VOA慢速英语2021--巴勒斯坦兄弟在旧飞机上开餐馆

Few Palestinians in the occupied West Bank are able to travel by airplane. The territory does not have a civilian¹ airport. Those who have enough money to pay for a plane ticket must catch their flights in neighboring Jordan.

But just outside the northern West Bank city of Nablus, twin brothers are offering people the next best thing.

Khamis al-Sairafi and his brother Ata are turning an old Boeing 707 airplane into a cafe and restaurant. Customers are given a chance to see what it is like to be onboard an airplane.

Khamis al-Sairafi said, "Ninety-nine percent of Palestinians have never used an airplane. Only our ambassadors², diplomats³, ministers and mayors⁴ use them. Now, they see an airplane and it is something for them."

After years of planning, the 60-year-old brothers opened "The Palestinian-Jordanian Airline Restaurant and Coffee Shop al-Sairafi" on July 21.

Families, friends and couples came for drinks in the cafe, set below the body of the plane. Many others came to take pictures inside for a small price.

Customers said they decided⁵ to visit after seeing pictures of the plane online. "For a long time, I have wanted to see this place. I wish I had seen this place before it was turned into a café," said Majdi Khalid.

For a long time, the plane sat along the side of a major road in the northern West Bank.

The twins' dream of turning the airplane into a cafe and restaurant started in the late 1990s, when Khamis saw the airplane near the northern Israeli city of Safed.

At the time, the plane already had a long history. It was used by the Israeli government from 1961 to 1993. It flew then-Prime Minister Menachem Begin to the United States in 1978 to sign Israel's historic⁶ peace agreement with Egypt, reports Israel's Channel 12 TV.

It was later bought by three Israeli business partners who wanted to turn it into a restaurant. The project, however, was abandoned following disagreements with local officials, the television station said.

After finding⁷ one of the plane's owners, the brothers agreed to buy the plane for $100,000 in 1999. They spent an additional⁸ $50,000 for permits and to transport it to the West Bank.

Khamis said the then-mayor of Nablus quickly approved the transportation and renovation⁹ of the airplane.

Moving the plane to Nablus was a 13-hour operation. The effort required the wings to be removed and the temporary closure of roads in Israel and the West Bank. At the time, Israel and the Palestinians were taking part in peace talks. Movement between the two places was somewhat¹⁰ easy.

The al-Sairafi brothers were successful traders and scrap¹¹ metal sellers¹². They often traveled to and from Israel buying pieces of metal that they then sold in the West Bank. They also owned a successful waste removal¹³ business. They used their earnings¹⁴ to build an amusement park on the same piece of land where the plane was placed.

But they said their project was delayed after the outbreak of the second Palestinian uprising in late 2000.

An Israeli military checkpoint was built nearby, they said. The checkpoint remained for three years and the Israeli military took over the entire area. The project collapsed¹⁵.

The Israeli military did not answer a request by The Associated Press for comment.

For nearly 20 years, the airplane and the area were abandoned.

After the uprising ended in the middle-2000s, the brothers earned a living from their waste removal business and the small amusement park in Nablus.

After more than 10 years of saving¹⁶ money, they decided in 2020 to begin rebuilding what they had lost. This time, they started with the repair work of the airplane. But the coronavirus crisis¹⁷ hit the Palestinian economy hard, causing additional delays.

Following months of work, the aircraft is almost ready for full service. The inside is freshly painted and fitted with electricity. There are nine tables. The doors are connected to two old jetways to let customers board the plane safely.

The cafe is already welcoming customers. And the brothers hope to open the restaurant part of their business next month.

Words in This Story

twin - n. either one of two babies that are born at the same time to the same mother

cafe - n. a small restaurant where you can get simple meals and drinks (such as coffee)

customer - n. someone who buys goods or services from a business

renovations - n. changes and repairs made to (an old house, building, room, etc.) so that it is back in good condition

scrap - n. things from an unwanted or broken object (such as a car) that are useful only in making or fixing something else

amusement park - n. a place that has many games and rides (such as roller coasters and merry-go-rounds) for entertainment

uprising - n. a usually violent effort by many people to change the government or leader of a country

1 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

2 ambassadors   

大使( ambassador的名词复数 )； （派驻联合国等国际组织的）代表； 特使； [比喻]使者

参考例句：

• Kennedy, greatly admiring, rated him very high among his ambassadors. 肯尼迪十分赏识他，在所有大使中对他评价很高。
• Many countries were represented by their ambassadors at the Independence Day celebrations. 庆祝美国独立纪念日时，许多国家都派其大使代表参加。

3 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 mayors   

（民选的）市长( mayor的名词复数 )； 镇长； （英格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰由议员选举产生的）镇长

参考例句：

• Mayors wear chains round their necks as badges of office. 市长们戴着象征职位的项链。
• The mayors of two towns petitioned the President to stop sending their sons to Vietnam. 两个城镇的市长向总统请愿，要求停止把他们的青年派往越南。

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。

6 historic   

adj.历史上著名的，具有历史意义的

参考例句：

• This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
• We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。

7 finding   

n.发现，发现物；调查的结果

参考例句：

• The finding makes some sense.该发现具有一定的意义。
• That's an encouraging finding.这是一个鼓舞人心的发现。

8 additional   

adj.添加的，额外的，另外的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to set down these additional rules.有必要制定这些补充规则。
• I think we can fit in an additional room.我想我们可以再加建一间房子。

9 renovation   

n.革新，整修

参考例句：

• The cinema will reopen next week after the renovation.电影院修缮后，将于下星期开业。
• The building has undergone major renovation.这座大楼已进行大整修。

10 somewhat   

pron.一些，某物；adv.多少，几分

参考例句：

• The cake we made was somewhat of a failure.我们做的蛋糕不大成功。
• The two office buildings are somewhat alike in appearance.这两座办公楼在外形上有点相似。

11 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

12 sellers   

n.卖者( seller的名词复数 )；卖方；销售者；销售商

参考例句：

• buyers and sellers transacting business 进行交易的买方和卖方
• All manner of hawkers and street sellers were plying their trade. 形形色色的沿街小贩都在做着自己的买卖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 removal   

n.去除，消除；挪走，移走，搬迁

参考例句：

• After the removal of the soup,fish was served.汤撤去后，鱼就上来了。
• The factory announced its removal to another town.这家工厂宣布迁往另一座城镇。

14 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

15 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

16 saving   

n.节省，节约；[pl.]储蓄金，存款

参考例句：

• Energy saving is term strategic policy of our country.节约能源是我国长期的战略国策。
• Old-fashioned housewives were usually very saving.旧时的家庭主妇通常都很节俭。

17 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。