Travel – Page 2 – Gone like the wind

Bangkok Unveiled: Discover the Gems of Thailand’s Capital

July 11, 2024July 18, 2024Posted in Thailand, TravelTagged asia, Bangkok, temples, Thailand, Travel

揭秘曼谷

Bangkok is the capital city of Thailand which a bustling metropolis but also a spiritual heartland for Buddhists. Before I traveled in this city, Bangkok is known to have numerous magnificent temples, or called “wats,” that reflect the city’s deep-rooted Buddhist heritage. The different culture of Buddhism attracted me to this country.

曼谷作为泰国的首都是一个繁华的大都市，也是佛教徒的精神圣地。在来到这个城市旅游之前，就曾了解曼谷以拥有众多宏伟的寺庙而闻名，这些寺庙在当地语言称为“wats”，体现了这座城市根深蒂固的佛教传统。具有佛教色彩的异域文化也吸引我来到这个国家旅行。

I visited this city on 2nd December 2023 and spent three days here. When I arrived at the city center from the Suvarnabhumi Airport, the sun has set, and evening came silently. The Grand Palace transformed into an enchanting spectacle, illuminated by a golden glow. The body of palace stood majestically against the night sky. Its intricate architecture was highlighted by the glaring lighting. The shimmering spires and rooftops, adorned with delicate carvings created a mesmerizing silhouette.

我于2023年 12 月 2 日参观了这座城市，并在这里待了三天。当我从素万那普机场抵达曼谷市中心时，太阳已经落山，夜幕悄然降临。大皇宫被金色的光芒照亮显得特别迷人。宫殿的主体在夜空中雄伟地矗立着。建筑群在耀眼的灯光下显得格外突出。闪闪发光的尖顶和屋顶上装饰着精致的雕刻，在光芒下映出神秘的轮廓剪影。

As I strolled around the perimeter, the reflections of the illuminated structures danced on the tranquil waters of nearby fountains. The surrounding gardens and temples, bathed in the gentle light, offered a serene contrast to the bustling city beyond the palace walls. Wandering through the tranquil streets at night, my eyes were always attracted by these illuminated temples and their golden spires.

当我漫步在宫殿周围时，这些灯火通明的建筑倒映在附近喷泉的宁静水面上。周围的花园和寺庙也沐浴在柔和的灯光下，这种宁静与宫墙外的繁华城市形成了一种对比。夜晚漫步在曼谷的街道，目光不由地被这些灯火通明的寺庙和金色的尖顶吸引。

The iconic skyline of Bangkok, dominated by towering skyscrapers and the Chao Phraya River, sparkled with countless lights. Viewed from any bar across the river, the sight of the famous temple Wat Arun at night is truly breathtaking. The Wat Arun, known as the Temple of Dawn, is a beacon of elegance as its spires reflected on the Chao Phraya River. The lights transform the temple adorned with colorful porcelain into a luminous masterpiece.

曼谷标志性的天际线当属高耸的摩天大楼和灯光闪耀的湄南河。从河对岸的任意一家酒吧望去，著名的黎明寺的夜景令人叹为观止。黎明寺的尖塔倒映在湄南河上，如同一座优雅的灯塔。灯光将装饰着彩色陶瓷的寺庙装点成一件熠熠发光的艺术杰作。

Khao San Road, located in the heart of Bangkok, is renowned for its vibrant nightlife. The road is lined with a variety of street bars and clubs. The atmosphere is lively and energetic, with neon lights and colorful signs creating a festive ambiance. Amidst the nightlife buzz, street food vendors set up stalls offering different kinds of Thai delicacies from pad thai and mango sticky rice to grilled skewers.

考山路位于曼谷市中心，以其丰富多彩的夜生活而闻名。路边遍布各种街头酒吧和俱乐部。这里的气氛热闹而充满活力，霓虹灯和色彩缤纷的招牌营造出节日氛围。在夜生活的喧嚣中，街头小吃摊贩摆出各种摊位，提供从泰式炒河粉、芒果糯米饭到烤串等各种泰国美食。

I tried Tom Yum Soup in one of the stalls of this street. It is a famous Thai soup known for its spicy, sour, and aromatic taste. The soup is usually made with a clear broth (often chicken or shrimp-based) that forms the foundation of its flavor. Lemongrass, galangal (similar to ginger but with a more peppery flavor), and kaffir lime leaves are essential aromatics. Some chili pastes are added to give the soup its characteristic spiciness. Fresh lime juice or tamarind paste provides the special sour element. The soup often includes mushrooms, tomatoes, and shrimps. I really liked spicy food so Thai cuisine suite my taste well.

我在这条街上的一家摊位上品尝了冬阴功汤。这是一道著名的泰式汤，以其辛辣、酸涩和芳香的味道而闻名。汤通常用清汤（通常以鸡肉或虾为原料）制成，这是汤的底味。柠檬草、高良姜（类似于姜，但具有更浓的胡椒味）和柠檬叶是必不可少的增香剂。加入一些辣椒酱使汤具有独特的辛辣味。新鲜的柠檬汁或罗望子酱则提供了特别的酸味。汤中通常配有蘑菇、西红柿和虾。我特别喜欢辛辣的食物，所以泰国菜很适合我的口味。

My trip started from the early morning in the next day. My first place to visit was the Wat Pho which is one of the oldest and largest temples in Bangkok. It is famed for its stunning architecture, historical significance, and as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage. In the early morning, there are not so many tourists, it was quite a nice trip.

我的旅程从第二天清晨开始。我首先参观就的是卧佛寺，它是曼谷最古老最大的寺庙之一，以其令人惊叹的建筑、历史地位和传统泰式按摩的发源地而闻名。清晨这里游客并不多，是一次相当不错的旅行。

The architecture style of Wat Pho is a perfect example of traditional Thai temple architecture, characterized by intricate details and vivid colors. Thai temples often include ornate wood carvings, golden statues, ceramic tiles, and glass mosaics depicting religious motifs, mythical creatures, and floral patterns. The use of gold leaf symbolizes spiritual richness and devotion. This kind of architecture can be seen in many temples of Thailand.

卧佛寺的建筑风格是典型的泰国传统寺庙建筑，其特点是细节精致、色彩鲜艳。泰国寺庙通常装饰华丽的木雕、金色雕像、瓷砖和玻璃马赛克，以及描绘宗教的图案、神话动物和花卉图案。金叶的使用象征着精神富足和虔诚。这种类型的建筑在泰国的许多寺庙中都可以看到。

Throughout Wat Pho, I could always find these groups of smaller stupas known as “Chedi Rai.” These chedis contribute to the temple’s grandeur and serve various religious and symbolic purposes. Each chedi is adorned with ceramic tiles, floral patterns, and ornamental details that reflect traditional Thai craftsmanship. The tiered structure typically tapers gracefully towards the top, crowned with a spire.

在整个卧佛寺，我总能发现这些被称为“Chedi Rai”的小型佛塔群。这些佛塔为寺庙增添了宏伟气势，并发挥着各种宗教象征作用。每座佛塔都装饰有瓷砖、花卉图案和装饰细节，体现了泰国的传统工艺。这种分层结构通常向上逐渐变细，顶部是一个细细的尖顶。

The Chedi Rai at Wat Pho enshrine relics of the Buddha or important religious texts. They serve as focal points for worship, symbolizing the presence of the Buddha’s teachings and the spiritual aspirations of the devotees. These Chedi Rais are strategically placed around the main structures of Wat Pho, including the central chedi and the ubosot (ordination hall).

卧佛寺的佛塔里供奉着佛祖的遗物或重要的宗教经文。人们来此纷纷膜拜这个象征着佛陀教义和信徒的精神的圣物。这些佛塔被精心安置在包括中央佛塔和授戒堂等卧佛寺主要建筑周围。

The surfaces of the Chedi Rai are often covered with colorful glazed tiles and decorated with intricate floral motifs, reflective of both Thai and Chinese artistic influences. The use of vivid colors like yellow and orange enhances the visual appearance of these chedis, making them standout features within the temple complex. The exterior surfaces are covered also with stucco and painted in bright colors.

佛塔的表面通常覆盖着彩色釉面瓷砖，并装饰着泰国和中国的艺术共同影响下复杂的花卉图案。黄色和橙色等鲜艳色彩的使用增强了这些佛塔的视觉效果，使它们成为寺庙建筑群中的突出元素。佛塔外表面也覆盖着灰泥，并涂上鲜艳的颜色。

One typical example of them is the Phra Maha Chedi Sri Sanphetdayarn constructed in the reign of King Rama I. The Chedi was lacquered with green glazed china mosaic tiles as green represents Wednesday, the birthday of King Rama I. It was decorated with Singha and lotus. In Buddhism, the Singha is lion which symbolizes strength, courage, and protection; and lotus represents purity and spiritual awakening. This Chedi is 16 meters long and 42 meters high.

这种佛塔的典型例子是图中拉玛一世时期修建的 Phra Maha 塔。这座佛塔用绿色釉面瓷质马赛克瓷砖覆盖表面，绿色代表拉玛一世的生日星期三。佛塔上装饰着狮子和莲花。在佛教中狮子象征着力量、勇气和保护；莲花代表纯洁和精神觉醒。这座佛塔长16米，高42米。

The ubosot is the main prayer hall where important religious ceremonies and rituals take place. It typically features a multi-tiered roof with intricate gables adorned with mythical creatures and decorative elements. The interior houses the principal Buddha image and is often embellished with murals depicting scenes from the Buddha’s life or Buddhist teachings.

这座佛殿是主要的进行祈祷的大厅，重要的宗教仪式和典礼在此举行。佛殿通常采用多层屋顶，山墙错综复杂，上面饰有神话动物和佛教装饰元素。佛殿内部供奉主佛像，并装饰有描绘佛陀生平或佛教教义的壁画。

The Reclining Buddha is one of the most iconic attractions of Bangkok. It is an immense statue measuring 46 meters in length and 15 meters in height. The statue is primarily made of brick and stucco and is covered in gold leaf, giving it a radiant appearance. The reclining posture represents the Buddha’s final moments before entering Parinirvana, a state of ultimate liberation and release from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. The statue is housed in a specially constructed viharn surrounded by many chedis, and other smaller Buddha statues.

卧佛是曼谷最具代表性的景点。这座巨大的雕像长46米，高15米。雕像主要由砖和灰泥制成，表面覆盖着金箔，看起来光彩夺目。卧佛的姿势代表佛陀进入涅槃前的最后时刻，涅槃是佛陀从生死轮回中得到最终解脱的状态。这座雕像被安置在一座特制的佛殿中，周围环绕着许多佛塔和其他较小的佛像。

Next, I continued to walk towards the grand palace which is not far from the Wat Pho. It is one of Thailand’s most famous landmarks. Constructed in 1782, the Grand Palace served as the official residence of the Kings of Siam for over 150 years. It was also the administrative and religious center of the country. This is the entrance of the palace. It is required to dress trousers when visiting the Grand Palace.

