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Josef Gottschall's mind was in the gutter. Four years ago, he had just become publicity manager at Vienna's sewer company and was struggling for inspirations to promote it.
'Everything is below ground and your product is . . .' unmentionable, Mr. Gottschall says.
Fortunately, the classic 1949 film with Orson Welles, 'The Third Man,' climaxes in a dramatic chase through Vienna's sewers. Capitalizing on that, Mr. Gottschall launched a Third Man Tour of the subterranean waterways. Today, it's an underground hit.
Vienna isn't alone in plumbing the depths of tourism. A local chamber of commerce in Brighton, England, in 2007 voted the city's sewers the 'Best Place to Visit.' The living monument to Victorian engineering and architecture topped other attractions including the Duke of York's Picturehouse, one of Britain's oldest cinemas.
Brussels in 2007 renovated its sewer museum, whose exterior resembles a Greek temple. Underneath, visitors can stroll unaccompanied along a redolent sluiceway.
And the wellspring of sewer tourism, Paris's Musee des Egouts, plans a makeover to handle rising traffic, which surpasses 100,000 visitors a year.
Museum officials, who are all sewer workers, aim to expand their exhibits on topics including water treatment, safety equipment and unexpected discoveries.
One display in the spacious sewer tunnels celebrates notable items retrieved, including swords, stolen handbags and false teeth. Another commemorates Eleanor, a 32-inch alligator, whom workers caught in 1984 and who now lives in a Paris zoo.
Tours of the city's sewers, already famous from Victor Hugo's 'Les Miserables,' began in 1867, when a revolutionary, modernized network collected only rainwater. Workers clad in white guided visitors aboard special tour barges and wagons.
'It was very chic,' says museum spokeswoman Marie-Christine Amable. 'We had beautiful sewers.' Toilet waste came in 1894, but the rides continued for 80 years.
Sewer museum officials around Europe say they're flush with visitors now thanks in part to environmental concerns. People are increasingly curious about how their waste is handled. Water authorities are capitalizing on the attention to teach citizens they shouldn't do things like pour oil and grease down the drain.
'We can show the public what flows by in raw sewage,' says Brighton sewer tour guide Stuart Slark.
But celebrating effluent management poses unusual curatorial challenges. Constant moisture and noxious chemicals ruin displays. Heavy rains flood galleries. Deadly and explosive gases can build up, forcing hasty evacuations. Rats run rampant.
'It's not so easy to prepare the sewer for visitors,' says Mr. Gottschall in Vienna, an engineer who once designed sanitary works. 'The safety instruction book is like this,' he adds, holding his thumb and forefinger an inch apart.
But danger and noisome corridors don't deter tourists bored with churches and monuments.
'Everybody does the Arc de Triomphe,' said Harry Chlebos, a retiree from Phoenix, while examining the City of Light's dark underbelly. Older Americans know of Paris's sewers, he added, from a reference to them decades ago in an episode of 'The Honeymooners,' in which sewer worker Ed Norton dresses up as the man he claims designed them.
Young Americans are also attracted. Museum manager Lionel Decaix says that about five years ago, two young fans of 'Jackass' TV shows and films, which feature people doing foolish stunts and pranks, hid in the museum at closing to make an amateur video. They immediately tripped alarms and had to be released by the police. 'Americans are very intrepid,' says Mr. Decaix.
So is Brighton native Steve Sparks, who proposed to his girlfriend, Carolyn Payne, during a tour of the city's sewer last May. 'I was a little nervous about losing the ring,' recalls the property developer, who dropped to one knee inside a cavernous red-brick storm drain. Mr. Sparks, who coordinated his plans with sewer-operator Southern Water, says he wanted to make the moment unusual.
'I believe that since the sewers were built in 1870, nobody has proposed in them,' says Mr. Sparks, 42.
Despite Ms. Payne's shock, she said yes. 'It's really quite beautiful and cathedral-like there,' says the November bride, who is 30. 'It does still smell,' she adds.
Odor also can't deter lovers of 'The Third Man' from following Orson Welles's footsteps down a spiral brick staircase. The film, a dark thriller involving murder, smuggling and deceit in the rubble of occupied Vienna, has long drawn fans above ground.
Brigitte Timmermann, author of a 420-page tome called 'The Third Man's Vienna,' has led tours dedicated to the movie, written by novelist Graham Greene, in her native city for years. The Third Man Museum, an exhaustive collection of artifacts and memorabilia amassed by a Viennese couple, opened in 2005.
When Mr. Gottschall shifted to promoting sewers in 2007, he quickly got together with Ms. Timmermann's Vienna Walks & Talks and the museum to offer a whole package. They all were thrilled finally to link with the sewer.
