Also known as the ‘Main Street
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main street:
calle principal
of America’ and the ‘Mother Road’, the internationally famous Route 66 was commissioned
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to commission:
ordenada, pedida
in 1926 as one of America’s original highways. It was 2,448 miles long and went between Chicago, Illinois, and Santa Monica, California. Promoted as the most direct and panoramic route between the two cities, the road became very popular with motorists
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SPEAK UP EXPLAINS
Motoristas. Otra palabra que se ha convertido en una falsa amiga. En inglés, el término "motorist" se refiere a alguien que conduce un coche (especialmente un todoterreno), no a alguien que va en moto. Los motoristas, de hecho, son motociclistas o simplemente moteros (de moto).
. Soon, merchants began opening motels, restaurants and gas stations along it
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along it:
a lo largo
– including the world’s first McDonald’s, in San Bernardino, California, in 1937.
AMERICAN DREAMS
The road passes through
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through:
a través
eight US states. These are, traveling from east to west: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. Throughout the 1900s, the number of cars on US roads increased dramatically
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dramatically:
dramáticamente
, from a few thousand to hundreds of millions. Goods
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goods:
bienes
could be transported all the way across the country. People drove from poorer parts of the States looking for work and a better life. Merchants on Route 66 thrived7. U.S. Highway 66 contributed to the highest economic growth in United States history, and the cross-country road became symbolic of a new pioneering spirit
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pioneering spirit:
espíritu pionero
.
STOP!
Not everyone was happy to enjoy the scenery
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scenery:
paisaje
, however. Motorists’ demand for more direct routes between cities resulted in the historic road’s decline
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decline:
declive
. By the early 1980s, five new high speed, interstate highways had replaced the old Route 66, which was finally decommissioned
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decommissioned:
desmantelada
in 1985.
A SLOW DRIVE
But the romance of the road for both Americans and international visitors has remained strong. The Federal Government began to invest in reopening sections of Route 66 in recognition of its historical, social and touristic value. Today, approximately 85 per cent of Route 66 is once again accessible, offering an unforgettable journey through America.
A NOSTALGIC JOURNEY
Today, you can drive along most of Route 66 and visit its historic sites, which include some of its original restaurants and gas stations. You can experience the road at the height of its popularity
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height of its popularity:
cima de su popularidad
at one of the highway’s most popular attractions: the California Route 66 Museum. The museum is located in Victorville, California, about 90 miles from Downtown Los Angeles
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Downtown Los Angeles:
centro de Los Ángeles
on the former site
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former site:
antiguo emplazamiento
of a popular café and a bar. It has an enormous collection of Route 66 memorabilia, including black and white photographs, original road signs, and a 1917 Model T Ford. Lucius Tyson is on its board of directors
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board of directors:
consejo de administración
and volunteers there as a tour guide. When Speak Up visited the museum, we began by asking Tyson what intrigues Americans about Route 66.
Lucius Tyson (American accent): There’s a nationwide resurgence about Route 66 because of the nostalgia and the history. Americans, we are losing a lot of history because we’re a throwaway society
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throwaway society:
sociedad del descarte
. If we don’t want it or it’s out of use, we’ll tear it down
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to tear something down:
demoler
and rebuild it with something else. Now they’re finding out our history is becoming important to us.
SMALL-TOWN USA
Tyson went on to talk about why the road has international appeal
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appeal:
encanto, atractivo
.
Lucius Tyson: Different people have different aspirations for the road. From Europe, they see the old American movies about Route 66 and what happened along the famous cities along Route 66. Americans, we’re trying to recover some of the history that was lost when the superhighways
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SPEAK UP EXPLAINS
Supercarreteras. La red de carreteras de Estados Unidos es muy extensa y tiene una terminología compleja, que a menudo cambia de un estado a otro. En general, highway se refiere a una vía de alta velocidad con dos o más carriles en cada sentido y peaje. Por extensión, superhighway es el mismo tipo de carretera, pero con más carriles, y freeway es una carretera de alta velocidad sin peaje.
were built, about the small-town living and the small-town general store
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small-town living and the small-town general store:
la vida en un pueblo pequeño y el almacén de pueblo pequeño
.
AMERICANA
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SPEAK UP EXPLAINS
Americana
La cultura popular estadounidense. Un ejemplo más de la tendencia estadounidense a utilizar el término «americano» para referirse únicamente a su país. En este caso, incluye todo tipo de recuerdos («objetos» y «souvenirs» de mayor o menor valor) que forman parte del imaginario y la cultura popular estadounidenses. El estilo musical del mismo nombre, que combina elementos del folk y el country, también deriva de esta acepción.
PRESERVED
Tyson feels a strong connection to the museum. He thinks that it’s important for younger Americans to be aware of their country’s past.
Lucius Tyson: It’s enjoyable to be here. I have history at my fingertips
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fingertips:
la punta de los dedos
and I try to pass it along
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to pass it along:
transmitirla
to anybody who’s willing to listen
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willing to listen:
dispuesto a escuchar
. The main reason to come here is because you can see a good amount
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amount:
cantidad
of Americana that is preserved, and we hope to pass along to the younger generation, whenever they’re ready to accept it
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whenever they’re ready to accept it:
cuando estén listos para aceptarlo
. We don’t throw away things here, we try collect it and rotate the exhibits as often as possible, so that people can get the best knowledge and the best vision of what life was like back in the early days. That is one reason I think people should come here, just to look around and see what us older folks
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us older folks:
nosotros, los ancianos
have lived through.
GET YOUR KICKS
The road also gained artistic significance: the author John Steinbeck is said to have conceived of The Grapes of Wrath
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The Grapes of Wrath:
Las uvas de la ira
on a 1937 drive from Chicago west on Route 66. Will Rogers, a famous personality of the late 1920s and early 1930s, traveled from Oklahoma to California on the road to achieve his fame. When he died in a plane crash in 1935, the road was unofficially renamed the Will Rogers Highway. Route 66 is also the name and theme of an R&B song written in 1946 by Bobby Troup, and famously covered by Chuck Berry (inset photo), the Rolling Stones and Depeche Mode, among other artists.