— THE MAGIC OF THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO. Santiago de Compostela is the destination of thousands of pilgrims who walk a 1,000-year-old pilgrimage trail with different starting points all over Europe. If you are ever in a town on the Santiago Way and see strangers wearing trekking boots and carrying a heavy 'convenience store' rucksack, you can be sure that they are pilgrims. After the long exhausting daily walk, they usually meet with their fellow pilgrims in a humble hostel and there is one main question that always arises: 'Why?' The answer usually comes after they've shared a bottle (or two) of wine at a crowded table, the exhaustion of the day almost forgotten in the well-being of a full stomach and the camaraderie around them.
The reasons for making the pilgrimage may vary: there are those who walk with religious intent, hoping to have a spiritual experience. There are other reasons like 'disconnecting', as the walking routine helps pilgrims to switch off from work and detox from the mobile phone and digital habits. It is also said that many pilgrims go to the Camino to flirt: some pilgrims have been fortunate enough to fall in love on the journey and return home with the love of their life.
One of the many moving stories along the way is that of Joao, a troublesome 18-year-old boy and Holger, a social pedagogue from Osnabrück in Germany, who helps teenagers who cannot find their way and place in society. They both set off from Pamplona and hiked side-by-side for 7 days until Holger had to take a flight back to Germany due to some family issues. So Joao had to continue his journey by himself. He got over several difficulties like a serious fever, falls and injuries, but thanks to the kindness of other pilgrims who helped him on the way, 775km later Joao stood proudly and happily with his certificate in front of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. He achieved his goal and this changed his life upside down.
According to Holger, it is the perfect metaphor for what life is like, as it turns out to be a great way to teach teenagers valuable lessons in life: 'You have to undertake the journey on your own and nobody will walk the way for you but many people along the way will be there to assist you! You have to take different steps, face several challenges and walk towards one big goal: Santiago de Compostela!'
Answer these questions about the text. Use your own words wherever possible (2 points, 1 each).
a. Why did two Apple investors write to the company? -- (NOTE: enunciado original) ¿Razones para hacer el Camino?
b. Explain the metaphor Holger uses to compare life and the Santiago Way.

Read the following statements, decide whether they are true or false and justify your answer by quoting evidence from the text (1 point, 0,50 each).
a. The pilgrims don't usually talk about their personal issues unless they have had food and drink together in a relaxing atmosphere.
b. Joao's life radically changed after the Camino.

Find in the text the word or group of words which match these definitions (1 point, 0,20 each).
a. A shop stocking household goods and groceries (paragraph 1).
b. Fatigue (paragraph 1).
c. A person that causes a lot of problems (paragraph 2).
d. Departed (paragraph 2).
e. Useful, helpful (paragraph 4).

Complete the text using the correct words from the box below. There are 2 words that you won't need (2 points, 0,25 each).
'Strangers on the Earth', a new documentary film about the Camino de Santiago, will be (a) ______ in New York and Los Angeles (b) ______ September. It is a deeply moving documentary film about Europe's (c) ______ popular pilgrimage, 'the Camino de Santiago'. It debuts in the US after storming across the international festival circuit to (d) ______ acclaim. "Strangers on the Earth" examines the inner life of the several intrepid wayfarers who walk the ancient path in search (e) ______ meaning, notably including Cleveland Orchestra cellist Dane Johansen, (f) ______ ventured to walk the 600-mile path with his instrument on his back, performing Bach for his fellow travellers in local churches (g) ______ the way. The film (h) ______ considers the Camino in the general and the many reasons people all over the world undertake the journey.
BOX: ALONG · MOST · WHO · THE NEXT · ALSO · MUCH · OF · RELEASED · NEXT · THAT

Write a composition of around 150-200 words on ONE of the following topics (4 points).
a. Imagine you walked the Camino last summer. Write a blog post describing your experience. Include a funny/weird/sad anecdote that happened to you (you can talk about places, people, food, landscapes, etc.).
b. Would you like to take part in a pilgrimage? If so, explain why.

