无论您爱不爱钓鱼，都建议去巴拿马看一看
《财富》中文版是我非常喜爱的一份报纸，见缝插针，日日都尽量抽点时间，打开网站或APP去浏览阅读点文章，尤爱读它的中英对照文字。
可其董事长高德思先生（Thomas D. Gorman）的博客（博客名“四不像”）却是在新近，才引起我的注意。老先生为美国人，1974年起，定居香港，自那以后经常到中国各地旅行，汉语水平很棒，他的博文均系英文撰写，话题广泛，涉及跨文化交流、人力资源、教育、旅行、管理等等，文字朴实浅显，不经意间却就流露出作者世间诸事的敏锐思考与真实态度。最是可喜的是，每一篇博文，都经他的中国同事翻译成了汉语，发表前又都经作者本人审核。
真是为立志苦练翻译而又一直找不到如意资料的我，提供了绝佳的参考范本。正可谓“众里寻他千百度，蓦然回首，那人却在灯火阑珊处。”
这篇文章，是作者到巴拿马深海垂钓后写下的一篇小文字。文章介绍了巴拿马人文地理及历史渊源，最后以深海垂钓青枪鱼结束，短短的1000字，信息量却很大。
虽博文已有汉语翻译，但我自己又翻译了一遍，附上供不懂英文的朋友参考。
很多时候，一个地方的名字，就能对我都能产生一股魔力，深深吸引我。就像美国Seattle（西雅图）、San Francisco（三藩市），澳大利亚Brisbane（布里斯班），巴拿马Panama City（巴拿马市），日本おたる（小樽）等等，再如国内江西上饶、吉林伊春、广西百色等，这些地名，也不知为何，第一次知晓，就牵起了我无限的遐想与憧憬。
所以，读到高德思先生这篇关于巴拿马的小文，我就迫不及待想要将它翻译成中文啦。
我也是在最近，开始认识到“人生不满百”的真义，想到日子有年，流光有限，真是应该将不多的生命浪费在美好的人事物身上，才算是不枉这一生呢。
那么，不管你爱不爱垂钓，我都建议你，去巴拿马看看，因为，我也想要去看一看……
I recently made my first visit to Panama, which was full of pleasant surprises. I have visited nearby countries such as Costa Rica, Guatemala, Belize and Mexico, and enjoyed them all for various reasons.
最近，我去了趟巴拿马。去巴拿马还是第一次，它可真是个充满惊喜的国度。在这之前，我曾到过巴拿马周边的国家，像哥斯达黎加、危地马拉、伯利兹、墨西哥，每到一个地方，我都能寻着不同的乐子，玩得很嗨。
The two images which came to mind before my visit, when I thought of Panama, were — of course — the Panama Canal, and stylish Panama hats. What I found when I got there was that the explanation in Panamanian textbooks of the origins of the name “Panama” is an “abundance of fish, trees, and butterflies.”
没去之前，一想起巴拿马，毫无疑问，两样东西自然就会浮现在脑海：巴拿马运河和新潮的帽子。但等到了巴拿马后，我发现，在巴拿马人的教科书里，“巴拿马”这个词儿，本意竟然是指“鱼儿游弋、茂林遍布、蝴蝶翩跹”。
Now I can see why. In an area some 75% of the size of China’s Jiangsu or Zhejiang Provinces, with only half the population of Hong Kong (3.5 million people, of whom half live in Panama City), and 40% of the land area still tropical forests, Panama is indeed abundant in wildlife, birds, butterflies, and fish. Many indigenous, and beautiful species occur only in Panama, which has the highest bio-diversity of any Central American nation.
现在，我总算弄明白个中原由了。在一个面积约相当于中国江苏、浙江７５％大、人口仅有香港５０％多（总人口３５０万，其中，一半聚集在巴拿马市）、热带森林覆盖了国土４０％的国度，巴拿马确实是块风水宝地：野生植物多种多样，珍禽野兽各式各样，蝴蝶翩跹起舞，鱼儿成群游弋。这里，还生活着诸多土生土长、珍奇美丽的物种，中美洲各国，要论生物多样性，巴拿马可是绝对领先。
It seems the Panama tourism authorities need to do more promotion in Asia. I rarely hear the country mentioned as a destination. When I checked in at Hong Kong’s downtown Airport Express Terminal, two bright and helpful staffs from Cathay Pacific were obviously puzzled by the baggage tag “PTY”. I said “Panama City,” to which they asked “Is that in the U.S.?” “No, it’s in Panama,” I responded.
