研究中國
Studying China
今天不是我第來到北京大學。
This is not the first time I have visited Peking University.
但是在這里發(fā)表演講是第。
But it is the first time I have given a speech here.
對我來說這是莫大的榮幸。
It is a great honour for me.
我在這里向北大的同學們發(fā)表演講，之所以感到十分的榮幸，是因為你們是未來中國的重要部分。
And it is a great honour for me to address the students of this university because you are an important part of China’s future.
我是在1976年開始研究中國、學習中文的。
I first started studying China and the Chinese language in 1976.
那時的中國非常的不同。
It was a different China back then.
周恩來總理剛剛?cè)ナ馈?BR> Zhou Enlai had just died.
毛澤東主席還在世。
Mao Zedong was still alive.
文化*還沒有結(jié)束–我們當時使用的中文課本兒還充滿了階級斗爭。
And the Cultural Revolution had not concluded – indeed our Chinese language textbooks were still full of class struggle.
有些人問我為什么決定學中文。
Some have asked me why I decided to study Chinese.
我是在昆士蘭州的一個農(nóng)場上長大的，中國似乎離我非常的遙遠。
I had grown up on a farm in rural Queensland where China seemed very remote.
我記得當時還是個十多歲的孩子，很關(guān)注電視上對澳大利亞總理惠特拉姆先生1973年訪華的跟蹤報道。澳大利亞工黨在此前一年，1972年承認了中華人民共和國。
I remember as a teenager following closely the visit of Australia’s Prime Minister Gough Whitlam to China on television in 1973 after the Australia Labor Government recognised China in 1972.
我還記得電視上毛澤東主席與惠特拉姆總理會談、鄧小平先生陪他登長城的鏡頭。
I remember watching the footage of him meeting Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping escorting his party on a tour to the Great Wall.
那次訪問激發(fā)起了我對這個非凡國家的興趣。
That visit inspired my interest in this extraordinary country.
我上大學時，我就清楚地知道我想研究中國。
When I went to university I knew that I wanted to study China.
我上的是位于堪培拉的澳大利亞國立大學。
I went to the Australian National University in Canberra.
在隨后的4年里，我學習了漢語、中國歷史、中國文學以及韓國與日本的歷史。
And for the next four years I studied Chinese language, Chinese history and Chinese literature together with Japanese and Korean history as well.
我甚至還學習了中國書法，但是我的漢字寫得很難看 —— 現(xiàn)在更不用說了。
I even studied Chinese calligraphy, but my calligraphy was ugly then – and it is even uglier now.
之后我成為了一名外交官。
Later I became a diplomat.
我是漢語專業(yè)畢業(yè)的，當時的澳大利亞政府偏偏決定把我派到了瑞典工作 —— 可是瑞典在當時幾乎連個像樣的中國餐館都找不到。
Because I was a graduate in Chinese, the then Australian Government decided to send me to Sweden – where in those days I could barely find a decent Chinese restaurant.
我終于在1984年來到中國，開始在澳大利亞使館工作。
I eventually made it to China in 1984 when I started work at the Australian Embassy.
但我沒有一直做外交官。
But I did not remain a diplomat.
我想從政，進入政壇發(fā)展。
I wanted to enter politics.
在1998年，我當選為澳大利亞國會議員。我在澳大利亞國會*工作了9年后，工黨在去年贏了聯(lián)邦大選。我就很榮幸成為澳大利亞二十六屆總理。
I was elected to Australia’s Parliament in 1998 and after serving in parliament for nine years in opposition, my party won the general election last year and I had the honour of becoming 26th Prime Minister of Australia.