VOA慢速英语2014 洛杉矶的圣诞节

 

AS IT IS 2014-11-20 A Los Angeles Christmas 洛杉矶的圣诞节

The end of December is a time when many Americans are thinking about snow and cold weather. Yet the city of Los Angeles, California¹ is almost always warm and sunny, even during the winter holiday season. Many people like all the holiday decorations and lights seen in and around Los Angeles.

Marquis Rosales lives in Los Angeles. He likes being in southern California for the Christmas holiday.

“Here it’s more unique because everyone’s so, like, kind-hearted² and welcoming and as you can see they go all out with decorations and everything like that. It’s really packed. There’s a lot of families though, there’s a lot of families and it’s fun.”

Many children have their picture taken with Santa Claus, the man known³ as “Father Christmas.” They tell him what gifts they want him to bring them.

People travel to Los Angeles from around the world to enjoy the warm weather and the Christmas decorations.

“It’s totally fun. It’s Christmas, you know? Live a little!”

Words in This Story

season – n. a period of the year that is based on the Earth’s position toward⁴ the sun; a period of time based on different weather conditions

holiday – n. a day when one does not work; a day on which no work is done to honor⁵ or remember a person or event

decoration – n. something that is added⁶ to something else to make it more attractive⁷ or colorful

bright – adj. giving much light; strong and clear in color

kind-hearted – adj. having or showing a kind and gentle nature

they go all out – idiom made or done with as much effort as possible            

packed – adj. full of people; filled with as many people as possible

Santa Claus – n. an imaginary man with a white beard and a red suit who gives toys to children at Christmas

1 California   

n.加利福尼亚(美国)

参考例句：

• He was elected governor of the state of California.他当选为加州州长。
• We were driving on a California freeway.我们正沿着加利福尼亚的一条快车道驾车行驶。

2 kind-hearted   

adj.好心的

参考例句：

• She is one of the most kind-hearted girls that I saw.她是我看到的姑娘中最善良的一个。
• Mike is a very kind-hearted boy.迈克是一好心肠的小伙子。

3 known   

adj.大家知道的；知名的，已知的

参考例句：

• He is a known artist.他是一个知名的艺术家。
• He is known both as a painter and as a statesman.他是知名的画家及政治家。

4 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

5 honor   

n.光荣；敬意；荣幸；vt.给…以荣誉；尊敬

参考例句：

• I take your visit as a great honor.您的来访是我莫大的光荣。
• It is a great honor to receive that prize.能拿到那个奖是无上的光荣。

6 added   

adj.更多的，附加的，额外的

参考例句：

• They have added a new scene at the beginning.在开头他们又增加了一场戏。
• The pop music added to our enjoyment of the film.片中的流行音乐使我们对这部电影更加喜爱。

7 attractive   

adj.有吸引力的；引起注意的

参考例句：

• Bright colours are attractive to children.鲜艳的颜色对儿童有吸引力。
• The food has an attractive taste.这食品的味道很诱人。