英語播客 A Cup of English 45 Soccer rivals and friends.

　　One of the things that I love about London is how multicultural it is. Every nation on the planet has some representation in London. So, living in a place that is so cosmopolitan, makes a person the same. You become totally at ease around people of all different ethnic groups. That's one of the things that I wanted to expose(1) my children to. As we live in a very rural and fairly isolated community, they don't get exposed to the rest of the world very much. So their trip to London was an 'eye-opener'(2) for them. As we travelled around on the number 9 bus, past shops, parks, monuments, and restaurants, we saw all sorts of things that we wouldn't normally see. Near Holland road, there was an Iranian restaurant with an Iranian shop next door. We first noticed the shop because it had a huge and luscious(3) looking fruit stand on display. "Wow, look at that fruit!" one of my boys said. The bus had stopped just opposite the shop, so I had time to get my camera out. But, what really caught my eye was the banner above the restaurant. It was wishing the best of luck to both the Iranian soccer team, and the English team during the World Cup. It said, "From Iranian UK." Seeing it made me happy. It was an expression of good will by people who themselves are in a foreign land.

　　1. 'To expose' either means to uncover, or to bring something into contact with something else.

　　a. Our visitor from Mexico had never been exposed to a snowy winter before.

　　b. Keep your cut clean and covered; you don't want to expose it to germs.

　　c. Their trip to Japan was their first trip abroad. They had never been exposed to another culture before.

　　2. An 'eye-opener' is something that teaches you something new. It is implied that you are surprised or fascinated by the new information.

　　a. The first week of college was a real eye-opener for him.

　　b. I had heard the rumors about the case. However, it was a real eye-opener to sit down and read the facts.

　　3. 'Luscious' is a fabulous word that means 'juicy' and 'delicious'.

　　a. They call that actress 'Luscious lips' because she has full lips that are always painted red.

　　b. These mangoes are luscious; they are perfectly ripe!