Travels in Europe: London 雾都漫步 - 9

Two fascinating and historic boats sit by the river's edge. They each represent in their own very different way, the special relationship that the people of Britain have with the sea.

The Cutty Sark is a sleek¹ sailing clipper. Built in 1869, it was one of the last in the China tea trade. Britain's wealth depended upon the sea. As an island nation and as a colonial power, her trading vessels² fueled her economy. Before the Age of Steam, the Cutty Sark was one of the fastest, most efficient ships afloat. But while the clipper ship was museum bound, Britain's love of sailing lives on.

Sitting next to the clipper is the tiny Gipsy Moth³ IV . In this boat, Sir Francis Chichester single-handedly sailed around the world in 1968. All the world loved his true life adventure, but to his fellow Brits, this man of the sea was more than an adventure. Chichester in his little boat in that huge ocean seemed to epitomize the strength of their island on this globe.

Ok, that's our London Sunday, we can top it off with a leisurely⁴ cruise up the river and even learn something about Romanesque architecture from the boat. That's the Tower of London. Its White Tower was the first Romanesque building in England. Begun by the Roman conquerors⁶, the style is referred to as Norman. To keep things simple, we'll think of Norman architecture as a form of Romanesque.

Begun in the 11th century, it exhibits the classic design of the Romanesque period, round arches, small windows, and thick walls. These are 15 feet thick. Medieval builders had adopted these characteristics from the Romans, hence the name, Romanesque. Their buildings reflected the need for stability and security in a chaotic⁷ and warring world. The tower of London is actually 19 towers. The first, the White Tower was built by William the Conqueror⁵, ten years after he earned his nickname. It was added on to over the years/ in Tele-guru into the largest fortress⁸ in Medieval Europe. Never attacked, it became instead a royal residence and prison.

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fuel vt. To support or stimulate⁹ the activity or existence of 刺激, 推动

afloat adv.&adj. at sea. 在海上地（的）

epitomize vt. To be a typical example of 代表是…的典型范例

Norman n.诺曼底人; 诺曼底法兰西人

1 sleek   

adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢

参考例句：

• Women preferred sleek,shiny hair with little decoration.女士们更喜欢略加修饰的光滑闪亮型秀发。
• The horse's coat was sleek and glossy.这匹马全身润泽有光。

2 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 moth   

n.蛾，蛀虫

参考例句：

• A moth was fluttering round the lamp.有一只蛾子扑打着翅膀绕着灯飞。
• The sweater is moth-eaten.毛衣让蛀虫咬坏了。

4 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。

5 conqueror   

n.征服者，胜利者

参考例句：

• We shall never yield to a conqueror.我们永远不会向征服者低头。
• They abandoned the city to the conqueror.他们把那个城市丢弃给征服者。

6 conquerors   

征服者，占领者( conqueror的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Danes had selfconfidence of conquerors, and their security precautions were casual. 这些丹麦人具有征服者的自信，而且他们的安全防卫也是漫不经心的。
• The conquerors believed in crushing the defeated people into submission, knowing that they could not win their loyalty by the victory. 征服者们知道他们的胜利并不能赢得失败者的忠心，于是就认为只有通过武力才能将他们压服。

7 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。

8 fortress   

n.堡垒，防御工事

参考例句：

• They made an attempt on a fortress.他们试图夺取这一要塞。
• The soldier scaled the wall of the fortress by turret.士兵通过塔车攀登上了要塞的城墙。

9 stimulate   

vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋

参考例句：

• Your encouragement will stimulate me to further efforts.你的鼓励会激发我进一步努力。
• Success will stimulate the people for fresh efforts.成功能鼓舞人们去作新的努力。