刺激與驚悚的冒險之旅 在英國古城堡裏住宿

Things have changed a bit since Edward IV’s day. Britain’s first Plantagenet king would probably not have had the end of his loo roll folded into a smart point as ours is. Nor, in what the Middle Ages euphemistically called a “garderobe”, was Edward likely to have had the benefit of a complimentary spa manicure kit (“time for nails”). And while taps by Heritage Bathrooms (founded in 1924) might usually confer an air of architectural originality, in this bathroom (founded c1330) they feel daringly modern.

自愛德華四世(Edward IV)“下榻”以來，迄今爲止沃裏克城堡(Warwick Castle)內部的擺設變動很小。英國金雀花王朝的首位國王(Plantagenet)或許不會把手紙兩端折捲成如今我們這樣的中空滾筒狀，在中世紀所謂“臥房”（委婉說法）中，愛德華四世也不太可能免費獲贈Spa美甲包（“修剪指甲的時間”）。修建於1024年的Heritage Bathrooms衛生間裏，水龍頭還頗有些建築創意，而最初建於1330年的衛生間卻有着大膽的摩登感。

This is the Rose Suite in Warwick Castle, former seat of the Earl of Warwick, defensive stronghold of William the Conqueror and, for several weeks in 1469, the place where Edward IV is thought, the castle says, to have stayed as guest (or rather, as the history books have it, “prisoner”). And tonight, it is where I am staying too. Because, from this month, Warwick Castle is offering guests the opportunity to sleep in the same rooms in the tower where Edward slept. The castle is, perhaps inevitably, promising a “royal welcome”.

這兒是沃裏克城堡的玫瑰套房(Rose Suite)，曾是昔日沃裏克伯爵(Earl of Warwick)的領地，也曾是征服者威廉(William the Conqueror)的防禦要塞，據城堡檔案記載，1459年，據說愛德華四世曾作爲“客人”在此居住過幾個星期（抑或按照歷史著作的準確記載，愛德華四世曾作爲“囚犯”在此住過）。今晚，此處也是本人的下榻之處。因爲從本月起，沃裏克城堡允許旅客入住昔日愛德華四世曾睡過的房間。或許這是必然結果：沃裏克城堡承諾給遊客以“至尊享受”。

In many ways, the passing of 700-odd years has left relatively little mark. Edward, when he was here, would have climbed the same spiral staircase as I did and slept beneath the same vaulted stone ceiling. Perhaps most pruriently, as Aaron Manning, the castle’s head of historical interpretation explains, the modern toilet is plumbed into the medieval plumbing, so Edward “would have sat in exactly the same place as guests would today”. A happy thought.

從多方面看，700多年的風風雨雨幾乎未給城堡留下什麼印記。愛德華羈押於此時，肯定與我一樣爬同樣的旋轉樓梯，睡在拱頂石天花板底下同樣的房間。或許正如城堡歷史解說部主管曼寧(Aaron Manning)所說的，最讓人想入非非的是：由於現代衛生設備已接入昔日中世紀的管道系統，因此愛德華“或許與如今入住的客人一樣，坐在同樣的馬桶上方便”。想想甭提有多逗趣！

Royal thrones aside, there have been some more obvious changes. Arriving at the entrance gate, I am waved through the ticket barrier by a wench in medieval dress who is chatting on the phone. A Viking and a Saxon (Emma and Mark, apparently) wander past together as they go off-shift and, it must be said, somewhat historically off-track. I am advised not to miss the flaming trebuchet at 4.30pm. You wouldn’t get this at Windsor Castle.

先拋開愛德華四世不談，如今的沃裏克城堡已有了些明顯變化。抵達入口大門時，一位身着中世紀裙子、正在大煲電話的鄉下姑娘向我揮手示意，徑直讓我通過了檢票口。一位維京人與另一薩克遜人（很明顯就是艾瑪與馬克）下班後，也一起漫步通過了檢票口，必須指出的是：這麼做與歷史事實有些出入。曼寧建議我務必不要錯過下午4:30舉行的火焰投石機表演。這種表演在溫莎城堡(Windsor Castle)都沒機會看到。

But then again, given that Windsor’s royals are still in residence, you wouldn’t get to stay in their bedroom either. Which is the real difference here. It is often said that those visiting stately homes tend, in the face of all statistical likelihood, to imagine themselves as owners rather than the kitchenmaids. In many castles, such imaginings are hampered by the fact that the nobles are still in residence. Not so here: in 1978 the Earl of Warwick sold the castle and its heating bills to the Tussauds Group (owners of the famous waxworks as well as theme parks). The closest thing that Warwick now has to a noble is, well, me.

