VOA慢速英语2016 参观美国国家纪念地的神圣之地（在线收听）

Visiting Sacred Grounds in National Park Monuments 参观美国国家纪念地的神圣之地

The year 2016 is the 100th anniversary of the U.S. National Park Service. Adventurer and traveler Mikah Meyer is celebrating in a big way. He is traveling all across America. He plans to visit each of the more than 400 National Park Service sites.

2016年是美国国家公园管理局成立100周年。冒险家和旅游者麦卡·梅耶正在大力庆祝，他正在周游美国各地。他计划要走遍美国国家公园管理局旗下所有四百多家景点。

Meyer is 30 years old. If he reaches his goal, he will become the youngest person to visit all of the sites within the National Park Service. He will also be the only person to ever do so in one trip.

梅耶今年30岁。如果他实现了自己的目标，他将成为走遍美国国家公园管理局旗下所有景点的最年轻的人，他也将是用一次旅行走遍所有景点的唯一一人。

He started his journey in Washington, DC, in June. Since then, he has visited more than 30 sites.

今年六月，他从华盛顿特区开启旅程。自那时起，他已经参观了30多家景点。

The Voice of America has been following Meyer on the road. His photos and blog provide audiences with a virtual view of some of the most beautiful places within the park system.

美国之音一直都在关注旅行中的梅耶。他的照片和博客为观众们带来了美国国家公园系统内一些最美丽的虚拟视图。

Meyer recently traveled around the northern U.S. states. During his travels, he visited two park service sites that Native Americans considered sacred.

梅耶最近在美国北部各州游历。在他的旅行中，他参观了美国本地人视为神圣的两处景点。

Pipestone National Monument

派普斯通国家纪念地

The Pipestone National Monument is in southwestern Minnesota. It was created in recognition of the red pipestone found in the area.

派普斯通国家纪念地位于明尼苏达州西南部，是为了纪念该地区发现的红色烟斗石而建立的。

The special stone is the main reason the place has been sacred to Native Americans for several hundred years. They used the stone to make pipes for prayer services.

这种特殊的石头是该地区数百年来一直对美国本地人来说非常神圣的主要原因。他们使用这种石头制作祈祷所用的烟斗。

During his visit, Meyer said he watched a park staff member making pipes at the park's gift shop. The staff let Meyer use some tools to work with the stone himself.

迈耶表示，他在参观期间看到一名公园工作人员在该公园的礼品店制作烟斗。这名工作人员让梅耶用工具雕刻石头。

"It was fun to be able to use it with your own hands," Meyer said.

梅耶表示，“能够自己亲手制作非常有趣。”

Effigy Mounds National Monument

雕像墩国家纪念地

Another place that holds special meaning for Native Americans is a national monument in the state of Iowa. It is connected with the culture known today as the Effigy Moundbuilders.

另一处对美国本地人具有特殊意义的地方是爱荷华州的一处国家纪念地。这和今天所谓的“雕像筑墩人”文化有关。

Here in Iowa, there are more than 200 small hills, or mounds, of earth. They are in the shapes of birds, bears, deer, bison, turtles, and panthers. They sit in one of the most scenic parts of the Upper Mississippi River Valley. They are part of the Effigy Mounds National Monument.

在爱荷华州有200多处小山或土丘，它们都是鸟、熊、鹿、野牛、龟和黑豹的形状。它们坐落于密西西比河上游的一处风景最优美的地方。这里是雕像墩国家纪念地的一部分。

The exact purpose of the mounds remains unclear. But Native Americans say ancestral stories describe the mounds as ceremonial and sacred sites. Archaeologists believe the effigy mounds may have marked hunting and gathering territories.

这些土墩的真实用途尚不明确。但是美国本地人说原始故事称这些土墩是礼仪和神圣之所。考古学家认为这些雕像墩可能标识着狩猎和采集的领地。

Meyer said he was happy to spend the week of the National Park Service's official 100th birthday in places "that don't always get as much attention as other places within the park system."

梅耶表示，他很高兴把美国国家公园系统官方100周年的这个星期花在该公园系统内关注度不如其它地方的这些景点上。

Words in This Story

journey - n. an act of traveling from one place to another

virtual - adj. existing or occurring on computers or on the Internet

mounds - n. a small hill or pile of dirt or stones?

archaeologist - n. a scientist who deals with past human life and activities by studying the bones, tools, etc., of ancient people?