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。