苏格兰之旅

Journey into Scotland
苏格兰之旅
by Tina Robinson 翻译：小虎

Scotland forms the northern part of the island of Great Britain. It is divided into three main 1)regions--the Highlands, the Midland Valley and the Southern Uplands. Scotland is well known for its mountainous scenery and 2)lochs (this name is generally used for lakes in Scotland). Much of the west coast of the country is 3)intersected by Sea Lochs. Perhaps the most well-known of the fresh water lochs is Loch Ness.

We continue our journey from Alnwick Castle to Scotland. Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland and the second financial center of the UK. We pass through a 4)succession of 5)residential areas, giving us our first view of Scottish citylife. The residents of this city obviously take great pride in their homes. Whether a Victorian era 6)mansion or a modern high rise apartment, 7)flowerpots and gardens are 8)abundant and well 9)tended.

When we visit Edinburgh Castle, we can see why the early 10)inhabitants of the area made their first settlements here. In the past, man had always sought a safe 11)refuge and the volcanic rock that formed the base of Edinburgh Castle afforded the 12)ultimate 13)defensive position. No visit to Edinburgh is complete without a visit to Edinburgh Castle. Once you have 14)ventured up to the highest parts of the castle, you will be 15)overwhelmed by the spectacular views of Edinburgh.

Edinburgh now is basically built right over the top of the old Edinburgh, so some of the old streets still exist 16)underground. In a little town on the way to Glasgow, we spy a 17)pub and pull in to the car park. The friendly 18)landlord, dressed in a 19)kilt, treats us to his finest 20)Scotch and the traditional Scottish dish--21)Haggis. We are brave enough to try this weighty 22)sausage stuffed with 23)intestine, 24)oatmeal and other spicy goodies. While we are eating Haggis, he tells us about the standard dress for all “Highlanders”--the tartan kilt which has 25)awakened the 26)curiosity of the ladies in our group. The 27)tartan kilt has long been the most recognizable cultural tradition of the Highland Scots. The kilt has its origins in an older 28)garment called the 29)belted plaid. More recognizable tartans seen today are in fact creations of Scottish and English 30)tailors during the 31)reign of Queen Victoria. The patterns and the basic concept of the tartan are used to identify the 32)clan, family or 33)regiment with which the wearer is associated. And the plaid has become more of a fashion experiment for the 34)elite of English society.

Moreover, we learn from the 35)bartender that the commercial production of Scotch whisky began more than 300 years ago. As a rule, Scots do not drink at home other than on special occasions. So Scottish pubs are the 36)mainstay of social life as they have been for many centuries. At lunchtime and between 5 and 7PM, most pubs also become eating places. Afterwards, they 37)stow away the menus and 38)crockery to welcome a more social evening crowd. The Scots are very friendly and down to earth, although I can’t understand a word from some of them are saying!

We continue our journey to Glasgow--39)cradle of the Industrial Revolution and formerly the world’s most important 40)shipbuilding area. Glasgow is Scotland’s largest city. It boasts some of Britain’s finest Victorian 41)architecture, including work by the city’s most famous artist and architect--Charles Mackintosh. Today, Glasgow is a lively cultural and arts center with fine museums and art 42)galleries. Here we find the best shopping center outside London!

It is 43)Halloween--a holiday for children--when we arrive in Glasgow. The kids in Scotland still keep the custom of trick-or-treating which has its roots in the English custom of “soul-caking.” The more soul cakes (made out of square pieces of bread with 44)currants) the beggars would receive, the more prayers they would promise to say on behalf of the dead relatives of the 45)donors--that is to say, you must be kind to dead ancestors or they will play tricks on you. The Irish originally used 46)turnips as their “Jack’s lanterns” but when 47)immigrants came to America in the 1840’s, they found that 48)pumpkins were far more plentiful than turnips. Kids have a really good time--they cut scary faces into 49)hollowed-out turnips and large potatoes; then they place a candle inside them. Children once enjoyed throwing cabbages and turnips at doors during Halloween. Smashing bottles near windows is also done in fun. All in all, a fun-filled holiday to bring back memories of childhood.

