(单词翻译:单击)
Chinese tourists,besotted with image of Paris, find harsher reality
沉浸于巴黎美景中的中国游客,遇到了一个令人不快的现实
Some Chinese are targeted and attackedby thieves. Others encounter indifference or rudeness, and some vow not toreturn.
中国游客成为小偷下手目标。遇到问题时没人理会或受到粗鲁对待,让一些游客发誓决不再去。
The New York Times Tourists read maps on thePont des Arts in Paris, the No. 1 destination in Europe for China's middleclass and legion of millionaires, who may have unrealistic expectations of thecity.
游客站在巴黎艺术桥上查地图。巴黎是中国白领和富豪欧洲游的首选目的地,但这座城市可能会让他们有点扫兴。
PARIS— Before arriving in the French capital, WuShuyun, a 56-year-old Chinese housewife, imagined Paris to be like a pristinefilm set for a romantic love story, picturing herself as a glamorous princesssurrounded by elegant Parisians, decked out, perhaps, in Chanel.
Instead,Wu from Kunming in southwest China, said she was shocked by the cigarette buttsand dog manure, the rude insouciance of the locals and the gratuitous publicdisplays of affection. Though friends had warned her about thievestargeting Chinese people, she said she was nevertheless surprised when a memberof her tour group was mugged on a packed Metro car, as other riders watched.
"For the Chinese, France has always been romantic, mysterious anddesirable. We have been told that 'God lives in France," she said recently after a two-week tour that included stops at theEiffel Tower and Galeries Lafayette, an imposing, upscaledepartment store with stained-glass domes where tour buses stop hourly todeposit tourists for marathon shopping sessions.
"Once I realized that the Parisians wereindifferent, I made the decision: Try to make the most of this trip, but nevercome back to Paris again."
巴黎-在来到法国首都之前, 56岁的中国家庭主妇吴淑云,脑中的巴黎就像是老电影里描绘的那样是个浪漫之都,认为自己是会像迷人的公主一样被巴黎帅哥环绕,或许还能携手共赴香奈儿。
恰恰相反,这位来自中国昆明的吴女士,说她被满地的烟头和狗便,还有当地人的粗鲁和莫名的热情所震撼。尽管有朋友警告他要注意专门针对中国人的小偷,他说,尽管如此,当他所在的旅游团在挤地铁时,他始终不敢相信,在其他乘客众目睽睽之下他居然被抢。
“对于中国人来说,法国一直是浪漫,神秘和美妙的。我们都听说过“神都住在法国”,他说在最近的两个星期游览了埃菲尔铁塔、老佛爷百货商店、这给我留下极为深刻的印象,屋顶光彩华丽的高档百货公司,那里为了购物方便,旅游大巴每小时还跑一趟。
“一旦我知道巴黎人都是那种视而不见冷漠无情,我决定:去哪旅游,都不再去巴黎了”。
Agrowing number of Chinese tourists in Paris — armed withwads of cash, typically unable to speak French and still somewhat naive aboutthe ways of the West after decades of China's relativeisolation — are falling victim to their unrealisticexpectations of the city, while also being victimized by brazen thieves whotarget them because they are easily identifiable as Asian, Chinese tourismindustry officials here say.
Alarmthat Chinese tourists are at risk from bandits is so acute that the Chinesegovernment recently considered sending police officers to Paris to help protectthem. Paris tourism officials said the proposal was shelved amid concerns overhow they would operate.
TheFrench capital — celebrated for its beauty, culture and savoirfaire — still retains huge allure, making it the No. 1destination in Europe for China's burgeoning middleclass and growing legion of millionaires, according to the European Federationof Chinese Tourism. Nearly 1 million Chinese tourists came to Paris last year,according to the Paris Tourism Office, spending more than 1 billion euros oneverything from Cartier watches to Michelin-starred restaurants, andoutspending both Japanese and Americans on shopping. Now, however, Paris' glittering image in China is losing its luster amid reports ofrobberies of Chinese tourists, according to Chinese newspapers and socialmedia.
Agroup of 75 French luxury brands, including Louis Vuitton, Chaneland Hermès, warned last year that high-spending Chinesetourists fearful for their safety could choose to go to Italy or Britaininstead. Concerns about the consequences for the country's vaunted tourism industryhave intensified as the French economy has stagnated.
