语篇提能
Ⅰ.阅读理解
Town twinning is also known as partnering towns or sister cities. It refers to the idea of pairing cities across the world as a way to build human and cultural links(联系) among nations. The first official(官方的) town twinning happened in 1930 between the cities of Klagenfurt, Austria and Wiesbaden, Germany. However, town twinning actually didn't become popular until after WW Ⅱ.
Developed in Europe as a way of creating friendship and understanding between the countries suffering from the war, town twinning quickly spread outside Europe as well. In 1944, Vancouver became the first city to be paired with a transatlantic(横渡大西洋的) sister city, when it was linked to Odessa, in Ukraine. The pairing was a great way for both cities to provide support to each other during the war.
Town twinning is considered so important that the European Union spends about 12 million Euros a year to support it. This often leads to cultural exchange, trades and student exchanges.
Town twinning often pairs cities with a lot in common, such as similar population, same names, or similar development problems. For example, Toledo, Spain and Toledo, America, are twin cities. Certain countries have preferences when choosing cities. For example, 50 percent of the town twinnings founded in the United Kingdom are with France.
There're no agreed rules as to the number of town twinnings a city can have. For example, the city of Las
