? ? ?One morning in early April my father died. The evening before my?mother had been called to the hospital as his condition had grown?worse and she had spent the night there. I was cycling to school with my?friend, as we did every morning, when she passed me in a taxi on?her way home. She stopped the taxi and told me that my father had?died. I told my friend who went on to school by himself and I?returned home.

【四月初的一個早晨，我父親去世了。前一天晚上，我母親因?yàn)楦赣H病情惡化被叫到醫(yī)院，她在那里住了一夜。我和我的朋友就像平常那樣騎自行車去學(xué)校，當(dāng)她在回家的路上乘出租車經(jīng)過我們是。她讓出租車停下，告訴我父親去世了。我告訴了我的朋友，他自己去上學(xué)了，我就和母親一起回家了?！?/p>

? ? ?Although I had known that he was dying, it was still a heavy blow.?He was buried from the hospital and as the coffin was closed I had not?actually seen him in death. For a long time I continued to believe that?he was really still alive somewhere and would unexpectedly turn up.

【雖然我有心理準(zhǔn)備，但這對于我仍然是一個沉重的打擊。他是在醫(yī)院外下葬的，因?yàn)楣撞氖顷P(guān)著的，所以我并沒有真正看到他死的樣子。在很長一段時間里，我仍然相信他真的還活著，而且會突然地出現(xiàn)在我身邊?！?/p>

? ? ?Meanwhile life went on. In the existing circumstances it had been?quite impossible for my mother to keep my father's business going and?soon after his death it went bankrupt. After all the outstanding debts?had been paid, there were no assets left and we had nothing to live on.?My mother's family helped as best they could, but they all lived on their?salaries and did not have much money to spare. My mother?began by letting two rooms in our house to two nurses from a nearby?hospital. She was also a good cook so she started to cook evening meals?for office girls in the neighbourhood. What with these sources of?income, a small allowance from the national assistance and some?stringent economies my mother managed to keep things going without?too many drastic changes in our way of life.

【與此同時，生活還在繼續(xù)。在當(dāng)前情況下，母親幾乎不可能維持父親的生意，父親去世后不久，生意就破產(chǎn)了。在償付清所有的債務(wù)后，就沒有什么資產(chǎn)了，我們也沒有什么賴以生存的東西了。我母親的家人盡他們所能幫忙，但他們都靠自己的工資生活，沒有多少多余的錢。我母親一開始把我們家的兩個房間租給了附近醫(yī)院的兩個護(hù)士。她也是一個好廚師，所以她開始為附近的辦公室女孩做晚餐。有了這些收入來源，再加上國家補(bǔ)助的一點(diǎn)零用錢和盡量少花錢，我母親就能在我們的生活方式?jīng)]有發(fā)生太大變化的情況下維持生活。】

? ? ?Shortly before his death, when he must have realised that he was?dying, my father had given my mother the address of one of his?sisters, who was living in Cairo, and told her that she should turn to?her for help.

【在我父親去世前不久，他一定意識到自己快死了，他把他一個住在開羅的妹妹的地址給了我母親，并告訴母親，在困難時可以向她求助?！?/p>

? ? ?This my mother did. My aunt was married to a banker, lived in a?palatial house and had two sons in their early twenties. With them?lived an unmarried younger sister of my father. The family?was Jewish?and very wealthy. They were very understanding and willing to help,?but rather than send money regularly to my mother about whom,?after all, they knew little or nothing, they suggested that I, as the only?son, should come to Cairo to live with them and they would take?charge of my education. This should help to ease my mother's?financial situation and assure a good education for me.

【這是我媽媽做的（原文如此）。我姑姑嫁給了一個銀行家，住在富麗堂皇的房子里，有兩個二十出頭的兒子。和他們住在一起的是我父親的一個未婚妹妹。這個家庭是猶太人，非常富有。他們非常理解我，也愿意幫助我，但他們沒有定期給我母親寄錢，畢竟他們對母親知之甚少，甚至一無所知。他們建議我作為父親唯一的兒子，來開羅和他們住在一起，他們負(fù)責(zé)我的教育。這將有助于緩解我母親的經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況，并確保我接受良好的教育。】

