2018-08-19

【Aiden in English】

        The most annoying thing about the summer in Nanjing is the humidity. It's hot already. Then top it off with a constant layer of warm steam-like moisture coating your skins and you get the daily climate of Nanjing. It's the feeling of being hot and wet, yet somewhat dry at the same time. Your body is confused, so it sweats, adding to the already building layer of water on the skin. Your mind, also confused, wonders when the next shop with air conditioning will appear. Once it does, and it most likely has WiFi as well, you make up an excuse to buy something useless or regretful in order to escape the heat for just a moment. And the cycle continues.

        We made it to Nanjing by the way. We arrived early in the morning, 12:00 am and drove to a nearby hotel to sleep five hours due to jet lag. Finishing up the rest drive to Nanjing, we got a terrific boutique hotel, Flower Trace (Huaji), located in the Old East Gate. It's really a double-edged sword: a good location meant a hard time finding the hotel, but we sorted that out quickly. 

        Food. That's why I'm here. Well, Nanjing cuisine isn't particularly highlighted by the rest of the world, resulting in many great dishes falling through the cracks. I guess today was a bit of education for the uneducated, taught by none other than my mom. Normally I would complain, but when it comes to food, the only complaint is based on the taste. My hopes are high on that aspect.

        Perhaps they were a little bit too high. Due to the relative location geographically, much of Nanjing and Beijing had similar cuisines. Furthermore, the first meal I tried resulted in a lot of fritters and congee, which normally is good, but not is this case. However, later that night, mom and I explored the Confucian Temple District, consisting of the best street food and fantastic nightlife. After eating some nostalgic meals, a walk through the rain ensued, which didn't help with the humidity. 

        I can't stop thinking about how the city looked like a dystopian future where skies are constantly drizzling and the air smelled of smoke. The first sight that characterizes the area is the color red, which holds its own standing amongst other Chinese colors as the fortunate. Lanterns, hundreds dangling from strings stretched across rooftops, sprinkled the black sky canvas with red glows. Shops, bustling with people, took on the effect, emitting a red glare of their own. The last bit of red might be from my sleep deprivation, but I'll never know. Furthermore, rainwater reflected much of the surroundings, pretty much filling my vision with red.

        The next scent to be hit would be smell. That's quite obvious with the number of open shops and lack of enclosed restaurants. Once again, China's main attraction points don't normally have many shops other than food, so the scent does get a bit intoxicating. Regardless, my mouth watered, resulting in the eventual sitting down and ordering.

        The night did get spoiled by rain, but not enough to completely soak the trip. Tomorrow would be the first day without much walking, which I can't wait because I have much summer work to catch up on. Maybe, just maybe, I can also satisfy some cravings I've been having lately.

【红霞译文】

        南京夏天闷得够呛，气温本身就高，体表如同敷着蒸笼般恒温保湿膜，每天备受酷暑煎熬，你又热又潮，同时还有点烘干的感觉，总之浑身上下无所适从，湿漉漉的肌肤挂满汗珠；脑袋瓜也不知所措，光想着什么时候可以走到带有空调的地方歇歇脚，一旦踏入开放冷气的场所，保不齐还能上网，你大可找个理由买点没用的或多余的东西，趁机躲开热浪凉快一会儿，日复一日这样过生活。

        顺便说一下，我们到了南京，不过时针已过午夜时分，因此干脆赶到附近的酒店留宿，因为时差仅睡了五个钟头。第二天我们继续上路直奔南京，入住古城老门东一家上好的民俗精品酒店──花迹酒店，老门东牌坊两侧有一副著名楹联：“市井坊间尽染六朝烟水气，布衣将相合书千古大文章”。其实热门的地方各有利弊：闹市区地理位置绝佳，但往往找起来比较麻烦，幸好我们很快便理顺了头绪。

        吃，是吸引我到此一游的原因，可以说金陵明肴独一无二，世上没有多少珍馐美馔能与之相比，今天对一位阅历肤浅的人进行实地现身说教的不是别人而正是老妈。我爱抱怨，但只要涉及到吃的东西，发不发牢骚取决于味道好坏，对于南京茶楼酒肆我寄予了很高希望。

        也许期待值有点过高。由于北京与南京之间相对距离，两地的特色美食十分接近，更何况第一顿我们吃的东西主要是油条煎饼稀粥，照理说挺有地方风味，但身在十朝古都南京，舌尖上的金陵值得仔细品尝。于是当天晚上，我和妈妈跑去夫子庙挖掘秦淮八绝，那里江南传统的亭台楼阁楹联灯幌，街边小吃誉满全城，夜生活也丰富多彩。待我们吃罢记忆中那些家乡美食，不觉天上下起了小雨，甭指望湿度有何好转。

        我禁不住陷入沉思，这座城市的天气预报怎么净是反乌托邦式负面报道，毛毛细雨转细雨毛毛，空气中烟雾缭绕。乍看上去夫子庙到处一派红彤彤，红色是中国最被推崇的吉祥颜色，数以百计的灯笼高高悬挂于屋顶之间，在黑色夜幕下闪耀着火热光芒；商店里熙熙攘攘，灯笼照在人头上散发出耀眼的红光，最后一束可能来自我那双因缺觉而布满血丝的眼睛，反正我迷迷瞪瞪。再说，雨水一股脑儿把周围一切全都折射在我的眼前，晚间夫子庙街景照样红胜火。

        接下来诱人的气味扑鼻而来，显然这跟开放式牌档而非封闭式餐厅有关，国内主要旅游景区除了吃的餐馆没有太多商店好逛，因此香味愈发勾人心魂，不管怎样，我馋得直流口水，还是坐下来赶紧点菜为妙。

        夜晚下的这场雨打乱了我们脚步，但尚不至于让整个逛街计划泡汤。明天大概算头一回毋需走很多路，我求之不得，毕竟还有不少暑假作业得抓紧动手。兴许，只是兴许而已，我仍口福不浅，像最近几天这样再搓上一顿。

Today in History(历史上的今天):

2017: Best of the Rhine, Germany(德国莱茵河—美味佳肴)

2017: Rüdesheim the Chief Wine Industry, DEU(德国吕德斯海姆—酒城)

2017: Rhine—Trechtingshausen to Bingen, DEU(德国莱茵河—从隼堡到女先知)

2017: Rhine—Lorch to Niederheimbach, DEU(德国莱茵河—从死亡岛到桑内克堡)

2017: Rhine—Kaub to Bacharach, DEU(德国莱茵河—从皇宫城堡到维尔纳礼拜堂)

2017: Oberwesel—Schonburg & Ochsenturm, DEU(德国上韦瑟尔—申堡与牛塔)

2017: Loreley—Father Rhine, Germany(德国萝莉莱女妖石—莱茵河之父)

2017: Rhine—Bornhofen to St Goar, DEU(德国莱茵河—从鼠堡到猫堡)

2017: Rhine—Spay to Boppard, DEU(德国莱茵河—从雷司令到葡萄种植园)

2017: Rhine—Koblenz to Lahnstein, DEU(德国莱茵河—从德意志之角到防御重镇)

2017: Marksburg—WWII Only Survivor, DEU(德国莱茵河上二战独存的马克堡)

2017: Braubach—Marksburg Castle, Germany(德国布劳巴赫—马克城堡)

2014: YMCA Camp─Dodgeball-2(基督教青年会夏令营─躲避球之二)

Crosslink(相关博文):

China(出游中国)