Never has 45 euros been better spent, but I need to toughen up – and quickly – if my money is not to run out well before I reach India.

这45欧元花得太值得了，但是，假如我不想在到达印度以前把钱花光的话，我必须把钱袋子看紧一点，路也要走得更快一点。

Fingers crossed, the next time you hear from me I should be in Germany, close to the source of the Danube and on a route that will take me through a further seven European countries.

我把手指交合在一起。下一次你听到我消息时，我该在德国多瑙河源头附近了，沿着那儿的一条路，我将去欧洲其余的七个国家。

Before then, however, I have to visit the French border city of Strasbourg, where I worked as a teenager in a packaging factory for about six months nearly two decades ago. I hope to meet the couple who ran the hostel where I lived, which catered for workers from across Europe and North Africa. Sylvie was pretty, while Gilbert had the looks and moustache that reminded me of a dark-haired Asterix. I don't know if the hostel is still there or, if so, it's still in their charge. After all, 20 years is a long time, but either way, I hope to find that they are both well.

但是在此之前，我还要去探访法国边境城市斯特拉斯堡（Strasbourg）。差不多二十年以前，我还是十几岁的少年，曾经在这里的一家包装工厂里工作了六个月。我希望能拜访当年的客栈老板夫妇，他们的客栈专门招待来自欧洲和北美的工人。希尔薇很漂亮，吉尔伯特的长相和胡子总让我想起深色头发的法国喜剧阿斯特里科斯中的人物。我不知道这家客栈是否还在，如果在的话，他们是不是还当老板。毕竟二十年时间不短，但是不管怎样，我希望看到他们一切平安。