VOA标准英语2011--Disasters, Strong Yen Dissuade Tourists

Disasters, Strong Yen¹ Dissuade² Tourists from Visiting Japan

Japan's tourism industry has been knocked into a deep recession. Foreign tourists, who normally contribute about $16 billion annually³ to the economy, canceled planned visits after the March 11 earthquake and subsequent nuclear disaster devastated⁴ the northeastern part of the country. The yen's surge this year against many other major currencies, including the U.S. dollar, has done further damage.
The buzz of cicadas outdoes the voices of subdued⁵ vendors⁷ on a hot August day at Sensoji Temple, one of Tokyo's top tourist attractions. The lane leading to the temple contains dozens of stalls selling souvenirs, snacks and cold drinks.
July and August are normally the peak months for foreign visitors to Sensoji and the rest of Japan. But this summer their numbers are noticeably fewer.
A soft drink seller makes a transaction with a Japanese tourist: 100 yen, that is $1.30, for a half-liter bottle of oolong tea.
The vendor⁶, who did not want to reveal his name, laments⁸ such sales are not as frequent as they should be.
He says the season is not as bad as he might have feared. He explains that he has seen worse times in his 20 years on the job, but there is a noticeable drop this summer in the number of foreigners.
Standing⁹ along the curb¹⁰ in the Asakusa district in the 34 degree heat is rickshaw driver Ryuta Nishio. He charges tourists 3,000 yen for a ten-minute ride. At the current exchange rate that has soared to about $40.
Nishio says the number of riders has dropped about 30 percent this August compared to the same month last year. It is not only the number of foreigners that has declined, he says, but domestic tourists as well.
But some foreigners are overcoming concerns about lingering radiation, seismic¹¹ aftershocks and a worsening exchange rate. The yen has gained about 8.5 percent on the U.S. dollar in the past six months.
Blaine Deitch, a retiree from southern California, says the trip has turned out to be worth every devalued dollar he has spent.
"That does take a dip in your pocket. That's going to stop a lot of people from coming. It almost stopped me," notes Deitch. "But my wife wanted to come back, so here we are."
Taiwan college student Teng Changcheng is on a five-day visit to Japan with family. She says the situation seems to have improved in the country since the calamity¹² five months ago.
Teng says her family did not worry about making the trip because the Japanese government now seems to have the nuclear crisis under control.
U.S. Marine¹³ Clayton Simpson is visiting from the U.S. state of North Carolina.
"Despite the disaster, I've always wanted to come, so we decided¹⁴ this year was the year," Simpson says. "All the sites have been great but the people they've been extremely helpful. We don't speak a lot of Japanese ourselves. They've been very nice and helpful and it's been a great experience."
Japan's major tourism organizations are running publicity¹⁵ campaigns to reassure¹⁶ visitors. One promotion¹⁷ says Tokyo's radiation levels are lower than those in New York, Hong Kong and other major destinations.
Some hotels are slashing¹⁸ room rates amid a continuing dip in bookings by foreign tourists, although business travelers are trickling¹⁹ back in.
Many in the travel industry believe, however, it could be another year before overseas leisure travel bookings return to previous levels. They warn the industry could suffer further setbacks if another damaging earthquake hits, or the strong yen continues to reach new record highs.

1 yen   

n. 日元；热望

参考例句：

• He wanted to convert his dollars into Japanese yen.他想将美元换成日币。
• He has a yen to be alone in a boat.他渴望独自呆在一条船上。

2 dissuade   

v.劝阻，阻止

参考例句：

• You'd better dissuade him from doing that.你最好劝阻他别那样干。
• I tried to dissuade her from investing her money in stocks and shares.我曾设法劝她不要投资于股票交易。

3 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

4 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

5 subdued   

adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He seemed a bit subdued to me. 我觉得他当时有点闷闷不乐。
• I felt strangely subdued when it was all over. 一切都结束的时候，我却有一种奇怪的压抑感。

6 vendor   

n.卖主；小贩

参考例句：

• She looked at the vendor who cheated her the other day with distaste.她厌恶地望着那个前几天曾经欺骗过她的小贩。
• He must inform the vendor immediately.他必须立即通知卖方。

7 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

8 laments   

n.悲恸，哀歌，挽歌( lament的名词复数 )v.（为…）哀悼，痛哭，悲伤( lament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• In the poem he laments the destruction of the countryside. 在那首诗里他对乡村遭到的破坏流露出悲哀。
• In this book he laments the slight interest shown in his writings. 在该书中他慨叹人们对他的著作兴趣微弱。 来自辞典例句

9 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

10 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

11 seismic   

a.地震的，地震强度的

参考例句：

• Earthquakes produce two types of seismic waves.地震产生两种地震波。
• The latest seismic activity was also felt in northern Kenya.肯尼亚北部也感觉到了最近的地震活动。

12 calamity   

n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件

参考例句：

• Even a greater natural calamity cannot daunt us. 再大的自然灾害也压不垮我们。
• The attack on Pearl Harbor was a crushing calamity.偷袭珍珠港(对美军来说)是一场毁灭性的灾难。

13 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

14 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。

15 publicity   

n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告

参考例句：

• The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。

16 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

17 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

18 slashing   

adj.尖锐的；苛刻的；鲜明的；乱砍的v.挥砍( slash的现在分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Slashing is the first process in which liquid treatment is involved. 浆纱是液处理的第一过程。 来自辞典例句
• He stopped slashing his horse. 他住了手，不去鞭打他的马了。 来自辞典例句

19 trickling   

n.油画底色含油太多而成泡沫状突起v.滴( trickle的现在分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Tears were trickling down her cheeks. 眼泪顺着她的面颊流了下来。
• The engine was trickling oil. 发动机在滴油。 来自《简明英汉词典》