接下来，我继续步行前往离卧佛寺不远的大皇宫。它是泰国最著名的地标。大皇宫建于1782年，作为暹罗国王的官邸已有150多年历史。它也是泰国的行政宗教中心。这里就是景区的入口，参观大皇宫时必须穿长裤。

The Grand Palace complex covers an area of over 218,000 square meters and is surrounded by walls built in 1782. The complex is divided into several courtyards and buildings, including the Outer Court, Middle Court, and Inner Court. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha is located at the Outer Court and it is considered the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand. It houses the Emerald Buddha, a highly revered statue carved from a single block of jade.

大皇宫建筑群占地面积超过 218,000 平方米，四周环绕着 1782 年修建的城墙。该建筑群分为包括外廷、中廷和内廷几个庭院。玉佛寺位于外廷，被认为是泰国最神圣的佛教寺庙。寺内供奉着一尊备受尊崇的玉佛，这尊佛像由一整块玉石雕刻而成。

At the entrances of the temple, visitors are greeted by imposing yakshas. These statues are typically depicted with fierce expressions, large eyes, and ornate armor. Each yaksha stands over six meters tall and is brightly colored with intricate designs. They often hold a mace or a club. The yakshas are believed to protect the temple from evil spirits and ensure the sanctity of the Emerald Buddha.

在寺庙的入口处，游客们会看到气势汹汹的夜叉。这些雕像表情凶狠，双眼圆睁，身者华丽的盔甲。每尊夜叉高达六米多，色彩鲜艳，图案复杂。它们手持狼牙棒或大棍。当地人们相信夜叉可以保护寺庙免受恶灵侵扰，并确保玉佛的神圣。

The frescoes of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) are among the most exquisite and detailed artworks in Thai religious architecture. They adorn the interior walls of the temple’s cloister, narrating historical, mythological, and religious stories. The frescoes prominently depict scenes from the Ramakien, the Thai version of the Indian epic Ramayana. This series of murals narrates the story of Prince Rama, depicting his adventures and battles against the demon king Ravana. The frescoes are arranged in a sequential manner, allowing visitors to follow the stories as they walk along the cloister.

玉佛寺的壁画是泰国宗教建筑中最精美细致的艺术品。它们装饰着寺庙回廊的内墙，讲述着历史神话和宗教故事。壁画主要描绘了泰国版的史诗《罗摩衍那》中的场景。这一系列壁画讲述了拉玛王子的故事，描绘了他与魔王拉瓦那的冒险和战斗。壁画按顺序排列，让游客在沿着回廊行走时可以一览故事的来龙去脉。

The Phra Ubosot is the main hall and the most sacred building in the temple. It is where the Emerald Buddha is housed. The hall is surrounded by eight boundary stones that demarcate the sacred area for ordination ceremonies. The roof is adorned with multi-tiered layers, featuring elegant chofahs (finials) at the gable ends, resembling the shape of a bird’s tail. The outer walls are decorated with intricate gold leaf patterns and colorful glass mosaics that shimmer in the sunlight. The whole body is really impressive, like a golden treasure.

这座大殿是寺庙的主殿，也是供奉着玉佛的最神圣的建筑。大殿四周有八块界石，划定了受戒仪式的神圣区域。屋顶采用多层装饰，山墙末端饰有形似鸟尾的优雅的尖顶。外墙装饰有复杂的金箔图案和色彩缤纷的玻璃马赛克，在阳光下闪闪发光。整个建筑令人印象深刻，就像一座金色珍宝。

There are some huge golden stupas in the temple. It is a prominent feature within the temple complex, representing the Buddha’s enlightened mind. It is built in the Sri Lankan-style, with a bell-shaped dome and a spire that reaches towards the sky. The stupa is entirely covered in gold tiles, giving it a radiant appearance that symbolizes purity and spiritual wealth. It is surrounded by mythical guardian statues, ensuring its sanctity and reverence. The golden statue in this photo is Kinaree which is mythical creature with the body of a bird and the torso of a human. It represents beauty, grace, and the harmony between the earthly and heavenly realms.

寺庙里有几座巨大的金色佛塔。它是这种寺庙建筑群中一个明显特征，佛塔代表着佛陀的开悟心灵。它采用斯里兰卡风格建造，有一个钟形圆顶和一个直抵苍穹的尖顶。佛塔表面完全覆盖着金色的瓦片，使其看起来光芒四射，象征着纯洁和精神财富。它周围环绕着神话中的守护雕像，确保了它的神圣地位。这张照片中的金色雕像是名为Kinaree，是一种神话生物，有着鸟的身体和人的躯干。它代表着美丽优雅以及人间和天界之间的和谐。

The Royal Pantheon is really impressive, it is a tall, elegant well decorated building with a central spire, surrounded by smaller spires, embodying the traditional Thai architectural style. It serves as a shrine for statues of past kings from the Chakri dynasty. The structure is richly adorned with intricate carvings, golden ornaments, and vibrant glass inlays.

皇家万神殿也令人印象深刻，它是一座高大优雅、装饰精美的建筑，中央有一个尖塔，周围环绕着较小的尖塔，体现了传统的泰国建筑风格。它是存放查克里王朝历代国王雕像的神殿。该建筑装饰华丽，有复杂的雕刻、金色饰品和鲜艳的玻璃镶嵌。

In this temple, I could see many statues of garudas, nagas (serpents), and other mythological beings, each symbolizing different meanings. Garuda is a mythical bird-like creature that appears in both Hindu and Buddhist mythology. It is often depicted as having the body of a bird with human features. It has large wings with a powerful beak, and human-like arms and legs. In Buddhism and Hinduism, Garuda is known as the mount of Lord Vishnu. In Thai culture, Garuda is a symbol of the monarchy and is often seen in royal emblems.

在这座寺庙里，我看到了许多迦楼罗、那伽和其他神话生物的雕像，每个雕像都象征着不同的意义。迦楼罗是一种神话中的鸟类生物，出现在印度教和佛教神话中。它通常被描绘成拥有鸟的身体和人类的特征。它有巨大的翅膀和强有力的喙，还有像人类一样的手臂和腿。在佛教和印度教中，迦楼罗被称为毗湿奴神的坐骑。在泰国文化中，迦楼罗是君主制的象征，经常出现在皇家徽章上。

The ticket of Grand Palace is 500 Baht, and it is worthy to visit it. Most of the time is spent in the temple of the Emerald Buddha It is a real masterpiece of Thai architecture, where each structure and decorative element contributes to the temple’s sacred atmosphere and historical significance. The unique architecture style is absolutely different from what I have seen in Europe and China.

大皇宫的门票是500泰铢，非常值得一游。我在这里大部分时间都花在玉佛寺。这是泰国建筑的真正杰作，每一个结构和装饰元素都为这座寺庙增添了神圣气氛和历史意义。这种独特建筑风格与我在欧洲和中国看到的完全不同。

The Middle Court is the heart of the Grand Palace, where the king’s official residences and important state buildings are located. It was the primary area for royal ceremonies and state functions, including coronations and official banquets. The Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall is a remarkable structure blending Thai and Western architectural styles. It was commissioned by King Rama V and built between 1876 and 1882. It served as a venue for the king to receive foreign dignitaries and host important state functions. Its facade is designed in the Renaissance and Neo-Classical styles, characterized by columns, arches, and symmetrical layouts. The roof is adorned with intricately decorated gables and chofahs, which are bird-like ornaments commonly found in Thai architecture.

中庭是大皇宫的中心，国王的官邸和重要的建筑都位于此。这里是举行皇家仪式和包括加冕典礼和官方宴会等政府活动的主要场所。查克里玛哈普拉萨王座大厅是一座融合了泰国和西方建筑风格的建筑，由拉玛五世国王下令建造，建于1876年至1882年间。它是国王接见外国政要和举办重要国家活动的场所。其外观采用文艺复兴和新古典主义风格，以柱子拱门和对称布局为特点。屋顶装饰着精美的山墙和鸟形装饰，这些鸟形装饰在泰国建筑中很常见。

The Phra Thinang Dusit Maha Prasat at the right side of the photo was commissioned by King Rama I in 1790, soon after the establishment of Bangkok as the new capital of Thailand. Originally built as a throne hall for various royal ceremonies, it is also used for the lying-in-state of deceased members of the royal family, where the body is displayed for public homage before the royal cremation. It is a classic example of Rattanakosin architectural style, characterized by its elevated platform, multi-tiered roof. The exterior walls are adorned with intricate stucco reliefs and gilded ornaments, showcasing traditional Thai craftsmanship.

这张照片右侧的 Phra Thinang Dusit Maha Prasat 是1790年曼谷成为泰国新首都后不久，由拉玛一世下令修建的。它最初是作为各种皇家仪式的王座大厅而建，也用于安放已故皇室成员的遗体，在皇家火葬之前，遗体会在这里供公众瞻仰。它是拉达那哥欣建筑风格的经典范例，其特点是高台、多层屋顶。外墙装饰着复杂的灰泥浮雕和镀金装饰，展现了泰国传统的工艺。

The area in the background is the Inner Court which was the residential area for the king’s consorts, daughters, and female attendants. It was a highly private and restricted area. The gardens of the Grand Palace are meticulously designed and maintained. Lush and well-maintained lawns are interspersed with flowerbeds. The extensive use of topiary, with various plants and shrubs carefully trimmed into shapes such as animals, mythical creatures, and geometric patterns add varieties of colors to this palace.

这个区域背景是大皇宫内院，是国王的妃子、女儿和女侍从的居住区。这是一个高度私密和游客受限制的区域。大皇宫的花园经过精心设计和维护。郁郁葱葱、维护良好的草坪上点缀着花坛。花园大量使用修剪过的植物，各种植物和灌木被精心修剪成动物、神话生物和几何图案等形状，为这座宫殿增添色彩。

After I quitted the Grand Palace, I took some time to take some street view of Bangkok. This city often referred to as the “City of Water,” is a metropolis interwoven with an extensive network of canals, known locally as “khlongs.” The network of canals play a vital role in transportation.

离开大皇宫后，我花了点时间拍了拍曼谷的街景。这座城市通常被称为“水城”，是一座被当地人称为“khlongs”的众多运河交织在一起的大都市。运河网络在交通运输中发挥着至关重要的作用。

There are some charming public parks that offer a tranquil retreat from the hustle and bustle of the city. Saranrom Park was originally part of the Saranrom Palace, built in the mid-19th century during the reign of King Rama IV. The palace served as a residence for royal family members. The surrounding gardens were later transformed into a public park, opened to the public in the early 20th century during the reign of King Rama V.

