2014年新年的庆祝活动

 　　2014年新年的庆祝活动

　　Fireworks are crackling through the night skies across the globe as revelers celebrate the first moments of 2014.

　　Crowds gathered in public spaces in major cities across the Asia-Pacific region to ring in the new year with music, fireworks and revelry. As clocks marched toward midnight around the world, crowds massed in Moscow, Dubai, London, New York and other major cities ahead of their celebrations.

　　Dubai created what it called the world's largest fireworks show. About a million people are expected to gather in New York's Times Square to watch a giant ball drop at the stroke of midnight, the best known of the American New Year's Eve rituals.

　　Fireworks erupted from Auckland's Sky Tower as people danced in the streets of New Zealand's biggest city. In Sydney, Australia, more than a million people watched fireworks launched for the first time in more than a decade from the sails of the city's famed waterfront opera house. Billowing fireworks soared over Hong Kong's skyscrapers¹.

　　In Japan, some celebrators ate noodles and seafood² - thought to bring good luck in 2014 - and offered prayers at Buddhist³ shrines⁴ and temples.

　　Celebrations were somewhat muted in the Philippines, where officials say about 260 people were injured by fireworks or stray bullets in the days leading up to New Year's Eve. The mood also was somber⁵ in areas still recovering from Haiyan, a November typhoon that killed thousands of people.

　　Cape⁶ Town, South Africa, was set for a particularly poignant⁷ celebration to include a tribute to anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela, who died December 5.

1 skyscrapers   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• A lot of skyscrapers in Manhattan are rising up to the skies. 曼哈顿有许多摩天大楼耸入云霄。
• On all sides, skyscrapers rose like jagged teeth. 四周耸起的摩天大楼参差不齐。

2 seafood   

n.海产食品，海味，海鲜

参考例句：

• There's an excellent seafood restaurant near here.离这儿不远有家非常不错的海鲜馆。
• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood.小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。

3 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

4 shrines   

圣地，圣坛，神圣场所( shrine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• All three structures dated to the third century and were tentatively identified as shrines. 这3座建筑都建于3 世纪，并且初步鉴定为神庙。
• Their palaces and their shrines are tombs. 它们的宫殿和神殿成了墓穴。

5 somber   

adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• He had a somber expression on his face.他面容忧郁。
• His coat was a somber brown.他的衣服是暗棕色的。

6 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

7 poignant   

adj.令人痛苦的，辛酸的，惨痛的

参考例句：

• His lyrics are as acerbic and poignant as they ever have been.他的歌词一如既往的犀利辛辣。
• It is especially poignant that he died on the day before his wedding.他在婚礼前一天去世了，这尤其令人悲恸。