好英语网一家警署改造的酒店折射香港历史
HONG KONG — Hong Kong is a city in constant flux, reinventing itself virtually every day. New buildings seem to appear overnight, shops are suddenly transformed, and everyone is always on the go.
香港——香港是个不断变化的城市，真的是每天都在改造自己。好像一夜之间就冒出很多新大楼，店铺在突然之间就改头换面，每个人永远都在四处奔波。
But on Lantau Island, within sight of the gambling enclave of Macau on a clear day, there is a town that is not much changed from the Hong Kong of 150 years ago.
大屿山上有一个小镇，与150年前相比，这里没有太多变化；天气晴好的时候，从这里能看到澳门的赌博飞地。
Tai O is a classic Chinese stilt village. Hawkers sell shrimp paste, dried scallops and duck eggs at the side of the road. There are no cars. And it is not uncommon to see women wearing the traditional Hakka headgear, a wide-brimmed straw hat with a veil of sorts to keep the sometimes-fierce sun at bay.
大澳是个典型的中式渔村，村里的房屋大多是“高脚屋”。小贩们在路边卖虾酱、干贝和鸭蛋。这里没有汽车。常常能看到一些妇女带着传统的客家帽——一种宽边的草帽，带有面纱，用于遮挡海湾时而炙热的阳光。
2012年2月在香港大屿山开业的大澳文物酒店。
The Tai O Heritage Hotel, a renovated century-old police station on the very western edge of this westernmost point in Hong Kong, is an unusual blend of the city’s history and its preoccupation with commerce.
大澳文物酒店(The Tai O Heritage Hotel)位于香港最西端的最西边，由一个百年警署改建而成；该酒店将香港的历史及其对商业的专注融于一身，非常独特。
The way that Hong Kongers view development has changed sharply in recent years. Residents once virtually worshipped tycoons like Li Ka-shing, the richest person in Asia, who has been called “Superman” for his business prowess.
近些年，香港人对发展的态度发生了剧变。香港人曾经十分崇拜商业大亨，比如亚洲首富李嘉诚；因其商业才干，港人称之为“超人”。
Conservation efforts have not been particularly strong in Hong Kong. Property owners would rather tear down old structures and build more expensive residential or office property on the same site. Some buildings from this former British colony’s past have been preserved — like Flagstaff House, the former home of the commander of the British forces; the Central police station; and Western Market, a Victorian-era covered market — but the government traditionally has auctioned off historic buildings, letting the highest bidders recast the structures as they wished.
在香港，文物保护的诉求还不是特别强烈。业主们更想推倒旧建筑，在原址上修建更昂贵的住宅或写字楼。有一些殖民时代的建筑得以保存，比如曾经的英军司令官邸“旗杆屋”，中央警署，以及维多利亚时代的室内市场“西港城”。但是政府传统上是把历史建筑拍卖出去，让报价最高的投标人随意处置这些建筑。
Then came the renovation of the former marine police headquarters in Tsim Sha Tsui, a spot right in the heart of tourist territory in Kowloon, near the Star Ferry Terminal, the Peninsula hotel and Hong Kong’s art and space museums.
因此就出现了对前海警总署的改造，它位于九龙热门旅游点的中心区域尖沙咀，附近有天星码头、半岛酒店和香港艺术天文博物馆。
In 2009, Cheung Kong, a company that Mr. Li named for the Yangtze River, finished turning the sprawling building into a 10-suite hotel with restaurants and luxury shops at its base. The criticism was fierce — and the government decided that future sales of protected buildings would be open only to nonprofit organizations.
2009年，李嘉诚的长江实业集团把这个庞大的建筑改造成了一个拥有10套客房的酒店，底层是几家餐厅和奢侈品商店。这遭到了民众的强烈批评，因此政府决定之后保护性建筑只卖给非营利组织。
So when the Tai O Police Station came up for sale, Daryl Ng, a grandson of the founder of the Hong Kong-Singapore development company Sino Land, established the Hong Kong Heritage Conservation Foundation to transform it into a boutique hotel that still honored the building’s history. The nonprofit foundation in 2009 won the bidding for the station, which had been abandoned since it was closed in 2002. The hotel opened at the end of February this year.
所以当大澳警署开始拍卖时，香港-新加坡地产开发公司“信和置业”(Sino Land)的创始人的孙子黄永光(Daryl Ng)成立了“香港历史文物保护基金会”(Hong Kong Heritage Conservation Foundation)，锐意以尊重该建筑的历史为基准，将其改造成一家精品酒店。该警署自2002年关闭之后一直闲置，2009年，这个非营利的基金会赢得了投标；改建的酒店于2012年2月底开业。
Mr. Ng said that he was inspired by trips to London and New York, where he would conduct business during the week and then spend a day or two in the countryside. He realized that nothing like that existed in Hong Kong — executives jet in to spend a few days in the city’s skyscrapers and never see the beauty of the mountains and the outlying islands.
黄先生说，他是在去伦敦和纽约旅行时受到了启发。在那些地方，他会在工作日打理生意，然后花一两天时间在乡间游玩。他意识到香港没有这样的地方——高管们飞到香港，在摩天大楼里待上几天，却从来没有领略过山上和偏远的小岛的美景。
The station was built in 1902 and has a classic East-meets-West design: a Chinese tiled roof, Victorian granite steps and French windows.
