驻加拿大大使章均赛在“汉语桥 中国缘”招待会上的致辞
2011年4月23日 渥太华
Speech at the "Chinese Bridge" Reception by Ambassador Zhang Junsai
April 23, 2011, Ottawa
老师们，
同学们：
Members of the faculty,
My dear students,
欢迎大家来使馆做客。教育处的同事告诉我，你们都对汉语和中国文化有着浓厚的兴趣，是加拿大大学生里的“中国通”。我对此深信不疑。
It's a real pleasure to have you all with us today. My colleagues in the Educational Section told me, that you are very interested in Chinese and the Chinese culture. They said that the young men and women present today are the "old China hands" among Canadian college students. (Laughter.) I have no doubt about that.
我来加已有5个月，走了许多地方，接触到许多人，令我吃惊，后来又习惯的是，许多加拿大人，年龄比你们大，都喜欢用汉语同我交谈，让我又兴奋，又失落。兴奋的是有越来越多的加拿大人了解中国或正在了解中国。失落的是今后我在这里用英语的场合就比较少了，这对我提高我的英语水平可不是个好消息。
It's been five months since I came to Canada. I've traveled around and met many Canadians. One thing that surprised and inspired me was that many of these people, a lot older than you are, preferred to talk to me in Chinese. (Laughter.) I'm excited and frustrated at the same time- Excited because more Canadians know about or are getting to know about China; Frustrated because I realized that there will be little time left for me to polish my English here. (Laughter.) That doesn't sound so good. (Laughter.)
对你们当中那些学汉语轻而易举的人，我想借现在中国年轻人中最流行的形容词夸一句：你们真“给力”。对你们当中那些曾为学汉语伤脑筋的人，我想说：别担心，我们当年学外语也是这么过来的。就我个人经历来看，无论是学汉语、英语还是法语，都跟打冰球一样，要做到三件事，就是练习，练习，再练习。
Now, to those of you who find learning Chinese a piece of cake, I say to you, as any Chinese your age would comment at the moment: 你们真给力, meaning You Rock. (Laughter.) To those of you who had a hard time with Chinese, I say to you: we all did. That's what happens when you take on a foreign language. So hang in there, don't give up. To me, language learning is like hockey. To play like a pro, you've got to do three things- practice, practice, practice. (Laughter.)
当你决定修这门说话像唱歌，写字像画画，同音不同字，同字不同音的语言时，很难有捷径可走。所以有人感叹道，汉语能学好，什么事都难不倒。
When it comes to studying Chinese, a language where people talk like singing, write like sketching, different characters sound the same, same character reads differently, there's no detour. No wonder some people say if you can be fluent in Chinese, there's nothing you cannot do. (Laughter.)
正如冰球对你们来说不只是一项运动一样，汉语也不仅仅是一个交流的工具。它是中华文化的载体、中国人智慧的结晶，更是一种独特的生活与思维方式。
Just as hockey is much more than a winter sport, the Chinese language is way beyond a tool for communication. It's the carrier of China's culture, the growing legacy of Chinese wisdom and a way of life and thinking.
你们学汉语，学到的将不仅是汉语的抑扬顿挫，还有中国五千年悠久的历史和丰富多彩的风俗人情。你们懂汉语，懂得的将远不止汉字的精准优美，还有中国人主张的仁爱民本、和而不同等哲学理念。你们用汉语，用到的将不只是成语典故，还有中国看自己、看世界的角度和思路。
In your course of study: You will learn not only the tones but also China's 5000 years of history; You will understand not only the concision and elegance of characters but also Chinese philosophies of benevolence, love of people and pursuit of harmony without uniformity; You will get not only the idioms but how China sees the world and itself.
这就是为什么从伦敦到新德里再到渥太华有几十万你们的同龄人将汉语作为优先选修的外语。这就是为什么美国总统宣布在5年内派10万美国青年人到中国留学。这也是为什么全球有超过4000万来自不同国家、不同行业的人在学习汉语，刮起一股“汉语热”。
This is why hundreds of thousands of college students made Chinese as their language of choice from London to New Delhi to right here in Ottawa. This is why President Obama announced that the US will send 100,000 students to study in China in five years. This is also why Chinese is riding a wave of popularity with more than 40 million learners around the world.