曼谷街头有一些迷人的公园，是远离城市喧嚣的宁静休憩之所。萨兰隆公园最初是萨兰隆宫的一部分，建于19世纪中叶，拉玛四世统治时期。这座宫殿曾是皇室成员的住所。周围的花园后来被改造成公园，并于20世纪初拉玛五世统治时期向公众开放。

The afternoon of Bangkok was scorching and not suitable for travel. I took the metro to the Lumphini Park and had some short rest here before back to hotel. The monument of King Rama VI is a prominent landmark situated at the entrance of Lumphini Park. The statue of King Rama VI is a bronze sculpture that depicts the king in full military uniform, symbolizing his role as a modernizer and a leader of the nation. King Rama VI, who reigned from 1910 to 1925, is celebrated for his efforts to modernize Thailand, promote education, and support cultural development.

曼谷的下午炙热难耐，不适合出行。我坐地铁去了伦披尼公园，在这里稍事休息后就回酒店了。伦披尼公园入口处有一座拉玛六世国王的纪念碑。拉玛六世国王的雕像是一尊青铜雕塑，描绘了国王身着军装的英姿，象征着他作为现代化的推动者和国家领袖。拉玛六世国王于1910年至1925年在位，他致力于泰国的现代化，推动教育，支持文化发展。

Lumphini Park, often referred to as the “green lung” of Bangkok, is one of the largest public parks in the city. The park spans over 142 acres, offering vast lawns, tree-lined pathways, and a variety of plant species. It has a large artificial lake where visitors can rent paddleboats and rowboats. The park is home to various wildlife species, including lizards, turtles, and numerous birds.

伦披尼公园通常被称为曼谷的“绿肺”，是曼谷最大的公园之一。公园占地 142 英亩，拥有宽阔的草坪、绿树成荫的小径和各种植物。公园内有一个大型人工湖，游客可以在那里租用脚踏船和划艇。公园里栖息着各种野生动物，包括蜥蜴、乌龟和众多鸟类。

After a night’s rest, I started the trip of second day. My hotel is located at a pier. Similar to Venice and Rotterdam, Bangkok has a public transport system of boats which play a crucial role in navigating the city’s extensive network of waterways, offering both locals and tourists a convenient and scenic way to travel between various destinations. The Chao Phraya Express Boat is one of the most popular modes of public transport in Bangkok. It operates on the Chao Phraya River and has several routes that connect different parts of the city.

经过一晚的休息，我开始了第二天的行程。我的酒店位于码头边。与威尼斯和鹿特丹类似，曼谷的公共交通系统由船只构成，船只在广泛的水道网络中起着至关重要的作用，为当地人和游客提供了一种便捷且风景优美的交通方式。湄南河快线是曼谷最受欢迎的公共交通工具之一。它在湄南河上运行，有多条路线连接城市的不同地区。

On the boat I could get a panoramic view of the city. The landscape along the Chao Phraya River offers a blend of modern skyscrapers, historic temples, bustling markets, and traditional Thai architecture. Such a boat trip is really a relaxing activity that relieved my fatigue of work.

在船上我可以一览整个城市的风景。湄南河沿岸的风景融合了现代化的摩天大楼、历史悠久的寺庙、繁华的市场和传统的泰式建筑。这样的乘船旅行确实身心放松可以有效缓解工作的疲劳。

Along the Chao Phraya River, I could see the facade of Phra Sumen Fort easily. The fortress is an octagonal structure made of brick. It has three levels with battlements and embrasures designed for cannons and other defensive artillery. It was constructed in 1783 during the reign of King Rama I, the founder of the Chakri Dynasty. The fort was strategically located along the Chao Phraya River to guard the city against naval attacks and to control river traffic. Tourist could explore a piece of Bangkok’s past by visiting it.

沿着湄南河可以一眼看到这座Phra Sumen城堡的外墙。这座堡垒是由砖制成，八角形结构。总共有三层其中包括为大炮和其他防御性火炮设计的发射孔。它于1783年在查克里王朝的创始人国王拉玛一世统治期间建造。这座堡垒的战略地位非常重要，防止曼谷免受海军袭击并扼守湄南河河流交通。游客可以通过参观它了解曼谷的过去。

As Bangkok has developed rapidly in the 20th century, modern skyscrapers have emerged along the banks of the Chao Phraya River. Areas such as IconSiam and Sathorn feature sleek office towers, shopping malls, and residential complexes that reflect the city’s rapid economic growth and urbanization these years. The scenery here is similar to the Singapore river.

随着曼谷在20世纪的迅速发展，现代摩天大楼沿着湄南河的河岸如雨后春笋般出现。 Iconsiam和Sathorn等地区的办公大楼，购物中心和公寓大楼鳞次栉比，这些地区反映了曼谷近年内的高速经济增长和城市化。这片河岸的风景特别类似新加坡河沿岸。

The Chao Phraya River is lined with some of Bangkok’s most famous temples including Wat Arun. Wat Arun, also known as the Temple of Dawn, is one of Bangkok’s most iconic landmarks and a significant cultural and religious site. It is believed to have been founded in the 17th century during the Ayutthaya period, but major renovations and expansions took place during the reign of King Rama II and King Rama III of the Rattanakosin Kingdom. The temple’s name translated to “Temple of Dawn,” is named after Aruna, the Hindu god of dawn.

湄南河沿岸分布了诸多曼谷最著名的寺庙，其中包括黎明神庙，它是曼谷最具标志性的地标之一，也是重要的文化宗教遗址。它是在17世纪阿瑜陀耶王朝时期建立的，并在拉玛二世和三世统治期间进行了重大翻新和扩大。这座寺庙的名字被翻译成“黎明神庙”，以黎明之神阿鲁纳（Aruna）的名字命名。

The most distinctive feature of Wat Arun is its central prang, a towering spire that rises over 70 meters high. The prang is decorated with intricate ceramic tiles and fragments of Chinese porcelain, giving it a shimmering appearance. The prang is surrounded by four smaller satellite prangs, each adorned with ornate sculptures and colorful patterns that depict mythical figures and stories from Buddhist cosmology.

黎明寺最显著的特征是中央的高塔，这是一座高达70多米的尖塔，塔顶上装饰着精美的瓷砖和瓷器散片，看起来闪闪发光。高塔周围有四个较小的小塔，每个小塔都装饰着华丽的雕塑和色彩鲜艳的图案，描绘了佛教宇宙观中的神话人物和故事。

One of the most striking features of Wat Arun’s prang is the use of colorful ceramic tile mosaics. These tiles are arranged in floral patterns and intricate designs, incorporating shades of blue, green, yellow, and white. The tiles form a shimmering surface that catches the sunlight, giving the prang its distinctive appearance observed from faraway. The ceramic tiles also depict symbols and stories from Thai mythology such as heavenly beings, mythical creatures, and scenes from the life of the Buddha.

黎明寺的佛塔最引人注目的特色就是其使用了色彩缤纷的马赛克瓷砖。这些瓷砖以花卉图案和复杂的设计排列，融合了蓝绿黄白色的色调。这些瓷砖形成了一个闪闪发光的亮面，远远看去仿佛具有独特的外观。瓷砖上还描绘了例如天神、神话生物和佛祖生平的场景等泰国神话中的符号和故事。

The temple complex includes an ubosot, or ordination hall, where religious ceremonies and rituals are conducted. It follows traditional Thai temple architecture, characterized by its rectangular shape and multi-tiered roof structure. The roof is adorned with intricate gables (chofah) and tiered finials (lud khan mai). Similar to the prang, the ubosot is constructed primarily of brick and covered with stucco. The exterior walls are embellished with delicate floral and geometric patterns rendered in stucco relief.

寺庙建筑群包括图中的授戒堂，用于举行宗教仪式和典礼。它遵循传统的泰国寺庙建筑风格，其特点是矩形和多层屋顶结构。屋顶装饰有复杂的山墙和分层的尖顶。与主塔类似，授戒堂主要由砖块建造，并覆盖有灰泥。外墙上装饰有精致的花卉和几何图案，这些图案以灰泥浮雕呈现。

Surrounding the central prang are various smaller structures, pavilions, and small towers called Phra Prang which is a Khmer-style tower built to house relics of the Buddha. Wat Arun has long been associated with the Thai monarchy. It has received royal patronage over the centuries, highlighting its importance in Thai cultural and religious life. This temple and the Grand Palace are the two most famous sites in Bangkok, overcrowded by tourists from different countries.

中央的佛塔周围有各种较小的建筑、亭子和称为Phra Prang 的小塔，这是一座高棉风格的塔，用来存放佛祖的遗物。黎明寺长期以来一直与泰国皇室紧密相连。几个世纪以来，它一直受到皇家赞助，凸显了它在泰国文化和宗教生活中的重要性。这座寺庙和大皇宫是曼谷最著名的两个景点，人山人海挤满了来自不同国家的游客。

On the street of Bangkok, I can always see many temples and Buddhism related building. In Thai culture, temples are more than just places of worship. They serve as community centers where people gather for festivals, and ceremonies. The Thai monarchy has historically been a strong patron of Buddhism. Many temples in Bangkok were built under royal sponsorship.

曼谷的街道上，随处就能看到许多寺庙和与佛教有关的建筑。在泰国文化，寺庙不仅仅是礼拜场所。它们也是人们聚集在一起庆祝节日和举行仪式的社区中心。泰国皇室历来是佛教的坚定支持者。曼谷的许多寺庙都是在王室的赞助下建造的。

In many temples of Bangkok, I could find lotus planted in a large water jar. According to Buddhist lore, when the Buddha was born, lotus flowers bloomed wherever he stepped. This association makes the lotus an especially sacred flower in Buddhism. In Buddhist teachings, the lotus is not only a decoration but represents spiritual purity, resilience, and enlightenment.

曼谷的许多寺庙里，我都能看到大水缸里栽种的莲花。根据佛教传说，佛陀诞生时，他所到之处，莲花盛开。这种关联使得莲花在佛教中成为一种特别神圣的花。在佛教教义中，莲花不仅是一种装饰品，还代表着精神的纯洁、坚韧和启蒙。

Apart from the temples, I have visited some historic sites and landmarks. This Parutsakawan Palace has played an important role in Thai history and politics. It is not so well-known for the tourists, and I was the only visitors on that day. It was constructed in 1904 during the reign of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V). The palace served as the residence of Prince Paribatra and his family. Following the 1932 Siamese Revolution, which transitioned Thailand from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy, Parutsakawan Palace was confiscated by the government. The palace was repurposed for various governmental uses and has since housed different government offices and institutions.

