走親訪友

【前情提要】

Elena 和Casanova同去威尼斯旅行參加面具嘉年華，結(jié)果竟被洶涌的人潮擠散，而就在此時，一個神秘的面具男出現(xiàn)了，他不僅和Elena度過了美好的夜晚，還讓Casanova醋意大發(fā)。

【本期劇情】

Casanova帶Elena拜訪好朋友Georgiana一家，這個溫暖的家庭充滿了親切感，而在和Georgiana一家相處的過程中，Elena也了解了Casanova鮮為人知的過去……

【重點提示】

Language Focus / 語言點：

1. 語言背后的文化知識

2. 固定英語表達(dá)法

3. 閱讀難點解析

Situation Dialogues 情景對話

Part One: Dinner Party 晚餐進(jìn)行時

（應(yīng)舊交Georgiana及其丈夫Johnny的邀請，Elena和Casanova與他們共進(jìn)了一頓豐盛的晚餐）

Elena: I can't believe you know so much about Chinese tea! I can't name half of the teas you've served tonight， it's so embarrassing!

Georgiana: (laughing) It's been a hobby of mine for years now. I love to discover new teas from the various regions of China. I travel there regularly to visit tea plantations， and I actually made a deal with a big Chinese tea shop here in Venice so that they fund part of my trips in exchange for me bringing back teas for them. It's getting more fashionable here to drink Chinese tea， you know.

Elena: I've heard! And I love the way you serve different flavour teas with each course， kind of like you do with wine.

Georgiana: Exactly! I always thought that tea was like wine， in that there are certain kinds that are appropriate with certain foods. Johnny here complains， but I love to experiment with tea in my cooking too.

Johnny: I don't mind the experimentation， per se， but it gets to be an expensive habit! Some of the teas she gets are outrageous. That tea you brought back last time， that was hundreds of Euros for a tiny amount， wasn't it?

Casanova: (fondly) Georgiana always did have expensive tastes!

Georgiana: (laughing) I can't help it! I always thought， plenty of people spend tons of money on vintage wine and cigars， so why not tea?

Elena: I agree!

(As the men launch into a separate discussion， Georgiana leans conspiratorially towards Elena.)

Georgiana: You know， I'm so glad to have met you. We don't often get to see Casanova， and he's so bad at emailing， we don't really know what goes on in his life day to day. But seeing him with you， it makes me feel better， like I know he must be doing fine in Beijing if he has you to look after him!

Elena: Me too， I'm so glad to have met you. It's really nice to meet his close friends and hear all the stories of what he was like when he was a kid!

Georgiana: You know， it really doesn't feel like I’ve only just met you， it feels like we've known each other forever!

Elena: I know!

(After dinner， Casanova and Johnny retire to the library for a chat while Elena and Georgiana do the dishes.)

Georgiana: There's really no need for you to help， go on and relax in the library with the guys!

Elena: No， no， I can't let you do these by yourself.

Georgiana: I'm not complaining then! So， how did you and Casanova meet? You know， this is the first time Casanova's brought a girlfriend home to meet us， so you must mean a lot to him.

Elena: (blushing) Well…

(Elena tells Georgiana the story of their first meeting at length， including the various arguments she and Casanova have had， and the event that took place during Carnivale.)

Elena: So…I guess this trip has been good for us. It's good to get to know him in his home town， away from all the distractions in Beijing!

Georgiana: I'm glad you feel that way， Elena. You know， Casanova can seem a little…flaky， and god knows he's the world's worst flirt， but it's not something he does on purpose. He grew up with three older sisters， and he's just used to dealing with women that way. It's almost a defence mechanism – he always acted like the charmer when he was a kid because he hated getting caught up in the sibling rivalry between his sisters. And he gives the impression that he plays around and has a lot of experience with women， but between you and me， I can guarantee that you're the first serious girlfriend I've heard of!

Elena: Well， that's good to hear， especially from someone who's known him for as long as you have! So how far back do you guys go， exactly?

Georgiana: Oh， we go back very far. We were next-door neighbours when we were little， and ended up going to the same school， so we're really close. My husband also went to the same school.