该警署建于1902年，设计风格是典型的中西结合：中式砖瓦屋顶，维多利亚式大理石台阶，法式窗户。
Local residents say that its position at the very edge of Lantau Island means that it bears the full brunt of storms when a typhoon roars through. Metal shutters were installed on every window, not only to keep out the weather but also as a defensive measure. (One shutter at the building’s rear has nine bullet holes: A police officer who had been fired came back to the station and shot and killed his former sergeant.)
当地居民说该警署位于大屿山的最边上，那就意味着台风来袭的时候，它将承受暴风雨的全面冲击。每扇窗户上都装有金属百叶窗，不仅是为了抵挡恶劣的天气，而且还是一种保护措施（大楼后部的一扇百叶窗上有9个弹孔：一位被解雇的警员回到警署，射杀了他的前队长）。
Renovations, which began in 2010, were done so that the nine guest rooms and facilities could be dismantled and removed without damaging the building. (Knock on the walls and you will hear a hollow sound.) Parts of the original structure still can be seen, like the two holding cells alongside the reception desk.
修复翻新工作始于2010年，目的是让9间客房及一些设施能被拆除并移走，且不会对该建筑造成破坏。（敲敲墙壁，你能听到中空的声音。）原来的部分格局依然可见，比如前台旁边的两间拘留室。
Finishes, like the retro-style bathroom taps, were chosen to match the historic atmosphere, as were the photographs of Tai O that hang on the walls.
酒店的装修特别注重与历史氛围相契合，比如卫生间的复古水龙头，以及墙上悬挂的大澳照片。
As part of the foundation’s effort, half of the hotel staff of 34 are Lantau residents. Room rates were kept to 1,580 Hong Kong dollars, or $204 — roughly similar to midrange rates in other city hotels. And there has been a pledge that if the hotel generates a profit, it will be reinvested in the Tai O community.
酒店的34名员工中有一半是大屿山本地人，这是该基金会着力实现的一个方面。房价保持在1580港币（204美元）左右，基本与城里其他酒店的中等价位持平。而且基金会保证，如果酒店营利的话，就把利润再投资给大澳社区。
For the moment, though, the owners of the stores down the sole route to the hotel benefit by selling a Coke to the occasional stranger who stops by. Visitors also are encouraged to take a boat trip to see the sunset, or to try to find the increasingly elusive pink dolphins that live in the mouth of the Pearl River.
不过目前只有一条路通往酒店，游客们有时会在道路两侧的商店里买瓶可乐，店主们只能靠这个赚点钱。游客们还可以乘船去看日落，或者寻找生活在珠江口的粉红海豚，它们的行踪可是越来越扑朔迷离了。
The hotel restaurant uses local produce whenever possible, staff members say. There is even a mountain begonia drink made with blossoms from a nearby hill. And the food is priced to attract not only overseas tourists but also Hong Kongers. A four-course set dinner featuring smoked duck breast with mango salsa costs 250 dollars.
酒店的员工说，这里的餐馆尽可能使用当地的食材。甚至还提供一种用附近山上的秋海棠花做的饮品。这里食物的定价不仅能吸引外国游客，也能吸引香港本地人。含有四道菜的套餐的价格是250美元，其中的特色菜是配芒果萨尔萨辣酱(salsa)的熏制鸭胸肉。
“The Hong Kong country parks and coastline are stunning,” Mr. Ng said. “I am hoping that this heritage hotel project achieves three aspects: to allow visitors to experience the delights and charms of a local Hong Kong village, to appreciate the heritage and history of Hong Kong, as well as eco-tourism.”
“香港的乡野公园和海岸线非常迷人，”黄先生说。“我希望这个文物酒店项目能实现三个目的：让游客体验香港本地村落的趣味和魅力，感受香港的传统和历史，以及实现生态旅游。”
The hotel has not advertised, but its management says it has an occupancy rate of 90 percent. Some Hong Kong residents say they have been told that the waiting list for a room is months long.
该酒店没有做过广告宣传，不过酒店的管理人员说入住率达90%。有些香港居民说，他们被告知想预订一间房，要等好几个月。
But the building is open to the public from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, and there is plenty of outdoor seating for visitors.
但是这家酒店每天上午11点至下午6点对公众开放，而且户外有很多椅子可供游客休息。
GETTING THERE
交通信息
Buses run regularly to Tai O from Tung Chung Station on the MTR, the Hong Kong subway system. There are also buses from Mui Wo, a town in eastern Lantau Island that has direct ferry connections to the Central district on Hong Kong Island.
交通从地铁(MTR)东涌站有定时的巴士开往大澳。从大屿山东侧的小镇“梅窝”也有巴士来往，从梅窝有渡船可直达香港岛的中心地区。
The light blue taxis that serve Lantau may be found at Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong Disneyland, Tung Chung or other parts of the island. But there are only a few in service, and waits on weekends can be lengthy. Cabs may be ordered at +852-2984-1328 or +852-2984-1368.
在香港国际机场、香港迪士尼、地铁东涌站和岛上的其他地方可以找到仅在大屿山运营的浅蓝色的士。但是数量不多，在周末要等很久才能打到车。可以拨打+852-2984-1328或者+852-2984-1368预订的士。
It is also possible to hike to Tai O from Tung Chung, but it is a challenging walk that takes about four hours.
也可以从东涌站步行到大澳，不过大约需要4个小时，有点难度。