PE-MC-EAE Page 1/2

Created by Yolanda Cabr under Materials created by Sorina Monica Andrei under

This worksheet can be freely used and modified mentioning its source.

Unit - Travelling to... Assessment Key

II. Listening Text audio The Topkapi palace from Istanbul is one of the most famous landmarks of the city, situated in the Golden Horn - the historic part of the city, the centre of the Byzantine and the Ottoman Empires and the place where all political power was concentrated for more than 1000 years. It is the palace where the sultans lived and ruled the Ottoman Empire, where they stayed with their harem, women, children and servants. It is the place where the sultans met the great leaders of the empire and took important decisions about ruling or starting a new war. It was ordered by a sultan in 1459 and finished in only 6 years, being the residence of the Ottoman sultans for about 400 years. The palace has an impressive entrance and the gardens are open to the Bosphorous strait, being easy to observe from here not only the rest of the city on both continents, but also the ships in the strait. The actual palace was formed of 4 main courtyards, one within the other, first there was the part where the sultan met the political leaders of the empire, the viziers, the chief military officials, the religious leaders; then the private courtyards where the harem was, where the sultan lived and where the whole household was situated with kitchens, servants and rest; here nobody from the official courtyard could enter. There were also mosques, a hospital, bakeries, a mint and also a Byzantine cistern in the second courtyard. The residents rarely had to venture outside the palace since it functioned autonomously as a city within a city. The buildings host today some exhibitions of the objects which belonged once to the sultans: clothes, swords, guns, jewelry, gifts etc. There is also a mosque inside where the prayers are heard all the time. The architecture of the palace is interesting, but the most impressive is the decoration of the walls and ceilings, the detailed decorations in coloured stones, paintings and carved wood.

Answer key: 1-T, 2-F, 3-T, 4-F, 5-T, 6-T, 7-T, 8-F, 9-T, 10-F.

PE-MC-EAE Page 2/2

Created by Yolanda Cabr under Materials created by Sorina Monica Andrei under

This worksheet can be freely used and modified mentioning its source.

III. Reading

Answer key: 1-a, 2-b, 3-c, 4-a, 5-a, 6-c, 7-b, 8-c.

Tags: grammar, travelling, free time activities, shopping, weather, likes/dislikes, simple phrasal verbs