VOA慢速英语2016 美国路边景点：奇特，但值得逗留（在线收听）

America's Roadside Attractions: Weird and Worth a Stop 美国路边景点：奇特，但值得逗留

Road trips have been popular with Americans for almost as long as their love of cars. But when gasoline prices are high, people abandon the highway.

美国人对自驾游的热衷程度，不亚于对汽车的喜爱。但汽油价格上涨之后，人们便抛弃了公路。

This summer, gasoline prices have fallen.And, more Americans are taking road trips once again.The American Automobile Association says more than half of Americans are driving on highways this vacation season.Wherever they might travel, there is much to see along the way.The U.S. is well known for its so-called roadside attractions.

今年夏天，汽油价格回落。因此，很多美国人又开始自驾游了。美国汽车协会表示，超过一半的美国人正在利用这个假期进行自驾游。不管去哪里，路边都是无尽的风光。美国尤以路边风景出名。

Roadside attractions are generally found near highways.They are usually free and are often huge representations of ordinary things.They are also often a bit weird.

路边风景一般都位于高速公路旁边。这些景点通常都是免费的，代表普通事物。此外，它们通常还有点怪异。

No one exactly knows how many roadside attractions there are in the United States.Not everyone agrees on what makes something a roadside attraction.

没有人明确知道美国到底有多少路边景点。关于是什么成就了路边景点，人们也很难达成一致的意见。

June Julien is with the Steuben County Indiana Visitor’s Bureau.She says the website Roadside America lists about 15,000 such attractions.

June Julien在斯托本县印第安纳旅游局工作。她表示美国景点网站列出了15000个此类景点。

“Well, some of the reasons to go to roadside attractions would be you’ve been in the car for hours,the children are antsy, the pets need some attention, and you can get out, you can stretch your legs,you can have a little bonding time with your family on something and you’re looking at something that’s different, you don’t see it every day.”

“参观路边景点的原因可能是，你已经在车里待了多个小时，孩子们已经开始焦躁，宠物需要一些关注，你可以下车来伸伸腿脚，你可以有与家人联络感情的时间，并看看一些不同的东西，平日里并不能看到这些。

Each state has hundreds of roadside attractions.Some are as simple as the meeting of three states in the middle of a lonely dirt road.A small sign marks the place where you can stand in Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio at the same time.

每条街都有数百个路边景点。有的可能只是三个州在一条土路中间的交汇。一个小的标志告诉你，你可以同时站在密歇根州、印第安纳州和俄亥俄州。

Others are huge, and can be seen for kilometers.The Smiley Face water tower in Indiana is one of more than 30 “smiling” water towers across the area.

其他的路边景点则是很大的，绵延数千米。印第安纳州的笑脸水塔是美国30多个笑脸水塔之一。

Zack Dunaway is on a 12-hour road trip from Atlanta, Georgia, to Michigan.He is creating his own attractions along the way by taking selfies at every state line rest stop.

Zack Dunaway正在从佐治亚州亚特兰大前往密歇根进行长达12小时的自驾游。他在州界线休息点进行自拍留念。

“We’ve stopped several times to stretch your legs and rest your mind from the road.”

“我们停了好几次，伸伸腿脚，并分散一下注意力。”

Mike Swartz is from Toledo, Ohio.He says stopping at roadside attractions is a great way to teach his children.

Mike Swartz来自俄亥俄州托莱多。他表示，在路边景点停靠是教育孩子的绝好方式。

“Kids get to see a lot of different parts of the United States, put the screens down and get to talk to your mom and dad.Older kids probably don’t like that as much, but the younger kids -- it’s important for them to learn.”

“孩子们能看到美国一些不同的地方。打开车窗，去跟爸爸妈妈聊天吧。大点的孩子可能不喜欢这样，但对于小孩子来说，学习是非常重要的。”

Roadside attractions gained popularity after World War II, when soldiers returned home.The men had seen the world and were excited to explore their own country.

第二次世界大战结束士兵返回家乡时，路边景点开始备受青睐。士兵们见过了大场面，因此很高兴能够探索自己的国家。

“As the highway system began to be developed, people started to travel.And this was before the advent of fast food restaurants.And there just weren’t a lot of places to pull off.And areas started to say ‘hey, we want these people off the roads, we want them in our areas spending money,’and they started to maybe build things that would attract people.”

“高速公路体系日渐完善，人们开始旅行。当时，快餐店还未普及。因此，当时并没有太多停靠点。甚至有些地区的人说‘我们不想让这些人在这里路过，我们想让他们在我们的地盘上进行消费。’因此他们开始建立一些能够吸引人的地方。”

Restaurants and stores tried all sorts of tricks to appeal to travelers, including bright, big paintings on building walls and wild statues.Calling something the ‘world’s largest’ of its kind is a common title.These objects include the largest ball of twine, the largest rocking chair, and the largest tire.

快餐馆和商店尝试各种方式吸引游客，其中包括在墙壁图画亮颜色的壁画以及修建野外雕塑。这里号称“全球最大”的东西一般来说都是小的。这些东西包括最大的线球，最大的摇椅以及最大的轮胎。

Not all roadside attractions are manmade.Kokomo, Indiana, is home to the World’s Largest Bull.Old Ben died in 1910, and is now stuffed and under glass.He weighed 2140 kilograms and was almost 2 meters tall.

并不是所有的路边景点都是人工制造的。印第安纳州的科科莫是全球最大的公牛之乡。Ben死于1910年，用材料填充之后，放在玻璃中。重2140公斤，约有2米高。

There are also strange sites, like trees with shoes hanging from their branches.A twisted house in the shape of an arrow brings in visitors too.In Huntington, Indiana, there is an outhouse collection open to the public.

此外还有一些奇怪的景点，例如树枝上挂着鞋子的树木。变形的屋子也吸引了不少游客。印第安纳州亨廷顿的户外收集对公众开放。

As strange as these things are, Julien believes that roadside attractions do more than give travelers a break and bring money to the local communities.

尽管这些都非常奇特，Julien相信除了为游客提供休息，为社区带来钱财之外，这些路边景点还有更多意义。

“The more you travel, the wider your worldview is and the easier it will be for all of us in the long run to get along.”

“旅游越多，世界观越宽广，从长远来看我们更容易友好相处。”

Words in This Story

abandon – v. to stop doing or having (something) : to give up (something) completely?

highway – n. a main road that connects cities, towns, etc.?

attraction – n.something interesting or enjoyable that people want to visit, see, or do?

weird – adj. unusual or strange?

selfie -– n. a picture that you take of yourself especially by using the camera on your smartphone?

kids – n. a son or daughter?

screen – n. the usually flat part of a television or computer monitor that shows the images or text ?

advent – n. the time when something begins or arrives: the first appearance of something?

outhouse – n. a small outdoor building that is used as a toilet?