澳大利亚：欢迎来到“脚下那边的土地”

　　“The Land Down Under” is Australia’s unofficial nickname. The term, of course, has to do with the fact that Australia is located in the southern hemisphere. Being “down under” makes Australia different from many other English-speaking countries. For example, when people in the United States and England are getting ready for summer, most Australians have to start bundling up (1) for winter! Actually, Australians are blessed with a mild climate, and even the coldest Melbourne winter cannot compare to winter in Canada or the United Kingdom.

　　A mild climate brings another phenomenon (2): most Australians have never celebrated a Christmas with snow! Ask any local how they feel about this, however, and they will probably shrug it off (3). Australians happily have a Christmas barbecue party with cold cuts (4) and salad around the swimming pool, and Santa will make his entrance by diving into the water wearing a red bathing suit!

　　This Christmas tradition is just one of the oddities (5) of the Land Down Under. Australia also has all sorts of interesting trivia (6). For example, did you know that Australia is the world’s largest inhabited island? The smallest continent? The least-populated one? Did you know that Australia boasts the world’s longest straight stretch of rail (478.4 kilometres), the world’s largest cattle station (30,028.3 square kilometres), and the largest coral reef in the world (The Great Barrier Reef)? And what about all those strange animals?

　　Where else in the world can you find emus, wombats, galahs, kangaroos, koalas, platypi (7), kookaburras, quokkas, wallabies and wallaroos? The animals’ strange-sounding names remind us that Australia is a unique place. While most of us are familiar with the uniqueness of kangaroos, koala bears, and even emus, Australia is also home to perhaps the most bizarre animal in the world: the duckbill platypus. It is a furry mammal, but lays eggs like a reptile; it has a bill and webbed feet like a duck, but a tail like a beaver; males have spurs on their hind legs that contain a snake-like poison, while the female emits (8) milk onto its fur through glands. Even bird-watching becomes a fascinating thing to do in Australia. The country is home to some of the world’s most unusual and exotic-looking birds, including the kookaburra, which is known for its uncanny (9) human-sounding laugh!

　　There is something for everyone to wonder over Down Under!

　　Key words:

　　1. bundling up (verb) (口语化) 使穿暖

　　2. phenomenon (noun) 现象

　　3. shrug off (verb phrase) 满不在乎

　　4. cold cuts (noun) 冷盘

　　5. oddities (noun) 怪癖，奇异的事物

　　6. trivia (noun) 琐事，鸡毛蒜皮的事。

　　7. platypi (noun) 鸭嘴兽

　　8. emits (verb) 发出，散发

　　9. uncanny (adjective) 离奇的