在夏威夷拥抱沙滩
2009-02-10JonathanStelling
Jonathan Stelling
I arrived in Hawaii on a bright, beautiful day, a stark contrast from the gray February I had just left behind in England. Even after 9/11, Hawaii makes an effort to welcome tourists far more than the rest of the United States, and the pretty girls, clad in wreaths of flowers called lei, who shouted Aloha! at the airport certainly made you feel welcome!
完全不同于刚离开的英格兰阴翳的二月天气,我在一个明媚的日子抵达夏威夷。尽管刚刚发生了911事件,夏威夷比美国其它地方更欢迎外来游客的到来,一群身披lei(花环)的美丽女孩们在机场高呼着“Aloha!”,这的确让我觉得备受欢迎。
Hawaii is an American state, the last to be added to the USA – it only achieved statehood in 1959.It was taken over by the USA in the nineteenth century from the native monarchy, under dubious circumstances that many native Hawaiians are still angry about. Nowadays, though, the people are better-off and healthier than many parts of America, the economy booming with tourist dollars and local development. Many aspects of traditional Hawaiian culture remain, and parts of the language are used in everyday speech, like 'Aloha!' for hello and 'brah' for friend.
夏威夷是最后加入美利坚合众国的州——它在1959年才取得独立州的身份。19世纪美国政府用令人不齿的手段从当地君主手中夺取了统治权,到现在很多夏威夷人对此还耿耿于怀。如今人们的生活和健康状况都优于美国很多地方,经济伴随着旅游增收和当地的繁荣而高速发展。很多夏威夷传统文化都被保留下来,还有一些日常用语像表示“你好”的“Aloha”以及表示“朋友”的“brah”也依旧每天都在使用。
I went that first evening to a typical Hawaiian barbecue, along with some Hawaiian friends from university. We were in a backyard in a suburban house, on a beautiful warm evening, with a pig slowly roasting in a fire pit. Hawaiians call this kind of celebration a luau, this one was for the birthday of a friend of my friend's, who was lying back in a chair having his girlfriend feed him grapes when we arrived. Pretty soon people started dancing, a mixture of traditional Hawaiian music and modern American party hits. There were plenty of lei being thrown around – girls like to throw them onto guys as a sign of affection, or just for fun.
在第一天晚上我就和大学里的夏威夷朋友一起去了最有特色的夏威夷户外烧烤。温暖的美丽夜晚,我们聚在一家郊区房子的后花园里的火坑上慢慢烤着一头猪。夏威夷人把这种庆祝方式叫做luau,这次是为了庆祝我朋友的朋友的生日,而我们到达时他正躺在椅子上,他的女朋友正在喂他吃葡萄。很快人们就在传统的夏威夷和现代美国聚会的混合乐下开始跳舞。很多lei四处飞舞——女孩们将它们扔向男孩们表达爱意,或者只是为了好玩。
The next day I went walking out into Honolulu, Hawaii's capital. We were on the island of Oahu, or 'The Big Island', where 80% of the Hawaiian population lives, and the streets were crowded.In many ways it was like being in any other rich American city, except for the preponderance of shorts-clad surfers and beach bums, and the high density of tourists. It was easy to tell apart the locals from the tourists. For a start, Hawaiians are very ethnically diverse, with Polynesian natives and Japanese immigrants playing a big role in the island's makeup. Some of the women were startingly gorgeous, with their mixed ancestry giving them a striking, exotic beauty. Most of the locals were also in good shape, in comparison to the often-doughy tourists.
第二天我前往夏威夷的州府——檀香山。我们来到瓦胡岛或者称为“大岛”,夏威夷80%的人都居住在这,街道上人潮拥挤。除了大量身穿短裤的冲浪者和沙滩游玩者还有云集的游客,这里在很多方面和其它美国富裕的城市没有什么差别。很容易将当地居民和游客区分开来。首先,夏威夷是个多种族混合的国家,波利尼西亚本地人和日本移民就占了岛上人口的大多数。很多女人都很漂亮,混血的祖先给了她们出众的异域美。和游客们臃肿的身材相比,大部分当地人身材都很好。
But I wasn't here for the city. I was here for the beaches for which Hawaii is famous. I drove out of the city to a beach on the north shore, where my friend Kelly had promised to take me surfing.'Sunset Beach' is famous for its big waves, but today was a mild day – although, riding a borrowed board on the ocean, I fell over enough times to amuse the watching tourists. By the end of the afternoon I felt like I had the hang of it, though, and was able to stay up for ten minutes or more before splashing back down into the sea! In the evening we brought some delicious breadfruit and hotdogs from a beach vendor, and settled down on the still-hot sand to see the sunsets from which the beach takes its name. As the last rays of the sun faded on the beach, I wondered if there was a more perfect place to be on earth.