除了寺庙，我还参观了一些著名的历史遗迹和地标。这座帕鲁萨卡万宫在泰国历史和政治中扮演着重要角色。对游客来说它显得默默无闻，那天我是唯一的游客。这座建筑建于1904年拉玛五世（朱拉隆功国王）统治时期。这座宫殿是帕里巴特拉王子及其家人的住所。1932年暹罗革命后，泰国从君主独裁制转变为君主立宪制，帕鲁萨卡湾宫被政府没收。这座宫殿被改作各种政府用途，此后曾设有不同的政府办公室和机构。

The architecture of Parutsakawan Palace reflects a blend of European and Thai styles, which was common during the reign of King Chulalongkorn. The design incorporates elements of neoclassical and Renaissance architecture, which were popular in France at the time.

帕鲁萨卡万宫的建筑融合了欧洲和泰国风格，这种风格在朱拉隆功国王统治时期非常普遍。其设计融合了当时在法国流行的新古典主义和文艺复兴时期的建筑元素。

The palace is a symbol of the transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy and the associated socio-political transformations. Today, it serves as a cultural and educational resource. It is a site where visitors can learn about Thailand’s history, architecture, and cultural heritage.

这座宫殿是君主专制向君主立宪制过渡的象征，也是当时社会政治变革的象征。如今，它已成为一个文化和教育资源。游客可以在这里了解泰国的历史、建筑和文化遗产。

Despite the European influence, the palace also incorporates traditional Thai architectural elements. These include the use of traditional Thai rooflines, decorative motifs, and intricate woodwork. The integration of Thai and European styles reflects the cultural exchange and modernization efforts of King Chulalongkorn.

尽管受到欧洲的影响，但宫殿也融入了传统的泰国建筑元素。这些元素包括使用传统的泰国屋顶线条、装饰图案和复杂的木工手艺。泰国和欧洲风格的融合反映了朱拉隆功国王为了文化交流和泰国现代化的努力。

Opposite to the palace is the Plaza of King Chulalongkorn. The plaza was established to honor King Chulalongkorn’s legacy and his contributions to the nation. The centerpiece of the plaza is a grand equestrian statue of King Chulalongkorn which was created by the French sculptor Georges Saulo and erected in 1908. The plaza is surrounded by important governmental buildings, which could not be visited by tourists.

宫殿对面是朱拉隆功国王广场。广场是为了纪念朱拉隆功国王对国家的贡献而建立的。广场的中心是一座宏伟的国王骑马雕像，由法国雕塑家乔治·索洛创作，于1908年竖立在广场中心。广场周围是重要的政府建筑，游客均不能参观。

Another historical site with significant cultural, architectural, and historical value is the Phaya Thai Palace. It was built in 1909 during the reign of King Chulalongkorn. It showcases a blend of European and Thai architectural styles as well which is a symbol of Thailand’s transition into the modern era. There is a beautifully landscaped gardens in front of the main buildings, which include ornamental plants, fountains, and pathways. Today, Phaya Thai Palace serves as a cultural and educational site. It offers visitors insights into Thailand’s royal history.

另一个具有重要文化、建筑和历史价值的遗迹是披耶泰宫。它建于1909年朱拉隆功国王统治时期，向游客展示了欧洲和泰国建筑风格的融合，亦是泰国向现代过渡的象征。主楼前有一个风景优美的花园，里面有各种观赏植物、喷泉和小径。如今，披耶泰宫是一个文化和教育场所，令游客能够充分了解泰国皇家历史。

Before I left Bangkok, the last place to visit was the Erawan Shrine. It is one of Bangkok’s most famous religious landmarks. Located near the bustling shopping Central World, this shrine is dedicated to Phra Phrom, the Thai representation of the Hindu god Brahma. The Erawan Shrine features a statue of Phra Phrom (Brahma) with four faces, each representing different aspects of life: peace and health, good fortune, prosperity, and protection against evil. The statue is adorned with intricate gold leaf and is positioned in a small, open-air pavilion that allows worshippers to walk around it and make offerings from all sides. Visitors from all over the world came here to pray for good fortune, success, and health.

离开曼谷前，最后一个参观的景点就是四面佛神社。它是曼谷最著名的宗教地标之一。这座神社位于繁华的购物中心Central World附近，供奉着四面佛，即泰国版本的印度教梵天。四面佛的梵天雕像面朝四个方向，每个方向代表着生活的不同方面：健康、财富、事业和平安。雕像装饰着精致的金箔，位于一个小型露天亭子里，信徒们可以绕着雕像走一圈，从四面进行供奉。来自世界各地的游客都会来到这里祈福。

CentralWorld in Bangkok is one of the largest shopping malls in Thailand and Southeast Asia. It has hosted numerous events, including concerts and fashion shows. On the day of my visit, there are many Pikachus that attracts fans of all ages. Before I took Metro to the airport, I had a lunch here. I really enjoyed the Thailand food with spicy and sour taste.

曼谷的 CentralWorld 是泰国和东南亚最大的购物中心之一，曾举办过包括演唱会和时装秀等许多活动。我旅游的当天，这里有很多皮卡丘玩具，吸引了各个年龄段的粉丝。在乘地铁去机场之前，我在这里吃了午饭，特别很喜欢酸辣口味的泰国菜。

Green Papaya Salad (Som Tum) is a classic Thai dish known for its mixing flavors and refreshing taste. It’s a popular street food and is often enjoyed as a side dish. The salad is a perfect blend of spicy, sour, sweet, and salty flavors. Its spicy taste is from the bird’s eye chilies. The sour taste is from the fresh lime juice. The sweet taste is from the palm sugar. The salty taste is from the fish sauce. It is a must-try dish for anyone interested in experiencing authentic Thai cuisine.

青木瓜沙拉（Som Tum）是一道经典的泰国菜，以其混合口味和清爽口感而闻名。它是一种受当地人欢迎的街头小吃，经常作为配菜。沙拉完美融合了辣酸甜咸四味。它的辣味来自鸟眼辣椒。酸味来自新鲜的酸橙汁。甜味来自棕榈糖。咸味来自鱼露。对于任何有兴趣体验正宗泰国美食的人来说，这都是一道必尝的菜肴。

Yellow Curry Fish( Kaeng Kari Pla) is a Thai dish with tender fish fillets like cod, snapper, or tilapia simmered in a rich and aromatic yellow curry sauce. Yellow curry is made from a blend of turmeric, coriander, cumin, lemongrass, galangal, garlic, and shallots. Coconut milk is used to add richness and creaminess to the curry. Vegetables like potatoes, bamboo shoots, carrots, and onions are used as additions. Yellow curry is less spicy compared to red or green Thai curries and suitable for most people.

黄咖喱鱼（Kaeng Kari Pla）是一道将鳕鱼、鲷鱼或罗非鱼等嫩鱼片放入浓郁芳香的黄咖喱酱中炖煮的经典泰国菜。黄咖喱由姜黄、香菜、小茴香、柠檬草、高良姜、大蒜和青葱混合制成。椰奶则用于增加咖喱的浓郁和奶油味。土豆、竹笋、胡萝卜和洋葱等蔬菜可作为配料。与红咖喱或绿咖喱相比，黄咖喱的辣味较淡，适合大多数人。

As my journey through Bangkok drew to a close, I could find that this city is a tapestry woven with cultural treasures, bustling street life, and culinary delights. From the tranquil temples to the busy markets, every corner of this city reveals a new adventure. The city’s modern skyline seamlessly blends with its historical roots, creating a dynamic contrast that mirrors Thailand’s journey from past to present. Whether navigating the maze of waterways in a traditional longtail boat on the Chao Phraya River or savoring the explosion of spicy flavors in dishes, Bangkok offers me an immersive experience that is worthy and unforgettable.

在我的曼谷之旅即将结束之际，我发现这座城市就像一幅汇聚了丰富文化、繁华的街头生活和美食的织锦。从宁静的寺庙到繁忙的市场，这座城市的每个角落值得游客去探索。它的现代天际线与历史完美融合，形成了反映了泰国从过去到现代的滚滚红尘。无论是乘坐传统的长尾船在湄南河上穿越迷宫般的水道，还是品尝菜肴中辛辣的味道，曼谷都为我提供了非常值得并且难忘的沉浸式体验。

The trip of Mekong River

June 26, 2024June 28, 2024Posted in Travel, VietnamTagged Can Tho, Mekong River, Travel

湄公河之旅

Before I travelled to Vietnam, I have read the semi-autobiographical novel “The Lover” (“L’Amant”) written by Marguerite Duras. The protagonist, a young French girl, meets her Chinese lover on a ferry crossing the Mekong River. It marks the beginning of their intense love story. The river is frequently mentioned throughout the novel. It reflects the transient nature of their relationship and the passage from adolescence to adulthood. The Mekong River symbolizes the fluidity and impermanence of life and relationships. It mirrors the inner turmoil and emotional currents of the characters, especially the young girl’s complex feelings towards her lover and her family. This novel has left me some light impressions of the Mekong River.

游览越南之前，我读拜过玛格丽特·杜拉斯的半自传体小说《情人》。小说中主人公是一位年轻的法国女孩，在湄公河的渡船上邂逅了她的华裔情人，从此开始了他们热血沸腾的爱情故事。小说中多次提到的湄公河是他们短暂的激情关系以及她从青春期到成年过渡的见证。奔腾的湄公河象征着生命和人际关系的流动性和无常性，反映了人物内心的动荡和女孩对情人和家人的复杂感情的变化。这部小说给我留下对湄公河的些许印象。

In 2018 December, I had chance to visit the Can Tho city in the south of Vietnam and viewed this river with my eyes. Can Tho is the largest city in the Mekong Delta region. The Mekong Delta is known for its intricate network of rivers, canals, and streams. Its extensive waterways are essential for irrigation, fisheries, and daily transportation. The river cross through Can Tho and flew into the South Sea. This area of water reminds me of the Fontaine in the game Genshin Impact which is surrounded by numerous rivers as well.

2018 年12月，我有幸参观了越南南部的芹苴市并亲眼目睹了这条河流。芹苴是湄公河三角洲地区最大的城市。湄公河三角洲以其错综复杂的河流、运河网络而闻名。其广泛的水道对于灌溉、渔业和日常交通起到至关重要的作用。这条河穿过芹苴，一直流入南海。这片水域不由地让我想起了游戏《原神》中的枫丹，它的周围也遍布众多河流。

Life in Can Tho is deeply intertwined with the river. Many local residents live in stilt houses along the banks, and daily activities such as commuting and socializing often take place on the water. The Mekong River contributes to the region’s rich culinary traditions. Can Tho’s cuisine include fresh fish, shrimp, and an abundance of fruits and vegetables grown in the delta. One day’s trip could make me experience the local life fully.

