新奇事件簿 上海宜家禁止老人占位“非法相亲”

The Swedish furniture giant IKEA has banned old people from dating at its store in Shanghai, China. Store managers decided¹ to clamp down on what they described as 'illegal date clubs'. Since the store opened several years ago, hundreds of lonely, divorced or widowed elderly people have descended² on the cafeteria in search of love and companionship. Many of them simply used the café as a meeting place and did not buy anything. Management said they occupied seats for 'extended periods,' 'spoke³ loudly,' 'spat⁴ on the floor,' 'flirted⁵' and had 'quarrels and fights'. The store posted a notice saying: "From today, the restaurant will only be for people who purchase their food first."

瑞典家具巨头宜家上海门店禁止老年人在此相亲。门店经理决定取缔这种他们所说的“非法相亲俱乐部”。自几年前这家门店开店以来，数百名孤独，离异或丧偶的老年人来到宜家商场餐厅寻找爱情和陪伴。许多人仅仅把餐厅当成约会场所，什么都不买。管理人员表示，这些老年人经常占位很长时间，说话很大声，随地吐痰，打情骂俏，甚至吵架。这家门店贴出告示：“即日起，餐厅开始实行先购餐，后入座的经营模式。”

The older clientele are up in arms over the ban. They say they have nowhere else to go. An 88-year-old IKEA regular said: "We've been to McDonald's and KFC, but there are barely any of our peers there. We feel like aliens there - surrounded by youngsters." Another frequent visitor to the restaurant said: "I guess few people know just how lonely old people are. Our kids are not around, and some visit only on weekends. I feel quite good when I come here. I talk with friends, but some elderly do meet people who become lovers." Some customers have little sympathy for those in search of love. They have complained that there is nowhere to sit because of the matchmaking groups.

老年顾客竭力反对该禁令。他们说，他们没有其他地方可去。88岁的宜家常客说：“我们也曾经去过麦当劳和肯德基，但是几乎没有同龄人。在一群年轻人中间，我们觉得自己像异类。”宜家餐厅另外一位常客说：“我猜很少有人理解老年人多么孤独。我们的孩子都不在身边，有的只在周末才回来看看。来这里我觉得非常好。我和朋友们聊天，但是也有一些老年人朋友变成爱人。”一些顾客对这些寻找爱的老年人没有丝毫同情。他们抱怨说，由于这些约会群体，他们都没有位置坐。

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 spat   

n.口角，掌击；v.发出呼噜呼噜声

参考例句：

• Her parents always have spats.她的父母经常有些小的口角。
• There is only a spat between the brother and sister.那只是兄妹间的小吵小闹。

5 flirted   

v.调情，打情骂俏( flirt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She flirted her fan. 她急速挥动着扇子。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• During his four months in Egypt he flirted with religious emotions. 在埃及逗留的这四个月期间，他又玩弄起宗教情绪来了。 来自辞典例句