英语畅谈世界文化lesson4 悉尼歌剧院 Sydney Opera House

 D: Debbie       G: Glenn

D: What are you planning to do on your trip to Australia?
G: There are so many things to see, I'm not sure where to start. We're going to Sydney first.
D: If you're going to sydney, the first thing you should do is to visit the Opera House. The architecture is out of this world!
G: Tell me some more about the Opera House, I"m a bit of an Australia novice!
D: Well. it's situated in Sydney Harbour at Bennelong Point. It was opend in 1973 but it wasn't bulit by an Australian.
G: Really? I've always thought it was built by a local.
D: Joern Utzon is the Danish architect who entered and won the international competition announced in January 1956 to design it.
G: Oh, I see. I wonder why I've never heard of him. So, was there a competition to select a designer? What did he win?
D: He's only know for that building. His prize for the wining design was 5,000 Australian pounds, this was before they had Australian dollars.
G: After winning the competition fot the opera house design, he must have spent a long time planning the the Opera House, before he started biilding it.
D: Actually, it tooks 15 years to build and the final cost was fourteen times the original estimate.
G: Wow! Why did it take so long to build?
D: I think one of the reasons was because the roof was so top-heavy and nothing so daringly inclined had ever been buolt before.
G: What happended to him later on?
D: In 2003, at the age of 85, Joern Utzon was recongnised by his peers and awarded the prestigious Prizker Prize, regarded as the Nobel Prize of architecture. But perhaps the most unusual thing about him was that he never actually saw the Opera House in person.
G: What if I want to watch something there, a musical or an opera, or something. What would you recommend?
D: Various theatre performances and other cultural events are held at the Sydney Opera House. You should look at the Sydney Opera House website and check out what's on during your visit.
G: That's a great idea.

I'm not sure where to start.  我不知从哪儿开始 

out of this world  世界闻名的

in person     亲自  

check out   检查