彭蒙惠英语：新闻剪辑（3/3）
News Worthy Clips
新闻剪辑(2/3)
News Worthy Clips
Update your vocabulary with news clips from around the world
Europe still beckons students, but many drawn elsewhere
Jessica Serrano, a student at the University of Miami, is no stranger to travel. Last summer she backpacked through Europe; in 2004, she studied in New Zealand and Australia. This year, she’s going to Southeast Asia, a new destination that she feels would benefit most from her tourist dollars, especially areas damaged by the 2004 tsunami.
She isn’t the only student you’ll see roaming the world.
During the summer, you’re guaranteed to see in every country at least a handful of college students. An easy way to identify them: they’ll be carrying maps, translation dictionaries and backpacks overflowing with souvenirs and dirty clothes.
For decades, college students have ventured out from their homes for a summer of backpacking. Some travel because they seek insight into an unfamiliar culture; others are eager to celebrate summer, graduation or final months of freedom.
“The overall trend for college-age students is Europe,” said Sarah-Jane Wilton of STA travel, a discount student travel company. But she says young people also like to go to go to places that have been in the public eye. For example, Athens saw a boost in student tourists after the 2004 Olympics.
Recently, STA Travel has expanded its choices by offering organized volunteer and language programs. Its volunteer program in Honduras, where travelers do conservation work and build homes, expanded in the past couple years.
As for Serrano, she plans to keep traveling whenever she can.
“I’m addicted to traveling!” she said. Even travel hassles are worth it, she said. Two years ago, while en route from Fiji to Australia, her bag was lost. “I had the most incredible time anyway,” she said. “There are so many people and cultures to see and learn about, it taught me that material things aren’t everything.”
Specialized Terms
Backpack (v) to travel while carrying clothes and other needs in a sturdy bag on one’s back
Vocabulary Focus
Venture (v) to risk going somewhere that might be dangerous or unpleasant.
In the public eye (idiom) famous and written about in newspapers and magazines and seen on television
Material (adj) relating to physical objects or money rather than emotions of the spiritual world
