2014-12-13

【Aiden in English】

        Ahhh! The city of Brotherly Love. A center of culture was the perfect place where Dad and I spent our Saturday.

        Dad parked the car at the Penn's Landing Bridge, which surprisingly was free in the today. We then briskly walked to the places we were going toward the central city.

        First stop was the Reading Terminal Market. Dad and I strolled through eleven streets to arrive at the entrance to the Market. Inside, we followed a long passageway that led to the Reading Terminal Market. As we approached it, a blast of warm air hit our faces and a delicious smell drifted to my nose. It smelled like...like...food? Yeah, just instead of a solid smell, the scent became all mixed together. I was really confused, but my questions were answered as I laid eyes on the Reading Terminal Market. There were just endless and endless restaurants. Each restaurant looked like the size of two SUVs and served different kinds of Philadelphia foods from Philly cheese steaks, sandwiches, burritos, salads, fried chicken, BBQ ribs, steaks, and to some Chinese foods such as noodles and fried rice. It smelled like all the food mashed together, creating a tornado of scent. Also, the market was full of Christmas music, color, and people. Flashing of signs hung on walls everywhere and music flew from speakers that I couldn't find, and the tiny pathways between restaurants seemed packed. Dad and I moved through the sea of people like worms, and I felt a huge sense of overwhelmingness. Dad must've felt the same, too, because he even said that this looked similar to the places in China. If so, I would've never been able to survive there.

        After losing directions many times, Dad and I blindly stumbled upon an exit. I was grateful because I swore in the crowd that made me slowly suffocated. We walked back out into the cold December air and headed to Chinatown for lunch. The familiar and welcoming sights of Chinese culture greeted us as we turned a corner. Without much idling, we trotted into Ocean Harbor that I've never been to before. Dad told me this kind of restaurant was known as a "Dim Sum". I had no idea what its term meant, but as I strode inside, I knew what Dad was referring to. Waiters and waitresses rushed around pushing trolleys and carts carrying miniature plates of food, and they stopped at tables to ask the diners what they wanted. If the diner wanted something, then the waiter or waitress would give him or her the dish and make a mark on a check every diner was given to before eating. Apparently, this style was so popular that we had to wait half an hour until we were seating. Then, the next forty minutes was just a blur of food, waiters, carts, more food, and enjoyment. Dad ordered for both of us considering I had zero idea of what's good and what's not. We got fried dumplings, chicken fingers in Chinese style or chicken feet in Western term, small spareribs, quail egg-stuffed steaming buns, shrimp dumplings, and many more tiny dishes.

        As a crowd swells vividly on weekends, the downtown area has made an absolutely amazing addition to Philadelphia's alfresco scene. This was certainly one of the greatest days I'd ever spent in Philadelphia!

【紅霞譯文】

        啊哈，兄弟友愛之城！費城文化中心不愧為我和爸爸本周六消磨時光的絕佳去處。

        爸爸把車停靠在潘氏碼頭橋墩旁，意外發現今日周末免費泊車。父子倆欣然邁開雙腿，徑直朝市中心方向走去。

        第一站目的地雷丁終點站集市。我們踱着方步溜溜達達，不覺穿過十一條馬路來到了集市門口。集市裡面過道狹長，一股股熱浪拂面，一陣陣香氣撲鼻，聞起來莫非不是食物？沒錯，這裡何止一種香味，分明百肴競香百味薈萃。我猶如墜入五里霧之中，毫無辦法辨認香自何方，但當視線定格在雷丁終點站集市時，很快便找到了答案。原來雷丁終點站集市餐館飯堂各種攤位不計其數，每家店面看上去如同兩輛運動型跑車大小，從費城奶酪牛排、葷素三明治、墨西哥卷餅、生菜沙拉、油炸雞塊、排骨燒烤、牛肋熏焙到中式麵條、揚州炒飯，五味雜陳混燴一起，爆發出濃郁的芳香。大廳內聖誕頌曲悠揚，到處張燈結彩披上節日盛裝，前來駐足的人群絡繹不絕，牆上懸掛的霓虹燈招牌閃爍醒目，喇叭播放出來的音樂此起彼伏，餐廳周圍更加人聲鼎沸。咱爺們亦步亦趨，其擁擠程度可謂嘆為觀止。想必爸爸也有同感，難怪他觸景生情，禁不住想起久違的中國故地。假如真如眼前這般景象，恐怕我難以適應。

        我們轉得暈頭轉向，好不容易撞見出口，真是謝天謝地，殊不知我快要淹沒在這汪洋人海之中。重見天日後，我們再度回到十二月天寒地凍的戶外世界，下一個目標將前往唐人街中國城吃頓午飯。繞過一道彎，彼此立刻被熟悉的民族氛圍以及貼切的恭候目光所包圍，事不宜遲，我們選定一家本人從未嘗鮮飽過口福的“聚富金閣”直奔而去。聽爸爸介紹，該家餐館素以廣式“早茶”著稱，雖然對我來說前所未聞，可一旦身臨其境，我便不難理解爸爸話語中所示意的弦外之音。男女服務員扦着裝有飯碟菜盤的手推車和小載車在餐桌周圍來回穿梭，不停地向顧客兜售食品。如果顧客看中要吃的東西，那麼服務員二話不說立即擺到面前，並在就餐前發給顧客的賬單上記帳。明顯地，這種飲食非常流行，不然我們怎麼事先要排隊半個鐘頭才能等到餐位就座。接下來四十分鐘的開葷時間裡，飯菜、服務員、餐車、好吃好喝的輪番上陣，各自忙得不亦樂乎。我因初來乍到不知如何下手，爸爸全權代勞，要來了鍋貼、鳳爪雞腳、豬肉小排、鵪鶉蛋肉包、蝦餃叉燒，還有不少其它小玩藝。

        隨着周末各路人馬紛紛走出家門，費城市中心無疑成為大家心目中享受戶外生活的首選對象，而今天確實是我在費城度過的最為愉快的日子！