都是为了GDP！为吸引游客兴建的6座人造城（打印版）

　　However perfect a tourist destination might seem, it will always have its glaring faults - in London the attractions are too spread out, in Venice the streets can be too narrow and in Rome the cobbles play havoc on the ankles.

　　对一个旅游城市来说，无论它的景致多么美轮美奂，却也总有着碍目的瑕疵——比如，伦敦城中的景点布局过于分散，威尼斯城中有些街道太过窄小，罗马城中的鹅卵石路常常弄伤游人的脚踝。

　　Which is why some countries decided to design cities and towns from scratch to tempt those looking for a problem-free holiday. Read on to find out about six of the best fake cities and towns from around the world...

　　正因如此，许多国家决定自行设计一些城市和小镇，从平地建造起来，好吸引那些希望获得完美假期的游客们前来赏玩。看看下文，你会了解到全世界6大最完美的人造城镇。

　　都是为了GDP！为吸引游客兴建的6座人造城

　　Thames Town in China, which reportedly cost ?500million to build, sits 19 miles outside of Shanghai.

　　这座中国的泰晤士小镇位于距离上海市外19英里的地方，据报道斥资5亿英镑建成。

　　But despite being completed in 2006, its mock-Tudor buildings, cobbled streets and English pub remain desolate.

　　这座城市于2006年建成，然而建成至今，它那模仿都铎王朝时期英国建筑风格的特色建筑，鹅卵石铺就的街道和英式的小酒店却一直遭到游客的冷遇。

　　Bronze statues of James Bond and Winston Churchill are two of the tourist attractions, while hundreds of homes are designed to imitate Victorian, Georgian and Tudor architecture.

　　这里有不少英式的旅游景点，其中包括詹姆斯·邦德和丘吉尔的铜像，还有成百上千的别墅效仿着维多利亚时代，乔治王朝时代和都铎王朝时代的建筑风格。

　　The first people to imagine that a city in the middle of the West Coast desert would be a roaring success must have had a hard time convincing others, but they were right and Las Vegas is now one of the party capitals of the world.

　　当那些创业者想出要在美国西海岸中部的沙漠中建造一座城市，并断定这座城市一定会飞黄腾达时，他们一定废了不少唇舌让旁人相信他们的梦想。然而他们是对的。如今拉斯维加斯是全球最繁华，最热闹的城市之一。

　　The city was founded in 1905 and 24 years later it got its big break when Nevada legalised gambling.

　　这座城市在1905年建成，24年后，内华达州颁布了赌博合法化的法令，这座城市迎来了最大的机遇。

　　Since then, it has become the top location for gamblers from around the world.

　　从此之后，这座城市就变成了全球各地的赌客们最倾慕的地方。

　　Atlantic City has recently enjoyed a revival thanks to the HBO drama Boardwalk Empire, but in the last couple of decades it experienced a slump in visitor numbers.

　　由于HBO电视台的热播历史剧《大西洋帝国》，近年来大西洋城出现了经济复苏的局面，不过近十年来它也曾遭遇游客人数锐减的冷遇。

　　It is a far cry from its heydey of the 1940's and 50's, when wealthy New Yorkers would flock to the city on the Jersey shore for their summer vacation.

　　此情此景与此城1940-50年代的景象可以天壤之别，当时正是这座城的黄金时代，那些富裕的纽约人蜂拥而至，到这座泽西海岸上的城市来享受暑假。

　　Cancun is one of the most fashionable holiday destinations in the world right now. But 45 years ago, there was nothing but sand where the city now lies.

　　坎昆城如今已经成为全球最受欢迎的度假胜地之一。可是就在45年前，这里还是一片只有沙土的废墟。

　　The Mexican government plowed money into the area and built several large hotels with the aim of making it a global tourist destination.

　　莫斯哥政府倾注大量资金建设这个地区，在这里建造了好几座大型酒店，目的就是将这里建成一座国际化的旅游城市。

　　Benidorm is one of the most successful tourist destinations in Spain.

　　贝尼多姆是西班牙最繁华的旅游城市之一。

　　But until the 1950s, it was just a small fishing town off the western Mediterranean.

　　然而就在1950年代的时候，它还仅仅只是一个地中海西海岸变的小渔村。

　　After the fishing industry started to struggle, the Spanish government decided to turn it into a holiday spot.

　　当渔业开始萎缩的时候，西班牙政府才决定将这座城市转型成为一座旅游城市。

　　Baiae was built to attract wealthy holidaymakers from nearby Rome two thousand years ago.

　　两千年前，人们建造了贝亚城，目的是吸引附近的罗马帝国的富裕居民来此度假。

　　But by 1500, the town was deserted because of Malaria.

　　1500年左右，这座城因爆发疟疾被人们遗弃。

　　As the coast subsided from volcanic activity, Baiae gradually disappeared underwater, although some of the remains can still be seen on land.

　　由于火山活动地壳下沉，贝亚城逐渐被海平面淹没，只有少数遗址还留存在陆地上。

都是为了GDP！为吸引游客兴建的6座人造城（在线收听）