Coming of Age Ceremony in Taipei
台北孔庙成年礼
Ling-Yi Hsieh, David Lee
【新闻关键字】
1. coming of age: ph. 成年
2. ceremony: n. 典礼
3. sponsor: v. 赞助
4. cap: v. 给…戴帽
5. hairpin: n. 发簪
6. deputy: a. 副的
7. significance: n. 意义
Last Sunday the Rotary club sponsored a traditional coming of age ceremony at the Confucious temple in Taiwan. 82 foreign exchange students, aged 17 to 18 were given the opportunity to participate. French student Margaret Bouron enjoyed the Confucious way of celebrating adulthood.
上周日扶轮社赞助台北孔庙传统成年礼。82名年纪在17到18岁外国交换学生，得以参加此活动。法国学生玛格莉特‧包伦很喜爱这种庆祝成年的孔式方法。
[Margaret Bouron, French Exchange Student]:
“We don’t have this kind of ceremony. For us 18 is just the age of fun so it’s not like this.”
法国交换学生玛格莉特‧包伦说：“我们没有这种典礼。对我们来说，18岁正是玩乐的年纪，所以和这有所不同。”
“Yeah I think it’s really nice, it’s really nice to have a ceremony like this. It’s official and you will remember this for your whole life. So I think it’s really nice.”
“对啊，我认为这很棒，有一个像这样的典礼真的很棒。这是正式的，而且让你终身难忘。”
The students, from 17 different countries including Germany, Denmark and America, really appreciated this opportunity to learn about different cultures, as this student from America explains,
来自17个不同国家，包括德国、丹麦和美国，学生非常感谢有机会学习不同的文化，就像这位美国学生所说的，
[Clarissa Montgomery, American Exchange Student]:
“See what other cultures are like and other people and to understand the way other people whose culture may be very different from mine live, and to appreciate the similarities and the differences.”
美国交换学生克莱莉莎‧蒙特哥蒙利说：“看看不同文化是什么样子，还有其他人，以及了解文化和我生活大相径庭的人是怎么做，并感谢这些相似及差异。”
The participants first wash their hands in a golden bowl to symbolize the washing away of old habits. Then, after walking under a table, the men were given a capping ceremony. The women were also given a hairpin ceremony to mark the start of adulthood. Taipei’s deputy mayor Li Yong Ping was there and told us about the ceremony’s significance.
这些参加者首先在金碗中洗手，象征洗去旧习。接着，在走过桌底之后，男性接受加冠礼，女性则接受发簪礼，表示成年的开始。台北市副市长李永萍在现场分享关于典礼的意义。
【新闻关键字】
8. hand down: ph. 把…传下去
9. take on: ph. 承担
10. choreograph: v. 编舞
11. Wing Chun: n. 咏春
[Li Yong Ping, Deputy Mayor, Taipei]:
“When they have the opportunity to get in touch with Chinese culture and understand the meaning behind the coming of age ceremony, I believe they will play their role well in society. They will know their social responsibilities, understand different cultures and experience it in depth. This is a good example and a great platform for handing down the Chinese tradition.”
台北市副市长李永萍说：“当他们有机会接触中华文化，且了解成年礼背后的意义，我相信他们可以在社会上扮演好他们的角色。他们会知道自己的社会责任，了解并深度体验不同的文化。这是传承中华传统的佳例，及很好的平台。”
In the west, the turn to adulthood is celebrated in a completely different way. Brett Clarke, a student from America has been living in Taiwan for 3 months. He liked the moral responsibilities that the ceremony represents.
在西方，庆祝迈入成年的方法很不一样。美国学生布莱德‧克拉克已在台湾住了三个月。他喜欢典礼所意涵的道德责任。
[Brett Clark, American Exchange Student]:
“There’s a lot of differences between this and the United States. I think this is so much more ceremonial and special than the United States.”
美国交换学生布莱德‧克拉克说：“这和在美国的情形有很多差异。我想这比在美国富有更多的仪式性，也更特别。”
“It’s about becoming responsible for your actions, a lot of it’s about responsibility and it’s about being able to accept the challenges in life and being able to take them on.”
“这表示开始对你的行为负责，更是关于责任，关于有能力接受并承担生活中的挑战。”
Traditional music was played by local high school students and a ceremonial dance was performed. The foreign exchange students also gave a well choreographed Wing Chun performance on the stage.
由当地中学生演奏传统乐曲，且有仪式舞的表演。外国交换学生也在舞台上演出精彩的自编咏春拳。
本新闻影音出处：新唐人电视台英语
http://english.ntdtv.com/ntdtv_en/ns_asia/2009-12-16/439985257242.html