但我不是为了城市前来,而是夏威夷最著名的沙滩。我开车出城来到北岸的沙滩,就是我的朋友凯利承诺要带我去冲浪的地方。日落海滩以巨浪而闻名,但今天天气有点温和——骑在借来的冲浪板上,我狠狠地摔了好几次跤,逗乐了围观的游客。但下午快结束时,我觉得我已经掌握了冲浪的技巧,起码我在被浪花打回海水前能够坚持10分钟甚至更久。晚上我们从沙滩小贩那买了一些面包和热狗,坐在仍然有点发烫的沙滩上看日落——这个沙滩也因此而得名。当太阳的最后一束余晖消失在沙滩上时,我觉得世上没有比这更美的地方了。
Sunset Beach was gorgeous, but also very crowded, and the next day Kelly took me out to a beach she said was deserted during the week. It was a Tuesday, and we had to push through rush-hour traffic - even though the state as a whole had a tiny population, Honolulu is a crowded city – but when we reached tiny Lanikai Beach it was more than worth it. Only half a mile long, it had gorgeous, smooth sand which ran neatly into the blue-green water. There were only a few people here, mostly students or housewives enjoying the sun, and we settled down to warm ourselves.We settled down to enjoy some rays, followed by a light lunch and then a long swim. Lanikai doesn't have any facilities for washing or changing, and so we had to head over to a local bathhouse for a shower afterwards to wash the fine-grained sand out before we changed back into normal clothes.
日落海滩异常壮丽,但人潮拥挤,于是第二天凯利带我去了一个在工作日内比较安静的海滩。那天是星期二,我们必须穿过交通高峰期——尽管这个州总体来说人口不多,但檀香山是个拥挤的城市——但当我们到达拉尼凯海滩时就觉得太物超所值了。仅走了半英里,就看见漂亮、细滑的沙子缓缓地注入青绿色的海水中。这里人不多,大部分是学生或者家庭主妇在享受阳光,我们停下来暖了暖身。坐着享受了阳光后我们便吃了点清淡的午餐,然后就去游了很长时间的泳。拉尼凯海滩没有任何可供清洗和更衣的场所,所以我们前往当地的浴室去冲澡,洗去柔细的海沙,然后换回平时的衣物。
I had another couple of days in Hawaii, luxuriating in the beaches and seeing friends, and then from there, I flew onto the Truk lagoon, a tiny atoll deep in the Pacific. These beautiful islands are sheltered from storms by a ring of coral. From the plane, they looked like flashes of green in the deep blue of the ocean, the islands rising from the depths covered in jungle. I landed at the small airstrip on Dublon, the main island, and took a taxi to my hotel.
我在夏威夷又停留了两天,沉溺于海滩和访友的生活中,然后我从那直接飞往特鲁克群岛——太平洋中的环形珊瑚岛。这些珊瑚形成一个包围圈,为美丽的海岛遮风避雨。它们被绿荫环绕,从海底高高耸立而起,从飞机上看,像极了深蓝色海洋中泛起的点绿。我在杜伯伦(主要岛屿)的小型飞机场上下机,然后乘坐出租车前往旅馆。
I had come here for its spectacular blue-water diving. That evening I met with Ato, a Japanese man who ran a diving school for tourists. As I'd dived before, he didn't have to teach me, but instead talked about the dive he had planned for us the day after tomorrow. Part of the Japanese navy had been stationed in Truk in WW2 (just as Hawaii, at Pearl Harbor, had been a major American base), and an American raid had sent many ships to the bottom, creating a spectacular wreck diving experience. It was one of the things I was most looking forward to doing on the island. That night, though, I just drank beers with Ato and looked out at the sea, dark as wine in the night. You could never forget the ocean in Dublon, it was visible no matter where you looked.
