文章原文：
TheGreat St. Bernard Pass connects Switzerland to Italy. At 2,473 metres, it isthe highest mountain pass in Europe. The famous monastery of St. Bernard, whichwas founded in eleventh century, lies about a mile away. For hundreds of years,St. Bernard dogs have saved the lives of travellers crossing the dangerousPass. These friendly dogs, which were first brought from Asia, were used aswatchdogs even in Roman times. Now that a tunnel has been built through themountains, the Pass is less dangerous, but each year, the dogs are still sentout into the snow whenever a traveller is in difficulty. Despite the newtunnel, there are still a few people who rashly attempt to cross the Pass onfoot.
Duringthe summer months, the monastery is very busy, for it is visited by thousandsof people who cross the Pass in cars. As there are so many people about, thedogs have to be kept in a special enclosure. In winter, however, life at themonastery is quite different. The temperature drops to -30°and very few peopleattempt to cross the Pass. The monks prefer winter to summer for they have moreprivacy. The dogs have greater freedom, too, for they are allowed to wanderoutside their enclosure. The only regular visitors to the monastery in winterare parties of skiers who go there at Christmas and Easter. These young people,who love the peace of mountains, always receive a warm welcome at St. Bernard'smonastery.
精读笔记：
1.Afamous monastery
monastery:abuilding or group of buildings in which monks (=religious men) live andworship.
2.TheGreat St. Bernard Pass connects Switzerland to Italy.
(1)pass:a path or road between or over mountains.
(2)connect:to
join two places,常用短语connect sth to/with sth
例句：The
Midtown tunnelconnects Long Island to Manhattan.
3.Thefamous monastery of St. Bernard, which was founded in eleventh century, liesabout a mile away.
lie:If something lies in a particular place, position, or direction, it is in that place, position, or direction.
例句：The river lies 30 km to the south.
另外还有一个常用搭配lie in sth:to exist or be found in something.
Hisskill lies in his ability to communicate quite complex ideas very simply.
4.Nowthat a tunnel has been built through the mountains, the Pass is less dangerous,but each year, the dogs are still sent out into the snow whenever a travelleris in difficulty.
(1)nowthat:You use now that to give an explanation of a new situation:
例句：Now
that I live only a
few blocks from work, I walk to work and enjoyit.
(2)tunnel:along passage under or through the earth, esp. one made for vehicles.
5.Despitethe new tunnel, there are still a few people who rashly attempt to cross thePass on foot.
(1)despite:(inspite of)used to say that something happens or is true even though somethingelse might have prevented it.
例句：Despiteall our efforts to save the school, the authorities decided to close it.
常用句型despitethe fact (that)
Shewent to Spain despite the fact that her doctor had told her to rest.
(2)rashly:ina careless or unwise way, without thought for what might happen or result.
例句：Theynever make decisions rashly.
6.Asthere are so many people about, the dogs have to be kept in a specialenclosure.
(1)about:positionedaround a place, often without a clear purpose or order.
例句：Shealways leaves her clothes lying about on the floor.
(2)keep:to stay or cause to stay or continue in a particular place, direction, or condition.
(3)enclosure:anarea surrounded by a wall or fence, and used for a particular purpose.
7.Thetemperature drops to -30°and very few people attempt to cross the Pass.
(1)minus:less
than zero,used especially when talking about temperatures,英文里零下30°文字写出来是minus 30°.
例句：Atnight temperatures sometimes fall to minus 30°.
(2)attempt:totry to do something, especially something difficult.
8.Themonks prefer winter to summer for they have more privacy.
(1)prefer to:to like someone or something more thansomeone or something else, so that you would choose it if you could.
例句：Achild that prefers his imaginary world to reality.
(2)privacy:theright that someone has to keep their personal life or personal informationsecret or known only to a small group of people.
9.Thedogs have greater freedom, too, for they are allowed to wander outside theirenclosure.
wander:towalk around slowly in a relaxed way or without any clear purpose or direction.
例句：Wespent the morning wandering around the old part of the city.
