The People You Meet While Traveling 你好，同行的陌生人

2014-04-09CodyDelistraty

新东方英语 2014年4期

Cody+Delistraty

When the kid in 7A reached over and tapped me on the shoulder， I made the worst decision of that whole flight： I responded to him. Oh god， how I shouldve ignored him， pretended that Id only thought his tap was that of a ghosts， something I had imagined. But no， dumb old me turned to him， and， almost as if the fates had cruelly designed it， uttered that dreadful word that lets someone into your once calm， reasonable， ready-to-catch-up-on-some-sleep world： “Hello.”

“Have you ever shot a bear？”

I had not.

“I just did. Went out with my dad. My stepdad actually， but whos counting？ Anywho， have you flown before？ I havent. First flight. Pretty excited. Pretty， pretty excited.”

Delivered with the speed and precision of “The Flight of the Bumblebee1），” or， more relevantly， a machine gun， these questions werent actually all that surprising. I figured children in full camouflage2） tended to shoot bears more often than I did. And， as I later learned， he was only 11 years old， so not having flown before made sense.

“Thats nice，” I said.

“It was nice， thank you. Poor guy went down quick. Pretty quick. Pretty， pretty quick. Anyhow， I just went to Cabelas3）， got this camo jacket. It was from my mom. Pretty cool， huh？ Pretty， pretty cool.”

I turned back to my book， The Revolt of Angels by Anatole France4）. I was reading it for a class in an attempt to be productive on the airplane—a task I somehow always miserably fail to do. I wouldnt be learning the intricacies5） of overthrowing god any time soon though. Nope， I had been tied up in a situation that can only be called an “airplane conversation.”

An “airplane conversation” sounds straightforward enough. A conversation one has on an airplane， right？ But its not exactly that. No， it more implies either a glorious encounter with another fascinating human or a dreadful conversation that makes you question the fate of humanity. Theres no middle ground. You never step off of an airplane thinking， “Hmmm I might call her to grab lunch sometime. She seemed adequately interesting.” Its either， “Wow this person is an endlessly successful genius.” or “How does this person exist in a world where humans must feed and shelter themselves to survive？”

Some of the most interesting people Ive ever met were while traveling. I met Bronwyn on a train from London to Paris， who， at the time， seemed the epitome6） of loveliness and poshness7）， ever knowledgeable about secret restaurants in Berlin and the subtle technical differences between the Moscow and Paris ballets. Then of course there was Jacqueline， who said she was an heiress to the Jell-O corporation. I was curious why she was sitting in economy class， but supposedly she had booked the flight the morning of and couldnt get a seat in first class. “I dont mind sitting back here，” she said waving her arm. “You lot are loads more interesting anyway.” There was Alessandra too， an Italian model who was going back to school at the University of Milan and was inexplicably8） studying abroad in Salt Lake City. “It was an interesting semester. They all thought I was Spanish.” Yet for all of the beautiful， serendipitous9） encounters， there are a million outrageous ones.

In reality， more often you sit down next to an eleven-year-old hunting novice from Idaho.

“Anywho， where are you coming from？” my seatmate continued.

“France actually.”

“Do they speak a different language there？”

“They do. Its French.”

“I dont believe you.”

“Tu ne me crois pas？”

“Thats just gibberish10）. Anywho， do you believe in Santa？”

Not wanting to crush a childs dreams， I said， “Sometimes. Im conflicted.”

“Yeah， Im a septic too.”

He meant skeptic.

Sometimes though， the loonies11） make traveling all the more fun. After all， these are people you would never meet in any other circumstance save for12） this instance where you randomly， unknowingly chose seats together. Even with a book in hand and headphones on—which is about as isolated as you can make yourself while locked into a flying aluminum tube with a hundred people—there are always those who simply want to talk. It might be a somewhat dim13） but hopelessly sweet person， the type who tells you just she doesnt usually “get books，” but shes making “a real exception” for the latest self-help manifesto from Joel Osteen14）. Or perhaps its a businessman whos deluding15） himself about his life. Hell tend to say something along the lines of， “Im a wealth manager， but I do it to make a difference in peoples lives. Im using this skill for good.”

I like traveling with friends and family， but theres something incredibly exciting about going it alone. Every time you walk down the aisle to your seat its as if youre spinning a roulette wheel16）. Click， click， click， goes the wheel， and tap， tap， tap go your feet， your seatmate coming into view as you march on to your fate. Its a surprising thrill. Loony or lovely， loony or lovely， loony or lovely.

Even if the roulette ball falls on loony， its really best to take advantage of it. What a bizarre opportunity. The beauty of traveling is that youll meet people who are willing to offer up remarkable opinions， even personal life details. After all， the probability that youll ever see your seatmate from a flight or train trip ever again is incredibly unlikely.

