小孤岛，大冒险

By Christine Mc Cafferty

Shannon and Christine， our two backpacking adventurers were on the west coast of Ireland， in the Republic of Ireland， in the beautiful little port city of Galway1. They were staying with none other than the harbourmaster2 of Galway himself. Frank had many， many friends， including Sean who invited the girls on a sailing trip on his wooden yacht to the Aran Islands3 out to the west.

The next day Sean fetched us. We went with him， and his friend Ryan， through some rough Irish countryside known as the Connemara Coast4. I never will forget the stone walls crisscrossing5 the green fields. The fields were rocky and the farmers poor. They cleared the lands of stones and packed them one on top of the other without cutting them or using mortar6 to build the walls.

We reached Castle Bay， a bay with nothing much but boats moored7 on the water. We set off from there on a flimsy-looking rubber dinghy for Seans yacht，8 named Sullivan John. It was moored on a rather angrylooking stormy Atlantic ocean， about a few hundred metres offshore. Shannon and I looked at each other； we were worried but the two old men assured us that everything would be absolutely fine. They had hardly said that when the dinghy ran out of fuel. Sean and his elderly friend paddled and puffed away desperately.9 Despite being nervous， we could not help laughing.

在戈爾韦市逗留没多久，不安分的Christine和Shannon再次背起行囊，登上通往远离尘嚣的小岛的船只，去探访那里的考古遗迹和早期的基督教遗址，开启属于她们的大航海时代。可是这次航海的经历却不像她们设想的那样潇洒，甚至还有些狼狈……

We eventually got to Sullivan John， which was a two-masted10 timber sailing yacht. It was about 40 feet long. With the inboard motor going， we set off for the biggest of the three Aran Islands. I was so SEASICK—it was HORRIBLE！ Sean and Ryan were battling outside but we lay on a bed inside and refused to move. They were struggling to get the sails up. Eventually Ryan shouted， “Come girls. Come see her. Shes in full flight. Shes beautiful.”I looked at Shannon and rolled my eyes. We could not even reply； we were feeling so sick. By the time we arrived at Inishmore， it felt like I was about to die. The ocean was still rough and it was raining heavily. As we attempted to moor the yacht， Ryan dropped the rope and it got caught in the propeller11. I continued to lie on the bed and declared I would NOT be setting my foot outside to help.

I got myself off the bed though and back onto the dinghy when we were told that we would be heading ashore. I couldnt wait to get my feet on dry ground. I was shaking and dizzy when I finally put my feet on wet muddy ground. We headed straight to the first pub we saw called The Oar12. When we got there， the barman could barely believe that we had made it over. It had been so stormy， and the conditions so dangerous， that the big daily ferry had been cancelled， yet somehow we had made it alive in a little yacht. Shannon and I looked at each other. We were very angry with the two old men， who looked sheepish13 and kept very quiet！

The three Aran Islands are quiet and rugged14. Most of the people still speak the old Irish language， Gaelic15. There were a few pretty slow-speaking guys at the pub. They seemed quite desperate for our attention. I guess young women seldom visited these islands， even ones who looked as unkempt16 as we did after the rough day on the water. It was interesting to meet these people， but by the end of the evening I felt quite ready to head home and， by home， I mean back to Galway and dry ground！ I was imagining being rescued and taken home by airplane. But we were to stay overnight on the boat—and there was no shower aboard and it was so cramped17.

I decided that boating was NOT for me. “I HATE sailing，” I wrote in my diary. Shannon and I didnt mind Sean， but Ryan annoyed us no end； he drove us quite mad. That night， as we headed to our cramped little shared bed， Ryan tried to kiss Shannon good night. I promptly went to the galley and picked up the bread knife， and walked past him with it visible.18 He asked me what on earth I was doing， I replied， “You never know who might come into our room！” The poor old man looked quite stunned19. He was probably completely harmless but I was feeling very grumpy20.

All night long we were tossed and turned on a choppy ocean.21 But we werent going to head back yet. In the morning we got back in the dinghy and headed to the island again. We spent a day seeing the island that almost made the agony of the trip worth it.22 I say almost. First we went to see a famous prehistoric hill fort called Dún Aonghasa.23 It lies at the edge of a 100-metre high cliff with a spectacular view over the ocean to the west. Excavations24 at the site show that it was first built around 1100BC. Its name means “Fort of Aonghas”which most likely refers to a pre-Christian god of the same name which is described in Irish myths. The original shape was either oval or D-shaped， but parts of the cliff and fort have since fallen into the sea.

