【英语趣味课堂】喝茶时间-Tea Time

Tu: So, I heard that Iran is very famous for it's coffee?

Amir: Well, not coffee actually, the tea.

 

Tu: The tea? What is special about it?

 

Amir: Well, we love tea. We have to drink tea. Some of the people, if they don't drink two or three glasses of tea, cups of tea, they have headaches.

 

Tu: Headaches.

 

Amir: Yeah, yeah, yeah. And they are very much picky about the color of the tea. Everybody orders differently. Some people say pour very colored strong tea. Some people say, "No, No, I don't want it that strong." The medium. Everybody has their own taste.

 

Tu: So, I guess you got a lot of tea shops.

 

Amir: Yeah, yeah, we have traditional one, which is very interesting for the tourists I believe, where you go in and you sit down, no chairs there, and it's actually cushions² just behind you, so you can lie on this cushions and you know, kind of like lying position. You can straighten your legs and the servant will bring you tea.

 

Actually, the drinking tea in Iran is a little different from other countries.

 

Tu: Different? How?

 

Amir: Well, we have a glass or a cup of tea, and beneath that we have something called estikan, which you put the glass or cup on that, and, well, the way you drink it is that you have to pick up the cubic³ sugar. It is a cubic. It's not like other powder of sugar. You pick it up and then you tip it inside the tea a little bit. When it gets the most, you put it inside your mouth, and you drink tea when the cubic sugar is in your mouth.

 

Tu: It takes time.

 

Amir: That's the way you drink it. You will get used to it. Just try once. It's actually good.

 

Tu: Do you go there often?

 

Amir: Once a year. Yeah.

 

Tu: Once a year! Okay. It's interesting. I will try.

 

重点词汇：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the Lesson

picky

 

They are picky about the tea.

 

When you are picky about something, that means⁴ you are very choosy about it. To be picky means you are very particular about what you want or like. Notice the following:

 

He does not have a girlfriend because he is very picky about who he dates.

I am very picky about what I eat.

cushions

 

We sit on the cushions.

 

A cushion¹ is a big pillow⁵ or soft bag that people can lie on or sit on to be more comfortable. However, a cushion can also refer to a large big blanket on a futon. Notice the following:

 

There are many cushions to sit on on the floor.

Each chair had a cushion to sit on.

cubic

 

cubic sugar

 

When something is cubic, that means it is shaped like a cube⁶. A cube is shaped like a box. If something is cubic, it has six sides. You can have cubic sugar or cubic slices of fruit. Notice the following:

 

How many cubic meters is the box?

 

It is 5 cubic meters in size.

 

That's the way

 

 

That's the way you drink it.

 

Here, the word 'way' can be replaced with 'how', so 'That's the way you drink it' could also be said 'That's how you drink it.' The word 'way' refers to the process or style of doing something. Notice the following:

 

Let me show you the way I make pasta⁷.

I don't like the way you drive.

get used to

 

 

You will get used to it.

 

To get used to doing something, means to become comfortable doing it. Also, when you get used to something, it becomes easier or natural to do. People often get used to something, by doing it or being exposed to it again and again. Notice the following:

 

It took me awhile to get used to driving on the other side of the road.

After I broke my right hand, I had to get used to using my left hand for everything.

1 cushion   

n.垫子，橡皮软垫&vt.加垫褥，缓冲，掩盖

参考例句：

• He lay on the floor with a cushion under his head.他躺在地板上，头下枕着一个垫子。
• His hat helped to cushion the blow.他的帽子帮助缓冲了打击。

2 cushions   

n.（隔离两个表面的）垫( cushion的名词复数 )；垫子；起保护（或缓冲）作用的事物；（台球等运动） （台球桌内侧边缘的）弹性衬里

参考例句：

• matching curtains and cushions 颜色协调的窗帘与靠垫
• A few cushions formed a makeshift bed. 临时用几个垫子拼了一张床。

3 cubic   

adj.立方体的，立方形的；3次的，立方的

参考例句：

• We need 3 cubic yards of sand.我们需要3立方沙子。
• The volume of this container is 1000 cubic metres.这个集装箱的容量是1000立方米。

4 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

5 pillow   

n.枕头；枕垫；vt.作…的枕头；垫；枕于；vi.靠在枕上

参考例句：

• He fell asleep as soon as he touched the pillow.他脑袋一碰枕头就睡着了。
• She was found asleep on a pillow of leaves.有人看见她枕着树叶睡着了。

6 cube   

n.立方体，立方形；立方；vt.使自乘两次

参考例句：

• The cube of 3 is 27.3的立方是27。
• A cube has six sides.立方体有6个面。

7 pasta   

n.生面团，意大利通心粉

参考例句：

• Cook the pasta in a large pan of boiling water.在一大锅沸水中煮意大利面。
• Would you like some pasta?想来点意大利面食吗？