VOA常速英语2014--Russian Railroads Enable Epic Olympic Journeys 俄罗斯铁路能够承受奥运旅游的客运压力

 

Russian Railroads Enable Epic¹ Olympic Journeys 俄罗斯铁路能够承受奥运旅游的客运压力

SOCHI, RUSSIA — Sochi isn't the best-connected Olympic host city. Most visitors have to travel through hubs like Moscow or Frankfurt to get there. And in a country as huge as Russia, some of those sports fans are undertaking² treks³ of several days and thousands of kilometers - by air, road, rail and sea. People are taking epic journeys to see the Games.

索契，俄罗斯——索契并不是最优质的奥运主办城市。大多数游客需要到莫斯科或法兰克福这样的中心城市，然后再到索契。索契和俄罗斯一样大，许多体育爱好者要花很长时间，路途很遥远——乘坐飞机，驾车，坐火车或是坐船。人们要长途跋涉的前往观看比赛。

They’ve travelled about 10,000 kilometers from the American Midwest to Sochi; Sean Gushing⁴ and Steven Lunsford are two of the self-proclaimed "Singing Men of Oklahoma."

从美国中部到索契，他们历经了大约10,000公里。Sean Gushing和Steven Lunsford 自称是“俄克拉荷马州的歌者”。

“The Singing Men of Oklahoma are a group of 90 men, we’ve paid our own way to come to Sochi, to pray for the people of Sochi, to share goodwill⁵, to enjoy the Games," said Gushing. "We’ve sung all over the city. On the buses, we’ve sung in the train station, in the trains, anywhere we could find people who would listen.”

“俄克拉荷马州的歌者是一群90后的年轻人，我们自己承担到索契的路费，为索契的运动员祈祷，表达我们的友善，享受比赛，”Gushing说道。“我们在城市各地演唱。在公交车、车站、火车上，无论何处我们总是为那些喜欢听我们唱歌的人表演。”

Singing men

歌者

The 90 Singing Men of Oklahoma are staying three to a room on board one of cruise ships docked in Sochi harbor.

来自俄克拉荷马州的90歌者三人组居住在一艘游轮上，（这艘邮轮）目前停靠在索契码头。

The liners provide a quick fix for the shortage of hotel rooms in the city. Also on board are Sevgenya Marozava and Anastasia - two dancers who won a Russian competition to come and see the Games.

游轮为索契的宾馆住所短缺提供了保障。在甲板上我们还见到了 Sevgenya Marozava 和 Anastasia——他们是曾获得俄罗斯大奖赛的舞者，来到索契观看冬奥会。

“We are from Irkutsk, near Lake Baikal in Siberia,” said Marozava. “We went by plane to Moscow, that took 6 hours. Then we took the train from Moscow to Sochi, which took 24 hours.”

“我们来自伊尔库茨克，临近西伯利亚贝加尔湖，”Marozava说道。“我们花了6小时坐飞机到莫斯科，再换乘火车，用了24个小时才到达索契。”

For most international visitors the first experience of Sochi is the sparkling new airport terminal, staffed by dozens of smiling volunteers.

对于大多数的国际游客，这是第一次来到索契，他们对这里的第一印象就是宽敞明亮的新机场，接着映入眼帘的就是志愿者们的微笑。

But for many Russians eager to cheer on their heroes, there is a cheaper, albeit⁶ slower option - the infamous⁷ Russian railway.

但是对许多俄罗斯人而言，他们渴望鼓励他们的功臣，价格便宜但速度很慢——臭名昭著的俄罗斯铁路。

Riding the rails

乘坐火车

Trains arrive at Sochi’s ornate station from across Russia. There are several trains a day from Moscow - a 24 hour, 1,500-kilometer journey. Others come from Siberia in the east, and St. Petersburg in the west.

从俄罗斯到索契的火车站已经被重新装修过。每天都有来自莫斯科的火车——时长24小时，行程1,500公里。当然还有来自东部西伯利亚、西部圣彼得堡的其他线路。

Yuna Salavyova描述了他家庭的奥运之旅。

Yuna Salavyova described her family’s Olympic odyssey⁸.