For his part, Mr. Gottschall scrambled to secure rights to show three minutes of the movie. A bigger challenge was installing lights and projectors that would automatically disconnect if chemical sensors detected dangerous gases, including carbon monoxide, methane and sulfuric acid. Switches are similar to miners' equipment and don't cause sparks, as normal circuits can.
Underground today, visitors first see a film about Vienna's sanitation and the tasks sewer workers perform, projected on the wall of a spacious sewage-filtering chamber. Then they see clips from 'The Third Man' in a nearby chamber, where several chase scenes were filmed. Finally, visitors spill out into the vast, vaulted tunnel that channels the Vienna River and that provided a memorable setting in the film.
Tour guides note that many sewer scenes were actually shot on a dry, odor-free soundstage in London. Crossing Vienna's underground without soaking beautifully polished wingtips -- as Mr. Welles' character does -- would be impossible, they explain.
Ashley Venzel, a 26-year-old English teacher from Ohio, took the tour on a recent day after watching 'The Third Man' with her boyfriend. She enjoyed it partly because 'it's not very touristy,' she said while removing the spelunker's helmet that visitors must don.
Mr. Sparks, the Brighton newlywed, looks forward to touring other cities' sanitary works. Vienna sounds interesting, he says, but Paris is particularly romantic. 'Maybe Paris for our first anniversary,' he says.
参考译文：
约瑟夫?戈特沙尔( Josef Gottschall)的脑子一度混乱得如同迷宫似的下水道。那是在四年前，当时他刚刚成为维也纳下水道公司的公关经理，苦苦寻找推广公司形象的灵感。
戈特沙尔说，“一切都在地下，你的产品……难以说出口。”
幸运的是，1949年奥逊?威尔斯(Orson Welles)参演的经典影片《第三个人》(The Third Man)的高潮片段就是在维也纳的下水道上演的一场惊险刺激的追逐戏。利用这一点，戈特沙尔推出了一项下水道“第三个人之旅”活动。如今，这已经成为一项非常成功的地下旅游活动。
维也纳并不是唯一一个将旅游业往纵深方向拓展的城市。2007年，英国布里奇顿的一个本地商会投票将当地的下水道评选为“最佳游览地”。布里奇顿的下水道是一个展现了维多利亚时期工程和建筑风格的鲜活的纪念馆，其得票数超过了包括约克公爵影院(Duke of York's Picturehouse)在内的其他名胜古迹，后者是英国最古老的电影院之一。
2007年，布鲁塞尔翻新了该市的下水道博物馆，从外部来看，它就像是一座希腊神庙。在这座博物馆底下，游客可以在无人陪伴的情况下独自沿着一条气味浓烈的泄水道漫步。
而下水道旅游的鼻祖──巴黎下水道博物馆(Musee des Egouts)──则打算进行彻底翻新，以迎接不断增加的客流。该博物馆每年的客流量超过10万人。
这个博物馆的管理人员全都是下水道工人，他们打算扩大展览范围，主题包括污水处理、安全设备和意外发现。
在这片宽敞的下水道区域举行的其中一次展览是为了公开展示找回来的重要物品，包括刀剑、失窃的手袋和假牙。还有一次展览是为了纪念埃莉诺(Eleanor)，它是一条身长32英寸的鳄鱼，在1984年的时候被下水道工人抓住，目前生活在巴黎的一家动物园内。
