夏至,2014-06-21
【Aiden in English】 I was sick and tired of Ocean City in MD, and so was Dad. That's when Dad had a brilliant idea to visit Baltimore and its aquarium, the largest in the nation. I agreed at once and we bolted for the car. There was so much for a brilliant idea. The price doubled from the last time I'd been here.
As I walked into the building, I noticed that there weren’t many really exciting things to do like feed fish or touch them. Instead, there were boards of information that I barely even tried to read. Even the dolphin show was gone and the show was replaced with a training demo since some trainers got killed by the trainees or dolphins during training routines. It became more controversial than ever before, though. Now only a few aquariums in the US were still hosting dolphin shows. People also thought that it resulted in animal abuse because some animals may not like performing, which I understood. Something inside me also felt grateful for the people who noticed the animal's rights and emotions.
What slapped me in the face was that when I was young, this aquarium was one of my favorite places. Back then, I thought it was filled with wonders of the sea. And I still think so now, except for Baltimore Natl. The aquarium kinda lost its luster. Probably because I expect more as I grow up, but whatever reason it is, I'm not going back.
【红霞译文】
我实在玩腻了马里兰(意译“心爱”)州海洋城,老爸所见略同。正在此时,他灵机一动计上心来,何不到大房子城遛达一趟,顺便参观全美最大的水族馆,我举双手赞成。于是,俩人钻进车里,旋风般狂奔而去。
虽说主意不赖,但我们为此而付出加倍的代价,门票面值比我上次来访时正好翻了一番。
我一走进大楼即刻发现,除了喂鱼亲手触摸海洋动物之类的游艺项目外,大房子城国家水族馆不再令我兴致盎然,我甚至懒得追踪布告栏上的消息报道。海豚表演也被取消,取而代之的训练示范可用来画饼充饥。海豚表演越来越有争议,由于某些教练员因训练海豚而横遭海豚报复致死,现在美国国内仅有个别几家水族馆仍保留这项娱乐活动。与此同时,公众也认为海豚表演势必导致虐待动物,因为有的动物未必喜欢登台演出,我深表理解。值得欣慰的是,动物权利及其情感问题已经引起人们的关注。 我好像在掴自己一记耳光,回想起小时候,该水族馆可谓本人最喜欢光顾的地方之一,年幼的我对大海满怀憧憬。如今我依然迷恋十万个为什么,只是不再着眼于大房子城国家水族馆。或许随着年龄增长,我的期望值大幅度提高,但无论何种原因,我不会故地重游。
Baltimore Inner Harbor (大房子城内港 06-21-2014)
Natl Aquarium in Baltimore (大房子城国家水族馆 06-21-2014)
Blacktip Reef (黑鳍礁 09-01-2006)
Brain Coral (脑珊瑚)
Jelly Blubber (镶嵌水母) Crosslinks(相关博文):
USA(出游美国)
5th Grade(小学五年级)
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