在美國行不通的這10件事,在其他國家可以做(上)

The citizens of the United States of America like to consider themselves one of the freest countries in the world. However, the truth is actually a lot more complicated than that. The United States enjoy some of the most lax laws in the world when it comes to saying whatever you please, but that doesn't necessarily equate to being free to do what you want to do. In many countries around the world, it is perfectly legal to do many things people wish they could do in the States.

美國公民普遍認爲自己生活在世界上最自由的國家裏。但事實遠沒有這麼簡單。無論你想幹什麼，美國都有世界上最寬鬆的法律，但這不等於你可以爲所欲爲。有些在美國只能想想的事情，在其他國家卻可以光明正大地做。

10. In The Czech Republic You Can Use Magic Mushrooms

10. 在捷克，你可以使用致幻蘑菇

Magic mushrooms are the common given nickname for a class of mushroom that has an active compound called psilocybin that can have very strong psychedelic effects when ingested. Of course, most people who find this mushroom intriguing will need to accept that it is beyond their reach, as it remains in the realm of the black market of illegal drugs. That is, unless they are willing to live in the right, very specific country.

致幻蘑菇通常是指含有活性物——磷酰羥基二甲色胺的一種蘑菇，這種活性物能夠產生非常強烈的致幻作用。當然，大部分對這種蘑菇感興趣的人不得不面對一個現實，這種東西很難搞到，普遍存在於毒品交易的黑市中。也就是說，除非他們願意生活在某些特殊國家裏。

In the European country of the Czech Republic, mushrooms are actually mostly decriminalized, making it fairly easy to use them or get your hands on them. While it is not legal to sell mushrooms, import them into the country, or buy them, it is perfectly okay to own small amounts and grow them yourself. The law was likely set up this way so that their citizens could have their own freedom, without too strongly encouraging tourists to come to their country just to get a chance to go on a drug trip. Also, in the country of Brazil psilocybin is mostly legal, but only because of a technicality and the fact that no law has yet been written to correct it – this is mainly because it isn't really a problem there in the first place.

在歐洲的捷克共和國，大部分蘑菇竟然都合法，因此要使用或得到它們非常容易。雖然法律不允許買賣或者向國內進口這種蘑菇，但你自己留一點或者自己種植都沒問題。法律希望通過這種方式賦予國民一定的自由，避免旅行者來到他們的國家只是爲了進行一次毒品之旅。在巴西，磷酰羥基二甲色胺也基本合法，但這僅出於技術原因，且目前尚沒有法律予以糾正——主要因爲它尚未構成問題。

9. In Mainland China People Often Allow Their Young Children To Pee In Public

9. 在中國大陸，小孩子可以在公共場所小便

China is known for being overpopulated despite having had a one child policy for a long time. Their major cities are also especially known for being overcrowded, and as such they have to deal with certain cultural situations in different ways. Not long ago, a Chinese couple from the mainland caused a stir because they were visiting Hong Kong, and allowed their small boy to pee into a diaper in a public space. This was quite controversial to do in Hong Kong, but in mainland China, their actions would have been perfectly normal.

衆所周知，雖然中國早就出臺了獨生子女政策，但這個國家仍然人口過多。特別是一些大城市過度擁擠，人們不得不面對不同方面的文化問題。前不久，一對來自中國大陸的夫妻引發轟動，他們在香港旅遊時讓自己的小兒子當衆在尿布上小便。這在香港引發了極大的爭議，但在大陸，他們的行爲非常正常。

Parents in mainland China often allow their children to pee in public if they are having trouble finding anywhere else for them to go in time – this has likely cropped up over time as a solution to the overcrowding issue. Of course some people may find the very idea repulsive, but those parents who do so claim that their child would have had to go anyway, and they usually find a corner as out of the way as possible.

如果一時找不到其他地方小便，中國大陸的父母經常會讓孩子在公共場所解決問題——由於過度擁擠，這種情況可能早晚會蹦出來。當然一些人覺得這種做法非常令人厭惡，但那些父母聲稱孩子實在憋不住，而且他們也會盡可能找一個路邊的角落。

8. In North Korea It Is Both Legal And Commonplace To Smoke Weed

8. 在朝鮮，抽大麻合法而且普遍

North Korea is known for being a strict, fascist dictatorship that rules everyone inside with an iron fist. Most areas of the country are extremely poor and hardly anyone enjoys anything that can be called a quality of life. Even those who tow the party line and get to live in the major cities don't exactly live in the lap of luxury. However, on one particular front, the North Koreans tend to be incredibly lax. They are totally okay with the growing, and smoking of marijuana and make regular use of the drug.