? ? ?At first my mother was rather taken aback by this offer and very?reluctant to let me go. But after some thought and discussions with?her family and friends she came to the conclusion that it would be in?my interest to let me go. She felt that an upbringing in the wealthy?and cosmopolitan surroundings of my aunt's home could only benefit me?and provide a better preparation for life than the much more?modest, rather narrow-minded and provincial way of life of a Dutch?middle-class family at that time. My grandmother was much against?my going, but as she was not in a position to offer much financial?assistance, she also had, albeit reluctantly, to agree. As my mother?would not have dreamt of sending me against my will, the final?decision was left to me. When she asked me how I felt about it, I was?torn. I was very much attached to my home, my Dutch relatives and,?particularly, my grandmother and the thought of leaving them for the?home of an unknown aunt and uncle, whose language I did not speak,?frightened me. On the other hand, I was strongly attracted by the?prospect of travelling to a far and exotic country and the entirely new?life and adventures which awaited me there. It was this thirst for?adventure and the unknown which proved the stronger and after a few?days of thought, I told my mother that I would like to go.

【起初，母親對這個提議有些吃驚，很不愿意讓我去。但經(jīng)過與她的家人和朋友的思考和討論后，她得出結(jié)論，讓我走對我有利。她覺得，與當(dāng)時荷蘭中產(chǎn)階級家庭更為謙遜以及眼光狹隘的生活方式相比，在姑母家富裕、國際化的環(huán)境中長大只會對我有好處，并會為我的生活提供更好的條件。我的祖母非常反對我去，但由于她不能提供太多的經(jīng)濟(jì)援助，她也不得不同意，盡管不情愿。因?yàn)槲夷赣H不會違背我的意愿把我送去，所以最后的決定就留給了我。當(dāng)她問我感覺如何時，我很糾結(jié)。我非常依戀我的家，我的荷蘭親戚，尤其是我的祖母，一想到要離開他們?nèi)ヒ粋€我不會說他們語言的陌生的姑媽和姑父家，我就感到害怕。另一方面，我被去一個遙遠(yuǎn)而充滿異國情調(diào)的國家旅行的前景，以及在那里等待著我的全新生活和冒險所強(qiáng)烈吸引。正是這種對冒險和未知的渴望越來越強(qiáng)烈，經(jīng)過幾天的思考，我告訴母親我想去。】

? ? ?Two months later, on a fine September evening, I stood on the deck of?a Dutch cargo ship looking at the white dunes of Holland receding?in the setting sun. The captain had promised my mother to keep an?eye on me and to deliver me safely into the hands of my cousin, who?would meet me in Alexandria. Among the crew was a young cabin?boy, only two years older than myself, who turned out to be the?brother of a boy I had been friendly with at school in Scheveningen.?This gave me access to the crew's quarters, a world peopled in my eyes?with 'real men' and quickly consoled me for the pangs of parting from my?family. The crew was very kind to me and I think felt a bit sorry?for me. The two weeks on board passed very quickly and much too?soon for my liking our ship was slowly making its way past British?warships and vessels from every nation to its berth in Alexandria?harbour. There, on the quayside, my cousin Raoul was waiting for me?to escort me to his parents' home in Cairo. As we drove off, the crew?lined up on deck to wish me luck and wave farewell. My cousin spoke?French and very little English and I very little of either, but what we?lacked in ability to communicate we made up for in mutual goodwill?and the desire to understand each other. Like all members of my?father's family he was dark and of slight build. His pale complexion?and glasses gave his appearance something scholarly. This was indeed?what he was. At the time he was studying Sanskrit in Paris and later?became a distinguished archaeologist.

【兩個月后，在9月的一個晚上，我站在一艘荷蘭貨船的甲板上，看著荷蘭白色的沙丘在夕陽中漸漸退去。船長答應(yīng)過我母親會照看好我，并把我安全地交給我的表弟，他會在亞歷山大港和我見面。船員中有一個年輕的船艙服務(wù)員，只比我大兩歲，他是我在斯海弗寧根上學(xué)時一個同學(xué)的哥哥。這讓我得以進(jìn)入船員的住所，在我眼中，這個世界充滿了“真正的男人”，并很快安慰了我與家人分離的痛苦。船員們對我都很好，我覺得他們有點(diǎn)同情我。上船的兩個星期過得很快，在我看來太快了，我們的船正慢慢地從各個國家的船只以及英國軍艦面前駛過，停靠在亞歷山大港。在那里的碼頭上，我的表弟拉烏爾正在等我，他要護(hù)送我去他父母在開羅的家。當(dāng)我們開車離開時，船員們在甲板上排隊(duì)祝我好運(yùn)，并揮手告別。我的表弟會說法語和很少的英語，我也不會說這兩種語言，但我們用彼此的善意和理解對方的心意彌補(bǔ)了我們溝通能力上的不足。像我父親家族的所有成員一樣，他皮膚黝黑，身材瘦弱。他面色蒼白，戴著眼鏡，使他的外表有幾分書生氣。他確實(shí)是這樣的人。當(dāng)時他正在巴黎學(xué)習(xí)梵文，后來成為一名杰出的考古學(xué)家。】

