【英语趣味课堂】墨西哥-Mexico

Todd: So, Adrienne, you said you lived in Mexico for awhile?

 

Adrienne: Mm, I studied there.

 

Todd: Really! You studied in Mexico?

 

Adrienne: I did. I studied Spanish.

 

Todd: Wow, so what was it like being a student in Mexico?

 

Adrienne: Ah, it was interesting. The weather was really hot the entire time I was there. Um, and it was very confusing, cause I didn't know the language very well when I first arrived but I learned¹ quickly because I was living in the situation every day where I had to use language so that was really helpful in the end.

 

Todd: So, what were the people like? What was the city like?

 

Adrienne: The city was small. 1 million people, and that's pretty small. The architecture is very colonial² style. It's interesting. Very beautiful, old, a lot of wood and stone and the food was great. Very spicy³.

 

Todd: Mexican food's the best.

 

Adrienne: I think so too

 

Todd: Yeah, and the people?

 

Adrienne: The people are really friendly, really, really friendly. Big families and they're always inviting⁴ you over for dinner, lunch and breakfast, and tea and coffee and chocolate and it's really, it's really a very familial environment.

 

Todd: What was your favorite place in Mexico?

 

Adrienne: My favorite place, still, is a town called Cholula. It's a very small town. That has a pyramid, and Aztec pyramid with a cathedral on top of it and it has views of the mountains, the volcano⁵ and, um, just beautiful landscape all around. It's a great place to watch the sunset.

 

Todd: What volcano?

 

Adrienne: Po! They call it Popo, but the full name I think is Popocatepetl. It's an Aztec name.

 

Todd: Oh, sounds like a nice place.

 

Adrienne: It's beautiful.

 

Todd: Any plans to go back to Mexico soon?

 

Adrienne: Of course. I always want to go back but whether I actually make it in the next year or two, I don't know.

 

学习内容：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the lesson

in the end

 

I had to use their language, so that was really helpful in the end.

 

The phrase 'in the end' talks about the final result of something. Notice the following:

 

In the end we found our way there.

He decided⁶, in the end, that he didn't want to be a doctor.

colonial style

 

The architecture is very colonial style.

 

A 'colonial style' shows the typical style of the people that formed the colonies⁷, which would be the Spaniards who came to Mexico. Notice the following:

 

She studies colonial style architecture.

Our new house has a very colonial style.

familial environment

 

The people are very friendly, and it's really a very familial environment.

 

A 'familial environment' is an environment where family is very important. Notice the following:

 

The neighborhood were we lived had a very familial environment.

The familial environment of the company makes it a fun place to work.

pyramid

 

My favorite place is Cholula, a town that has an Aztec pyramid.

 

A 'pyramid' is a building that is shaped like a triangle on all sides.  The bottom is very wide and the top is a point. Notice the following:

 

Nobody knows exactly how they built the pyramids in Egypt.

We are trying to make a pyramid out of sand.

make it

 

Whether I actually make it in the next year or two, I don't know.

 

Used like this, 'make it' means 'return' or 'go.' Notice the following:

 

We are going to try to make it to your party, but Saturday will be very busy for us.

You have to make it to Brazil when you're in South America.

 

1 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

2 colonial   

adj.殖民地的，关于殖民的；n.殖民地，居民

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• The people of Africa have successfully fought against colonial rule.非洲人民成功地反抗了殖民统治。

3 spicy   

adj.加香料的；辛辣的，有风味的

参考例句：

• The soup tasted mildly spicy.汤尝起来略有点辣。
• Very spicy food doesn't suit her stomach.太辣的东西她吃了胃不舒服。

4 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

5 volcano   

n.火山

参考例句：

• The volcano unexpectedly blew up early in the morning.火山一早突然爆发了。
• It is most risky to go and examine an active volcano.去探察活火山是非常危险的。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 colonies   

n.殖民地( colony的名词复数 )；（侨民等）聚居区；（动植物的）群体；（来自同一地方，职业或兴趣相同的）聚居人群

参考例句：

• They amassed huge wealth by plundering the colonies. 他们通过掠夺殖民地聚敛了大笔的财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• But throughout the colonies, people relied primarily on small farms and self-sufficiency. 但就整个殖民地来说，人们主要依靠小型农场，过着自给自足的生活。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件