Getting to the Airport

Getting to the Airport

Airport: An airport is an area of land or water adapted for

the landing and takeoff of aircrafts. Large airports provide

terminal buildings for the arrival and departure of

passengers, as well as maintenance and repair facilities for

aircrafts. Requirements for handling aircraft at large military

airfields are similar to those of civil airports.

Go to Text B

Introductory Remarks

Text Reading

Before Reading

1. Oral Practice

2. Passenger Services a. Passenger Services

b. Dictation

1. Global Reading a. First Reading

b. Second Reading

2. Detailed Study of Text A

3. Summary of Text A

1. Useful Phrases and Expressions

2. Exercise 9

3 Exercise 13

4. Exercise 14

After Reading

1. Are you always on time for an appointment?

2. Do you prefer to arrive at some place early? Why or why not?

Oral Practice

1/3

What services can passengers get at the airport ?

2/3

Major airports provide a wide range of facilities for the 　 conven

ience of millions of travelers. These range from such basic feature

s as ticket-sales counters, baggage-claim areas, rest rooms, and r

estaurants to luxury hotels, conference centers, shopping malls, a

nd play areas for children. Other amenities include newsstands, ba

rs, barbershops, post offices, and bank branches. Taxi stands, rent

al-car agencies, and huge parking lots are necessary to accommo

date ground connections. Many airports, particularly in Europe and

Japan, also supply direct rail links to expedite such traffic. Internati

onal terminals must also have customs areas and currency-excha

nge counters; most have duty-free shops as well. For international

travelers, the problem of language barriers is met by using standar

dized symbols.

3/3

Dictation

stressed

tick by

the check-in line

vacation

有压力的

( 时间 ) 流逝

登机处

假期

1/3

Before listening, you may need to know the following words or expressions.

You’re sitting at home thinking about tomorrow’s ______________.

Remember last time? Remember how you felt when you arrived?

__________, hot, tired, needing a couple of days to ________?

　 Don’t _______ your bags a half hour before leaving. You know tho

se important papers, that book you wanted to read. _______________

__________, and you’ll find everything right there

waiting!

　 There’s no worse way to start your journey than sitting in traffic ___

______________ from the airport, watching the minutes tick by.

Dictation

plane journey

Stressed recover

pack

Always pack the night before

a couple of miles

2/3

Listen to the following short passage and fill in the blanks with the missing words.

Leave early.

_______a lot of traffic and your journey will take extra time. Then y

ou’ll _______________________ and near the front of the check-in li

ne. If you get your ________________ you’ll feel even better!

Follow the above tips and you’ll arrive relaxed and stress free, ___

__________ your vacation or business trip.

Dictation

Expect

arrive at the airport relaxed

first choice of seat

ready to enjoy

3/3

1.The man didn’t seem to be worried about his flight.

2. The pilot sits in the plane, waiting for those who are paying off the taxi.

3. The author thought he couldn’t get the seat he wanted because someo

ne had already booked it in advance. So he did

not have to get to the airport early.

4. The woman the author stepped over was not a late-airport person.

5. The author had arrived at the airport early, but he didn’t know why he

was late to get on the plane.

First Reading

( )

( )

( )

( )

( )

T

T

F

F

F

Read the text and then decide whether the following statements

are True or False according to the text.

Second Reading

OutlinePart I Paras. 1-9

Part II Paras. 10-21

Part III Paras. 23-30

Part IV Paras. 31-32

Two types of people : the early-airport people , the late-airport people

The author always gets on the plane first, but gets his luggage last and he can’t get the best seat

The ultimate embarrassment of the early-airport person

The early-airport people and the late-airport people always marry each other

1/6

Detailed Study of Text A

After years of study, I have determined there are only two types of

people in this world: those who get to the airport early and those who

stroll in as the plane is about to take off. 　　　　 If there were any justice in this world, the early-airport people woul

d be rewarded for doing the right thing. And the late-airport

people would be punished. 　　　　　　 But there is no justice. The early-airport people get ulcers, heart

attacks and bite their fingernails to the bone. 　　　　 The late-airport people barely are aware they are flying.


Passage_a_1

1/6









Close

After years of study

After years of study, I have determined there are only two ty

pes of people ...

— After years of study, I have found out there are only two kinds

of people ...

determine: vt. to find out or make certain about (facts and

information)I’ve been completely unable to determine why my car is making such a strange noise.

The people who live in the area should be allowed to

determine their own future.

