Travels in Europe: London 雾都漫步 - 1

Hi, I'm Rick Steves, here in London for the finale of our grand circle tour of Europe. This city is a rich brew¹, and we are going to sample freely: from the colorful market places to the historic walks, these grand squares, pigeons everywhere, the people, even the weather. We'll cruise the Thames down to Greenwich, for a look at Britain's nautical² history, and we'll sidetrip out to Salisbury Cathedral to get a handle on Gothic architecture. Along the way I'll be sharing some ideas on ways you can improve your favorite souvenirs-your very own photos.

This is our final stop on this tour which began 3000 miles ago in Amsterdam. Wound down the Mosel and Rhine Rivers, traveled the Romantic Road into Bavaria, took a leisurely³ swing through the highlights of Italy, climbed back up into Switzerland, hit Paris, and now, London.

7 million people in 600 square miles of urban jungle, London is a barrage⁴ on all the senses. Much more than museums and famous landmarks⁵, I see it as a living, breathing organism. And when I'm in town, I'm one happy corpuscle.

And I love its contrasts! Here we are walking under Big Ben, the Halls of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, and at the same time, I'm surrounded by the 20th century. Let's go feel the pulse of this complex city.

It goes way back, back to this gutsy Celtic Queen Boudicca, who led an uprising against the Roman Empire, in 61 AD, when this place was called Londondinium.

It's this guy we all recognize, Winston Churchill, who inspired the British during WWII. It's the guy who figured out if you electrified⁶ Winston, the pigeons would sit elsewhere.

It's the red double-decker buses, the big black cabs, the friendly-looking "bobbies", eccentric characters, No. 10 Downing Street, St Paul's Cathedral, and topnotch theater. You can travel the world over by visiting the British Museum. It's the greatest chronicle of civilization anywhere, containing as some describe it-the booty of its formerly⁷ vast empire. And you can see people from the world over, as London learns to live as a microcosm of that former empire.

Chinese take-outs compete with fish and chip shops. Hotel staff speak English with foreign accents as huge communities of Jamaicans, Indians, Africans and Asians fill out the workforce⁸.

-------------------------------------------

sample vt.品尝

nautical adj.船员的，航海的

Mosel or Moselle river, France, Luxembourg, and Germany. A river rising in the Vosges Mountains of northeast France and flowing about 547 km (340 mi) north then northeast to the Rhine River in western Germany. The German valley of the river is noted⁹ for its castles and vineyards.

Celtic Queen Boudicca Boudicca was a Briton tribal¹⁰ leader of the Iceni (in the Norfolk area of England) who rebelled against the Roman legions approximately 60 AD with particular savagery¹¹ and bloodshed. 亦作Boadicea狄阿狄西亚(?-62,英国东部 Iceni族女王,曾反抗罗马)

booty n. Goods or property seized unlawfully, especially by a victor in wartime 战利品,缴获物;掠夺物;赃物

1 brew   

v.酿造，调制

参考例句：

• Let's brew up some more tea.咱们沏些茶吧。
• The policeman dispelled the crowd lest they should brew trouble.警察驱散人群，因恐他们酿祸。

2 nautical   

adj.海上的，航海的，船员的

参考例句：

• A nautical mile is 1,852 meters.一海里等于1852米。
• It is 206 nautical miles from our present location.距离我们现在的位置有206海里。

3 leisurely   

adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的

参考例句：

• We walked in a leisurely manner,looking in all the windows.我们慢悠悠地走着，看遍所有的橱窗。
• He had a leisurely breakfast and drove cheerfully to work.他从容的吃了早餐，高兴的开车去工作。

4 barrage   

n.火力网，弹幕

参考例句：

• The attack jumped off under cover of a barrage.进攻在炮火的掩护下开始了。
• The fierce artillery barrage destroyed the most part of the city in a few minutes.猛烈的炮火几分钟内便毁灭了这座城市的大部分地区。

5 landmarks   

n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址）

参考例句：

• The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句

6 electrified   

v.使电气化( electrify的过去式和过去分词 )；使兴奋

参考例句：

• The railway line was electrified in the 1950s. 这条铁路线在20世纪50年代就实现了电气化。
• The national railway system has nearly all been electrified. 全国的铁路系统几乎全部实现了电气化。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

8 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

11 savagery   

n.野性

参考例句：

• The police were shocked by the savagery of the attacks.警察对这些惨无人道的袭击感到震惊。
• They threw away their advantage by their savagery to the black population.他们因为野蛮对待黑人居民而丧失了自己的有利地位。