巴黎越来越多的中国游客——身揣大量现金,大都不会说法语,远隔西方几十年后,对这里的一些事还有点天真——有些城市让他们大失所望陷于无助。因为他们一副很显眼亚洲面孔,还成为了无耻小偷的下手目标,中国旅游业的官员说道。
担忧!中国游客被劫风险呈上升趋势,以致中国政府最近考虑是否要派警察去巴黎保护他们。巴黎旅游局的官员表示,但对于如何执法该提案暂被搁置。
法国首都——它以美丽,文化和多变而闻名——依旧散发着的巨大魅力,让巴黎成为中国白领和富豪欧洲游的首选目的地。据巴黎旅游局统计,去年来巴黎的中国游客约有1百万人,他们在诸如卡地亚表,米其林餐厅等其他方面上的花费超过10亿欧元。远超美日游客消费之和。然而现在,中国游客被抢的新闻,让巴黎所散发出的光芒在中国人的心中,慢慢消散,据中国媒体报道。
包括路易·威登,香奈尔和爱马仕在内等75家法国奢侈品商,去年警告说,由于这些出手阔绰的中国游客担心自身安全,可能选择去意大利或英国作为代替。国家旅游业担心这个后果会导致本已不景气法国经济进一步恶化。
Accordingto the Paris-based European Federation of Chinese Tourism, which represents 30travel agencies catering to Chinese tourists, the number of group tours comingto the French capital has fallen 20 percent so far this year compared with2013. The Paris Tourism Office said that a 21 percent jumpin the number of Chinese tourists last year had nearly halved in 2014.
Chinesenerves were already frayed after a group of 23 Chinese tourists on a tour ofEurope were attacked in March of last year in the gritty northern suburbs ofParis just hours after they landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport. The groupleader was injured, and the thieves fled with 7,500 euros — about $9,600 — passports and plane tickets.
Aftersix Chinese students studying winemaking were mugged in Bordeaux threemonths later, Beijing demanded that the French government takeaction.
Pierre Shi, secretary general of theEuropean Federation of Chinese Tourism, said Chinese visitors were being preyedupon because they were known to carry large amounts of cash to avoid payingmultiple currency exchange fees. Bargain-seeking Chinese tour operators werealso booking hotels in Paris'northern suburbs.
"Chinese tourists are attracted to Paris by the glamour, by thedesire to buy designer brands, by an image of France as acountry of philosophers and revolution,” said Shi,who runs his own travel agency, ID Travel Pro. “Butnow, they are afraid to come. Before, they wouldn'tthink twice."
面向中国游客的由30家旅游企业组成的巴黎中国旅游联合会,据该组织透漏,来法国首都的旅行团的数量同2013年相比下降了20%。巴黎旅游局说,去年中国游客数量增长了21%,而2014年的中国游客不及去年的一半。
去年三月,一个由23名中国游客组成的旅行团,在他们降落巴黎北郊的戴高乐机场仅仅几小时后就遭到袭击。带队团长受轻伤,窃贼卷走了7500欧元(约合9600美元),护照以及机票。
三个月后,在波尔多,当六名中国留学生被抢之后,北京强烈要求法国政府采取措施。
欧洲中国旅游业联合会秘书长,皮埃尔施表示,中国游客成为下手目标,(主要)是因为都知道他们为了省下货币兑换手续费会带着大量现金。中国游客为了省钱还住远离市区的酒店里。
“中国游客选择来巴黎旅游,是为了体验其独特魅力、购买名家设计产品,了解这个因哲学家和大革命而著名的国家”,“ID Travel Pro”旅行社老板说道。“以前,人们总是毫不犹豫选择来这里,可现在,他们都不敢来了。”
Psychologistswarned that Chinese tourists shaken by thieves and dashed expectations were atrisk for Paris Syndrome, a condition during which foreigners suffer depression,anxiety, feelings of persecution and even hallucinations when their rosy imagesof Champagne, majestic architecture and Monet are upended by the stresses of acity whose natives are also known for being among the unhappiest people on theplanet.
Theexpression was first coined 30 years ago by a Paris-based Japanese psychiatrist, Hiroaki Ota,after several Japanese visitors to Paris fell ill when their culture ofpoliteness and reserve rubbed up against Gallic haughtiness.
