keyword Location: Paragraph 4

Explanation: Stark prided herself on her minimalist travel style compared to Bell’s use of many supplies and servants.

Questions 35-36

Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

35. What does the writer say about Freya Stark as an explorer?

A. She was the first to find some major landmarks.

B. She deserved more recognition than she received.

C. She produced interesting accounts of her expeditions.

D. She drew some unreliable maps.

Supporting statement: "people read her books for the descriptions of the journey."

Keywords: explorer

Keyword Location: Paragraph 7

Explanation: Though she didn’t make major discoveries, Stark’s value lay in her compelling travel narratives, which attracted readers.

36. According to the writer, why did Stark become an expert on the lives of women in the places she went to?

A. She gained access to women more easily than to men.

B. She was more interested in the lives of women than of men.

C. She met them while studying their traditional costumes.

D. She was introduced to local women by other female travellers.

Supporting statement: "…the only people available to speak with her were the women…"

Keywords: expert, lives of women

Keyword Location: Paragraph 7

Explanation: Because she often couldn't speak with local men, she connected with women, allowing her to gain insight into their daily lives.

Questions 37-40

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the text for each answer.

FREYA STARK'S LATER YEARS

Stark's book Rome on the Euphrates was said to focus too heavily on 37......

Supporting statement: "…was criticised at the time for being overloaded with history…"

Keywords: focus too heavily

Keyword Location: Paragraph 8

Explanation: Her later book, Rome on the Euphrates, was criticized for containing too much history rather than travel writing.

rather than what her audience had come to expect. Stark's motivation for going to Afghanistan when she was 75 was to visit an ancient 38…………….

Supporting statement: "…to see a 12th-century minaret that had only shortly beforehand been discovered…"

Keywords: visit, ancient

Keyword Location: Paragraph 8

Explanation: At age 75, Stark visited Afghanistan to see a newly discovered minaret from the 12th century.

In her old age, she continued to publish collections of 39……....

Supporting statement: "…four volumes of autobiography and eight volumes of letters…"

Keywords: collections

Keyword Location: Paragraph 8

Explanation: Alongside her autobiographies, Stark published volumes of her personal letters later in life.

along with books about her life. She was often accompanied by her 40…….. when she travelled.

Supporting statement: "…took many of her godchildren on trips to inspire and educate them…"

Keywords: accompanied, travelled

Keyword Location: Paragraph 9

Explanation: In her later years, Stark often travelled with her godchildren to pass on her knowledge and passion for travel.

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