Oil Prices Fray Saudi Promise of Easy Jobs
油元大減 沙國青年捲起衣袖
By Ben Hubbard

In pressed white robes and clutching crisp resumes, young Saudi men packed a massive hall at a university in the capital city this month to wait in long lines to pitch themselves to employers.
這個首都一所大學的巨大禮堂本月某日擠滿了沙烏地阿拉伯的年輕男子，他們穿著燙平的白袍，手中緊抓著捲折的簡歷表，排在長隊中等著向雇主推銷自己。

It was one of three job fairs in Riyadh in two weeks, and the high attendance was fueled in part by fear among the younger generation of what a future of cheap oil will mean in a country where oil is everything.
這是首都利雅德兩周內三場就業博覽會中的一場，如此龐大人潮湧現，部分是因為在這個石油就是一切的國家中，年輕一代對廉價石油預示的未來開始感到恐懼。

For decades, the royal family has used the kingdom’s immense oil wealth to lavish benefits on its people, including free education and medical care, generous energy subsidies and well-paid (and often undemanding) government jobs. No one paid taxes, and if political rights were not part of the equation, that was fine with most people.
數十年來，王室利用這個王國的巨大石油財富讓人民享盡福利，包括免費的教育和醫療，大方的能源補貼，高薪（且通常很輕鬆）的公家工作。沙國沒有人納稅，因此即使政治權利不是這個等式的一部分（有差別待遇），多數人民並不介意。

But the drop in oil prices to below $30 a barrel from more than $100 a barrel in June 2014 means that the old math no longer works. Low oil prices have knocked a chunk out of the government budget and now pose a threat to the unwritten social contract that has long underpinned life in the kingdom, the Arab world’s largest economy and a key American ally.
然而油價從2014年6月的每桶逾百美元，跌至每桶不到30美元，意謂舊數學不再行得通。低油價使政府預算少掉一大塊，如今還對上述不成文的社會契約構成威脅，這些社會契約長期以來支撐著這個國家的生活。沙國是阿拉伯世界的最大經濟體，也是美國的極重要盟友。

The shift is already echoing through the economy, with government projects delayed, spending limits imposed on ministries and high-level discussions about measures long considered impossible, like imposing taxes and selling shares of Saudi Aramco, the state-run oil giant that is estimated to be the world’s most valuable company.
這項變遷已在整個沙國經濟產生回響，政府的計畫因此延宕，各部會支出受到限制，高層開始討論長期以來認為不可能實行的措施，如徵稅，出售國營石油巨擘「沙烏地阿拉伯國家石油公司」股份，該公司據估計是全球價值最高的公司。

For younger Saudis – 70 percent of the population is under 30 – the oil shock has meant a lowering of expectations as they face the likelihood that they will have to work harder than their parents, enjoy less job security and receive fewer perks.
對沙國的年輕世代（沙國7成人口年齡在30歲以下），這個石油震撼意味他們必須降低期待，他們很可能必須比父母更勤奮工作，工作卻更沒有保障，能夠享受的福利也更少。

“For the older generation, it was easier,” said Abdulrahman Alkhelaifi, 20, during a break from his job at McDonald’s. “They’d get out of university and get a government job. Now you need an advanced degree.”
20歲的阿布杜拉曼．艾爾基拉伊費在麥當勞工作，他在休息時說：「對老一輩的人來說，一切輕鬆簡單得多。他們大學畢業，然後到公家謀個職位。現在你要有更高的學位才行。」

Of his generation, he said, “The weight is on our necks.”
至於他這一代，他說：「覺得頸部壓力沉重。」

It is hard to overstate the importance of oil in the development of modern Saudi Arabia. Oil wealth allowed the ruling Al Saud family to maintain its grip on power, wield clout abroad through checkbook diplomacy and invest billions of dollars in promoting an austere interpretation of Islam around the world.
石油對現代沙國的發展無比重要，這絕非誇大之詞。得自石油的財富讓執政的「紹德」家族能夠緊緊掌握權力，透過支票簿（銀彈）外交在國外發揮影響力，並且投資數十億美元推展對伊斯蘭更嚴格的詮釋。

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/17/world/middleeast/young-saudis-see-cushy-jobs-vanish-along-with-nations-oil-wealth.html

2016-03-06/聯合報/D2版/紐約時報賞析 王麗娟譯

說文解字看新聞 王麗娟

沙烏地阿拉伯是全球最大原油出口國，沙國的多金，讓沙國人民可以不用納稅。文章第三段說，因為沙國人不必納稅，所以就算政治權利不是等式的一部分（意指民眾的政治權利受到限制、減損、差別對待），大多數民眾並不介意。2014年，沙國將平衡國家收支的油價設定在每桶103美元，2015年設定為每桶80美元。不料國際油價持續重挫，今年一月一度跌破每桶30美元。沙國的石油收入大幅縮水，文中因此?F國政府預算被敲掉了一大塊（knock a chunk out of the government budget）。chunk意為大塊、厚片、相當大的數量，也有矮胖、結實的人的意思。

