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[热心的]bicyclists. I bet they’d give their eyeteeth[不惜代价]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[适合观光的]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[费力的]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!

复合形容词：我们在课本上和阅读材料中常见的复合形容词都是由两三个词组成的，如；a three-year-old boy、a life-long habit、a high-speed car chase等，而本文中出现的复合形容词则用了四五个词（unique-inthe-world place、who-knows-what-kind-of hotels、once-in-a-lifetime experience）。由四个或以上词组成的复合形容词在英语中其实很常见，它没有固定的形式，通常表达较为复杂的意思，但也很直白，在理解上通常没有难度，如：too-good-to-be-true situation、never-to-be-forgotten experience、peanut-and-bananaloving money等。

常用说服句式

● think about：请对方注意某些要点，例如：

✧ Think about the importance of this document.（考虑一下这些文件的重要性吧。）

● let me explain…：引入说服理由，例如：

✧ Let me explain why sleeping late is a bad idea.（我来解释一下晚睡不好的原因。）

● …so why not：在陈述某个理由后，用反问来增强说服效果，例如：

✧ If we all buy different dictionaries, we can use more than one dictionary in the dorm and save money, so why not?（如果我们都买不同的字典，那在寝室里我们就有不止一本字典可以用，何乐而不为呢？）

● what if…：用提建议的方式引起对方兴趣，通常也表明某种让步，例如：

✧ Since you don’t like the crowded malls, what if we go to outlet instead?（既然你不喜欢人头攒动的购物中心，我们去折扣店怎么样？）

● c’mon：come on的缩略形式，用以鼓励、敦促对方同意自己的看法，或做自己提议的事，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，又是一项很好的求生技能，来嘛，一起加入水上俱乐部吧。）

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[马鞍包]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[荒凉之地].”

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.

常用计划用语和句式

● make a list：做计划时通常要先列个备忘清单，例如：

✧ Let’s make a list for the food needed for the party.（我们来给派对需要的食物列个清单吧。）

● have to have/do：有些东西一定要准备，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.（你们都要带上身份证，必须在早上六点到达机场。）

● should we…/ do you think…?：就准备事项与同伴商量，例如：

✧ Should we take our own projector there or should we rent one?（我们应该带上自己的幻灯机，还是租一部？）

✧ Do you think we should prepare some light snack for the conference?（你们觉得我们应该给大会准备一些小吃吗？）

● can you think of anything else?：在计划基本上完成后，征求同伴意见，以确保万无一失，例如：

✧ Can you think of anything else we should bring with us?（你能想到我们还要带其他什么东西吗？）