VOA慢速英语2021--乐高收藏家重现越南街头物件

In a room full of Lego pieces, Hoang Dang carefully builds a bright blue, yellow and red fishing boat with a Vietnamese flag.

The industrial designer has loved Lego for as long as he can remember. But he only started collecting the objects seriously a few years ago on an overseas study trip to Detroit. He was interested in the many kinds of Lego sets available in the United States.

Hoang mainly recreates sights close to home in Vietnam. His Lego creations¹ include his childhood home, a temple in Hanoi's Old Quarter and a 1990s living room during Lunar New Year. All of the designs are complex and have colorful details.

Hoang used the term perspective – a way of thinking or understanding something – to describe his interest in sharing his love of Lego.

"I want to bring my perspective to friends all over the world, because Vietnam's Lego building community is still little known regionally and globally," he said.

Hoang is halfway² to his goal of building 10 large models for a public showing. He said it takes about five months to finish a 5,000-piece facade³, or front of a building. But, he added, much of that time is spent finding the right pieces.

"I often spend a whole evening to look for just that one brick," he said.

Even with a collection of over two million Lego bricks, Hoang says he is always looking for new pieces. That's how he made what he calls his "Lego friends," including Khang Huynh in Ho Chi Minh City.

The two met on a Facebook group for Lego builders and collectors. The name "Lego" is short for "leg godt," which means "play well" in Danish.

Hoang said, "Building Lego helps us to recharge our creative energy after working on long and tiring projects." Hoang and Khang like to take pictures of what interests them on the street, then recreate the objects with bricks. For Khang, that includes street sights with complex builds like a Honda Cub⁴ motorcycle.

"I am drawn⁵ to the everyday things around me that are very familiar," said Khang. "I build anything that I feel is cute and dear to me."

Words in This Story

set – n. a group of similar things that belong together

temple – n. a building for worship

brick – n. a small, hard block that is used to build structures

recharge – v. to regain⁶ energy or spirit

familiar – adj. to know about something or have experienced it many times before

cute – adj. having a pleasing appearance

dear – adj. loved or valued very much

1 creations   

创造( creation的名词复数 )； 创造物； （尤指所述由上帝）创造天地； 宇宙

参考例句：

• This artist's creations are worth collecting. 这个艺术家的作品值得收藏。
• The intellectual creations of individual nations become common property. 各民族的精神产品成了公共的财产。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

2 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

3 facade   

n.(建筑物的)正面，临街正面；外表

参考例句：

• The entrance facade consists of a large full height glass door.入口正面有一大型全高度玻璃门。
• If you look carefully,you can see through Bob's facade.如果你仔细观察，你就能看穿鲍勃的外表。

4 cub   

n.幼兽，年轻无经验的人

参考例句：

• The lion cub's mother was hunting for what she needs. 这只幼师的母亲正在捕猎。
• The cub licked the milk from its mother's breast. 这头幼兽吸吮着它妈妈的奶水。

5 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

6 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。