Chapter 1-(2)

tram  n.<英>有轨电车 
charred  / tʃɑːrd /  adj.烧黑的，烧焦的 
ruins n. 废墟
The worst days were over by then. 那时最坏的日子已经过去了。
Those were days of calm and relief. 日子宁静祥和
描述方位：I lived in an area to the east of the city, a short tram journey from the centre of town. 
Rebuilding has got under way and in time four concrete buildings had been erected, each containing forty or so separate apartments. 
人们开始重建家园，不久，四栋混凝土大楼拔地而起，每栋有40间左右的独立公寓。
（1）erect  v.搭建，建造 
（2）under way  进行中：正在进行或已经开始 
It marked the point where the rebuilding programme had come to a halt.
come to a halt  停止移动或发生 
Between us and the river lay an expanse of wasteground, several acres of dried mud and ditches. 
在我们和河流之间是一片荒地，有几英亩干涸的淤泥和臭水沟。
（1）an expanse of... 到处都是
e.g.
The grass was like an expanse of gold, and below her the valley swam in golden mist.
草地都是金色的，她脚下的山谷笼罩在金色的薄雾中。
At night it is an expanse of darkness with only a few pinpricks of light.
到了晚上，这里到处都是漆黑一片，只有零星的几点灯光。
（2）wasteground 废弃的荒地
（3）ditch   / dɪtʃ / n.沟渠，壕沟 
It was a health hazard, and indeed the drainage was appalling.
health hazard  健康危害：可能危及人们健康的事物 
e.g.
The use of pesticides in agriculture is a health hazard.
农业中使用农药是一种健康危害。
drainage  / ˈdreɪnɪdʒ / n. 污水
appalling  / əˈpɔːlɪŋ /  adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的 
stagnant / ˈstæɡnənt / adj.不流动的，污浊的