Narrator: So, you're finally settling down. You've saved up a littlenest eggand are ready to dive into the real estate market. Let's do a little shopping around.
The American dream home, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, one doghouse, one garage, two garbage cans. It's cozy, safe, and just barelywithin your overstretched budget.
Not for you? For the same price, you can buy 200, 000 acres of prime Sahara wasteland. Put up a cottage. Nothing, but you and the sky. It's like a beach without the ocean. And talk about quiet neighbors.
Too remote? Oh, I understand. You need the thrill and excitement of the big city. With that same nest egg, you can get a slice of prime real estate. Not this real estate. Cozy and affordable, this lovely fixer-upper is the perfect place for a dynamic couple like you. No need toputter aroundthe house. It's all right there where you stand.
What's the matter? Feeling a little cramped? Well, just a stone's throw away, just one bridge or a tunnel ride, just outside the big, bustling city, there is a place with wide-open spaces, friendly natives, and spacious dwellings. And it's allwithin your price range. It's almosttoo good to be true.
妙詞佳句,活學(xué)活用
1. nest egg
這是比較常用的表達(dá)存款的意思。這種存款不是平常的那種把錢(qián)放到銀行攢著。通常情況下,一提到nest egg指的都是攢一部分錢(qián)來(lái)做些事情,比如說(shuō)投資股票、買(mǎi)車(chē)、買(mǎi)房等等。舉個(gè)例子來(lái)講,"我攢這些錢(qián)是為了將來(lái)出國(guó)用的"就可以是:I'm building the nest egg for going abroad in the days ahead.
2. within...budget, with someone's price range
上面的兩個(gè)短語(yǔ)是同一個(gè)意思,并且在生活中可以替換使用,意思是在……的承受范圍之內(nèi),換句話說(shuō)就是某人買(mǎi)得起某物。打個(gè)比方:"這件衣服雖然貴,但是我還是買(mǎi)得起的"就可以說(shuō)“This dress is expensive, but it's within my price range.”
這里還要強(qiáng)調(diào)一點(diǎn),在范圍之內(nèi)是within,范圍之外就可以替換成beyond。
3. putter around
這是一個(gè)非常休閑的表達(dá)方式,意思是“漫步”。比如說(shuō)"我漫步在城市夜晚的街頭"就可以是:I putter around on the street of the city after sunset. 要注意的是,當(dāng)用到這個(gè)短語(yǔ)時(shí)候,一定是要指很休閑、很享受的狀態(tài)才好!
4. too good to be true
一定記住,這可是金牌句子,非常的實(shí)用。直譯的話就"是太好了,以至于不像是真的",但這樣的話就太繞了,其實(shí)它的意思就是:It's incredible. It's unbelievable!(太不可思議了,太難以置信了。)舉個(gè)例子吧, 一不小心,你得到了Harvard 的全獎(jiǎng),把消息告訴給你的朋友,他們就可以說(shuō):Wow, wow, wow, it's too good to be true!
文化面面觀
New York City
Unlike most American cities, which make up only a part of a particular county, New York is made up of five separate counties, which are called boroughs. Originally the city included only the borough of Manhattan, located on an island between the Hudson and East rivers. In 1898 a number of surrounding communities were incorporated into the city as the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx and Staten Island. The Bronx is the only borough of New York City on the mainland of the United States. Manhattan and Staten Island are surrounded by water, while Queens and Brooklyn are part of Long Island.
Queens is the largest of the five boroughs. Brooklyn is the second largest and most populous of the five boroughs. It is the home of such major cultural institutions as the Brooklyn Museum, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Coney Island is well known for its beaches and amusement parks. Staten Island is the third largest and least populous of the five boroughs. The Bronx is the fourth largest and the northernmost of the five boroughs.
Manhattan, or New York County, is the smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough consists principally of the island of Manhattan, but also includes Governors Island, Randalls Island, Wards Island, Roosevelt Island, U Thant Island, and Marble Hill, a small enclave on the edge of the Bronx mainland. Manhattan is the glittering heart of the metropolis. It is the site of virtually all of the hundreds of skyscrapers that are the symbol of the city. Among the more famous of these are the Empire State Building (1931), the Chrysler Building (1930), and Citicorp Center (1977). (The 110-story twin towers of the World Trade Center were also among New York's famous skyscrapers until they were destroyed in a terrorist attack in 2001.)