“We have come from the Western-most point of Russia, from Kaliningrad. It took me two times 24 hours, so 48 hours to come here. You know our Russia is a great big country. So guys, I wish you were here, it is splendid, the sun is shining brightly, people are smiling everywhere,” said Salavyova.

“我们来自俄罗斯最西的地方，加里宁格勒。我总共花了48个小时才来到这里。你知道俄罗斯是一个地域辽阔的国家。所以朋友，我希望你在这里享受它的绚丽辉煌，阳光明媚，随处可见面带微笑的人，” Salavyova说道。

The train also brings arrivals from the airport - like Linda Want and Kimberley Moss⁹ from the United States.

火车还可以将机场的游客载至索契——来自美国的Linda Want和Kimberley Moss就是这样来到索契的。

“I started in Minneapolis. She started in San Francisco. We met in London,” said Want.

“我来自明尼阿波利斯启程。她来自旧金山。我们在伦敦集合，”Want说道。

“So we left the States last Saturday, arrived in London on Sunday, and then went on to Finland, spent a day in Finland, spent a couple of days in Moscow seeing the sights, and then arrived here today,” said Moss.

“所以我们上周六离开美国，周日到伦敦，然后去芬兰，在芬兰逗留一天，在莫斯科玩了两天，然后今天到索契。”Moss说道。

Canadian Brad McCallum has made a pilgrimage of thousands of kilometers from Toronto for one thing only - the ice hockey. “It’s in our blood as Canadians, so we’re here to support the team.”

加拿大人Brad McCallum从多伦多长途跋涉来到这里只为了一件事——冰球比赛。“我骨子里流着澳大利亚人的血液，所以来到这里支持我们自己的队伍。”

As the travellers emerge into the warm sunshine of Sochi, many of them agree on one thing: The incredible journey is all part of the Olympic adventure.

正如游客喜爱索契的阳光，许多人都认同一件事：不可思议的旅程造就了奇妙的冬奥会之旅。

1 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

2 undertaking   

n.保证，许诺，事业

参考例句：

• He gave her an undertaking that he would pay the money back with in a year.他向她做了一年内还钱的保证。
• He is too timid to venture upon an undertaking.他太胆小，不敢从事任何事业。

3 treks   

n.远距离行走 ( trek的名词复数 )；长途跋涉，艰难的旅程（尤指在山区）v.艰苦跋涉，徒步旅行( trek的第三人称单数 )；（尤指在山中）远足，徒步旅行，游山玩水

参考例句：

• And visiting companies and completing job treks are becoming much more important in the job search. 参观公司、进行实地考察在找工作中变得重要得多。 来自互联网
• These range from treks around Mont an ascent of North Africa's highest mountain, Mount Toubkal. 参与者是徒步绕勃朗峰，然后攀登北非最高峰托布卡尔山。 来自互联网

4 gushing   

adj.迸出的；涌出的；喷出的；过分热情的v.喷，涌( gush的现在分词 )；滔滔不绝地说话

参考例句：

• blood gushing from a wound 从伤口冒出的血
• The young mother was gushing over a baby. 那位年轻的母亲正喋喋不休地和婴儿说话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

6 albeit   

conj.即使；纵使；虽然

参考例句：

• Albeit fictional,she seemed to have resolved the problem.虽然是虚构的，但是在她看来好象是解决了问题。
• Albeit he has failed twice,he is not discouraged.虽然失败了两次，但他并没有气馁。

7 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

8 odyssey   

n.长途冒险旅行；一连串的冒险

参考例句：

• The march to Travnik was the final stretch of a 16-hour odyssey.去特拉夫尼克的这段路是长达16小时艰险旅行的最后一程。
• His odyssey of passion, friendship,love,and revenge was now finished.他的热情、友谊、爱情和复仇的漫长历程，到此结束了。

9 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。