中英對照讀新聞》Cubans turn Haiti into unlikely shopping oasis 古巴人將海地變成不可能的購物綠洲
◎孫宇青
Cubans, in the America’s only communist country with a still mostly state-led economy, face very high prices and not much selection at all. Cuban merchants thus turn to Haiti, the poorest country in the region, for their shopping dream.
身處美洲唯一仍以國家主導經濟為主的共產國家,古巴人面對的是價格極高、選項卻不多的商品。因此,古巴商人轉向該區域最窮困的國家海地,追尋自己的購物夢。
So at the Hippolyte street market in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince, vendors - amid piles of clothing and shoes - call out in Spanish trolling for their likely clients: Cubans on short shopping trips.
在海地首都太子港的希波呂塔街市場,被一堆衣服和鞋子包圍的攤商,大聲講著西班牙語招攬潛在客戶:來短期購物旅遊的古巴人。
"I buy everything: clothes, electronics, and shoes. In Cuba, it’s so expensive and, above all, there is not all this choice," explains Wilfredo Sotolongo.
威爾弗雷多.索托隆戈解釋:「我什麼都買:衣服、電子產品、鞋子。在古巴,這些東西都很貴,而且最重要的是,根本沒有這麼多選擇。」
However, "They limit us to 30 kilograms of luggage at home. And we can’t have more than twelve items of the same kind: twelve T-shirts, twelve jeans, twelve bras," said Maria Carmen.
然而,瑪莉亞.卡門說:「他們(政府)限制我們只能帶30公斤行李回國,而且同類物品不能買超過12件,T恤、牛仔褲、胸罩都只能12件。」
A neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, located near the airport, has even started to be called "Ti Havana" - meaning "Little Havana."(AFP)
鄰近機場的太子港一處社區,甚至已開始被稱為「小哈瓦那」。(法新社)
新聞辭典
unlikely:形容詞,不可能發生的;不像是真的。例句:His testimony was an unlikely story.(他的證詞不像是真的。)
call out:動詞片語,大聲呼喊。例句:The teacher called out to students to maintain the order.(老師對著學生大聲喊叫,以維持秩序。)
troll:動詞,拖釣,本文為引來、招來之意。例句:These boats are trolling for mackerels.(這些船隻採拖釣法捕捉鯖魚。)