彭蒙惠英语：Roam Rome on Fleet Feet（在线收听）

Roam Rome on Fleet Feet

3

Likeable Rome

I find myself liking Rome very much. It is not the dirty city I had been told to expect.

One day we walk to Gianicolo Park and gaze down across the Tiber River at the city. Rome looks small from here, and it is, with only 3 million people.

Our hotel, Exedra, is a haven from our quick pace and the hustle of Rome. The centrally located hotel looks like a classical Roman building, curved around the Piazza Republica, a public square swirling with traffic. I love looking out the window at busy Rome from the quiet of my spacious room. And on the bottom level, the floors have glass panels so we can look down at the ruins of the ancient Diocletian Baths below.

Leisurely local life

Though our visit is fast-paced, there’s no choice in Italy but to slow down for a meal. The waiters deliver courses gradually while you steep yourself in flavors and conversation. Even the tiniest restaurant takes pains to create an enjoyable atmosphere—pretty tablecloths and flowers, glowing woodwork and marble.

One day we eat lunch in Trastevere, a section of the city on the other side of the Tiber River where my son’s apartment is. We linger over our meal, watching mothers across the cobblestone street pick up their children at the preschool and exchange smiling goodbyes with the teacher.

It’s a nice pace if you live here. But it’s not mine as a visitor, and even the haste to change my film did not, ironically, ruin my Trevi Fountain shot. Instead, sudden exposure to light changed the sky above the fountain to an ethereal orangey pink, making a striking photo of a popular tourist attraction.

We’ll go back to Italy someday, rushing to cram everything in again. We just can’t go slowly in that good city.

Vocabulary Focus

steep (v) [sti:p] to be completely surrounded by or involved in something; to be immersed in something

take pains (idiom) to make an extra effort to do something

ethereal (adj) [i5WiEriEl] intangible, especially referring to things in the sky; light and delicate

Specialized Terms

cobblestone (n) 鹅卵石 a small round stone that was used in making roads

闪电游罗马

3

可爱的罗马

我发现自己非常喜欢罗马。它并不是人家曾告诉我会看到的一个肮脏的城市。

有一天我们走到吉安尼可洛公园，望过台伯河，向下凝视这个城市。从这儿看，罗马显得很小。它的确很小，只有300万人。

我们的饭店艾塞德拉是我们在匆促的脚步和罗马的混乱中的避难所。这间位于市中心的大饭店看起来像一座古典的罗马建筑，围绕着共和广场，这是一个经常车水马龙的公共广场。我喜欢从我宽敞房间的静谧中了望窗外繁忙的罗马。底楼的地板有玻璃嵌板，让我们得以看到下面戴克里先古浴场的遗迹。

悠闲的当地生活

虽然我们的探访十分匆忙，但在意大利，吃顿饭却不得不慢下来。当你沉浸在香味和谈话中时，侍者逐道地上菜。即使是最小的餐馆，也极力营造一种享受的气氛——漂亮的桌布和花朵，发亮的木制家具和大理石。

有一天，我们在台伯河另一头，也是城市一部分的越台伯河区吃午饭。我儿子的公寓就在这个区。我们饭后仍流连不去，看着母亲们穿过鹅卵石子路去幼儿园接小孩，并和老师笑着相互道别。

如果你住在这里，这真是个舒服的步调。但这不是身为观光客的我的步调，而讽刺的是，甚至我换底片时的匆忙也并未毁了我的许愿池画面。突然的曝光反而把喷泉上方的天空变成了飘渺的带橘的粉红色，为一个热门的观光胜地拍出了一张动人的照片。

有一天我们会再回到意大利，再一次匆忙地塞进一切。在那个美好的城市，我们就是无法放慢脚步。