但話又說回來，由於英王室目前仍居住於溫莎城堡，所以諸位也沒機會睡到其房間中，這纔是本質差別。根據概率統計，參觀開放豪華古宅的遊客據說通常就把自己設想成是所有者，而不是廚房女傭。在許多城堡中，由於貴族仍然居住於此，這種美好想象只是黃粱夢而已。但沃裏克城堡並非如此：1978年，沃裏克伯爵把城堡連帶所欠取暖費一併轉手給了杜莎集團（Tussauds Group，諸多知名蠟像館以及主題公園的運營商）。如今享受沃裏克城堡貴族服務的恰恰就是本人。

And a very pleasant feeling it is too. I walk past groups of what Shakespeare would have called “commoners” in the courtyard as they enjoy their bread and circuses (or at least burgers and vulture shows), content in the knowledge that I needn’t join their queues because champagne and canapés are waiting for me in my suite. I also discover that this suite is reached – and this is perhaps the most delicious experience of the whole weekend – through a door marked “No Entry”.

而且這種感覺特別爽，我從院子裏一隊隊遊客（換作莎士比亞(Shakespeare)，會稱呼他們爲“平民”）身邊經過，他們正在享用免費美食及觀看娛樂表演（抑或說至少是在享用漢堡與觀賞禿鷲表演），頗爲得意的是自己無需和這些遊客一樣排隊，因爲香檳和開胃點心已擺放在我的豪華套間裏。我還發現進入套間得經過一扇門，上面標着“禁止入內”，這也許是整個週末我最爲有趣的經歷。

I lounge on the bed eating canapés, drinking bubbly and playing with the television, which I discover rises – Excalibur-like – from a blanket box at the touch of a button. It’s certainly novel. Equally thrilling is the discovery that the fire escape opens on to one of the battlements.

我懶洋洋地躺在大牀上，享用着開胃點心，喝着香檳酒，擺弄着電視。只要一觸碰按鈕，電視機就會象亞瑟王的神劍(Excalibur)一樣，從毯子盒裏升起來。這當然很新奇，同樣興奮不已的是本人還發現了安全出口通向城堡的城垛處。

However, although there is much to savour, I am mildly ashamed to admit that perhaps the most memorable pleasure is when lost tourists, thinking that the room is open to the public, tentatively push the door open. I wave them away imperiously, or so I like to think.

然而，儘管可供把玩的地方還有很多，但我有些不好意思說出來的是：或許最難以忘懷的樂事是迷路遊客以爲我入住的房間爲開放性場所，於是試探性地推開房門。我則傲慢地示意他們離開，大概我願意這麼做。

Still, it does feel a little strange. I am more used to castles where the pleasures are in the Grand Tour mould: places that offer the past up amid silences and scones – and where even an audioguide can seem daringly avant garde. I am not used to places offering giant trebuchets (“the largest working siege machine IN THE WORLD!”), Castle Dungeon experiences (“terrifying”), and rising TVs. These have joys of their own, no doubt. But it’s hardly Wordsworth in front of Tintern Abbey.

儘管如此，這的確讓我感覺有些不習慣。我更習慣於從前英國貴族子女遍遊歐洲大陸獲取樂趣的那種城堡參觀模式：一邊享用烤餅，一邊默默聆聽城堡的淵源，甚至電子導遊器都顯得頗爲標新立異。我不喜歡這樣的城堡參觀模式：巨大的投石器表演（“這是全球現存最大的攻城器械！”）、體驗城堡地牢（“讓人毛骨悚然”），以及電視機自動升起。毫無疑問，這些項目都自有樂趣，但這壓根不是華茲華斯(Wordsworth)站在丁登寺(Tintern Abbey)前油然而生的那種感受。

And that is perhaps the point. Romantic poets may have liked to sense the sublime before the crumbling walls of monuments; but then they didn’t have to pay the repair bill. Merlin Entertainments, the visitor attractions group which acquired Tussauds and now owns Warwick Castle, has spent more than £6m in the past 10 years restoring it. Next year another £1m needs to be found to repair the north wall. Warwick’s dungeon experience (entrance £9) helps. But the royal experience in the tower (admission £600) plays its part, too.

