老外在中国：新妻新生活

老外在中国，是种什么样的生活体验？Second Thought栏目系列文章带你走近老外的真实生活。

I’ve never done too many truly bold, romantic things in my life, but just about five years ago, after getting a job offer in China, I told my on-again, off-again girlfriend of several years that I wanted to drop by her house to talk to her.

我这一生中从未做过什么真正大胆又浪漫的事情，但就在五年前，在得到中国的一个工作机会之后，我告诉我分分合合数年的女友说我想在路过她家时和她谈谈。

We had dreamed about living in China after a friend had come back from a few years living in Shanghai and Hong Kong and telling us all about his experience. Neither one of us had ever been to Asia, but it sounded fascinating.

我们有个朋友在上海和香港生活了几年，回国后和我们分享了他的经历，于是我们开始梦想在中国生活。我们两人都未曾去过亚洲，但那里听起来很让人神往。

So when the opportunity came around a few months later, straight out of the blue, I had to see Delores. We were, by the way, off again at that time. But I could not image going to China without her. It had been our dream. I realized I loved her and I didn't want to lose her.

于是大约几个月后，突然之间，机会来了。我得去见德洛丽丝。那会儿我们又分手了。但是我无法想象没有她自己独自一人去中国的情景。这曾经是我们共同的梦想。我意识到我爱她，不想失去她。

So, my talk went something like this: "Marry me and let's move to a faraway land." How’s that for a shocker?

于是，我就说出了这样的话：“嫁给我，然后一起搬到很远的地方去住吧。”这句话是不是会让人吓一跳？

We each had a job and a house where we were living in the US state of Florida, so it wasn't like we actually needed to move halfway across the globe. But this opportunity called to us. So we both decided to take a leap of faith in each other and in a new country.

我们各自在美国佛罗里达都有工作，也有房子，所以我们事实上并不需要搬到地球的另一头去。但是这个机会在召唤着我们。于是我们都决定大胆地信任对方，信任一个新国家。

Those first few months in Shanghai were some of the most wonderfully intense times of my life. We were newlyweds in a new country at a time when many of my contemporaries were starting to think about their retirement.

初到上海的那几个月是我人生中最紧张的一段时期，但是感觉还不错。我们在一个新国家成了新婚夫妇，而与此同时我的很多同龄人都已经开始为退休做打算。

China drew us closer together and helped bond our relationship.

中国让我们彼此靠得更近，巩固了我们的感情。

Now it's almost five years later. March 31 is our fifth wedding anniversary. The time has gone by fast, and I have no regrets. China has become our adopted home. We moved north almost three years ago and have become Beijingers.

现在将近五年过去了。3月31日是我们第五个结婚纪念日。时间过得很快，而我一点也不后悔。中国已经成为我的第二家乡。大约三年前我们搬到了北方，成为北京居民。

We have felt welcome and have received many blessings here, and have also tried to give back to China, in part through our work. In my case, that’s media, and in my wife’s case, teaching.

我们在北京受到了热情的欢迎，也收到了很多祝福，我们也试图通过我们的工作和其他方式回报中国。我在中国的工作是媒体人，而我妻子则是当老师。

We hope we've been able to show our relatives and friends around the world what China and her people are really like, and why we like it here -- to be a bridge of sorts, at least in a small way.

我们希望我们能够向我们的亲人和世界各地的朋友展示真实的中国和中国人，以及为什么我们喜欢在中国生活，我们希望自己能够充当桥梁，哪怕是很小的一座桥梁。

The experience also reminded me that before you make a commitment to someone, make sure they want to go on the same adventure in life that you do. I still feel like I'm on my honeymoon five years later. I know I made the right decision in a life companion and in a new home.

这段经历也提醒了我，就是当你向某人作出承诺之前，一定要确定他们是否愿意和你踏上共同的冒险旅程。虽然五年过去了，我还是觉得自己就像在度蜜月。我知道我在人生伴侣和新家的选择上都作出了正确的决定。

About the author

关于作者

Matt Prichard is a copy editor and writer who works on the front page team of China Daily. He has lived in China for more than four years, in Shanghai and Beijing. Before that, he had a 30-year career as a reporter and editor in the United States and Latin America. He has an ABJ from the University of Georgia and did postgraduate work at the Universidad Nacional del Sur in Argentina. He speaks Spanish fluently and is still learning Mandarin.

本文作者马特•普利查德是《中国日报》头版小组的文字编辑及撰稿人。他已经在中国（上海和北京）生活了四年多。此前他在美国和拉丁美洲有过三十年的记者和编辑工作经历。他在乔治亚大学获得了资讯学士学位，并在阿根廷苏尔国立大学做过研究生。他能讲流利的西班牙语，目前还在学习中文。

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