我来这是为了它最为壮观的深海潜水。那天晚上我见了一个专为游客开设潜水培训班的日本人阿托。因为我以前潜过水,所以他们没有教我怎样潜水,而是说了一下后天他为我们安排的潜水计划。在二战期间一部分日本海军驻守在特鲁克(如同夏威夷珍珠港,是美国重要海军基地),美军的突袭将多数战舰击入海底,造成一个壮观的残骸潜水体验。这是我在岛上最期盼的一件事之一。那天晚上,我和阿托一起喝啤酒,看着大海在夜色中和手中的啤酒一样深沉。你不会忘记杜伯伦的海,所见之处都被海水环绕着。
The next morning, eating breakfast in a sushi cafe, I could hear the shouts of the fisherman as they went to work. They talked in the local language, mixed with snatches of English and Japanese, and a few words of German. Ato had told me yesterday that the Truk creole was heavily multilingual, as the islands had been owned by so many people in the past. They went out every morning and evening to fish, as the islands were rich in sealife. I was probably eating their previous day's catch, in fact.
第二天清晨在一家日式餐馆吃早餐时,我能听见渔夫们去工作时的吆喝声。他们用当地语言交流,其中又混合了一些英语、日语,甚至还有一些德语。阿托前一天就告诉我特鲁克的克里奥尔语几乎是多语言的,因为海岛在过去种族众多。海岛的水生物丰富,渔夫们每天早晚出去捕鱼。事实上,我可能正在吃到他们前一天的收获。
I headed straight for the beaches. It wasn't the tourist season, and Truk doesn't get as much business as the bigger Pacific islands anyway, so there were only myself on a gorgeous stretch of sand. The island itself rose behind us, covered in verdant green. I dipped my toes in the water and warmed myself up for the next day with a little swimming, doing backstroke in the warm ocean water. It was pretty salty, and I could float without 不会much effort.
我径直前往海滩。现在不是旅游季节,特鲁克不像其它一些稍大的太平洋海岛那样旅游业很发达,因此只有我一个人在一大片美丽的沙滩上。海岛在我身后升起,郁郁葱葱。我将脚趾放在水里,为第二天做热身我做了会运动——在温暖的海水中仰泳。海水咸度很高,我可以毫不费力地浮在水面上。
The Truk islands are volcanic, formed from eruptions thousands of years ago, and so they rise high out of the sea. That afternoon I went up to look from the top. Looking down I could see the whole of the reef stretched out before me, dozens of tiny little islands clustered together, with a few boats moving between them, some only specks to my sight. The sun beat down warmly, and I could see why the Japanese had called Dublon 'summer island'. Later, I learnt they had only two season on the islands – the 'east wind' season and the 'west wind' season, depending on which way the breeze was coming from.
特鲁克群岛是火山岛群,是由几千年前的火山爆发而形成,因此它们从海底高耸而出。那天下午我登山远眺。往下我可以看见整个礁石在我面前伸展开来,很多小海岛集中在一起,一些渔船穿梭其间,有一些在我眼中只是一个小小的斑点。阳光温暖的倾泻而下,我开始理解为什么日本人称杜伯伦“夏岛”。稍后,我了解到海岛的人们只有两个季节——“东风”季和“西风”季,这完全取决于微风吹来的方向。
The next day Ato walked me through good diving practice, since I hadn't been down in a while, and then we went out, along with some of his staff and a group of Belgians, on his beautiful boat.Hitting the water was an amazing experience, as always. After a few seconds of confusion I was plunged into the underwater world, astonishingly clear and beautiful. A school of brightly-coloured fish swam around us, clearly used to these strange intruders in their marine home. I could see the wreck we had come to look at straightaway, a Japanese destroyer plunged to the bottom of the ocean by American bombs.
