【英语时差8,16】Buckingham Palace 白金汉宫

Every year for two months between the end of July and the end of September, the public is given the chance to visit one of Queen’s palaces.Buckingham Palace is the official residence of Queen Elizabeth II and has been the official London residence of Britain’s Sovereign since 1837. It’s also the administrative¹ headquarters of the Monarch². There are many offices in this very impressive building and I just found out that it has 775 rooms. And these rooms include 19 staterooms which are open to the public.Jennifer Scott is the assistant curator in the palace and here she shows us the throne room. Well, it’s a pretty fantastic room. As soon as you walk in, it’s got that wow factor. That helps us to understand the function of this room. Because it’s intended for when visitors come to see the Monarch, they come to see the Monarch enthroned here and they are intended to be overawed by the opulence³, the magnificence of this setting. That’s right of the Queen’s wedding photograph, and she was photographed here standing⁴ here with the wedding party. It makes the perfect setting with the throne canapé over her head. But I think that helps us to remember this is a room where history is constantly being made. This is a room that’s used today still for many functions. In 1853, Queen Victoria decided⁵ that the palace needed a room to entertain its guests, so an extension was built to open up the palace. What a glorious extension. This is the ball room, so it’s intended for balls and for concerts, and it’s massive. It’s 34 meters long. So when you come in here, it gives you that experience as a visitor, the experience of coming into the palace, and the way in which the architecture works to give you a sense of state. Well, Buckingham Palace is one of Britain’s great national treasures and is definitely worth a visit.

1 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

2 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

3 opulence   

n.财富，富裕

参考例句：

• His eyes had never beheld such opulence.他从未见过这样的财富。
• He owes his opulence to work hard.他的财富乃辛勤工作得来。

4 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

5 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。