VOA标准英语2008年-Olympic Fans Get Taste of Chinese Culture at Po

Hundreds of thousands of visitors have come to Beijing for the three-week celebration of Olympic sports. Many of them are taking advantage of the visit to enjoy Chinese culture at the city's many attractions. One of these is the nightlife. VOA's Scott Bobb reports from the popular entertainment district, of Hou Hai.
　

Hou Hai lake

Hou Hai is one of Beijing's best known night spots. Its cafes, restaurants and shops, lining¹ a large lake, draw both residents and foreign visitors.

During the Olympics people have been coming every night to watch the events on widescreen televisions and to mingle² with the crowds.
　

Sun Jin En says he comes to scope out the ladies

Local resident, Sun Jin En, comes here to meet girls. He says the Games have boosted morale³ among the Chinese.

"Everybody is so proud of that [the Olympics] because we dreamed it for 100 years and now we just got it," Sun said. "And most Beijing citizens are happy about that."

The Chinese government has reportedly spent $45 billion preparing for the Olympics. In addition to building world class sports venues⁴, a great deal of the money has gone toward cleaning up the city, improving infrastructure⁵ and building more public gathering⁶ places.

Authorities say this is a legacy⁷ that will endure long after the Olympic torch is extinguished.

Laszlo Peteri, an Olympic wrestling referee⁸ from Hungary, says these Olympics have surpassed previous Games.

"From the time of the opening ceremony, the organizing, the competition, and the competitors, everything has been great, great," Peteri said.

Authorities reportedly have cleaned up the seedier trades sometimes associated with tourism, such as prostitution and drug peddling⁹. And taxi drivers have been given lessons in courtesy and basic English phrases.
　

Peter Basca is visiting from Hungary

Another Olympic official from Hungary, Peter Bacsa, says he plans to come back, next time with his family.

"The whole atmosphere here, it's really different than [from] Europe and the U.S.A [United States]," Bacsa said. "It's really hard to say in words but you feel it - that it's a different culture, different people, different mentality¹⁰."
　

Liu Xi Yu and Leng Bing Xue are regulars

An elderly Beijing couple, Liu Xi Yu and Leng Bing Xue, say they come here often. They like the lake for its peace and quiet but say they do not mind the crowds of foreigners here for the Games.

They say the foreigners are all very friendly and so of course they welcome them to Beijing.
　

Christina Heim considers her trip to be a great learning experience

Christina Heim is a young German who has spent a month traveling in China with two friends. She says this has been a major learning experience.

"The Olympics are very great because there come [they bring together] a lot of cultures together and a lot of nations," she said.

One of her friends, Teresa Schief, says China is different from her country in many ways.

"The food is very interesting here. It's different from German food. All people eat from the same plate," she noted¹¹. "And the animals [meat] for example, we ate a frog. In Germany you would never eat a frog."

Like many visitors, she says language sometimes poses problems. But these are more than overshadowed by the culture, she says, the music, art, cuisine¹², and the friendliness¹³ of the Chinese people.

1 lining   

n.衬里，衬料

参考例句：

• The lining of my coat is torn.我的外套衬里破了。
• Moss makes an attractive lining to wire baskets.用苔藓垫在铁丝篮里很漂亮。

2 mingle   

vt.使混合，使相混；vi.混合起来；相交往

参考例句：

• If we mingle with the crowd,we should not be noticed.如果我们混在人群中，就不会被注意到。
• Oil will not mingle with water.油和水不相融。

3 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

4 venues   

n.聚集地点( venue的名词复数 )；会场；（尤指）体育比赛场所；犯罪地点

参考例句：

• The band will be playing at 20 different venues on their UK tour. 这个乐队在英国巡回演出期间将在20个不同的地点演出。
• Farmers market corner, 800 meters long, 60 meters wide livestock trading venues. 农牧市场东北角，有长800米，宽60米的牲畜交易场地。 来自互联网

5 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

6 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

7 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

8 referee   

n.裁判员．仲裁人，代表人，鉴定人

参考例句：

• The team was left raging at the referee's decision.队员们对裁判员的裁决感到非常气愤。
• The referee blew a whistle at the end of the game.裁判在比赛结束时吹响了哨子。

9 peddling   

忙于琐事的，无关紧要的

参考例句：

• He worked as a door-to-door salesman peddling cloths and brushes. 他的工作是上门推销抹布和刷子。
• "If he doesn't like peddling, why doesn't he practice law? "要是他不高兴卖柴火，干吗不当律师呢？

10 mentality   

n.心理，思想，脑力

参考例句：

• He has many years'experience of the criminal mentality.他研究犯罪心理有多年经验。
• Running a business requires a very different mentality from being a salaried employee.经营企业所要求具备的心态和上班族的心态截然不同。

11 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

12 cuisine   

n.烹调，烹饪法

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• This restaurant is renowned for its cuisine.这家餐馆以其精美的饭菜而闻名。

13 friendliness   

n.友谊，亲切，亲密

参考例句：

• Behind the mask of friendliness,I know he really dislikes me.在友善的面具后面，我知道他其实并不喜欢我。
• His manner was a blend of friendliness and respect.他的态度友善且毕恭毕敬。