本期導讀
本文節選自《經濟學人》20201219期。亞洲的一些大城市商業發展迅速，自然資源豐富，長期以來一直吸引著發達國家的移民者。然而，疫情突然，絕大部分外國移民者都快速返鄉，畢竟幾乎沒有人想在異國他鄉獨自經受疫情的考驗。
Expatriates in Asia
Shipping out
Workers from rich countries are returning home
WHEN JAKARTA went into lockdown in April, Asian Tigers Group, a moving company, received a flurry of business from wealthy expatriates who had fled overnight. Removal teams were led into deserted homes by maids or colleagues. Without the owners on hand to sort belongings, they found themselves stripping beds and packing dirty sheets into boxes alongside broken toys and other junk.
flurry 意思是"一陣忙亂"，常用作a flurry ofexpatriate 指"居住在國外的人；僑民"，也寫作expatmaid 意思是"女僕，侍女"on hand 表示"現有；到場"strip 意思是"從某處拿走所有東西"，比如 Thieves had stripped the house.就表示"竊賊把房子洗劫一空"。sheet 指"床單，被單"junk 表示"無用的東西；廢物"，比如 junk food 就表示"垃圾食品"
All the expats who want to move away have now done so and there are few new arrivals. Asian Tigers is laying off staff for the first time in its 35-year history. 「Unless the tap turns back on we’re in a tough spot,」 says Bill Lloyd, head of the group’s Indonesian operations.
lay off 是個動詞詞組，意思是"（因工作不多而）解僱"，詞義類似的還有fire，dismiss，discharge，sack
Asian metropolises have long attracted migrants from the rich world. Fast-growing businesses, vast natural resources and unfamiliar commercial environments make for interesting work. Meanwhile, living costs are low, so expats can afford maids and big houses that would be out of reach back home. Around 3m migrants from the OECD were living in Asia last year, according to data from the club, which is composed mostly of rich countries, up from 2.3m in 1990. But the pandemic has underlined the drawbacks of living abroad, including distance from family and (in some places) a lack of good medical facilities. Unlike most immigrants, these are a well-off lot for whom relocation is a choice. Many have raced home rather than weather the pandemic in a foreign country.
metropolis 意思是"大都會，大城市"，形容詞是metropolitanout of reach 本意是"夠不著"，這裡可以理解為"無法企及，無法實現"the OECD 全稱是"Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development"，指"經濟合作與發展組織"facility 意思是"設施，設備"well-off 表示"富裕的，富有的"lot 在這裡用作名詞，表示"生活狀況"race 用作動詞，意思是"（使）快速移動"，這裡表示"快速搬家"weather 用作動詞，意思是"經受住；平安地度過"
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