浪漫水都：威尼斯

 

　　Venice was built on more than 100 islands and has about 150 canals. The best-known of these, the Grand Canal, functions as the"main street"in the part of the city most popular with visitors. The canal winds through each of the six districts that comprise this historic city center before reaching Venice Lagoon.

 

　　One of these districts, San Marco, is home to many of Venice's main attractions, including St. Mark's Basilica. This spectacular church has five main arches and some extraordinary onion-shaped domes. It is decorated with priceless treasures, many of which were stolen from other countries when medieval Venice was a leading sea power.

 

　　想到威尼斯一游，你的脑海中会浮现出什么画面？毫无疑问你一定会想象自己乘坐浪漫的平底船，沿着窄窄的运河航行，从一座座别致的桥下穿梭而过。也许你还会在脑海中勾勒出那些让威尼斯成为欧洲一流旅游胜地的美丽古老建筑和艺术名作。

 

　　威尼斯建在100多个小岛上，拥有大约150条运河。最有名的运河就是"大运河"，它位于市区游客最多的地方，并发挥"大街"的功能。这条运河在构成这个历史上的市中心的六个行政区间蜿蜒穿流，最后流入威尼斯湖。

 

　　行政区之一的圣马可是许多威尼斯主要旅游景的中心，包括圣马可大教堂。这座雄伟的大教堂有五道大拱门和数座壮观的洋葱形圆顶。教堂用很贵重的珠宝装饰，其中许多是在中世纪威尼斯称霸海权时从其它国家掠夺来的。

 

　　活用词汇

 

　　1. gondola n.平底船(航行于意大利威尼斯运河上)

 

　　2. Grand Canal n.大运河

 

　　3. lagoon n.礁湖；泻湖

 

　　4. San Marco n.圣马可

 

　　5. St. Mark's Basilica n.圣马可大教堂

 

　　6. arch n.拱门

 

　　7. dome n.圆屋顶

 

　　8. medieval adj.中世纪的

 

　　1. delicate

 

　　adj. fine in construction, appearance, or detail精致的

 

　　The girl was pretty; she had a delicate face.

 

　　这女孩很美；她有张娟秀的面庞。

 

　　2. work

 

　　n. creation; product作品；著作

 

　　When he finished the painting, he knew it was his greatest work.

 

　　他一完成这幅画作，他就知道这是他最好的作品。

 

　　3. function

 

　　v. to act; to serve发挥作用；运行

 

　　He can't afford to pay the rent, so for now, his car will also function as his home.

 

　　他付不起租金，所以目前他的车也当成他的家了。

 

　　4. wind

 

　　v. to curve; to turn蜿蜒

 

　　The road winds through the forest.

 

　　这条路蜿蜒穿过森林。

 

　　5. comprise

 

　　v. to be made up of组成

 

　　Seven colors comprise a rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and purple.

 

　　彩虹由七种颜色组成：红、橙、黄、绿、蓝、靛、紫。

 

　　6. priceless

 

　　adj. very valuable; so valuable as to be without a price无价的

 

　　Good health is priceless.

 

　　健康无价。

 

　　St. Mark's Basilica stands at one end of St. Mark's Square. Napoleon called the square the"finest drawing room in Europe."Tourists have been going there for centuries to visit its celebrated caféand get a taste of the party atmosphere.

 

　　The best time to visit Venice is during the clear spring days of March and April. From June to August, the city is hot, sticky, and crowded with tourists. Autumn is quite pleasant, but winters are cold. Floods are common in November and December, presenting Venetians with one of their most difficult and ongoing problems.

 

　　It is well-known that Venice faces an uncertain future. The city is sinkingsintosthe sea, its historic buildings are falling to pieces, and the famous lagoon is badly polluted. Unless solutions are found soon for these complex problems, the"Queen of the Adriatic,"as Venice is sometimes called, will not be able to sit on her watery throne for very much longer.

 

　　圣马可大教堂耸立在圣马可广场的一端。拿破仑称此广场为"欧洲最美的客厅"。几个世纪来，游客们纷沓而至，领略此地著名的咖啡馆并感受欢乐的聚会气氛。

 

　　3月和4月晴朗的春日是拜访威尼斯最适合的时间。从6月到8月，这儿潮湿闷热，挤满了游客。秋天的气候宜人，冬天则寒冷。11月和12月常有水灾，给威尼斯人出了一个既最难解决、又拖延最久的问题。

 

　　众所周知威尼斯的前途未卜。这座城市正逐渐沉入海中，历史名建筑正破败消失，著名的泻湖已遭到严重污染。除非能尽快解决这些复杂的问题，否则这座被称为"亚得里亚海皇后"的威尼斯城，不用多久就难保它的水上宝座了。

 

　　活用词汇

 

　　1. St. Mark's Square n.圣马可广场

 

　　2. drawing room n.客厅；休息室

 

　　3. Queen of the Adriatic n.亚得里亚海之皇后

 

　　Language Focus

 

　　Pattern A

 

　　St. Mark's Basilica stands at one end of St. Mark's Square.

 

　　句型：

 

　　(1) S + stand / sit / lie + in/at/on…… +地点

 

　　(2) S + be situated + in/at/on…… +地点be located

 

　　解析：表达"某(建)物坐落于…"可用上述两种句型。stand和sit这两个动词，通常用在直立的建筑物或物品，lie则用在平铺之物。注意：stand, sit, lie等动词要用主动用法；situate和locate须用被动语态。介词视其后所接名词决定。

 

　　例1：Beijing lies in the north of China.

 

　　北京位于中国的北方。

 

　　例2：The white church was located on a hill.

 

　　那座白色的教堂坐落在小山丘上。

 

　　Pattern B

 

　　Unless solutions are found soon for these complex problems, the"Queen of the Adriatic,"as Venice is sometimes called, will not be able to sit on her watery throne for very much longer.

 

　　句型：

 

　　(1) Unless + S + V …… , S + V……

 

　　(2) S + V …… unless + S + V ……

 

　　解析：1. unless引导表"条件"的副词从句，意思是"除非…否则"，注意不可与or连用。

 

　　2. unless相当于"only if …… not"或"on the condition that ……"强调"除了…外的唯一条件"。

 

　　通常不用假设语气。

 

　　例1：Unless Grant is a complete idiot, he'll understand.除非格兰特是个完全的大白痴，不然他一定会明白。

 

　　例2：The kid will die unless the doctor operates immediately.除非医生马上动手术，不然那个孩子会马上死掉。