The Indonesian island of Bali impressed us on our recent vacation with its natural beauty, historic temples and the friendliness of its people.
最近,我们去了趟印尼巴厘岛,优美的自然美景,历史悠久的庙宇和热情友好的人们让我们久久难以忘怀。
A driver we hired to take us from the central part of the island to the popular southwest coast proved to be not only a delightful person but also a quick study. After we expressed a desire to visit a local restaurant, the driver, Mus, took us to a local warung– a small, family-owned eatery -- set amid green rice fields.
在旅行中,我们雇了一个小伙子开车将我们从巴厘岛的中部载到颇受欢迎的西南部海岸。马斯(Mus)不仅随和幽默,而且悟性极高。当我们表示想要在当地餐馆就餐时,他马上带我们来到了绿色稻田中的一个家庭餐馆,品尝当地食物。
As we talked, we were surprised to learn that Mus had taught himself a number of phrases in Mandarin after listening carefully to Chinese tourists. We had not expected to see many people from China outside of the big southern resorts, but this was confirmation that independent Chinese visitors are starting to make inroads.
聊天时,我们惊讶地发现马斯通过仔细聆听中国旅客们说话自学了不少汉语短语。而同样意料之外的是,在大型南部旅游度假村之外,我们还发现了许多旅行中的中国游客,这恰好证明了中国喜爱独立自由行的“背包客”们正越来越多。
According to the Australian Business Review, Chinese are expected to eclipse Australians as the largest group of international arrivals this year.
根据《澳大利亚商业评论》(the Australian Business Review)报道,中国今年有望超过澳大利亚成为本年度国际旅客的最大来源国。
Indeed, on a dolphin-watching trip on the north coast, three hours’ drive from the airport, we shared a small boat with a nice young couple from Fujian province.
事实上,我们在距机场三小时车程的北海岸,进行“海豚之旅”时,就和一对儿福建省的年轻夫妇共用了一条小船。
China Daily reported in May that Indonesian Tourism Minister AriefYahya has declared Bali the nation’s pilot project to ensure a comfortable holiday trip for Chinese visitors, particularly in security and safety. That sounds smart.
《中国日报》今年五月报道,印尼旅游部长阿里夫(AriefYahya)宣布将在巴厘岛实施国家旅游业试点项目,将特别注意安保方面的工作,为中国旅客们提供舒适的度假旅行体验。这是个明智之举。
Indonesia appears to be eyeing the tourist trade of Thailand, which welcomed 8.7 million Chinese visitors last year, a 10.3 percent increase from 2015, Singapore-based Today reported.
印度尼西亚似乎正以泰国旅游业为目标。据新加坡《今日》(Today)报报道,去年泰国总共接待了870万中国旅客,这一数据较2015年同比增长了10.3%
Yet, Thailand also offers some lessons for Indonesia, particularly for Bali, and for tourists themselves. The Thai and Chinese governments have been working together to crack down on cheap, "zero-dollar" tours. Chart Chantanaprayura, president of the Professional Tourist Guide Association of Thailand, was quoted by Today as saying that travelers who take these tours pay an initial low price for these packages, but often find they are forced to pay exorbitant prices for food, tours and accommodations once they arrive.
但与此同时泰国旅游业也提供了一些前车之鉴,不仅以巴厘岛为主的印度尼西亚旅游业需要吸收这些教训,游客们自身也要注意。中泰两国政府已通力合作许久试图取缔所谓低价、免费的旅行服务。在《今日》的报道中,泰国专业导游总会(he Professional Tourist Guide Association of Thailand)主席乍鲁蓬(Chart Chantanaprayura)表示,旅客们一开始可以低价报名旅游团,但往往到达旅游地后才会发现要被迫为饮食、旅行以及住宿支付高昂的价格。
These tours can be dangerous for the tourists, who sometimes find themselves literally put off the bus if they refuse to cooperate with operators' demands, and damaging to Thailand’s reputation as well as its tourism income, since little of the money spent stays in Thailand. The association blames unauthorized Chinese tour companies and says that while the phenomenon has been reduced, it continues.
这种旅行对于游客们自身可能构成危险,因为如果拒绝配合旅游团经营方的要求,有时他们可能会被直接赶下乘坐的巴士。同时这对于泰国旅游业的名声以及收入也有负面作用,因为旅客们的花费其实几乎并不会进入泰国一方的口袋。泰国专业导游总会就此谴责违规经营的中国旅行公司,并表示这一现象虽然已经减少,但仍在继续。
Hospitality consultant Horwath HTL says there is a danger that some tour operators in Bali may look upon the crackdown as an opportunity to fill rooms, the Business Review reported. If care is not taken, it's not hard to imagine the same kinds of problems starting to pop up there, too, hurting Bali and disillusioning visitors.
在《澳大利亚商业评论》的报道中,酒店咨询公司浩华管理顾问集团公司(Horwath HTL)方面表示,目前巴厘岛旅游业中潜藏着威胁,一些旅游业经营者们正指望着取缔活动可以为自己带来收益。如果不小心处理,不难想象类似的问题将在巴厘岛也出现。这将会损害其旅游业,同时破坏旅客们旅行的美好心情。
Bali’s infrastructure – roads, sewer, water service – is limited and its attractions, while beautiful, are fragile.
巴厘岛的基础设施,例如道路、下水道、供水设施等,目前还不够完善,而其旷人心脾的自然风光,却又十分容易遭到破坏。
Bali hopefully will remain an affordable destination, and not just a playground for the well-off. But all this does show the need for authorities to cooperate closely in regulating tourism operators so that Bali remains the “land of smiles”, ensuring long-term benefit to the Balinese and wonderful vacations for their visitors.
巴厘岛有望继续以一个大众都负担的起的旅行地点,而不仅仅是富人们的游乐场而存在。但这一切需要中泰两国政府密切配合规范旅游行业,兼顾巴厘岛当地的长远利益与旅客们轻松度假的需求,让巴厘岛作为“微笑之地”永存。
译者:黄钰婷