Make Your Way 6, Schulbuch mit Audio-CD und CD-ROM

Now read the page about Route 66 from Jackie’s travel guide and choose the correct answers to the questions. (You may also want to take another look at the map.) 2 The legendary Route 66 was first commissioned in 1926. The idea was to build a true highway to link the east and west sides of the USA by using bits and pieces of existing roads and building new roads to connect them. In 1926, only 800 miles (1,280 km) of the road were paved. It took until 1937 to pave it from start to finish. Route 66 starts in Chicago and finishes in Santa Monica, Los Angeles. It’s an amazing 2,448 miles long (that’s about 4,000 km). It crosses eight states (Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California) and three time zones. When it’s midday at the start of the road, it’s only 10 am at the finish. The road has several different nicknames. The man responsible for the original planning of the road, Cyrus Stevens Avery, referred to it as “The Main Street of America”. John Steinbeck, one of America’s most popular novelists from the 1930s to the 1960s, called it “the mother road”. Both names are still used. Unfortunately, the road no longer officially exists. It was decommissioned in 1985, and modern maps do not include a Route 66. Over the years it’s been replaced by the inter- state highways I-55, I-44, I-40, I-15 and I-10. However, parts of the original road still exist and have been lovingly preserved. Adventurous travellers can still find parts of the old road lying forgotten in the desert. The road represents a golden romantic era in American history – a time of travel and free- dom, of teenagers cruising in their Cadillacs listening to rock ’n’ roll. There are many Route 66 associations dedicated to preserving its memory. But it’s not just Americans who are fascinated by the road. Many foreigners make the journey to the US to travel along its route. There are even Route 66 associations in Canada, Belgium, France and Norway which arrange yearly trips to explore the road. Europeans are particularly taken by it. Where in Europe can you travel 4,000 km and still be in the same country? It’s also a really convenient way to explore the country outside the big cities and meet small town America. Nowhere else in the world has a road captured the imagination of so many. 1 Route 66 was a a mixture of old and new roads. b a completely new road. c a road consisting of 66 individual stretches. d an old road renovated. 2 In 1937, the road was a ready to use. b 800 miles long. c completely surfaced. d only partly paved. 4 In 1985, Route 66 a ceased to exist. b was rebuilt. c was made into a highway. d was put on most modern maps. 3 Which of these states had the shortest stretch? a Oklahoma b California c Texas d Kansas 6 Many Europeans are fascinated by the road because a it avoids small towns. b they love America. c it’s so long. d it doesn’t go through any big cities. 5 For many Americans, Route 66 a was the quickest way to get across the country. b symbolised a great period of American history. c was a great setting for rock ’n’ roll videos. d had too much traffic on it. 103 5 Extensive unit 5: Route 66 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv