元宵佳节已过，2019年的新年彻底地结束了，大家有去看花灯吗？说到花灯，小葡萄最期待的还是紫禁城里的，上周才首次对公众开放，场面的恢弘令人向往不已。国外多家媒体也相继进行了报导。
首先我们来看看NEWYORK TIME对这一事件的点评：
BEIJING — The Forbidden City has not really been forbidden to the public for decades, except in one respect. It was closed at night to all but the privileged few — until this week.
For the first time since 1925, when the former home of the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties became a museum, the Forbidden City has opened its doors to the public at night for two days this week, allowing visitors the chance to see its palaces and temples bathed in ethereal lights.The idea proved to be a hit.
北京——几十年来，除了在某个方面，紫禁城并不真的禁止公众进入。但在本周之前，只是少数享有特权的人才能在晚上进去。自从这个明清皇帝的故居在1925年成为一个博物馆以来，故宫博物院本周首次连着两个晚上向公众开放，让游客有机会看到了其中的宫殿和寺庙沐浴在飘渺的灯光下。事实证明，这个主意很成功。
bath作动词，为洗澡、沐浴之意，但不仅仅可以指人，也可以指某物沐浴在...中。
小词hit作名词：打；打击；（演出等）成功等，在实践中运用地非常频繁。
英语中像这种词其实不止hit，类似的还有bomb，表示非常成功、火爆的事物或人；以及phenomenon, sensation等，它们的形容词分别为phenomenal，sensational。这些在外媒中经常出现，可以积累，这样和外国小伙伴聊起天来，他们肯定会对你刮目相看的~
下面举几个例子感受一下：
the show was the musical sensation of the season 这个节目是当季轰动一时的音乐节目
the town expanded at a phenomenal rate 这个城镇以惊人的速度扩张
Those who managed to get into the event saw an array of light displays and projections, as well as a performance by the Peking Opera staged at the Belvedere of Pleasant Sounds, the Forbidden City’s largest theater. The music could be heard throughout the complex, which was far less crowded than it normally was during the day.
It was part of an effort to revitalize the image of a museum complex that has been notoriously conservative.
那些设法进了故宫的人看到了大量的灯光展示和投影，以及在紫禁城里最大的剧院——畅音阁上演的京剧表演。整个古建筑群里都能听到表演，因为这里的人比白天少得多。故宫一直以保守著称，这是重振博物院建筑群形象的举措之一。
an array of: 许多、大量。小葡萄在这里教大家一个小技巧，凡是a/an+名词+of构成的短语，大多数均表示此意，例如：a number of、an amount of、a range of等等。
complex在此处作名词，意为“复合体、建筑群”。小葡萄第一眼错认为形容词，前有the变为名词。大家不要犯一样的错误哦~
CNN也对故宫的开放进行了介绍：
For the first time in 94 years, Beijing's Palace Museum, commonly known as the Forbidden City, opened its doors to the public after dark -- and with spectacular results.
The Forbidden City normally closes to tourists at around 4:30 p.m. in the winter and 5 p.m. in the summer. Until this week, few -- save for VIP state guests, such as US President Donald Trump in 2017 -- have been granted the privilege of seeing this incredible landmark at night.
北京故宫博物院，俗称紫禁城，自94年来第一次在天黑后向公众开放，并取得了惊人的成果。故宫通常在冬季下午4:30左右和夏季下午5点左右对游客关闭。直到本周，除了2017年的美国总统唐纳德•特朗普(Donald Trump)等重要国宾外，很少有人有幸在夜间看到这个不可思议的地标。
spectacular results是上文hit的另一种表达，类似可替代还有：achievement、make it等等。
save for：最基本的意思是“储存”，这里运用的是另外一个不常见的含义“除...之外”。表达此意的短语非常多：apart/aside from、with the exception of、other than等
On Tuesday night, about 3,000 lucky visitors entered the Forbidden City's gates to take in the dramatic displays, which include lantern shows, symphony orchestra performances and projections of ancient Chinese paintings.
Despite the chilly winter night -- and not having a ticket -- visitors crowded the perimeter of the ancient imperial palace to get a glimpse of the light show on its first night.
周二晚上，大约3000名幸运的游客进入紫禁城的大门，观看了包括灯笼表演、交响乐团表演和中国古代绘画投影在内的戏剧表演。尽管冬夜很冷，也没有门票，游客们还是挤满了故宫的外围，只为一睹灯展的第一晚。
get a glimpse of：瞥见，看见。同意短语有：catch a glimpse of , catch sight of
例如：Some of the fans had waited 24 hours outside the hotel to catch a glimpse of their heroine
表示看的词语很多，但含义各有侧重：
glimpse/glance：瞥见
stare：凝视
glare：怒视
peer：窥视
Discussion of the Forbidden City's new look lit up social media following Tuesday's display. And, unsurprisingly, there's been some criticism, too.
"I'm so disappointed. I had such high hope of the Palace Museum's aesthetical standard. The dazzling LED lights don't fit the atmosphere of the elegance of the Forbidden City," says one visitor.
Festival organizers planning this year's Lantern Festival event are using LED lights rather than traditional paper lanterns and red candles, reports local media.
在周二的展示之后，关于紫禁城新面貌的讨论在社交媒体上引起了热议。不出所料，也有一些批评。“我很失望。我曾对故宫博物院的审美水平寄予厚望。这些耀眼的LED灯不符合紫禁城的优雅氛围。”一位游客如是说。据当地媒体报道，今年元宵节活动的组织者使用的是LED灯，而不是传统的纸灯笼和红蜡烛。
lit up是light up的过去式，意思是：点燃，点火，此处引申为引起。Ignite、illumine也表示“点燃、点火”
SCMP对故宫为何采用LED灯进行了解释：
Lights and lanterns have also been strictly controlled due to concern about fires in the wooden structure of the UNESCO World Heritage site.Special safety lighting used for the recent event was complemented by a “supermoon” appearing above the buildings just in time for the festival. Supermoons occur when the moon is full on the same day it orbits closest to Earth.
由于担心作为世界物质遗产的故宫的木质结构引起火灾，灯光和灯笼也被严格控制。为最近的活动使用的特殊安全照明，在节日期间正好出现在建筑物上方的“超级月亮”。超级月亮发生在月亮运行轨道离地球最近的同一天。
UNESCO是联合国教科文组织，全称为：United Nations Educational、Scienctific and Cultural Origanization
联合国其他重要机构还有：
The security council 安理会
The international court of justice 国际法庭
Economic and social council 经社理事会
这就是这期的英语阅读了，
我知道，
下一篇阅读，你还是会陪我看的。
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