Dialogue 1

Jingjing and Mark run into each other in the hallway.
马克和京晶在过道上碰见了

Mark: Hey Jingjing, what's happening?
马克：嘿，京晶，最近怎样？
Jingjing: I've been pretty busy. And it's good to see you.
京晶：一直很忙。见到你真好。
Mark: I like to be seen by busy people. Work's going well, I assume. How's your personal life?
马克：我喜欢被忙碌的人约见。我猜，工作一切顺利吧。生活咋样？
Jingjing: Well, I'm deciding where to go on a trip.
京晶：那个，我正在考虑去哪儿旅个行。
Mark: But there's no holiday coming up.
马克：可接下来没有假日啊。
Jingjing: This'd be for the Spring Festival.
京晶：那就得是春节了。
Mark: But that's months away! Why are you making plans so early?
马克：那可是好几个月以后的事了。你为何这么早做计划？
Jingjing: I got tired of fighting for tickets in the days leading up to the holiday. You know, those days I'm usually swamped with work. So, I'd like to avoid the extra headache.
京晶：我已经厌烦了节前抢票了。你知道，那种时候我通常工作缠身。所以，我想避开这些额外的麻烦。
Mark: That sounds very proactive. Do you think you'll find better deals that way?
马克：这听上去还挺积极主动的。你觉得这样的话能捡到更好的便宜吗？
Jingjing: A friend of mine told me about some websites that offer specials every once in a while. It's a matter of checking the site once or twice a day, and grabbing up a deal when it becomes available.
京晶：有个朋友告诉我有一些网站时常会有特价。也就是一天查一两次网站的事儿，然后发现有合适价格时赶紧抢一个。
Mark: Hmm, you stand a better chance of finding something that way, not just because there are so many weeks before the holiday draws near, but mainly because there are not so many people searching right now.
马克：那样做的话你找到好价格的机会肯定会增大了。不仅因为和节假日隔得远，主要是因为现在没多少人在线搜票呢。
Jingjing: That's just what I'm thinking. Anyway, I know what I spent last year, just to visit relatives in China. So, if I can find an international trip for the same price, or take my family with me on a trip for just about the same money...
京晶：这就是我考虑的。对了，我知道去年我花了多少，仅仅是来中国看亲戚。所以，如果我能找到同样的价格买到国际长途，或者花同样多的钱可以带上家人一起出行……（何乐不为呢）
Mark: It's worth keeping your eye on a few websites.
马克：那就值得多密切关注几个网站了。
Jingjing: That's it. Hey, I've gotta get back to the office.
京晶：对呢。噢，我得回办公室了。
Mark: Wanna meet for lunch?
马克：想中午一块吃饭吗？
Jingjing: Yeah, I'll text you when I'm going to the lobby. If you can knock off work then, it'll be my treat.
京晶：好，我去大厅时给你短信。如果你那会儿能摆脱工作，那这顿饭就我请了。
Mark: Let me take care of it if I'm free today. See you later.
马克：如果我今天有空的话就我请咯。一会儿见！

New words: 习语短语

personal life 生活，个人生活
What you do outside of work, with friends and family
swamped 工作缠身，忙得不可开交
Very busy, with projects and requests from colleagues
headache 令人头疼的事
something irritating or boring, a hassle
proactive 积极主动的，先发制人的
Doing things before they are necessary, to save time and energy in the long run
keep your eye on (something/someone) 密切关注某事
Watch something, check it frequently, notice small changes (alternately, "I'm keeping an eye on it.")

Dialogue 2

Mark and Jingjing meet for lunch.
马克和京晶中午约饭共进午餐

Jingjing: I'm glad we both have time to have a bit nicer lunch today.
京晶：真好我们都有时间今儿中午来吃个好点儿的午餐。
Mark: Yeah, people complain about long stretches with no holidays. But I like smooth sailing at work.
马克：是呀。人们抱怨工作战线太长中间没有节假日，我倒是挺喜欢工作中这种一切顺利不急不徐的节奏。
Jingjing: Come to think of it, so do I. Oh, that reminds me, there are two good travel deals I saw on the websites right before I met up with you.
京晶：仔细想想，我也是。哦，这提醒了我，就在我跟你见面之前我在网站上看了两个不错的特价旅行。
Mark: Oh yeah? What are they?
马克：是吗？都是什么？
Jingjing: One is for a cruise in the Mediterranean, including the flight. The other is for a resort in Fiji.
京晶：一个是地中海的游轮之旅，含飞。一个是斐济的度假地。
Mark: Hmm, Europe versus the South Pacific. Are they about the same price?
马克：唔，欧洲和南太平洋，价格差不多吗？
Jingjing: They're almost exactly the same price, especially if I book for a group. So, I'm thinking of going together with my relatives.
京晶：几乎是一模一样的价格，尤其是如果我订一组票。所以我在想跟我的亲戚们一起去。
Mark: You've already been to Europe, haven't you? Besides, it might be a bit of a disappointment to spend most of the holiday on a ship, and to be let out only for a few hours at a time at some highly touristed areas.
马克：你已经去过欧洲了，不是吗？再说了，把大部分的时间都消磨在船上，然后在一些旅游人群高度密集的地方下来玩几个小时可能会令人有点失望吧。
Jingjing: I agree, but if I have relatives with me, the cruise might be a better way to keep them active without all the hustle and fuss of transportation and tickets.
京晶：同意。不过如果和亲戚们在一起，游轮到是一个更好的选择，他们可以好好玩，而不用再为那些路途交通的各种杂事烦心。
Mark: That's a good thing to keep in mind. That sounds like an easy choice.
马克：这倒是得需要记住的事，听上去是个简单容易的选择。
Jingjing: Yeah, I guess so. Well, the travel agency has a way for me to reserve the tickets for only a small fee. Let me do that. Then I'll have 24 hours to confirm with my relatives and pay the full amount.
京晶：可不是吗。花一小笔费用旅行社就可以帮我预留票。那就这个吧。然后我有24小时和家人们敲定，再付全款。
Mark: Try it now, if you can do it on your phone. How about I get the server over here and order our lunches?
马克：现在就弄吧，如果可以直接用手机完成的话。我去叫服务员来点餐怎么样？
Jingjing: OK, thanks!
京晶：好的，多谢。

New words: 习语短语

smooth sailing 工作生活处于一帆风顺中
a time period during which a job or a relationship is going well, so that even hard work feels easy enough
stretch 伸展，延伸
a long period of time or a long span of roadway, without many changes
touristed 游客聚集的，游览者喜欢的
crowded with, and adapted for, tourists (people complain that touristed areas lack the authenticity of the country and culture)
hustle and fuss 麻烦，喧嚣忙乱
difficulty caused by competition (i.e. the hustle and fuss of rush hour traffic, or, the hustle and fuss of leaving the stadium after the game, or, the hustle and fuss of job hunting after graduation)
versus 与……相比（相对）比较两种不同的想法，选择等
compared with, in contrast to (sometimes written as vs or just v)