由于我已经很久没有潜水了,阿托就带先带我做了一些潜水练习,然后我们就和他的一些职工以及一群比利时人坐着他美丽的海船一起出发了。冲击海浪是一种奇妙的经历,并且一直都是。在短暂的混乱后,我就跳进异常洁净、美丽的海底世界。一群色彩斑斓的热带鱼在我们身边游来游去,已经对它们海底家园中的陌生入侵者见怪不怪了。一潜入海中我就立刻可以战舰残骸——一艘被美军炮弹击到海底的日本驱逐舰。
The rusted hull of the ship protruded eerily from the ocean floor. We were still in shallow waters, as neither the Belgians nor I were very experienced divers, and so couldn't go out to see the deepest sunk ships. Swimming down carefully, I could see through one of the portholes of the ship, making out a few items of metal furniture still preserved from so long ago. The place where the American bombs had hit was clearly visible, too, twisted and broken metal everywhere. An octopus seemed to be making a home at one end of the vessel; it looked at me with alien curiousity as I swam past.
生锈的船体怪异地从海底伸出。我们仍处于浅海区,那些比利时人和我一样,都不是非常有经验的潜水者,因此不能去看在深处沉没的军舰。小心翼翼地向下游,我从军舰的一个舷窗往里看,看见一些铁质家具到现在还保存完好。而美军炮弹击中的地方也看得很清楚,到处都是扭曲、破损的金属。一个章鱼看来已经在其中船舱的另一端安了家,在我游过的时候用陌生而好奇的眼光打量着我。
We looked at two other hulks that day, an eerie experience indeed. The destruction and chaos of the war seemed so alien to this Pacific paradise. It was almost a relief to get back to the hotel and settle down for some more evening beers with new friends! I finished out my holiday with long beach trips, a little surfing, and a few rides around the other islands. It was nice to be in such tropical perfection, and I could see why some people never left! I, however, had to get back to the UK, and so, with a heavy heart, I bid farewell to this little piece of Eden and headed back to grey old Britain, only my memories of sun-lit ocean glory to sustain me.
那天我们还看了另外两艘战舰残骸,实在是一次奇妙的经历。战争的破坏和混乱看起来与这个平静的太平洋天堂如此遥远。晚上回到旅馆后和一些新朋友喝喝啤酒感觉很轻松。我的旅行以长长的沙滩之旅、冲浪和海岛徒步而结束。在这种热带地区感觉很棒,我能理解为什么一些人不想离开。然而,我必须要回到英国,因此我带着沉重的心情和这个小伊甸园挥手告别,返回古老的灰色英格兰,只有关于日光倾斜的海洋的美丽回忆支持着我。
Tips小贴士
The Best Season最佳出游季节
和其它旅游目的地不同,夏威夷的旅游旺季和淡季不是以气候来划分的(这里永远很棒),但也和各地一样有四季之分,冬季从12月中旬至3月份,价格稍有上涨。夏季是家庭旅行的最好时间。相对而言淡季是春秋两季,游客较少而性价比较高。
Wind Direction风向
夏威夷全年气候宜人,在“夏季”白天的平均最高温度是华氏85度;“冬季”为华氏78度。海洋温度则终年温暖。来自不同方位的风向将岛屿的温度及湿度保持在理想的状态。如果你喜欢干爽及阳光充沛的地方,可选择每个岛屿顺风处;如果你向往的是热带的葱郁及湿润,可选择岛屿的迎风处。即使是在岛屿的顺风处雨水也不时造访,而后留下它那令人称奇的绚烂的彩虹。如果没有了它们夏威夷也就不成为夏威夷了。
Sunlight日照
你需要全天使用及补充防晒霜。孩童需涂抹含氧化锌的防晒霜或穿着适当的夏装以抵挡紫外线的侵害。此外遮阳帽及太阳镜也是必不可少的。
Shopping购物
用贝壳和海螺做成的纪念品,价格较便宜;
制作精美的贝壳首饰,中档价位,如镀金镶边的海豚耳环,画上海滩、椰树的圆形耳钉、用不同颜色的贝壳拼成帆船形状的耳环、芙蓉花形状的各款首饰等等。高档的纪念品有用夏威夷特产珍珠和各种珊瑚经加工制成高贵的首饰;
最具代表性的是用14K金或92.5的银制成的刻有花纹的手镯,象征着夏威夷是花的世界;在亘古时代由火山形成冷却后的土壤含铁量高,呈现锈红色,用此土手工染T恤衫和跨栏背心两款,男女皆宜;
最有名的是Wyland画廊,艺术家Wyland以画海洋生物为主,尤其是那些濒临灭绝的海洋动物。
Notes
小费
在夏威夷有付小费的习惯,如果你觉的服务特别好则可多支付一点。
Regulations for Swimming
在夏威夷游泳必须遵守的规定
在有救生员的区域游泳;
绝不要独自一人游泳;
不要在不熟悉的水域潜水或潜进浅的碎浪;
游泳前询问救生员海滩和海浪状况;
被困在强劲海浪中无法游出时,发出信号求救;
靠自己的游泳能力而不要靠浮力装置;
寻找、阅读并遵守所有的海滩安全标示和记号;
一旦有疑虑就不要进入!
