新西兰英语 716 Waiheke Island

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　　Listen to Jan 24th 2013 to hear more about this.

　　Today an outdoor sculpture exhibition opens in Waiheke Island. It runs for three weeks. Sculptures are along a 2.5km path on the coast. This exhibition is one of the reasons that the New York Times last week listed Waiheke Island as one of the best places in the world to visit. It has lovely, safe beaches with white sand and calm water. It has more sunshine than Auckland and less rain. It also has many vineyards which make good wines. Some of the vineyards have their own restaurant.

　　Another reason for the New York Times’ choice is that Waiheke Island is close to Auckland. It is connected to Auckland by a ferry. The trip takes 40 minutes. Many of the 9,000 residents¹ who live on the island are interesting people: artists, actors, musicians and writers. Most of the residents earn less than the average Aucklander. There are not many jobs on the island: about 2,000 people commute² to Auckland every day to work. Another 3,000 people have holiday homes on the island.

　　The island is 92 square km in area, about 19km long by 10km at the widest point. It is very hilly with many houses on hills where there is a view of the sea. There are forests and farms as well as interesting historical places to visit.

　　Vocabulary

　　?sculpture – three-dimensional figures e.g. made of stone, bronze, wood, steel

　　?exhibition – a public display of art or sculpture

　　?runs – goes

　　?calm – not rough

　　?vineyards – grow grapes

　　?ferry – ship which travels between the island and Auckland

　　?residents – people who live in a place

　　?commute – travel to work from home (usually a long distance); a commuter is a person who does this

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