我完全不能判断为什么我的车会发出如此奇怪的噪音。

1/6









Be about to

be about to: to be going to happen very soon; be on the point of

doing something

cf. 1. be to: to be often used to talk about arrangements which have

been planned for the future, and to give orders

2. be going to： when we talk about things that have already been decided and when we talk about things which we can see now are certain to happen, we usually use “be going to”.

Close

Don’t go out now — we’re about to have lunch.

Our boss is to visit your factory next month. (arrangements planned)

Look -- it’s going to snow. (present evidence)I’m going to work this evening. (actions decided)

现在不要出去，我们该吃午饭了。

老板准备下个月参观我们工厂。

1/6









Close

If there were any justice

If there were any justice ... would be rewarded for ...

This sentence implies there is no justice in this world and the

early-airport people are often punished. In the writer’s opinion, this

is not fair.

justice: n. rightness; fairness

reward: vt. to give somebody something because he has done something useful or good

Children have a strong sense of justice .

孩子都有很强的正义感。

All his hard work was rewarded when he saw his book in print.

当他看到自己的书出版，感觉一切辛苦努力都得到了回报。

1/6









Close

The early-airport

The early-airport people get ulcers... and bite their finger

nails to the bone.

— The early-airport people become extremely worried,

nervous and anxious.

Apparently an exaggeration is used here to describe those early-airport people who worry about missing the flight.

1/6









barely

cf. scarcely, hardlyThese three words are very similar. They are almost negative in meaning and can be used interchangeably in most cases. “Barely” has another meaning: only just.

Close

barely: adv. hardly; almost not; only, just

They have barely enough to pay the rent this month.

She was barely fifteen when she won her first championship.

他们几乎没有足够的钱交这个月的房租。

她赢得第一个冠军时还不到十五岁。

2/6

I once found myself in an airport bar with a man on the same flight

as me. Our flight had been called three times, but he insisted

we stay for another round.

　“ If we miss this one, there’s always another plane in an hour,” he

said, signaling for two more drinks.

　“ To Dhahran, Saudi Arabia?” I said. “There isn’t another flight for

a

week.”

　“ I have a theory,” he said. “If you miss your flight, it’s because G

od

didn’t want you to go.”

　 This is clearly a guy who is never going to get an ulcer.

Early-airport people suffer another abuse. They are called exactly

what they are: wimps. 　

2/6

I once found myself in an airport bar with a man on 　 the same fli

ght as me. Our flight had been called three times, but he insisted



said, signalling for two more drinks.


a

week.”


od





Close

I once found myself in an airport bar with a man on the

same flight as me.

— On one occasion, I met a man taking the same flight as

me in an airport bar.

flight: n. a plane making a particular journey

Flight Number 447 to Geneva is ready to leave.

I’ve got to run -- my flight’s been called.

飞往日内瓦的 447 航班准备起飞。

2/6







a

week.”


od





signal: v. to make a gesture or sound in order to give a particular message to someone

... signaling for two more drinks.

— making a gesture to the waiter to ask for another two drinks.

cf. sign: v. to write (one’s name) on (a written paper)

Close

He was signaling (= giving a signal) with a red flag.

He signed his name at the end of the letter.

The policemen signaled (to) the traffic to move forward slowly.

to sign a letter/cheque/contract/agreement

警察发出信号提示车辆缓慢前行。

他在信的末尾签上了自己的名字。

2/6







a

week.”


od





Early airport

Close

Early-airport people suffer another abuse.

— Early-airport people experience another verbal use of rude

or cruel language from others.

abuse: n. rude and offensive words said to another person

He greeted me with a stream of abuse.

“Idiot!” is a mild term of abuse (= an insulting expression).

一见面，他就骂了我一顿。

I know. I was an early-airport person for years. My luggage will

get on the plane first, I told myself. Indeed it will. Which makes it the

last luggage they take off the plane when you land.

You know who really gets his luggage first? The late-airport

person, who strolls into the airport three minutes before the plane

takes off.

The pilot is practically in the air when these people are still

paying off the taxi.

Then they make a big fuss at the gate in order to get their

luggage on board.

And when we finally take off, all us wimps know that not only will

that late luggage be the first off the plane, but it is probably sitting on

top of our luggage, crushing our shirts.

3/6






takes off.




luggage on board.




3/6

Close

Which makes it the last luggage they take off the plane

when you land.

