IN SEARCH OF THE AMBER ROOM
【原文】
Frederick William I, the King of Prussia, could never have imagined that his greatest gift to the Russian people would have such an amazing history. This gift was the Amber Room, which was given this name because several tons of amber were used to make it. The amber which was selected had a beautiful yellow-brown colour like honey. The design of the room was in the fancy style popular in those days. It was also a treasure decorated with gold and jewels, which took the country' s best artists about ten years to make.
In fact, the room was not made to be a gift. It was designed for the palace of Frederick I. However, the next King of Prussia, Frederick William I, to whom the amber room belonged, decided not to keep it. In 1716 he gave it to Peter the Great. In return, the Czar sent him a troop of his best soldiers. So the Amber Room became part of the Czar' s winter palace in St Petersburg. About four metres long, the room served as a small reception hall for important visitors.
Later, Catherine Ⅱhad the Amber Room moved to a palace outside St Petersburg where she spent her summers. She told her artists to add more details to it. In 1770 the room was completed the way she wanted. Almost six hundred candles lit the room, and its mirrors and pictures shone like gold. Sadly, although the Amber Room was considered one of the wonders of the world,it is now missing.
In September 1941 , the Nazi army was near St Petersburg. This was a time when the two countries were at war. Before the Nazis could get to the summer palace, the Russians were able to remove some furniture and small art objects from the Amber Room. However, some of the Nazis secretly stole the room itself. In less than two days 100,000 pieces were put inside twenty-seven wooden boxes. There is no doubt that the boxes were then put on a train for Konigsberg, which was at that time a German city on the Baltic Sea. After that,what happened to the Amber Room remain a mystery.
Recently, the Russians and Germans have built a new Amber Room at the summer palace. By studying old photos of the former Amber Room, they have made the new one look like the old one. In 2003 it was ready for the people of St Petersburg when they celebrated the 300th birthday of their city.
【翻译】
寻找琥珀屋
普鲁士国王威廉一世决不可能想到他送给俄罗斯人民的厚礼会有这样一段令人惊讶的历史。这件礼物就是琥珀屋，它之所以有这个名字，是因为造这间房子用了好几吨的琥珀。选出来的琥珀色彩艳丽，呈现蜂蜜一样的黄褐色。琥珀屋的设计采用了当时流行的别致的建筑式样。它也是用金银珠宝装饰起来的珍品。一批国家最优秀的艺术用了大约十年的时间才把它完成。
事实上，这个琥珀屋并不是作为礼物来建造的。它是为腓特烈一世的宫殿设计（制作）的。然而，下一位普鲁士国王，腓特烈·威廉一世，这个琥珀屋的主人却决定不要它了。在1716年，他把琥珀屋送给了彼得大帝。作为回赠，沙皇则送给他一队自己最好的士兵。这样，琥珀屋就成了沙皇在圣彼得堡冬宫的一部分。这间琥珀屋长约四米，被用作待重要宾的小型会客室。
后来，叶卡捷琳娜二世派人把琥珀屋搬到圣彼得堡郊外她避暑的宫殿中。她叫她的工匠在原来设计的基础上增添了更多精细的装饰。1770年，这间琥珀屋按照她的要求完成了。将近600支蜡烛照亮了这个房间，里面的镜子和图画就像金子一样闪闪发光，可悲的是，尽管琥珀屋被认为是是世界上的一大奇迹之一，可是现在它却消失了。
1941年9月，纳粹德国的军队逼近圣彼得堡。这是在两国交战的时期。在纳粹分子到达夏宫之前，俄罗斯人只能把琥珀屋里的一些家具和小件艺术饰品搬走。可是琥珀屋本身却被一些纳粹分子偷偷地运走了。在不到两天的时间里，10万个部件装进了27个木箱。毫无疑问，这些想在后来被装上火车运往哥尼斯堡，当时德国在波罗的海边的一个城市。从那以后，琥珀屋的去处便成了一个迷。
近来，俄罗斯人和德国人已经在夏宫建起了一个新的琥珀屋，通过研究琥珀屋原来的照片，他们建造的新琥珀屋样子和旧的看起来非常像。2003年春，圣彼得堡人民就用它来庆祝该市建成300周年。
AN INTERVIEW
【原文】
Pausanias,who was a Greek writer about 2,000 years ago,has come on a magical journey on M arch 18th,2007 to find out about the present－day Olympic Games. He is now interviewing Li Yan, a volunteer for the 2008 Olympic Games.
P:My name is Pausanias. I lived in what you call\sed to write about the Olympic Games a long time ago. I' ve come to your time to find out about the present-day Olympic Games because I know that in 2004 they were held in my homeland. May I ask you some questions about the modern Olympics?
L：Good heavens! Have you really come from so long ago? But of course you can ask any questions you like. What would you like to know?
P：How often do you hold your Games?
L：Every four years. There are two main sets of Games—the Winter and the Summer Olympics,and both are held every four years on a regular basis.The Winter Olympics are usually held two years before the Summer Games. Only athletes who have reached the agreed standard for their event will be admitted as competitiors. They may come from anywhere in the world.
P：Winter Games? How can the runners enjoy competing in winter? And what about the horses?
L：Oh no! There are no running races or horse riding events. Instead there are competitions like skiing and ice skating which need snow and ice. That' s why they' re called the Winter Olympics. It' s in the Summer Olympics that you have the running races,together with swimming, sailing and all the team sports.
P：I see. Earlier you said that athletes are invited from all over the world. Do you mean the Greek world? Our Greek cities used to compete against each other just for the honour of winning. No other countries could join in, nor could slaves or women!
L：Nowadays any country can take part if their athletes are good enough. There are over 250 sports and each one has its own standard. Women are not only allowed,but play a very important role in gymnastics, athletics,team sports and ……
P：Please wait a minute! All those events, all those countries and even women taking part! Where are all the athletes housed?
L：For each Olympics,a special village is built for them to live in, a main reception building, several stadiums for competitions, and a gymnasium as well.
P：That sounds very expensive. Does anyone want to host the Olympic Games?