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保加利亚人骑自行车从阿拉斯加到阿根廷

时间:2016-01-20 15:57:45

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(单词翻译)

Bulgarians Biking From Alaska to Argentina 保加利亚人骑自行车从阿拉斯加到阿根廷

Vyacheslav Stoyanov had dreamed of visiting America since he was a young child.

Yana Melamed grew up visiting family in the United States. But she long dreamed of exploring South America.

Together, they are making both of their dreams come true.

On bicycles.

Yana is from Bulgaria. Vyacheslav, who goes by Slav, is originally from Ukraine. He moved to Bulgaria almost 20 years ago.

Last June, Slav and Yana flew on an airplane – with their bicycles -- from Sofia, Bulgaria, to Deadhorse, Alaska. The town of 25 people is one of the northernmost communities in North America.

From Deadhorse, they began a 60,000-kilometer bike trip, from Alaska to Argentina. They are biking to the southernmost point in South America.

“The life on two wheels, it’s something very, very exciting, and very fun actually,” Yana said. “Most of the people think it’s very hard, very tough, cycling all day with the luggage. Yes, we have the tough times. But it’s a lot of fun because we are very independent."

Cycling for Recycling

But their journey is not only about having fun and fulfilling1 their dreams.

Yana and Slav call their mission2 Cycle4Recycle.

They say the goal of Cycle4Recycle is to make people more aware of how to protect the environment and preserve natural resources.

“We are not usual tourists, who are looking for landmarks3."

Slav and Yana call themselves researchers and explorers.

Along their trip, Slav and Yana give presentations at community centers and museums. Their presentation centers on their research into recycling and consumerism in the Americas.

Even the world-famous Field Museum in Chicago invited them to give a presentation on their research.

“We want to share with the kids. We want to make presentations for schools. We want to make the presentations with other bikers. We don’t expect some big change from this journey. We just try to change. We begin to change ourselves to do that. And after that, we just share with other people our experience.”

Life on the road

On most nights, Slav and Yana camp in parks. Yana says camping gives them “the most beautiful backyard.”

They always clear away trash in the park before they set up their tent and cook a meal. Sometimes, they find use for the trash they find. The Bulgarian flag that waves on the back of Yana’s bike, for example, was sewn together from pieces of fabric4 they found along the road.

And Slav still uses a water bottle he found in Canada.

“Recycling is the most important point. Because everything (is) building from oil at this moment. We want to involve people to reuse the packages, like the bottles."

Even their bicycles are recycled. Yana’s bike is over 35 years old.

“So, this is my bike, Villiger Trulix. And Villiger is more than 30 years old. And he's a Swiss bicycle. He's made in a time when everything was meant to last forever. That's why I'm very happy that he decided5 to join me in my trip."

Slav calls his bicycle “Konya,” which means “horse” in Bulgarian.

They bought both used bicycles for less than $200.

Exchanging bread for a bed

In December, Slav and Yana arrived in Washington, D.C. They had been biking for more than 10,000 kilometers.

If the weather is too cold or wet for camping -- or if they just wish to sleep in a real bed -- Slav and Yana log6 on to WarmShowers.org. The website connects local hosts with cyclists who are on long journeys. Warm Showers is similar to Couchsurfing, but it is especially for bicyclists. The website has more than 27,000 hosts around the world.

In Washington, D.C., Slav and Yana spent three days staying with Scott Macdonell, a Warm Showers host. Macdonell says he was happy to help the two bikers out.  

In exchange for a free place to stay, Yana and Slav like to share homemade meals of pasta, dumplings and bread with their hosts.

Yana says she and Slav learned7 how to make bread and pasta while biking in Alaska and Canada.

“When we were up in the north, the distances between supermarkets was like 2,000 miles. We cannot carry bread or stuff8. We can only carry dry food, and we have to cook it. We were forced to learn how to make bread. And now we just can’t stop doing it."

Back on the road

From Washington, Slav and Yana will continue their journey south toward9 Florida.

They will travel along the East Coast Greenway. The greenway is a trail system that connects major cities in the eastern United States, from Maine to Florida.

After Florida, they will head west, through the southern states of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Then, they will cross Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, following the historic10 U.S. Route 66.

They plan to cross into Mexico from California. After that, they plan on biking through almost every country in Central and South America, on their way to Argentina.

“A cycling journey ... it's very nice to explore the cities and explore the nationalities and the countries because you go slow. You can see much more. You can stop everywhere. If you look at a beautiful place, you just stop. And you can enjoy. And it's like a luggage. You can even bring your bike in the plane."

Words in This Story 

originally – adv. n the beginning: when something first happened or began

journey – n. an act of traveling from one place to another; trip

aware – adj. knowing that something (such as a situation, condition, or problem) exists

preserve – v. to keep (something) in its original state or in good condition

consumerism – n. the actions of people who spend a lot of money on goods and services

approach – n. a way of dealing11 with something: a way of doing or thinking about something

conversation – n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people: the act of talking in an informal way

trash – n. things that are no longer useful or wanted and that have been thrown away

log on – phrasal verb to start the connection of a computer to a network or system

host – n. a person who is entertaining guests socially or as a job


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 fulfilling hsdz4P     
adj.使人满足的,令人愉快的v.履行(诺言等)( fulfill的现在分词 );执行(命令等);达到(目的);使结束;满足( fulfil的现在分词 );执行;尽到;应验
参考例句:
  • If you expect to fail, you will fail. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy . 你如果预期失败,就会失败。这是一种自我应验的预测。
  • Nursing is hard work, but it can be very fulfilling. 护士工作很艰苦;但可以使人感到满足。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 mission fDIxX     
n.使命,任务,天职;代表团,使团
参考例句:
  • He was charged with an important mission.他受委托承担一项重要使命。
  • I'll leave you to undertake an important mission.我要让你承担一项重要使命。
3 landmarks 746a744ae0fc201cc2f97ab777d21b8c     
n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 );目标;(标志重要阶段的)里程碑 ~ (in sth);有历史意义的建筑物(或遗址)
参考例句:
  • The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句
4 fabric 3hezG     
n.织物,织品,布;构造,结构,组织
参考例句:
  • The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
  • I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。
5 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
6 log P0BxH     
n.记录,圆木,日志;v.伐木,切,航行
参考例句:
  • They log for a living.他们以伐木为生。
  • And then what do you do with that log?然后你要拿那些记录做什么呢?
7 learned m1oxn     
adj.有学问的,博学的;learn的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
  • In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里,他被视为有学问的人。
8 stuff Itsw1     
n.原料,材料,东西;vt.填满;吃饱
参考例句:
  • We could supply you with the stuff in the raw tomorrow.明天我们可以供应你原材料。
  • He is not the stuff.他不是这个材料。
9 toward on6we     
prep.对于,关于,接近,将近,向,朝
参考例句:
  • Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
  • Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了,并跑了过去。
10 historic AcNxw     
adj.历史上著名的,具有历史意义的
参考例句:
  • This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
  • We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。
11 dealing NvjzWP     
n.经商方法,待人态度
参考例句:
  • This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
  • His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

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