Right before the flight with my newfound hunting buddy， I had been reading Henry James17） The Portrait of a Lady. Isabel Archer is one of the most beautifully crafted characters in all of literature， her every thought and reflection meticulously18） conveyed by James. At one point in the novel， James devotes a whole chapter to the few hours Isabel spends reflecting on her failed marriage. Its a fascinating look into the human psyche， her every thought recorded， her mind offered up to the reader in transparent entirety.

Traveling though may be an even better look into the human condition. How do people react when theyre jammed together at 40，000 feet or speeding along a railway at 80 MPH？ How do people from Salt Lake City or Paris or Milan act？ What do they talk about？ What makes them tick19）？ What do they love？ Its a peculiar sort of education， but one can learn a lot being thrown within inches of two complete strangers who are willing to wile away20） the time by chatting.

As far as entertainment value， bending your ear towards your neighbor might be your best bet. Put your book away because lovely or loony， your seatmate is probably surprisingly interesting， perhaps even stranger than fiction. And， if you ever sit down next to a blond pre-teen from Idaho with a penchant21） for hunting and doubts about Santa Claus， say hello. Trust me， youll have a wonderfully amusing trip.

当坐在7A座位上的孩子伸过手来拍我的肩膀时，我做出了整个航程中最糟糕的一个决定：我回应了他。天哪，我真应该无视他，假装只把他那一拍当成幽灵所为，是我的幻觉。可是没有，该死的我傻乎乎地转过头去，然后几乎像是出于命运残酷的摆布一般，我说出了那个可怕的词，那个词允许外人闯入你原本清静的、还算不错的、准备补补觉的世界——“你好”。

“你打过熊吗？”

我没有。

“我刚打过。跟我爸爸去的。其实是我继父，不过谁管那些呢？对了，你以前坐过飞机吗？我没坐过。这是头一次。我非常兴奋，非常非常兴奋。”

他说起话来快速而清晰，就像《野蜂飞舞》的旋律，或者更确切地说，像机关枪。他的问题其实并不让人感到特别意外。我想穿着一身迷彩服的孩子去猎熊的几率应该会比我大吧。稍后我又得知，他年仅11岁，因此之前没坐过飞机也不足为怪。

“不错啊。”我说。

“是不错，谢谢。那个可怜的家伙很快就倒下了。非常快，非常非常快。还有，我刚去过卡贝拉，买了这件迷彩服。是妈妈给我买的。很酷，是吧？非常非常酷。”

我的视线又回到书上，那是一本阿纳托尔·法朗士的《天使的反叛》。读这本书是为了某门课程，我本想在飞机上有成效地工作——可悲的是，这不知怎地成了我总也完不成的任务。看来一时半会儿我是无法了解天使们推翻上帝的复杂经过了。了解不成了，我已经被困在一种只能称之为“飞机上的交谈”的境地中了。

“飞机上的交谈”听起来足够直白。就是发生在飞机上的交谈，对吗？但这种说法并不完全准确。不。它还意味着，你要么会与另外一位充满魅力的人士有一段美好的相遇，要么会陷入一场令你对人类命运产生质疑的可怕谈话。不存在中间地带。你从来不会在走下飞机时想：“嗯，改天我也许会打电话约她共进午餐，她好像还挺有趣的。”你的感想要么是“哇，这人真是个无往而不胜的天才”，要么是“在人类必须有食物和住所才能存活的世界里，怎么会存在这样一个人”。

我见过的一些最有趣的人就是在旅途中结识的。在从伦敦开往巴黎的一列火车上，我遇到了布朗温，那时的她堪称可爱与优雅的化身，对于深藏在柏林街巷中的餐厅以及俄罗斯芭蕾与法国芭蕾在技巧方面的细微差别她都了如指掌。当然还有杰奎琳，她说自己是Jell-O （编注：美国一家果冻生产商）公司的继承人。当时我奇怪她为什么会坐经济舱，不过那也许是因为她当天早晨才订票，没买到头等舱的座位。“我不介意坐在后面这块儿，”她挥着手臂说，“反正你们这些人有意思多了。”还有亚历山德拉，她是个意大利模特，准备重返校园进入米兰大学读书，却不知什么缘故到了盐湖城留学。“这个学期过得很有意思。别人都以为我是西班牙人呢。”不过，就算有这些美妙的意外邂逅，我还是遭遇过其他无数次让人无法容忍的交谈。

事实上，更多的时候，坐在你身边的是一位来自爱达荷州的11岁的狩猎新手。

“对了，你从哪儿来？”我的邻座继续发问。

“其实是法国。”

“那儿的人说的是另一种语言吗？”

“是的，他们说法语。”

“我不相信。”

“Tu ne me crois pas （编注：法语，意为‘你不相信我）？”

