Are you feeling thirsty?

Jean: Why's that, Neil?

Neil: Well, you'll find out soon. Welcome to On the Town from BBC Learning English. This is the programme where we find out about interesting things to do in London.

Jean: 是的，在我们 On the Town 节目当中，我们会带大家来一同了解伦敦的一些非常有意思的地方。

Neil: Ok, Jean, this place is a British institution.

Jean: 这可是英国的国宝级单位。

Neil: But it's not just one building; there are thousands of them. In fact there are almost 6,000 of them in London alone.

Jean: What can you do in them?

Neil: Well, you can relax, talk to friends and of course, drink.

Jean: It's the pub. 没错，我们今天的话题就是英国的酒馆。

Neil: That's right, Today we're going down the pub.

Jean: Down the pub. 英国人说去酒馆喝酒，比较随意的说法就是 let's go down the pub.

Jean: So, what's so good about going down the pub?

Neil: Here's Dean Feltzer. He loves London's pubs so much that he's set up a website called fancyapint.com.

Insert

It's about the whole package: it's about the environment, the atmosphere, the people who work in the pub, the people who visit the pub and the beer's important, but it's not the ultimate part of the experience.

Neil: He says it's about the whole package.

Jean: The whole package 你可以用 package 这个词来形容提供一些或者一系列的东西。

Neil: It's about the environment.

Jean: Environment. Environment 既可以是自然环境，也可以是你身边周围的环境。

Neil: And the atmosphere.

Jean: Atmosphere 环境气氛。

Neil: It's about the people who work in the pub and the people who visit the pub.

Jean: And what about the beer?

Neil: Well, the beer's important, but it isn't the ultimate part of the experience. The ultimate.

Jean: The ultimate. 首要的，最根本的。在这里就是指最重要的那个方面。

Neil: So Jean, fancy a pint?

Jean: Why not? Fancy a pint? 也是英国人彼此之间比较口语化的问话，就是“想喝一杯吗”，这样来邀请对方一起去酒馆。 A pint 一品脱的啤酒一般是英国酒馆里传统的啤酒杯容量，相当于半升多一点。

Insert

A: Good evening, what can I get you?

B: I'll have a pint of bitter and half a lager, please.

Jean: What's bitter?

Neil: Bitter is a traditional British beer. It's darker and warmer than other beer and has less gas.

Jean: Bitter 就是英国传统的苦啤酒，比一般的啤酒颜色要深，温度略高，而且含气量要少一些。 And what about lager?

Neil: Lager is the cold, golden beer that you find in China. Tsing Tao is lager.

Jean: Lager. Lager 就是咱们中国人喜欢喝的温度更凉、颜色更金黄的浅色啤酒。青岛啤酒就是 lager. So what's half a lager?

Neil: It's half a pint, but we just say "half" of something. Half a lager.

Jean: Can you only drink beer in pubs?

Neil: No, you can drink wine, alcopops, spirits and soft drinks too.

Jean: Alcopops 混合果汁汽水酒. Spirits 酒精含量高的烈酒. Soft drinks 软饮料。 I've heard there are some very old pubs in London.

Neil: There are, and some have a very interesting history. Listen to Dean.

Insert

There are several old pubs that we really like, like The Mayflower on the South Bank, allegedly where the Pilgrim Fathers met before they set out; a fantastic pub with great river views.

Jean: 有一所著名的英国酒馆叫做 "The Mayflower". 背后的故事就是当初移居美国的第一批开国先宗的天路客，在17世纪的坐着五月花远征美国之前，饮酒送行的那个酒馆。

Neil: Fancy another, Jean?

Jean: I think you've had enough already!

Neil: Well, unfortunately, that's all we have time for today in On the Town. If you want more help with your English then go to our website at bbcchina.com.cn and click on Learning English.

Jean: 想了解更多好学好玩的英语知识，就请到我们的网站来好啦，我们的网址就是 bbcchina.com.cn 点击英语教学就可以了。

Neil: Or send us an email at chinaelt@bbc.co.uk. See ya!

Jean: Bye!