Outside view
Chicago is the third largest American city after New York and Los Angeles. It's hard to believe that in 1871, a great fire destroyed the whole of Chicago's downtown. The only building to survive the great fire was the Stone Water Tower. The best architects in the world arrived to rebuild the city. Many of them were young and prepared to try new ideas. They used a tall steel frame and curtains of glass to make a different type of building-- the skyscraper. In just 15 years, a new Chicago was born. The centre of the city is now called the Loop, and it takes its name from the elevated track that circled. The buildings contained inside the Loop are a textbook of American architecture. Everyone call Chicago the \City\. Why? It's not because the weather. It's because the politicians of Chicago talk so much about their city. In fact, all the people of Chicago enjoy talking about their city. They like to tell you about Sears Tower, 110 stories of office space. That's a world record. It's so tall it takes 70 seconds to ride the elevator to the top. Beautiful modern sculptures by Picasso and others, help to make Chicago a centre of art. Then there's O'hare International Airport. With 840 flights every day, it's the busiest airport in the world. The people of Chicago are very proud of their beautiful lake shoreline, 29 miles of park land along Lake Michigan. And they don't let you forget that Chicago is the home of the Blues. Musicians like Muddy Waters made Blues popular, and even influenced the Rolling Stones. Chicago is home to the Bulls basketball team and the Cubs baseball team. The city certainly has a wonderful history. Chicago, a city where everyone works hard to be a part of the winning team.
芝加哥是仅次于纽约和洛杉矶的第三大美国城市。很难相信，在1871，大火摧毁了整个芝加哥的市中心。唯一的建筑，以生存的克伟大的火石水塔。世界上最好的建筑师来重建城市。他们中的许多人都很年轻，准备尝试新的想法。他们用了一个高钢框架和窗帘小姑娘把不同类型的建筑——摩天大楼。在短短的15年里，一个新的芝加哥诞生了。这个城市的中心现在被称为循环，它将它的名字从高架轨道上盘旋。循环内的建筑物是美国建筑的教科书。每个人都称芝加哥为“风之城”。为什么？这不是因为天气。这是因为政治的政客货物的谈论他们的城市太多。事实上，所有芝加哥人喜欢谈论他们的城市。他们喜欢告诉你关于西亚士大厦，110层办公空间的故事。这是一个世界记录。它的如此高的需要70秒乘电梯到顶部。美丽的现代雕塑毕加索和其他人，使
芝加哥艺术中心。然后奥黑尔国际机场。8每天40次航班，这是世界上最繁忙的机场。芝加哥人民非常自豪他们美丽的湖海岸线，29英里的密歇根湖沿线的。他们不让你或芝加哥是蓝军的家。音乐家喜欢混浊的水使蓝调流行，甚至影响了滚动的石头。芝加哥是公牛队篮球队和棒球队的主场团队。这座城市有一个美妙的历史。芝加哥，一个城市，每个人都很难成为一个团队的一部分。
Listening in
I'm Standing in the Arrivals Hall of Terminal 3, Beijing Capital Airport's newest terminal which became operational in March 2008. The terminal, which has a third runway and a rail link to the city centre, is the second largest in the world. Designed by the famous British architect Norman Foster, it extends almost three kilometers but took only three and a half years to build. The terminal has been designed to look and feel Chinese. The building, a mixture of glass and steel, uses the traditional Chinese colors of red and gold. Columns(柱体) inside are red and the roof is a dull gold. From the air it is said to resemble a flying dragon.
The building has the largest technology. To save energy, the roof allows in the maximum amount of light and heat, and the advanced baggage system can handle up to 19,000 pieces of luggage per hour.
The terminal is only one of a number of new buildings that have made Beijing a leading example of 21st century architectural design. Another design success is the capital's new National Centre for the Performing Arts, which opened in late December 2007.
The centre, which has created huge interest all over the world, is based at West Changan Avenue, just west of the Great Hall of the People and Tian'anmen Square. Designed by French architect Paul Andreu, it took six years to complete. The building is in the shape of a dome made of titanium(钛) and glass, and changes color depending on the amount of sunlight it receives. A manmade lake surrounds it and to enter the building you walk through an 80-metre-long underwater corridor with a glass ceiling.
The inside of the centre is as light as the outside. A glass curtain that goes from the floor to the ceiling reflects sunlight during the day and the city lights at night. The floor is made in ten different colours of marble which came from all over China.