【明報專訊】Uruguay (烏拉圭) is sandwiched between Argentina and Brazil. It was the host country of the first World Cup in 1930 and has two trophies under its belt.

Flag's tale

The personified sun in the flag is called "Sun of May". It represents Inti, who was the sun god in ancient Inca (印加) mythology and is in the form of a gold disk. Uruguay was part of the Brazilian Empire. The horizontal white and blue stripes represent the original nine departments (省), which formed the basis of the newly established republic in 1830 after its independence.

Sightseeing

Punta del Este (埃斯特角城) is a resort town in Maldonado, a southeast department of Uruguay. If you want to rent a villa for your long holiday, this is the place. A sculpture named La Mano de Punta del Este, looking like five human fingers, is an artistic landmark as well as a tourist hot spot in the region.

◆World Cup titbit

Luis Suarez (蘇亞雷斯) is a well known Uruguayan striker (前鋒) who shocked the soccer world by biting an Italian footballer in the last World Cup. In fact, that was not the first time he had bitten others in a match!

Eager to make a triumphant return in the coming months, he said early this year that "I want this to be my World Cup". But he was also cautious, foreseeing that the matches with rivals in the same group would be "difficult and complicated".

(Sources: Encyclopedia Britannica, MARCA)

■English highway﹕make

The word can mean "cause something to be a success".

e.g. The hike really made my day.

■Quiz

1. Uruguay is the host country of the coming World Cup. True/False

2. Suarez said it is easy to win the World Cup. True/False

3. Which word in the passage refers to a house where people stay on vacation?

______________________

(Answers on next text)

■Glossary

personify (v) 擬人化

landmark (n) 地標

cautious (adj) 警覺的

rival (n) 競爭對手

[Smarties' Power English 第216期]