除了熱門景點 意大利還有其他

John Hooper says he is often a little puzzled by Italy.

約翰·胡珀(John Hooper)說，意大利時常讓他有點摸不透的感覺。

“It’s a country that seems to be all on the surface, but actually a lot of things are hidden,” said Mr. Hooper, author of “The Italians,” a cultural study of the country that was published by Viking last month. “That can be at times sinister, but it can also be fascinating and rewarding, if you go off the beaten track.”

“這個國家似乎把一切都露在外面，但其實有很多東西都是藏而不露的，”胡珀說。上月，他的意大利文化研究之作《意大利人》(The Italians)由維京出版社(Viking)出版。“如果你獨闢蹊徑，可能偶爾會遭遇兇險，但也可能獲得迷人而有益的體驗。”

That is why Mr. Hooper, 65, thinks life is too short for tourist traps. Many people, he said, tend to prioritize Italy’s famous sites over its more sincere side, when in fact they should do the opposite.

65歲的胡珀認爲，人生苦短，儘量避開那些遊客陷阱。他說，很多人通常會優先參觀意大利的著名景點，實際上他們應該遊覽它更實誠的一面。

Mr. Hooper, who lives and works in Rome as a journalist for The Economist and The Guardian, recently gave some cultural and culinary advice for travelers wanting to see Italy from an insider’s perspective. Following are edited excerpts from a conversation with Mr. Hooper.

胡珀是《經濟學人》雜誌(The Economist)和《衛報》(The Guardian)的記者，在羅馬生活和工作。前不久，他給那些想從本地人的角度欣賞意大利的遊客提了一些關於文化和美食的建議。以下摘錄自與胡珀的對話。

Q. You mention Puglia in your book as a recently popular destination for tourists. What’s an area nearby that people don’t know about yet?

問：你在書中提到，普利亞區(Puglia)是近期的熱門旅遊目的地。附近還有哪個區是人們尚未了解的？

A. Basilicata. The tourist industry there is almost nonexistent, and yet in many ways it’s as beautiful as Tuscany. The people are very welcoming. When you’re down there the roads are very poor, so it can take a long time to get around from one place to another. But if you do, it’s really worth it.

答：巴西利卡塔區(Basilicata)。那裏幾乎沒有旅遊業，從很多方面講，它和託西卡納區(Tuscany)一樣美麗。當地人熱情好客。那裏的公路很爛，從一個地方到另一個地方要花很長時間。但是到了之後，你會發現不枉此行。

Pasta is such a go-to food choice for foreigners. Should it be?

問：意大利麪是外國遊客們最喜歡的食物。它是最好的選擇嗎？

The Italian food with which they’re familiar is southern Italian food because immigrants have tended to come from Campania, Sicily and so on. People are not prepared for the meat-heavy diet that you get in places like Emilia, around Bologna. Or the equally meat- and game-heavy diet that you get in places like Umbria and Tuscany. There’s certainly much more variety than people realize.

答：遊客們熟悉的意大利食物是意大利南部的食物，因爲意大利移民一般都是來自坎帕尼亞區(Campania)和西西里島等南部地區。人們還不適應博洛尼亞(Bologna)附近的艾米利亞(Emilia)等地的多肉飲食，或者翁布里亞區(Umbria)和托斯卡納區等地同樣多肉、多野味的食物。意大利的食物花樣肯定比遊客們知道的多得多。

Italians love to talk about food, right?

問：意大利人很喜歡談論食物，是嗎？

People become incredibly engaged in these conversations. Just recently — I was on the third floor, and I heard two people getting into the lift. And I thought: My God, there’s a terrible row going on. And as the lift drew closer to my floor, I heard “onion” and “bacon” and so on, and I realized it was an argument about pancetta.

答：意大利人特別喜歡談論食物。就在前不久，我在三樓聽見兩個人走進電梯。我心想：天哪，他們吵得真是不可開交啊。電梯靠近我這層時，我聽見“洋蔥”、“培根”之類的詞，才意識到他們是在爭論意大利培根。

What are faux pas to avoid with how you dress?

問：怎樣着裝會顯得失禮？

Even if you’re casually dressed, being smartly dressed helps. Otherwise people will be inclined to look down on you. Appearances count for a lot in Italy. If people dress in a slobbish way, then they can be expected to get the kind of treatment that is accorded to slobs.

答：即使穿休閒裝，你也要穿得好看。否則人們會瞧不起你。意大利人很注重外貌。如果你衣着不整，那你會得到相應的待遇。

What would be your first response if someone said: “I’m going to Italy next week. What should I do?”

問：如果有人問你：“下週我要去意大利，我該做些什麼？”你會不假思索地說什麼？

Go to Venice. There’s just nowhere like it. Don’t expect the cuisine to be anything like what you imagine Italian cuisine to be. It’s a legume-based cuisine, and you find small aquatic creatures fried in batter and pickled dishes and goodness knows what else. Drink wines from the area. Don’t go to Venice, order Chianti and expect that you’re going to get something good. Order wine from the Veneto.

答：去威尼斯。沒有哪個地方能跟它媲美。那裏的食物跟你想像中的意大利食物完全不同。它以豆類爲基礎，還有裹着麪糊炸的小海鮮和醃製食物，以及很多叫不上名的東西。喝當地產的葡萄酒。如果你在威尼斯點基安蒂紅酒，那你就別指望能喝到好的。你要點威尼託產的酒(Veneto)。

Try to get as far away as you can from Piazza San Marco. Look for areas of the city where there are still Venetians living. There are parts of Cannaregio where you can walk a number of streets and not come across a tourist.

儘量遠離聖馬可廣場(Piazza San Marco)。尋找城裏仍有威尼斯人居住的地方。在卡納雷吉歐(Cannaregio)的某些地方，你可能走過好幾條街都碰不到一個遊客。