簡介：◎ 圖解俄羅斯特色物 ◎ 什麼是 breadbasket？ ◎ have difficulty + V-ing 的用法解析

Spotlight Russia: A Vast, Resource-Rich Land

Occupying almost an eighth of the world's land, Russia is a vast expanse that extends from maritime Vladivostok in the southeast to the icy Kola Peninsula in the northwest. As the world's largest country, Russia has historically had difficulty defending its borders. From 13th-century Mongol conquests across the Great Eurasian Steppe to the Nazi invasion of WWII, Russians have constantly faced threats of foreign incursion. Their cities are also quite spread out, with ample agricultural land often located far from major population centers. Transporting crops from the breadbasket regions to the people before they spoil is tricky and costly.

聚焦俄羅斯──幅員廣闊的泱泱大國

俄羅斯占了全世界近八分之一的陸地，其廣大領土從東南邊近海的海參崴延伸至西北方的冰冷科拉半島。做為全世界最大的國家，俄羅斯在歷史上難以捍衛其疆界。自十三世紀橫跨歐亞大草原的蒙古征戰，到二戰的納粹入侵，俄羅斯人不斷面臨外來入侵的威脅。國內的城市亦相當分散，廣大的農地通常離主要人口中心很遠。要將作物在腐壞之前從糧食的主要產區運到市中心既棘手又昂貴。