韩国推出新地址系统 民众褒贬不一

The South Korean government is trying to make giving directions a little easier.

韩国政府正在争取使指路更为方便一些。

Small blue placards featuring new addresses have been hung up on every building around the country.

全国所有建筑物上都悬挂着标有新地图的蓝色小型图示。

They are replacing an older address system some say was not very helpful without a map. But public reaction so far has been mixed to the new building numbers. Some in Korea say the change means a loss of cultural heritage.

他们正在取代旧的指路系统，有些人说，不标地图的话，老指路系统不是很好用。不过，公众对这种新的建筑编号的反应不一。有些韩国人认为，这一改变意味着丧失了文化传统。

Taxi driver Hong Jae-do punches an address into his dashboard-mounted GPS navigator. He has been a cabbie for about four years and says his job would be really hard without this device.

出租车司机洪材道向他装在汽车仪表板上的GPS全球定位系统里输入一个地址。他干了4年出租车司机。他说，没有这个设备的话，就很难干他的活儿。

Hong says he relies on his GPS whenever he cannot find an address. Without it, he said he would have a really tough time, especially when he has to travel outside of Seoul.

洪材道说，他只要找不到地址，就会依靠GPS。他说，没有GPS的话，他的日子就很不好过，尤其是在他不得不在首尔以外开车的时候。

Japanese model

One reason blamed for the difficulty in navigating is Korea’s address system. It is modeled on the Japanese system, which assigns addresses chronologically instead of geographically. In other words, buildings are numbered according to when they were built - not according to where they are located on a street.

人们认为，韩国的地址系统容易让人迷路。韩国的地址系统模仿的是日本的体系。这就是说，地址的标号是根据年代而不是根据地理位置。换句话说，建筑物是按照它的建筑时间编号，而不是根据它在大街上的位置编号。

But this complex system soon will be a thing of the past.

不过，这种复杂的系统不久就会成为历史。

A TV commercial introduces viewers to Korea’s new address system, which the government here says will make it easier and quicker to order out food, send packages and get help in case of an emergency.

韩国电视广告向观众介绍了韩国的新地址系统。韩国政府在广告中说，新地址系统将使人们更加容易和迅速地订餐、寄包裹和在紧急情况下获得帮助。

The new system is more Western-style, using only a building’s number, street and city.

这个新地址系统更加西方化一些，只使用建筑物号码、街道名称和城市名称。

Dual usage of the old and new system will be permitted until December 2013. That is when the Japanese-style addresses will be officially abandoned.

在2013年12月之前，可以同时使用新旧地址系统，也就是说两种系统并存。在2013年12月之后，韩国将正式放弃使用日本式的地址系统。

Buddhist opposition

But not everyone is excited about the new system. And, some of the strongest opposition comes from Buddhists.

可是，并非所有的人都对启用新系统感到激动。

Monks at Seoul’s Jogye Temple petitioned the government to hold off on using the new system.

一些最强烈的反对来自佛教徒。首尔曹溪寺的僧侣们向政府请愿，要求暂时不要使用新系统。Monk To-gyoung explained why his order opposes some of the addresses. He said there are areas and roads that are closely related to Buddhism. He said the monks are protesting because the names of these places are disappearing with the new address system, and they feel they are losing their heritage.

主持土真法师解释了他们反对一些新地址的原因。土真说，有些地区与道路与佛教密切相关。他说，这些僧侣之所以抗议，是因为新地址系统将会让这些老地名消失，他们感到将要丧失传统。

He said the monks do not oppose the new address system in general. They are only asking the government to not change the names of the roads that have a Buddhist connection.

他说，僧侣们并不是一概反对新地址系统，他们只是要求政府不要改变那些与佛教有关的道路名称。

Hopeful business owners

Officials of the South Korean Ministry of Public Administration and Security, the government body in charge of the new addresses, declined to be interviewed. But a spokeswoman said that the ministry is still working out the problems of implementing the new system.

负责新地址系统的政府机构、韩国公共管理与安全部的官员谢绝采访。不过，一位女发言人说，该部门正在设法解决实行新地址系统将要遇到的问题。

Some business owners say the new building numbers could bring in more customers.

一些公司老板说，新的建筑编号可能会带来更多顾客。

Yeon-il is the 70-year-old owner of a tea house located on a small alley in one of Seoul’s busy tourist neighborhoods. She is glad to see the old system go, she says, but is not getting her hopes up yet about the new street addresses.

70岁的寅日是一个茶馆老板。她的茶馆开在首尔最热闹的游览区的一条小胡同里。她说，她很高兴看到结束使用老地址系统，不过她也没有对新街道地址系统抱太大希望。

She also says because of the way the old address system works, people do have a tough time finding her shop; sometimes, they walk right by it. But she says she is not so sure if the new system will make things any easier because there are so many small alleys in this neighborhood and all around the country. People need to be given clear directions, she says, and look for landmarks to know where to go.

寅日说，由于老地址系统的工作方式，人们要费很大的劲儿才能找到她的茶馆，他们有时候从茶馆门口路过都没看到她的店。不过她说，她也说不准新地址系统是否会更容易使用，因为在这个地区和在全国各地，有许多小巷。她说，确实应当给人们提供清晰的路标，使人们可以看到重要的地标，从而知道该怎么走。

Yeon-il points out that if people could not find what they were looking for under the old system, they still probably will not be able to find it now, no matter what numbers appear by the front door.

她还说，无论门牌号是什么，如果人们在老地址系统下找不到某个地址的话，那么在新地址系统下，他们可能还是找不到。