Haven't been to Las Vegas yet? You're in a crowd that's getting smaller all the time. Last year, 800 , 000 Asians made the pilgrimage to the neon Mecca in the Nevada desert. Led by the Japanese, Asian travelers make up Vegas's largest overseas market. JAL now runs five non-stop flights weekly from Tokyo. While there's no direct service from other Asian cities, remember that Vegas is less than an hour's flight from Los Angeles.
What makes Vegas such a draw for people from this part of the world ? Perhaps residents of Asia's sprawling mega-cities1 appreciate its compactness: Vegas lets you combine gambling, flashy culture and theme park in one heck of a holiday. And then there are those otherworldly2 hotels, the buildings that look as if they've been transported to Vegas in a time machine. The latest in this long, gaudy3 line is 760 million in Paris, which includes a 50-story reproduction of the Eiffel Tower, a two-thirds scale replica of the Arc de Trimophe and cobble-stoned streets lined with fancy boutiques. The only things missing from the full Paris experience are surly waiters and overflowing gutters. Another new resort, Mandalay Bay, is built in the shape of upright bars of gold bullion and attempt to conjure up4 a semi-imaginary locale that is part Bali.
Aside from the arresting architecture , what makes these hotels interesting is their afford -ability."High season"here is every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, so the best time to get a good price on a posh5 room is mid-week. At the deluxe Four Seasons, the only property in town without a casino, low-tide rates start at a modest 195 for a standard room, and Bellagio can house you for as little as 139 . At peak time, those prices can double.
What can you do in Vegas besides gamble? Plenty. In less than four hours you can be whisked from your hotel to he Grand Canyon via helicopter and enjoy a champagne picnic down on the canyon floor. Then there 's world class shopping: Vegas retailer rival anything offered by their counterparts on ritzy Fifth Avenue or Rodeo Drive .
練習題：
Ⅰ. Finish the sentences with words and phrases in the notes:
1. The very name of Siberia images of exile and bitter hardship.
2. She a delicious meal out of a few unpromising ingredients.
3. They live in part of the town.
4. Peacock has plumage.
?、? Questions:
1. According to the passage, why are Asian people so drawn to Vegas?
2. When is the best time to get a good price for a posh room?
答案：
?、? 1. conjures up 2 . conjured 3 . posh 4. gaudy
?、? 1. Because of the compactness of Vegas.
2. In the mid-week.
參考譯文：
吃喝玩樂好去處——拉斯韋加斯
還沒去拉斯韋加斯嗎? 現在沒去過拉斯韋加斯的人可是越來越少了。去年, 80萬亞洲人到這個內華達洲沙漠中的霓虹麥加去朝圣。以日本為首的亞洲游客是拉斯韋加斯最大的海外市場。日本航空現在每周有五趟從東京出發(fā)的直達航班。雖然其他的亞洲城市沒有直達的航班, 但是別忘了, 從洛杉磯到這里的航程不到一小時。
為什么拉斯韋加斯對亞洲人有這么大的吸引力? 大概住慣了布局散亂的大都市的亞洲人喜歡它的緊湊: 拉斯韋加斯可以讓你把賭博、光鮮的文化和主題公園的游樂融合在一次瘋狂的旅行中。還有那些光怪陸離的大飯店好像是用時光機器運輸到拉斯韋加斯的。
這一系列花哨建筑的最新成員是造價7 .6 億美元的巴黎大飯店。它包含了一座50 層樓高的仿埃菲爾鐵塔、原規(guī)模三分之二的仿凱旋門、一排排小飾品店, 以及由大卵石鋪成的條條街道。唯一不同于純粹巴黎風格的是: 這里沒有無禮的侍者和漫水的排水溝。另外一個新的度假飯店曼德雷灣, 外形像一根根直立的金條, 讓人聯(lián)想起巴厘島某個亦真亦幻的地方。
除了引人注目的建筑風格之外, 這些飯店的價格也很讓人動心。此處的“ 旺季”是周四、周五、周六, 因此一周的中期才能定到價格便宜的豪華房間。豪華的四季飯店是全城唯一沒有賭場的飯店, 淡季標房單價可低至195 美元, 而比拉吉歐飯店則可低至139 美元。在旺季, 以上價格有時會上漲一倍。
在拉斯韋加斯, 除賭博外你還能做些什么? 多得很。乘直升機不到四個小時你就能到達大峽谷, 可以在谷底享受香檳野餐。這里還有世界級的購物環(huán)境: 拉斯韋加斯的零售店無論在哪方面都不亞于第五大道和羅帝歐路。
