VOA慢速英语2015 世界多国燃放烟花庆新年

AS IT IS 2016-01-01 The Best New Year's Fireworks in the World 世界多国燃放烟花庆新年

Fireworks are used to celebrate the new year around the world.

全球都用烟花庆祝新年。

Which countries have the best displays?

那么哪些国家的烟花最好看呢？

According to Australian musician and songwriter Ash Almond, the Top 10 fireworks displays worldwideare in London, Sydney, Taipei, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, New York, Berlin, Dubai, Hong Kong and Beijing.

澳大利亚音乐家兼歌曲作家 Ash Almond表示，全球十大最佳烟花表演 分别是在伦敦、悉尼、台北、吉隆坡、雅加达、纽约、柏林、迪拜、香港和北京。

In China, fireworks are used to drive away evil, according to the website ChineseNewYears.info.Right after midnight on New Year’s Eve, fireworks are set off.It is believed that the person who launches the first firework of the new year will have good luck.

根据网页ChineseNewYears.info显示,在中国，人们用烟花驱邪。午夜十二点之后，新年前夕，便燃放焰火。人们相信第一个燃放焰火的人将会有好运气。

Dubai is hosting an extravagant¹ fireworks display from Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building.The event will also be live-streamed on MyDubaiNewYear.com,offering visitors the choice between three camera angles, reports the Khaleej Times.

迪拜在全球最高的建筑哈利法塔举办了极尽奢华的焰火表演。据海湾时报报道，网页MyDubaiNewYear.com也会现场直播烟花表演， 让参观者能够看到三个视角的现场直播。

Fireworks by Grucci will feature a spectacular display at Atlantis, the Palm Hotel and Resort in Dubai.The company plans to spell "Atlantis" in the sky with fireworks.It will use the reflections of the fireworks in the water to enhance the display.

Grucci公司生产的焰火将在迪拜亚特兰蒂斯棕榈酒店举行精彩绝伦的表演。Grucci公司计划用焰火拼写Atlantis。并利用焰火在水中的倒影加强效果。

"One of their ideas is to create a shimmering³ red carpet, which will light up the sky as well as reflect in the water below," wrote the Khaleej Times.

海湾时报写道：“其中一个观点是营造一种闪闪发光的红地毯，照亮夜空和水面。”

Berlin is celebrating the new year with a festive⁴ open-air party at the Brandenburg Gate.Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend.There will be an international program of live music, light and laser shows, and plenty of food and drink.

柏林在勃兰登堡门举办了露天派对庆祝新年的来临。预计将会有成千上万的人参加。届时将会举行一个国际性的节目，进行现场音乐、灯光和激光表演，并提供食物和饮料。

"The spectacular fireworks display starts at midnight on the dot," reports the website VisitBerlin.de.

网页VisitBerlin.de报道：“精彩绝伦的焰火表演将在午夜准时开始。”

Finally, more than a million revelers are expected at Times Square in New York on New Year’s Eve.They will take part in the 109-year-old tradition of watching the iconic ball drop from atop One Times Square.

最后，预计新年前夕有一百万狂欢者将到纽约时代广场跨年。他们将会观看标志性的水晶球降落，这一传统已经延续了109年。

The New York Times reports that the famous ball is about 4 meters in diameter, or 12-feet wide, and weighs close to 5,443 kilograms, or 12,000 pounds.It shimmers⁵ because it is covered in 2,688 Waterford crystals.At midnight, revelers will watch the sky above New York City ablaze⁶ with fireworks.

据纽约时报报道，水晶球直径为4米（12英尺宽），重5443千克（12000磅）。表面有2688颗沃特福德水晶，因此能够闪闪发光。午夜时，狂欢者可看到焰火点亮夜空。

Some cities will not be celebrating the new year with fireworks.Belgium cancelled its traditional fireworks display in central Brussels due to fears of the continuing terror threat.

有些城市不用焰火庆祝新年。比利时担心会出现恐怖威胁，因此取消了首都布鲁塞尔传统的焰火表演。

Words in This Story

midnight – n. the middle of the night : 00:00 

host – v. to entertain guests socially or as a job

extravagant – adj.  very fancy

spectacular – adj. causing wonder and admiration⁷ : very impressive

enhance – v. to increase or improve (something)

shimmer² – v.  to shine with a light that seems to move slightly

festive -  adj. cheerful and exciting : suited to a celebration or holiday

reveler – n. a person who is celebrating with other people in usually a wild and noisy way : a person who is taking part in revelry

iconic – adj. describes a widely known symbol

ablaze – v. glowing with light, color, or emotion  

1 extravagant   

adj.奢侈的；过分的；(言行等)放肆的

参考例句：

• They tried to please him with fulsome compliments and extravagant gifts.他们想用溢美之词和奢华的礼品来取悦他。
• He is extravagant in behaviour.他行为放肆。

2 shimmer   

v./n.发微光，发闪光；微光

参考例句：

• The room was dark,but there was a shimmer of moonlight at the window.屋子里很黑，但靠近窗户的地方有点微光。
• Nor is there anything more virginal than the shimmer of young foliage.没有什么比新叶的微光更纯洁无瑕了。

3 shimmering   

v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The sea was shimmering in the sunlight. 阳光下海水波光闪烁。
• The colours are delicate and shimmering. 这些颜色柔和且闪烁微光。 来自辞典例句

4 festive   

adj.欢宴的，节日的

参考例句：

• It was Christmas and everyone was in festive mood.当时是圣诞节，每个人都沉浸在节日的欢乐中。
• We all wore festive costumes to the ball.我们都穿着节日的盛装前去参加舞会。

5 shimmers   

n.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的名词复数 )v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The hot pavement sent up shimmers. 晒热的道路浮起热气晃动的景象。 来自辞典例句
• Sunlight shimmers on the waters of the bay. 阳光在海湾的水面上闪烁。 来自辞典例句

6 ablaze   

adj.着火的，燃烧的；闪耀的，灯火辉煌的

参考例句：

• The main street was ablaze with lights in the evening.晚上，那条主要街道灯火辉煌。
• Forests are sometimes set ablaze by lightning.森林有时因雷击而起火。

7 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。