Six Under—the—radar Spots You Should See in Your Lifetime“遗愿清单”上六个人迹罕至的景点

2015-05-30

新东方英语·中学版 2015年6期

The term "bucket list destination" can be misunderstood， because it implies that there are certain select places in the world that everyone needs to see before they die. But what if you don't want to see the hordes of tourists at the Grand Canyon， Machu Picchu2） or the Roman Colosseum3）？ You can make your own list. Here are six such incredible places that you may not have heard about but might still be important or even sacred to the locals and could inspire you to take the road less travelled.

“遗愿清单目的地”也许会被误解，因为这个词暗示世界上有些精选的地方是每个人死之前都需要去看的。但如果你不想去游客成群的美国大峡谷、马丘比丘或古罗马斗兽场该怎么办呢？你可以制作一份属于自己的清单。世界上就有六个如此神奇的地方，也许你从未听说过，但它们对当地人来说可能仍旧意义重大，甚至可以说是十分神圣的，足以引起你的兴致，去涉足这些人迹罕至的地方。

Caves of Crystal， Mexico墨西哥的巨型水晶洞

This one is not for tourists， unless you're well-connected to scientists who work here. That's because the Naica Cave， 300 metres below the surface of Naica， Chihuahua， Mexico， is as dangerous as it is gorgeous.

The selenite4） crystals， which were only discovered in 2000， are among the largest in the world and reach 12 metres in length while weighing up to 55 tonnes5）. They've been heated by a giant pool of magma6） right underneath， which is what also makes the place so unbearably hot： temperatures are reported at 58 degrees here with up to 99 per cent humidity. Anybody who enters for more than a few minutes has to wear a special cooling suit and mask.

这个水晶洞不对游人开放，除非你和在这里工作的科学家很熟。这是因为奈卡水晶洞位于墨西哥奇瓦瓦州奈卡镇地下300米处，洞中异常绚丽，但也同样异常危险。

洞里的亚硒酸盐水晶群在2000年才被人们发现，是世界上最大的水晶群之一。它们有12米长，55公吨重，一直在经受正下方一个巨大的岩浆池的炙烤。也正因为这个岩浆池，洞里酷热难耐：据称洞中温度高达58度，空气湿度99%。谁想在洞里多待上几分钟都得穿上特制的带面罩的降温服。

Ciudad Perdida， Colombia哥伦比亚的佩尔迪达城

If Machu Picchu has become too touristy for you， you can visit the mountain home of a lost civilisation that's 650 years older and has only recently been on the travel radar.

Ciudad Perdida （Lost City） is a network of villages believed to have been founded in 800 A.D. by the local Tairona tribe. It was lost to history and reclaimed7） by the jungle for about 1000 years until treasure looters8） rediscovered the place in 1972.

Only a fraction9） of the city has been excavated， but the haunting10） remains include stone terraces11） and plazas12） that you'll have to climb 1263 steep steps over several days to reach， past beautiful waterfalls and streams. The round-trip journey lasts about 43 kilometres.

要是觉得马丘比丘游人太多，你可以去寻访哥伦比亚的佩尔迪达城。佩尔迪达城位于崇山峻岭之中，是一个失落文明的所在地，比马丘比丘的历史还要早650年，而且最近（编注：英文原文发表于2015年1月）才成为旅游景点。

佩尔迪达城（又称“失落之城”）由许多村庄组成，据说这些村庄于公元800年由当地的泰荣纳部落建成。这座城市约1000年前就从历史上消失了，一直由丛林所覆盖，直到1972年又被盗贼发现。

这个古城目前只有一小部分被发掘了出来，但令人流连忘返的遗迹还包含一处处用石头围砌成的梯田和广场，你需要用上几天的时间，踏过1263个陡峭的台阶，途径多处美丽的瀑布和小溪才能到达。往返行程大约有43公里。

Thor's13） Well， Oregon， America美国俄勒冈州的雷神之井

Is this the end of the world？ The ocean consuming itself？ Hardly. Thor's Well， off the coast of Cape Perpetua， is something of an optical illusion14）. The apparent hole in the ocean is really just a hole in rock， and not a very deep one at about 7 metres.

Still， the effect created during high tide is magnificent and worthy of a trip to the Oregon coast. But bring a zoom lens15）， because you don't want to get too close—getting swept into the hole would be deadly.

