How to Plan a Trip

Part 1

Nathan: Whoa! That sounds like wa-a-a-y too much work. I want to relax when I’m on summer break.

Samantha: I think a couple of weeks in Yunnan and a few days of biking will be a huge adventure and an exciting way to spend part of our vacation.

Nathan: Who needs excitement when you’re on vacation?

Samantha: Think about what you could tell everybody at school in September about your amazing summer journey. Listen, let me explain why I want us to do this.

Nathan: OK, but I’m not sure I’m up to that.

Samantha: We’ll meet a lot of people from different minority groups, and probably some foreigners, so it would be really educational,right? And we’ll do something that hardly anybody else ever does—a 500-kilometre trip by bike. We’ll get really close to nature and see and do things that tourists don’t. Oh,and I want to ask my friends King and Joy to meet us in Kunming and come with us.They’re avid[熱心的]bicyclists. I bet they’d give their eyeteeth[不惜代價]to do this trip.

Nathan: I remember we studied about Lijiang being on the ancient Tea Horse Road,but I don’t know about all that biking. Why don’t you just go with them, and I’ll meet you in Lijiang?

Samantha: No. Listen. We’ll fly to Kunming and meet King and Joy, then rent bicycles and ride to Dali and on to Lijiang. It’ll take five easy days riding to get there in two stages. Piece of cake for you. You love riding your bike, so why not?

Nathan: Yeah, well, I’d like to explore Yunnan, so let’s just travel by bus to Dali and Lijiang. We can see beautiful mountains and Erhai Lake and the rice terraces[梯田]from the bus, and have more time to do the touristy[適合觀光的]stuff in Dali and Lijiang.

Samantha: Well, you’re right on about seeing the scenery from the bus, but experiencing the fresh mountain air and nature with no pollution would be amazing. We’d get close to the real people and cultures of Yunnan.

Nathan: Oh, wait! I have another idea. Why don’t we ride from Kunming to Shilin Stone Forest? It’s only about 100 kilometres from Kunming. That’s a unique-in-the-world place I’d like to go and the ride’s not too long.

Samantha: I went there and it’s kinda boring and very touristy. Besides, to go there means a ton of hiking and not many places to stay.

Nathan: Well, OK, but bus travel to Dali and Lijiang is much less strenuous[費力的]than biking for nearly a week. Besides, if we ride bikes, do you really want to spend four nights in who-knows-what-kind-of hotels? Wouldn’t it be cheaper to travel for less time with fewer hotel nights?

Samantha: Nate, this will be a once-in-alifetime experience, to really dig into the culture of this part of our country, and you love riding your mountain bike. And what if we get to stay in some local peoples’ homes?That’d be fantastic! C’mon, it’ll be great!

Nathan: Uhm. Do you have any idea how much planning it’ll take to get ready for such a trip?

Samantha: Yeah, so let’s get started. Whoo-ee!

復合形容詞：我們在課本上和閱讀材料中常見的復合形容詞都是由兩三個詞組成的，如；a three-year-old boy、a life-long habit、a high-speed car chase等，而本文中出現的復合形容詞則用了四五個詞（unique-inthe-world place、who-knows-what-kind-of hotels、once-in-a-lifetime experience）。由四個或以上詞組成的復合形容詞在英語中其實很常見，它沒有固定的形式，通常表達較為復雜的意思，但也很直白，在理解上通常沒有難度，如：too-good-to-be-true situation、never-to-be-forgotten experience、peanut-and-bananaloving money等。

常用說服句式

● think about：請對方注意某些要點，例如：

? Think about the importance of this document.（考慮一下這些文件的重要性吧。）

● let me explain…：引入說服理由，例如：

? Let me explain why sleeping late is a bad idea.（我來解釋一下晚睡不好的原因。）

● …so why not：在陳述某個理由后，用反問來增強說服效果，例如：

? If we all buy different dictionaries, we can use more than one dictionary in the dorm and save money, so why not?（如果我們都買不同的字典，那在寢室里我們就有不止一本字典可以用，何樂而不為呢？）

