英国百年婚礼习俗
有旧有新有借有蓝--百年婚礼习俗
“有旧、有新、有借、有蓝”的婚礼习俗已经有好几百年的历史了。许多新娘在她们举行婚礼的当天都曾被问到是否已经备好了那些“有旧、有新、有借、有蓝”的服饰，以穿戴它们缓缓走过教堂内的通道。穿戴这每一件服饰的传统据说各有其独特的涵义，但都能够给新婚夫妇带来吉祥和财富。你曾想过这种说法到底是什么意思吗？是如何起源的？每件服饰各有何涵义？
最初的说法源自维多利亚时代，原文是：“有旧，有新，有借，有蓝；在一只鞋里放一枚六便士的银币。”
有旧新娘可以穿着或佩戴一样旧衣物来象征她和她娘家及过去生活之间的历史纽带。许多新娘佩戴一件家传的珠宝饰品作为“有旧”的选择。有些新娘穿着她们母亲或祖母穿过的结婚礼服。实际上，旧的东西同时也可以是借来的东西。
有新穿戴一样新衣物是要象征新娘在新生活和婚姻中拥有成功和希望。如果新娘置办的是新的结婚礼服，那它就可以是她的“有新”，但是任何别的新服饰也是可以的。“有新”常常是最容易做到的。
有借借来的服饰应该是从一位已幸福地结了婚的朋友那里借来的。据说他们的幸福会惠及于你，给你的婚姻带来长久的美满。有些新娘会去借来一种衣着用品、一件首饰、一块手帕或者一个饰以珠子的手袋。
有蓝穿戴一件蓝色服饰源自《圣经》时代，当时蓝色结婚礼服代表着纯洁、忠诚和爱情。随着时间的推移，这一传统已从穿蓝色结婚礼服，演变成后来的在新娘的结婚礼服下摆处缝上一圈蓝色的镶边，再演变到现代的普遍做法——新娘用蓝色的吊袜带。
六便士银币在新娘的左脚鞋子里放一枚六便士银币据说是财富的象征。它不仅代表财产上的富有，还代表婚姻生活的幸福与快乐。由于今天许多新娘恐怕连一枚六便士是什么样子都不知道，传统习俗的这一部分在现代婚礼中已经不常被遵守。但是，如果新娘想要在她的婚礼中包括这一项目，她可以从许多出售如吊袜带和请柬等婚礼用品的公司里买到六便士银币。
有些较为传统的新娘或许会花很多心思选择每一件服饰。传统的做法是：同一家族的女性佩戴同一件首饰。
而有些新娘不太为传统所束缚，但在别人的请求下也会遵循这一传统。如果她们不想面面俱到，她们可以就携带一个小小的珠子手袋，里面装有两块手帕——她们可以买一块新的白色手帕，然后从家人那里借一块蓝色手帕，这样她们就“有新”——白色手帕，还“有旧、有借、有蓝”——蓝色手帕。手帕在婚礼中正好可以派上用唱—擦拭喜悦的泪水！
The wedding tradition of“something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue” has been around for hundreds of years. Many brides have been asked on their respective wedding days if they have gathered something old, new, borrowed and blue to carry with them as they walk down the aisle. The tradition of carrying or wearing one of each item is said to bring luck and fortune to the newly married couple. Have you ever stopped to think what the saying really means？ What is its origin and what does each item represent？The original saying dates back to the Victoria times and states,“Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a silver sixpence in your shoe.” Something old...A bride may wear or carry something old to represent her continued ties to her family and her old life. Many brides wear a piece of family jewelry as their old item. Some brides wear the wedding dress worn by their mother or grandmother. In many cases, something old may also be something borrowed. Something new...Wearing something new is supposed to represent success and hope in the bride’s new life and in her marriage. If the bride purchased her wedding dress new, it may represent her new item, but any item that is new may be used. Something“new” is usually the easiest category1 to fill. Something borrowed...The borrowed item should be something borrowed from a friend that is happily married. It is suggested that their happiness will rub off on2 you and bring lasting happiness to your marriage. Some brides borrow an item of clothing, a piece of jewelry, a handkerchief or perhaps a beaded purse. Something blue...Wearing something blue dates back to biblical3 times when a blue wedding dress was worn to represent purity, fidelity4 and love. Over time this has changed from wearing a blue dress to wearing just a blue band around the bottom of the bride’s wedding dress to modern times?? where it is commonplace for the bride to wear a blue garter5. Silver sixpence...Placing a silver sixpence in the bride’s left shoe is said to be a symbol of wealth. This not only refers to financial wealth, but also a wealth of happiness and joy throughout her married life. Since most brides probably don’t even know what a sixpence is, this part of the tradition is not used very often in modern times. However, if a bride would like to include it in her wedding, she can purchase a silver sixpence from many companies that sell bridal supplies such as garters and invitations.Some brides are more traditional than other and may take a great deal of care in selecting one item for each category. It may be traditional for the women in their families to wear the same piece of jewelry.Other brides aren’t bound by tradition but still may choose to carry out the custom at someone else’s request. If they don’t want to carry numerous items, they may simply carry two handkerchiefs in a small beaded bag--hey may choose to buy a new, white handkerchief and borrow a blue one from a family member. That would provide them with something new--the white handkerchief, as well as something that is old, borrowed and blue--the blue handkerchief. The handkerchief just may come in handy6 during the wedding for drying their joyful tears.?