“那只是你叽里呱啦胡乱说的。对了，你相信有圣诞老人吗？”

因为不忍打破孩子的幻想，我说：“有时候信。我心里很矛盾。”

“是啊，我也很坏疑。”

他想说的是怀疑。

不过有的时候，碰上一些奇怪的人也会让旅程变得更有乐趣。毕竟，若不是大家在无知无觉间随意将座位选在了一起，你在其他任何场合是不会遇到这些人的。手捧书本，头戴耳机——这是与上百人一起被关在一个会飞的铝制筒状物里时你能呈现出来的最拒人于千里之外的姿态了。但即便是这样，你还是总会碰上那些就想聊天的人。对方也许是个有些愚笨却异常亲切的人，这种人会告诉你她通常不“买书”，但约尔·欧斯汀新出版的自助宣言对她来说却“完全例外”。又或许对方是个自欺欺人的生意人，通常说着诸如此类的话：“我是个理财经理，不过我做这份工作是为了改善人们的生活。我用自己的技能为人们造福。”

我喜欢和亲朋好友一起旅行，但是独自旅行却有着某种不可思议的刺激。每次你沿着过道向自己的座位走去时，那感觉就像是在转动赌台上的轮盘。轮盘在咔嗒咔嗒转动，你的脚步声嗒嗒地响起，随着你一步步走向命运的安排，你的邻座出现在你的眼前。这是种令人惊讶的刺激。古怪或是可爱，要么古怪要么可爱，不是古怪就是可爱。

即使命运的转盘将你带到一个古怪的人身边，你最好也还是好好把握。这是多么难得的机会。旅行的美妙之处就在于你会遇到一些人，他们乐于分享自己非同寻常的见解，甚至分享他们私人生活的细节。毕竟，与在飞机或火车上跟你邻座的人再次相遇的可能性几乎为零。

在与这个喜欢打猎的小家伙同乘一班飞机之前，我一直在读亨利·詹姆斯的《一位女士的画像》。伊莎贝尔·阿彻是所有文学作品中塑造得最为出色的角色之一，她全部的所思所想都被詹姆斯细致入微地描绘了出来。在小说的某处，詹姆斯用了整整一章的篇幅来写伊莎贝尔对自己失败的婚姻进行反思的那几个小时。这是一段引人入胜的对人类心灵的观察，她的每一个念头都被记录了下来，她的心理活动被清晰、完整地呈现在了读者面前。

而旅行或许是了解人类境况更好的机会。当人们在4万英尺的高空挤坐在一起或以80英里的时速奔行在铁路上时，他们会有什么反应？来自盐湖城、巴黎或米兰的人们会有什么样的举动？他们会谈论些什么？他们生活的动力是什么？他们喜欢什么？这种增长见闻的方式很奇特，但置身于两个乐于通过聊天来打发时间的完全陌生的人之间的方寸空间里，你却能了解到很多东西。

至于娱乐价值，你最好的选择或许就是侧耳听听邻座都说些什么。把书暂搁一旁吧，因为可爱也罢，古怪也罢，你的邻座也许十分有趣，出乎你的意料，甚至可能比小说中的人物还要离奇。如果有一天你坐在一位来自爱达荷州的爱好打猎、对圣诞老人抱有怀疑的金发少年身边，那就和他打声招呼吧。相信我，你会度过一段充满乐趣的绝妙旅程。

1. The Flight of the Bumblebee：《野蜂飞舞》，原是俄罗斯作曲家尼古拉·安德烈耶维奇·里姆斯基-科萨科夫（Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov， 1844～1908）所作歌剧中的插曲，后经克罗地亚钢琴演奏家马克西姆·姆尔维察（Maksim Mrvica， 1975～）演奏，成为音乐会中经常演奏的通俗名曲，也是世界上最快的钢琴曲之一。

2. camouflage [?k?m??flɑ??] n. 迷彩服

3. Cabelas：卡贝拉，美国户外用品零售商

4. Anatole France：阿纳托尔·法朗士（1844～1924），法国诗人、记者、作家，1921年获诺贝尔文学奖。《天使的反叛》（The Revolt of the Angels）是其发表于1914年的小说。

5. intricacy [??ntr?k?si] n. 错综复杂的事物；纷繁难懂之处

6. epitome [??p?t?mi] n. 典型；集中体现

7. poshness [?p??n?s] n. 时髦，优雅，漂亮

8. inexplicably [??n?k?spl?k?bli] adv. 令人费解地，莫名其妙地

9. serendipitous [?ser?n?d?p?t?s] adj. 偶然发现的，意外获得的

10. gibberish [?d??b?r??] n. 胡言乱语

11. loony [?lu?ni] n. 〈俚〉疯子

12. save for：除……之外

13. dim [d?m] adj. 〈口〉迟钝的；愚蠢的