Speak No Evil

I don't know for what reasons people would just get up and get on the road. Just to see what the rest of the world looks like? Just to leave their troubles behind for a while? Just to get a tan or just for the sake of it or for no particular reason at all?
我不知道是什么原因让人们抓起包就出门去旅行。是想看看世界其他地方的样子？ 是想暂时把烦恼抛诸脑后？是想晒黑点儿还是就是想旅行亦或毫无目的？

For me, to throw myself into a 17-day 4-nation trip where I was always on the run like a conveyor belt, it's a mixture of inspirations and obligations.  
对于我而言，纵身投入一个17天4国马不停蹄的旅行，是电影和责任的综合影响。

Day 1 - 2
Beijing - Dubai - Zurich - Lake Como - Verona
第一天和第二天
北京 - 迪拜 - 苏黎世 - 科莫湖 - 维罗纳
The onset of a 2-week-long splashy shopping spree arrived even before the flight took off. All the women delved into the taxfree cosmetics store in T3 of Beijing Capital International Airport. Lists in hands, they danced from one booth to another, like bumble bees rushing their ways among flowers. And I am sure if they had two more arms, they would have flapped them as fast as bee wings, making the same droning noise out of sheer excitement and joy. Needless to say, a benign sign for the trip. 
长达两周的血拼在航班还未起飞前就开始了。同行的女士们都杀到T3的免税化妆品店里，大开杀戒。手里拿着单子，她们就象花丛中的蜜蜂一般忙碌。我仿佛觉得，如果多出两个胳膊来，那么她们一定是以蜜蜂翅膀的振动频率呼扇着，透着激动和愉悦。

The flight from Beijing to Dubai was uneventful. Given limited time for layover, we didn't venture out of the enormous Dubai airport. Despite the lack of such scenes as futuristic sail-shaped hotel or man-made islands that sprawl out into the sea like a palm tree, the Dubai airport is an ideal place for people watch.
北京到迪拜的飞行一切正常。由于转机时间有限，我们没有离开诺大的迪拜机场。不过，虽然没看见7星级大酒店和人工岛，机场却是一个看人的好地方。


It's where my mind would conjure up a chaotic extraterrestrial trade hub buzzing with outlandish  bootleggers, travelers and exotic merchandises. (Read I'd never seen so many middleastern folks and plastic taxfree bags under one roof)
机场的景象让我觉得仿佛置身于一个混乱的外星球市集。各色异型的走私者，旅行者和奇妙的商品充斥着整个场景。后来一想，主要是因为阿拉伯自古是连接东西的桥梁，在这里看到欧洲人，近东人和原东人汇集一堂，多少有些头晕。

We stayed at a budget hotel close to the Zurich airport for the night and then took an SBB train to cross the border to Lago di Como in northern Italy.
我们在苏黎世机场附近的一个便宜酒店住下。第二天一早就乘火车穿过国界，进入意大利北部，去逛科莫湖。


Wasn't exactly our boat but more or less along the same line
多少和我们的船比较象

There was also a bright yellow 2003 Chevy Corvette parked nearby. Bikes and Corvette but it still didn't feel right. Maybe it's the pavement or style of structures or the overall ambience that overwhelmed the motorized presence of American culture and declared triumphantly the root of Europa is here to remain
这些哈雷摩托和附近停着的一辆明黄色的科尔维特仍不足以让人觉得这是美国。也许是路面的砖块，也许是建筑的样式，也许是整个气氛都压制了美国的机动文化。这里是欧洲，永远是欧洲。



The clouds! I was convinced the Renaissance painters didn't exaggerate
欧洲的云很壮观。意大利一个礼拜都是这样的云。看来文艺复兴时期的画家们并没有过于夸张。