芹苴的生活与河流密不可分。许多当地居民就住在河岸边的棚屋里，一些如通勤和社交等日常活动也经常在水上进行。湄公河也影响了该地区丰富的烹饪传统。芹苴的美食包括新鲜的鱼虾以及湄公河三角洲种植的水果和蔬菜。一天的短途旅行可以让我充分体验当地人的生活。

This is one outdoor restaurant on the way of my trip. The delta’s rich soil and extensive waterways create an ideal environment for a wide variety of plants. Lotus and water lily is widely grown in ponds. Its flowers, seeds, and roots are used in cuisine and traditional medicine. In the Mekong Delta, traditional huts are built in many areas. Roofs are typically made from thatch, using leaves from nipa palm or coconut palm. These huts are often built on stilts to protect against flooding.

这是我旅途中偶遇的一家户外餐厅。湄公河三角洲的土壤肥沃，水道宽阔，为各种植物创造了理想的生长环境。荷花和水百合在池塘中广泛生长。它们的花、种子和根可用于烹饪和传统医药。在这片三角洲，许多地区都建有传统小草屋。屋顶通常使用棕榈树或椰子树的叶子以及茅草制成。这些小屋通常建在高架柱子上以防洪水。

Coconut trees are cultivated extensively along the coastal areas. Coconut water is a popular drink in Vietnam. Street vendors and farmers often sell whole coconuts with a straw inserted. Young green coconuts have sweet and nutritious water. Coconuts in this region are big and have really good quality.

三角洲沿海地区广泛种植椰子树。椰子水是越南的流行饮料。街头小贩和农民经常出售插着吸管的整颗椰子。图中这种嫩绿的椰子水甜美而营养丰富。这片地区的椰子普遍个头大品质非常好。

Pho is a traditional Vietnamese noodle soup. Originating in Northern Vietnam in the early 20th century, it has become a staple of Vietnamese cuisine. Pho is made with flat rice noodles. The broth made from beef bones or chicken is the heart of pho. Sliced or shredded chicken or beef are added together with special aromatics include ginger, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom. Bean sprouts and sliced white onions are used as garnish. Lime wedges are served on the side for squeezing into the soup. Pho is a very popular food in Vietnam, and it is commonly found at street food stalls and small restaurants.

粉是一道传统的越南面汤。它起源于20世纪初的越南北部，现已成为越南的主食。河粉由扁米粉制成。用牛骨或鸡肉熬制的汤是制作粉的核心所在。将切片或切丝的鸡肉或牛肉与生姜、八角、肉桂、丁香和小豆蔻等特殊香料一起加入，另外用豆芽和切片白洋葱点缀。旁边配有青柠，食客可挤入汤中。粉是越南非常受欢迎的食物，在街头小吃摊和小餐馆里随处可见。

My boat trips last a few hours focusing on specific attractions of nearby villages and the small islands in the center of Mekong river. The best time to visit this river is during the dry season, from November to April, when the weather is cooler and more pleasant. Such a trip is a unique and enriching experience that offers a glimpse into the natural beauty of the Mekong Delta.

我的游船之旅总共是几个小时，重点游览附近村庄和湄公河中心小岛等景点。游览这条河的最佳时间一般是11 月至 4 月的旱季，这段时间的天气更凉爽宜人。这种旅行是一种独特的体验，可以一睹湄公河三角洲的自然美景。

I took such a simple boat to the center island of Mekong Delta. On the east of the island is the South Sea. Although it was dry season, the water flow at the mouth of Mekong Delta was not reduced. There was a large distance between both sides of riverbanks and the wide river looked like a huge lake.

我乘着这样的简易渡船来到了湄公河三角洲的中心岛，岛的东面就是南海，虽然此时是旱季，但湄公河三角洲入口处的水流却没有减少，两岸间隔的距离很大，宽阔的河面看上去就像一个巨大的湖泊。

The island is surrounded by lush vegetation typical of the Mekong Delta, including mangroves, coconut palms, and various fruit trees. The island’s inhabitants are likely engaged in traditional livelihoods such as fishing, farming, and small-scale trade. Life here is closely tied to the rhythms of the river. There are many small canals on the island, and I rented a small boat to travel all through it.

河心岛周围长满了包括红树林、椰子树和各种果树等湄公河三角洲典型的茂密植被。岛上居民一般从事例如捕鱼、耕种和小规模贸易等传统生计。这里的生活与奔流的河水相辅相成。岛上有许多小运河，我租了一艘小船在运河中穿梭。

Small-scale farming, particularly of rice and fruit, is common on islands in the delta. The fertile soil and abundant water supply make it an ideal location for agriculture. Visitors could taste local foods, especially fresh seafood and tropical fruits here.

三角洲岛屿上普遍存在种植稻米和水果等小型农业。肥沃的土壤和充足的水源使这片土地成为农业开发理想之地。游客也可以在这里品尝新鲜的海鲜和热带水果等当地美食。

This kind of street restaurants, often referred to as “quán ăn” or “street food stalls,” are a quintessential part of Vietnam’s culinary scene. Simple plastic stools and low tables are the norm. The ambiance is casual and lively, with the sounds of sizzling food and lively chatter filling the air.

这种街边餐馆通常被称为“quán ăn”，是越南美食的代表。这种街边美食摊一般只有简单的塑料凳子和几张矮桌子。整体氛围轻松而热闹，空气中弥漫着食物的滋滋声和热闹的闲聊。

When I returned to Can Tho in the afternoon, the sunset over the Mekong River was a breathtaking, offering a picturesque view of the river’s vast expanse landscapes. As the day drew to a close, the sky transformed into a canvas of golden hues. The calm waters of the Mekong River glisten with the last rays of the sun, and boats and riverbanks are silhouetted against the colorful backdrop.

下午我回到芹苴市区，湄公河上的落日美轮美奂，河水辽阔，风景如画。一天的末尾时分，整个天空变成了一片金色的画布。平静的湄公河水面在夕阳的余晖中闪闪发光，船只和河岸在色彩斑斓的背景下映衬得熠熠生辉。

I stayed in Can Tho for two days. The water market particularly the Cai Rang Floating Market, is one of the most famous and vibrant attractions in the Mekong Delta. This market offers a unique glimpse into the traditional way of life in southern Vietnam, where waterways are the main thoroughfares for commerce and daily activities. The market is only accessed by boat. The market starts as early as 5:00 AM and is most active around 7:00 AM. so I had to get up before sun rise to visit it.

我在芹苴总计呆了两天。Cai Rang 水上市场是湄公河三角洲最著名、最热闹的景点。这个市场让游客可以领略越南南部的传统生活方式，水路是当地商业和日常活动的主要通道。游客只能乘船前往水上市场。市场早上5:00就开始营业，最繁忙的时候通常是早上7:00，所以我必须在日出前就起床去游览这个地方。

Sellers operate from boats, which are packed with a variety of goods. Each boat typically specializes in a specific type of product, such as fruits, vegetables, rice, or household items. Sellers display their goods on long poles (called “cây bẹo”) to attract buyers from a distance. Some boats serve as floating kitchens, offering traditional Vietnamese breakfast dishes such as pho.

商贩们通常在船上经营，船上装满了各种商品。每艘船一般专门销售例如水果、蔬菜、大米或家居用品等特定类型的产品。商贩用长杆上的标志（称为“cây bẹo”）展示他们的商品类型，吸引远处的买家。有些船则用作水上厨房提供例如粉等越南传统早餐。

For me, the meaning of travel includes always exploring the new things. I wish to eat and visit every corner of this world like the traveler and Paimon in the game Genshin Impact. This time, visiting the riverside villages and water markets provided a stark contrast to the busy cities. Here, life moved at a gentler pace. These experiences offered me insight into the daily lives of the people who call the Mekong Delta home, who used to exist in my imagination from the novel ‘The Lover’.

对我而言，旅行的意义在于不断探索新鲜事物。我希望像《原神》中的旅行者和派蒙一样，走遍吃遍这个世界的每个角落。这次我参观了湄公河边的村庄和水上市场，这里生活节奏更缓慢与繁忙的城市形成了鲜明的对比。这片土地和这里的人们曾经存在于我阅读小说《情人》后的想象中，而这次的经历则让我亲身深入了解了湄公河三角洲的日常生活。

Discovering Ho Chi Minh City’s Past and Present

May 16, 2024June 3, 2024Posted in Travel, VietnamTagged asia, ho-chi-minh-city, saigon, Travel, Vietnam

探寻胡志明市的前世今生

Nestled along the banks of the winding Saigon River lies a city that pulsates with energy, history, and a unique blend of cultures. Ho Chi Minh City, a metropolis that serves as the beating heart of Vietnam’s southern region. Formerly known as Saigon, this dynamic city is a testament to the country’s resilience, having weathered centuries of colonialism, cruel wars, and rapid urbanization to emerge as a vibrant hub of commerce and culture.

蜿蜒的西贡河畔坐落着一座充满活力、历史悠久、文化独特的城市。胡志明市是越南南部地区的心脏地带。这座活力满满的城市原名西贡，是越南坚韧不拔的象征，在历经数百年的殖民统治、残酷战争的洗礼和快速的城市化后，如今的胡志明市已成为一个生机勃勃的商业和文化中心。

I have visited this city several times when I worked in Vietnam for around half years during 2018 and 2019. I used to walk along the Saigon River in the weekend. As it flows through Ho Chi Minh City, the Saigon River is a dynamic presence, its waters reflecting the ever-changing skyline of the city. Along its banks, I can find a mix of modern skyscrapers representing the modernism of Vietnam and lush greenery, creating a picturesque backdrop for the hustle and bustle of urban life. The river plays a crucial role in the daily life of the city, serving as a transportation route for goods and people, as well as a source of livelihood for local fishermen and farmers.

2018年和2019年间，我在越南工作了大约半年，曾多次到访这座城市。周末，我经常在西贡河边散步。连绵不绝的西贡河流经胡志明市，河水倒映着城市不断变化的天际线。河岸上，代表越南现代化的摩天大楼与郁郁葱葱的绿色植物交相辉映，在熙熙攘攘的城市生活中创造出一幅动人的风景。这条河在城市的日常生活中扮演着至关重要的角色，既是一条运输线，也是当地渔民和农民的生计来源。

But beyond its modern facade, Ho Chi Minh City is a city rich in history and tradition. From the remnants of French colonial architecture to the scars of the Vietnam War, every corner of the city tells a story, inviting visitors to delve into its past and uncover the layers of its complex heritage. The Palais de Justice, of Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) stands as a striking testament to the city’s colonial past. Built during the French colonial era, this majestic building served as the seat of the judiciary and a symbol of French authority in Vietnam. Constructed between 1885 and 1890, the Palais de Justice was designed by the French architect Paul Gardès, who drew inspiration from classical French architectural styles. Its grand facade features neoclassical elements such as columns, arches, and intricate detailing, reflecting the opulence and grandeur of the time. Throughout its history, the Palais de Justice witnessed significant events, including trials during the colonial period and later during the Vietnam War era.