不过，看样子，为扩大在亚洲各国的知名度，巴拿马旅游当局真该多做点什么了呢。我几乎很少听说周围有朋友去巴拿马游玩的。在香港市中心机场安检快速通道安检时，两名阳光和善的国泰航空工作人员看到我行李上标签上的“PTY”字样，显然很困惑。我告诉他们，“巴拿马市”，听到后，他们问，“是在美国吗？”“不，是在巴拿马”，我回答。
In fairness to them, there is indeed a town called Panama City in the US State of Florida, but the main point is that most Asians don’t think of Panama as a tourism destination, which is too bad considering how much it has to offer.
不过，公平点儿讲，他俩也没问错，因为美国佛罗里达州确实有个叫巴拿马市的小城，但我举这个例子，重点是想说明，对很多亚洲人来说，他们压根儿就不会将巴拿马当作旅游目的地。而考虑到巴拿马旅游资源实在丰富，这就太糟糕了！
The history of Panama is inextricably linked to the history of the Panama Canal. Panama seceded from Columbia in 1903, with U.S. assistance, and the US Army Corps of Engineers completed the canal during the ten years 1904-1914. They built upon the 20 years’ effort of their French predecessors.
巴拿马的历史与巴拿马运河可谓有着千丝万缕的联系。在美国的协助下，１９０３年，巴拿马摆脱哥伦比亚的统治；１９０４－１９１４年间，美国陆军工程兵团在法国开凿２０年的基础上，又花了１０年功夫，最终开通了巴拿马运河。
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed an agreement stating that by 1999, the US would forego its share of revenues, so that 100% of the revenues from the canal would accrue to Panama. The result has been significant economic growth, with canal revenues accounting for a large share of GDP. No surprise, then, that locals had a cool reaction when I mentioned a Chinese company’s plan to build a new canal through Nicaragua.
１９７７年，总统吉米.卡特与巴拿马签订协议，同意１９９９年，美国放弃巴拿马运河运营所得，将全部收入归巴拿马。这带来了巴拿马经济的明显增长，而其中，运河收入就占了ＧＤＰ的绝大部分。难怪，当听到我说中国公司打算修建一条横贯尼加拉瓜的运河时，巴拿马本地人很不高兴了呢。
Panama’s economy is service-based: banking, trading, tourism, commerce and logistics. Its most precious natural resource is water. It has a tropical climate, and a favorable business and tax environment for investors. Panama City is Central America’s most cosmopolitan city by far, with a large (around 150,000) and well-established Chinese population. The historic old city center, which boasts buildings, churches and museums dating back hundreds of years, is in the midst of a major renovation effort.
巴拿马经济以服务业为主导，包括银行业、贸易业、旅游业、商业以及物流业。该国属于热带气候，最宝贵的自然资源是水。对投资者来说，它拥有一个友好的经商税务环境。到目前为止，巴拿马市仍是中美洲国际化程度最高的大都市，大约有十五万华人在这里安居乐业。老城中心的许多大楼、教堂、博物馆已有几百年历史，目前正在进行大规模改造。
The Panama Canal runs about 85 kilometers, linked the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. Some 60-70 giant ships traverse the canal each day, averaging 8-10 hours per trip. Tourists, on the other hand, can make the drive along the side of the canal in about an hour, in theory having time for a meal at a seaside restaurant on both coasts during the same day. There is also an 'antique’ steam railway.
巴拿马运河有八万五千公里长，连接加勒比海和太平洋。每天，约有六七十艘巨轮从这里通过，平均航程为８到１０小时。然而，如果观光客沿着巴拿马运河驾车，大约１小时就能走完全程，理论上还有时间在两岸的海滨餐馆吃顿饭呢，那里还有“古董”蒸汽火车可以搭乘。
Speaking of abundant fish, my main purpose in visiting Panama was deep-sea fishing. Specifically, my goal was to catch a marlin on a fly rod, using my own fly rod and a fly I had tied myself.