● what if…：用提建議的方式引起對方興趣，通常也表明某種讓步，例如：

? Since you don’t like the crowded malls, what if we go to outlet instead?（既然你不喜歡人頭攢動的購物中心，我們去折扣店怎么樣？）

● c’mon：come on的縮略形式，用以鼓勵、敦促對方同意自己的看法，或做自己提議的事，例如：

? Swimming is good for your health and also an excellent survival skill. C’mon, let’s join the Aquatic Club.（游泳既有利于健康，又是一項很好的求生技能，來嘛，一起加入水上俱樂部吧。）

Part 2

Joy : Samantha asked us to plan the bike trip for us and her and Nathan from Kunming to Lijiang,because we’re familiar with the area and the environment.

King: Yeah, that’s a good idea. So what do you think we need to plan?

Joy: Well, first let’s make a list of what we need to do and take, then we won’t forget things.

King: OK, we can’t take a lot on the bikes,just make do with a few clothes, water,energy food like nuts and dried fruit…

Joy: Got it. What about warm jackets? It can get really cold, especially at night in Yunnan because of the altitude.

King: Yeah. We have to have warm clothes,a sweater and a jacket, as well as lighter clothes. And what about rain gear, like a waterproof[防水的]jacket and hat? Maybe gloves, too?

Joy: Yeah. (speak while writing) Wa-ter-proofjac-ket-glo-ves-…

King: We can buy water and energy food along the way.

Joy: Yeah, I agree. Where will we get bikes?King: I think we need mountain bikes so we’ll have to rent them from a bike store. We should also rent saddle bags[馬鞍包]to carry our gear and stuff. Mountain bikes are a little more expensive to rent, but 500 kilometres is a long way and our butts will appreciate the more comfortable ride. And stretching[伸展]’s important before taking off each morning.

Joy: You got that right! What about money?Should we take cash for the whole two weeks?

King: No way! I think we should each put a few hundred RMB in our WeChat or Alipay,so we can just pay as we go.

Joy: But we do need a little cash in case we can’t use our phones to pay for stuff, right?

King: Yeah, good idea. Maybe a hundred?

Joy: Sounds about right. Do you think we need some face time with our families every day, you know, just to let them know that we’re still safe? I know my Mom will worry like crazy about me when I ride on the highway “out in the boonies[荒涼之地].”

King: I think that’s a great idea, and we should send a contact number and say where we are when we stop each day.

Joy: Yeah, good. Ooh, I’m getting excited already!

King: We should book hotel rooms before we go, at least in Dali and Lijiang.

Joy: Agreed. I can do that. But I think we’ll have to rely on finding places for us to stay between Kunming, Dali and Lijiang, and just stop when we feel tired at places we come to.That’d be cool; part of the adventure, right?

King: I guess so. And I think we need a map so we have some idea how far we have to go to the next town or village and can judge whether we’re up to keep riding or need to stop for the day where we are.

Joy: Hey, I never thought about a map to help us. That’s a great idea!

King: Can you think of anything else we need to do now?

Joy: Just get all this to Nathan and Samantha and then think about what to do in Dali and Lijiang.

常用計劃用語和句式

● make a list：做計劃時通常要先列個備忘清單，例如：

? Let’s make a list for the food needed for the party.（我們來給派對需要的食物列個清單吧。）

● have to have/do：有些東西一定要準備，有些事一定要做，例如：

? You all have to have your ID and have to arrive at the airport at 6 a.m.（你們都要帶上身份證，必須在早上六點到達機場。）

● should we…/ do you think…?：就準備事項與同伴商量，例如：

? Should we take our own projector there or should we rent one?（我們應該帶上自己的幻燈機，還是租一部？）

? Do you think we should prepare some light snack for the conference?（你們覺得我們應該給大會準備一些小吃嗎？）

● can you think of anything else?：在計劃基本上完成后，征求同伴意見，以確保萬無一失，例如：

? Can you think of anything else we should bring with us?（你能想到我們還要帶其他什么東西嗎？）