The Sydney Opera House is one of the most famous buildings in Australia. This summer holiday, I got the chance to visit it and found out what made this building so great.
As our guide told us, the Sydney Opera House was built with a kind of self-cleaning material. This kind of material is very rare (稀有的) even today.
First, we visited the Drama Hall. We learned about the designer of the Sydney Opera House—Jorn Utzon. He was the winner of an international design competition. However, he designed the Opera House according to his own tastes, which caused several problems. The project was completed 10 years late. The cost of building was over budget (预算). Utzon didn’t get to see the house after it was built.
Then, we visited the Joan Sutherland Theater which is the second largest theater. The theater was refurbished (翻新) in 2017 with new high-tech equipment (设备). Finally, we arrived at the largest theater—the Concert Hall. It has hosted many kinds of performances, from classical to rock music. A few years ago, a sports event was even held there.
Before we finished the tour, the guide told us the rest of Utzon’s story. In 1966, Utzon had an argument with the government and refused to give in. He had to leave the country. It was a hard time in his life. But many years later, people understood him and saw the building as the most popular work.
From this tour, I learned that the Opera House is not only a famous building but a holder of history and culture.
【小题2】Did the Sydney Opera House cost more than it was expected?
【小题3】When was the Joan Sutherland Theater refurbished?
【小题4】Why did Jorn Utzon leave Australia?
【小题5】How does the writer like the Sydney Opera House?
第二节 书面表达
【小题6】学校英文报正在以“Important life skills for teens”为题开展征文活动。请你结合下面的图示，写一篇短文投稿，描述青少年应具备的两项重要生活技能，并结合自身实际谈一谈你自己急需提升的另外一项技能以及你将如何提升这项技能。
(1) 短文必须包含图示中的所有要点，可适当发挥；
(2) 80词左右 (标题和开头已给出，不计入总词数)；
(3) 文中不得出现真实人名和校名。
Important life skills for teens
Though scoring good grades is important, teens should also develop other necessary life skills.