谈到丰富的鱼类资源，我此行最主要的目的就是去深海垂钓，尤其想用我自己的飞杆和假蝇（作鱼饵的像苍蝇的东西）钓上一条青枪鱼来。
I have caught sailfish, tuna and other big fish on a fly rod, but the marlin is considered an especially challenging quarry because of its power. By definition, fly fishing gear is very lightweight when compared to conventional deep sea fishing gear, so keeping a very big fish on the line without it breaking the line is no mean feat.
我用自己的飞杆钓到过像旗鱼、金枪鱼以及其它一些大鱼，但青枪鱼因为力气之大，素来被公认为难以拿下的猎物。从定义上就可看出，与传统深海钓具相比，飞杆钓具很轻，因此用它来与大鱼搏斗，而又不让鱼将拉线扯断，就很需要技术了。
Once I knew the time frame I had available for my trip, I began searching the web for a place with good weather, plenty of marlin (and other big fish), good boats and crew, and comfortable accomodations. I soon found The Panama Big Game Fishing Club, and from its website and independent travellers’ reviews it looked like a good choice. I wasn’t mistaken. In fact, it’s one of the best fishing resorts I’ve stayed in anywhere.
大致行程一定下来，我就开始在网上搜索，想寻一个天气佳、青枪鱼（或别的大鱼）多、渔船水手棒、住宿好的地儿。很快，就发现巴拿马大猎物钓鱼俱乐部，从官网上顾客的评论看，似乎是个不错的选择。我没弄错。实际上，它是我去过的最好的钓鱼胜地之一了。
I got a slow start to the fly fishing because the airline, COPA, lost my fishing rod case. Inside were my favorite fly rods, carefully chosen for the kind of fishing I planned to do here. The resort kindly lent me the use of some of their fine gear, but I didn’t really feel comfortable until my own stuff arrived.
不过，因为巴拿马航空公司弄掉了我的渔具箱，我没能马上开始钓鱼。渔具箱里有我心爱的飞杆，还有为此次垂钓精心准备的鱼饵。俱乐部友好地给我借了他们的渔具，但直到我自己的渔具到了我才能真正静下心开始钓。
Anyway, after a slow start and eventual delivery of my lost fishing rods, I realized my dream. Using a fly I had tied at home in Hong Kong, I caught and released a 300 lb. blue marlin on a fly rod. A very beautiful and very powerful fish. I would have released it anyway, but I am glad to report that the law in Panama and many other Central American countries now requires that sailfish and marlin be released, for conservation purposes.
不管怎么说，虽然比预计开始玩了些，我的飞杆也姗姗来迟，但最终，我还是圆了梦。用在香港家中自制的假饵，成功地钓上而后又放生了一条重达３００磅的青枪鱼。它可是一条非常有力且无比漂亮的大家伙啦。虽然，我本来就打算将鱼放生的，但在这里，还是想普及一下：在巴拿马及中美洲很多国家，法律规定，钓上的旗鱼和青枪鱼必须放生，以保护生态环境。
From the hook-up to the release, it took 2 hours and 20 minutes. On light tackle, that’s a fairly exhausting but very exciting experience. The fish was still in very strong shape, and swam away vigorously.
从钓上到放生，整整用了两个小时二十分钟。对使用轻型装备的我来说，这可真是一场筋疲力尽而又刺激兴奋的体验。那条青枪鱼状态很好，游走时还健硕得很哩！
To my surprise, I found that when we returned to the dock late that afternoon, this was the first marlin that anyone had caught on a fly rod in the 15-year history of the club. Me, Captain Tati, and Mate Narcisso were instant heroes. Lots of kudos and high fives. The Club owner, Mr. C., even presented me with an award plaque.
出乎意料的是，下午回到码头，我才发现，俱乐部成立１５年来，还是第一次有人用飞杆钓上了第一条青枪鱼。我、船长Tati、同事 Narcisso瞬间成了英雄，捕获称赞无数。俱乐部老板甚至还为了颁发了一枚勋章。
All in all, a wonderful adventure. I will return to Panama. If you are looking for an interesting and colorful destination for your next trip (fishing or not), I encourage you to check it out.
总之，那次旅行实在是极棒啦。我想，有一天，我还会再去巴拿马的。如果你也正在寻找下一个有趣好玩的旅游目的地，不管你钓不钓鱼，我都建议你去那里看看。