Okay, just watch. Three, two, one. This is Thailand's Maeklong Market.
好,仔細看。三、二、一。這裡是泰國的美功鐵道市場。
The Railway Market
鐵道市場
About an hour south of Bangkok, every day, beginning at 6:20 in the morning, a train runs through Maeklong Railway Market, one of the largest produce and seafood markets in Thailand, through the stalls selling fruit, ice cream, fish—through everything. And if you're wondering which came first, the market or the train? The answer is the market.
鐵道市場位於曼谷南方車程約一小時的地方,每天從早上 6:20 開始,火車會開過美功鐵道市場(泰國最大的農產品與海鮮市場),穿過水果攤、冰淇淋攤、魚攤--經過所有攤販。想知道到底是先有火車,還是先有市場嗎?答案是市場。
The Maeklong Railway built a commuter train to Bangkok back in 1905. The track they laid ran right through the middle of this market, which had been around for decades. Rather than moving, the vendors stay put, adjusting their business to the train times—eight times a day, seven days a week.
1905 年,美功鐵道鋪設了一條通往曼谷的鐵路。安置的鐵路路線剛好直接穿過市場正中間,那是座擁有數十年歷史的市場。兩旁的小販沒有因此移動攤位,反而留在原處,做生意的時間配合火車調整--一天八次、一週七天。
There's no time to speak; you just have to put things away as quickly as possible in three minutes.
(泰文)沒時間多講什麼話;你就是要在三分鐘內盡快把東西收走。
All the sellers here know to move before three minutes.
(泰文)這裡每個攤販都知道要提早三分鐘開始移動。
Before the train comes, we'll hear the three-minute alarm.
(泰文)火車來之前,三分鐘警示音會響起。
I put away all my mackerel, and then pull my awning up.
(泰文)我會把所有鯖魚收起來,將遮雨棚向上拆掉。
I grab my ice cream bucket, get the umbrellas on both sides, and then make sure all my customers are standing behind the bright orange safety line.
(泰文)我會把冰淇淋桶移走,將兩邊的雨傘收起來,並確定所有客人都站在亮橘色的安全線之後。
This system has been perfected over the years. With produce just inches from the train's wheels, tourists and vendors wait as the train passes through. Then everything goes back to normal, or at least as normal as an active train line market can be.
這個系統已經完美配合了好幾年。農產品和火車之間只有幾吋的距離,遊客和小販會站在旁邊等火車經過。接著一切回歸正常,至少是鐵道市場所擁有的那種「正常」。