By Ajarn Helen Jandamit
Photos courtesy of Save With Jamie
University Tips is here to help you prepare for the English exams and tests that are coming your way. It gives you practise answering questions similar to those you may have at school and on the University Entrance Examination.
Read the following story by Suthon Sukphisit from the Bangkok Post. Then, answer the questions that follow.
There are many different kinds of markets. Some are held in the morning, others in the evening. Some are convenient for Bangkok residents and others require travelling some distance to reach.
One market well worth visiting is held in Chiang Mai once a week, on Friday mornings. There are things for sale there that you will probably never find in Bangkok. For this reason, it is a place that visitors to Chiang Mai should not miss.
When the ethnic Chinese come down from their mountaintop villages to set up shops at the market in Chiang Mai city every Friday, they bring with them food that is difficult to find anywhere else in the Kingdom. The popular foods include, for example, peas boiled in salted water, avocados priced at only 30 baht a kilo, and a sweet steamed snack made from fresh corn, beans and sugar. Another recommended choice is Yunnan ham, which is delicious when stir-fried with vegetables.
This market is locally known as Talat Chao Khao (Hilltribe Market) and is located midway between Charoen Prathet and Chang Klan roads. Actually, a better name for it would be the Chinese Market, because the vendors there all come from two Chinese communities.
The first of these is high in the mountains in Wiang Haeng and Chai Prakan districts. These people are descendants of the Kuomintang soldiers from Yunnan province in China. They were driven into Thailand by the Chinese Communists, and they have established many mountaintop villages in Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces. They are now in their third generation and have been granted Thai citizenship.
At midnight on Thursdays, the residents come down from their mountaintop villages and bring the vegetables and other food products to the Chinese market by truck. Usually they begin preparing the goods for sale before dawn on Friday and continue into the afternoon. Then they return home until the following week. The Chinese market has been held in Chiang Mai for more than 10 years.
The second Chinese community that contributes to the market is made up of Chinese Muslims who live in Chiang Mai city, most near the city's most important mosque in Charoen Prathet 1 Road, where they have been living for more than 100 years. These Chinese Muslims were originally known in Thai as Jeen Haw.
There were a number of reasons for this, one being that they were merchants who used donkeys and ma haw (mules) that were strong enough to carry heavy loads across mountainous terrain. Another was that these Chinese could not speak Thai, but were often heard saying a word that sounded like ''haw haw''.
One interesting thing about the Chinese Muslims in the Charoen Prathet 1 community is that although they have typical Chinese physical features and build their homes in a Chinese style, they tend to wear Muslim dress.
Exercises
Section 1
Read through the story. Then, answer the following reading comprehension questions.
1. On which day of the week is the Hilltribe Market held?
a. Mondays.
b. Saturdays.
c. Fridays.
2. Where is the Hilltribe Market located?
a. Between Charoen Prathet and Chang Klan Roads.
b. Between Wiang Haeng and Chai Prakan districts.
c. Near the city's most important mosque on Charoen Prathet 1 Road.
3. Who sells food in the Hilltribe Market?
a. Chinese Muslims who live in Chiang Mai city
b. Descendants of the Kuomintang soldiers
c. Both a and b.
4. According to the author, which of the following best describes the food sold in the Hilltribe Market?
a. Chinese noodles and snacks.
b. Fresh fruits and vegetables.
c. Food that is difficult to find anywhere else in Thailand.
5. Each week, how long do those vendors who are descendants of Kuomintang soldiers stay in Chiang Mai?
a. For more than 10 years.
b. From midnight on Thursday until Friday afternoon.
c. From dawn to noon on Fridays.
6. Each week, how long do those vendors who are Chinese Muslims stay in Chiang Mai?
a. From midnight on Thursday until Friday afternoon.
b. From Monday to Friday.
c. The story does not say.
7. Where did the Kuomintang soldiers come from?
a. The Charoen Prathet 1 community.
b. Yunnan province in China.
c. Villages in Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces.
8. What does the author generally think about the Hilltribe Market?
a. He thinks that the food there is too expensive, tasteless and unclean.
b. He thinks that it is inconvenient to travel from Bangkok to the market.
c. He thinks that the market is unique with various typical foods with some interesting cultural aspects.
Section 2
Read through the story. Then, decide whether the following statements are true or false.
9. In the author’s opinion, Yunnan ham tastes horrible when stir-fried with vegetables.
………………………………….
10. The people who live high in the mountains in Wiang Haeng and Chai Prakan districts have Thai citizenship.
………………………………….
11. At the market, avocados cost 300 baht per kilo.
………………………………….
12. Chinese Muslims in the Charoen Prathet 1 community wear Muslim dress.
………………………………….
Section 3
Read through the following passage. Then, select the correct words from the choices given.
This is just a very small sampling of the …..13….. offerings at the Chinese market on Charoen Prathet 1 Road in Chiang Mai city. …..14….. a short visit will reveal a new aspect of …..15….. culture — which is quite different from that of Chinese communities in Bangkok. …..16…... , there is no need to travel to a remote …..17….. to experience it. The market is situated in the …..18….. of town.
13.
a. fascinated
b. fascinating
c. fascinate
14.
a. If
b. Even
c. Despite
15.
a. Chinas
b. China
c. Chinese
16.
a. Besides
b. Beside
c. Beneath
17.
a. locate
b. location
c. located
18.
a. middle
b. central
c. frontal
Section 4
Read the following sentences. Underline the grammatically correct words from the choices given.
19. You have to travel length/lengthen/long distances to reach there.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
20. Another group/groups/grouping of vendors at the market come from a community of Chinese Muslims who live in Chiang Mai city.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
21. This is the main reason how/why/when visitors should not miss out visiting the market.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Section 5
Match each of the following words used in the story with the correct synonyms or definitions from the choices given.
22. features
a. articles
b. highlights
c. characteristics
23. alone
a. only
b. lonely
c. by yourself
24. fresh
a. still good to eat because it was recently picked or prepared
b. clearly new and different
c. cold and windy
Vocabulary
- mountaintop (n): the top of a mountain
descendant (n): a person’s descendants are their children, their children’s children, and all the people who live after them who are related to them
citizenship (n): the state of being a citizen and accepting the responsibilities of it
mosque (n): a building in which Muslims worship
merchant (n): a person who buys and sells goods in large quantities, especially one who imports and exports goods
