Growing ‘mermaiding’ subculture makes a splash

 

不斷成長的美人魚次文化引起轟動

【摘要2022.7.17.日.自由】There was a pivotal moment in Queen Pangke Tabora’s life that eclipsed all others: It was the moment, she says, when she first slid her legs into a mermaid tail.

在潘奇．塔波拉皇后的生命中，有一個關鍵時刻令其它時刻都黯然失色：她說，就是當她第一次把雙腳滑進一個美人魚尾巴的時刻。

For the transgender Filipina woman approaching middle age, seeing her legs encased in vibrant, scaly-looking neoprene three years ago was the realization of a childhood dream. And it marked the beginning of her immersion into a watery world where she would find acceptance.

對這位即將步入中年的菲律賓跨性別女性來說，三年前看到她的雙腿被包覆在充滿活力、鱗片狀的紐普韌橡膠中，是兒時夢想的實現。代表著她開始沉浸在一個自己能夠獲得接受的水世界。

The former insurance company worker described the experience of gliding under water, half-human and half-fish, as “meditation in motion.”“The feeling was mermai-zing,”Tabora said one recent morning while lounging in a fiery red tail on a rocky beach south of Manila, where she now teaches mermaiding and freediving full-time.

這位保險公司前員工把在水下滑行、半人半魚的經驗描述成「運動中的冥想」。最近一個早晨在馬尼拉南方一處礁石海灘休息時，身著火紅魚尾服的塔波拉說，「這種美人魚的感覺太驚人了」，她在這裡全職教授如何像美人魚般游泳和自由潛水。

In recent years, a growing number have gleefully flocked to mermaid conventions and competitions, formed local groups called“pods,” launched mermaid magazines and poured their savings into a multimillion-dollar mermaid tail industry.

在最近幾年，越來越多人歡喜地湧向美人魚大會和競賽，形成各個叫做「pods」的地方團體，發行美人魚雜誌，把他們的積蓄投入這個價值數百萬美元的美人魚尾巴行業。

新聞辭典

make a splash：造出濺水聲、一鳴驚人、引起轟動。例句：The news of her arrest made a huge splash.（她被捕的消息引起大轟動）

mermai-zing：為混成語，結合了「mermaid（美人魚）」和「amazing（驚人的）」兩字而成。

pod：名詞，豆莢、繭、（海洋哺乳動物的）一群。例句：A pod of dolphins feeding in near-by waters just confirmed to us that this was the place to find quality fish.（一群海豚在附近水域覓食，向我們證實了這是尋找優質魚類之所在）