— AMELIA EARHART. Amelia Earhart was born in Kansas in 1.897. She defied traditional gender roles from the start. Earhart delighted in defying the expectations placed on young women. As a child, she climbed trees, hunted rats with a rifle and kept a scrapbook of newspaper cuttings about accomplished women. She took a car mechanics course, and when aged 23, she was taken up in a plane, as a passenger, on a 10-minute air show joy ride in 1.920. Years later, talking about this experience she said: "As soon as I left the ground, I knew I myself had to fly.". She paid for her flying lessons with jobs that included being a truck driver. Shortly after completing her first solo flight in 1.921, Earhart bought a second-hand Kinner Airster biplane, painted it bright yellow and nicknamed it "The Canary". The next year she flew the Canary up to 14,000 feet, the world altitude record at the time for female pilots.
The publicist George Putnam became her manager and — eventually — her husband. He proposed six times before she said yes. On the morning of February 7th, 1.931, their wedding day, she sent him a letter. "Dear George. I didn't want to marry you because I didn't want to give up my life to live in a cage. Finally, we will marry but, please, let us not interfere with each other's work." George complied with her wishes and fifteen months after their wedding, on May 21st, 1.932, Amelia became the first woman to complete a solo, non-stop flight across the Atlantic.
The New York Times hailed her 1.932 Atlantic crossing with the headline, "Mrs Putnam flies Atlantic in record time". Immediately, she wrote to the newspaper's publisher politely asking to be known professionally, not by reference to her husband, but as Amelia Earhart. When the newspaper complied, she gave them a photo for the boardroom, and she signed it "Amelia Earhart (Putnam)".
During a flight to circumnavigate the globe, Earhart disappeared somewhere over the Pacific in July 1.937. Her plane wreckage was never found, and she was officially declared lost at sea. Amelia Earhart survives in the memory of her deeds and in words which even now have the power to inspire anyone, of whatever gender.
Answer these questions about the text. Use your own words wherever possible (2 points, 1 each).
a. What event sparked Amelia's interest in flying?
b. Why did Amelia write to the New York Times' publisher?

Read the following statements, decide whether they are true or false and justify your answer by quoting evidence from the text (1 point, 0,50 each).
a. Amelia's husband interfered with her career.
b. Amelia's plane appeared but her body was never found.

Find in the text the word or group of words which match these definitions (1 point, 0,20 each).
a. Refused to obey or follow, challenged (paragraph 1).
b. Successful in doing something (paragraph 1).
c. Gave an informal and familiar name (paragraph 1).
d. From one side to the opposite side (paragraph 2).
e. Things that somebody does (paragraph 4).

Complete the text using the correct words from the box below. There are 2 words that you won't need (2 points, 0,25 each).
Women often leave male-dominated fields as a result of exclusionary processes. (a) ______ men are often welcomed by their female colleagues (c) ______ believe that recruiting men will raise the status and pay of their profession. Why, then, do men exit from female jobs (d) ______ rapidly after entry? Findings point to the existence of gender-specific social pressures derived from expectations about stereotypically male attributes (e) ______ as ambitiousness, competitiveness, dominance, and economic leadership. These pressures lead some men to say that they (f) ______ endure unemployment (g) ______ accept a relatively high-paying women's job and suffer social stigma. Alternatively, these pressures can influence (h) ______ men who have decided to enter the female workplace to exit. The end result is the perpetuation of occupational gender segregation.
BOX: ON THE CONTRARY · BY · THAN · WHO · ALTHOUGH · IN ADDITION · SUCH · WOULD RATHER · THOSE · SO

Write a composition of around 150-200 words on ONE of the following topics (4 points).
a. Express your opinion on the following idea: Life is easier if you don't break the rules.
b. Write a story with the following title: "The most daring experience of my life".