? ? ?At the station in Cairo my two aunts, both dressed in black as they?were in mourning for my father, were waiting to meet us. A car driven?by the family chauffeur took us home. The house, referred to in Cairo?as the 'Villa Curiel' built in the style of an Italian palazzo with a large?terrace and balconies could be considered a large mansion or a small?palace. It stood, surrounded by palm trees, in a spacious garden on?the northern end of the Island of Zamalek, between two branches of?the Nile. It had no less than twelve bedrooms. My uncle, Daniel?Curiel, though blind, was a passionate collector of antiques and the?dining-room, library and reception rooms were furnished with?furniture of various styles and periods. The walls were hung with?paintings and tapestries and the floors covered with oriental carpets?and rugs. These, I later discovered, were mostly part of my aunt's?share in her father's inheritance.

【在開羅的車站，我的兩個姑姑，都穿著黑色的衣服，因?yàn)樗齻冊跒槲业母赣H服喪，正等著我們。家里的司機(jī)開著一輛車把我們送回家。這座房子在開羅被稱為“庫列爾別墅”，它是按照意大利宮殿的風(fēng)格建造的，有一個大露臺和陽臺，可以被認(rèn)為是一座小宮殿。它矗立在扎馬雷克島北端的一個寬敞的花園里，四周環(huán)繞著棕櫚樹，位于尼羅河的兩條支流之間。它至少有十二間臥室。我的姑父丹尼爾·庫列爾雖然雙目失明，但卻熱衷于收藏古董，餐廳、圖書館和接待室都配備了不同風(fēng)格、不同時期的家具。墻上掛著油畫和掛毯，地板上鋪著東方地毯和小地毯。我后來發(fā)現(xiàn)，這些錢大部分是我姑姑從她父親那里繼承的遺產(chǎn)?！?/p>

? ? ?I was at once taken to my uncle, who was lying on a sofa. Next to?the sofa stood a large wireless set which played an important role in his?life as he was an avid listener to the news in those years of the rise of?national-socialism and anti-semitism in Germany and the ever-growing threat of war.

【我立刻被帶到姑父面前，他正躺在沙發(fā)上。沙發(fā)旁邊放著一臺巨大的收音機(jī)，這臺收音機(jī)在他的生活中扮演著重要的角色，因?yàn)樵诘聡{粹和反猶太主義興起的那些年里，他是一個狂熱的新聞聽眾，當(dāng)時戰(zhàn)爭的威脅正在不斷增長。】

? ? ?He was a small man with round shoulders and a rather flaccid body,?due to lack of exercise. From a pale face protruded an aquiline nose?and a thick reddish moustache. He always wore dark glasses which?gave his appearance something mysterious. He had been blind since?the age of ten months when a nurse accidentally dropped him. He was?a great lover of music and played the piano beautifully.

【他身材矮小，雙肩圓潤，由于缺乏鍛煉，身體有些松弛。蒼白的臉上露出一個鷹鉤鼻和一撮濃密的紅胡子。他總是戴著墨鏡，這使他的外表顯得有些神秘。他10個月大的時候，一名護(hù)士不小心把他摔了下來，從那時起他就失明了。他是一個偉大的音樂愛好者，鋼琴彈得很好?！?/p>

? ? ?My aunt led me to the sofa and I bent down to kiss him. As I did so,?he felt my face with his fingers, a gesture to which I was to grow?accustomed. In a soft voice he said some kind words of welcome to?me.

【姑姑領(lǐng)我到沙發(fā)前，我彎下身來吻他。當(dāng)我這樣做的時候，他用手指摸了摸我的臉，這是一個我漸漸習(xí)慣了的動作。他用溫柔的聲音說了一些歡迎我的話?！?/p>

? ? ?Several guests arrived soon afterwards for lunch among whom were?old friends of the family who had known my father in Constantinople?and were curious to meet me. They were all very nice to me, but I felt?rather bewildered in these new surroundings which were so different?from what I was used to and much of what they were saying I couldn't?understand. Lunch was a grand affair and consisted of six courses?handed round by three Nubian servants in white gowns with red?sashes.

