“特种兵旅游”是什么?
What is special forces tourism in China?
Name: ________________ Date: ________
Key words
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 春天 | chūntiān | spring; springtime |
| 周末 | zhōumò | weekend |
| 明白 | míngbai | to understand; to realize |
| 以后 | yǐhòu | later; afterwards; in the future |
| 出发 | chūfā | to set off; to start out |
| 城市 | chéngshì | city; town |
| 地方 | dìfang | place |
| 短 | duǎn | short; brief |
| 世界 | shìjiè | world |
| 用 | yòng | to use; use; usefulness |
| 张 | zhāng | surname Zhang |
| 照片 | zhàopiàn | photo; picture |
English (for the teacher)
In the spring of 2023, a new phrase appeared on the Chinese internet: “special forces tourism”. Special forces are the toughest soldiers in the army, so why would travel be called “special forces”?
Look at how a university student might spend a weekend, and you’ll see. On Friday after class, she takes a night train and sleeps on board. She arrives in another city at six on Saturday morning, visits eight sights in one day, walks over forty thousand steps and spends the night in the cheapest youth hostel. On Sunday she visits five more places, takes a train back to campus in the evening, and is in class on time at eight on Monday morning. The whole weekend costs only a few hundred yuan.
This kind of travel is short, cheap and packed with places, and as exhausting as special forces training, so people call it “special forces tourism”.
Why did it take off? Many young people say they are students without much time or money, but they really want to see the world. With only the two days of a weekend, they have to use every minute. Others feel that taking on a challenge like this with friends is great fun, and afterwards they can share their “battle record” online.
Not everyone approves, though. They say: if you go to eight sights in a day, spend an hour at each, take a few photos and leave, can you really get to know a city? And without enough sleep or proper meals, your body can’t take it.
Which kind of travel do you prefer? Covering a whole city in two days like a special forces soldier, or finding one place and staying a whole week, slowly?