Notes
1. Aloha
这是夏威夷人的问候语,意为“欢迎、你好”。如果想表达得更热烈一些,就把中间的音节拉长,比如“Aloooooooooooha”,越长显示你的爱越真挚。夏威夷是多人种混合的社会,黄皮肤的人很多,如果不开口,分不清是华人、日本人、韩国人或是东南亚人,而混血人种也是一大特征。在多人种混居的夏威夷文化中逐渐形成了一种Aloha精神,就是爱好和平、注重享乐、亲切温和、幽默风趣,对周围人充满关注和热情。在岛上,只要你说上一句“Aloha”,不论你是什么肤色,讲什么样的母语,每个人间的距离仿佛一下子就拉近了,人与人之间变得亲切友善起来。
2. better-off
意为“境况或者经济情况较好的、比较富裕的”。
例句:We'd be better off without them as neighbours.
要是没有他们做邻居,我们就过得更愉快了。
3. luau
即(常伴有文娱节目的)夏威夷式宴会。在鲁奥晚宴中,你将有机会见到夏威夷各族传统歌舞表演,如萨摩亚人的火刀舞、夏威夷人的草裙舞、毛利人的战舞等,传统食物则有:mahimahi鱼、烤猪(kaulapork)、鲑鱼沙拉(lomi lomi-salmon)、紫色芋泥(poi)等。
4. fall over
意为“落在……之上、脸朝下跌倒”。
例句:He was walking along and suddenly he fell over.
他走着走着突然摔倒了。
5. shelter from
Shelter做动词有“掩蔽、庇护”的意思,“shelter from”意为“掩护、保护、(使)躲避……”。而“shelter somebody from sth”是指“掩护某人以免……”。
例句:They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.
他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
He is trying to shelter his boss from criticism.
他极力为老板顶住外界的批评。
6. stretch out
该词组有多种意思,在文中指的是“延伸、绵延”。另外它还可指“伸直、伸出、伸展;满足需要”。
例句:The years ahead seemed to stretch out for ever.
未来的岁月似乎绵绵无尽。
He stretched out his arms and embraced me tightly.
他伸出双臂紧紧地拥抱我。
Two extra people are coming for dinner.Will the food stretch out?
又有两个人要来吃饭,饭菜够吃吗?
7. plunge into
意为“跳入、冲进、投身于”。
例句:The first step to learn swimming is to plunge into warter.
学游泳的第一步就是跳到水里去。
After a frank discussion, he resolved to plunge into the new battles.
在一次坦率的讨论后,他决心投入新的战斗。
8. A school of
在文中,该词指的是“(鱼及水族动物)群、 队”。而school做动词时也可指“成群结队地游”。
例句:A school of marine mammals
一群海生哺乳动物
9. sun-lit
Sun(日)加上(lit),即“sun-lit”,意为“被日光照射了的、阳光照射的”。而“sunbaked”指的是“太阳晒干的、晒裂的”,二者被日光照射程度不同。
例句:Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice.
