2015-07-05

【Aiden in English】

        The theme of the trip to adventure the World Heritage in Southern Europe is sort of how time moves on, and the future comes faster it seems. Following the theme, time did move on, and I had to leave. Fortunately, this ending came with many memories. 

        The Greek Isles offered a type of tropicality unlike any other. The balance of relaxation in the sun and the lush history of Greek mythology really provided times of “ahhh…s” and boredom. But this was a perfect balance of learning and having fun. Like Crete with the amazing ruins of Heraklion, Santorini stunned the audience with dazzling beaches and catastrophic caldron. However, Istanbul in the Republic of Turkey was quite the opposite. This city also was the only city in the world to be split by the border of two continents. Instead of natural beauty, the city of Istanbul radiated man-made architectures mixed with towering minarets and grand mosques, such as the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque. It’s spectacular to see what religion could drive people to do and inspiration indeed motivated human beings beyond the limits. Nevertheless, if you haven’t gone to Italy, you can’t say that you know the Mediterranean Sea. 

        After the 21-day cruise in South Europe, we stayed in Rome for two more days. The Colosseum was unmatched, and the streets of Rome seemed like a complete category of their own. Rome flourished in culture and life, which brought a new meaning to “awesome”. From the delicious and classic pizza that the world loved, to the hazelnut gelato that I loved, Rome was a city you had to visit. I couldn’t help wondering how the tiny ancient buildings were still around. The blend of modern and history was almost too perfect. Of course, it wasn’t just the buildings that were left to stay. The Tiber River flew through the west side of the city, leading to the giant Castel of St. Angel that towered over the many bridges. It’s simply amazing to tourists who witnessed Great architects worked on the city. To be honest, every building seemed to be an architectural feat of its own. The city had many styles, from ancient temples to medieval churches to a gigantic castle. 

        There were people everywhere during the day. A mixture of tourists and locals roamed the streets. Bad buzz! As I looked around every angle, I saw people. Churches that would’ve been astonishing in the US were so common around here that mom actually stopped taking photos for once. The ground and piazzas were a wonder of its own. It was usually full of a slippery marble, but sections of the street were cobblestone. The party of Rome would carry into the night, where more people would come out of the houses than going back in. Rome was all too much like NYC. People were out well past midnight. People were so enthusiastic that this city might as well be the city that never slept. Rome is the New York City of Italy where Mom and I got lost so many times that I needed hands and feet to count. Somehow we always ended up where we wanted to be, with or without help. The people there were really friendly as always, giving us smiles wherever we went.

        And the food in Rome was world-class, top of the notch, best of the best of the best, etc. I tasted the finest food on earth (technically the 2nd behind Chinese cuisine), and I guess my friends weren’t bragging that Italian food. It was certainly palatable. There were so many new flavors and combos, and my mouth wasn’t ready for so many tastes. The pizza was so different than American’s, not greasy, tasty, and not too much cheese. The pastas were phenomenal as well, providing all kinds of rich flavorful bites. You could imagine any kind of pasta and they would have a variety of all. The restaurants were street side. So when you smelled something good, it’s probably from one of the plates to your left or right. Needlessly to mention gelato, it was made especially in Italy because there was nowhere else like Italy. 

        There is really no place like these, and I would like to remember the memories I have of here. Looking out photos is cool, but in person, well, you won’t know until you experience it by yourself.

【紅霞譯文】

        隨着時間推移，以探尋世界文化遺產為主題的旅遊生涯轉眼功夫已接近尾聲，我不得不收拾行囊踏上回家的路，惆悵之餘，十分慶幸自己收穫了許多難以忘懷的記憶。

        希臘群島別具熱帶風情，我一邊沐浴在陽光雨露的懷抱，一邊飽受古希臘神話歷史薰陶，連連驚喜中伴有絲絲倦意，好在一切寓學習於娛樂之中，從不會感到虛度此行。克里特島獨擁伊拉克利翁千古遺蹟，聖托里尼島更有絢爛迷離的海濱以及攝人心魂的火山口，然而天下唯一橫跨歐亞大陸的伊斯坦布爾卻獨樹一幟，暫且不談自然風光，單憑聖索非亞大教堂和藍色清真寺那些高聳入雲的宣禮塔和雄偉奇壯的伊斯蘭教堂足以讓世人驚嘆穆斯林的民族力量，宗教神威集中表現在它能激發信徒戰天鬥地，敢叫日月換新天。當然不管說什麼，如果沒有涉足意大利，你無法得以認知地中海的真實面目。

        經過廿一天遊輪南歐跋山涉水，我們最後重歸羅馬兩天，角斗場無與倫比，市區街道無不承載着歷史積澱，可以說整個羅馬集文化精粹與生活內涵之大成，令前來觀光的遊客大開眼界。從備受世人追捧的美味小吃皮薩，到自己念念不忘的榛子手工冰淇淋，耳聽為虛眼見為實，無論怎樣你至少應前來一睹為快，那裡有些小得不起眼的古代建築保留至今，觸動我內心深處，言而總之，羅馬完美地融合了現代氣息與古代遺風，讓人們回首過去，讓歷史告訴未來。毋庸置疑，這種時光旅行所涉獵的並非建築本身，羅馬西城台伯河小橋流水，帶你走近堅如磐石的聖天使城堡，並見證大師們巧奪天工的聰明才智。坦率地說，這裡每一棟建築都非同尋常，堪稱傳世傑作，其構造風格迥異有別，從古代神廟到中世紀教堂再到近代大城堡，裡面所涉獵的形式包羅萬象。

        白天的時候，羅馬城區車水馬龍，遠道來訪的遊客與外出走動的市民匯成滾滾洪流，了不得呀！從不同的角度看過去，遍地人山人海。教堂多如牛毛，如果把當地的教堂搬到紐約，即使極為普通很不起眼的恐怕也會鶴立雞群，難怪媽媽出現審美疲勞，藉機放鬆一下。毫無誇張地，這裡連路面街心花園都蘊藏着濃重的文化潛質，要麼由鋥明瓦亮的大理石鋪就而成，要麼用嬌小玲瓏的鵝卵石來裝飾美觀。羅馬大街小巷到處洋溢着溫馨歡樂，叫人流連忘返，從這個意義來看，羅馬無疑是紐約的翻版，夜半歌聲燈紅酒綠，一個徹頭徹尾的不夜城。既然羅馬算作意大利的紐約，難怪我和媽媽經常迷路，但不知怎麼搞的，我們總能摸索出竅門或經當地好心人指點找到要去的地方，羅馬人熱情如故，彼此相遇總是笑容可掬。

        羅馬吃的東西舉世聞名，恐怕打着燈籠也找不出比它還棒的地方。在烹飪技術上，我覺得意大利美食僅次於中國佳餚，因此其他哥兒們誇耀意大利飯了不起並非言過其實，因為味道確實不錯，不過一下子面對五花八門的新式食譜各色配料，我還真有點招架不住。意大利正宗皮薩跟美式山寨皮薩有着本質區別，既不油膩，還可口好吃，又沒有過多奶酪。意大利麵條沁人心肺，其色香味體主導世界新潮流，在當今社會裡沒有最霸氣，只有更霸氣。餐館飯店遍地開花，因此只要聞到香味，你準保猜得出不是街道左邊的饌玉就是馬路右邊的珍饈；這裡的意大利特產手工冰激凌更因其風味經典而天下無雙。

        世界上再也找不出第二個羅馬，我會努力把所見所聞銘記在心，照片固然逼真，但親身感受這裡的一切才是最佳選擇。