这里是世界的尽头吗？大海在自我吞噬？当然不是。位于珀派图阿角沿岸的雷神之井是某种类似视错觉的东西。海上那个显眼的洞只是一个石头洞，也并不太深，大概只有七米。

Red Seabeach， Panjin， China

中国盘锦市的红海滩

The world's largest wetland area seems like it belongs to another world entirely. The grass here may look like it's been dyed， but this is totally natural and a result of alkaline16） soil.

Located in Dawa County， the delicate reed17） marsh18） is a protected reserve， but tourists can see it up close via a wooden walkway. You can also admire the estimated 236 species of birds that are found here. Go during September， when the grass is mature and at its brightest.

这片世界上最大的湿地仿佛完全属于另一个世界。这里的草像是被染了色，可其实那颜色完全是自然形成的，是碱性土壤造成的。

红海滩位于大洼县，是一片秀美的芦苇湿地。这里是生态保护区，但游人可以在木质栈道上近距离欣赏美景。这里已发现了大约236种鸟类，也可让你大饱眼福。9月份去最好，那时草木最为茂盛，颜色也最为鲜艳。

Fall Canyon， Death Valley， California， America

美国加利福尼亚州死谷中的瀑布谷

People are more likely to equate Death Valley with sand dunes19） or the record-low elevation20） of Badwater Basin21）， but Fall Canyon is an underrated22） geological marvel that impresses in different ways. Walking through the wash in this ravine23）， prone to24） epic floods， with its towering25） and kaleidoscopic26） layered rocks， will make you feel wonderfully small.

Soon into the canyon's entrance， you'll reach a dry waterfall that you'll want to climb up and see before walking through beautifully polished narrows in the mid-Canyon.

提到死谷，人们想到的多是沙丘或是美国的海拔最低点——恶水盆地，不过瀑布谷才是一处真正的地理奇观，会令人印象完全不同，只是被我们给低估了。峡谷易受大洪水的冲击，从而形成了冲积物，行走于其间，两侧是峡谷那高高耸立、色彩万千的层状岩体，你会觉得自己真的很渺小。

一进入峡谷，就会看到一个干涸的瀑布，让你想要先爬上去看一看，再去游览瀑布谷中段那些精致的狭道。

Baalbek， Lebanon

黎巴嫩的巴勒贝克

You might not expect to find one of the greatest examples of Roman architecture in a Lebanese valley， but Baalbek certainly qualifies—and its importance as a sacred site dates well before that empire. The site is like a layer cake of civilizations who worshipped here， including the Phoenicians27） before the Romans， when the city was known as Heliopolis—all told， the site's history may go back 5000 years.

I walked through these stone ruins in 2008， and I was left in awe28）—the remaining 20-metre Corinthian29） columns tower over the surrounding area and the Roman temples are majestic30）， but even the small carvings littered all over the place impressed me. You'll enjoy playing archaeologist on these grounds. It's no wonder the place is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

也许谁也想不到，在一个黎巴嫩峡谷中会发现罗马建筑最好的典范之一，但巴勒贝克就是这么一个地方。而且巴勒贝克作为重要的宗教圣地，历史比罗马帝国还要久远。这里曾被包括腓尼基在内的若干古代文明奉为圣地，就像是一块由几大文明叠加起来的千层糕，而在晚于腓尼基出现的罗马时代，这座城市又被叫做赫利奥波利斯。总的算起来，巴勒贝克的历史可能要追溯到5000年前。

2008年，我从这片石头废墟中走过，心生敬畏——留存下来的20米高的科林斯柱矗立在遗址周围，那些古罗马神殿座座宏伟庄严，就连俯拾皆是的小石雕也让我印象深刻。你会享受在这里扮演考古学家的感觉。难怪这里会被联合国教科文组织列入世界文化遗产名录。

尽管如此，满潮时分造就的景观仍然十分壮观，值得你去俄勒冈海岸一游。但一定要带上变焦相机，因为你不会想靠得太近——被海水卷进洞中可是会丧命的。

1. under-the-radar：不引人注目的；不为人所知的

2. Machu Picchu：马丘比丘，印加帝国古遗址，建于15世纪中期，位于秘鲁中部偏南。

3. Colosseum [?k?l?'s??m] n. 古罗马斗兽场

4. selenite ['sel??na?t] n. 亚硒酸盐

5. tonne [t?n] n. 公吨（等于1000千克）

6. magma [?m?ɡm?] n. 岩浆

7. reclaim [r??kle?m] vt. 重新变成（沙漠、森林、海洋）

8. looter [?lu?t?（r）] n. 抢劫者

9. fraction [?fr?k?n] n. 一小部分

10. haunting [?h??nt??] adj. 不易忘怀的，萦绕于心头的；给人以强烈感受的