このページはフレーム対応ブラウザ用に作成されています。下のリンクは非フレーム使用ページですのでそちらをご覧ください。
この記事をプリントする
ヒッチハイクで世界を回る
ヒッチハイクで世界各国を回った経験を持つ筆者は、ヒッチハイクにはいくつも利点があるという。お金がかからないのはもちろん、見知らぬ土地の人と出会え、道中彼らと話してその文化や生活も知ることができるのだ。
Hitchhiking the world
When I was a young man, I traveled around Canada, the United States, England and Europe — all for free. How did I do it? By hitchhiking! Hitchhiking is a way of traveling by asking people to give you a ride. All you have to do is stand by the side of the road, stick out your thumb and wait for a car to stop and pick you up.
What are the advantages of hitchhiking? First, it's free! You spend no money on transportation. Second, it's exciting. It brings a unique sense of adventure and the unknown. You never know when a car will stop, who you'll meet or where you'll end up. Third, it's educational. When you hitchhike in a foreign country, you meet local people, learn about their lives and practice speaking their language.
Imagine that you're hitchhiking in England. It's a beautiful morning. You feel free, happy and ready for adventure.
A car slows down. The driver is a woman. "Where are you going?" she asks. "To London," you reply. "I'm going in that direction," she says. For the next hour, you learn about the life of a British housewife — her children, their education, gardening, local history.
She drops you near a farm. You wait and watch the cows. After a while, another car comes along. It's a Mercedes! A businessman rolls down the window. "Where are you heading?" he asks. "To London." He's the director of a company. For the next hour, you learn about overseas sales, production costs and market trends.
He lets you off beside a highway. You stick out your thumb. Soon, a truck comes along. "Where are you going?" asks the driver. "To London." For the next two hours, you learn about the life of a working class truck driver — his childhood, his hometown, his soccer team.
What was my longest ride? Two thousand kilometers! An American in New Mexico stopped to pick me up. He was in a hurry to get to Chicago and asked me to help. We took turns driving non-stop and crossed the U.S. in a day.
What was my most unusual experience? Once, I got a ride in Wales with some professional singers. As we drove, they serenaded me with beautiful Welsh songs — my own private concert!
My most generous ride was in France. It was late at night and I was hitchhiking to Paris. I was cold, tired and hungry. A Frenchman picked me up, took me home and introduced me to his wife and kids. He fed me a delicious meal, gave me a bed, then drove me back to the highway the next morning. Nice guy!
My hitchhiking adventures took place in the 1970s — a golden age when life was simpler, people were kinder and travel was less dangerous. Now, I look back with fondness at how I traveled the world — for free — by hitchhiking.
- for free
- ただで
- give 〜 a ride
- 〜を車に乗せる
- stick out 〜
- 〜を突き出す
- thumb
- 親指
- pick 〜 up
- 〜を乗せる
- advantages
- 利点
- transportation
- 交通手段
- exciting
- わくわくする
- sense of adventure
- 冒険心
- the unknown
- 未知なるもの
- end up
- 行き着く
- educational
- 勉強になる
- local
- 地元の
- slows down
- 速度を落とす
- reply
- 返事をする
- in that direction
- その方向に
- For the next hour
- 次の1時間
- housewife
- 主婦
- drops
- 〜を降ろす
- farm
- 農場
- After a while
- しばらくして
- comes along
- やって来る
- Mercedes
- メルセデスベンツ
- rolls down 〜
- 〜を下げる
- (are) heading
- 向かう
- director
- 重役
- overseas sales
- 海外売上高
- production costs
- 生産コスト
- market trends
- 市場動向
- lets 〜 off
- 〜を降ろす
- beside
- 〜の横で
- highway
- 高速道路
- childhood
- 幼少期
- hometown
- 地元
- was in a hurry
- 急いでいた
- took turns 〜
- 交代で〜した
- crossed
- 〜を横断した
- unusual
- 珍しい
- serenaded 〜 with 〜
- 〜のために〜を歌ってくれた
- generous
- 寛大な
- introduced 〜 to 〜
- 〜を〜に紹介した
- fed 〜 〜
- 〜に〜を食べさせてくれた
- meal
- 食事
- gave 〜 a bed
- 〜を泊めてくれた
- took place
- 起きた
- look back with fondness
- 懐かしく振り返る