英语听力精选进阶版 14382

Another side to Mogadishu

Summary

7 March 2014

The Somali capital, Mogadishu, has the unenviable reputation of being one of the most dangerous and destroyed cities on earth. But an exhibition that has opened in London hopes to show that the city has a rich architectural history, some of which has survived the shooting and the shelling.

Reporter:

Mary Harper

Report

On the walls of a London gallery hang photographs that tell an altogether different story of Mogadishu. The images, most of which have never before been seen in public, show the compact Arab-style Mogadishu of the thirteenth century. The elegant white Italian colonial buildings that gave it the name 'The Pearl of the Indian Ocean'. The stark¹ socialist² structures of the sixties and seventies.

The Somali architect, Rashid Ali, put together the exhibition. He is worried that the current rebuilding of the city, after the return of a degree of stability, will destroy forever what remains³ of its past…

Rashid Ali, architect:

When this transformation⁴ is not based on a kind of a knowledge and without any policies, it's very easy for these buildings to be entirely⁵ demolished⁶. My point of view is that these buildings should be preserved and not destroyed at all because they are really important to the country's history.

As well as the photographs and videos in the exhibition, there's an architectural model built by Rashid Ali… 

Rashid Ali, architect:

I see culture as a tool for revitalising and rehabilitating⁷ the city so this is what I call a miniature city, which is a cultural hub essentially… Artists' studio spaces, there's a library, there's a small cinema, there's a cafe, there's a book shop. It sits on top of a hillside, so you can overlook Hamar Weyne which is the old city and look at the Indian Ocean.

It's as yet unclear whether Mr Ali's dream of a cultural centre for Mogadishu will become a reality. Or whether what remains of the city's past will be preserved. But this exhibition makes clear that Mogadishu has the potential to be a great African cit

1 stark   

adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地

参考例句：

• The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
• He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

2 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。

5 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

6 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

7 rehabilitating   

改造（罪犯等）( rehabilitate的现在分词 )； 使恢复正常生活； 使恢复原状； 修复

参考例句：

• a unit for rehabilitating drug addicts 帮助吸毒者恢复正常生活的机构
• She was more concerned about protecting the public than rehabilitating the criminal. 她比较关心保护百姓，而不大关心改造罪犯。