February 18, 2005
Dear Joyce,
As you can see from the postmark, I’m now in Nepal. Katmandu is a really cool place. There are a lot of narrow, winding streets, ancient temples, and even cows wandering around. It’s like I’ve gone back in time. Of course, even here they have cars and Coca-Cola, but a lot of things don’t seem to have changed in centuries.
The people are interesting, too. Since Nepal is a poor country, it’s not surprising that there are a lot of beggars. There are also holy men called sadhus who wear colorful clothes and wander about asking for alms. The other day I spent an hour sitting on the steps of a temple watching people pass by.
My next stop is India. I’ll write you from there in a week or two.
Sincerely,
Vincent
亲爱的乔依丝：
你可以在邮戳上看到，我现在正在尼泊尔。加德满都真是一个很棒的地方。有很多窄而曲折的街道、古老的庙宇，甚至还有母牛四处走动。我仿佛回到了过去。当然连这里也看得到汽车和可口可乐，但许多事物似乎好几个世纪以来都没有改变过。
这里的人也十分有趣。因为尼泊尔是一个贫穷的国家，所以有很多乞丐并不令人感到意外。另外也有很多身着华美衣裳称为圣人的宗教人士到处化缘。前几天，我在一座庙宇的台阶上坐了一小时观察来往的人群。
我下一站要到印度。一、两个星期内我会从那里写信给你。
文森 敬上
2005年2月18日
字词解说：
1. postmark 邮戳
2. Katmandu 加德满都(尼泊尔首都)
3. cool (理)很棒的(=wonderful, fantastic, great)
例:I just saw a really cool movie.
(我刚才看了一部很棒的电影。)
4. ancient ['emfant] a.古代的
例:This ancient wall was built by the Romans.
(这座古墙是罗马人建造的。)
5. cow [kau] n.牛
6, wander 四处走，徘徊
wander around/about四处溜达
例:The tourists went to the night market and wandered around for a few hours.
(那些观光客到夜市四处溜达了几个小时。)
7, century 一世纪(一百年)
8. beggar乞丐
例:Beggars can't be choosers.
(乞丐不得选择所乞讨的东西;饥不择食—谚语。)
9. holy 圣洁的，德高的
10. sadhu (印度、尼泊尔等国的)僧侣
11. ask for.二要求……
例:The beggar asked for some money and a cigarette.
(那个乞丐乞讨一些钱和一根烟。)
12. alms 救济金，施舍物(恒用复数)
13. the other day前几天
例:I met her in a bookstore the other day.
(前几天，我在一家书店里遇见她。)
