普通高中课程标准实验教科书 英语必修1 Unit 3 Travel Journal-R

JOURNEY DOWN THE MEKONG
PART1 THE DREAM AND THE PLAN
 
          My name is Wang Kun. Ever since middle school, my sister Wang Wei and I have dreamed about taking a great bike trip. Two years ago she bought an expensive mountain bike and then she persuaded me to buy one. Last year, she visited our cousins, Dao Wei and Yu Hang at their college in Kunming. They are Dai and grew up in western Yunnan Province near the Lancang River, the Chinese part of the river that is called the Mekong River in other countries. Wang Wei soon got them interested in cycling too. After graduating from college, we finally got the chance to take a bike trip. I asked my sister, "Where are we going?" It was my sister who first had the idea to cycle along the entire Mekong River from where it begins to where it ends. Now she is planning our schedule tor the trip.
          I am fond of my sister but she has one serious shortcoming. She can be really stubborn¹. Although she didn't know the best way of getting to places, she insisted that she organize the trip properly. Now I know that the proper way is always her way. I kept asking her, "When are we leaving and when are we coming back?" I asked her whether she had looked at a map yet. Of course she hadn't; my sister doesn't care about details. So I told her that the source² of the Mekong is in Qinghai Province. She gave me a determined³ look - the kind that said she would not change her mind. When I told her that our journey would begin at an altitude⁴ of more than5,000 metres, she seemed to be excited about it. When I told her the air would be hard to breathe and it would be very cold, she said it would be an interesting experience. I know my sister well. Once she has made up her mind, nothing can change it. Finally, I had to give in.
         Several months before our trip, Wang Wei and I went to the library. We found a large atlas⁵ with good maps that showed details of world geography. From the atlas we could see that the Mekong River begins in a glacier⁶ on a Tibetan⁷ mountain. At first the river is small and the water is clear and cold. Then it begins to move quickly. It becomes rapids as it passes through deep valleys, travelling across western Yunnan Province. Sometimes the river becomes a water fall and enters wide valleys. We were both surprised to learn that half of the fiver is in China. After it leaves China and high altitude, the Mekong becomes wide, brown and warm. As it enters Southeast Asia, its pace slows. It makes wide bends or meanders⁸ through low valleys to the plains where rice grows. At last, the fiver delta⁹ enters the South China Sea.

1 stubborn   

adj.难以移动，去除的，固执的，顽固的

参考例句：

• I can not cope with that boy;he is stubborn.我对付不了那个孩子，他很固执。
• When he's in his stubborn mood,he isn't easily talked round.他那股牛劲上来了，一时不容易说服。

2 source   

n.来源，水源；原始资料

参考例句：

• They mentioned you as a good source of information.他们说你消息灵通。
• All works of art have life as their source.一切文艺创作都来源于生活。

3 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

4 altitude   

n.海拔高度；高处

参考例句：

• The plane flew at an altitude of 20,000 feet.这架飞机在两万英尺的高空飞行。
• What is the altitude of the top of the mountain?这座山的顶峰海拔是多少？

5 atlas   

n.地图册，图表集

参考例句：

• He reached down the atlas from the top shelf.他从书架顶层取下地图集。
• The atlas contains forty maps,including three of Great Britain.这本地图集有40幅地图，其中包括3幅英国地图。

6 glacier   

n.冰川，冰河

参考例句：

• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。
• The upper surface of glacier is riven by crevasses.冰川的上表面已裂成冰隙。

7 Tibetan   

adj.西藏的；藏族人的；n.西藏语；西藏人；藏族人

参考例句：

• Winter wheat has made it at home on the Tibetan highlands.冬小麦能在西藏高原生长了。
• The study of the Tibetan language is protected by law.藏语文学习依法得到保障。

8 meanders   

曲径( meander的名词复数 )； 迂回曲折的旅程

参考例句：

• The stream meanders slowly down to the sea. 这条小河弯弯曲曲缓慢地流向大海。
• A brook meanders through the meadow. 一条小溪从草地中蜿蜒流过。

9 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。