(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the old city of Bethlehem in the West Bank was busy with visitors in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
在新冠疫情之前，约旦河西岸的伯利恒老城在圣诞节前的几周里游客熙熙攘攘。
But for the last two years, hotels are empty or closed.
但在过去的两年里，酒店要么空着，要么关门。
No one is coming to the shops.
没有人来商店。
A historic piece of woodwork inside the famous Church of the Nativity is being cleaned.
著名的耶稣诞生教堂内的一块具有历史意义的木制品正在被清洁。
However, not very many people will see how good it looks this year.
然而，今年不会有很多人看到它看起来有多好。
Bethlehem, known from the Bible as the birthplace of Jesus, is inside an area of the Middle East controlled by Israel, known as the West Bank.
伯利恒在《圣经》中被称为耶稣的出生地。它位于中东一个被以色列控制的地区，即约旦河西岸。
Israel opened to visitors who have been vaccinated earlier in November, but not many people are coming to Bethlehem.
以色列在11月初向接种疫苗的游客开放，但来伯利恒的人并不多。
In 2019, the city was busy with people visiting historic places such as the Church of the Nativity and Manger Square.
2019年，这座城市挤满了来参观历史名胜的游客，如耶稣诞生教堂和马槽广场。
Aladdin Subuh runs a shop near the square.
阿拉丁·苏布在广场附近经营着一家商店。
He said he has no customers. He only opens the door to let in fresh air.
他说他没有顾客。他开门只是为了让新鲜空气进来。
"For two years, no business," he said. "It's like dying slowly."
“两年来，没有生意，”他说。“这就像慢慢死去一样。”
The global health crisis reduced visitors in both Israel and Palestine.
全球健康危机减少了以色列和巴勒斯坦的游客。
But the city of Bethlehem's economy depends on visitors, so the situation is especially bad.
但伯利恒的经济依赖于游客，所以情况尤其糟糕。
In the first part of this month, 30,000 visitors came to Israel.
本月上旬，有3万名游客来以色列。
In November 2019, over 400,000 people came.
2019年11月，超过40万人来到这里。
There is some government help for business owners in Bethlehem, but not much.
政府为伯利恒的企业主提供了一些帮助，但帮助不多。
Majed Ishaq is marketing director for the Palestinian Tourism Ministry.
马吉德·伊沙克是巴勒斯坦旅游部的营销总监。
He said the Palestinian government is offering some businesses who depend on visitors from other nations ways to pay less tax and some new training.
他说，巴勒斯坦政府正在为一些依赖来自其他国家的游客的企业减税并提供一些新的培训。
Ishaq's organization is working to encourage more people to come to Bethlehem this year.
伊沙克所在的组织今年正在努力鼓励更多的人来伯利恒。
But Fadi Kattan is not hopeful.
但法迪·卡坦对此并不抱有希望。
He is a chef and runs a hotel in the old part of Bethlehem.
他是一名厨师，在伯利恒老城区经营着一家酒店。
"I don't think tourism will come back very soon," he said.
他说：“我认为旅游业不会很快恢复”。
He closed his hotel in 2020 and does not plan to open it before Christmas.
他在2020年关闭了他的酒店，而且不打算在圣诞节前开业。
Kattan said it will take a long time for the city to recover from the COVID-19 restrictions, and business owners want to be sure they can stay open for a long time if they re-open.
卡坦表示，伯利恒需要很长时间才能从因新冠疫情实施的限制措施中恢复过来，企业主希望确保他们在重新营业后能够长期营业。
While people like Kattan are uncertain about the future.
而诸如卡坦这样的人对未来都充满了不确定性。
Work goes on at Bethlehem's historic sites.
伯利恒的历史遗迹仍在施工。
At the Church of the Nativity, workers are finishing a cleaning and repair project that started in 2013.
在耶稣诞生教堂，工人们即将完成一项始于2013年的清洁和修复工程。
Gold tiles and marble floors look new again.
金色的瓷砖和大理石地板焕然一新。
Workers put holiday lights in Manger Square.
工人们在马槽广场挂上节日彩灯。
Unlike in 2019, visitors these days can enter the church without a long wait.
与2019年不同的是，如今的游客无需长时间等待就可以进入教堂。
More work needs to be done, however, raising the total cost of repair to almost $20 million.
然而，将维修的总费用提高到近2000万美元还需要做更多的工作。
Saki Pappadopoulos is a woodcarver working on another old piece at the city's Greek Orthodox Church.
萨基·帕帕佐普洛斯是一名木雕师，他正在伯利恒的希腊东正教教堂修复另一件古老的木制品。
He said the project was "a big challenge" that took three years.
他说，这个项目是一个“巨大的挑战”，花了三年时间。
But it is almost finished.
但它快完成了。
Issa Thaljieh is a Greek Orthodox religious leader at the Church of the Nativity.
伊萨·塔尔杰是耶稣诞生教堂的希腊东正教领袖。
He said life is slowly getting better.
他说，生活正在慢慢变得更好。
He said the small groups coming to visit are a good sign.
他说，前来参观的小旅游团是一个好迹象。
Without visitors, he said, "Bethlehem is nothing."
没有游客，他说，“伯利恒什么都不是。”
I'm Dan Friedell.
丹·弗里德尔为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
