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“都市小睡”——“不眠城”里花钱睡午觉的地方- -

                                      

Paying to nap in city that never sleeps       “都市小睡”——“不眠城”里花钱睡午觉的地方

New York is called the city that never sleeps, but one small company wants that to change. High above the bustling streets, honking taxicabs and crowded sidewalks, on the 24th floor of the landmark Empire State Building, is MetroNaps, a month-old company offering New York's version of the Spanish siesta: a 20-minute nap. Stressed-out customers arrive in a quiet, darkened room filled with futuristic chairs, or "napping pods," where they can pay $14 for their snooze. "MetroNaps is a place where busy New Yorkers get power nap in New York City," says co-founder Arshad Chowdhury. White noise machines block out whispered conversation at the front desk. Sleepers stretch out in the reclining seats, which resemble plush dentists' chairs, with blankets covering their legs and music piped into headphones. After 20 minutes, the sleeping pod wakes up the customer with a combination of vibrations and light. Chowdhury said nappers are encouraged to sleep just 20 minutes because a longer session tends to leave them more groggy than refreshed. Abdul Latif, a Broadway singer and dancer who likes to rest between an audition and a performance, said it was better to pay for a nap than to sit at a coffee shop. "It's the closest thing to your bed," he said. "It's either this, or the top of a table with your head down." Another MetroNaps customer, writer and researcher Ben Stiller, said he needs that daily nap. "This is what energizes me, this is what keeps me going," he said. （agencies）

纽约被称为“不眠城”，而一个小公司却想要改变这一切。 在熙熙攘攘的大街、喇叭嘟嘟响的出租车和拥挤的人行道上方，纽约标志性建筑帝国大厦的第二十四层坐落着开张才一个月的“都市小睡”（MetroNaps）公司，该公司提供纽约版的西班牙式午睡服务——二十分钟的小憩。 饱受压力的顾客走进一个安静昏暗的房间，里面摆放着未来派风格的坐椅或“午睡吊舱”，他们可以花14美元在这儿小睡片刻。 合伙人艾尔沙德·乔杜里说：“‘都市小睡’是忙碌的纽约人在纽约城中能够舒舒服服睡大觉的地方。” 制造白噪音的机器阻挡了前台的低语。睡眠者舒展地躺在类似牙医室里的那种豪华舒适的躺椅上，腿上盖着毯子，耳机里流淌着音乐。 二十分钟后，“睡眠舱”会用振动和光线相结合的方法唤醒顾客。 乔杜里表示，他们鼓励午睡者只睡二十分钟，因为更长时间的睡眠往往会使他们愈加头晕无力，而不是精神焕发。 百老汇歌手兼舞蹈家阿卜杜·拉提夫喜欢在试演和正式登台的间隙休息一下，他认为花钱睡个午觉比坐在咖啡馆里要好的多。 他说：“这是最接近躺在床上睡觉的方法了。要么是这样，要么是低头趴在桌子上睡。” “都市小睡”的另一位顾客，作家兼研究员本·斯蒂勒说，他需要这样的日间午觉。 他说：“它能给我注入能量和活力，使我能够继续下去。” siesta: 午睡 power nap: 大睡特睡 white noise: 白噪音，一种类似自然状态下的无规格噪音，亦指能掩盖某些噪音的声音 groggy: 头晕无力的，酒醉的 （中国日报网站译）

- 作者： 翰唐 访问统计：　2005年06月3日, 星期五 01:11 加入博采