BBC Take Away English (Travellin

虽然火车这种交通工具的功能和外形大多非常简朴，但自两百年前被发明以来，它对人类文明的发展有着不容小觑的意义。相比日复一日的货运及客运功能，奢华列车的出现也许让长途旅行体验达到了巅峰。这类别具一格的旅行方式结合了极高的行驶速度和五星级服务 — 有什么理由不喜欢呢？有了让人眼花缭乱的选择，下一步就是考虑你的目的地了。本集Take Away English 谈一谈奢华列车游的特别之处。

The luxury train---from BBC
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article

Who doesn't love a train? Since the invention of the first steam-powered locomotive in the UK in 1804, this powerful mode of transport has helped keep human progress on track. If they weren't hauling freight in cars, they'd be pulling passengers in carriages. In the modern era, the iron horse is still chugging along under its own steam. And these days, many are attracted to it for its comfort, style and luxury.

In the UK, a new £150m fleet of Caledonian Sleepers has just been unveiled. These overnight trains provide an experience that will 'transform travel between London and Scotland,' says Ryan Flaherty of Serco, the company operating the rail service, in a BBC article. Indeed, the fleet features 40 sleeper carriages fitted with showers, a club car for dining and new engineering in the couplers to prevent shunting from waking resting passengers.

But it doesn't stop there. All over the globe, luxury trains deliver comfort and opulence on rails to passengers looking to let off steam. Why not try a whistle-stop tour of India on The Maharajas' Express? Taking 88 guests at a time on a four or eight-night trip, the train boasts restaurant cars, a bar and a lounge. If South Africa is more to your taste, you can travel for over 31 hours from Cape Town to Pretoria in a spacious cabin boasting five-star service on The Blue Train. Fancy South America? The Belmond Andean Explorer is its first sleeper train. They boast it is one of the highest train routes in the world. It can whisk you across Peru from Cusco, the Incan capital, to Arequipa, 'the White City'. And of course, no mention of locomotive luxury would be complete without the famous Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, the well-known setting of a popular murder mystery novel. Travelling across Europe to various destinations such as London, Paris and Venice, its art deco cabins are manned by stewards and feature a resident pianist.

Trains are old. And it is perhaps this age that appeals to many people. Stepping on board a luxury train to travel as we used to long ago evokes romantic memories of grand journeys at a more measured pace. If this appeals to you, why not consider one for your next holiday? I'm sure your experience will be anything but a train wreck.

vocabulary

train 火车
steam-powered 蒸汽驱动的
locomotive 火车头
mode of transport 运输方式
keep something on track 使…保持正常进行
haul 拖、拉（重物）
freight 货物
car 汽车
carriage 火车车厢
iron horse “铁马”，指蒸汽火车
chug 突突地行驶
under your own steam 靠自己的力量
unveil 揭幕，将...公之于众
fleet 列车队
sleeper 卧铺
coupler 火车耦合器
shunting 火车转轨
opulence 财富，富裕
rail 铁轨
let off steam 释放、缓解精力
whistle-stop tour （在各地短暂停留的）蜻蜓点水式观光
lounge 起居室
spacious 宽敞的
cabin 列车车厢
steward [ˈstjuːəd] 乘务员
on board 在车上
train wreck 失败、灾难

make sentences

1. All over the world, lorries, ships and trains transport freight（货物） from one country to another.

2. I'm sorry, can I shunt you along the bench a bit so I can sit down? Thank you!

3. This weekend, I'm going to do nothing but watch TV. I really need to let off steam.

4. This project has been a complete train wreck since the moment we hired you. You're fired!

5. If I can keep on track with my mortgage（[ˈmɔːɡɪdʒ] ，抵押贷款）, the house will be mine in less than three years!

question

Which famous train was the setting of a renowned narrative?

answer

The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is the well-known setting of a popular murder mystery novel.

@BBC Learning English