衆所周知，朝鮮是一個嚴格的法西斯專政國家，以鐵拳統治國民。國內的大部分地區非常貧窮，幾乎所有人都享受不到所謂的生活品質。即使是牽動着政治命脈、住在大城市中的人也過不上奢侈的生活。但是，從某一方面來說，朝鮮卻十分寬鬆。朝鮮人民可以種大麻抽大麻，還可以光明正大使用這種東西。

Those who have managed to sneak around enough in North Korea to find out have discovered that it can even be found on the roadsides, that people grow it for personal use and that it enjoys incredible popularity. Weed can grow fairly easily in North Korea, and cigarettes and alcohol can be expensive to import in, so weed is usually the major drug of choice for most North Koreans. Tour guides discourage visitors from looking for weed, mainly because they don't want to be known only for drugs. For those stoners who are interested in visiting North Korea and trying some of their weed, it likely isn't worth the effort. Those who have tried it claim it is fairly poor quality as far as the drug goes.

有些人溜到朝鮮找尋大麻，結果發現這東西幾乎滿大街都是，人們自己就會種植大麻來用，一點都不稀奇。在朝鮮，種植大麻非常容易，而香菸和酒則需要花高價進口，因此大麻成了多數朝鮮人的首選藥物。導遊會阻止遊客找大麻，主要是因爲他們不希望本國只靠這個東西出名。對於那些想造訪朝鮮並試試大麻的癮君子，我勸他們還是不要白費力氣。因爲一些先行者表示，這個國家連大麻的質量都很糟糕。

7. In Japan It Is Considered Strange If You Don't Slurp Your Noodles Loudly And Proudly

7. 在日本，吃麪要大聲猛吸

There are some particular cultural traditions out there that happen to be completely the opposite in another part of the world, and this is one of them. In the United States, and most Western countries, making a lot of noise while eating is generally frowned upon. Even while eating foods like noodles, we have come up with many different techniques to eat our food as noiselessly as possible. However, in Japan, eating noodles is a completely different experience.

世界上有些地方之間的文化傳統完全相反，這就是其中之一。在美國和多數西方國家，吃東西時發出很大的聲響往往會引發別人的不悅。甚至是吃麪條這類食物時，我們也得用各種技巧儘可能不聲不響地把它吃完。但在日本吃麪條則完全是另一種體驗。

In Japan, they believe that noodles should be eaten when they are still piping hot in order to fully enjoy them. And to eat them piping hot essentially requires the mouth movements that create that distinctive slurping sound. No one in Japan minds because it is simply considered a sound that is necessary in order to properly eat noodles – in fact, if a Japanese person does not hear you slurping, they may make the mistake of thinking that you do not like your food.

日本人認爲，麪條就要趁熱吃，這樣才能充分享用其美味。要趁熱吃就需要發動嘴巴，製造出極有特色的呼嚕聲。在日本，沒人會介意這種聲音。他們認爲，要好好吃麪，就得發出這種聲響——實際上，如果一個日本人沒聽到呼嚕呼嚕吃東西的聲音，他們會誤以爲你不喜歡他們的食物。

6. In The UK And Much Of Europe It Is Legal To Jaywalk As Much As You Wish

6. 在英國及歐洲多數國家，你可以隨便橫穿馬路

In the United States, nearly everyone has a car, and roads have become very serious business indeed. Places like New York are the exception instead of the rule, and even in places with a decent public transportation infrastructure, most people still find it more convenient to have their own method of transportation. This means we often have very congested roads full of very peeved drivers, and have thus made very rigid rules on where and when pedestrians should cross the street in order to ensure public safety. There is also a legal element involved, as it helps deal with liability in a country with a lot of lawsuits, if there are well laid out places and ways that people are supposed to safely cross the street.

在美國，幾乎人人都有車，路上的確車水馬龍。像紐約這樣的地方更是如此，即便是有完善公共交通設施的地方，大部分人仍然覺得有自己的交通工具更加方便。這意味着我們的馬路上到處都是焦躁的司機，因此需要對行人可能橫穿馬路的地方和時間制定非常嚴格的規則，以確保公共安全。此外，這其中還涉及法律因素，因爲立法有助於明確大量訴訟中的責任，即使在那種井然有序可以讓人安全橫穿馬路的地方。

However, in the United Kingdom, where they are a little less sue happy and have a lot less cars on the road, the rules are much different. Some visitors from across the pond have even found themselves arrested in the United States because they crossed the road randomly in a very busy place without using a proper crosswalk. While it is not always enforced, jaywalking is against the law in the United States, but there is no law against it at all in the United Kingdom. Instead, in most European countries, people are simply expected to cross responsibly, wherever and whenever it is safest.

但是在英國，訴訟很少，路上的車輛也少得多，因此規則也大不相同。一些大洋彼岸的遊客來到美國，因爲在繁忙路段不走人行橫道卻隨意亂穿馬路而被逮捕。雖然不一定是強制性的，但亂穿馬路違反美國法律。在英國境內就沒有這樣的規定。不過，在歐洲大多數國家，人們只會選擇在最安全的時間和地點穿過馬路。