Job fair直譯為職業展覽會，台灣習慣稱就業博覽會。fair常作形容詞用，意為「公平的」、「美麗的」，作名詞用時，意為「市集、展覽會」。其他常見如agricultural fair（農業市集，農業展銷會）、travel fair（旅展）、trade fair（商展）、world’s fair或 world fair（世界博覽會）。除了job fair之外，career fair（就業展覽會）或 career expo(exposition)（就業博覽會）也與job fair同義。世界博覽會也可用world expo。

Pulling Up a Chair for Solo Diners
為獨自用餐的客人備座
By Charu Suri

With the growing number of solo diners, hotels and resorts are making sure they are comfortable.
隨著單獨用餐的人愈來愈多，飯店和度假村正努力確保能讓他們感到舒適自在。

The Plume restaurant at the Jefferson Hotel in Washington, D.C., created a program for solo diners last fall (from $98 a person); several of its 18 seats are dedicated to diners who want a sense of privacy yet a feeling of inclusion. “The seating for this type of diner doesn’t include being in the center of the room,” said the restaurant’s manager, Sean Mulligan. “We make sure they are not near the entrance or exit for discretion and privacy while making sure the diners have items like newspapers and magazines delivered to their table if they need it.”
華盛頓特區傑佛遜飯店的羽毛餐廳去年秋天為單獨用餐的客人設計了一個方案（每人98美元起）；餐廳18個座位中有一些是獻給想要保有隱私，又要有融入感的客人。餐廳經理西恩．穆利根說：「這類客人的座位不會在餐室的中央。為了慎重和隱私起見，我們也絕不會讓他們坐得靠近入口或出口，同時我們一定會為客人準備報紙和雜誌之類的東西，他們若需要，就送到他們桌上。」

At Metropolitan by Como, Miami Beach, a dinner-for-one menu ($70) made its debut earlier this year, with recommended seating at the corner of the hotel’s terrace and the Traymore bar positioned for people-watching along a pedestrian area of Miami Beach Drive. Solo diners are also able to log into PressReader., where they can read their favorite magazine in their preferred language from their phone or tablet.
邁阿密海灘的科莫大都會飯店，今年稍早推出單客菜單（70美元），建議的座位安排在飯店陽台的角落，而Traymore酒吧的單客座位，可以欣賞邁阿密大道徒步區的來往行人。單客也可以登入PressReader，在手機或平板電腦上以他們偏好的語言閱讀他們最喜愛的雜誌。

The new “Just Cook for Me Chef!” program ($150 a person) at Miraval Resort & Spa in Tucson, Arizona, was designed to bring together several solo guests in the kitchen so they can enjoy samples from the daily menu. This option was designed to be a smaller version of the communal-style tables that are enjoying a wave of popularity.
亞利桑納州土桑市米拉瓦度假村及水療中心的新方案「主廚只為我一人烹調」（每人150美元），設計理念是把幾位單客聚集在廚房，享用每日菜單的樣品。此一選項的設計是縮小版的共用桌風格，這種風格正蔚為風潮。

Other hotels are taking a similar approach. At the Atwood Restaurant in the Hotel Burnham in Chicago, which was renovated last year, the general manager, Damian Palladino, said an extension of the bar area was intentionally blended into the lobby to attract the solo diner.
一些其他飯店也採取類似策略。去年重新裝潢的芝加哥波爾漢姆飯店的艾特伍德餐廳，總經理達米安．帕拉迪諾說，酒吧區已延伸擴大，刻意與大廳融合在一起，為的就是吸引單客。

Bjorn Hanson, a clinical professor of hospitality and tourism at New York University’s Tisch Center, said he has observed a recent increase in solo dining among those traveling on their own. “This type of experience continues to become more of a desire, and much of the stigma is less of an issue for younger travelers,” he said in an email.
紐約大學休閒旅遊運動管理中心的培訓教授畢瓊．韓森說，他觀察到近來單獨旅行者中，獨自用餐的情況增多。他在一封電子郵件中說：「這類經驗愈來愈變成一種渴望，對年輕旅人來說，獨自用餐的羞恥大體而言已不是什麼問題了。」

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/21/travel/solo-travel-restaurants-hotels.html

2016-03-06/聯合報/D2版/紐約時報賞析 田思怡譯