英語趣味課堂：墨爾本 Melborne

Todd: Now, Aaron, you're from Melbourne.

Aaron: That's right.

Todd: What's melbourne like?

Aaron: Melbourne's the second biggest city in Australia but there's a big city area with big buildings, then there's a lot of houses and then it runs into the countryside, where it's just hills and mountains and a lot of greenery basically. The city is center is busy but it's not very busy. It's not as busy as Tokyo or New York. It's just a busy city but then it just slows down as you move away from the city

Todd: Is it easy to find housing?

Aaron: It's very easy to find housing. There's a lot of hotels, accommodation, and a lot of places to rent. You can buy houses quite cheaply in Melbourne as well and there's only about 5 million people there so it's not crowded as well.

Todd: How much would a house cost? A decent house?

Aaron: A decent house in Australia, or in Melbourne, would cost about 250,000 Australian dollars, which I guess compared to Japanese prices, isn't so bad, and that would be a big 4 bedroom house, maybe two stories.

Todd: Wow! Front yard and backyard?

Aaron: Front yard, back yard, driveway, garage, 4 bedrooms.

Todd: What's the transportation like in the city?

Aaron: The transportation is very good, but it's very slow. You have to wait twenty minutes for trains. They only run every twenty minutes, but the buses and the trams will take you to wherever you want to go, but the trains are very centralized, so they all run into the city, through four major train stops, and then they run back out to the suburbs on a big loop so they never crossover each other and you have to catch buses if you want to go away from the city.

Todd: Is it a safe city?

Aaron: It is a safe city but like any place it has it's troubles but you don't have to worry about living in Melbourne.

學(xué)習(xí)內(nèi)容：

second biggest

Melbourne is the second biggest city in Australia.

We put the word 'second' in front of a superlative like 'biggest' to show that we are not talking about the biggest city, but the one that is closest in size or number to the biggest. 'Second' can be used with any superlative. Notice the following:

This is the second tallest apartment in the city.

What is the second biggest animal on earth.

slow down

Melbourne is a busy city, but then it slows down as you move away from it.

If something 'slows down' it becomes less fast or decreases in speed. Notice the following:

The activity in the city really slows down on Sundays.

The doctor told him that he needs to slow down and try to relax more.

compared to

A decent house in Melbourne would cost about 250,000 Australian dollars, which I guess isn't so bad compared to Japanese prices.

Use the phrase 'compared to' to show similarities or differences between two things. Notice the following:

Most cities are small compared to Tokyo.

Compared to my brother and sister I'm old.

centralized

The trains in Melbourne are very centralized, so they all run into the city through major train stops.

If something is 'centralized' it means that things are very close to each other. In a city, this would mean that everything you need would be very near to you. Notice the following:

The city is huge, but the area where I live is centralized.

We want to have the convention in a centralized location.

cross over

The trains in Melbourne run back out to the suburbs on a big loop, so they never cross over each other.

If one train route 'crosses over' another it means that they have an intersection or a place where they come together. Notice the following:

This road crosses over Washington Avenue in two blocks.

Where does this road cross over the river?

1 basically

adv.基本上，從根本上說

參考例句：

His heart is basically sound.他的心臟基本上健康。

Basically I agree with your plan.我基本上同意你的計劃。

2 housing

n.房屋，住宅;住房建筑;外殼，外罩

參考例句：

Do you think our housing sales will turn around during this year?你認(rèn)為今年我們的住宅銷路會好轉(zhuǎn)嗎?

The housing sales have been turning down since the summer.入夏以來，房屋的銷售量日趨減少。

3 decent

adj.象樣的，不錯的，體面的，正派的，恰當(dāng)?shù)?/p>

參考例句：

We want to raise our children to be decent men and women.我們盼望把孩子們培養(yǎng)成優(yōu)秀人才。

There isn't even a decent table in this room.這屋里連張像樣的桌子也沒有。

4 suburbs

n.郊區(qū)，城郊( suburb的名詞復(fù)數(shù) );四鄉(xiāng);隧;四郊

參考例句：

The poor suburbs traditionally formed the bedrock of the party's support. 貧窮的郊區(qū)在傳統(tǒng)上構(gòu)成了支持該黨的牢固基礎(chǔ)。

The new college will be located in the suburbs. 這所新建的學(xué)院將設(shè)在郊區(qū)。 來自《簡明英漢詞典》

5 loop

n.圈，環(huán)(狀物);回路，循環(huán);v.(使)成環(huán)

參考例句：

Loop the curtains up.把窗簾卷起來。

He bends a wire into a loop.他將鐵線彎成圓圈。

6 convention

n.慣例，習(xí)俗，常規(guī)，會議，大會

參考例句：

How many delegates have checked in at the convention?大會已有多少代表報到?

He sets at naught every convention of society.他輕視所有的社會習(xí)俗。

7 intersection

n.交集，十字路口，交叉點;[計算機(jī)] 交集

參考例句：

There is a stop sign at an intersection.在交叉路口處有停車標(biāo)志。

Bridges are used to avoid the intersection of a railway and a highway.橋用來避免鐵路和公路直接交叉。