VOA标准英语2013--Syrian Refugees Hunt for Work in Lebanon

Syrian Refugees¹ Hunt for Work in Lebanon

Near a construction site in central Beirut,  Mahmoud, 20 -- he gives only his first name -- is selling bread from a bicycle cart.

He fled his home in Aleppo a year ago as the uprising against the Assad government became increasingly² violent.

Most Syrian refugees stay near the border, often in makeshift housing³. But some go to the cities to find work.

Mahmoud makes $15 to $20 a day. He misses home.

“A lot. I miss it a lot," he admitted. "As soon as this war is over I will go back."

In the evening, people exercise or relax on Beirut's seaside promenade⁴, the Corniche.

Abderahman, 16, came with his older brother.  He sells flowers to help his 13 brothers and sisters back home.  He makes about $15 a day but it is hard work.

“As the day begins I sleep. I start working at three o'clock in the afternoon," he explained. "And I don't go back home until three o'clock in the morning.”

Ali Hassan, 18, came from Idlib with his brothers, aged⁵ 10 and 11. They live with some cousins.  Their families feared for their lives as the conflict worsened.

“For sure the days are hard without my family. Without my mother. Without my father,” he admitted.

Hassan would like to return home. He hopes the conflict that has torn apart so many families will end soon. 

1 refugees   

n.避难者，难民( refugee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The UN has begun making airdrops of food to refugees. 联合国已开始向难民空投食物。
• They claimed they were political refugees and not economic migrants. 他们宣称自己是政治难民，不是经济移民。

2 increasingly   

adv.逐渐地，日益地，逐渐增加地

参考例句：

• Rivers are being increasingly made use of by man. 河流正在日益为人类所利用。
• I find it increasingly difficult to live within my income.我发现靠收入过日子越来越难了。

3 housing   

n.房屋，住宅；住房建筑；外壳，外罩

参考例句：

• Do you think our housing sales will turn around during this year?你认为今年我们的住宅销路会好转吗？
• The housing sales have been turning down since the summer.入夏以来，房屋的销售量日趋减少。

4 promenade   

n./v.散步

参考例句：

• People came out in smarter clothes to promenade along the front.人们穿上更加时髦漂亮的衣服，沿着海滨散步。
• We took a promenade along the canal after Sunday dinner.星期天晚饭后我们沿着运河散步。

5 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。