Otasaid in an interview in his office that because China had been closed off tothe West for so long, some Chinese travelers could be at risk for culture shockand depression when faced with the harsher realities of a city they hadover-idealized. But he noted that the Chinese were less susceptible to ParisSyndrome than the Japanese, since they were fortified by a directness and anoutsized sense of self that was similar to the French.
"Whereas Japanese are reserved, polite and formal, the Chinese have astrong sense of national pride like the French, and they are not shy," he said.
心理学家警告说,中国游客让小偷和失望折磨得容易患上巴黎恐惧症。当香槟,宏伟建筑和莫奈给他们带来美好印象被颠覆时,该症状就表现出抑郁,焦虑,迫害,甚至出现幻觉,他们会觉得是这个星球之上最不幸的人。
首次提出这个说法(病症)的,是来自30年前,驻巴黎一位名叫Hiroaki Ota的日本精神病专家研究出来的。之前,几位到巴黎的日本游客,当他们的礼貌和含蓄碰上高卢鸡的傲慢,就病发了。
Ota在他的办公室接受采访时表示,中国隔开西方这么久,当一些中国游客来到一座城市,发现这里的现实和想象中的不一样,这种反差使他们很容易受到(精神)打击而抑郁。但他指出,中国人患上巴黎综合症的要比日本人少,因为他们的坦率和自信,和法国人有点像。
“相比日本人内敛,谦逊、呆板。中国人和法国人一样,有一种强烈的民族自豪感,而且都不怕羞,”他说。
ThomasDeschamps, the head of research at the Paris Tourism Office, said culture shockwas particularly prevalent among travelers from Asia, who sometimes wronglyperceived the French capital as a museum.
"They watch movies like 'Amélie Poulain'; they think allParisians carry Louis Vuitton purses and smell like Dior," he said. "They don'tknow about the working-class suburbs, the overworked waiters, the grittierparts of the city. Paris is not a museum. People are busy, they are stressed, theyare living their lives."
Tohelp protect and reassure Chinese tourists, Deschamps said, the city has beefedup security at popular sites like the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, whileinstituting warnings in Mandarin to be vigilant against pickpockets on theParis Metro.
TheParis police have also introduced complaint forms in Chinese.
Meanwhile,the tourism industry has redoubled its efforts to be more culturally sensitive.An online guide for hotels and businesses produced by the Chamber of Commercefor Tourism in Paris notes that for visiting Chinese, a "simple smile and hello in their language will plainly please them."
Whilethieves and Gallic aloofness could be a hazard, some Chinese in Paris said theydeserved some of the blame for the French reactions theysometimes provoked.
"The Chinese are used to spitting. We are used to snapping ourfingers to get attention, or even yelling," said Shi,the Chinese travel agency federation chief. "But if youdo that with a French waiter, they will ignore you even more."
巴黎旅游局研究主管,托马斯德尚表示,对亚洲游客人来说,在文化上所受到的冲击最为普遍,有时他们甚至以为法国首都就是一个博物馆。
“他们看过奥黛丽·多杜演的电影,就以为所有巴黎人都挎着路易·威登包,喷着迪奥香水。他说。他们没见乡下的打工族,疲劳的侍者,还有这座城市的真实的一面。巴黎可不是一个博物馆。这里的人们都比较忙,都有压力,他们都是为了生存而生活。”
为了保护、安抚中国游客,德尚说,城该市已在像埃菲尔铁塔和卢浮宫等热门旅游点加强了安保,在巴黎地铁里还贴出普通话警示标识警惕扒手。
巴黎还专门针对中国人设立了投诉站。
同时,旅游部门进一步努力加强文化亲和力。巴黎的旅游商会专为中国游客,制作了网上酒店和消费指南,“用他们的话清晰地向他们送上真诚的微笑与问候”。
虽然小偷和高卢人的冷漠可能是个祸害,但到巴黎的一些中国游客表示,(一些普通)法国人表现有时也让他们感到很气愤,他们理应该得到赔偿。
“中国人吐痰时,我们会提醒他们注意,甚至是去喊”,中国旅行社联合会主席,施说到。“但要是一个法国服务员去那么做,他们根本不搭理你。”