不过除了现代化的城市外观，胡志明市还是一座拥有丰富历史和传统的城市。从法国殖民时期建筑的遗迹到越南战争留下的伤痕，这座城市的每个角落都讲述着一个个故事，吸引游客深入了解它的过去，揭开其复杂的层层面纱。西贡的司法宫是这座城市殖民历史的生动见证。这座雄伟的建筑建于法国殖民时期，曾是司法机构的所在地，也是法国在越南权威的象征。司法宫建于1885 年至 1890 年间，由法国建筑师 Paul Gardès 设计，他从法国古典建筑风格中汲取灵感。其宏伟的外观采用了例如柱子、拱门和复杂的细节等新古典主义元素，反映了当时法式建筑的富丽堂皇。在其历史上，司法宫见证了包括殖民时期和后来越南战争时期的审判等重大事件。

The City Hall of Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Minh City Hall, is an iconic landmark that exudes grandeur and history in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City. Located at the end of Nguyen Hue Boulevard, the City Hall stands as a prime example of French colonial architecture. Designed by the French architect, Auguste Henri Vildieu, and completed in 1908, it served as the seat of the French colonial administration in Saigon. The building’s façade is adorned with elegant columns, ornate balconies, and a distinctive bell tower, reminiscent of the architectural styles of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

西贡市政厅，又称胡志明市政厅，是胡志明市中心一座散发着宏伟和历史气息的标志性建筑。市政厅位于阮惠大道尽头，是法国殖民时期建筑的典范。它由法国建筑师奥古斯特·亨利·维尔迪厄 (Auguste Henri Vildieu) 设计，于1908年竣工，是法国在西贡的殖民政府所在地。该建筑的外墙装饰有优雅的柱子、华丽的阳台和独特的钟楼，让人联想到19世纪末和20世纪初的法国城市风格。

Many tourists will stand at this point to take a photo. Its creamy yellow exterior, punctuated by green shutters and a prominent clock tower, commands attention. Today, the City Hall continues to play a significant role as the headquarters of the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, overseeing the governance and administration of Vietnam’s largest city. While its function has evolved over the years, the building remains an enduring symbol of Saigon’s past and present, bridging the gap between history and modernity.

许多游客都站在此处拍照打卡。市政厅的乳黄色外观、绿色百叶窗和钟楼十分惹眼。如今，市政厅继续发挥重要作用，作为胡志明市人民委员会的总部，负责监督越南最大城市的治理和行政工作。虽然它的功能多年来一直在演变，但这座建筑仍然是西贡过去和现在的永恒象征，构建了历史与现代的联系。

Many buildings here are influenced by French architecture style largely. The Saigon Central Post Office, constructed between 1886 and 1891 during the French colonial period, stands as a stunning example of neoclassical architecture. Designed by the renowned French architect Gustave Eiffel, the mastermind behind the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the building seamlessly blends European influences with local Vietnamese elements, creating a captivating fusion of styles.

这里诸多建筑深受法国建筑风格的影响。图中的西贡中央邮局建于1886年至1891年法国殖民时期，是新古典主义建筑的典范。该建筑由著名的法国建筑师巴黎埃菲尔铁塔的设计者古斯塔夫·埃菲尔设计，他将欧洲风格与越南当地元素完美融合，创造出迷人的混合风。

As I stepped through its grand entrance, I was greeted by a cavernous interior hall adorned with intricate wrought-iron arches, elegant marble floors, and a soaring vaulted ceiling. Sunlight streams through the building’s large windows, emitting a warm glow on the rows of wooden counters and antique telephone booths that line the hall. Perhaps the most striking feature of the Saigon Central Post Office is its vast dome, which dominates the central hall and serves as a focal point for visitors. Decorated with delicate mosaic tiles depicting the planets and zodiac symbols, the dome is a breathtaking display of craftsmanship and artistry. Despite its age, the Saigon Central Post Office remains a bustling hub of activity, with tourists flocking to its counters to send postcards as souvenirs.

踏入大门，映入眼帘的是宽敞的装饰着精巧的铸铁拱门、雅致的大理石地板和高耸的拱形天花板的内部大厅。阳光透过建筑上的大窗户映射进来，在大厅两旁成排的木质柜台和古董电话亭上散发出温暖的光芒。西贡中央邮局最引人注目的特征当属它巨大的圆顶，占据了中央大厅的大部分空间，令游客驻足。圆顶上装饰着描绘行星和十二星座符号的精致马赛克瓷砖，展现出了令人惊叹的工艺和艺术。尽管这座历史悠久，西贡中央邮局如今仍然是一个繁忙的中心，游客接踵而至在它的柜台寄送明信片作为纪念品。

Inherited from the French culture, Saigon kept the building of opera house like all the French cities. Built in the late 19th century during the French colonial period, this majestic structure stands as a testament to the enduring legacy of European influence in Vietnam. Designed by French architect Eugène Ferret and inaugurated in 1897, the Saigon Opera House has a stunning façade characterized by neoclassical features, including graceful arches, intricate carvings, and ornate balconies. Its elegant exterior, adorned with statues and embellishments, exudes an air of luxury and grandeur, inviting passersby to marvel at its beauty. On the day of my visit, the opera played is the Nutcracker composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

继承了法国文化，西贡像所有法国城市一样保留了歌剧院。这座雄伟的建筑建于19世纪末法国殖民时期，是欧洲文化在越南持久影响的见证。西贡歌剧院由法国建筑师欧仁·费雷设计，于1897年落成，外观是包括优美的拱门、精雕细琢的雕刻和华丽的阳台新古典主义风格，无处不散发着奢华的气息，令过往的人们惊叹不已。我参观的那天，上映的歌剧是柴可夫斯基的《胡桃夹子》。

Step inside, and I was transported to a world of opulence and refinement immediately. The interior of the opera house is a masterpiece of architectural design, with its sweeping staircase, gleaming marble floors, and sumptuous décor evoking the glamour of a bygone era. The main auditorium, adorned with sparkling chandeliers and plush seating, provides an exquisite setting for the world-class performances that grace its stage.

步入歌剧院仿佛立刻卷入了一个富丽堂皇、精致典雅的世界。歌剧院内部绝对是建筑设计的杰作，它的旋转楼梯、闪闪发光的大理石地板和奢华的装饰唤起了法国旧时代的记忆。主礼堂装饰着闪闪发光的枝形吊灯和豪华座椅，为舞台上世界一流的表演增光添彩。

This is the street view along the opera house with a statue of Mozart playing flute. The weather of Ho Chi Minh City is characterized by a tropical climate that is generally hot and humid throughout the year. There are many tropical plants here like Coconut Palm and Rain Tree. I visited this city during the mild and dry winter without rain. The weather is suitable for travel.

这是歌剧院旁边的街景，旁边是莫扎特吹笛子的雕像。胡志明市的气候特点是热带气候，全年炎热潮湿。这里有许多诸如如椰子树和雨树等热带植物。我游览这座城市正值冬天，气候温和干燥少雨。天气适合旅行。

The iconic landmark of Ho Chi Minh City must be the Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica. Constructed between 1863 and 1880 by the French colonial authorities, it was designed by the French architect Jules Bourard in the neo-Romanesque style, with distinctively red brick walls imported from France. Its twin bell towers rise gracefully above the city skyline, while its façade features intricate rose windows, ornate carvings, and statues of saints, creating a striking contrast against the modern skyscrapers that surround it.

胡志明市的标志性建筑非西贡圣母大教堂莫属。该教堂由法国建筑师 Jules Bourard 设计并由法国殖民当局于1863年至1880年间修建，它采用新罗马式风格，其独特的红砖墙是从法国进口的。教堂的双钟楼优雅地耸立在城市天际线之上，而其外墙则装饰着精致的玫瑰窗、华丽的雕刻和圣徒雕像，与周围的现代摩天大楼形成鲜明对比。

Throughout the exterior of the cathedral, smaller steel windows are placed to provide ventilation and natural light to the interior spaces. These windows are typically rectangular or arched in shape and are adorned with simple decorative grilles. Although they are not as elaborate as the rose window, these smaller windows contribute to the overall aesthetic of the cathedral’s facade。

大教堂的外部遍布小格的钢窗，为室内空间提供通风和自然光。这些窗户通常呈矩形或拱形，并饰有简单的窗饰格栅。虽然这些小窗户不如玫瑰窗那么精致，但它们为大教堂整体添加了美感。

To know the history and culture of Vietnam, it is recommended to visit the Fine Arts Museum of Ho Chi Minh City. It has a blend of French colonial and Chinese architectural influences. Its graceful exterior features ornate balconies, arched windows, and intricate carvings, while its interior showcases spacious galleries adorned with elegant woodwork and furnishings.

想要了解越南的历史和文化，可以参观一下胡志明市的美术博物馆。它融合了法国殖民和中国建筑的影响。它优美的外观包括华丽的阳台，拱形的窗户和错综复杂的雕刻，而其内部向游客展示了宽敞的长廊，装饰着优雅的木制品和家具。

The museum’s extensive collection spans various periods and styles of Vietnamese art, ranging from ancient artifacts to contemporary works. Visitors can admire traditional Vietnamese paintings, sculptures, ceramics, lacquerware, and folk art, as well as exhibits showcasing the influence of French colonialism and Chinese influences on Vietnamese art.

博物馆的广泛收藏涵盖了越南艺术的各个时期和风格，从古老的文物到当代作品。游客可以欣赏传统的越南绘画，雕塑，陶瓷，漆器和民间艺术，这些展览同时也展示了法国殖民者和中国对越南艺术的影响。

The influence of China on Vietnam spans thousands of years and has had a profound impact on various aspects of Vietnamese culture, society, language, and history. Vietnam was ruled by Chinese domination for over a millennium, starting with the Han Dynasty’s annexation of the territory in 111 BC and lasting until the Tenth Century. Chinese characters were introduced to Vietnam and became the basis for written communication and literature. While Vietnamese eventually developed its own script, chu Nom, based on Chinese characters, the influence of Chinese characters can still be seen in Vietnamese writing, particularly in formal and scholarly texts. This photo is a military appointment during the reign of Emperor Thiệu Trị, the third emperor of the Nguyễn dynasty. Chinese characters are still used at that time.

