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I've never had less of a plan in my life than I do upon arrival in Bali. In all my history of careless travels, this is the most carelessly I've ever landed anyplace. I don't know where I'm going to live, I don't know what I'm going to do, I don't know what the exchange rate is, I don't know how to get a taxi at the airport—or even where to ask that taxi to take me. Nobody is ex-pecting my arrival. I have no friends in Indonesia, or even friends-of-friends. And here's the problem about traveling with an out-of-date guidebook, and then not reading it anyway: I didn't realize that I'm actually not allowed to stay in Indonesia for four months, even if I want to. I find this out only upon entry into the country. Turns out I'm allowed only a one-month tourist visa. It hadn't occurred to me that the Indonesian government would be anything less than delighted to host me in their country for just as long as I pleased to stay.
我這輩子從未有哪回像抵達巴厘島時更無計劃。在我漫不經(jīng)心的旅游史中，這是最草率的一次登陸。我不清楚住哪里，不清楚要做什么，不清楚兌換率，不清楚在機場如何叫計程車——甚至不知道到哪里叫計程車。沒有人期待我到來。我在印尼沒有朋友，連朋友的朋友也沒有。帶著過時的旅游指南旅行且放著不讀，這造成了一個問題：我沒搞清楚自己即使想待在印尼四個月，也不被允許。我在入境時才發(fā)現(xiàn)這件事。結(jié)果只被批準一個月的觀光簽證。我沒想過印尼政府并不樂意讓我在他們的國家愛待多久就待多久。
As the nice immigration official is stamping my passport with permission to stay in Bali for only and exactly thirty days, I ask him in my most friendly manner if I can please remain longer.
和善的入境檢查員在我護照上蓋章，準許我在巴厘島只待整整三十天。我以最友好的態(tài)度問他能否讓我待久一點。
"No," he says, in his most friendly manner. The Balinese are famously friendly. "See, I'm supposed to stay here for three or four months," I tell him.
“行?！彼宰钣焉频膽B(tài)度回答。巴厘人以友善知名?！拔覒?yīng)當在這兒待三或四個月的?！蔽腋嬖V他。
I don't mention that it's a prophecy—that my staying here for three or four months was predicted two years ago by an elderly and quite possibly demented Balinese medicine man, during a ten-minute palm-reading. I'm not sure how to explain this.
But what did that medicine man tell me, now that I think of it? Did he actually say that I would come back to Bali and spend three or four months living with him? Did he really say "living with" him? Or did he just want me to drop by again sometime if I was in the neighborhood and give him another ten bucks for another palm-reading? Did he say I would come back, or that I should come back? Did he really say, "See you later, alligator"? Or was it, "In a while, crocodile"?
但現(xiàn)在想想，這位藥師究竟跟我說了什么？他果真說我會回到巴厘島，與他同住三四個月？他果真說與他"同住"？或者他只是要我人在附近的話，順道再去看他，再給他十塊錢看一次手相？他是說我“會”回來，或是我“該”回來？他果真說了“回頭見”或“再見啦”？
I haven't had any communication with the medicine man since that one evening. I wouldn't know how to contact him, anyway. What might his address be? "Medicine Man, On His Porch, Bali, Indonesia"? I don't know whether he's dead or alive. I remember that he seemed ex-ceedingly old two years ago when we met; anything could have happened to him since then.
打從那天晚上起，我未曾與藥師有過聯(lián)系。反正我也不曉得如何和他聯(lián)系。他的地址是哪里？“陽臺上的藥師，印尼巴厘島”？我也不清楚他是生是死。我記得兩年前見面時，他似乎相當老；在那之后，他可能遭遇任何事情。
All I have for sure is his name—Ketut Liyer—and the memory that he lives in a village just outside the town of Ubud. But I don't remember the name of the village.
我只確定他名叫賴爺，記得他住在烏布鎮(zhèn)郊的村子里。卻記不得村名。
Maybe I should have thought all this through better.Eat, Pray, Love
或許我早該好好想過這一切。
