Upper-Intermediate - Shanghai Expo (D0332)

那天有个朋友问我为什么上海这么重视2010年的世博会。我还真不知道呢。
nàtiān yǒu ge péngyou wèn wǒ wèishénme Shànghǎi zhème zhòngshì èr líng yī líng nián de Shìbóhuì 。wǒ hái zhēn bù zhīdào ne 。
The other day, a friend asked me why Shanghai is taking the 2010 Expo so seriously. I honestly don’t know.

其实世博会对不同的人都有不同的意义。比如说老百姓,有些就因为世博会建造场馆拆迁,搬到了更好的房子里。而就上海这个城市而言,最大的意义在于会促进经济的发展。
qíshí Shìbóhuì duì bùtóng de rén dōu yǒu bùtóng de yìyì 。bǐrú shuō lǎobǎixìng ,yǒuxiē jiù yīnwèi Shìbóhuì jiànzào chángguǎn chāiqiān , bān dào le gènghǎo de fángzi lǐ 。ér jiù Shànghǎi zhège chéngshì éryán ,zuìdà de yìyì zàiyú huì cùjìn jīngjì de fāzhǎn 。
Actually the Expo has different meanings for different people. For example, for some common citizens it means that their old homes will be torn down for construction sites, so they will be moved into better houses. In addition, with regard to Shanghai city itself, the most meaningful thing is that it will stimulate economic development.

我还是不明白,世博会不就是一个国际性的展览会吗?
wǒ hái shì bù míngbai ,Shìbóhuì bù jiùshì yī ge guójìxìng de zhǎnlǎnhuì ma ?
But I still don’t understand. Isn’t the Expo just an international exhibition?

简单地说的确如此。不过世博会是由政府主办,多个国家或国际组织参加的大型综合性展览。和一般的展览不同,它展现的是社会,经济,文化和科技各个领域的成就。它的特点是时间长,规模大,参展国家多,因此影响也非常深远。
jiǎndāndeshuō díquè rúcǐ 。bùguò Shìbóhuì shì yóu zhèngfǔ zhǔbàn ,duō ge guójiā huò guójìzǔzhī cānjiā de dàxíng zōnghéxìng zhǎnlǎn 。hé yībān de zhǎnlǎn bùtóng ,tā zhǎnxiàn de shì shèhuì ,jīngjì ,wénhuà hé kējì gège lǐngyù de chéngjiù 。tā de tèdiǎn shì shíjiān cháng ,guīmó dà ,cānzhǎn guójiā duō ,yīncǐ yǐngxiǎng yě fēicháng shēnyuǎn 。
Simply put, yes it is. However, the Expo is hosted by the government. It is a large-scale comprehensive exhibition attended by many different countries and international organizations. The difference between this and other exhibits is that it presents achievements in social, economic, cultural, scientific and technological fields. Its special features are the long duration, the scale of the event, and the many countries that participate. The effects are extremely far-reaching.

噢,那它有点像人文的奥运会。我们能看到来自不同国家,不同领域的展览和活动,内容肯定很丰富!
ō ,nà tā yǒudiǎn xiàng rénwén de Aòyùnhuì 。wǒmen néng kàndào láizì bùtóng guójiā ,bùtóng lǐngyù de zhǎnlǎn hé huódòng ,nèiróng kěndìng hěn fēngfù !
Oh! It's almost like a cultural Olympics. We will be able to see exhibits and activities originating from different countries and various fields. The content will definitely not be lacking.

没错,这也就是为什么世博会能给主办国带来很大的人气和经济效益。其实世博会的筹备现在就已经开始了,很多相关设施已经在建设当中。这既给社会提供了很多的就业机会,又改善了我们的生活环境。
méicuò ,zhèyě jiùshì wèishénme Shìbóhuì néng gěi zhǔbànguó dàilái hěn dà de rénqì hé jīngjìxiàoyì 。qíshí Shìbóhuì de chóubèi xiànzài jiù yǐjīng kāishǐ le ,hěn duō xiāngguān shèshī yǐjīng zài jiànshè dāngzhōng 。zhè jì gěi shèhuì tígōng le hěn duō de jiùyè jīhuì ,yòu gǎishàn le wǒmen de shēnghuó huánjìng 。
Exactly. This is another reason why the Expo is able to bring so many benefits to the economy and reputation of the host country. Actually the preparations for the Expo have already started. Many facilities related to the Expo are already under construction. This has already brought the community a lot of employment opportunities, and has also improved our living environment.

噢,怪不得大家提到世博会就这么兴奋。哎,每次世博会是不是都有主题啊?
ō ,guàibude dàjiā tídào Shìbóhuì jiù zhème xīngfèn 。āi ,měicì Shìbóhuì shì bu shì dōu yǒu zhǔtí ā ?
Oh, no wonder everyone gets so excited when they talk about the Expo. Oh, isn’t there always a theme for every Expo?

对呀,这次的是“城市让生活更美好”。到时候希望会有很多新的想法让我们的生活变得更好。
duìyā ,zhècì de shì “chéngshì ràng shēnghuó gèng měihǎo ”。dào shíhou xīwàng huì yǒu hěn duō xīn de xiǎngfǎ ràng wǒmen de shēnghuó biànde gènghǎo 。
You’re right. This time it is “cities makes life better*”. When the time comes, I hope there will be a lot of new ideas on how to make our lives better.

Vocabulary

对……而言 duì ... éryán /
就……而言 jiù ... éryán with regard to ...
一般而言 yībān'éryán speaking on the same line
而言 éryán speaking of
商机 shāngjī commercial opportunity
进出口 jìnchūkǒu import export
主办 zhǔbàn to host
人气 rénqì human spirit
展览 zhǎnlǎn exhibition
效益 xiàoyì benefit
拆迁 chāiqiān to pull down (an old house) and move its occupants elsewhere
就业 jiùyè employment
改善 gǎishàn improvement
筹备 chóubèi preparation
小区 xiǎoqū area
设施 shèshī facilities
深远 shēnyuǎn farreaching
世界博览会 shìjièbólǎnhuì World Fair
大型 dàxíng large scale
搬迁 qiānbān to move
房地产 fángdìchǎn real estate
补偿 bǔcháng to compensate
抽象 chōuxiàng abstract
组织 zǔzhī to be organized by
控制 kòngzhì to control
新闻稿 xīnwéngǎo press/news release
铭刻 míngkè to engrave on one's mind
人道 réndào humanity
残酷 cánkù cruel