VOA标准英语2012--Burma's Tourist Industry Booms
时间:2012-04-01 06:46:24
搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号:tingroom,领取免费英语资料大礼包。
(单词翻译)
Burma's Tourist Industry Booms
This week in Rangoon 20 contestants1 competed for the title of Miss Tourism Myanmar 2012, a beauty pageant2 organized by the tourism board to appeal to foreign visitors.
Tourism Board Secretary Kyaw Htun says Aung San Suu Kyi's
endorsement3 of "responsible tourism" last year has been a vital boost in Burma, also known as Myanmar.
"Before 2010 the Lady [Suu Kyi] didn't support visitors to come to Myanmar, but after 2010 she was encouraging visitors to come see Myanmar,"
noted4 Htun.
Since Aung San Suu Kyi's release from house arrest in 2010, tourism has more than doubled, and is projected to keep increasing at a rate of 30 percent per year.
Burma's political
isolation5 has long kept it off the typical
itinerary6 of holiday travelers. Now, it is that isolation and
ongoing7 political reforms that are drawing newcomers - some of whom are still anxious about visiting.
"The reason I'm here in Myanmar, I'm interested in the political situation," said Mari Nakogawa, a tourist from Japan. "Like Aung San Suu Kyi, I cannot say it here, it's kind of scary. Most of Japanese newspapers say Myanmar is dangerous."
Hotels in Burma are now booked several months in advance, doubling room prices in some cases.
But it's not only tourists who are eager to visit. Alex Ruther is the manager of the upscale Savoy Hotel.
"Because the country's opening up, the foreign investment laws are changing as well, so a lot of foreigners can come in and invest. Foreign companies [are] coming in so it definitely puts the country on the global map," said Ruther.
For Burma's visitors, such as these visiting the famed Shwedagon
Pagoda8, both the old attractions and the new changes are an
enticing9 draw.
分享到: