2018-07-08

【Aiden in English】

        And we're off. Off for the glorious land of Europe, where dreams of castles and kings, myth and legend, culture, and overpriced water come true. It's ironic that the first city of interest was Venice, a place where water is an abundant resource. I've seen movies, shows, and books that so much more focus on the unique aspects of Venice and its crazy waterways, the rising water, and boats. Especially boats. I can almost guarantee the next James Bond, Mission Impossible, or whatever twisted-maniac-trying-to-destroy-the-world type film will feature a section of boat chasing through the waterways in Venice. It's not because it's easy to film, but the areas around the city are so iconic. 

        As soon as I entered the city via a water taxi, I had quite a disappointment about the numerous amounts of arches, while spectacle at first, looked identical to the other hundred arches in the city. And to completely honest, I wasn't impressed with many. On the contrary, the most impressive aspect of the city was the color. I don't think I've ever seen a city as vibrant in real life as Venice. It isn’t as if the city had a specific theme. No, I think the city had a very specific theme, and that was to go crazy with the paint. I doubt you will find any two buildings side by side with the same color. As you will witness, the colors are extremely bright as well, not many shades of brick red or brown or black for that matter. The best way to describe it is a little kid using the Fill tool on Paint, randomly selecting colors to fill in the buildings on the streets. This provided the exact fun needed to keep my interest, especially after a sleepless eight-hour flight. 

        Another point I want to make in Venice is transportation. The main mode of public transportation was by boat, which makes sense. A number of privately owned boats swam around canals, some water taxis, and buses, but the most prominent ones were for tourists or public transportation. These ships, although ugly and bulky, are a form of entertainment themselves. For one, you can watch the crazy colors fly by, perhaps also get a little sick. You can also lounge on the open deck and feel the wind nearly push you overboard. The choice is yours. 

        This mode of transportation has got to be the best method I've ever seen. While it might not be efficient, cheap, or comfortable, it serves its purpose and does it in style. It does provide well to hop your island to island but grows ridiculously hot if you sit in the sun for too long. 

        I am spending three more days in Venice before entering a two-week romantic cruise across the Adriatic Sea, Ionian Sea, Tyrrhenian Sea, Ligurian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea. What a Surprise. This allows for more in-depth exploration as so far as one of my favorite cities on earth. I am looking forward to the upcoming days. The water is still expensive though.

【紅霞譯文】

        我們又上路了，朝着歐洲榮耀之地奔去，要將心裡對城堡與國王、神話與傳說、文化與超值氧烷的幻念統統變成現實。滑稽的是，水源豐足的威尼斯居然名列榜首，從電影、展覽和書籍中我對無可比擬的威尼斯及其邪乎到家的水路水位水船早有耳聞，尤其是它的交通工具，甚至敢打保票下集詹姆斯·邦德的《碟中諜》或者任何駕舟追擊妄想摧毀地球變態狂的鏡頭肯定離不開威尼斯水道，之所以這麼說並非因為鏡頭好拍，而是因為這裡風光獨秀。

        當水上的士帶我進城，我便對不少拱式建築甚感失望，咋看上去似乎大同小異，說句實話，多數樓房於我印象不深，而色彩卻難以忘懷。現實生活中我從未見過像威尼斯這樣充滿活力的地方，仿佛沒啥固定主題，不對，我認為全城立意明快，人人偏愛圖畫，恐怕你根本找不出任何兩幢鄰舍具有相同漆色，而且如你親眼所見，彩繪非常亮麗，沒有什麼磚紅棕黑色調變化，用小孩塗鴉來比喻這裡樓房街道絢爛紛呈一點都不過分，讓我禁不住情緒高漲，尤其剛剛度過八小時無眠飛行之夜。

        另外我想強調的是威尼斯交通，水城自然離不開公共運輸，大批私營船隻包括的士蜂擁運河，無不變成遊客或當地居民行之有效的代步工具，這些傢伙又丑又笨，但不失為自娛自樂的絕佳去處，坐在上面保你狂攬秀美風情，兩岸景色足以目不接暇。你權可呆在甲板上，感覺快要被海風吹翻入水，總之你愛去哪兒去哪兒。

        這種交通是我見識的最佳方式，也許既不省時也不便宜更不舒服，但卻滿足需求因地制宜，為島與島之間的穿梭提供便利條件，但如果暴曬太久會熱得受不了。

        在穿越亞得里亞海、愛奧尼亞海、第勒尼安海、利古里亞海和地中海兩周浪漫航行之前，我計劃於威尼斯再多呆三天，真是出乎意料，這樣可以讓自己對迄今最為欣賞的城市之一深入了解，期待即將到來的美好時光。水依舊金貴。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2017: Channel Islands, UK(英國英吉利海峽群島)

2016: Guernsey the Donkey Island, UK(英國根西—倔驢之島)

2016: Guernsey over the English Channel, UK(英國英吉利海峽上根西島)

2014 World Cup—BRA vs. DEU(巴西對德國世界盃足球賽)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

Italy(出遊意大利)

Europe(歐洲掠影)