Next we went to a site named the “Seven Churches”25 which dates from the eighth century. It is from the time that Christianity became significant in the area. The churches and other buildings were made of beautiful stonework with impressive arches and altars.26 Old gravestones and other markers with beautiful carved stone Celtic crosses were dotted across the site.27

We ended up relaxing beside a perfect natural pool in the rocks. It was unbelievable how much it looked like a swimming pool， but the water felt freezing cold. We walked with Seans friends through fields， as they spoke Gaelic. It was incredible that this ancient language was still alive on these remote islands. Other than that， we went into pubs all day to warm up and socialise. Then it was back to the Sullivan John for another rough night. Shannon and I did manage a laugh though when we found a rope tied in the shape of a noose.28 We joked that if the seasickness got too bad， at least we had a way out.

The next morning early we set off home. The water was not as rough as the journey there， but going back was just as unbearable for us. Shannon hung over the side retching29 and I was on the bed wishing for death. We were too worn out and sick to appreciate that wed been given the adventure of a lifetime！

When we moored up in Castle Bay， we were offered the opportunity to scrub30 the deck of the yacht for 20 Irish pounds each. All we wanted to do was leave but Shannon and I needed money， and this was our first chance to make some in quite a few weeks.

We finally got back to Franks home in Galway late that afternoon. It was fabulous to take a bath and put our clothes in the wash.

Shannon and Christine spend one more night in Galway. Frank and Sean are determined to take them out so that the two girls can find some “decent-looking Irish guys”. Would they or wouldnt they？

1. Galway： 戈尔韦，爱尔兰共和国（简称“爱尔兰”）西部港市，被誉为爱尔兰的“文化首都”和“西部之都”，亦作“高威”。

2. harbourmaster： 港务长。

3. Aran Islands： 阿伦群岛，是位于爱尔兰西海岸的戈尔韦市海湾口的一个较大的群岛，由伊尼什莫尔岛（Inishmore）、伊尼什曼岛（Inishmaan）和伊尼希尔岛（Inisheer）三个石灰岩岛屿组成。

4. Connemara Coast： 康尼马拉海岸地区，是爱尔兰西海岸的原始山区，这里的土著居民至今仍使用爱尔兰语。

5. criss-cross： 纵横交叉，形成交叉线。

6. mortar：（砌砖等用的）砂浆，灰浆。

7. moor： 停泊，系泊。

8. flimsy-looking： 看起来轻而薄的，不结实的；rubber dinghy： 橡皮艇。

9. paddle： 划桨行进；puff： 喘息，喘气。

10. two-masted： 雙船桅的。

11. propeller： （轮船上的）螺旋桨，推进器。

12. oar： 船桨。

13. sheepish： 羞怯的，局促不安的。

14. rugged： 高低不平的，崎岖的。

15. Gaelic： 盖尔语，一种源于苏格兰、爱尔兰等地的古老的语言，此处专指爱尔兰盖尔语（Irish Gaelic）。

16. unkempt： 未梳理的，不修边幅的。

17. cramped： 狭窄的，拥挤的。

18. promptly： 立即地，迅速地；galley： （船上的）厨房。

19. stunned： 震惊的，目瞪口呆的。

20. grumpy： 生气的，坏脾气的。

21. toss and turn： 翻来覆去，辗转不能入睡；choppy： 波涛汹涌的。

22. 我们花了一整天的时间参观这座岛，这使得旅途上遭的那些罪还算值得。agony：（极度的）痛苦，创痛。

23. prehistoric： 史前的；hill fort：山丘堡垒；Dún Aonghasa： 爱尔兰语，意为邓昂哈撒城堡（Fort of Aonghas），阿伦群岛上最大的史前遗迹，也是爱尔兰最知名的古迹之一。

24. excavation：（考古性的）挖掘。

25. Seven Churches： 七大教堂，早期的基督教遗迹。

26. stonework： 建筑物的石造部分；arch： 拱门，拱形结构；altar： （教堂内的）圣坛，祭坛。

27. gravestone： 墓碑；marker： 纪念碑；Celtic cross： 凯尔特式十字架（十字交叉处有圆环）；dot： （星星点点地）布满，点缀。

28. 尽管如此，当我和香农（在船上）发现了一个系成绞索的绳套时，还是设法找到了乐子。noose： 绞索，套索。

29. retch： 干呕。

30. scrub： 擦洗，擦净。