也許這就是問題的實質所在。站在紀念碑的殘垣斷壁前，浪漫詩人或許喜歡領悟那種莊嚴肅穆感；不過，詩人無需爲維修費用埋單。收購杜莎集團的旅遊景區運營集團默林娛樂公司(Merlin Entertainments)如今是沃裏克城堡的所有者，過去10年，它已爲城堡維修花費了600萬英鎊。明年，它需要再籌集100萬英鎊以維修城堡北牆。沃裏克城堡的地牢體驗（門票費9英鎊）可以起點作用。但遊客的至尊入住（費用爲600英鎊）同樣可助一臂之力。

Still, I’m curious, so I descend from my tower rooms to the riverbank to watch the trebuchet. And I discover that it is fascinating. It’s not just the unexpected look of it when it is released (less of a ping than a lollop). It’s also the commentary, which tells me that blind men were used to walk in the hamster wheel that powered the machine (they didn’t suffer from motion sickness) and that if they fell, they’d probably break their backs. I don’t recall ever being told this by the National Trust.

儘管如此，我仍頗感好奇，於是走出城堡的房間，來到河岸觀看投石表演，我覺得表演精彩紛呈：石頭投出去後，並非如大家所期望的那種壯觀場面（石頭並非呼嘯而過，而是慢騰騰飛過）；解說詞同樣精彩：說當初僱傭盲人腳踩倉鼠輪來驅動投石器（這些盲人不會患暈動病），他們若從轉輪裏掉下來，則很可能折斷脊樑骨。保護英國文化遺產的慈善機構國家名勝古蹟信託(National Trust)曾提醒過我，只是本人忘掉了這茬子事。

There is, to my relief, more traditional entertainment, too: those who stay in the tower get a private tour of the castle. I meet Manning in the courtyard in the late afternoon. By now, the crowd is thinning; their places on the lawn taken by flocks of crows in search of the morsels of bread the visitors have left behind.

讓我寬慰的是：城堡還安排了更爲傳統的表演：入住的遊客可以單獨遊覽城堡。傍晚時分，我在院子裏與曼寧會合。此時，遊客漸漸稀少，他們剛纔站立的草坪上，如今已被一大羣烏鴉佔據，它們正在找尋遊客掉落的麪包屑。

The tour is wonderful. We climb on to a forbidden battlement, its stones in places as whittled and wind-worn as Cappadocia, and the experience begins. Going past the “No Entry” signs and red ropes is the least of it. We peer at 17th-century civil war graffiti by the light of Manning’s iPhone, climb into the opening of a 14th-century secret passage and look at the dungeons by torchlight. When I admire a 16th-century suit of armour, I am invited to try on the glove. It bends easily as I move my hand.

整個行程美不勝收。我們爬上不對外開放的城垛子上，有幾處石頭被切得跟卡帕多西亞地區(Cappadocia)如出一轍，我們的驚險旅程由此開始。經過“禁止通行”的指示牌與牽拉的紅繩線根本沒啥驚險度。藉助曼寧iPhone手機照出的亮光，我們仔細察看17世紀英國內戰時留下的各種塗鴉作品，隨後又爬進14世紀的一座祕密通道，並藉助手電光，實地參觀了地牢。正當我欣賞16世紀的一套盔甲時，曼寧請我試戴一副當時的手套，戴上後活動手指時，感覺收放自如。

I also learn that Warwick Castle provides a good historical precedent for ignoring historical precedent, not to mention a laisser-faire attitude to culture. One earl, having bought a portrait by Van Dyck, decided that its size didn’t fit in with the decorations in his sitting room, so chopped the head out and threw away the rest. The seventh earl, fancying himself as a movie actor, built a large cinema screen on the roof (Ingrid Bergman partied in front of it). Suddenly the flaming trebuchet (which is at least historically accurate) starts to seem less egregious.

我還了解到：對於漠視歷史，沃裏克城堡開了漠視歷史傳統的惡劣先例，更遑論它對待文化那種放任自流的態度了。曾有位伯爵大人，買下範•代克(Van Dyck)創作的一幅肖像作品後，發現畫作尺寸與自己客廳的裝飾物並不匹配，於是乎把畫作中的頭像切割出來，然後把剩餘部分一扔了之。第七代伯爵則自以爲是影視明星，一度在城堡頂上建了塊電影屏幕（英格麗•褒曼(Ingrid Bergman)曾在屏幕前參加過伯爵舉辦的社交聚會）。突然之間，燈火照射的地牢（至少符合歷史真實）開始變得不再象原來那樣毛骨悚然。

By now, the castle is almost empty. Manning leaves and I walk back across the deserted courtyard. Even the crows have gone. I walk through a rose garden in the gloaming, its silence broken only by the cry of a peacock. Then I climb up the spiral staircase to the castle’s highest battlements. Alone, I stare down at the grounds, which are – just for tonight – mine.

此時此刻，整個城堡幾乎空無一人。曼寧告辭後，我一個人穿過空寂的院落走回房間。此時甚至遊客都已離開。我趁着薄暮走過玫瑰花園，只有孔雀的叫聲打破其寧靜。隨後我又順着旋轉樓梯爬回城堡最高處的城垛，此時的我孤身一人俯看着下面，就在今晚，我獨享這片靜謐世界。

And suddenly, the silence, and the solitude, all starts to feel a bit too much. I go back to my room, pour a glass of wine, and switch on the exciting TV. I like to think the seventh earl would have approved.

