又中又英｜Pizza Expo

A newspaper article I read on April 1 caught my attention. I thought it was an April Fools’  joke after reading a few paragraphs. It was about a Pizza Expo where attendees can binge on pizzas. The writer said she spent seven hours at the expo eating so many different pizzas that the next morning she had a swollen face and a mush brain. After reading more paragraphs I realized the article was not an April Fools’  joke. There really is an annual Pizza Expo in Las Vegas. The one held on March 28-30 was the 39th expo.

An expo is short for exposition, which means a large international exhibition. If you go on a binge, it means you do too much of something, such as eating or drinking. If you binge on pizzas, it means you eat too much pizza. If you have a mush brain, it means you are unable to think clearly. The annual three-day Pizza Expo at the 3.2 million square-foot Las Vegas Convention Centre attracts people from all over the world. Only those in the pizza business can attend, such as pizza restaurant owners, managers, and buyers. They pay between US$200 to $279 depending on how early they register.

Pizza restaurants from all over the world make freshly baked pizzas at the expo. Attendees can eat as much as they want for free. There are pizza competitions and demonstrations on how to make pizzas. Hong Kong’s many expos have become blasé, which means no longer new or exciting. It should start a cha chaan teng expo where restaurant owners compete and cook cha chaan teng food for attendees.

我在4月1日读到的一篇新闻报道引起我的注意，读了几段过后，我还以为是个愚人节的笑话。它是关于一个薄饼博览会（Expo），出席者可以尽情大吃薄饼（binge on pizzas）。那位作者说，她在博览会（expo）花了7小时，吃了许多不同种类的薄饼，多得翌日早上她满脸浮肿、头脑不清（mush brain）。再多读几段，我终于发现那篇文章并不是甚么愚人节笑话，在拉斯维加斯，真的有一个一年一度的薄饼博览会（Expo）。而于3月28至30日举行的，是第39届博览会（expo）。
 An expo是exposition的简称，意即大型国际展览。若你 go on a binge，意即你无节制地做某件事，例如暴饮暴食；若你 binge on pizzas，意即你大吃特吃薄饼。若你有个 mush brain，意思就是你头脑不清晰，未能好好思考。这个一年一度、为期3天，在占地320万平方尺的拉斯维加斯会议中心举行的薄饼博览会（Expo），吸引全球各地的人前去。只有从事薄饼生意的业界人士可以出席，例如薄饼店老板、经理和采购员。他们要付200至279美元不等，视乎他们有多早报名参加。
 来自世界各地的薄饼餐厅，会在博览会（expo）会场新鲜烤制薄饼。与会者可以免费任吃薄饼。博览设有薄饼大赛，以及如何做薄饼的现场示范。香港的许多博览会（expos）都变得 blasé，即不再新颖有趣、司空见惯了的。它好应开一个茶餐厅博览（expo），餐厅老板可以比赛，以为为与会者煮茶餐厅食物。

mickchug@gmail.com
Michael Chugani褚简宁
中译：七刻