氣質姐與可愛可

\

　　Is there any other food that is loved as much as chocolate? It is believed that humans have been enjoying chocolate since at least 1900 BC. At that time, chocolate was mainly drunk as a bitter liquid. Mesoamericans, those who lived in an area from central Mexico to parts of Central America, made chocolate using cacao beans. Christopher Columbus and Spanish explorers were responsible for introducing the beans, and therefore chocolate, to Europe.
　　It took a lot of effort to grow and prepare the beans back then. Because of this, the Europeans originally used slaves to do the work. At first, only the rich could afford chocolate. Later, machines were invented that allowed chocolate to be produced more quickly and cheaply. People's desire for chocolate soon grew as it became more affordable. Today, there are chocolate festivals around the world. In addition, chocolate has become so popular that it has been the subject of books and movies. One book, which was also made into a film starring Johnny Depp, is Chocolat. Clearly, the love for chocolate around the world will not end anytime soon.

Words & Phrases

•  It is believed + that 子句　　一般相信∕預料……
  It is believed that a monster lives in the lake.
  據信湖裡住著一隻怪物。
• be responsible for...　　是……的原因；為……負責
  The heavy snow was responsible for the accident.
  大雪是造成這場意外的原因。
• introduce sth to + 地方　　將某事物引進某地
  Those explorers introduced potatoes to the rest of the world.
  那些探險者將馬鈴薯引進到世界其他地方。
• take...effort to V　　花費精力
  It'll take a lot of effort to carve out a new market.
  要開闢一個新市場需要付出很大努力。
• originally adv. 起先，原先
  Originally I thought that man might be a thief, but it turned out that he was a detective.
  起先我還以為那個傢伙也許是個賊，不過他竟然是個偵探。
• afford vt. 負擔得起
  can / cannot afford + N/to V　　
      負擔得起∕負擔不起……
  I can't afford (to buy) a new car, so I'll buy a used one.
  我買不起新車，所以我會買中古的。
• invent vt. 發明，創造
  Tommy invented a whole new way of doing business.
  湯米創造了一套全新的做生意方式。
• around the world　　全世界，世界各地
  The rich man has traveled around the world many times.
  那個富翁已經環遊過全世界好幾次了。

有任何其他食物和巧克力一樣深受人們喜愛嗎？據信人們從西元前1900年以來一直都很喜愛吃巧克力。當時巧克力主要當作味道苦的飲料飲用。住在墨西哥中部到中美洲部分區域的中美洲人用可可豆做巧克力。哥倫布和西班牙的探險家正是引進可可豆 ── 也就是巧克力 ── 到歐洲的人。
  　　過去栽培和處理可可豆很費工。因此，歐洲人起初利用奴隸來做此工作。一開始，只有有錢人才買得起巧克力。後來，機器的發明使巧克力可以生產得更快又便宜。隨著巧克力變得更便宜，人們對巧克力的需求量快速增加。今日，世界各地都有舉行巧克力節。此外，因為巧克力變得如此受歡迎，所以一直是許多書和電影的主題。其中一本書還被改拍成由強尼‧戴普主演的電影《濃情巧克力》。無疑地，全世界對巧克力的喜愛不會這麼快就結束。

引用自常春藤網路書城https://www.ivy.com.tw/index.php