Some Places To Visit – IELTS Reading Answers

A Beautiful Kingsley House was built in the 18th century, and all the rooms are decorated and furnished in the style of the time. They include the dining room, study and dressing room, which contains a display of 18th-century ladies’ clothing. Our volunteer guides in each room bring the house to life with stories of the past.

B The Africa Museum was founded 50 years ago, and to commemorate the event, we have chosen 50 treasures from the permanent collection and put them together to tell the fascinating story of that continent. This exhibition continues until the end of the year. The Folk Art Gallery opens to the public next month, exhibiting traditional paintings and other objects from all over Africa.

C From the outside, 17 Mansfield Street may not look particularly exciting, but come inside, and you’ll find yourself in a historic building that started life as a theatre, before becoming a bank and then a restaurant, which is still in operation. On Sundays and Mondays, when the restaurant is closed, a guide is available to show you round the building and its fascinating architectural features.

D The Industrial Heritage Centre tells the fascinating story of a local family firm. Mr John Carroll started his engineering business in this building exactly 150 years ago. The firm closed in 1969, but the factory has been re-created, with machines like those that Mr Carroll was familiar with. See what working life could be like in the 19th century, a life far removed from the elegance of the wealthy.

E The Fashion Museum has only just opened. It is home to an outstanding collection of more than 30,000 objects worn by men, women and children, dating from the 17th century to the present day. You’ll see how people used to dress! As well as the permanent exhibits, you can currently see Dressing the Stars, which displays original costumes worn by the stars of many popular films.

F Having spent the best part of two years being refurbished, the Mason Museum has recently opened its doors again. It provides a magnificent setting for its art collection and for the beautiful 18th-century furniture for which the Mason is famous. Open Mondays to Fridays 10-4, and weekends 10-6.

Questions 1-8

1 clothes that well-known people have worn

2 a display that cannot be seen yet

3 people who talk in an entertaining way

4 the museum having just reopened

5 a building that has changed its function several times

6 furniture of the same kind that was used when the building was new

7 being open for tours on certain days of the week

8 a special event to mark an anniversary

Reading Answers

1 Answer: E

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph E, line 3 – line 5

Answer explanation: The mentioned line from Paragraph E says that “As well as the permanent exhibits, you can currently see Dressing the Stars, which displays original costumes worn by the stars of many popular films.” This indicates that The Fashion Museum exhibits clothes that well-known people have worn. Hence the answer is E.

2 Answer: B

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph B, line 3 – line 5

Answer explanation: The stated line from Paragraph B says that “The Folk Art Gallery opens to the public next month, exhibiting traditional paintings and other objects from all over Africa.” This suggests that the displays in the Folk Art Gallery cannot be seen yet as it is still not open to the public. Hence the answer is B.

3 Answer: A

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph A, line 3 – line 4

Answer explanation: The concluding line from Paragraph A says that “Our volunteer guides in each room bring the house to life with stories of the past.” From this, we can infer that the volunteer guides talk in an entertaining way which makes the past stories come to life. Hence the answer is A.

4 Answer: F

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph F, line 1 – line 2

Answer explanation: The introductory line from Paragraph F says that “ Having spent the best part of two years being refurbished, the Mason Museum has recently opened its doors again.” This clearly shows that the Mason Museum was just reopened (recently opened doors again). Hence the answer is F.

5 Answer: C

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph C, line 1 – line 3

Answer explanation: The mentioned line from Paragraph C says that “ From the outside, 17 Mansfield Street may not look particularly exciting, but come inside, and you’ll find yourself in a historic building that started life as a theatre, before becoming a bank and then a restaurant, which is still in operation.” This clearly shows that the building has changed its function several times as it started as a theatre, changed to a bank, became a restaurant later and currently functions as a historic building. Hence the answer is C.

6 Answer: A

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph A, line 1 – line 2

Answer explanation: The beginning line from Paragraph A says that “ Beautiful Kingsley House was built in the 18th century, and all the rooms are decorated and furnished in the style of the time.” This suggests that furniture has been kept the same as when the building was new and so displays the 18th century decoration. Hence the answer is A.

7 Answer: C

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph C, line 3 – line 5

Answer explanation: The following line from Paragraph C says that “ On Sundays and Mondays, when the restaurant is closed, a guide is available to show you round the building and its fascinating architectural features.” This indicates that this museum is open for tours on certain days of the week, i.e., on Sundays and Mondays. Hence the answer is C.

8 Answer: B

Question type: Matching Information

Answer location: Paragraph B, line 1 – line 3

Answer explanation: The specified line from Paragraph B says that “The Africa Museum was founded 50 years ago, and to commemorate the event, we have chosen 50 treasures from the permanent collection and put them together to tell the fascinating story of that continent.” From this, we can understand that the Africa Museum has organized a special event to commemorate fifty years (golden jubilee) of the establishment of the museum. Hence the answer is B.