2015-06-22

【Aiden in English】

        The island of Khios is a part of a huge ancient empire stretching back to 7,000 B.C. So it’s safe to say that not all villages have survived, but the few that had still stand, well, don’t seem as if they were built before the year. 

        The semi-fortified medieval village of Anavatos becomes the oldest quaint ruin on Khios. It’s sadly affected by Turks’ slaughter and has been abandoned ever since like a ghost town. The winding cobbled streets were lined with ancient stone houses. The builders used cement filling between the stones. This village-like many other settlements in Greece is on a mountain. The stones that made up basically every house was mined locally, which saved a little work. The narrow streets of cobble zigzagged into an open area, and the wind blew in gusts so high up. However, the town wasn’t exactly in the best shape. Time still took a toll, yet it made the surrounding even more mystically fun. I climbed up a broken wall, and from there I could see over any steals that blocked my field of vision. At the point, there were no people around for miles and miles but small shrubs popping up here and there, and nothing in between. Hey! It sounds like a riddle due to a forest fire a few years ago that wiped out the vegetation for so many mountains. The sight of such destruction has a kind of beauty as well to itself. 

        Another medieval settlement is Avgonima, a historical village where only 15 old people live nowadays after the Massacre of 1822. It is built on a rock with steep slopes, leaving only access from the north side, and probably used to control the western shores of the marauding pirates and corsairs. It is well preserved with two-story longhouses and walls, compared to Anavatos. The incredible views of the Aegean Sea looked amazing against the steep slopes on the hillside. Hopping around, the Aegean Sea showed itself, sandwiched between two mountains. Avgonima is a pretty village with a disadvantage, though. Its brutal sunlight makes me feel like a little crazy. By the time you pour the water, the pot has burnt!

        Greece is full of mountains, and approximately 80% of its land consists of mountains or hills, making Greece one of the most mountainous countries of Europe. Interestingly, all Greek towns are set up next to a sea. Because the rocky sides of mountains aren’t suitable for farming, the locals rely on the sea for food. Nearly all the settlements of Greece were on or near the coast, which also protected them a bit from northern invaders over the centuries of the Greek history. One is fueled by fear and driven by faith. The mountain is the country as the water is the sea.

【紅霞譯文】

        希俄斯島歷史淵源可追溯到公元前七千年，我敢肯定地說，並不是所有村落都能保留至今，倖存的恐怕寥寥無幾，而且絕非年前剛剛建造的。

        帶有防禦性質的中世紀“燈火之鄉”堪稱希俄斯島最古樸的鄉村遺址，曾因慘遭突厥族血腥鎮壓而成為現在的幽靈之城。古老的巨礫門厥沿着鵝卵石山徑甬道蜿蜒而去，當年泥瓦匠使用膠合物質將石塊固定在一起的房屋清稀可見，猶如希臘其它地區，“燈火之鄉”同樣離不開高山峻岭，用來建造房舍的石方土塊基本來自當地，稍微給施工提供便利條件。街道狹窄彎曲，前方視野逐漸開闊，那兒地勢偏高風力也大。小鎮時過境遷，早已物是人非，歷史遺蹟承載了世間滄桑，讓人倍感妙趣橫生。我爬上斷牆極目遠眺，方圓幾里地人煙荒蕪，灌木叢猶如雨後春筍般繁茂生長，除此而外，其它什麼也沒有。嘿！聽起來跟捉迷藏差不多，原來幾年前這裡發生過山林大火，燒毀了不少植被，不過即便如此，這裡依然風景如畫。

        離“燈火之鄉”不遠座落着另一處中世紀古鎮“阿夫格尼馬”，自1822年滅絕人性的屠殺至今，只剩下十五位老年人在此居住。小鎮依山而建，唯有北側設一入口與外界相通，據說當時被用作瞭望站來觀察西部海岸海盜及其船隊動向。比起“燈火之鄉”，阿夫格尼馬鎮兩層樓建築與城牆保存完好，路端陡峭的山坡緊緊依偎在愛琴海畔，我禁不住四處悠蕩，周圍的景致美如瓊漿玉液。當然，小鎮並非樣樣都好，驕陽似火實在叫人抓狂，你倒水的功夫，鍋已被太陽烤焦！

        希臘群山密布，大約80%的土地由高山丘陵組成，成為歐洲當之無愧的山國之一。極為有趣的是，舉國上下大多依山傍海，山區無法農耕，民眾只能靠漁業為生，因此幾乎所有的名城古鎮臨海而建，同時在其成百上千年歷史上起到抵禦北部入侵者的作用。殘酷的現實促使希臘人增強信念，山河依在，國土安好。