Trouble on the high seas 公海歷險記
Mark and Kathleen were visiting the local port. “I love boats. I wish I could be a sailor. Wouldn’t it be great to travel the world and visit faraway countries?” said Kathleen. “It doesn’t sound like much fun to me. I get seasick,” replied Mark unhappily.
As they strolled around the docks they admired all the different kinds of boats. There were cruise liners, sailing boats, cargo ships, and even some sampans. They were just about to go home when a man with a scruffy beard walked over to them. “My name’s Captain Hawk and I’m looking for some folk to join me on a voyage! Are either of you landlubbers brave enough to join me? I’ll pay you one piece of gold a day,” he growled. “That sounds fantastic. Count us in!” squealed Kathleen. “Great. The ship sails in 30 minutes. Hurry up and get ready,” said the captain.
The ship was an old galley with a crew of over 300. Kathleen was a general assistant and had to help drop the anchor and steer the ship when the captain was sleeping. Mark was an oarsman and had to spend all day below deck rowing.
For the next two months they worked harder than ever before. It was tiring work and quite boring, until one day Kathleen interrupted Mark with some news. “The captain has seen something through his telescope! I think something amazing is about to happen…”
(john phillips, staff writer)
馬克和凱薩琳正在參觀本地港口，凱薩琳說：「我好愛船喔，真希望我是一個船員，你不覺得可以環遊世界、探訪遙遠的國度是件很棒的事嗎？」馬克不太開心地回答：「那聽起來好像不怎麼好玩，我會暈船。」
他們在碼頭附近四處走，欣賞各式各樣的船隻，包括遊輪、帆船、貨櫃船，甚至一些舢舨。就在他們準備返家時，一個滿臉鬍鬚的男子走向他們咆哮著說：「我是霍克船長，我要找一些人跟我一起出海！你們這兩個旱鴨子誰有勇氣隨我出海呢？我會每天支付一塊金子當作報酬。」凱薩琳大叫著說：「聽起來棒極了，算我們一份！」霍克船長說：「很好，三十分鐘後就要開船了，快點去準備準備。」
這是一艘老舊的單層大帆船，船上有超過三百名船員。凱薩琳是船副，負責拋錨，還有在船長休息的時候掌舵。馬克是槳手，一整天都要在甲板下划船。
接下來的兩個月，他們經歷了前所未有的辛苦，工作累人又相當枯燥，直到某天凱薩琳去跟馬克說了一個消息：「船長透過望遠鏡看到了什麼！我覺得有什麼大事要發生了…」 （翻譯：袁星塵）
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