Skip to main content

Stories From My Hosteling Days - 1

hostelling

 (ˈhɒstəlɪŋ) or 

hosteling


n
the practice of staying at youth hostels when travelling


_________________________________________________________


我总想记下我在年轻的时候hostelling的旅途上遇到的事情,但一直没有付诸行动。今天,喝了一杯好红酒,醉醺醺的时候,我终于鼓起勇气把他们记下来。

第一个故事可能也是最戏剧性的一个。那次我有幸参加一个在佛罗伦萨(Firenze; Florence) 开的会。很自然的,我规划了一整个行程去玩周边。根据我的规划,第一站我刚飞到佛罗伦萨就得坐火车去那不勒斯(Napoli; Naples)。我当时时差(jet lag)很严重,晕晕乎乎的到了那不勒斯,下了火车以后就得坐一趟轻轨去我的青年旅社(hostel)。结果不出所料,我坐反了方向,轻轨带我去了一个鸟不拉屎鸡不下蛋的地方。祸不单行,我下车以后立刻发现我的手机iPhone被著名的那不勒斯小偷给偷了。我回想起来,火车上有一群叽叽喳喳年轻人,还有一个行动迟缓的老头子,都有可能是小偷。不知道到底是哪一个对我下的手。我拖着一个小型行李箱,沮丧的走了一圈,终于鼓起勇气在一个比萨饼店门口停下来,用英语问收银台的意大利女生,我坐错了轻轨,手机又被偷了,能不能帮我打个电话给我的青年旅社。让我惊讶的是,她非常的同情我,立刻帮我打了电话,然后问我要不要叫一个出租车。我非常感激,让她帮我叫一个出租。等出租的时候,我还跟店里的一个在做比萨饼的意大利年轻人聊天,他英文不算太好,但也非常友好,对我的情况表示同情,也告诉我他希望有一天能到其他国家去旅行。等我的出租车到了,我感谢了那个女孩,就坐上出租到了我的青年旅社。

那个青年旅社非常有活力,大家都非常友好且幽默。尤其是那个说着英式英语的前台女孩,她有一种特别的让人感到亲切的魅力,让我一下子忘记了丢掉手机的烦恼,高高兴兴的开始了我的那不勒斯之旅。

临走的时候,我缺了一点坐汽车的现金,于是我小心翼翼的问她,能不能从前台的小费罐(tip jar)里面借一点,且承诺以后会寄钱回来还,她稍显犹豫,但还是答应了。

她换班的时候,另一个说美式英语的女孩来了,我跟她交流不多。

等我到了下一站,我如约寄了些钱给那个青年旅社。因为我忘了她的名字,只好在明信片上写到:“To the girl with British accent, blah blah.” 多年以后,我觉得她完全有可能是澳大利亚或者新西兰人,所以我写"the girl with British accent”恐怕还无意中冒犯了人家,心里颇为后悔。


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

天国之秋

Book review: “Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom: China, the West, and the Epic Story of the Taiping Civil War" by Stephen R. Platt 秋天有两种:一种是丰收喜悦之秋,一种是伤感可悲之秋。太平天国之秋,毫无疑问是第二种。 《天国之秋》改变了很多我对于太平天国的认识和评价。作者一上来就对太平天国运动的性质作了一个中肯的评价,认为西方史学界长期以来称之为“太平叛乱”,以及中国史学界以太平天国为原始共产主义而称之为“太平革命”或“太平起义”,都失之偏颇。唯一恰当的称谓,当为“太平内战”。 ("The Taiping were indeed rebels, but to call the entire war the Taiping Rebellion is to cast the rebels forever in the wrong, and to blame on them for defying their legitimate rulers and destroying what one might surmise was otherwise a peaceful and stable empire." "...just as it is unfair to suggest that the Taiping were solely responsible for the devastation of the war, it is likewise an exaggeration to claim they were building some kind of peasant utopia.") 作为西方人写中国史,作者不可避免地更关心西方历史与这段中国历史的联系。全书令人信服地论证了,发生在十九世纪中国的太平内战,已经不再是一个孤立的事件,而是跟欧洲和美国历史有实质性的联系。简而言之,因为美国内战导致大英帝国在美国的贸易锐减,英国害怕同时因为中国内战而失去另一个巨大的贸易伙伴,而违背一贯的中立政策,干预了中国内战。虽然直接干预并不多,而且政策还有反复,却鬼使神差地影响了...

TOTC - Monaco

For those of you who *actually* followed my story, I apologize: I lied, to some extent, when I said my next stop was Nice. In fact I arrived at Nice at night after a very enjoyable, and amazingly fast TGV ride. But I took a day trip to Monaco the very next day. Les Casinos de Monte-Carlo Originally uploaded by yisu1979 In case you haven't know, the Principality of Monaco is a city state with a constitutional monarchy. There are two ways to get there from Nice: a €1,5(!), 40-minute bus or a €5, 15-minute train. I took the bus not because it was cheaper but because I thought the bus ride would have much better views en route given it went along the coast line. I was *so* right. The first thing you saw after arrival was the world famous black tie required casino. Did I remember to wear black tie to get in for the allegedly exquisite interior? Are you kidding me? Symbol of Monte-Carlo Originally uploaded by yisu1979 The whole state of Monaco is built on a mountai...

Jacky Cheung Rocked Atlantic City, Again: Photos

As promised, I gave you some photos from my concert-going Atlantic City trip. Jacky Cheung Concert Poster Originally uploaded by yisu1979 This was the official poster for this encore show. I got it from the organizer's website . In case you don't speak Chinese, the words above read, "By popular demand, the King of Cantonpop returns with honor." Sounds a little cheesy in English, huh? Well, there's always something lost in translation. Trump Taj Mahal Originally uploaded by yisu1979 The concert was held in the Arena in the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort , a decent place for this kind of concerts. Taj Mahal Casino Originally uploaded by yisu1979 If you haven't seen a casino before, here it is. (And you've seen all of them.) Chandelier Originally uploaded by yisu1979 Taj Mahal is richly decorated. It tries to pitch itself as a better or higher-end casino than others. (So they can charge you more.) T-shirts Orig...