又中又英 | Pecking order | 褚簡寧
France has long topped the list as the country most popular with tourists, but Japan is high on the pecking order. It is consistently ranked within the top ten countries most popular with foreign tourists. The expression “pecking order” is used to describe the status of birds. Birds of a higher status peck weaker birds without fear of retaliation. The word “peck” means a bird using its beak to strike or bite something. The expression “pecking order” can also be used to describe an informal system in which some groups or people are more important or less important than others.
Groups or people high in the pecking order are treated as more important than those lower in the pecking order. One reason why Japan is high on the pecking order of tourist destinations is because it is very popular with Hong Kong and mainland tourists. They can reach Japan within a few hours by plane. The weak Japanese yen gives tourists more spending power. It has been decades since I last visited Japan. So many foreign tourists visit Japan that it piqued my interest. If something piques your interest, it means it gets your attention or arouses your curiosity.
A family member and I decided to visit Japan for two weeks last month. My family member, who lives in the US, had never been to Japan and I haven’t been there for several decades. We went to Tokyo, Kyoto, and several other cities. Our experience on our first night in Tokyo was a mixture of excitement and shocked disbelief. I will use the next few columns to describe the highs and lows of our trip.
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法國長久以來位居最受遊客歡迎的國家榜首，但日本在這個等級排序（pecking order）中也有很高的排名。它始終如一地位列頭十個最受外國遊客歡迎的國家。習語pecking order是用來形容雀鳥的啄食次序。較高等級的雀鳥會啄食（peck）較弱小的雀鳥，而不用擔心被報復。Peck是指雀鳥用喙去啄食。習語pecking order也可以用來形容一些群體或人比他人較重要或不重要的非正式排序。
在等級排序（pecking order）中有較高排名的群體或人，會比那些在等級排序（pecking order）中排得較低的，有更尊貴或重要的待遇。日本在遊客理想目的地的等級排序（pecking order）中排名較高的原因之一，是它深受香港和內地遊客的歡迎。他們搭飛機幾小時內便能抵達日本。日圓走弱亦令遊客們有較高的消費力。自我上次遊日本以來，已有數十寒暑。有那麼多外國遊客到日本旅遊，piqued my interest—若某事物piqued your interest，意即它引起你的注意，或激起了你的好奇心。
上月，我和我一位家人決定往日本旅遊兩周。我那位住在美國的家人從未到訪過日本，我亦已有幾十年未去過日本了。我們去了東京、京都和另外幾個城市。我們第一晚在日本的經歷，混合了興奮和震驚的難以置信。我會用之後幾篇文章描繪一下這趟旅程的高低起跌。
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Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻
