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36. Vancouver: Asia's Newest City
36. 溫哥華--亞洲新城
What? Wait a minute! Did I read that right?
咦？等一下！我沒有看錯吧？
I thought Vancouver was in Canada, not in Asia.
我以為溫哥華是在加拿大，而不是在亞洲的。
Why is the title of this article "Vancouver: Asia's Newest City"?
為什么這篇文章的標題卻是：“溫哥華——亞洲新城”？
Relax, everyone. Yes, Vancouver is still in Canada, North America's largest country, not in Asia.
各位看倌，不要緊張。沒錯，溫哥華仍位在北美洲最大的國家加拿大境內，而不是在亞洲。
Over the past twenty years, however, Asians from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines, and other countries across the ocean have flocked into this largest city on Canada's Pacific coast.
然而，過去20年中，來自中國、臺灣、香港、泰國、菲律賓以及其它亞洲國家的各路人馬大批涌進這個位于加拿大太平洋海岸的最大都市。
By some accounts, as many as 30% of households in Vancouver speak Mandarin or Cantonese, making the Chinese there the largest minority by far.
根據若干統計，在溫哥華多達30%的家庭操華語或廣東話，使得當地華人成為人數最多的少數民族。
Just what is the attraction of this English-speaking city, however?
然而，這個操英語的都市到底有什么吸引力呢？
A visit to Vancouver quickly reveals her charms.
到溫哥華走一趟很快就會發現它的魅力了。
Situated on the ocean and possessing a fine, deep-water port, British Columbia's largest city faces Vancouver Island to the west and mountains to the east and north.
這個英屬哥倫比亞的最大都市座落在太平洋岸上，擁有一個很不錯的深水港，西臨溫哥華島，東邊和北邊則是群山環繞。
Most of the city is relatively new, having been rebuilt after a great fire in 1886.
溫哥華大部分地區是在1886年大火之后重建的，所以整個市貌看起來相當新。
The completion of the Panama Canal in 1915 during World War I helped spur growth all along the West Coast of North America,
1915年第一次世界大戰期間，巴拿馬運河完工，整個北美洲的西海岸得以蓬勃發展。
as products from the western states of the United States and the western provinces of Canada could be profitably shipped to Europe.
因為美國西岸幾個州和加拿大西部幾個省的產品可運往歐洲銷售牟利，
By the 1930s Vancouver had become Canada's third-largest city, a position it maintains today.
到了1930年代，溫哥華就已成了加拿大第三大都市，至今，這個地位還沒改變。
Lumber from the extensive forested areas within the province, minerals, seafood, and assorted industries, including tourism, give the million-plus residents of metropolitan Vancouver a high standard of living.
該省內廣大林區所生產的木材、礦產、海鮮及各式各樣工業，包括旅游業在內，為這個人口超過百萬的大溫哥華地區帶來很高的生活水平。
The city itself is comfortable and attractive.
溫哥華本身就是一個舒適又具有吸引力的都市。
A large central park called Stanley Park includes a zoo, gardens, arboretum, and aquarium!
史坦利公園是座大型的中央公園，內有一座動物園，數座花園，一座植物園和一間水族館。
The University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University are located in the greater Vancouver area, as are many small and quaint farming and fishing villages within a few hours' drive.
英屬哥倫比亞大學和賽門?佛瑞瑟大學則位于大溫哥華區，區內尚有許多具有特色的小漁村或小農村，開車只要幾個鐘頭就可到達。
Scenic, unpolluted, and prosperous: who could ask for anything more? Certainly not the Chinese.
風景優美，無污染而且繁榮：還有什么可求的呢？對中國人而言，的確沒什么可求的了。
Although limited immigration from the Far East began as early as the 19th century, it was not until the 1970s that immigration to both Canada and the United States began to increase significantly.
雖然來自亞洲遠東地區的移民早在十九世紀就開始了，不過數量有限，直到1970年代，前往美加兩國的移民數量才開始劇增。
By the 1980s, the steady stream had become a flood.
到了1980年代，這股穩定的移民潮才像洪水般涌入。
Today, Vancouver's Chinatown is said to be North America's second largest.
今天，溫哥華的中國城據說已是北美洲第二大中國城。
Given the large numbers of Chinese living in the much larger cities of New York, Toronto, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, that represents astronomical growth.
與住在紐約、多倫多、洛杉磯和舊金山等更大城市的華人人數相比，這樣的成長算是非常快速的了。
Vancouver's Chinatown is located within walking distance of the downtown area, as are most Chinatowns in North America.
溫哥華的中國城離市中心很近，步行就可到達；這情形就如同北美地區的大多數中國城一樣。
Here one can find both traditional Chinese herbal stores and fresh food markets as well as small retail and service businesses.
在中國城里您可以找到傳統的中藥店和新鮮市場、零售店及服務業。
From mid-May to September, Friday to Sunday evenings from 6:30 to 11:30, both Chinese and "foreign" visitors to this area might mistake themselves as being in Shanghai or Hong Kong.
每年5月中旬到9月間，中外的觀光客如果在星期五到星期天晚上六點半到11點半這段時間造訪中國城，不論是老中及“老外”，都很可能會誤以為自己是身處在上海或香港。
For daytime visitors, the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Gardens is a must, offering beautifully landscaped floral gardens.
對白天的觀光客來說，孫逸仙中式古典花園是必游之地，它提供了非常美麗的花園景觀。
The nearby Chinese Cultural Center conducts walking tours of the historic district and even a slide show revealing the historic development of the area.
鄰近的中國文化中心會舉辦古跡徒步旅游，甚至還舉辦幻燈片展，透露中國城的發展史。
Of course, Vancouver has much more to offer its residents and out-of-town and overseas visitors.
當然，溫哥華還有更多的東西值得居民、外地人及海外觀光客游覽。
Though--or perhaps because--it lacks the manic energy of East Coast cities of North America or those of modern Asia, Vancouver continues to attract new residents with its serene, safe, and, well, sane lifestyle.
雖然溫哥華缺乏北美東岸都市或亞洲現代都市的狂熱活力，但或許正因如此，溫哥華不斷地以它特有的寧靜、安全、富裕以及理性的生活方式吸引著新移民。