历史上中国对越南的影响跨越数千年，中国对越南文化，社会，语言和历史的各个方面产生了深远的影响。越南曾由中国统治千年之久，从汉朝公元前111年对开始，一直持续到十世纪。汉字在那时也被引入越南，并成为当地书面交流和文学创作的基础文字。尽管越南人最终发明了自己的文字，基于汉字的Chu Nom，但在这些越南文字中尤其是在正式和学术文本中仍然可以看到汉字的影响。图中的照片是阮朝的第三位皇帝绍治皇帝统治期间的军事委任书。可以看到当时人民仍使用中字。

Some traditional buildings in this city with their architectural style, artwork, and religious practices bear witness to the enduring cultural connections between Vietnam and China. One of the pagodas in Ho Chi Minh City that bears important Chinese influence is the Jade Emperor Pagoda. While it is a Vietnamese Buddhist temple, it showcases architectural elements and cultural influences from Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. The pagoda’s architectural style is reminiscent of traditional Chinese temples, with curved roofs adorned with colorful ceramic tiles, intricate wood carvings, and ornate decorations. The layout of the pagoda follows the typical structure of Chinese temples, including a central hall, courtyards, and side halls. The pagoda hosts various festivals and religious ceremonies throughout the year, some of which are based on Chinese lunar calendar traditions. For example, the Lunar New Year (Tết Nguyên Đán) and the Mid-Autumn Festival (Tết Trung Thu) are celebrated with special rituals and performances.

这座城市的一些传统建筑的建筑风格，艺术品和宗教习俗见证了越南与中国之间的持久文化联系。在胡志明市的一个玉帝庙就特别具有中国印记。虽然它是一座越南佛教寺庙，但它展现了中国玛哈亚佛教的建筑元素和文化影响。这座庙宇的建筑风格让人一下就联想到传统的中国寺庙，弯曲的屋顶上装饰着五颜六色的陶瓷瓷砖，错综复杂的木雕和华丽的装饰。玉帝庙的布局遵循了包括中央大厅，庭院和边厅等中国寺庙的典型结构。宝塔全年举办各种节日和宗教仪式，其中一些基于中国的阴历。当地人会在这里进行表演，庆祝农历新年和中秋节。

Mentioning the religion of Vietnam, I must highlight one characteristic religion called Cao Dai religion that I have never heard before. Located in Tay Ninh Province, approximately 90 kilometers northwest of Ho Chi Minh City, this Holy See Temple in this picture is the spiritual center of the Cao Dai religion. This religion was founded in 1926 by Ngo Van Chieu, a Vietnamese civil servant, and is based on a combination of elements from various world religions, including Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Christianity, and Islam. The religion’s central tenet is the belief in a supreme deity known as Cao Dai, who governs the universe and embodies the principles of love, justice, and compassion.

说到越南的宗教，不得不提到一种闻所未闻的特色宗教——曹岱教。这张照片中的曹岱教寺庙位于泰宁省，距离胡志明市西北约90公里，是曹岱教的宗教中心。这个宗教由越南公务员吴文昭于1926年创立，融合了佛教、道教、儒教、基督教和伊斯兰教等世界各个宗教的元素。该宗教的核心教义是信仰一位至高无上的神祇曹岱，他统治着宇宙，体现了博爱、正义和怜悯的原则。

The Tay Ninh Holy See is characterized by its distinctive architectural style, which combines elements of Eastern and Western design. The main temple complex features a large, ornate structure with colorful facades, intricate carvings, and decorative motifs symbolizing the diverse religious influences of the Cao Dai faith. This religion is inspired from the mixture of other religions. When I saw the Eye of Horus which serves as a protective symbol and a potent emblem of divine authority in ancient Egyptian mythology on the wall of the temple, I was really shocked.

泰宁教廷的曹岱教建筑风格独具特色，融合了东西方的设计元素。主寺庙建筑群结构宏伟华丽，外墙色彩缤纷，雕刻精美，装饰图案象征着多元宗教影响。曹岱教的起源灵感来自其他宗教的融合。当我看到这座寺庙墙上的荷鲁斯之眼时，我真的感到特别震惊，荷鲁斯之眼在古埃及神话中是保护的象征，也是神圣权威的有力象征。

The Holy See Temple serves as a place of worship and pilgrimage for Cao Dai adherents, who gather for daily rituals, ceremonies, and prayers. Worshipers dress in traditional white robes and participate in elaborate rituals that involve chanting and meditation. The Cao Dai religion incorporates a rich tapestry of religious symbolism, rituals, and beliefs that reflect its syncretic nature. Followers believe in the existence of a spiritual hierarchy, including saints, spirits, and divine beings, who serve as intermediaries between humanity and the supreme deity.

曹岱庙是曹岱教信徒的礼拜和朝圣之地，信徒们每天聚集在一起举行仪式和祈祷。这些虔诚的信徒们身着传统的白色长袍，参加包括诵经和冥想在内的复杂仪式。吸取各种宗教精华的曹岱教融合了丰富的宗教象征、仪式和信仰。信徒们相信存在一个包括圣人、精灵和神灵的精神等级制度，他们是人类和最高之神间的媒介。

Vietnam is a resilient country in its history. It developed its own language and culture although influenced by China for nearly one thousand years. Later, it was colonized by France in the mid-19th century as part of French Indochina. Resistance against French colonial rule began to emerge in the early 20th century. One of the most influential figures in Vietnam’s fight for independence was Ho Chi Minh. He was a revolutionary leader who played a key role in founding the Vietnamese Communist Party (VCP) in 1930 and organizing resistance against both French colonial rule and Japanese occupation during World War II. The First Indochina War (1946-1954) was fought between the Viet Minh and French forces, culminating in the decisive Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954, where the Viet Minh successfully defeated the French, leading to the Geneva Accords and the partition of Vietnam into North and South. Following the partition of Vietnam, the communist-led government of North Vietnam, under Ho Chi Minh’s leadership, sought to reunify the country under communist rule. The Vietnam War (1955-1975) escalated into a protracted conflict between North Vietnam, supported by the Soviet Union and China, and South Vietnam, supported by the United States and its allies. In April 1975, North Vietnamese forces launched the Ho Chi Minh Campaign, leading to the capture of Saigon and the reunification of Vietnam under communist rule. The Reunification Palace is a symbol of Vietnam’s struggle for independence and reunification.

越南是一个历史上坚韧不拔的国家。尽管近一千年来受到中国的影响，但它仍然发展出了自己的语言和文化。后来19世纪中叶它被法国殖民又成为法属印度支那的一部分。反抗法国殖民统治的斗争在20世纪初开始兴起。越南独立斗争中最具影响力的人物就是胡志明。他是一位革命领袖，在1930年建立越南共产党并在二战期间组织反抗法国殖民统治和日本占领的斗争中发挥了关键作用。历史上第一次印度支那战争（1946-1954）是越盟和法国军队之间的战争，最终在1954年决定性的奠边府战役中越盟成功击败了法国军队，从而签署了日内瓦协议，并将越南分为南北两部分。越南分治后，在胡志明的领导下，北越共产党领导的政府寻求在共产党统治下重新统一国家。后来的越南战争（1955-1975）升级为苏联和中国支持的北越与美国及其盟友支持的南越之间的长期冲突。1975年4月，北越军队发动胡志明战役，攻占西贡，越南在共产党统治下重新统一。图中的统一宫是越南争取独立和统一斗争的象征。

The palace surrounded by greenery is located in the city center with many people passing by. It has a large area of lawns and a fountain. It was originally constructed in the 1960s as the presidential residence and administrative headquarters of the South Vietnamese government. It replaced the former Norodom Palace, which was heavily damaged during a coup attempt in 1962. The new palace was designed by Vietnamese architect Ngô Viết Thụ and completed in 1966. The architecture of the Reunification Palace is a blend of modernist and traditional Vietnamese design elements. The building features clean lines, spacious halls, and minimalist decor, with an emphasis on functionality and efficiency.

这座绿树环绕的宫殿位于市中心，周围行人众多。它有大片草坪和喷泉，最初建于1960年代，是南越政府的总统官邸和行政总部。它取代了在1962年政变中遭到严重破坏的前诺罗敦宫。新宫殿由越南建筑师 Ngô Viết Thụ 设计，于1966年竣工。统一宫的建筑融合了现代主义和传统的越南设计元素。这座建筑线条简洁，大厅宽敞，装饰简约，注重功能性和效率。

The Reunification Palace witnessed several key events during the Vietnam War, including the Tet Offensive of 1968 and the Fall of Saigon in 1975. Today, it serves as a museum and tourist attraction, offering visitors the opportunity to explore its historic rooms, and hallways. The museum showcases artifacts, documents, and photographs related to the palace’s history and the events that took place there during the Vietnam War. As a symbol of national unity and independence, the Reunification Palace holds special significance for the Vietnamese people. It serves as a reminder of the country’s struggle for independence and sovereignty.

统一宫见证了越南战争期间包括1968年的春节攻势和1975年的西贡攻陷的几场重大事件。如今它已成为博物馆和旅游景点，游客可以探索历史悠久的房间和走廊。博物馆展示了当年的历史以及越南战争期间发生的事件相关的文物、文件和照片。作为民族团结与独立的象征，统一宫对越南人民具有特殊意义，提醒人们这个国家为独立和主权而斗争的历史。

The War Remnants Museum stands as a testament to the resilience of the Vietnamese people as well. Established in 1975 shortly after the end of the Vietnam War, the War Remnants Museum was originally known as the “Exhibition House for US and Puppet Crimes.” Its primary mission was to document the atrocities committed by the United States and its allies during the war.

这座战争遗迹博物馆也是越南人民坚韧不拔的见证。战争遗迹博物馆成立于越南战争结束后不久的1975年，最初被称为 “美国和伪军罪行展览馆”。其主要使命是记录美国及其盟友在战争期间犯下的暴行。

The museum’s outdoor area features a collection of military equipment, aircraft, tanks, and artillery used during the Vietnam War. These displays offer visitors a firsthand look at the machinery of war.

博物馆的室外区域展出了越南战争期间使用的军事装备、飞机、坦克和火炮。这些展品让游客可以亲眼目睹当时的战争机器。

During the Vietnam War, the United States deployed a wide range of aircraft to support its military operations in Southeast Asia. These aircraft played a crucial role in various missions. The F-105 Thunderchief was a supersonic fighter-bomber used primarily for bombing missions over North Vietnam. Despite massive investments in military resources and escalating bombing campaigns, the United States was unable to achieve its strategic objectives in Vietnam. The conflict became increasingly bogged down in a stalemate, with neither side able to secure a decisive victory. The North Vietnamese demonstrated remarkable resilience and great determination and the war resulted in the eventual withdrawal of American forces finally.

