2015-06-29

【Aiden in English】

        The city of Nessebar in Bulgaria is a life-size maze of cobble streets and Byzantine neighborhood. I believed that it was one of a kind. But when I arrived in the Cycladic Mykonos of Greece, my original theory was proven to be far from correct. 

        Similar to Nessebar, Mykonos had the tiny little island built like a labyrinth for the same reason. Piracy was a common act when the island was established back to the 16^th-17^th century. In order to protect itself, the maze was built to confuse invaders and pirates. Navigating the narrow and winding streets was difficult even with a guide, since the area to walk in was cramped and gave off a claustrophobic vibe. The whitewashed paint didn’t exactly help, either. 

        Oh, you won’t imagine the whiteness of that place (not racist)! The reason behind that was how hot the temperatures got sun kiss in summer. Although I didn’t feel much today, an average temperature in Mykonos was 92^oF/33^oC or so during the summer. Not to mention heatwaves, pulling the temperature up to 110^oF/43^oC for a few days straight. Everything was painted in white for this reason. However, the temperature at the moment hadn’t reached over 80^oF/27^oC, and that was because of the winds. So when the meteorologists said today’s forecast was 87^oC/31^oC, the tourists felt a cool 75^oF/24^oC or so. I guess they are as wrong as ever. Imagine what life would be without a breeze here. This wind was life to the population. The island was dotted with the Mycenaean windmills. The windmills produced the only source of power for years. Recently, the use of them has decreased since the technology gets more modern. And the wind was so important in the island that the nickname given to the place was called the Island of the Winds. Supposedly the wind god Aeolus would release the winds over this island by stretching his wings. Let’s talk about aerodynamics. The wind also made a great place for wave surfing. The winds, as the years passed, provided a natural air conditioning as well. In fact, with the cool air over narrow corridors, the people of the island felt as if they were shielded inside all the time. 

        Although the white was a bit freaky, this classic Aegean island looked cozy and crazy all at once. Not to mention that bathrooms. Most people believe living by the azure sea is good. But in a place called Little Venice, the bathrooms were rectangular prison bulged out of the quaint houses, hanging over the shoreline. Can you image going to use the toilet in a storm?

        The wind and heat shape the charming island of Mykonos, setting the very reason for the difference of its antiquity from the other settlements. The entire island was built to combat them, making it unique at the same time.

【红霞译文】

        走入保加利亚内塞巴尔鹅卵石街道拜占庭式城区，如同掉进真人大小的奇幻迷宫，我蛮以为是个例现象，但不独有偶，等我抵达希腊基克拉迪群岛之一米科诺斯以后，我才意识到上述结论下得为时过早。

        与内塞巴尔相似，米科诺斯出于同样原因也把弹丸之地打造成洁白迷宫。追溯到十六──十七世纪小岛始建初期，海盗活动极为猖獗，为了保护自身，迷宫被当成迷惑敌人的有效方式。说实在的，在这里即使眼下由导游全程带路，欲想搞清楚东南西北决非轻而易举，因为我所涉足的地域狭窄曲径通幽，犹如身陷囹圄而无法自拔，清一色白花花的外表无济于事，什么忙也帮不上。

        对啦，你根本难以想象那里到底有多白（丝毫没有种族色彩）！夏季高温天气竟然得到太阳无限厚爱，尽管今天我并不觉得怎么着，但在排除热浪来袭的前提下，米科诺斯岛夏季平均温度通常保持在华氏92度／摄氏33度左右，否则连续几天气温狂飙至110^oF／43^oC，正因如此，这里老乡干脆把什么东西都刷成白色。好在到现在为止，气温尚未超过80^oF／27^oC，这得归功于海风。所以，当气象员预报气温要达到87^oF／31^oC时，游客感觉只有75^oF／24^oC上下，我认为天气预报可信性一向极差，还是先来想一下假如没有海风人该如何过活吧。海风对当地生态必不可少，岛上迈锡尼风车更是随处可见。从前风车都被用来发电，如今随着科技水平的提高，风车的使用率已大大减少，不过海风仍然至关重要，难怪米科诺斯的外号被称作“风之岛”，据说风神埃俄罗斯展开双翅，风呼拉拉地扇到米科诺斯岛上。下面再来谈一下空气动力学，风不但有助于帆板运动，而且自古以来一直被视作天然空调，实际上，街道狭长的米科诺斯岛饱经凉风洗礼，让大家心有所属情有所依。

        虽然白色显得有点怪兮兮的，可这个古色古香的爱琴海小岛却优游闲适，令人格外痴迷，当然盥洗室另当别论。谁都喜欢临海而居，但在当地有一处号称“小威尼斯”的地方，盥洗室不过为一间长方形监狱，凸出古朴民居之外高悬蔚蓝色海岸之上，风景独好。想过没有，暴风雨来临如何解手？

        海风热浪把米克诺斯岛打造得魅力十足，并雕饰出自己的民族本色，米克诺斯人始终为弘扬独特的古韵遗风做出不懈努力。