Laura: Huh? I can't hear you; the music's too loud.
Ted: Let's go outside and talk. So Laura, do you come here often?
Laura: Hold on, my ears are still ringing from the music… what was it you asked me?
Ted: I asked if you come here often.
Laura: Sometimes, usually once every few weeks. Do you?
Ted: No, this is my first time here.
Laura: I usually come with a group of friends. We dance a little, have a few drinks, and just have a good time.
Ted: Yeah, that's why I'm here. My friends dragged2 me here, because they think I spend too much time studying.
Laura: That's good. It's good to hit3 the books, but you need to get out once in a while.
Ted: I guess so. But the music is too loud. I don't mind getting out and meeting people, but next time I'll do it in a park.
【译文】
——嗨，我是特德，你叫什么名字？
——什么？
——我说我是特德，你是谁？
——嗯？喔，我叫劳拉。
——你常来这儿吗，劳拉？
——嗯？我听不见你说话，音乐声太大了。
——我们去外面谈吧。那么，劳拉，你常来这儿吗？
——等一下，我的耳朵中还是音乐声……你刚才问我什么？
——我问你是否常来这儿。
——有时，通常每隔几周一次。你呢？
——不，这是我第一次来这里。
——我通常和一群朋友一块儿来。我们跳一会儿舞，喝点饮料，玩得非常开心。
——是啊，那就是为什么我在这儿。我的朋友们把我拖拉到这儿，因为他们认为我在学习上花的时间太多了。
——那很好。喜欢看书很好，但你也要偶尔出去玩玩。
——我也是这样想。但这音乐太吵了。我不介意出来见人，但下次我会去公园。
3. Anna is Lucy’s American friend. They’re talking about traveling.
Luke: Hi, Anna. I haven’t seen you for ages. Where have you been?
Anna: I’ve been away on holidays for sometime.
Luke: No wonder I haven’t seen you recently. Where did you spend your holidays?
Anna: I went with my husband. Our first stop was Bangkok4. We stayed there for 5 days. Then we flew to Hong Kong, stopover for 3 days. Our last stop was China. We visited the Great Wall.
Luke: You must have a wonderful time.
Anna: Yes. We enjoyed ourselves very much. Have you traveled much, Luke?
Luke: No, my wife doesn’t like traveling. We haven’t been traveling for more than ten years. The first time we traveled together was in 1978 when we just got married. We spent our honeymoon in the Alps.
Anna: Oh, I see. Yeah. Some people like traveling, some don’t. My husband didn’t like traveling at first, either. He said ‘what’s the use of traveling? A waste of money and a waste of time.’ At last I got him on the move5. After all, he loved me. We went to Bali, Indonesia6, one of the most beautiful places in the world. That trip left a very deep impression on him. Since then whenever we have holidays and money, we’d like to patronize7 the travel agency. Isn’t it a bit dull to shut yourself at one place all your life?
Luke: I know that. But at present we just can’t arrange time for traveling. The kids are still young. The eldest one is in middle school, the second one is in primary school and the youngest one is still in kindergarten. Besides, my wife is very busy with her doctorate8.
Anna: Life must be a bit hard for you at present. But don’t worry. You’ll certainly be better off9 when the kids are grown up. Then you’ll have more time to travel, and your wife will change her mind, too.
Luke: I hope so.
【译文】
——安娜，你好。我很久没有见到你了。你去哪里了？
——我度假离开了一段时间。
——难怪我最近都没有见到你。你去哪里度假了？
——我和我丈夫一起去的。第一站是曼谷。我们在那里呆了五天。然后我们飞到了香港，中途停留了三天。最后一站是中国。我们参观了长城。
——你一定玩得很开心。
——是啊。我们都玩得很尽兴。卢克，你有没有去旅游？
——没有，我妻子不喜欢旅游。我们已经有十年多没有旅游过了。第一次是在1978年我们刚结婚时一起去旅游过。我们在阿尔卑斯山度过了我们的蜜月。
——哦，我明白了。是啊。一些人喜欢旅游，一些人不喜欢。我的丈夫开始也不喜欢旅游。他说‘旅游有什么好？浪费钱又浪费时间。’最后我使他也行动起来。毕竟他是爱我的。我们去了印度尼西亚的巴里岛，世界上最漂亮的地方之一。那次旅行使他留下了深刻的印象。从那以后，每当我们有假日和钱，我们就喜欢惠顾旅行社。一生把自己关在一个地方不是有点乏味吗？
——这些我知道。但是目前我们就是没有时间来旅游。小孩还小。老大在读中学，老二在读小学，最小的还在幼儿园。除此之外，我妻子在忙于她的博士学位。
——现在你的生活肯定难一点。但是不要着急。孩子们长大了，当然你的境况也会好一点。然后你就会比较有时间去旅行，而且你妻子也会改变她的想法。
——我希望如此。
4. Taking a vacation.
George: Lili, let’s take a vacation!
Lili: George, how can we? Vacations cost money. And this month we don’t have much money left after paying the rent.
George: Well, Lili, we can visit different places in the state in our van10. We are not going to take a plane or stay at a hotel this time. Trust me, it won’t cost much.
Lili: Where will we sleep, then?
George: In the van.
Lili: What about other expenses?
George: Let’s see. Gas, food, recreation11, we won’t spend much. Come on. Don’t hesitate. We need to get out of the house once in a while. We have been working hard, haven’t we?
Lili: Maybe you’re right. When do you plan to go?
George: The sooner the better! I can’t wait!
Lili: Oh, I don’t know where we’re going yet.
George: As long as we’re going,