— My luggage is the first on board and this makes it the last to

be taken off the plane when I land.

which: (and) this

He changed his mind for the second time, after which I

refused ever to go out with him again.

他再次改变主意，之后我就拒绝再和他一起出去。






takes off.




luggage on board.




3/6



— The plane is almost taking off when these people are still

paying the taxi driver.

Close

pay off: pay the whole of (a debt)

She had no money to pay off the taxi.

It took them six years to pay off that debt.

还清那笔贷款花了他们六年时间。






takes off.




luggage on board.




3/6

Close

Then they make


luggage on board.

— Then they are in great hurry to get their luggage onto the plane.fuss: n. a show of annoyance, anxiety, dissatisfaction or excitement, usually one which is greater than the situation deserves

It’s all a fuss about nothing.

Don’t make so much fuss over losing a pen.

别为了丢失一支笔就这样大惊小怪。






takes off.




luggage on board.



top of our luggage, crushing our shirts. 3/6

Close

... not only will that late luggage be the first off the plane, but

... on top of our luggage, crushing our shirts.

Partial inversion is used when the conjunction “not only ... (but

also)” comes to the beginning of a sentence.

Not only did we lose our money, but we also came close to lose our lives.

on (the) top of: resting on

He put this book on top of others.

cf. at the top of: the highest part

at the top of the mountain/page

crush: vt. 压垮，粉碎，（使）变形Don’t crush this box, there are flowers inside!

The tree fell on top of the car and crushed it.

我们不仅仅丢失了钱，还差一点丢了性命。

4/6

But if I get there really early, I told my old wimpy self, I will get

the best seat.

Well, just try to show up early and get the seat you want. Go

ahead and try.

No matter how early I showed up, I was always told that someone

had called two or three years ahead of me and asked for that seat.

I figured it was a conspiracy. I figured there was someone in Ame

rica who called every airline every day and said: “Is that wimp Simon

flying somewhere today? If he is, give me his seat”

P_1_4

4/6


the best seat.


ahead and try.





flying somewhere today? If he is, give me his seat” Close

I told my old wimpy self

I told my old wimpy self.

— I told myself — an old wimp.

self: n. a person with his own nature, character, abilities, etc.

He put his whole self into the job, working night and day.

Knowledge of self increases as one gets older.

他把一生都投入到了工作上，夜以继日地工作。

4/6


the best seat.


ahead and try.






Close

Show up

show up: to arrive; be present

Did everyone you invited show up?

I invited him for eight o’clock, but he didn’t show up until nine-thirty.

cf. show off: to behave so as to try to get admiration for oneself, one’s

abilities, etc.

He’s always showing off to his classmates.

我邀请他八点来，但他直到九点半才出现。

4/6


the best seat.


ahead and try.





flying somewhere today? If he is, give me his seat” Close

Go ahead and try

Go ahead and try. — Begin to try.

go ahead (with something): to start doing something

Frank will be late but we will go ahead with the meeting anyway.

“Can I have the sports section?” “Yeah, go ahead, I’ve read it.”

弗兰克会迟到一会儿，但我们无论如何要开始会议。

4/6


the best seat.


ahead and try.






Close

Ahead of

ahead of: before someone else; in advance of

Standard time in Beijing is eight hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time.

There were four people ahead of me at the doctor's.

北京标准时间比格林威治时间早八个小时。

4/6


the best seat.


ahead and try.






Close

I figured there was

I figured there was someone in America who called every airline

every day...

— I believed/thought that a certain person in America telephoned

every airline every day ...

figure: vt. to consider; believe

I figured (that) you’d want your tea.

We figured (that) you’d want to rest after your journey.

我们觉得你旅行过后还是休息一下好。

5/6

P_1_5


happened to me a few years ago when I was flying from La Guardia to

O’Hare.

When I got to the ticket counter, the person there said: “Sir, you

have a seat on the 9:15 a.m. flight to Chicago, is that right?”

“Yes,” I said.

“Well, it’s only 7 a.m., and the 7:05 a.m. flight has not left yet. If

you hurry, you can make it.”

Do you think so?

I was too embarrassed to say that I arrived at airports early so I

wouldn’t have to hurry. Instead, I ran down the corridor to

the plane.

5/6



O’Hare.



“Yes,” I said.



Do you think so?



the plane.

The ultimate embarrassment

the ultimate embarrassment: the greatest embarrassment

ultimate: a. 1. better, worse, or greater than all similar things

The ultimate objective is the removal of all nuclear weapons.