你们在加拿大学汉语，可以说是正当其时。近年来，中加两国在经贸、旅游、文化、教育和民间交往等方面合作愈加紧密。越来越多加拿大企业到中国做生意，中国企业也纷纷将目光投向加拿大。去年6月以来，有超过20万中国游客来加拿大赏湖光山色，品冰酒枫糖，看斯坦利杯。目前，5万余名中国留学生在加深造，你们或许已经结识了不少来自中国的伙伴。中加伙伴关系的延续与深化需要你们这样既能讲英语、法语，又懂汉语，熟悉两国情况的人才。
There's no better time to learn Chinese here than now. In the past few years, China and Canada have had closer cooperation in commerce, trade, tourism, culture, education and people to people exchange. More Canadian companies are doing business in China. At the same time, more Chinese companies are turning their eyes to Canada. Since June last year, over 200,000 Chinese tourists have travelled to Canada for sight-seeing, ice wine, maple syrup and their favorite teams in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Laughter.) At the moment, more than 50,000 Chinese students are studying in Canada. Many of them are in your universities. The growth of China-Canada relationship needs talents like you, who speak the language of both of our countries.
讲一口流利的汉语，你跟世界上五分之一的人打起交道来就更容易。懂汉语，你就能第一时间掌握来自中国的资讯，知道中国不只是纸张、火药、指南针、活字印刷的发源地。中国已成为世界第二大经济体，正在努力实现可持续、环境友好、资源节约型的绿色经济。懂汉语，你就能更深刻地认识到中国文化的内涵远大于武功、杂技和宫保鸡丁，杰出中国人绝不只有孔子、成龙和姚明。懂汉语，你就更能了解我们两国尽管在历史、现状与价值观上有差异，但这并未影响到中加合作、友谊与相互了解，中加关系不是零和游戏。中、加贸易互补性很强，在能矿资源开发利用、铁路、电信等方面合作前景广阔，两国的发展繁荣符合彼此的利益。
Mastering Chinese will open doors to one fifth of world's population. You will have direct access to first-hand information on China from China. You will know that proud as we were, China's history did not stop at the invention of compass, gunpowder, papermaking and printing. (Laughter.) China has become world's second largest economy. Like Canada, we are working hard to make our development sustainable, environment friendly and energy-conserving. Keep learning Chinese. You will find that Chinese culture is not just about Kong fu, acrobatics and Chinese food. (Laughter.) You will know that there are other world famous Chinese apart from Confucius, Jackie Chan and Yao Ming. (Laughter.) You will see that our differences in history, status quo and values did not stand in the way of our friendship and cooperation, that China-Canada relationship is not a zero sum game. Our economies have a lot to offer each other. Our cooperation in fields such as energy and resources exploration, railways and telecommunications has huge potential. A more prosperous China and Canada benefits us both.
当然，要更深入地学习汉语、了解中国，最好、最直接的办法是去中国留学。中国政府为加拿大学生设立了赴华奖学金，鼓励你们和你们的同学去中国攻读学位或短期交流，多走走、多看看，亲身感受当地的发展变化、风土人情，跟中国大学生们交流与互动。同时，中国的年轻人们也在努力学习英语、法语。他们也期待着同你们一起探讨感兴趣的话题，了解加拿大的现在和过去。
The best place to learn Chinese is China. Our government has set up scholarships for Canadian college students such as you to study in China. We hope more young people like you will go to China to study or join exchange programs. This way, you will be able to travel across China, have a taste of local customs and see for yourselves what's happening on the ground. You will also have the chance to interact with your Chinese counterparts, many of whom are studying your languages and looking forward to know more about Canada.
今年是“世界大学生中文比赛”十周年。前几届比赛中，来自加拿大的选手们说学逗唱样样行，别具特色，给大家留下了深刻的印象，获得不错的成绩。我期待着在今后的比赛中也看到你们的精彩表现。
This year we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Chinese Bridge Competition. In previous competitions, we have seen exceptional displays of talents, creativity and humor from Canadian students. Their language proficiency shocked and amazed the audience. I don't want to give you any pressure, but I expect great things from you all.
最后，祝大家在兔年里学习进步、美梦成真、汉语水平芝麻开花节节高。也期待你们中间有更多的“大山”出现，为中加友谊、中加合作添砖加瓦。
Before you, one Canadian completed the mission impossible. His name is Mark Rowswell, a.k.a. "Dashan" in China. After years of study, Mark now speaks better Chinese than many Chinese. (Laughter.) He's become a household name in China as a performer, language educator and TV host. But more importantly, Mark is an active cultural ambassador between China and Canada. I hope from among you there will be more Mark Rowswells. I am sure, that like him, you will contribute a unique share to our two countries' friendship and partnership. Finally, I wish you the best of luck in your studies and all your future endeavors.
谢谢。现在我愿回答大家的提问。
实习生：李帅男
