Lesson 48

In this much-travelled world, there are still thousands of places which are inaccessible to tourists.
在这个常有人造访的世界里，仍然有成千上万个游客无法到达的地方。
We always assume that villagers in remote places are friendly and hospitable.
我们总是认为偏远地区的村民是友好且好客的。
But people who are cut off not only from foreign tourists, but even from their own countrymen can be hostile to travellers.
但是，那些不仅与外国游客隔绝，甚至与自己的同胞也隔绝的人，可能会对旅行者怀有敌意。
Visits to really remote villages are seldom enjoyable — as my wife and I discovered during a tour through the Balkans.
去往真正偏远村庄的访问很少是令人愉快的——正如我和妻子在一次穿过巴尔干半岛的旅行中所发现的那样。
We had spent several days in a small town and visited a number of old churches in the vicinity.
我们已经在小镇上待了几天，并参观了附近的许多古老教堂。
These attracted many visitors, for they were not only of great architectural interest, but contained a large number of beautifully preserved frescoes as well.
这些吸引了许多游客，因为它们不仅具有极大的建筑艺术价值，而且还包含大量保存完好的壁画。
On the day before our departure, several bus loads of tourists descended on the town.
在我们出发的前一天，好几辆大巴车的游客涌向了这个小镇。
This was more than we could bear, so we decided to spend our last day exploring the countryside.
这让我们无法忍受，于是我们决定利用最后一天去乡村游玩。
Taking a path which led out of the town, we crossed a few fields until we came to a dense wood.
沿着一条通向城外的小路，我们穿过几块田地，直到来到一片茂密的树林。
We expected the path to end abruptly, but we found that it traced its way through the trees.
我们原以为小路会突然中断，但发现它穿过树林延伸开来。
We tramped through the wood for over two hours until we arrived at a deep stream.
我们徒步穿过森林走了两个多小时，直到来到一条深溪边。
We could see that the path continued on the other side, but we had no idea how we could get across the stream.
我们可以看到小路在另一边继续延伸，但我们不知道该如何跨越这股溪流。
Suddenly my wife spotted a boat moored to the bank.
突然，我的妻子发现一艘停泊在岸边的船。
In it there was a boatman fast asleep.
在里面有一个熟睡着的船夫。
We gently woke him up and asked him to ferry us to the other side.
我们轻轻地把他叫醒，请他载我们到对岸。
Though he was reluctant to do so at first, we eventually persuaded him to take us.
虽然他起初不情愿这样做，但我们最终说服了他带我们去。
The path led to a tiny village perched on the steep sides of a mountain.
这条小路通向一个坐落在群山陡峭山坡上的微小村庄。
The place consisted of a straggling unmade road which was lined on either side by small houses.
这个地方由一条蔓延且未铺砌的道路组成，道路两旁排列着小房子。
Even under a clear blue sky, the village looked forbidding, as all the houses were built of grey mud bricks.
甚至在晴朗的蓝天下，这个村庄也显得令人生畏，因为所有的房子都是用灰色的泥砖建造的。
The village seemed deserted, the only sign of life being an ugly-looking black goat on a short length of rope tied to a tree in a field nearby.
村庄似乎空无一人，唯一的生命迹象是附近田野里一棵树上系着的一只长相丑陋的黑山羊。
Sitting down on a dilapidated wooden fence near the field, we opened a couple of tins of sardines and had a picnic lunch.
坐在一座田野附近的破旧木栅栏上，我们打开了几罐沙丁鱼，吃了一顿野餐。
All at once, I noticed that my wife seemed to be filled with alarm.
突然间，我注意到我的妻子似乎充满了惊恐。
Looking up I saw that we were surrounded by children in rags who were looking at us silently as we ate.
抬头看时，我看到我们被一群衣衫褴褛的孩子们包围了，在我们吃东西时，他们正沉默地注视着我们。
We offered them food and spoke to them kindly, but they remained motionless.
我们给他们提供了食物并亲切地与他们交谈，但他们依然纹丝不动。
I concluded that they were simply shy of strangers.
我断定他们只是怕生。
When we later walked down the main street of the village, we were followed by a silent procession of children.
当我们后来走下村庄的主街道时，一群沉默的孩子跟在我们的后面。
The village which had seemed deserted, immediately came to life.
那个看上去荒无人烟的村庄，立刻变得活跃起来。
Faces appeared at windows.
窗户旁露出了脸孔。
Men in shirt sleeves stood outside their houses and glared at us.
穿着衬衫的男人们站在房门外，怒视着我们。
Old women in black shawls peered at us from doorways.
穿着黑色披肩的老妇人们从门口凝视着我们。
The most frightening thing of all was that not a sound could be heard.
最可怕的是，一点声音也听不到。
There was no doubt that we were unwelcome visitors.
毫无疑问，我们是不受欢迎的访客。
We needed no further warning.
我们不需要进一步的警告了。
Turning back down the main street, we quickened our pace and made our way rapidly towards the stream where we hoped the boatman was waiting.
转身回到主街，我们加快了步伐，迅速地向着我们希望船夫正在等待的小溪走去。