I arrive at Brasserie Zédel just in time for a 1pm lunch to find Sir Stephen Wall already perched on a banquette at one of the restaurant’s closely-packed tables. Sir Stephen, a former diplomat, greets me and says: “Oh, thank goodness, you are not wearing a tie. I’ll take mine off as well. I was only wearing it in your honour.” He removes his bright red tie and sits facing me, in a white shirt and blue blazer. “Ties are so incredibly uncomfortable, aren’t they?” he says and we chat about why, nonetheless, men insist on wearing them. “When I was working, it was the uniform,” he says. “And I wore the uniform.”
我及時趕到Brasserie Zédel酒館，約好與斯蒂芬•沃爾爵士(Sir Stephen Wall)在下午一點共進午餐，卻發現他早已坐在長條軟座上等候，餐館裏的餐桌擺放得滿滿當當。這位退休外交官握著我的手說：「感謝上帝，你今天沒系領帶。我也解了它，系它只是應酬您的午餐會。」說完，就趕忙解下自己的鮮紅色領帶，然後在我對面坐了下來。他今天內穿白襯衣，外穿藍色夾克。「系領帶感覺特不爽，是吧？」他說，然後我倆就聊起儘管難受之極、但男士仍堅持系它的原因。「我上班那陣子，要求穿制服，」他對我說。「所以我只得如此。」