英国酒吧的礼仪介绍
mazingly for the British, who love queues, there is no formal line-up——the bar staff are skilled at knowing whose turn it is. You are permitted to try to attract attention, but there are rules about how to do this. Do not call out tap coins on the counter, snap your finger or wave like a drowning swimmer. Do not scowl or sigh or roll your eyes. And whatever you do, do not ring the bell hanging behind the counter——this is used by the landlord to signal closing time. The key thing is to catch the bar worker's eyes. You could also hold an empty glass or some money, but do not wave them about. Do adopt an expectant, hopeful, even slightly anxious facial expression. If you 1ook too contented and complacent, the bar staff may assume you are already being served.
就爱排队的英国人而言，酒吧里看不到正式的排队，这令人感到惊讶。酒保有本领知道该轮到谁了。你可以做些动作引起酒保的注意，但有规可循。不要大声嚷嚷，不要在吧台面上敲击钱币，不要叭叭地弹手指，不要像快淹死的人那样挥动手臂，不要绷着脸，不要唉声叹气，不要翻动眼珠。在不该干的事当中还绝对不要摇晃挂在吧台后面的铃，那是酒吧老板用的，表示关门时间到了。关键是你要让酒保看见你。你可以举起空杯子或钱，可不要摇晃。你脸上可以流露等待、期望，甚至略带焦急的表情。你如果显得太心满意足的样子，酒保会认为他们已经为你提供服务了。
Always say "please" and try to remember some of the British bar staffs pet hates. They do not like people to keep others waiting while they make up their minds. They don't like people standing idly against the bar when there are a lot of customers wanting for service. And they do not like people who wait until the end of the order before asking for such drinks as Guinness stout which take considerably longer to pour than other drinks.
要把"请"字挂在嘴边，要尽量记住一些英国酒保最厌恶的事。他们不喜欢酒客拿不定主意而让他们等着；不喜欢好多客人等着买酒而有人却靠着吧台站着；也不喜欢有人等到最后才说要喝像爱尔兰烈性黑啤酒那样的酒，因为比起别的酒来，准备这种酒的时间要长得多。
One Dutch tourist who spent six months visiting 800 of Britain's 61,000 pubs and interviewing 50 publicans and bar workers and more than 1,000 customers said :" I cannot understand how the British ever manage to buy themselves a drink." But they do, and if you follow these tips you should be able to do so, too.
一个曾花了半年时间，去了英国61000家酒吧中的800个，访谈50位酒吧老板和酒保以及1000多个酒客的荷兰旅游者说："我不明白英国人是怎么给自已买到酒的。"可事实上他们就能。如果你按着本文所说的忠告去做，你也能如愿以偿地买到酒。
Speaking of tips, you should never offer the bar staff a cash gratuity. The correct behaviour is to offer them a drink. Pubs pride themselves on their egalitarian atmosphere. A tip in cash would be a reminder of their service role, whereas the offer of a drink is a friendly gesture.
说到"小费"，你可千万别给酒保现金以表示谢意。正确的做法是请酒保喝一盅。酒吧为自己的平等气氛感到自豪。现金小费会使人想到酒保是伺候人的，而请喝一杯则是友好的表示
英国饮食习惯中英文对照
Eating habits
As a nation we are becoming more aware of the food we and our children are eating. The recent campaign to improve school dinners by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has helped raise awareness of our fast food lifestyles.
Healthy eaters or just trendy?
Are there certain things that you do and don’t eat and why? With so many food programmes and books telling you what you should and shouldn’t eat to be healthy it’s hard to keep track. Some people are vegetarians for moral reasons, some don’t like the taste of meat and there are one or two people who do it because it’s trendy. Likewise, it can be trendy to follow the latest celebrity diet because it’s what the famous are doing.
Eating out
People are eating out more frequently now, not just on special occasions as in the past. The choice of restaurants has also diversified over the last few decades. Italian, Chinese and Indian restaurants have been around for years but have now been joined by Mongolian, Japanese, Mexican and Turkish amongst others. Bars and pubs are still popular for food and often promote English cuisine made with local produce. For the Queen’s recent 80th birthday celebrations, top UK chefs battled it out to create the Great British Menu to serve at a birthday banquet.
‘We enjoy eating out a couple times and month whether with friends or just as a couple. We like trying new things so go to different restaurants.’ Craig, 25, County Durham.
Eating on the go
From chocolate bars to sandwiches and wraps more people are eating on the go - on the street, in cars or on buses and trains. While our parents and grandparents may frown at this behaviour, considering it to be bad manners, people eat on the go because they are rushing from one place to another. And in the home the number of people sitting down at a dining table for their evening meal is on the decrease as meal times become more informal.
‘If I’m running late for work I don’t think twice about eating toast in the car or on the bus but I know my mum wouldn’t approve.’ Stacey, 24, Leeds.
Whilst we may be trying to eat more healthily it seems we still have some bad habits.
Lucy
September 2006
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