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Touring the Ceramics Capital of Taiwan 莺歌国际陶瓷嘉年华

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

I’m filled with excitement as I step off the train in Yingge, Taiwan. According to my travel book, this little town, just south of Taipei, has been the capital of the ceramics industry for 200 years. I’m here on a quest for the perfect teapot. But before I browse the shops, I think I’ll check out the Yingge Ceramics Museum.

在台湾莺歌，我满怀兴奋地步下火车。根据我的旅游手册，这个就位于台北南方的小镇，两百年来一直是陶瓷产业重镇。我来这里寻找心目中完美的茶壶，但是在我逛这些店铺之前，我想先看看莺歌陶瓷博物馆。

I’ve heard visitors can even make their own pottery at the museum and have it mailed home. That is a great idea, but first I want to learn why Yingge became the most important place in Taiwan for ceramics. The brochure tells it all. The soil around Yingge contains not only abundant clay, but also coal, which is necessary for firing the clay into ceramic pieces. In addition, the Dahan Creek, which runs through Yingge, gave the town easy river access to Taipei.

我听说游客甚至可以在馆内自己制作陶器，并把它寄回家。这是个很棒的点子，但是首先我想要知道为何莺歌会成为台湾制陶的首要之地，小册里面有详尽的说明。莺歌周围的土壤不仅富含黏土，也含有煤，而煤是将黏土制成陶所必须的。此外，流经莺歌的大汉溪，则让此地的居民可以很容易地搭船或将货物运至台北。

I decline a tour offer, and wander through the museum by myself. At the Taiwan Ceramic Development Exhibit, I learn that it was the Dutch who brought the first advanced pottery-making techniques to Taiwan. At another exhibit, I explore the use of ceramics in industry and technology. Did you know that the heat shields on the bottom of a space shuttle are made of fire-resistant ceramic tiles?

我谢绝了旅游导览，自己独自漫步于馆内。在「台湾陶瓷发展」的展览中，我得之首度将先进的制陶技术引进台湾的是荷兰人，在另一项展览中，我探索了陶瓷在工业与科技中的用途。你知道航天飞机机腹的隔热片是用耐热陶片制造的吗?

Hours later, as I leave the museum, I notice several posters announcing the International Ceramics Festival. “Bonus!” I say to myself, “I’ll go there tomorrow!”

数小时后，当我离开博物馆时，我注意到几幅国际陶瓷嘉年华的海报，我对自己说，「太棒了!明天我要去那里!」

Vocabulary

单词发音

browse [braʊz] v. 浏览，随便翻阅

abundant [əˋbʌndənt] adj. 大量的；充足的

decline [dɪˋklaɪn] v. 婉拒；谢绝

exhibit [ɪgˋzɪbɪt] n. 展示会; 展示品，陈列品

explore [ɪkˋsplor] v. 探究，探索

More Information

单词发音

ceramics [səˋræmɪks] n.（当单数用）制陶业

quest [kwɛst] n. 寻找；追求；探索[C][U][（+of/for）]

teapot [ˋti͵pɑt] n. 茶壶

check out【口】看看, 试试

pottery [ˋpɑtərɪ] n. 陶器

brochure [broˋʃʊr] n. 小册子

clay [kle] n. 黏土；泥土

by oneself 单独地

tile [taɪl] n. 瓷砖；墙砖

bonus [ˋbonəs] n.【口】额外给予的东西，额外的好处 something unexpected or extra

Reading Questions

1.  Why has Yingge become the most important place in Taiwan for ceramics?

A.  A railway runs through this area and provides easy access to big cities.

B.  The minerals in the Dahan Creek are the best for making ceramics.

C.  The fire-resistant ceramic tiles needed for the heat shields of space shuttles are mainly imported from this little town.

D.  The soil there is composed of plentiful clay as well as coal.

2.  Which of the following statements is CORRECT?

A.  The speaker goes on a guided tour around the Yingge Ceramics Museum.

B.  Located in southern Taiwan, Yingge is well-known for its ceramics industry.

C.  The Yingge ceramics Museum is a good place for people to learn how to make their own pottery.

D.  Visitors can’t take a train to Yingge because there is no railway station there.

3.  From the article, we learn that ____.

A.  the ceramics industry in Yingge has prospered since the nineteenth century

B.  no guidebook gives a full description of the history of ceramics in Yingge

C.  boats can be seen on the Dahan Creek carrying coal to Taipei

D.  the Dutch learned about pottery-making from Taiwan

课文讲解

I wake up in Yingge excited about the day ahead. I’m going to the International Ceramics Festival in a town with two hundred years of history in the craft. How cool is that?

我在莺歌醒来，对今天之行充满兴奋。我要去一个有二百年陶瓷历史的小镇，参加在那举行的国际陶瓷嘉年华，那是多酷的事啊!

Over breakfast, I browse through this year’s festival program. I note that the festivals have been theme-based for the past few years. Last year, the theme was “Remindful History of 200 Years in Yingge.” This year, the title is “Ceramics & Sounds.” It sounds fascinating!

吃早餐时，我浏览了一下今年嘉年华的节目表，我注意到过去这几年的嘉年华都是有主题的。去年的主题是「窑向莺歌200年」，今年的主题是「陶与声音」，听起来美极了!

On to the festival! First stop: an exhibition hall filled with ceramic bells and drums crafted by local artists. The brochure says they’ll play the instruments later in the evening. I hope I get the chance to listen. Second stop: the kilns that are used to bake clay into finished pieces. This festival turns out to be more fun than I expected; we’re allowed to play with ceramic dominos! What’s more, we can make artistic patterns using ceramic tiles of different shapes and colors.

出发去参加嘉年华啰!第一站:一个满是由当地艺术家创作的陶铃与陶鼓的展览馆，小册上有说会在晚间稍晚时演奏乐器，希望我有机会去聆听。第二站:用来将黏土制成成品的窑。这个嘉年华结果比我想象中的还要好玩，我们可以玩瓷砖骨牌!此外，我们可以用不同形状与颜色的瓷砖来拼贴出艺术造型的图案。

In the evening, I take a stroll through Yingge’s Old Street. In a small shop I see it: the teapot of my dreams. As I hold the lovely yellowish-brown pot in my hands, a(an) musical concert begins to play. I can hear the ceramic instruments I saw earlier. What a perfect ending to my weekend.

晚上我在莺歌老街闲逛，在一家小店铺里我看到了我梦寐以求的茶壶。当我手上握着这个可爱的黄褐色茶壶时，一场音乐会开始演奏了。我可以听到先前看到的陶乐器的演奏，为我的周末画下完美的句点。

－by Bill Martin

Vocabulary

单词发音

craft [kræft] n. 工艺，手艺

theme [θim] n. 主题

exhibition [͵ɛksəˋbɪʃən] n. 展览；展览会，展示会

instrument [ˋɪnstrəmənt] n. 乐器

domino [ˋdɑmə͵no] n. 骨牌

More Information

单词发音

kiln [kɪln] n.（用来烧或烘干砖等的）窑，炉

pattern [ˋpætɚn] n. 花样，图案

take a stroll 散步, 漫步

show off  卖弄, 炫耀

Answer