2. being at the end or happening in the end

The ultimate outcome of the experiment cannot be predicted.

The ultimate fate of the tribe was even sadder.Close

他们的最终目的是消除所有核武器。

5/6



O’Hare.



“Yes,” I said.



Do you think so?



the plane.

If you hurry

If you hurry, you can make it.

— If you hurry , you can get on board the 7:05 a.m. flight in time.

A: You have just 15 minutes to get your train.B: All right, I guess I can make it.

2. to succeed

You can’t make it to the other shore in this weather.

make it:

1. to arrive in time

Close这种天气你到不了对岸的。

5/6



O’Hare.



“Yes,” I said.



Do you think so?



the plane.

I was too embarrassed

I was too embarrassed to say that I arrived at airport early…

— I felt very embarrassed and I didn’t say that I arrive at airport early…

too… to do something: so much of a particular quality that something

is not possible

Close

5/6

P_1_5



O’Hare.



“Yes,” I said.



Do you think so?



the plane.

Instead, I ran down the corridor to the plane.

— Instead of saying that, I ran along the passage to the plane.

Close相反，我沿着通向飞机的过道跑了过去。

翻译：

6/6

I climbed on board, out of breath, red-faced, and stumbled

over a woman’s legs to get to the last unoccupied seat.

The woman I stepped over was no wimp. She had the guts to

complain. “You should get to the airport earlier!” she snapped at

me.

“I was here early,” I said weakly. “But then somehow I wasn’t

anymore.”

After a lifetime of arguing over whether I really have to pack 24

hours in advance and set the alarm clock four hours ahead, I

have learned one other fact. They always marry each other.

6/6





me.


anymore.”




Out of breath

out of breath: unable to breathe comfortably because of (being

in a hurry)

He burst into the room, red-faced and out of breath.

I was out of breath after running for the bus.

Close

我因为追赶公共汽车，弄得上气不接下气。

6/6





me.


anymore.”




The woman

The woman I stepped over was no wimp.

— The woman I trod was not wimpy at all.

Miss Green is no beauty. (i.e. She is not at all beautiful.)

cf. “be not + a/an + noun”: The structure states a fact without emotional colouring.

“be no + noun”: used for showing the negative when expressing strong feeling

Mr. Smith is no fool. (i.e. It implies that he is even shrewd.)

Close

6/6





me.


anymore.”




She had the guts to complain

She had the guts to complain.— She was courageous enough to complain.

It takes a lot of guts to admit to so many people that you've made a mistake.

guts: n. (pl. . infml) bravery; the ability to control fear and to deal with danger and uncertainty

Close

No-one had the guts to tell Paul what a mistake he was making.

向这么多人承认自己犯了错误，需要很大勇气。

6/6





me.


anymore.”




Snap at

snap at: to say quickly, usually in an angry way

He snapped at Walter for no reason.

He tends to snap at people when he got a headache.

Close当他头疼时，他对人讲话往往没好气。

6/6





me.


anymore.”




But then somehow

But then somehow I wasn’t anymore.

— But then I didn’t know why I wasn’t early anymore.

Somehow he again made a mistake in spelling the word.

cf. somewhat: a little; rather

She’s somewhat more confident than she used to be.

We were somewhat tired after our long walk.

somehow: adv. for some reason that is not clear 不知何故

He had somehow lost his textbook.

Close

不知怎么了，他这个词又拼错了。

6/6





me.


anymore.”




Argue over

argue over/about: If you argue with someone about something,

you say things which show that you disagree with them about it,

sometimes speaking angrily.

They were arguing about who should sit in front.

cf. argue for/against: 反驳

argue for justice / argue against smoking

The minister argued for/against making cuts in military spending.

They were arguing over/about which film to go and see.

Close

6/6





me.


anymore.”




In advance

in advance: before in time; before a particular date or event

Send your luggage in advance before you yourself leave.

You should book well in advance, preferably six weeks before.

Close

在你离开之前请先把行李寄出。

你应该提前预订，最好提前六周。

6/6





me.


anymore.”




one other: another

It is used before a singular countable noun.

I have one other thing to do.

cf. one another = each other

There is one other girl there.

