Part 2 A Business Trip to New Zealand

Christopher： Hey Kiki， I heard you were heading to New Zealand this summer.

Kiki： You heard right. I got the go ahead to leave as soon as next week.

Christopher： Wow， customs authorities must have fast-tracked your Visa procedures.

Kiki： Well， I certainly didn’t think it would be quite as easy as it turned out to be.

Christopher： So what kind of Visa did you get exactly？

Kiki： It’s called a Working Holiday Visa.

Christopher： Never heard of it. Care to 1）elaborate？ Kiki： Sure. It’s pretty much a golden ticket， allowing travelers to work in any number of countries.

Christopher： So， you’re basically gonna be working the whole time you’re there？ ①Doesn’t working on your holiday sort of defeat the purpose？

Kiki： Not entirely. Yes I’ll be working， ②but there’ll be plenty of my time for sightseeing and the like. It’s actually a great way to get to know a place while topping up your funds at the same time.

Christopher： I think I get the drift. When you have no money， you work for a while to make some extra 2）moolah. And after that， you can continue your journey again. ③Am I on the right track？

Kiki： Yeah！ Working holidays are growing in popularity these days， with more and more people taking the chance to experience a different lifestyle， while exploring new places and cultures.

Christopher： It must be nice to do something that’s out of the ordinary， ④especially for those who feel stuck in the 3）doldrums of day-to-day life.

Kiki： I agree 4）wholeheartedly. Just think about it—twenty years from now， you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you actually did.

Christopher： But for some people， such as myself， ⑤it’s hard to go out on a limb like that and risk everything on a whim.

Kiki： Well， I believe it was Franklin Delano Rosevelt who said， in his famous 5）inauguration speech， that “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself…”

Christopher： Um…I fear going bankrupt and not being able to survive.

Kiki： Then you should 6）jump at one of the many employment opportunities being offered overseas. Compared to the American market， many overseas economies are booming.⑥And other countries are always on the lookout for foreign talent.

Christopher： But I’m not exactly talented， 7）per se.

Kiki： That doesn’t matter. You have a 8）built-in quality， because you are different from the native people of another country. Didn’t you ever notice how 9）exotic New Zealanders and Australians sound to us here in the U.S.？

Christopher： Yeah， ⑦the ladies fall head over heels for those accents.

Kiki： Well， just imagine how you must sound to all of them. To them， you would be the 10）intriguing foreigner with the sexy accent.

Christopher： That would be a welcome change. I’m practically invisible here.

Kiki： So you might as well go out， expand your horizons， and leave this boring office life behind.

Christopher： Hmmm…You’ve certainly given me some 11）food for thought…

Smart Sentences① Doesn’t working on your holiday sort of defeat the purpose？ 假期都用來打工不就有點違背了假期的初衷嗎？

defeat the purpose： sth. goes against the purpose； pointless（起不了作用，沒有意義）。例如：

If I tell you how to use the self-help system， it will defeat the purpose.

如果我告訴你怎樣使用自助系統，那就不叫自助了。

② But there’ll be plenty of my time for sightseeing and the like. 但我還有大把時間去觀光之類的。

and the like： used to indicate there are other similar things as mentioned（等等，諸如此類）。例如：

They read prose， recite poems， and the like.

他們朗誦散文，吟誦詩歌等等。

③ Am I on the right track？ 我說得對嗎？

on the right track： act or progress in a way that is likely to result in success（方向正確）。例如：I believe Tony was on the right track when he said he would quit drinking and try to find a part-time job.

聽到托尼說他打算戒酒，再找一份兼職，我就覺得他找對方向了。

④ Especially for those who feel stuck in the doldrums of day-to-day life. 特別是對于那些陷于日復一日的苦悶生活的人們。

day-to-day： every day（日復一日，天天）。例如：

It’s important that we find pleasures in our day-to-day lives.

重要的是我們在日復一日的生活中找到樂趣。

⑤ It’s hard to go out on a limb like that and risk everything on a whim. 很難像那樣不顧一切一時興起去冒險。

out on a limb： do sth. even though it’s risky or extreme（冒險）。例如：

Gerry decided to go out on a limb and take the job in Zambia.

杰里決定冒一次險，到贊比亞工作。

on a whim： do sth. without thinking seriously about the consequences（一時興致，不計后果）。例如：

Mary and I decided， on a whim， to go hiking through the Grand Canyon.

我跟瑪麗一時興起，決定到大峽谷徒步旅行。

⑥ And other countries are always on the lookout for foreign talent. 而別的國家總是在尋找海外人才。

on the lookout （for sb. or sth.）： watchful for sb. or sth.（關注，尋找）。例如：

Prof. Jefferson is currently on the lookout for research assistants for his new project.

杰弗遜教授在為新項目尋找研究助理。

⑦ The ladies fall head over heels for those accents. 女士們無可救藥地愛上了他們的口音。

fall head over heels： completely and hopelessly in love（愛得很深）。例如：

When she first laid eyes on the cute little bunny， she fell head over heels for it.

她一看到那只可愛的小兔子，就不可救藥地愛上它了。