2016-06-22

【Aiden in English】

        When vacations begin, it's so exciting, thrilling, and most of all, anticipated. Not to sound spoiled, but a month-long trip to Northern Europe doesn't appeal as much as it should. Maybe the enormity of stress has played the cause in the effort or the simple fact of how every trip starts the same way. This is why I was not excited to travel. 

        JFK Intl. The airport is located in Brooklyn of New York City, which requires a long drive from the Greater Philadelphia Area. Not only does the driver need endurance, but he also has unique expertise to navigate the twists and turns of a highly populated metropolis. Mom, as you know, has nearly no self-esteem to her driving skills. Her driving in crowded streets sounds like the end of our lives, which may just be the case if she actually drove us to NYC. If I were the president, the first law I would pass would be to ban all bad drivers from the streets. Although drunk driving is a large cause, if a bunch of drivers with my mom's skill was driving around, it would be disastrous and nobody would want to drive a car again. Therefore, to finish my rent, mom, grandma, and I car-pooled with a friend. To be fair, their family had the relatives to pick up as well. So they were fine with the extra five-hundred pounds (humans and luggage). 

        Surprisingly, our first touristic attraction was far from Europe. Flushing in Queensboro would be the first stop. There, we refilled on energy. In a small corner restaurant called Happy Food at the interception of Main St. and 40th Ave., we gorged on traditional Chinese food like fried breadsticks, beef chop suey, pig ears, and etc. Since we were with my friend's family, the destination in the town was to their choosing. This section of Flushing was considered as the second Chinatown in NYC. It certainly was a town, as the culture of China bloomed in this square mile. Some necessities, such as tech and wireless carriers, were missing. But supermarkets, restaurants, offices, parking lots, and malls all were within the range of Chinatown. Comparing it to the outskirts of Beijing, it isn't all too different. The shops and noises were similar, as well as the people. That was a major highlight since the population of the Chinese was so high, and the ratio between Asians and any other country was unbelievably unbalanced. Like Beijing, the streets sounded like an elementary school's recess. Once one person starts to shout, another needs to shout over to be heard, followed by more and more. Before you know it, the entire mile of Chinatown is screaming. Yet the most significant similarity is none of the previously named ones. And it isn't positive, either. Back in Beijing, the delicious smell of food from stands and restaurants would make my mouth water. On the flip side, the number of people produced many undeserved scents. The smoke came from the factories and cars, the trash from the ... garbage. Simply standing in a round produces the smell of sweat and claustrophobia. It seemed as if someone took a snapshot of Beijing and plopped it in the middle of Flushing. From the Chinese stores to the Chinese bulletin boards, to the beloved Chinese phrases, a full picture was formed, capturing the full experience of being in China. 

        Flushing is a great start if you can't afford to go to China. It captures the Chinese culture to the near fullness. Deep down for me, I recapture how much I want to travel, and set my sights across the Atlantic Ocean.

【紅霞譯文】

        每當假期來臨，人們往往興奮不已，其中最為開心的莫過於一種說不清道不明的憧憬。咱不算燒包，即使拿出一個月時間出遊北歐仍覺不夠過癮，或許因為平常所受壓力所致，或許歸咎於每次出行都以相同的套路拉開序幕，難怪這回暑假出遊並未讓我喜形於色。

        肯尼迪國際機場地處紐約布魯克林區，從我家所在的大費城地區開過去距離相當可觀，期間不僅考量駕駛員克服疲倦的毅力，同時還檢驗司機能否在人口高度集中的繁華都市行駛自如。眾所周知，媽媽除了望洋興嘆別無辦法。話說回來，一旦勞她大駕親自出征紐約，恐怕我們全家性命危在旦夕。假如我當總統，首先實施的法規便是禁止任何車技拙劣的司機上路，酒駕固然可怕，但像媽媽半吊子駕駛水平的車手同樣危險重重，想必人們情願囚在家裡閉門不出。這下可好，我和外婆及媽媽只能搭乘朋友的順風車，幸虧哥們一家要去機場迎接親人，因此毫不介意再馱上五百磅（人和行李）。

        出人意料的是，我們出遊歐洲的第一個景點竟然遠離歐洲，位於皇后區的法拉盛反倒成為整個路線的起點，大家到此駐足無非為了補充能源以便保持精力旺盛。在緬街與四十大道交口處有一家小飯店名叫“大口福”，我們隨手買些諸如油條、牛雜碎、豬耳朵等傳統中餐食品飽餐一頓，此次我們隨朋友出行，該目的地完全由朋友定奪。這一地段號稱紐約第二個中國城，小城氣氛濃郁，方圓一里地內外到處洋溢着中國氣息，經銷高科技無線電產品的商賈不多，但超市、餐館、辦公樓、停車場和購物中心比比皆是。與北京郊區相比，彼此不分上下；就店鋪擺設嘈雜程度人物形象而言兩地也無區別。因為華人云集，華人與亞裔及其他族裔的人口比例相差懸殊，彰顯當地特色。如同北京一樣，法拉盛街道人頭涌動，很像美國小學課間休息時出現的熱鬧景象，但凡有一人吶喊，另外一人準保呼應，最後迸發出一股宏大的氣勢，沒容你腦袋瓜徹底轉過彎來，整條唐人街傳出陣陣尖叫。其實最奪人眼目的相似之處既不是前面提到的各項元素，也不是什麼好聽的東西。回顧北京往事，一方面櫥柜上餐廳里小吃的香味饞得我直流口水，另一方面不得不說人多味雜，來自工廠汽車的煙霧外加被稱之為垃圾的贓物，而人被圍困在一起，難免釋放各種怪味怪味甚至形成幽閉恐懼症。若將北京街頭拍攝的快照擺放到法拉盛中來，從中國商店、中國布告欄到中國鄉音，一幅完整反映中國人現代生活的畫面就這樣被勾勒出來。

        倘若你去不了中國，那麼法拉盛就是了解中國的絕好起點，它毫無保留地再現中國文化。以本人親身經驗而論，正是法拉盛才重新喚起我對旅遊的嚮往，激發我將目光移至大西洋彼岸。