VOA新闻杂志--世界上最大的冰屋咖啡馆在克什米尔开业

‘World’s Largest’ Igloo Cafe Brings Visitors to Indian Kashmir

The world's largest igloo restaurant can be found in northern India in the Jammu and Kashmir area.

An igloo is a shelter that is usually round and is made of snow and ice. But the café will not be available for too much longer. The 40-seat business is expected to melt away sometime in March.

Snoglu Cafe is owned and operated by the hotel Kolahoi Green Heights. It is at the Himalayan winter sports resort¹ of Gulmarg, which is 50 kilometers southwest of Srinagar and 2,500 meters above sea level.

Syed Wasim Shah is the creator of the cafe. He said an igloo village in Zermatt, Switzerland that he visited a few years ago helped him come up with the idea.

Snoglu Cafe is 11.43 meters tall and 13.56 meters wide. That makes it larger than the current record holder². The Guinness Book of World Records publishes such records. The igloo listed by Guinness is found in Switzerland. It is 10.5 meters tall and 12.9 meters wide.

Shah told VOA, "We have already written to Guinness Book of World Records to certify³ our record and they will do it in due course of time."

The cafe has two areas. Coffee and small foods are served in one area. The other is for artwork.

Shah said, "It took us 64 days, precisely⁵ 1,700 man-days to complete: We started on the 3rd December and completed on the 4th of February." He added, "We employed all locals to construct it and the snow art was all done by me."

The cafe immediately became popular with visitors from the resort. Shah said the business has 300 to 400 visitors every day. He said he is asking people to pay about $3 to enter the snowy structure to limit the number of people.

One of those customers was Dr. Vaishnavi. She visited Kashmir for the first time from the eastern Indian state of Orissa. She ate there with her husband, Dr. Indrajeetm.

Vaishnavi told VOA that she was interested in the idea behind the structure and liked the feeling inside the Snoglu Cafe. Visitors wear winter clothes and sit on sheepskin seats to stay warm.

Hamid Masoodi runs the Hotel Kolahoi Green Heights. He said this is the second year that the hotel has had the igloo cafe. It is only possible to have one during the winter season from early December until about the middle of March.

He said the hotel built one last year that could fit 16 people. He estimates⁶ this year's larger igloo could serve almost 20,000 visitors during a full season.

Shah, meanwhile, has bigger plans.

He said the goal is to create a "full-fledged igloo village next year." It would have places to sleep, along with the Snoglu Cafe.

Words in This Story

cafe – n. a small restaurant where you can get simple meals and drinks (such as coffee)

resort – n. a place where people go for vacations

certify – v. to say officially that something is true, correct, or genuine⁷

precise⁴ – adj. very accurate⁸ and exact

customer –n. someone who buys goods or services from a business

construct – v. to build or make (something physical, such as a road, bridge, or building)

full-fledged – adj. fully developed

1 resort   

n.凭借，手段，常去之地，胜地；vi.求助，诉诸，采取（某种手段等），常去

参考例句：

• He couldn't have passed the exam without resort to cheating.他要不是靠作弊是通不过这次考试的。
• Beidaihe is noted for its summer resort.北戴河以避暑胜地而著称。

2 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

3 certify   

vt.证明，证实；发证书(或执照)给

参考例句：

• I can certify to his good character.我可以证明他品德好。
• This swimming certificate is to certify that I can swim one hundred meters.这张游泳证是用以证明我可以游100米远。

4 precise   

adj.精确的，恰好的，极清楚的

参考例句：

• At that precise moment, Miss Pulteney came into the office.就在那时，普尔特尼小姐走进了办公室。
• A scientist must be precise in making tests.科学家做试验必须精确。

5 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

6 estimates   

估计

参考例句：

• Unofficial estimates put the figure at over two million. 非官方的估计数字为200万以上。
• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 genuine   

adj.真的，非人造的；真诚的，真心的

参考例句：

• On further examination it was found that the signature was not genuine.经过进一步的调查发现签名不是真的。
• As time went on,a genuine friendship grew up between us.随着时间的推移，我们之间产生了一种真挚的友情。

8 accurate   

adj.正确无误的；准确的，精确的

参考例句：

• He has made an accurate measurement of my garden.他准确地丈量了我的花园。
• He is always accurate in what he says and does.他说的和做的总是正确无误。