2019-07-19

【Aiden in English】

        Nanjing is a rather interesting city. However, among the other cities of my traveling career, it does not deserve to be revisited in for a fourth blog post. Yet last night, a peculiar thought crossed my mind. What amazing flash of enlightenment entered my head? Well, I need to tell you how my night went first.

        Ever since arrival, my stomach has felt the pressure to constantly work through meals. Even late into the late night, something appealing always intrigued my appetite. But two days of this lifestyle are more than enough. Leading into last night's dinner, I really did not feel like swallowing another bite of anything. 

        Of course, grandma’s friends invite us to Nanjing Impressions in the Confucius Temple area, perhaps the most popular sport in the city. While walking past the restaurant, a line snaked out the door into the sidewalk and street. Luckily, Uncle Li in our party exhibited great foresight and arrived an hour and a half before the service resumed, reserved a seat, and desperately held on to the table against the waiters and waitresses trying to free up space. To his happiness, we arrive and buy some time -- it's much harder to kick out a group of three.

        Soon, the rest of the dinner guests arrived. We order and chat, both of which I am challenged with. Eventually, the food begins to flow, and things get simpler. Food is good, but nothing significantly different than other experiences. The dishes were greasy: a perfect fit for the noisy drinking restaurant. I felt a bit out of my comfort zone, but it is expected of any country I visit. At one point a leak appeared above our table, dripping water from an air cooling system over an empty seat next to me. 

        At the end of the meal, I reflected upon my vivid experience and concluded that the food was a bit underwhelming for the massive line outside. It was a bit greasy for my taste, which is saying something coming from an American cuisine lover. I've always been a firm believer that the method is more important than the ingredients, and this dinner's methods were extraordinary in my standards. The atmosphere was of a tastier flavor. The shouting of men, clacking of chopsticks, sucking of lobster shells -- all staples in Chinese cuisine -- made strong appearances in the restaurant, as they should. That informal culture of Chinese dining is vital to the experience. It's not an authentic experience if there isn't an obnoxious "waiter!" or “waitress!” call from the depths of the tables.

        So what was my epiphany? When I walked out of the restaurant, filled with food and empty of energy, I realized something extremely important. I wanted a burger.

【紅霞譯文】

        南京是一個非常好玩的地方，與我所走過的城市相比，並不至於第四次出現在本人博客里。可昨晚我突發異想，到底是怎樣的美輪美奐映入了我的腦海？還是先讓我來瞎白活一下今晚是如何度過的。

        自從回國以來，我的胃囊一直超負荷運載食物，即便夜半三更，仍少不了糖衣炮彈勾起肚子裡的饞蟲，但這種生活方式頂多消受兩天，硬撐過昨天晚宴，我真覺得多一口都咽不下去。

        明擺着，外婆的朋友家邀請我們去見識全城最叫座的熱點──夫子廟南京大排檔。當穿過門廳，只見等候入座的長龍九曲十八彎徑直朝樓外人行道乃至大馬路上伸去，多虧好客的李叔高瞻遠矚，早在營業之前一個半鐘頭便奔赴飯店站隊領號，接下來不僅親自堅守要地以確保聚餐萬無一失，同時還須想方設法與那些試圖轟他讓位的男女服務生周旋，我們聞訊急忙到場聲援──鼎足三分可以坐實天下，這才讓他長舒了口氣。

        不久，全班人馬集結完畢，大家邊點菜邊聊天，我猶如“高音喇叭掉井裡”──哇啦不上來，一旦開始按程序上菜，才覺得自在起來。食材配料不錯，但與其它地方鑑賞的東西大同小異；菜餚鮮香油膩，難怪酒館人聲鼎沸，雖說腸胃有點吃不消，但我嘗過的多國名膳也清爽不到哪裡去。餐桌頂上的天花板一度漏水不止，從空調機滲出的冷凝水偏巧滴在我身旁空座上。

        吃罷晚餐，腦海里重又閃現出鮮活的畫面，我觸景生情：為了嘗鮮而不惜忍受門外罰站考驗實在有點不值；大排檔美食偏膩，這次終於讓推崇美國料理的傻冒大開眼界。我一向堅信烹飪方法要比食材組成重要，由此看來，這頓晚餐廚技水平高超，氛圍熱鬧喜慶，食客的喧譁聲、筷子的噼啪聲、龍蝦的吮吸聲──全然中餐標配──交織在一起，讓我領略了中國民間飲食文化，如果不隔着幾個桌子以遠衝着服務生招呼“帥哥！”“美女”（當下國內時髦叫法），你算白來了。

        到頭來我頓悟出什麼呢？當走出餐館已撐得挪不動步，我才意識到特別重要的東西。我想吃漢堡包。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2018: Livorno Port, Italy(意大利里窩那港)

2018: Florence—Ponte Vecchio over River Arno, Italy(意大利佛羅倫薩—阿諾河老橋)

2018: Florence the City of Lillies, IT(意大利佛羅—翡冷翠)

2018: Florence—Public Arts, Italy(意大利佛羅倫薩—公共藝術)

2018: Florence—Piazza della Signoria & Bargello Natl Museum, Italy(意大利佛羅倫薩—領主廣場與巴傑羅美術館)

2018: Florence—Piazza del Duomo, Italy(意大利佛羅倫薩—聖母百花大教堂廣場)

2018: Florence—Santa Croce, Italy(意大利佛羅倫薩—聖十字大教堂)

2018: Pisa—Home to Galileo, Italy(意大利比薩—伽利略故鄉)

2018: Pisa the Leaning Tower, Italy(意大利比薩斜塔)

2017: Best of the Rhine, Germany(德國萊茵河—美味佳餚)

2017: Rüdesheim the Chief Wine Industry, DEU(德國呂德斯海姆—酒城)

2017: Rhine—Trechtingshausen to Bingen, DEU(德國萊茵河—從隼堡到女先知)

2017: Rhine—Lorch to Niederheimbach, DEU(德國萊茵河—從死亡島到桑內克堡)

2017: Rhine—Kaub to Bacharach, DEU(德國萊茵河—從皇宮城堡到維爾納禮拜堂)

2017: Oberwesel—Schonburg & Ochsenturm, DEU(德國上韋瑟爾—申堡與牛塔)

2017: Loreley—Father Rhine, Germany(德國蘿莉萊女妖石—萊茵河之父)

2017: Rhine—Bornhofen to St Goar, DEU(德國萊茵河—從鼠堡到貓堡)

2017: Rhine—Spay to Boppard, DEU(德國萊茵河—從雷司令到葡萄種植園)

2017: Rhine—Koblenz to Lahnstein, DEU(德國萊茵河—從德意志之角到防禦重鎮)

2017: Marksburg—WWII Only Survivor, DEU(德國萊茵河上二戰獨存的馬克堡)

2017: Braubach—Marksburg Castle, Germany(德國布勞巴赫—馬克城堡)

2014: YMCA Camp─Dodgeball-2(基督教青年會夏令營─躲避球之二)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

2017: Heidelberg—UNESCO City of Literature, Germany(德國海德堡—聯合國科教文之文學城)

2017: Quebec City—UNESCO City of Literature, Canada(加拿大魁北克市—聯合國科教文之文學城)

2016: Edinburgh—UNESCO City of Literature, UK(蘇格蘭愛丁堡—聯合國科教文之文學城)

2016: Dublin—UNESCO City of Literature, IRL(愛爾蘭都柏林—聯合國科教文之文學城)

China(出遊中國)