2013-12-21 Winter Solstice 
【Aiden in English】 When the alarm clock woke me this morning, I thought today would be another boring day at sea when Nautica Oceania was en route to Mahe, Seychelles, from Male, Maldives, crossing the Equator in the Indian Ocean. But oh, how I was wrong. From the beginning of time, seafarers had partaken in ancient ceremonial initiations for crossing specific global navigational coordinates. Such practices were so vintage in origin that their derivation had been lost. Still, it was believed that initiations in such secret societies began in the Middle Ages and might have begun with the Vikings! Here we were for the Equator crossing ceremony. All Polliwogs, soft and gushy creatures that had never crossed the Equator, had to take an initiation ritual and join the secret society of Shellbacks, the complex and demanding creatures that had crossed the Equator.
This was my 2nd time by sea after crossing the Equator two times by land, and four times by air in the past. However, I still did it for the thrills after King Neptune, the master and ruler of the seas, was calling the Polliwogs. First, you had to kiss a red sea bass. If you thought that was bad enough, you also had to be drenched in a gooey substance that included food bran, flour, chowder, oats, and maybe a little glue. As I approached the fish, the smell hit me like a slap to the face. Now I was standing before the fish, staring at it. The one reason I passed was that Emily, behind me, slapped me forward into the fish. Let's just say trash couldn't even be compared to sea bass. Moving on, the gooey substances were poured onto me, and my stomach flip-flopped as it went down my shirt. It felt like tiny bugs crawling all over my body, and they even went into my hair (which wasn't too bad considering that I didn't have long hair).
Right after that, the first place I went to was the pool shower, but it was too late. The gooey had hardened on my skin and hair. So no matter what I did, it wouldn't come off. If you were very fashionable, then this was not your thing. But strangely, even though it was gross and disgusting, it was also fun. I probably won't do this again, but doing these things gave me a story to tell children when they think something is gross or disgusting.
【红霞译文】
早晨我被闹钟吵醒，心想今个儿海上飘泊将很无聊，“大洋·航海”号游轮离开马尔代夫首都马累“宫殿”前往塞舌尔共和国马埃“神赐”岛，正在印度洋穿越赤道。天吆，我真是睡昏了头。
有史以来，每当初次穿越地球特定纬度时，海员们都要举行灌顶仪式以示庆祝。如今这种传统虽已无法考证，但从中世纪起，据说海盗最先发起秘密社团各种入会仪式，这就是为何我们要有穿行赤道洗礼的来由。今天，从来没有穿越赤道的脆软“嫩蝌蚪”将正式加入曾经穿越赤道的“老水手”行列。
虽然这将是我有生以来第八次海陆空穿越赤道，但我还是积极响应大洋领袖“海王星”首领的号召，兴致勃勃地参加隆重而特别的庆典活动。按照惯例，人们首先得亲吻红鲈鱼，当然这还不算完，接下来再被浇上由麸皮、面粉、海鲜杂烩、麦片、也许还有胶水调制的浆糊。当我向鱼走近，异味立刻扑鼻而来。我站在鱼前端详了一会，不料艾米丽从后猛推一把，结果我匆匆完成了这道程序。要知道，当时的感觉比嗅到垃圾桶的味道还难闻。再说浆糊浇身一事，我内心翻江倒海，好像小虫子在我身体上头发里面爬来爬去，幸亏我寸头短发，豁出去无大所谓。 完事之后，我赶紧跑去游泳池边冲水龙头，可惜已经来不及了，浆糊黏住皮肤头发根本洗不下来。如果你爱时尚，这绝对不是你想干的事情。奇怪的是，虽然它看起来有点恶心，但弄在身上还是挺有趣的。或许我会下不为例，可是这样一次经历足以叫我大长见识，将来我甚至可以“以老卖老”告诉子孙后代。 Today in History(历史上的今天): 2012: Vina Del Mar the Vineyard at Sea, Chile(智利海上葡萄园) 2010: 月全食(Total Lunar Eclipse) 2009: 新西兰怀欧塔普地热仙境(Waiotapu Thermal Wonderland, NZ) 2009: 新西兰罗托鲁瓦(Rotorua, NZ)  Equator Crossing Ceremony (庆祝穿越赤道)
 Polliwogs & Shellbacks (“嫩蝌蚪”与“老水手”12-21-2013)
 Pre-Celebration (庆祝前 12-21-2013)
 King Neptune (“海王星”首领 12-21-2013)
 Kiss a Red Sea Bass (亲吻红鲈鱼 12-21-2013)
 Drench a Gooey Substance (浇浆糊 12-21-2013)
 Gooey Stuff w/ Food Bran, Flour, Chowder, Oats, & Glue
(麸皮、面粉、海鲜杂烩、麦片、胶水组成的浆糊 12-21-2013)
Shower (冲浴 12-21-2013)  Post-Celebration (庆典后 12-21-2013)
 Thrill after the Ceremony
(事后按耐不住激动的心情 12-21-2013) Crosslink(相关博文): Across the Indian Ocean(穿越印度洋) 5th Grade(小学五年级) |
