VOA标准英语2013--圣诞节为中国村庄带来巨大的商机

 

Christmas is Big Business for Chinese Village 圣诞节为中国村庄带来巨大的商机

XITAN VILLAGE, CHINA — In Xitan, China’s “Christmas Village,” it’s easy to see that holiday trinkets are big business. However, this Christmas, unlike in past  years, there are no public celebrations or Christmas lights lining¹ the streets.

Xitan is nestled in the mountains of the eastern province of Zhejiang, just downstream from a large reservoir. The weather is cool this time of year, but there is  definitely no snow and it’s nothing like Santa’s frigid² North Pole workshop.

Even so, Xitan shipped about $100 million in ornaments⁴ and decorations to places as far away as Europe, the United States and Brazil.

Wang Lianming is the head of one of Xitan's earliest Christmas decoration companies, Ruian D-Bright Arts and Crafts, and the village party chief.

Wang said that while the overseas market is still the main focus of D-Bright's business, interest in the holiday is growing in China as well.

"In the past, Christmas was just a holiday celebrated⁵ overseas, few here in China knew much about it," he said. "But in recent years, celebration of the holiday in  China has been catching⁶ on, as has the sale of ornaments and trinkets."Before D-Bright started handcrafting Christmas ornaments, it made disco balls, and still does. Like many other factories here, the company is branching out to make  trinkets for other Western holidays as well, even Halloween and masks for Brazil's Carnival⁷.

Xitan is home to about 3,000 people. The narrow streets and surrounding hills make up a network of some 40 larger factories and around 200 smaller workshops.

At one warehouse⁸ just outside of the village, a man surnamed Peng is dipping rows of ornament³ tops in a soupy, noxious-smelling paint. Peng is not from Xitan, but  brought his family here to work.

Peng said that while there are too many factories here and the environment is not as nice as his hometown in Hunan, the work puts food on the table.

"I will go wherever the work is, as long as I can make some money that is all that matters," said Peng.

Xitan has a large number Christian⁹ population, but some say it is the village's knack¹⁰ for handicrafts, not religion, that has made the making of ornaments such a  staple industry here.

One factory owner, Wang Songjiang, said he knows little about the meaning behind the decorations or the holiday.

"Christmas is a holiday for foreigners, we don't really know what it is all about. It's enough for us to know that these ornaments are for the celebration of  Christmas, and that we can do business and earn money," said Wang.

However, for some in Xitan, Christmas is a time of religious celebration. At times, that has given rise to controversy¹¹. Two years ago, when the village was hosting a  celebration of the town's Christmas industry, some say local Christians¹² turned the activity into a religious affair. Local Christians say authorities "pulled the plug"  on an approved event.

Village party chief Wang Lianming said the event was canceled because it was felt that a religious tone was inappropriate for the ceremony. "We stopped holding the  celebration because of religious issues and the religious tone some wanted to give to the event. It is not right to take a cultural event and turn it into a religious  event," said Wang.

Wang said the event was meant to be more a celebration of how Xitan has made a name for itself, and its ability to create and find business opportunities, than a  celebration of the holiday itself. 

1 lining   

n.衬里，衬料

参考例句：

• The lining of my coat is torn.我的外套衬里破了。
• Moss makes an attractive lining to wire baskets.用苔藓垫在铁丝篮里很漂亮。

2 frigid   

adj.寒冷的，凛冽的；冷淡的；拘禁的

参考例句：

• The water was too frigid to allow him to remain submerged for long.水冰冷彻骨，他在下面呆不了太长时间。
• She returned his smile with a frigid glance.对他的微笑她报以冷冷的一瞥。

3 ornament   

v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物

参考例句：

• The flowers were put on the table for ornament.花放在桌子上做装饰用。
• She wears a crystal ornament on her chest.她的前胸戴了一个水晶饰品。

4 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

6 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

7 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。

8 warehouse   

n.仓库；vt.存入仓库

参考例句：

• We freighted the goods to the warehouse by truck.我们用卡车把货物运到仓库。
• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse.经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。

9 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

10 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。

11 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

12 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。