Inflation isn’t new, but price rises can still shock. I recently holidayed in the Hamptons, a tony beach area outside New York, where I was stunned to pay $800 for a single shopping cart of groceries. This wasn’t at some foodie emporium, but rather at the IGA, which is the American equivalent of the UK’s Tesco. Food prices are up everywhere, but in places like this, they have reached nosebleed levels. Wealthy locals and vacation shoppers notice, but seem not to curb their spending. Everyone else is travelling an hour or more to get groceries outside the resort areas, ordering dry goods from Costco and growing their own produce.
通货膨胀并不是什么新鲜事，但价格上涨仍然会令人震惊。最近，我在纽约郊外时尚海滨小镇汉普顿(Hamptons)度假，一购物车的食品杂货居然花了800美元，让我十分震惊。那并不是什么美食商场，而是IGA，相当于英国的乐购(Tesco)。世界各地的食品价格都在上涨，但在这样的地方，价格之高简直令人咋舌。