Too hot, had to chill
太热了，大家都出来泡水乘凉
The cruise in the lake was just ok. I wasn't really impressed by the water, the broken waves or idyllic homesteads among lush bushes on the hills. Although, I was fairly amused by guys wearing speedoes on on the shore. The boat pulled over at different spots along the banks. We got off at Bellagio for roughly 50 mins until I was totally soaked in the heat of the Mediterranean sun. We finally returned to Como after 3 hours of mediocre crusin'. 
乘船游湖一般。我对碧绿的湖水，白色的波浪和山上绿树掩映的房子不怎么感兴趣。倒是安边站着的一些穿紧身泳裤的老爷们让我觉得很好笑。游船在很多地方有站。我们在一个叫做贝拉吉奥的地方下，逛了50分钟，汗透了。经过3个小时很一般的游船之旅，我们回到了科莫。


LAGO di COMO
印有科莫湖字样的挂历




She's everywhere. somehow I think she's no longer the person from Lost in Translation
斯佳丽·约翰森到处都是。我总觉得她和迷失东京时不一样了


I paid him 2 euros for a photo of the dog, who nodded to the rythm of the accordion
给了这个斯拉夫手风琴手2欧，主要是拍狗。该狗似乎颇通音律，合着主人的节拍，摇头晃脑

Taking no notice of my sweat-soaked tshirt and pent up eagerness to get on the road for Verona, the women's spirit was high, which led to my better half's 500-euro worth of Swarovski jewleries.
女士们全然不顾我全身的汗和渴望赶快上路赶往维罗纳的急切，再次购物。我们家领导一举买了500欧世华洛奇首饰

We didn't head out until the women got scared by themselves. 
直到她们自己买含糊了或者觉得没什么可买时，我们才上路

The drive from Como to Verona wasn't too bad in the sense we had only 2 minor detours (well, one was about 5k). By the time we pulled up to Hotel Borghetti in Valpolicella, it was already 9 pm. Unlike China, the town was literally asleep. We had to hold up the kitchen staff that were about to leave. They kindly fixed some very tasty and fulfilling fettucini with mushroom sauce. Blessed by the fact that the entire Valpolicella area is known for its vineyards, we had some great wine to wash down the rushedness of the day. I halted myself on the way out and returned to poor Maria with 5 euros of gratuity. She barely spoke a word of English, yet we managed to come up with some great and much needed food. 
从科莫到维罗纳一路还算顺利，就绕了2次。等我们到达酒店时，已经9点多了，全城饭馆都关了。我们硬拖着厨房不让人家下班。厨房巧为无米之炊，给我们做了非常好吃的蘑菇一面和沙拉。由于酒店所处的Valpolicella地区盛产葡萄酒，我们也喝了不少好酒解乏。在离开餐厅的半路上，我转身回去和女服务员玛丽亚5欧小费。她很不容易，下班晚了，还很费劲地和我们交流。感谢她。

You know what? I couldn't care less about Romeo and Juliet. Just let me sleep! But, I had to go in the morning. Verona was a nice and quite little town. If not for Shakespear and the Serie A underperformer, I wouldn't know this place. 
很累。我都有些不想去看罗密欧和朱丽叶的故居。本来我对这部戏也没什么兴趣。不过，集体行动嘛。后来觉得还是值得的。维罗纳是个安静可爱的小城。如果不是莎翁和意甲，我是不会知道这个地方的。


Silly love wish stickies piled on each other by chewed gum. Yikes.
满墙的许愿条。都是用口香糖粘的。好似路边小广告，办证和一针灵什么的



I had only one thing to say to the lock hangers and sticky stuckers: Romeo and Juliet ended in death out of miscommunication. Their love story may be immortal but they died prematurely. 
我对这些许愿的人只有一句话：由于沟通有问题，罗朱最后悲剧死亡了！他们的爱情可能不朽，但她们人都玩完了。

I found some relief in this message, which was left there 1 day ahead of my visit 
留言簿里这条留言让我很欣慰。是我来前一天留的



which goes like: Juliet was a(n) idiot who rushed everything
类似于说朱丽叶太笨，成事不足败事有余，心急吃不成热豆腐之类的

Thank you baby Howard and Chase Raily from Arizona. You guys made my day out of this senseless hommage to two immature teen love birds who showed no respect to family honor and pissed away rich lives ahead...