by Duncan Kennedy in Rome, Italy

Rome and its monuments are the dream of all the world's tourists

Background: 两名美国游客将他们25年前从罗马斗兽场偷窃的一块石头邮寄归还，并表示道歉。

Questions: 请在听下面录音的时候试着回答这些问题。这是一个用来帮助你提高听力技能的练习。

1. How big was the stolen piece of stone?

2. How was the bit of stone returned?

3. How did the tourists feel when they looked at their stolen souvenir?

4. Has the city of Rome forgiven the tourists for stealing a part of the famous Colosseum?

Click here for answers

Roman Theft 罗马盗物归还

Listen to Duncan Kennedy's report 点击此处下载录音材料

The bit of stone, small enough to fit into a pocket, arrived in a courier package from the United States. The anonymous souvenir hunters sent a letter with it explaining they'd chipped off the piece on a visit to Rome 25 years ago.

The note said, "Every time I looked at my souvenir collection and came across that piece it made me feel guilty".

It went on: "Over the years I started thinking that if all the visitors to that beautiful monument took a piece away with them, nothing would be left standing". The note added "It was a selfish and superficial act".

Rome's archaeological officials have accepted the apology saying the episode proved that "Rome and its monuments are the dream of all the world's tourists". The city has extended an invitation to the couple to come back to Rome.

It's not the first time bits of the city’s ancient heritage have proved tempting for tourists to relocate.

Last August a German visitor was caught trying to sneak out a nine kilogram rock from the Roman Forum in her backpack, whilst in 2006 another German tourist was caught at one of the city's airports with a piece of Roman column in his bag.

GLOSSARY 词汇表 (收听发音, 请单击英语单词)

courier package 特快专递邮包

souvenir hunters 纪念品寻觅者

chipped off 从墙上铲下一小块（石头）

souvenir collection 纪念品收藏

guilty 愧疚的

monument 纪念碑

selfish 自私的

superficial act 肤浅的行为

archaeological 考古的

ancient heritage 古代遗产

tempting 诱人的

sneak out 偷偷摸摸地拿走

Answers

1. How big was the stolen piece of stone?
It was small enough to fit into a pocket.

2. How was the bit of stone returned?
It was returned inside a courier package with a letter of apology.

3. How did the tourists feel when they looked at their stolen souvenir?
They said that they felt guilty and selfish when they looked at their stolen souvenir.

4. Has the city of Rome forgiven the tourists for stealing a part of the famous Colosseum?
The city has accepted the tourist’s apology and invited the couple back to Rome.

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