VOA慢速英语2020 经历整年困难的贝鲁特期待圣诞

A charity is bringing Christmas spirit to Beirut, a city that has faced several crises¹ recently.

一家慈善机构将圣诞气氛带入了贝鲁特这座最近面临了数次危机的城市。

The Solidarity² Christmas Village, near Beirut's damaged port, has bright lights and colorful trees. It has been offering visitors free entry to watch music shows and pick up drinks and food. The idea is to help families who cannot pay for seasonal³ goods. Beirut has suffered some difficult events this year.

贝鲁特受损港口附近的团结圣诞村灯光明亮，圣诞树五彩缤纷。它一直允许游客免费进入观看音乐节目并吃喝。这样做的目的是帮助那些无力购买节日商品的家庭。贝鲁特今年遭受了一些困难事件。

A huge explosion⁴ took place at its port, coronavirus infections have increased and it has had an economic crisis⁵, the country's worst since Lebanon's civil war from 1975 to 1990. But at the Solidarity Christmas Village, people dress like polar bears and Santa Claus. "We need to make our children happy...even if we are tired," said Toni Hossainy, who had brought her son.

贝鲁特的港口发生了一场大爆炸，新冠病毒感染病例增加，发生了黎巴嫩自1975年到1990年内战以来最严重的经济危机。但是在团结圣诞村，人们装扮成北极熊和圣诞老人。领着儿子的托尼·侯赛因表示：“即使很累，我们也必须让孩子们快乐。”

The Christmas village has been set up in a temporary building near the port, which was destroyed by the deadly explosion on August 4.

这个圣诞村设置在港口附近的临时建筑内，8月4日的致命爆炸摧毁了这个港口。

Near the port's entrance, an artist put up a large Christmas tree. The tree is decorated with protective⁶ clothing and hard hats that were worn by firefighters who had battled the resulting fire at the port. The explosion left tens of thousands of people homeless in a nation already struggling with debt problems.

在这座港口的入口附近，一名艺术家竖起了一棵巨大的圣诞树。这棵树装饰着防护服和安全帽，这些是扑灭港口大火的消防员所穿过的。这场爆炸使得这个已经陷入债务问题的国家成千上万人无家可归。

Opera singer Elias Francis gave a concert to open the Christmas village. He brought his own equipment to protect against the coronavirus. "No matter how negative things are around us, like the blast⁷, like the coronavirus, like the economic situation which is very bad, there is still a glimmer⁸ of hope," he said. Glimmer is a term that means a small amount or sign of something.

歌剧歌手埃里亚斯·弗朗西斯为圣诞村开幕举办了一场音乐会。他带来了自己的装备以预防新冠病毒。他说：“无论我们周围的环境有多消极，像是爆炸、新冠病毒、经济形势严峻，仍然会有一线希望。” Glimmer是一个术语，意思是微弱的迹象。

In a mainly Christian⁹ area of Beirut, a woman named Nina said her shop that sells Christmas goods had been crowded in years past. But this year, the shop closes early because no one comes.

在布鲁特一个重要的基督教区，一位名为妮娜的妇女表示，过去几年她售卖圣诞商品的商店一直人满为患。但是今年，这个商店因为无人问津而早早关门。

Georgette Suleiman, age 63, almost began to cry when she thought about the problems of 2020. "God willing, this Christmas will bring us joy and hope, and Lebanon will return to how it was," she said.

63岁的乔治·苏莱曼想到2020年发生的困难时几乎要哭出来。她说：“真主保佑这个圣诞节会给我们带来快乐和希望，保佑黎巴嫩恢复如初。”

1 crises   

n. 危机；危险期

参考例句：

• Economic crises recur periodically. 经济危机周期性地发生。
• Great crises often call forth gifted leaders. 危急存亡之际常能产生天才的领袖。

2 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

3 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。

4 explosion   

n.爆发，发出，爆炸

参考例句：

• The police arrived right at the moment of the explosion.警察就在爆炸的那个时候赶到了。
• The shock of the explosion was felt far away.爆炸引起的震动很远都可感觉到。

5 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

6 protective   

adj.防护的，保护的

参考例句：

• A mother naturally feels protective towards her children.做母亲的天生要保护自己的孩子。
• We feel safe with a protective device in the house.我们因为家里有了防护装置而感到安全。

7 blast   

v.炸毁，摧毁；n.爆炸，爆破，一阵，汽笛声

参考例句：

• A huge bomb blast rocked central London last night.昨晚一次剧烈的炸弹爆炸震动了伦敦市中心。
• Not until last week was the project in full blast.工程直到上星期才全部开工。

8 glimmer   

v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光

参考例句：

• I looked at her and felt a glimmer of hope.我注视她，感到了一线希望。
• A glimmer of amusement showed in her eyes.她的眼中露出一丝笑意。

9 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。