冰雪奇遇_参考网

冰雪奇遇

2017-10-13ByChristineMcCafferty

英语学习 2017年9期

By+Christine+Mc+Cafferty

Christine and Shannon had an exciting time visiting Arran Island， meeting motor bikers and punks，1 and are now heading back to Scotlands west coast. They were hoping to catch up with Ian， Shannons love interest/fling.2 He had previously offered to collect them and drive them north to see some snow， and he was due to leave Glasgow3 that day.

We were hoping that his offer still stood， and he hadnt left yet. I held thumbs4 while Shannon called him. Did he want to see us again？ I mean Shannon… Did he want to see Shannon again？ I was just an annoying hanger-on5， anyhow. Threes a crowd， you know.

Great news！ He was fine about us going with him and hed be heading north later that day. I could hear Shannon telling him that shed never seen snow before. Great... now how would we get to him？ Shannon pretended that we had transport. He pressed her to know how we planned to get to Glasgow to meet him. He knew we had no money. Eventually she said that wed catch a ride with someone. At that he said—he must have said， no， hed come fetch us because the next thing Shannon did was squealing6 with delight.

She put down the phone and we high-fived7 each other！ Yay！ Victory！ He had been most annoying and rude to us when wed lived with him and his friends in Henley-on-Thames8 in England. But without them， he was proving nicer， and more useful， by the week. Wed had a good road trip when hed brought us from England to Scotland.

What was more， he was only a few hours away， so we just needed to pass some time. If you need to buy yourself a meal while you are travelling in Europe or any Western country， and are trying to save money， breakfast usually will give you the best value. England is famous for its cheap-priced full breakfast9. Scotlands breakfast would surely be the same. We decided to spoil ourselves， given that wed managed to pass the weekend without spending much， except our ferry fares10 and a few drinks. And we were hungry. Billy， who wed stayed with on Arran Island， had fed us but it was mostly baked beans in tomato sauce from a can on a slice of toast. Another thing about buying a meal in that cold part of the world is that you get somewhere warm to sit. A full Scottish breakfast was what wed go for！

A “full breakfast” means a “complete breakfast”. But full is what you will be. We found a workmans eatery11 on the corner of a road. We figured if we started eating now and spread it out slowly till Ians arrival， wed get value for money12.endprint

First up was a bowl of hot oats porridge13. It was smooth and creamy with a square of butter in the centre， and milk over it. We put some brown sugar on， too. It was yummy. We were pretty full already， but the meal was only starting. The waitress brought out two huge plates， hot and piled high， with a smile. “Eat up， girls，” she said. On each plate were slices of fried tomato， with some cheese on top， a pile of thin-sliced bacon rashers， sausages （known as bangers）， kippers（salty strong-tasting fish）， mushrooms， baked beans， fried potato scones （tatties） cut into quarters and eggs.14 We looked at each other. We could never eat that all！ Also on the plate was a circular black thing that looked like an ugly meat patty15. “Whats that？” We asked the waitress. “Oh，” she said， “That is the best part. Black pudding.” Pudding sounded nice but we found out that it was made of pigs blood， fat， oats， barley， and various spices which were squashed like a fat sausage in an intestine and then cut sideways—hence the patty shape.16 The ingredients sounded horrifying to us， and we left it well alone.

Wed barely got through a small portion of it when out came hot crispy toast with huge slabs of butter on a plate and chunky marmalade （orange preserved in sugar）.17 It had a bitter， sweet taste but we couldnt resist some.

A full breakfast is often described a fuel for a day， but this was more like fuel for a week！ Honestly I thought that Id NEVER need to eat again. In bygone days， people in Scotland and England usually only ate twice each day， the huge late breakfast and then an evening meal， often referred to as “tea”. Talking of which， we were then served a cup of tea （black） with milk and sugar.

We just finished breakfast when Ian arrived. We heaved18 our full bellies into his car. It was great to see him. It is incredible how comforting a familiar face is when you are in an unfamiliar country. Shannon gave him a huge hug， and a kiss！ Whoa… I didnt realise she had missed him that much！ She cried， “Thanks to you， my dream is going to come true. Soon Ill be playing and skiing in snow！”

To us Scotland meant cold， and up north meant mountains. So we had cold and mountains—which must mean snow right？ And snow meant skiing！ Who needs the Alps19？

Little did we know that the snow report had said， “Expect a sheet of rain， fog and icy roads” and that visitors would be “dogged by chilling winds” and that the only snow on the top slopes was “hard and icy”.20 After all it was Scotland， and not the Alps， and the conditions are usually wetter and colder. In fact， the funicular that takes people up the ski slopes only stops for winds of 75mph or more.21 Also， it was well before winter， which meant that there was unlikely to be much snow around. I think Ian didnt want to ruin our happy excitement， especially as it meant kisses from Shannon， so， if he knew any of this， he didnt say a word.endprint

We set off， going through Perth22 （in Scotland， not Australia！） and then onto a place called Blairgowrie， which is just near the Glenshee Ski Centre. It was a three-hour drive. We were singing， laughing and enjoying the views out the window as we went. The wind had come up by the time we were approaching the steep roads to Glenshee. It is one of the United Kingdoms highest road passes23. The cars wheels seemed to be slipping and it was nerve-wracking24. There were beautiful views down the “Three Valleys”25 on either side of the road， though. We got there， eventually. It was cold， it was windy， and there was almost no snow.

Yes， we were disappointed， but ended up having so much fun. We went up on a ski lift26 and， at the top， found a little square of snow. It probably covered an area of two square metres but it was just enough for Shannon to lie on her back. She moved her legs and arms up and down to make an “angel shape” as shed seen in the movies as a child. I screamed with laughter and took a photo， making sure to focus on her and the snow only！ The sun came out for a second and I got the perfect shot. Anyone looking at that photo would NOT realise that there had actually been almost no snow that day… Well， except for the heather and rocks poking through snow.27

Ian laughed at how easily we were pleased. He didnt know that we were a little nervous to ski and no snow meant we could still act brave， without putting skis28 on！ We were told that the ski slopes werent as high as in the Alps， but the mountain sides looked pretty frightening to us… How lucky we were that there was no snow！ I personally couldnt think of anything worse than getting wet in that wind， and falling and breaking a leg. We probably couldnt have afforded to rent equipment and skis anyhow.

1. Arran Island：阿伦岛，是苏格兰最大的岛屿，位于克莱德湾，岛上保留了浓厚的爱尔兰文化；punk：朋克，诞生于20世纪70年代的一种摇滚音乐，这里指打扮成朋克风格的人，他们通常头发颜色鲜艳，穿着带有饰链和饰钉的破烂衣服。

2. love interest：爱慕对象；fling：一时的放纵（行乐），短暂的风流韵事，这里指以前的暧昧者。

3. Glasgow：格拉斯哥，苏格兰最大城市，英国第三大城市。

4. hold thumbs：握紧大拇指（以带来好运），一种德国人的习俗。

5. hanger-on：依附他人者。

6. squeal：尖声长叫。

7. high-five：（表示慶祝时）举手（和对方）击掌。

8. Henley-on-Thames：泰晤士河畔的亨利小镇，位于英格兰牛津郡南部。

9. full breakfast：英式早餐，以餐点丰富而著名，一般包括煮豆、煎培根、火腿、香肠、炒蘑菇、烤西红柿、马铃薯饼与煎蛋，配上三角形的烤吐司，再配以一杯热茶或咖啡。

10. ferry fare：船票。

11. eatery：餐馆。

12. get value for money：钱花得值，物有所值。