Elena: Oh， you were high-school sweethearts!

Georgiana: Not exactly! It's a little embarrassing， but I liked Johnny for a long time before he realised I even existed…

Elena: I find that hard to believe!

Georgiana: But seriously， I know a lot of stories about Casanova from when he was a kid. Great blackmail material! There was this one time…

(Georgiana and Elena continue to swap stories and chatter as they clear away the dishes)

Part Two: Guys' Talk 書房密談

（Johnny和Casanova在書房里喝著酒聊著天）

Johnny: It's good to have you here， Casanova. It's been too long. You should come back more often – we all miss you here.

Casanova: I know， and you guys should come visit me in China! Especially since Georgiana is always on the lookout for some new kind of tea. I can't believe she hasn't swung by Beijing to see me.

Johnny: Ah well， her never-ending quest for tea seems to take her to the more obscure places in the south. So anyway， what about Elena， eh? I have to say， I'm happy that you're here but even happier that you brought a girl home for the first time.

Casanova: Yeah…she's a special girl.

(The two fall into silence as Johnny waits for Casanova to go on.)

Casanova: By the way…I went to see my sister at the convent.

Johnny: Oh…really?

Casanova: Yeah， so…I guess I just wanted to say I understand what happened now. I'd thought that you had cheated on my sister with Georgiana and broken her heart. And then I found out…well， she told me everything. About how she fell in love with another guy first， and got pregnant by him， and was betrayed by him， and then lost the baby. And I'm really sorry for blaming you all those years ago， and cutting you guys out of my life. I regret that wasted time.

Johnny: Look， it's not a problem. Let's put it all behind us. How was your sister?

Casanova: She was doing good. She looked peaceful. I guess when you accept God as your one true love， you're never going to get hurt by him， right?

Johnny: (laughing) I guess so. I'm glad she's happy. She deserves to be happy.

Casanova: Do you still have any residual feelings for her?

Johnny: Nah. Well， some， but not romantic feelings anymore. I'm in love with Georgiana now.Your sister is more like a fond， distant memory for me.

Casanova: I don't know if I could be that mature…

Johnny: With Elena， you mean?

Casanova: I mean I love her， but…man， I wish I had a good guy friend to bounce some ideas off of in Beijing， because all this cross-cultural relationship stuff is so new to me， and sometimes I feel really lost…

Johnny: Well buddy， take the opportunity to unload – here I am， a married man， and to Georgiana to boot. I must be doing something right.

(The two laugh.)

Casanova: Well， here's the thing…

(The two talk deep into the night.)

【Language Focus / 語言點】

1. per se

這是個拉丁文，意思是“就某物/事的某一方面而言”。

2. at length

固定搭配，“詳細(xì)地、詳盡地”的意思。

3. flaky

做形容詞的時候，該詞語是“薄片的、成片的”意思，做名詞的時候，是個俚語，意思是“古怪的人”，但在對話中，它的意思是“不可靠的人”。

4. …h(huán)e hated getting caught up in the sibling rivalry between his sisters.

“get catch up in”在對話中相當(dāng)于“involve”，意思是“卷入”。

5. So how far back do you guys go…

這是一個常見的口語表達(dá)形式，意思是“你們認(rèn)識多久了”。

6. Great blackmail material!

在對話中，Georgiana向Elena透露自己知道很多關(guān)于Casanova的事情，她將這些事情開玩笑地稱為“blackmail material”，意思是這些事情可以用來敲詐Casanova。

7. swung by

“swing by”是個固定搭配，意思是“拜訪、看望”。

8. Nah

俚語，“no”的意思。

9. I wish I had a good guy friend to bounce some ideas off of in Beijing…

“bounce off”是詞組，意思是“對……發(fā)表議論/看法”。

10. …and to Georgiana to boot.

“to boot”是個詞組，意思是“而且、還”。

【下期預(yù)告】

Sabrina即將生產(chǎn)，但Paul因公務(wù)在身不能前去，而Elena和Casanova還在威尼斯，只剩下Lily和James陪同Sabrina去醫(yī)院生產(chǎn)。