突然，自我感覺享受夠了這片寧靜與孤寂，於是回到自己房間，倒了一杯葡萄酒，打開電視觀看有趣的節目。我想第七代伯爵大人也會支持我的所作所爲。

Catherine Nixey was a guest of Warwick Castle (). A tower suite costs £600 per night, including breakfast, concierge service, a private expert-led castle tour, two days priority access to all castle attractions and car parking

凱瑟琳•尼克塞是沃裏克城堡（詳情請瀏覽以下網站）的遊客，城堡套房每晚費用爲600英鎊，包括了早餐、門房服務、專業人士導遊的城堡私人遊、兩天之內優先參觀城堡所有景點以及優先使用停車場。

Castles you can stay in: towering examples

英國供遊客入住的古堡：

Doyden Castle, Cornwall At the mouth of Port Quin inlet on the north coast of Cornwall, the castle was built in 1830 by wealthy bon viveur Samuel Symons, who wanted somewhere to drink, gamble and feast with friends, writes Kasia Delgado. A small fortress on the edge of a Cornish cliff, Doyden has one double bedroom with a dining room, kitchen, bathroom and cellar. The sandy beaches of St Ives, Polzeath and Port Isaac are within four miles. It costs from £855 for two nights (all prices listed are lowest available for summer period until September).

始建於1830年的多伊登城堡(Doyden Castle)位於康沃爾(Cornwall)北部海岸Port Quin峽灣入海口，由腰纏萬貫的花花公子塞繆爾•西門斯(Samuel Symons)主持興建。西門斯希望有個與朋友尋歡作樂的地方，卡西亞•德爾加多(Kasia Delgado)在書中這樣寫道。多伊登城堡爲修建於康沃爾懸崖邊的一座小型要塞，擁有一個雙人房間，此外還帶有餐廳、廚房、浴室以及地下室。此處距離St Ives、Polzeath、Port Isaac等小鎮的沙灘均不超過4英里。兩晚起住價爲855英鎊（所有列出的價格均爲夏季最低價，九月後重調價）。詳情請瀏覽以下網站：

Barcaldine Castle, near Oban in the west of Scotland, was built in 1609 and restored in 1897. It is now a four-star B&B with five large rooms including the Caithness, at the top of the castle, which has impressive views over Loch Creran and the mountains of Glen Coe. Guests can do day trips from Oban, taking the ferry to Mull, Iona, Staffa, Kerrera and Lismore. There is a golf course nine miles away and a sea kayak centre close by. Barcaldine Castle is 90 miles from Glasgow airport. £185 for one night.

巴卡爾丁城堡(Barcaldine Castle)：始建於1609年，重修於1897年，位於蘇格蘭西部奧本鎮(Oban)附近。它如今爲四星級客棧，共有5間客房，其中Caithness客房位於城堡頂部，可以飽覽柯蘭朗海灣(Loch Creran)以及遠處Glen Coe羣山的壯美景色。遊客可從奧本鎮出發乘坐渡船，參加Mull、Iona、Staffa、Kerrera以及 Lismore等小鎮的一日遊活動。距離城堡九英里的地方建有一座高爾夫球場，附近還有海上獨木舟中心。巴卡爾丁城堡距離格拉斯哥機場(Glasgow airport)90英里，每晚客房費用爲185英鎊。詳情請瀏覽以下網站：。

Peverell’s Tower was built on the grounds of Dover Castle in Kent by Henry III in the 13th century as an extra line of defence, and at one time it was used as a prison. The tower, which sleeps two, is comfortably furnished. Guests can access the castle grounds at night when the day visitors go home, exploring the castle and secret wartime tunnels. The castle itself, sitting on the famous white cliffs, was originally built as a palace designed for royal ceremony and as a showpiece with which the king could impress important visitors to England. £530 for two 。

Peverell’s Tower城堡：由亨利三世(Henry III)於13世紀在多佛城堡空地上興建而成，它是另外一道防線，曾經作爲監獄使用。城堡可入住兩位遊客，房間設施齊全。白天遊覽的遊客離開後，入住旅客可在晚上下到地面，遊覽城堡以及戰時祕道。位於著名的懷特懸崖邊(white cliffs)的城堡原是宮殿，爲舉辦王室典禮以及英格蘭國王向外國貴賓炫耀的樣板。兩晚入住費爲530英鎊，詳情請瀏覽以下網站：。