巴黎的下水道早就因维克多?雨果(Victor Hugo)的名作《悲惨世界》(Les Miserables)而闻名于世，从1867年开始向游客开放。当时那个创新的、现代化的下水道网络只是用来搜集雨水；身穿白衣的工作人员指引游客登上特殊的游船和车辆进行参观。
巴黎下水道博物馆发言人玛丽-克丽丝婷?阿马布林(Marie-Christine Amable)说，当时的下水道非常有格调，拥有漂亮的排水管道。厕所废水从1894年开始排入这个下水道系统，但这股旅游热潮还是持续了80年。
欧洲各个下水道博物馆的管理人员都表示，现在他们那儿是游客盈门，这在一定程度上要归功于环境问题引发的忧虑。人们对污水处理方式越来越感到好奇。水务管理当局正在利用人们对这个问题的关注来教育大家，将油脂倒进下水道之类的行为是不应该的。
布里奇顿下水道之旅的导游斯图尔特?斯拉克(Stuart Slark)说，“我们可以向公众展示未经处理的污水中有哪些东西流过。”
但是，如果要公开展示污水，会给展览策划带来不同寻常的挑战。持续散发出的湿气和有毒化学物质会毁坏展品。暴雨会溢满地下通道。致命的爆炸性气体可能聚集，迫使游客紧急疏散。还会有耗子横冲直撞，肆虐无忌。
维也纳的戈特沙尔说，在下水道开门迎客前做好准备工作并不是件容易的事。他是一位工程师，曾经设计过卫生工程项目。他用拇指和食指比划出一英寸的厚度说，“安全指导手册有这么厚。”
但是，下水道中潜藏的危险和恶臭并没有吓退对教堂和纪念馆这些地方感到厌倦的游客。
来自美国凤凰城(Phoenix)的退休老人哈里?克勒伯斯(Harry Chlebos)在参观“光明之城”巴黎的黑暗下水道时说，人人都去参观凯旋门(Arc de Triomphe)，而年纪较大的美国人都知道巴黎的下水道，缘由是几十年前的一部剧集《蜜月中人》(Honeymooners)。在这部情景喜剧中，下水道工人艾德?诺顿(Ed Norton)乔装打扮成他所声称的巴黎下水道的设计者。
年轻的美国人也被这个地方所吸引。巴黎下水道博物馆经理利昂内尔?德凯(Lionel Decaix)说，大约五年前，《蠢蛋搞怪秀》(Jackass)电视节目及系列电影的两位元年轻粉丝在博物馆关门时躲在里面，拍摄业余视频。（《蠢蛋搞怪秀》展现的是一群人演出各种危险、荒谬、自残的特技和搞笑情节。）他们马上触发了警报，员警来了才把他们解救了出来。德凯说，美国人真是勇猛无畏。
布里奇顿本地人、房地产开发商史蒂夫?斯巴克斯(Steve Sparks)也是这样的一个勇敢者。去年5月，在游览该市的下水道时，他向女朋友卡洛琳?佩恩(Carolyn Payne)求婚。当时，在一个红砖砌成的暴雨排水洞内，他单膝跪下。他回忆道，“我有点担心会把戒指丢了。”在下水道运营商Southern Water的配合协调下，斯巴克斯实施了求婚计划。他说，他想让这个时刻与众不同。
现年42岁的斯巴克斯说，“我相信，自从这些下水道于1870年建成以来，还没有人在里面求过婚。”
尽管佩恩感到很震惊，她还是接受了求婚，并在11月成为新娘。现年30岁的佩恩称，“那里确实非常美，很像大教堂。”她又补充说，“不过确实有一股难闻的气味。”
臭气也不能阻止《第三个人》的粉丝们追随奥逊?威尔斯的足迹沿着螺旋式下降的砖砌楼梯寻幽探秘。长期以来，这部在战后维也纳的瓦砾堆中拍摄的涉及谋杀、走私和欺诈的黑色惊悚片一直在吸引着粉丝们从地面上下来一探究竟。这部电影的编剧是小说家格雷厄姆?格林(Graham Greene)。
维也纳人布丽奇特?蒂默曼恩(Brigitte Timmermann)曾撰写过一部长达420页的巨着《第三个人的维也纳》(The Third Man's Vienna)。数年来，她一直在自己的家乡推动以这部电影为主题的游览活动。于2005年开业的第三个人博物馆(The Third Man Museum)陈列了由一对维也纳夫妇收集的有关这部电影的各式各样的工艺制品和纪念物。
当戈特沙尔在2007年转而从事下水道推广业务时，他很快与蒂默曼恩的旅游公司Vienna Walks & Talks和第三个人博物馆联手，推出了一整套方案，所有激动人心的内容都和下水道有关。
戈特沙尔要做的工作包括争取获得在下水道放映电影《第三个人》三分钟片段的授权。一个更大的挑战是安装电灯和放映机，如果化学物质感测器侦测出危险气体（包括一氧化碳、甲烷和硫酸），这些电灯和放映机能够自动断电。这种电闸与矿工使用的设备类似，不会像普通的电路那样引起火花。
如今，在维也纳的地下世界，通过在一间宽敞的污水过滤室面上的投影，游客们首先可以观看一部关于维也纳公共卫生状况以及下水道工人作业情况的电影。然后，在附近的一个排水洞里，他们可以观看电影《第三个人》的片段，影片中的几个追逐场面就是在这里拍摄的。最后，游客们鱼贯而出，进入一条广阔的拱顶隧道，这条隧道通向维也纳河，是影片中一处令人印象深刻的取景点。
旅游指南指出，影片中的许多下水道场景实际上是在伦敦的一个干燥无异味的摄影棚内拍摄的。像威尔斯扮演的人物那样穿越维也纳的地下世界而不弄湿擦得鋥亮的皮鞋尖实际上是不可能的。
来自俄亥俄州的26岁的英文教师阿什丽?文泽尔(Ashley Venzel)在和男友一起观看了影片《第三个人》后，最近也到此一游。她一边摘下游客必须佩带的洞窟探险头盔一边说，她享受这次旅行的部分原因是它的旅游味儿不是那么浓。
布里奇顿的新郎官斯巴克斯现在盼望着游览其他城市的下水道工事。他说，维也纳听起来不错，但巴黎特别浪漫。他说，也许在我们结婚一周年的时候会去参观巴黎的下水道。