苏格兰组成了大不列颠岛的北部。它分为三大地区――（北部）高地、中部低地和南部高地。苏格兰以山峦景色和湖泊闻名遐尔。其西岸的大部分地区都被海水湖分割。最出名的淡水湖可能是尼斯湖。

我们从安尼克古堡继续前往苏格兰。爱丁堡是苏格兰的首府，也是英国的第二大金融中心。我们一连经过几个居民区，这里为我们展现了首个苏格兰城市生活的景象。显然，这里的城市居民以他们的家园为傲。无论是维多利亚时代的公寓还是现代高建筑住房，总有多姿多彩并被悉心照料的花盆与花园点缀其间。

当我们参观爱丁堡城堡时，我们明白了为什么这地区的早期居民首先在这儿定居。过去，人们总在寻找一个安全的庇护所，而那些形成爱丁堡城堡底部的火山岩石为城堡提供了最佳的防御位置。没有参观过爱丁堡城堡，爱丁堡之旅就不完整。一旦你敢于爬上城堡的最高处，你将淹没在爱丁堡引人入胜的景色中。

现在的爱丁堡基本上是建设在旧的爱丁堡之上，因此有些老街道仍然保留在地下。在前往格拉斯哥路上的一个小镇里，我们发现了一间酒馆，我们把车停在停车场里。那位穿着苏格兰方格呢短裙的友善的老板用他最好的苏格兰威士忌和传统的苏格兰食品――肉馅羊肚来招呼我们。我们壮着胆子品尝了那塞满羊肠、麦片和其它香料的很有份量的香肠。在我们品尝肉馅羊肚之余，老板告诉了我们那套给所有“高地男人”穿的标准服饰――那套引起我们旅行团里的女士们好奇心的苏格兰方格呢短裙。一直以来苏格兰方格呢短裙都是高地苏格兰人最被认可的文化传统。苏格兰方格呢短裙源自于一种叫束腰彩格呢的古老服装。今天我们看到很多易于辨认的格子呢实际上是在维多利亚女王统治期间苏格兰和英格兰裁缝的创作品。格子呢的图案和基本概念是用来辨认氏族、家族和穿着者所属的军团。在更大程度上彩格呢格子图案已成为英国社会精英们的时尚试验品。

此外，我们从酒吧男招待口中得知苏格兰威士忌的商业生产在300多年前便已经开始了。通常，苏格兰人都不在家喝酒，除非是特殊节日。因此，数世纪以来苏格兰酒馆一直是社交生活的主要场所。在午饭时间和下午5点至7点之间，大部分酒馆都成为吃饭的地方。之后，他们收拾菜谱和器皿，迎接晚上更多喜爱社交的客流。苏格兰人非常热情和实际，尽管我完全不明白他们中有些人在说什么！

我们继续行程，前往格拉斯哥――工业革命的摇篮和曾经是世界上最重要的造船地区。格拉斯哥是苏格兰最大的城市。它以拥有一些不列颠最好的维多利亚式建筑而自豪，包括城里最出名的艺术家和建筑家――查尔斯·麦金托什的作品。今天，格拉斯哥拥有上等博物馆和画廊，是一个活跃的文化艺术中心。在这里我们找到了在伦敦以外最棒的购物中心！

当我们到达格拉斯哥时刚好是万圣节前夕――一个属于孩子的节日。苏格兰的孩子们还保留着“赏或罚”的习俗，该习俗源于英国的“灵魂蛋糕”传统。乞丐们承诺他们获得越多的灵魂蛋糕（用方形面包块和葡萄干做成），就代表捐赠者向去世的亲人送去越多的祈祷――那就是说，你必须善待去世的祖先，否则他们就会捉弄你。爱尔兰人最初用胡萝卜做他们的“杰克灯笼”，但在19世纪40年代当移民来到美国后，他们发现南瓜比胡萝卜更多。孩子们真的玩得很开心――他们在空心胡萝卜和大番薯上刻出骇人的鬼脸；然后他们把蜡烛放进里面。以前万圣节期间小孩子喜欢把卷心菜和胡萝卜向门上扔。他们还闹着玩地在窗户旁摔碎瓶子。总之，这是个充满乐趣并且带来童年回忆的节日。