Rainstorm 骤雨随想
A rainstorm transforms the city into a wet wonderland
一场暴雨让这城市摇身一变，成了水气氤氲的仙境资源
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The rain beats down all around, splashing on rooftops, sidewalks and in rivers. Rain collects in puddles that slosh over sewer pipes, flood sidewalks and pool at bus stops. Multicolored ponchos scuttle across streets as people pedal bicycles through huge puddles of water. The sky is dark and lightning flashes overhead. It lights up the pupils of small awestruck schoolchildren and makes the rain-drenched sides of Tianjin taxis glisten as they creep through the heavy downpour. I am soaked to the skin, and my clothes hang like limp rags as I plow through the rapidly flooding streets on my bike.
I park my bike amid a hundred other wet bikes, enter the food market and shake the water from my hair. I always enjoy coming here to eat. The place is filled from corner to corner with sweet-smelling foods, freshly baked bread, smoked beef and roasted mutton kebabs. After a hard morning's work in class and fighting a ferocious rainstorm, it is nice to finally sit down among a throng of excited diners. After my meal, I stand outside in the warm rain enjoying a cold fruit Popsicle and watching people stream through the streets.

    暴雨滂沱，雨水在屋顶上、人行道上和河面上飞溅。雨水聚集成小水洼，往下水道泼洒，淹没了整个人行道，也在公车站旁形成一个个水滩。成群单车族身穿五颜六色的雨衣，在街头驰骋，骑过大片的水坑。天色阴暗，闪电划破天际，照亮了一群学童的瞳孔，那景象令他们感到敬畏又惊奇，而天津黄包车在豪雨中缓缓前进，雨水浸湿的车身也在闪电下熠熠生光。我骑着单车在 一下子就淹满水的街上奋力前进，全身上下都湿透了，身上的衣服如松垮的破布垂挂着。
    我把单车停放在一大堆同样湿答答的脚踏车里面，走进小吃街，把滴落头发的雨水甩乾。我一直很喜欢来这里填肚子。这个地方满是香味扑鼻的食物、新鲜出炉的面包、烟燻牛肉和烤羊肉。辛苦地上了一整个早上的课，再跟一场又猛又急的暴雨奋战後，能跟一群兴奋的食客坐在一起用餐感觉真好。吃完东西後，我站在外头温暖的雨中享用一枝冰凉的水果冰棒，看着街上川流不息的人潮。

Word Bank
slosh (v)飞溅；泼溅
The water in the bucket sloshed onto the ground as Tom walked along.
awestruck (adj)惊奇而心生敬畏的
The little country boy was awestruck by all of the lights in the city.
soaked to the skin (idiom)全身湿透的
It was raining so hard that Harry was soaked to the skin when he got to his office.
ferocious (adj)又猛又急的；凶猛的
The ferocious desert heat forced everyone to find some shade for the afternoon.

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poncho (n)斗篷；披风式外套
kebab (n)烤肉串

Chat Room
flood：淹水
pool：(n)一滩水；(v)积水
stream：(n)溪流；(v)可以用来形容穿流不息的人潮，如People stream out the theater
to water something：浇水
well：(n)井；(v)to well up：像泉水一样涌上来

slosh
涉水时发出响声而行，在泥泞中前进
1 Some of the paint slashed onto his shoes as he was painting the wall.
他粉刷墙壁的时候一些油漆泼到鞋子上了。
2 The little boy sloshed through the puddles in his rain shoes.
这个小男生穿着雨鞋在水塘中踩着水前进。

awestruck
1 The awestruck visitors were taking pictures of the whales.
惊叹不已的观光客为鲸鱼拍照。

soaked to the skin
1 He was soaked in sweat after the workout.
他健身之后全身都是汗水。
2 We were all soaked to the skin the pouring rain.
大雨中我们都成了落汤鸡。

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The rain does not last long. The raindrops cease falling, and the clouds break, revealing a beautiful blue sky. People shake the water off their umbrellas and close them. Now in the mid-afternoon, music wafts on the damp breeze from the parks as people bring their erhus and sing old ballads of their youth. It is a joy to listen to their voices slip up and down. One man deftly plays the two-stringed instrument. My grasp of the language is not good enough to understand the words of their songs. But I can get a sense of the ebb of the river's tide against quiet reeds and the flashing smile of newly begotten romance.
That night, streetlights shimmer in shivering puddles, darkened only briefly by the shadows of bicycles. I turn back to enjoy familiar scenes. A wisp of smoke curls around the cook of the local Qinghai restaurant I often frequent. The waitress shouts out a sharp order and then slides a bowl of noodles, still steaming, under my nose. Delicious! A perfect ending to a perfect rainy day.

    雨没多久就停了。雨滴不再落下，云层褪散，露出一片美丽的青天。人们把雨伞上的水抖落，把伞收好。现在已是下午，民众带来自己的二胡，吟唱着少年时期的老歌，阵阵音乐随着从公园那里吹来的潮湿微风飘送过来。聆听他们歌声的抑扬顿挫真是一大享受。有个仁兄熟练地拉着这种二弦乐器，我的中文还不够好，听不懂他们唱什麽，但是我隐约感受到歌词叙述着退潮的河水轻轻牵曳着无声的芦苇，还有含苞待放爱情中的闪闪笑意。
    那天晚上，路灯在小水洼振颤的涟漪中闪烁着，只有单车经过时留下影子，才会暂且暗去。我回过头来欣赏熟悉的景色。眼前是我在当地时常光顾的一家青海餐厅，一缕烟雾围绕着厨师。女服务生尖声吆喝着菜名，把一碗仍热气蒸腾的面推到我眼前。真是美味！这碗面为这个绝妙雨天画下完美句点。

Word Bank
waft (v)飘送；吹送
When my neighbor practices the violin, beautiful music often wafts into my office through the open window.
deftly (adv)熟练地
The experienced chef deftly cut the chicken into five pieces.
ebb (n)退潮
The ebb of the ocean tide left many fish on the shore.
shimmer (v)闪烁；发出微光
The model's dress shimmered as she walked under the lights.
wisp (n)一缕；一束
A wisp of hair fell down over her eyes as she lowered her head.

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ballad (n)歌谣；民歌
reed (n)芦苇

Chat Room
frequent通常当形容词用，表示时常的，常常发生的，但在课文中是当动词，to frequent a place（常去某个地方）
frequent flier program：里程酬宾计划

waft
1 A gentle breeze wafted the scent of lilies through the window and into room.
百合花的香味随着轻柔的微风飘进房间里。
2 The sound of her beautiful singing wafted down from her room.
她美丽的歌声从她的房子飘荡下来。

ebb
情绪低潮；the ebb：退潮的时候
1 We sailed on the ebb.
我们在退潮的时候启航。
2 We found many seashells on the beach when the tide was on the ebb.
退潮的时候我们在沙滩上找到好多的贝壳。
3 Her life was at its lowest ebb when she lost her job.
她失业的时候是她人生最低潮的时候。

wisp
1 A wisp of smoke curled in the air.
一股青烟在空气中冉冉上升。
2 A wisp of fragrance lingered after she left.
她离开后一丝香气还盘旋不已。
3 She tucked a wisp of her hair behind her ear.
她把一束头发塞到耳朵后面。