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思い出に残るお出かけ
中国人のジャックとシュエンに「君のガールフレンドに会ってみたい」
と言われた武藤さん。日本人女性に会ったことがないという2人は
興味津々なのです。そこで、彼女とその友人の女性を交じえ、5人で
お昼を食べることに。ジャックたちは飲茶で評判の中華料理店に案内してくれ、
おいしい料理にみんな大満足でした。彼女と友人の帰国前日、武藤さんは2人
フェリーでの小旅行に誘います。行き先は…。
A trip to remember
"I want to meet your girlfriend, Kazu!" Jack said on the phone. He and Xuan had never met a Japanese girl and they were curious. They told me once that they preferred Japanese girls to Chinese girls. "They're kind, modest, gentle, and they've got cute smiles. Right, Kazu?" It's mystifying where Chinese men get this idea.
So we did lunch. Jack and Xuan took Kaori, Tomomi and me out to a fabulous Chinese restaurant. It was dim sum, or yamucha as it's called in Japan. It was a great idea because back where I come from we don't have much of a chance to eat dim sum, and Kaori and Tomomi said they only knew yamucha from Mister Donut.
We met in Chatswood, which is a northern Sydney suburb where there are a lot of Asians. "There's a great Chinese restaurant here," Chief (our name for Jack) said. "I've worked in the kitchens there, so I know what I'm talking about."
Chief led the way, cheered on by the smiles of the two Japanese girls behind him, and we soon arrived at the restaurant. Waitresses pushed carts carrying plates of food. Customers called out to them from the tables, telling them what they wanted. Chief ordered in Chinese, and the food was gorgeous. "What do you think?" Chief asked. "Good!" "Great!" "Wonderful!" "I'm in heaven!" came the ecstatic cries from the Japanese half of the table.
The day before Kaori and Tomomi went back to Japan, we all went to one of the most famous beaches in Sydney — Manly Beach, which is about 45 minutes northeast of the city center by ferry.
Beaches in Australia are so much bigger and more beautiful than in Japan. It was out of season, and there weren't that many people there, but that was great because we could appreciate the beauty of the beach even more. The water was freezing cold, although there were still some brave locals swimming and surfing — even some small kids. I can't help wondering why they don't feel the cold.
So we dipped a toe or two in the water, splashed around and spent the afternoon lying around on the sand. Come evening, we were joined by Robert, my friend from Germany, who'd just got back from New Zealand the day before. Kaori and Tomomi were a little intimidated at first because he was the first Caucasian guy they had talked to in Australia, but we ended up having fun.
We had dinner and after saying good-bye to Robert, we headed back on the ferry around 10. I'd hoped this night-time ferry trip would be one of the highlights of the trip. We stood outside, on deck, enjoying the stars in the sky and the sound of the water in the darkness. Soon we approached the city, and the breathtaking panorama of the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and the mighty skyscrapers came into view. Unforgettable.
- curious
- 興味津々な
- once
- 以前
- preferred 〜 to 〜
- 〜より〜の方が好きだ
- modest
- 謙虚な
- gentle
- 穏やかな
- mystifying
- 不可解な
- took 〜 out to 〜
- 〜を〜に連れていってくれた
- fabulous
- すてきな
- back where I come from
- 自分の町には
- dim sum
- 点心
- Mister Donut
- ミスタードーナツ
- Chatswood
- チャッツウッド
- suburb
- 郊外
- I know what I'm talking about
- 味は保証するよ
- led the way
- 先導した
- cheered on by 〜
- 〜に後押しされて
- carts
- カート
- plates of food
- 料理
- Customers
- お客
- called out to 〜
- 〜を呼び止めた
- Chinese
- 中国語
- gorgeous
- 素晴らしい
- I'm in heaven
- 最高だ
- ecstatic cries
- 喜びの声
- 〜 half of the table
- 〜が座っているところ
- Manly Beach
- マンリービーチ
- center
- 中心部
- out of season
- 季節はずれの
- that
- そんなに
- appreciate 〜
- 〜を堪能する
- freezing cold
- 凍えるほど冷たい
- brave
- 勇敢な
- locals
- 地元の人たち
- surfing
- サーフィンして
- can't help wondering
- いぶからざるをえない
- dipped a toe or two in 〜
- 〜に足をちょっとつけた
- splashed around
- 水遊びをした
- lying around
- 寝転がって
- Come 〜
- 〜になって
- the day before
- 前日
- were a little intimidated at first
- 初めは少しおどおどしていた
- Caucasian
- 白人の
- ended up 〜
- 〜した
- headed back
- 戻った
- night-time
- 夜の
- on deck
- デッキに
- in the darkness
- 暗闇の中で
- approached 〜
- 〜に近づいた
- breathtaking
- 息をのむような
- panorama
- 全景
- Opera House
- オペラハウス
- Harbour Bridge
- ハーバーブリッジ
- mighty
- 大きな
- skyscrapers
- 高層ビル
- came into view
- 見えてきた
- Unforgettable
- 忘れられない