【不久之后，來了幾位客人來吃午飯，其中有幾位是我們家的老朋友，他們在君士坦丁堡認(rèn)識了我父親，很想和我見面。他們對我都很好，但是在這個與我所熟悉的環(huán)境如此不同的新環(huán)境里，我感到有些不習(xí)慣，他們所說的許多話我都聽不懂。午餐很隆重，有六道菜，由三名身穿白色長袍、系著紅色腰帶的努比亞仆人輪流上桌?！?/p>

? ? ?My aunt Zephirah had married my uncle, who was some ten years?her senior, when she was sixteen. By agreement between the two?families she had been sent from Constantinople to Cairo to marry a?blind man, whom she had never seen before and who would never see?her at all. The marriage had turned out a very happy one. When I?came to live with them she was about fifty. Of slender build, she was?already grey, with well defined features and a great air of kindness. My?aunt was very pious and much inclined to mysticism. I think marriage?to a blind man was to her an offering and a fulfilment. She devoted?much of her time to charities, both Jewish and Roman Catholic.?There were many poor in the Jewish community in Cairo. Their?families had been in Egypt since biblical times and they lived mostly?in the Jewish quarter. They spoke Arabic and, religion apart, differed?in no way from the Egyptian masses. My uncle and aunt gave much?money to schools and orphanages. In particular an orphanage run by?the nuns of the Order of Our Lady of Sion was an object of interest to?my aunts. They frequently visited it and donated a lot of money to it.?There was a reason for this. One of my father's sisters when still a young?girl had been converted to Roman Catholicism and became a nun. She was now living in a convent of the Order in Constantinople.

【我姑姑澤菲拉十六歲時嫁給了我姑父，他比她大十歲左右。根據(jù)兩家的協(xié)議，她被從君士坦丁堡送到開羅，嫁給一個盲人。她以前從未見過這個盲人，而姑父也不會見到她。這段婚姻結(jié)果很幸福。我搬來和他們住時，她大約五十歲。她身材苗條，頭發(fā)已經(jīng)灰白，眉清目秀，和藹可親。我姑姑非常虔誠，非常信奉神秘主義。我認(rèn)為嫁給一個盲人對她來說是一種奉獻(xiàn)和滿足。她把大部分時間都花在了猶太和羅馬天主教的慈善事業(yè)上。開羅的猶太人社區(qū)里有許多窮人。他們的家庭從圣經(jīng)時代起就住在埃及，大部分時間都住在猶太人居住區(qū)。他們說阿拉伯語，除了宗教以外，他們與埃及民眾沒有任何不同。我姑姑給學(xué)校和孤兒院捐了很多錢。特別是，我的姑姑們對郇山圣母會修女們經(jīng)營的孤兒院很感興趣。她們經(jīng)常去參觀，并捐了很多錢。這是有原因的。我父親的一個妹妹在還是個小女孩的時候就皈依了羅馬天主教，成為了一名修女。她現(xiàn)在住在君士坦丁堡的一所修道院里?！?/p>

? ? ?My maiden aunt Marie, who was some five years younger than her?sister and had jet black hair, bore a striking resemblance to my father.?This made me feel very soon at home with her, although in the?beginning I found it difficult to talk to her. She spent a lot of time?knitting for her charities and always accompanied her elder sister on?her tours of charitable institutions. She also looked after any member?of the household who happened to be ill or just not feeling very well?and knew an amazing amount of popular remedies. Thus she believed?strongly in the effectiveness of cupping-glasses, which she very?expertly fixed on the backs of her various relatives on the slightest?pretext.

【我的未婚姑姑瑪麗比她姐姐小五歲左右，有一頭烏黑的頭發(fā)，長得和我父親驚人地相似。這讓我很快就覺得和她在一起很自在，雖然一開始我覺得很難和她說話。她花了很多時間為她的慈善機(jī)構(gòu)織毛衣，并總是陪著她姐姐參觀慈善機(jī)構(gòu)。她還照顧任何家庭成員，誰碰巧生病或只是感覺不太好，她知道大量的流行的療法。因此，她非常相信拔火罐的功效，只要有一點(diǎn)小的借口，她就會熟練地把火罐固定在她各家親戚的背上?！?/p>