Close

Summary of Text A

In theory those who get to the airport early will get reward and th

ose who get there late will get punishment. But this theory is not true

in my case. There were persons who took casual drinks before boar

ding and even left timeliness to the mercy of God. There were perso

ns who paid off their taxi only just in time for boarding, but still get th

eir luggage first when landing. To my great embarrassment, howeve

r early I am, I somehow cannot manage to get the seat I want. The

worst of it was that when I had to board an earlier plane than planne

d after arriving earlier, I got into such a hurry that I stumbled over a

woman’s leg and was dressed down for being late.

Summary of text a

Click the title to continue…

Useful Phrases and Expressions

气喘吁吁

将要 ,打算

(飞机 )起飞

付清 ,还清 (债务等 )

在……前面

到达

提前

出现

忙乱

be about to

take off

pay off

ahead of

out of breath

make a big fuss

show up

arrive at / get to

in advance

Useful phrase 1

Exercise 9

Decide which expression usually uses the verb “set” and which usually uses the verb “book”, and then put the Chinese parts in the following sentences into English, using some of the expressions.

the alarm clock set the alarm clock

a hotel room

1/4

Exe 9_1

a new Olympic record

a goal

a seat

your trip

book a hotel room

set a new Olympic record

set a goal

book a seat

book your trip

Exercise 9

a good example set a good example

a holiday

2/4

Exe 9_1

standards

a table

two tickets

a date for…

book a holiday

set standards

book a table

book two tickets

set a date for…

3/4

Exe9_3

1. Once you _____________________(已经安排好自己的旅行 ), don’t bother packing loads of clothes.

2. Rose _________________________ ( 为我们树立了一个好榜样 ) by letting people know that it’s never too late to be all you can

possibly be.

3. If you would like to ________________ (预订一张两人桌 ) for today, please phone us on 0131 556 6171.

4. Last year, I _________________( 为自己定了一个目标 ) to read one book each month -- each month’s book needs to be on a different topic.

5. I ________________________ ( 把闹钟定在六点半 ), and settled down for a couple of hours sleep.

have booked your trip

has set a good example for us

book a table for two

set a goal for myself

set the alarm clock for 6:30

4/4

Exe9_3

6. She _____________________ (创造了一项新奥运会纪录 ) with that jump.

7. To search for and __________________(预订酒店房间 ), first go to “Yahoo! Travel”.

8. Does the school _________________________ ( 为学生定下高标准 ) and stress continuous improvement over time?

9. Elton John _________________________ (已确定了婚礼日期 ): He and his longtime partner, David Furnish, will be getting married on Dec. 21

10. To ___________________ (预订票子 ), simply call the theater box office directly, ask about seats and available dates, and buy a ticket with your credit card.

set a new Olympic record

book a hotel room

set high standards for students

has set a date for his wedding

book a seat /a ticket

Exercise 13

Translate the following into Chinese, paying particular attention to the underlined parts.

1. All of us know that the late luggage will be the first off the plane,

2. Are you for or against the plan?

3. I paid fifty Yuan for the old bicycle.

4. What’s on the television tonight ?

我们都知道晚到的行李会第一个下飞机。

你赞成还是反对这项计划？

我花了 50 元买了一辆旧自行车。

今晚有什么电视节目？

1/2

Exercise 13

5. He went out with his hat on.

6. He is leaving for Beijing at 10 this morning.

7. Don’t be angry with me -- I’m on your side.

8. Sorry, I’m not with you – can you say that again?

他戴着帽子出去了。

今天上午 10 点他将动身去北京。

别对我生气，我是站在你一边的。

对不起，我不理解你的意思—能再说一遍吗？

2/2

1. 我正要离家，天就开始下雨了。

I was about to leave my home when it started to rain.

Exercise 14

翻译要点 :

参考译文：

Translate the following sentences into Chinese.

be about to

1/3

2. 当时我窘迫得说不出话。

I was too embarrassed to say anything at that time.

3.这个世界还有公正吗？早到机场的人总是最后拿到自己的行李。

Is there any justice in this world? The early-airport people always get their luggage last.

翻译要点 :

参考译文：

翻译要点 :

参考译文：

justice The early-airport people

too…to

2/3

4.我真地要提前 24小时整理好行李，把闹钟拨前一小时。

5.我们等了有将近两个小时，可是他没来。

I really have to pack 24 hours in advance and set the alarm clock one hour ahead.

We waited for nearly two hours, but she didn’t show up.

翻译要点 :

参考译文：

翻译要点 :

参考译文：

in advance

didn’t show up

3/3

Documents

Getting to the Airport