VOA慢速英语2015 世界多国燃放烟花庆新年（在线收听）

AS IT IS 2016-01-01 The Best New Year's Fireworks in the World 世界多国燃放烟花庆新年

Fireworks are used to celebrate the new year around the world.

全球都用烟花庆祝新年。

Which countries have the best displays?

那么哪些国家的烟花最好看呢？

According to Australian musician and songwriter Ash Almond, the Top 10 fireworks displays worldwideare in London, Sydney, Taipei, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, New York, Berlin, Dubai, Hong Kong and Beijing.

澳大利亚音乐家兼歌曲作家 Ash Almond表示，全球十大最佳烟花表演 分别是在伦敦、悉尼、台北、吉隆坡、雅加达、纽约、柏林、迪拜、香港和北京。

In China, fireworks are used to drive away evil, according to the website ChineseNewYears.info.Right after midnight on New Year’s Eve, fireworks are set off.It is believed that the person who launches the first firework of the new year will have good luck.

根据网页ChineseNewYears.info显示,在中国，人们用烟花驱邪。午夜十二点之后，新年前夕，便燃放焰火。人们相信第一个燃放焰火的人将会有好运气。

Dubai is hosting an extravagant fireworks display from Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building.The event will also be live-streamed on MyDubaiNewYear.com,offering visitors the choice between three camera angles, reports the Khaleej Times.

迪拜在全球最高的建筑哈利法塔举办了极尽奢华的焰火表演。据海湾时报报道，网页MyDubaiNewYear.com也会现场直播烟花表演， 让参观者能够看到三个视角的现场直播。

Fireworks by Grucci will feature a spectacular display at Atlantis, the Palm Hotel and Resort in Dubai.The company plans to spell "Atlantis" in the sky with fireworks.It will use the reflections of the fireworks in the water to enhance the display.

Grucci公司生产的焰火将在迪拜亚特兰蒂斯棕榈酒店举行精彩绝伦的表演。Grucci公司计划用焰火拼写Atlantis。并利用焰火在水中的倒影加强效果。

"One of their ideas is to create a shimmering red carpet, which will light up the sky as well as reflect in the water below," wrote the Khaleej Times.

海湾时报写道：“其中一个观点是营造一种闪闪发光的红地毯，照亮夜空和水面。”

Berlin is celebrating the new year with a festive open-air party at the Brandenburg Gate.Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend.There will be an international program of live music, light and laser shows, and plenty of food and drink.

柏林在勃兰登堡门举办了露天派对庆祝新年的来临。预计将会有成千上万的人参加。届时将会举行一个国际性的节目，进行现场音乐、灯光和激光表演，并提供食物和饮料。

"The spectacular fireworks display starts at midnight on the dot," reports the website VisitBerlin.de.

网页VisitBerlin.de报道：“精彩绝伦的焰火表演将在午夜准时开始。”

Finally, more than a million revelers are expected at Times Square in New York on New Year’s Eve.They will take part in the 109-year-old tradition of watching the iconic ball drop from atop One Times Square.

最后，预计新年前夕有一百万狂欢者将到纽约时代广场跨年。他们将会观看标志性的水晶球降落，这一传统已经延续了109年。

The New York Times reports that the famous ball is about 4 meters in diameter, or 12-feet wide, and weighs close to 5,443 kilograms, or 12,000 pounds.It shimmers because it is covered in 2,688 Waterford crystals.At midnight, revelers will watch the sky above New York City ablaze with fireworks.

据纽约时报报道，水晶球直径为4米（12英尺宽），重5443千克（12000磅）。表面有2688颗沃特福德水晶，因此能够闪闪发光。午夜时，狂欢者可看到焰火点亮夜空。

Some cities will not be celebrating the new year with fireworks.Belgium cancelled its traditional fireworks display in central Brussels due to fears of the continuing terror threat.

有些城市不用焰火庆祝新年。比利时担心会出现恐怖威胁，因此取消了首都布鲁塞尔传统的焰火表演。

Words in This Story

midnight – n. the middle of the night : 00:00 

host – v. to entertain guests socially or as a job

extravagant – adj.  very fancy

spectacular – adj. causing wonder and admiration : very impressive

enhance – v. to increase or improve (something)

shimmer – v.  to shine with a light that seems to move slightly

festive -  adj. cheerful and exciting : suited to a celebration or holiday

reveler – n. a person who is celebrating with other people in usually a wild and noisy way : a person who is taking part in revelry

iconic – adj. describes a widely known symbol

ablaze – v. glowing with light, color, or emotion