现在是走出幽暗荒凉的种族隔离深谷,踏上种族平等的阳关大道的时候。
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1. Diving Heaven潜水天堂
特鲁克岛位于加罗林群岛中部,马绍尔群岛西南,所罗门群岛以北,一战后成为日本的委任统治地,经过日军数十年来的苦心经营,太平洋战争中成为日本在太平洋上最重要的海空基地,被誉为“太平洋上的直布罗陀”和“日本的珍珠港”。
在太平洋战争中,人们对“珍珠港”事件都不会陌生。然而,“珍珠港”事件爆发仅仅过了26个月,“第二次珍珠港事件”爆发了。不同的是,这次事件发生在日本的“珍珠港”——特鲁克岛。经过2天的攻击,美国人取得空前的战果:击沉日军舰船43艘、击伤9艘、击落飞机270架。美军空袭特鲁克使东京极为震惊。1944年2月18日,东京电台广播这一消息时惊呼:“战局变得空前严重……敌人作战的速度表明,进攻的力量已经威胁到我们的本土了。”日方称这一突袭为“第二次珍珠港事件”。 此后,日本海军在太平洋上的优势丧失殆尽,太平洋战争的尾声也随之到来。
在特鲁克岛周围海域里有许多日本太平洋舰队的沉船,那里堪称世界上最庞大的水下船坞,从战舰到商船再到潜水艇应有尽有,现在那里成了潜水探险的天堂。但由于特鲁克岛是世界最大的环礁之一,那里珊瑚礁生长茂密,沉船被珊瑚和各种海洋生物当成了寄居之所,有些必须由远处观察,不然几乎认不出是艘沉船。
2. Hula热辣草裙舞
来到夏威夷最让人念念不忘的就是草裙舞了。草裙舞又名“呼拉舞”,是一种注重手脚和腰部动作的舞曲。
传说中第一个跳草裙舞的是舞神拉卡。她跳起草裙舞招待她的火神姐姐佩莱。佩莱非常喜欢这个舞蹈,就用火焰点亮了整个天空。自此,草裙舞就成为向神表达敬意的宗教舞蹈。纳撒尼尔•埃默森把草裙舞称为“打开心灵之门”。
尽管草裙舞是一种全身运动的舞蹈,但只有手部动作才真正表达舞蹈的含义。据说在舞蹈中表现战争场面会使一场未来的战争得以平息。很多舞蹈都表达着人们盼望丰收的愿望。在夏威夷,无论男女都跳草裙舞。跳舞时,男性只缠着一条腰带,女性则不着上装。不用说,第一批到达夏威夷的传教士们,被这种过分暴露的服装吓坏了,颇为性感的舞蹈动作也令他们反感,因此草裙舞被立刻禁止了。然而草裙舞被秘密地保留下来。1874年卡拉考阿国王开始执政,他恢复了这种传统舞蹈,但要求女性不得裸露上身并穿上长裙。可以想到,旅游业又再一次改变了草裙舞的面貌。
Kahiko草裙舞
卡希科(Kahiko)这种古老的草裙舞一直是纯宗教性的,但现在它已经变成用尤克里里琴伴奏的娱乐性草裙舞。大多数人都把这种舞蹈与夏威夷联系起来。
Auana草裙舞
奥瓦纳(Auana)本意为“流浪”,是在仪式性草裙舞遭禁,及如吉他和四弦吉他这些非夏威夷乐器引进来时所发展出来的草裙舞。
3 Delicious Food美食之旅
到过美国夏威夷的游人对那里的美食难以忘怀,无论是当地的传统佳肴还是融合了世界各地口味的特色小吃都让人印象深刻。夏威夷的传统主食是芋头,品种达150多种;而海鲜又极其丰富,给爱好烹饪的厨师提供了施展身手的机会。夏威夷是个移民岛,于是来自中国、日本、菲律宾、葡萄牙等国人因地制材,创造出各类美味小吃,大饱游人口福。
你听过夏威夷料理吗?这是由一群夏威夷大厨所创始,他们成立了一个协会,旨在创造世界顶级的料理,结果他们赢得高度的赞美,以及数不清的国际料理奖项。融合了欧洲、亚洲和美洲最佳烹饪手法,强调使用当地自己耕种的蔬菜、新鲜带露水的水果,以及令人垂涎三尺的热带鱼类,还有运用到每一盘佳肴的不同惊人创意,总之,夏威夷地方料理是最顶级的味蕾经验。