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French President Jacques Chirac points as he leads the leaders past hotel staff in chef's hats after a working lunch and before the family photo at the June 1-3, G8 Summit in Evian, June 2, 2003.
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t wasn't all hard work at the G8 summit of the world's most powerful leaders. There was good food, lots of glad-handing and the prospect of sickly journalists.
If there's one thing you can say about the French, it's that they know how to put on a good lunch.
French President Jacques Chirac offered his colleagues a lunch Monday that featured specialities from the Haute Savoie region of southeastern France.
The assembled heads of state or government from Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States joined Chirac for crayfish, char -- lake trout -- from the nearby Lake Geneva, pigeon accompanied by new potatoes, assorted cheeses and a soft and creamy cake.
The wine, Roussette de Savoie, was a regional white.
The meal was prepared by a culinary school in Thonon, several kilometers from the summit site.
Afterwards the leaders posed for pictures with the young chefs.
Story One:
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was a late arrival at the summit after facing critics in his Social Democrats at a special party congress in Berlin that eventually swallowed his controversial social and economic reforms.
Schroeder arrived half a day after the first leaders, but was made to feel welcome by his buddy and host, French President Jacques Chirac.
Chirac congratulated him on getting his reforms adopted. At which point, everyone clapped. Including US President George W. Bush, whose relations with Schroeder haven't been rosy since they fell out over Iraq.
"I looked around to see who was clapping," a German official breathlessly told reporters. "They were all clapping."
Bush also shook Schroeder's hand, German sources added.
Story Two:
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| French President Jacques Chirac greets the the President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo following Obasanjo's arrival in Evian France Sunday June 1, 2003 to attend the G8 summit. |
Time waits for no man, so the expression goes, not even if your name is Olusegun Obasanjo, you're president of Nigeria and you've got a plane waiting for you at Geneva airport.
After dinner-table talks that obviously ended well past the dessert stage, the leader of Africa's most populous nation apologised for keeping reporters waiting, then again for cutting the press conference short.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have to take leave of you," he said, impeccably polite as ever.
"First of all the airport has to close and if we don't leave we will not be able to take off."
Story Three:
 While Bush and Chirac were nabbing the photo-op limelight for their first tete-a-tete since their row over the Iraq war, two other leaders went almost unnoticed.
Schroeder and Russian President Vladimir Putin exploited the photographers' fixation on the goings-on on the terrace of the plush Hotel Royal to wander onto the lawn.
There they divested themselves of their jackets for 30 minutes of relaxed talks, before Putin donned his jacket again and returned to the hotel for his turn in the comfortable armchair next to Chirac.
Story Four:
 Bush left the summit early, but the French hosts were keen not to let his departure look like an embarrassing politics of the empty chair.
As soon as he set off for the Middle East after a working morning session, his chair at the round-table talks was swiftly whisked away.
The US leader had been sitting in the front row, sandwiched between Chirac and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
After the chair was removed, Gary Edson, the US Group of Eight envoy, was left to cover the rest of the meeting on his own. In the second row.
