“One woman has degraded the whole of Eden. So a single woman can also degrade the whole of Athos.

　　“当初一个女人就破坏了伊甸园，只要一个女人也足以毁掉阿陀斯。”

　　The holy Mount Athos of Greece is a rare resort occupied by 900 monks. It was listed in UNESCO's World Culture Heritage catalogue in 1988. It is noted for its bizarre laws.

　　900名修道士栖身的希腊圣山——阿陀斯山堪称不可多得的旅游胜地，1988年其成为联合国教科文组织世界文化遗产。可这里的律法甚是怪异，它也因此而举世闻名！

　　No female 雌性止步

　　In 1060, a strict law was enacted in Mt. Athos: Barring any female's entrance. A male can not be accompanied by his wife, girlfriend, lover or even any female pet, whatever it is— kitten, doggy or parrot!

　　公元1060年，阿陀斯山颁布了一条严律：禁止女性入山！男性不能携带妻子、女友、情人入山，就连雌性的猫、狗、鹦鹉等宠物也不行。

　　If a lady is caught sneaking onto Mt. Athos, she can face as many as 6 to 16 whippings, before being driven out of the area. This is not without examples. Ms. Kola Miller, an American exchange scholar was a victim. She was kayaking when she approached the foot of Mt. Athos. Dressed in her bikini, she went ashore to enjoy the natural, scenic views. She was seen and once caught, she was bound up and given 16 harsh whippings from the irritated religious court of Mt. Athos. Then, as further payment for her severe violation of the local law, she was forced to spend a whole night in a dark dungeon, without food and water.

　　倘有偷偷进山的女子被捉，惩罚的惯例是6-16记鞭笞，然后立即驱逐。以身试“法”的事已发生过：美国交流学者科拉·米勒女士就是其中之一。她驾驶着一艘划艇来到阿陀斯山脚下，上岸后，她身穿泳装漫步于海滩上，纵情欣赏大自然的杰作。被发现后，她被捉住，怒火中烧的阿陀斯宗教法庭将她绑起来痛鞭16下，还把她关在黑暗的地牢里整整一夜，不给食物和水。

　　Ex-queen Mary of Romania once disguised herself as a boy and almost succeeded in deceiving the guards. Although she was caught, she was sent home immediately without being punished. The owner of Mt. Athos was apparently capable of handling such a diplomatic situation, which might have evolved into a complex, international “conflict.”

　　前罗马尼亚王后玛丽曾乔装打扮成一个男孩，几乎骗过警卫。她被捉后立即被送回国，没有受到惩罚。阿陀斯的主人显然谙熟如何处理这种外交事件，避免其演变成一场复杂的国际“纠纷”。

　　An absolute isolation to the world 与世隔绝

　　Mount Athos is situated in the most beautiful peninsula of Halkidiki. It is the only place in Greece that is completely dedicated to praying and worshiping God. For this reason, it is called the Holy Mount. It was said that Mount Athos was considered “The Garden of the Virgin Mary”, so other women were banned to enter. Thereafter, it became a forbidden area for women.

　　阿陀斯山坐落在最美丽的半岛哈尔基季基上，是希腊唯一一个完全用于向上帝祈祷与膜拜的地方。也正是如此，它被称为“圣山”。传说阿陀斯山被誉为“圣母玛利亚的甸园”，其他女性禁止进入，因此，阿陀斯山成为女性的禁地。

　　There are 25 churches and 70 temples in Mt. Athos. Its monastery library has an abundant collection of rare 13-16th century Slavic manuscripts and archives. Mt. Athos is subordinated8 to the rule of Orthodoxy, although a part of Greece, it is free from any control by Greek law. Strict rules ban any musical instrument, cigarettes, games and singing, not to mention radio, television, telephone, telegraph and newspaper. Its only property is a car.

　　阿陀斯山上有教堂25座，隐修区70个，修道院图书馆珍藏着大量13至16世纪斯拉夫人的珍本手稿和卷轴。阿陀斯山虽地处希腊，但却不受希腊法律的约束，而直接听命于东正教的修道院。这里律例严格，禁止任何乐器、香烟、游戏、唱歌，更不用提收音机、电视机、电报和报纸了。唯一的财产就是一辆汽车。

　　Who are they? 何方神圣？

　　Who are the monks in Athos? Most of them were sent to Mt. Athos when they were born, so they know little about females. But what drives them to voluntarily isolate themselves from the civilized world? What drives them to spend their whole lives on this peninsula of land that is merely 150 square miles in size?

　　阿陀斯的隐修士都是些什么样的人呢？这里的大多数人是一出生就被送来的，所以平生没有见过女人。然而，他们为什么心甘情愿地同文明世界隔绝，在这个仅有150平方英里的半岛上打发时光呢？

　　A probe to the monasteries 修道院探秘

　　Walking or riding on a mule, a tourist can look into the monasteries one by one. He will find neat bedrooms, true vegetarian food, enough fresh water or fruit wine. Dinner is usually a silent time. But one can find haricot soup, fish, salad and wine and bread. The monks bake bread by themselves.

　　如果你步行或骑着骡子进山观光，沿途便呈现出一座又一座修道院。人们在这里看到的是整洁的卧室、真正的素食、充足的淡水或果酒。进斋时悄然无声，餐桌上有扁豆汤、鱼、色拉、酒和面包。面包是修士们自己烘烤的。

　　The monks are well educated. “Why don't I leave here?” one of them said. “It's a life worthwhile, a life of leisure. No pressures, no troubles. No need to worry about anything. We are living together in Mt. Athos and have longer life expectancies than anywhere else around the world. So what does a woman mean for us?”

　　阿陀斯山上的修士们都很有学问。“我为何不该留在此地？”一位修士说，“在这里生活很值得。这里悠然而宁静，没有烦恼，没有麻烦，不必为任何事情担心，我们在阿陀斯山上生活在一起，比世上任何其它地方的人都长寿，在这里我们为什么需要女人呢？”

　　These bachelors are sealed off in the monasteries. They live, work, and pray behind the high walls. They spend their time in serenity and meditation. Athos is a relic of human history. It is the last male retreat on earth.

　　修道院的高墙禁锢了这些单身汉，他们在这里生活、劳动、祈祷，在平静、安宁、冥想之中消时度日。阿陀斯是人类历史的一个古迹，也是男子在地球上的最后一个隐居地。