英语博客：Woosh and splash.

　　One of the things that we enjoyed most about our vacation this Summer was the beach. I've always been an inland person; I love forests and mountains. However, this Summer we were in very beachy places. It was the first time that I had been on the Costa Brava in Spain. It is renown¹ for its interesting, rocky beaches, fishing villages, and small, sandy coves². Because we stayed in Girona, in the north of Spain, we were about half an hour from a whole list of beaches. It happened to be an extra hot Summer in Spain, so being close to the sea was very appealing. We went several times. We would pack a lunch, get our supplies of towels, swimming suits, goggles³, and water bottles, pile into the rental⁴ car, and off we would go. One of the beaches that we went to was unusual in that the grains of sand were much bigger than normal. I know this seems unimportant⁵, but for me it was. Once you were dry, the sand just brushed off perfectly⁶ cleanly. Magic. There was no hassle of sticky⁷ sand in your shorts, between your toes, or in the car. It came off with a quick wipe. And, of course, the views were wonderful. You could look along the coastline and see other towns and villages to the north and to the south. Our children begged us to rent one of those, ..., well, I'm not sure what they are called, but they are like a paddle boat, but shaped like a car with a slide ontop. Crazy! And crazy fun it was. My husband and I did the hard work of pedaling⁸, and the kids had the job of sliding down into the water and making lots of noise. Both of us tried a couple of times, but when we did it, it was like a couple of whales sitting on top of the boat, sliding slowly, and making the whole boat lean to one side.
Grammar notes.
Useful expressions: inland, a whole list of, goggles, to pile into..
1. That hotel is inland. If you want to be right on the coast, you will have to find a different one.
2. There is a whole list of gardening equipment in that store. They have everything you could need.
3. I can't swim in the sea without goggles; the salt hurts my eyes too much.
4. Everybody piled into the tent for the night; there was hardly any room for all of us.

1 renown   

n.声誉，名望

参考例句：

• His renown has spread throughout the country.他的名声已传遍全国。
• She used to be a singer of some renown.她曾是位小有名气的歌手。

2 coves   

n.小海湾( cove的名词复数 )；家伙

参考例句：

• Grenada's unique layout includes many finger-like coves, making the island a popular destination. 格林纳达独特的地形布局包括许多手指状的洞穴，使得这个岛屿成为一个受人欢迎的航海地。 来自互联网

3 goggles   

n.护目镜

参考例句：

• Skiers wear goggles to protect their eyes from the sun.滑雪者都戴上护目镜使眼睛不受阳光伤害。
• My swimming goggles keep steaming up so I can't see.我的护目镜一直有水雾，所以我看不见。

4 rental   

n.租赁，出租，出租业

参考例句：

• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
• We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。

5 unimportant   

adj.不重要的，无意义的

参考例句：

• Let's not quarrel about such unimportant matters.我们不要为这些小事争吵了。
• Money seems unimportant when sets beside the joys of family life.与天伦之乐相比，金钱显得微不足道。

6 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

7 sticky   

adj.粘的，闷热的，困难的，令人不满意的

参考例句：

• This paste is not sticky enough.这糨糊不黏。
• Here is a sticky business!这事真难办！

8 pedaling   

vt.& vi.踩自行车的踏板（pedal的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• The back pedaling brake of the bike is out of order. 这辆自行车的倒轮闸失灵了。 来自互联网
• Suspension system effectively reduces reacting force of pedaling. 避震系统可以有效的减缓踩踏时的反作用力。 来自互联网