(Agencies)
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參加此次法國埃維昂八國首腦會議的各位世界強國的國家首腦們的日程上并非都只是辛苦的工作。那里除了開會，還有美味珍饈、數不清的面帶笑容的握手儀式和令人反感的記者們的望眼欲穿。
如果法國有什么特別值得一提之處的話，那就是法國人最懂得如何安排一頓像樣的午餐。
6月2日，法國總統雅克·希拉克為與會的各位國家首腦們準備的是具有該國東南部薩瓦省特色的午餐。
來自英國、加拿大、德國、意大利、日本、俄羅斯和美國的國家首腦們享受了希拉克為他們準備的豐盛大餐：小龍蝦、臨近的日內瓦湖中的特產湖紅點鮭魚、鴿子肉配新鮮土豆、各式各樣的奶酪、還有松軟的奶油蛋糕。
午宴上喝的葡萄酒是Roussette de Savoie，一種產自薩瓦地區的白葡萄酒。
客人們享用的大餐是從遠在幾公里之外的托農運來的，由那里的一個烹飪學校操辦所有菜品。
然后，各位首腦還不忘和這些年輕的大廚們合影留念。
見聞之一：
 德國總理施羅德因為參加一個在柏林召開的社會民主黨的特別議會，所以此次峰會姍姍來遲。這個特別議會讓施羅德焦頭爛額，他的社會和經濟改革提案備受爭議，不過好在最終總算在會議上得以通過了。
施羅德晚了半天抵達埃維昂，不過他還是受到了他的老朋友，東道主希拉克的歡迎。 希拉克對施羅德國內議會通過了他的改革方案表示祝賀。在談到這點的時候，與會的其他國家首腦們也紛紛鼓掌表示祝賀，美國總統布什也不例外，盡管這段時間以來由于在伊拉克戰爭問題上意見向左美德關系處于緊張狀態。
一位德國官員小心翼翼地告訴記者說："我環顧四周看看都有誰在鼓掌，結果發現所有人都在拍手。"
德國媒體還報道說，除此之外，布什還和施羅德握手，彼此示好。
見聞之二：
有句諺語說：時不我待。沒錯，即使你名叫奧利斯肯·奧巴桑約，你是尼日利亞的總統，有一架飛機正在日內瓦機場等著你，你也必須抓緊時間。
宴會剛剛結束，而且顯然是剛剛用完最后的甜點，尼日利亞總統奧利斯肯·奧巴桑約--這位非洲人口最多的國家的領導人就因為遲到而向守候在會場的記者們道歉，接著又為必須提前結束記者招待會道歉。
他一如既往彬彬有禮地說道："女士們先生們，我們現在必須離開了。如果我們再耽擱，機場就要關閉了，那么我們的飛機就不能起飛了。"
見聞之三：
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| 偷得浮生半日閑 |
美伊戰爭以來，美法關系一直持僵持狀態。此次八國首腦會議是布什和希拉克美伊戰爭結束后首次面對面的會談，因而吸引了記者們的閃光燈，成為此次峰會的焦點。如此一來，另外兩位首腦就幾乎被人遺忘了。
趁著記者們在豪華的皇家飯店的陽臺上圍著布什和希拉克，無暇顧及自己的空當，德國總理施羅德和俄羅斯總統普京溜到外面草坪上散步去了。 他們在那里脫掉了外套，閑話家常。30分鐘后，普京才重新穿回外套，回到飯店會場，坐回到希拉克旁邊、屬于他的那張舒適座椅上。
見聞之四：
布什是提前結束峰會之行的，但是熱情的法國東道主不想在布什離開后，他原先的座椅現在空空如也，在這場政治盛會上顯得過于尷尬。
于是在結束了上午的工作會議，布什的座機起飛開往中東之后，他在圓桌會議上的座椅就馬上被搬走了。
這位美國總統在會議期間一直被安排坐在前排，兩側分別是法國總統希拉克和英國首相布萊爾。 布什的座椅被搬走后，西方八國集團的美國特使蓋瑞·安德森就擔負起獨自代表美國參加余下會議的任務了。不過，他的座位是在第二排。
譯者按：
八國首腦會議(G8 Summit)由西方七國首腦會議演變而來，八國是指美國、英國、法國、德國、意大利、加拿大、日本和俄羅斯。
■70年代初，為共同研究世界經濟形勢，重振西方經濟，在法國的倡議下，法、美、德、日、英、意等六國領導人于1975年11月在法國舉行了第1次首腦會議。
■1976年6月增加了加拿大，形成七國集團，也稱為"西方七國首腦會議"。
■1991年7月，蘇聯總統戈爾巴喬夫應邀同與會的七國首腦在會后舉行會晤。從此每年的正式會議后俄羅斯領導人都要參加"7＋1"會談，。
■1997年在美國丹佛舉行七國首腦會議時，克林頓總統請葉利欽以正式與會者的身份參加會議，并首次?quot;八國首腦會議"的名義共同發表公報西方七國首腦會議演化為八國首腦會議，但在經濟問題上依然保持七國體制?！?br/>
(中國日報網站譯)
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Updated: 2003-06-06 01:00
