英语听力精选进阶版 7103

Background: 两名美国游客将他们25年前从罗马斗兽场偷窃的一块石头邮寄归还，并表示道歉。

The bit of stone, small enough to fit into a pocket, arrived in a courier package from the United States. The anonymous¹ souvenir hunters sent a letter with it explaining they'd chipped off the piece on a visit to Rome 25 years ago.

The note said, "Every time I looked at my souvenir collection and came across that piece it made me feel guilty".

It went on: "Over the years I started thinking that if all the visitors to that beautiful monument took a piece away with them, nothing would be left standing²". The note added "It was a selfish and superficial act".

Rome's archaeological officials have accepted the apology saying the episode proved that "Rome and its monuments are the dream of all the world's tourists". The city has extended an invitation to the couple to come back to Rome.

It's not the first time bits of the city’s ancient heritage have proved tempting³ for tourists to relocate.

Last August a German visitor was caught trying to sneak⁴ out a nine kilogram rock from the Roman Forum⁵ in her backpack, whilst in 2006 another German tourist was caught at one of the city's airports with a piece of Roman column in his bag.

GLOSSARY⁶ 词汇表

courier package 特快专递邮包

souvenir hunters 纪念品寻觅者

chipped off 从墙上铲下一小块（石头）

souvenir collection 纪念品收藏

guilty 愧疚的

monument 纪念碑

selfish 自私的

superficial act 肤浅的行为

archaeological 考古的

ancient heritage 古代遗产

tempting 诱人的

sneak out 偷偷摸摸地拿走

Questions and Answers

1. How big was the stolen piece of stone?

It was small enough to fit into a pocket.

2. How was the bit of stone returned?

It was returned inside a courier package with a letter of apology.

3. How did the tourists feel when they looked at their stolen souvenir?

They said that they felt guilty and selfish when they looked at their stolen souvenir.

4. Has the city of Rome forgiven the tourists for stealing a part of the famous Colosseum?

The city has accepted the tourist’s apology and invited the couple back to Rome.

1 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

2 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

3 tempting   

a.诱人的, 吸引人的

参考例句：

• It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
• It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。

4 sneak   

vt.潜行(隐藏,填石缝)；偷偷摸摸做；n.潜行；adj.暗中进行

参考例句：

• He raised his spear and sneak forward.他提起长矛悄悄地前进。
• I saw him sneak away from us.我看见他悄悄地从我们身边走开。

5 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

6 glossary   

n.注释词表；术语汇编

参考例句：

• The text is supplemented by an adequate glossary.正文附有一个详细的词汇表。
• For convenience,we have also provided a glossary in an appendix.为了方便，我们在附录中也提供了术语表。