越南战争期间，美国部署了多种飞机来支援其在东南亚的军事行动。这些飞机在各种任务中发挥了至关重要的作用。F-105“雷公”是一种超音速轰炸机，主要用于轰炸北越的军事设施。尽管美国在越战投入了大量军事资源并不断升级轰炸行动，但仍然无法实现其战略目标。这场冲突最终越来越陷入僵局，双方都无法取得决定性的胜利。北越人民在这场战争中表现出非凡的韧性和坚定的决心，最终导致美军无奈撤离。

The museum’s exhibits are divided into several thematic sections, each offering a comprehensive and harrowing portrayal of different aspects of the war, especially the cruelty. Exhibits include photographs, artifacts, documents, and multimedia presentations that depict the human cost of the conflict, including the suffering of civilians, the use of chemical weapons such as Agent Orange, and the experiences of prisoners of war. I am always a fun of military strategy and history, so this museum is a perfect place for me.

博物馆的展品分为几个主题部分，每个部分都全面而令人痛心地描绘了战争的残酷。这些展品包括照片、文物、文件和多媒体演示，描绘了冲突造成的人员伤亡，还包括平民的受难、橙剂等化学武器的使用以及战俘的悲惨经历。我一直对军事战略和历史很感兴趣，所以这个博物馆对我来说很对胃口。

To know the history of this city, the visitors may visit the Ho Chi Minh City Museum established in 1975. The museum’s exhibits cover a wide range of topics related to the history, culture, and development of Ho Chi Minh City. Visitors can explore galleries dedicated to the city’s pre-colonial history, its role as a trading hub and colonial outpost, the impact of French colonialism, the struggle for independence, and the modernization and urbanization of Saigon in the 20th century.

想要了解这座城市的历史，游客还可以参观1975年成立的胡志明市博物馆。博物馆的展品涵盖了与胡志明市的历史、文化和发展有关的广泛主题。游客可以探索专门介绍该市殖民前历史、其作为贸易中心和殖民前哨的作用、法国殖民主义的影响、争取独立的斗争以及20世纪西贡的现代化和城市化的长廊。

Although the Ho Chi Minh City is a quite modernized city with many skyscrapers. It lacks the facility of public transport like metro. Motorbikes play a significant role in Vietnam’s transportation landscape, serving as the primary mode of personal travel for millions of people across the country. On Vietnam’s roads, from bustling city streets to rural villages and scenic countryside, flocks of motorbikes always appeared in my eyes.

虽然胡志明市是一座相当现代化的城市，有许多摩天大楼。但它缺乏地铁等公共交通设施。摩托车在越南的交通中扮演着重要的角色，是全国数百万人出行的主要方式。在越南的道路上，从繁华的城市街道到风景秀丽的乡村，我的视线总是能看到成群的摩托车。

The night view of this city is splendid. It offers a vibrant and diverse nightlife scene from bustling night markets and lively bars that caters to a wide range of tastes and preferences. Ben Thanh Night Market is the place for people shopping for souvenirs, handicrafts, clothing, and local street food. These markets come alive with colorful lights, lively music, and the hustle and bustle of vendors and shoppers.

这座城市的夜景也美不胜收。它提供了充满活力和多样化的夜生活场景，从熙熙攘攘的夜市到热闹的酒吧，游客均可满足自己各种口味和喜好。图中的Ben Thanh夜市是人们购买纪念品、手工艺品、服装和当地街头小吃的地方。这个市场充满了五彩缤纷的灯光、热闹的音乐以及商贩和购物者的喧嚣。

Before I went to France for studies, I have worked in this city for nearly half year. As I bid farewell to Ho Chi Minh City, I carry with me a treasure trove of memories and experiences that have broadened my horizons, deepened my appreciation for Vietnamese culture, and left me yearning for more adventures in this captivating corner of the world. When I embark on the next chapter of my journey, the time spent in this remarkable city will always be kept in my memory.

在去法国留学之前，我在这座城市工作了将近半年。我带着无数的记忆告别了胡志明市，这段经历开阔了我的视野，加深了我对越南文化的了解，让我更加渴望在这个迷人的世界的各个角落中进行更多的冒险。当我踏上旅程的下一个篇章时，在这座城市度过的时光也将永远留存在我的记忆中。

The autumn of Luxemburg

August 28, 2022August 31, 2022Posted in Luxembourg, TravelTagged Luxemburg, Travel, World heritage site

卢森堡的秋天

Luxemburg is a small country in the north of France. I took one day to visit it during my trip of Alsace and Lorraine in the autumn of 2020. I took the TER train from Metz and it only took one and half hours to arrive in the capital of this country, Luxemburg city. Luxembourg is one of the smallest sovereign states in Europe but it has amazingly one of the the highest GDP per capita in the world.

卢森堡是法国北部的一个小国。我在2020年秋天阿尔萨斯和洛林的旅行中特意花了一天时间参观了它。我从梅斯乘坐TER火车，只用了一个半小时就到达了这个国家的首都卢森堡市。卢森堡是欧洲最小的主权国家之一，但令人惊讶的是，它是世界上人均 GDP 最高的国家。

Although this country is extremely small, it has its own railways systems connecting many villages in the country. This train station has a typical German façade in the traditional Moselle Baroque Revival style. It was built at the beginning of 20th century. At that period, German architects preferred to build train stations with a clock tower and a triangle roof-top main building.

虽然这个国家非常小，但它有自己的铁路系统连接该国的众多村庄。这个火车站有典型的德国外观，采用传统的摩泽尔巴洛克复兴风格。它建于20世纪初。在那个时代，德国建筑师更喜欢建造带有钟楼和三角形屋顶主楼的火车站。

I visited the city in late autumn on foot and it was a gloomy and cold morning accompanied by gusts of bleak wind which blew off the frosty dews from twigs. The first view of the city was the tortuous Petrusse valley. I walked from the train station in the south towards the city area and must cross this valley. The leaves of trees in autumn had turned to mixed red and yellow. From faraway, the colorful forest in the valley looked like a polychrome decorating the skyline of the city. At the bottom of the valley, I could see the Skatepark clearly. The visitors could go to the bottom and have a hiking along the valley.

我在两年前的深秋步行游览了这座城市，那是一个阴寒的早晨，秋风萧瑟天气凉，草木摇落露为霜。来到这座城市的第一印象就是眼前蜿蜒曲折的佩特鲁斯山谷。我从南边的火车站向市区进发，必须穿过这个山谷。深秋包含风霜的树叶此刻已经变成了斑驳的红色和黄色。远远望去，山谷中五彩斑斓的森林就像一片点缀城市天际线的彩玉。在山谷的底部，我还可以清楚地看到一个滑板公园。游客亦可以下到谷底，沿着山谷徒步旅行。

There are two bridges connecting to the center of the city. I was standing on one of the bridge and staring at the another bridge called Adolphe Bridge which was the city landmark. This bridge was inaugurated in 1903 and named after Grand Duke Adolphe, who reigned over Luxembourg from 1890 until 1905. Under the bridge, the wild profusion of vegetation is shrouded by the autumn mists.

共有两座桥连接到市中心。我站在其中一座桥上凝视着另一座名为阿道夫桥的桥，它也是这座城市的地标。这座桥于 1903 年落成，以 1890 年到 1905 年期间在卢森堡统治的阿道夫大公命名。桥下茂密的植被被秋天的薄雾笼罩。

Across the bridge Passerelle, I walked along the main avenue towards the historic center Haute Ville which means high city. This area is located at the top of a rock called ‘Bock’. In 963, Count Siegfried named the rocky promontory as the Bock, and established his residence there. Later, a small fort called Lucilinburhuc stood on this spot, and the word “Luxembourg” evolved from this name. Travelers will see this high rising gothic building with a tower first when they cross the bridge Passerelle. The Notre-Dame Cathedral was built in 1613 and the only cathedral in Luxembourg.

穿过 Passerelle 桥，我沿着主干道走向老城区 Haute Ville，它的意思是高城。这片区域位于名为“博克”的岩石顶部。963 年，齐格弗里德伯爵将这片突出的岩石角命名为博克，并在那里建立了他的住所。后来一个名叫Lucilinburhuc的小堡垒矗立在这片土地上，“卢森堡”一词就是从这个名字演变而来的。穿过Passerelle 桥游客将首先看到这座高耸的哥特式建筑。这座卢森堡圣母院建于 1613 年，是这里唯一的天主教大教堂。

Opposite to the cathedral, it’s the famous square of constitution where all the visitors will come and take a photo. It has the beautiful monument “Gëlle Fra”, which includes a golden statue at the top and two bronze statues in below. It was built in 1923 to honor the Luxembourgish volunteer soldiers who fought alongside the French army during the war. Here we could find the Luxemburg national flag waving in the cold wind.

大教堂对面是著名的宪法广场，所有来卢森堡的游客都会来这里拍照留念。它有一座美丽的纪念碑“Gëlle Fra”，顶部是一座金色雕像，下方有两座青铜雕像。它建于 1923 年，纪念在一战期间与法国军队并肩作战的卢森堡志愿兵。这里卢森堡的三色国旗在寒风中飘扬。

I was standing at the edge of the square and enjoyed one of the most imposing views of the city. At the background, the bronze top tower building was the The State Bank and Savings Fund of Luxemburg. Also we could see the familiar Adolphe bridge together with the deep Pétrusse River Valley covered by the giant trees. This is the symbolic scene that always appears at the postcard of Luxemburg.

我站在广场的栏杆边欣赏着这座城市最壮丽的景色。照片背景中的青铜顶塔楼是卢森堡的国家储蓄基金银行，这里还可以看到熟悉的阿道夫桥以及被参天大树覆盖的深邃的佩特鲁斯河谷。这也是卢森堡明信片上经常出现的标志性场景。

In the quarter of High city, there are many historical administrative buildings. Place Guillaume II is the major city square where the town hall of Luxemburg is located at. This neoclassical style building flanked by two leonine sculptures is the city hall. Lion represents the city of Luxembourg, which is reflected on its coat of arms. The history of this square could be traced back to the French Revolutionary Wars in 1797. At that time the original monastery at this place is changed to this square after the visit of Napoleon. Luxemburg’s major language is French and German. Most of its place is named in French.

在高城区，有许多历史悠久的行政建筑。纪尧姆二世广场是卢森堡市政厅所在的最重要的城市广场。这座新古典主义风格的建筑两侧装饰着两座狮子雕塑，它就是卢森堡市政厅。狮子代表卢森堡市，在卢森堡的国徽上也有体现。这个广场的历史可以追溯到1797年的法国大革命战争时期。拿破仑到访后这里原来的修道院被改为这个广场。卢森堡的主要语言是法语和德语，它的大部分地方都是用法语命名的。

In the center of the square, it is the equestrian statue of Grand Duke William II who was the King of the Netherlands and the Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1840 to 1849. The pedestal of the monument shows the coat of arms of the House of Orange-Nassau and of Luxembourg and the ones of the 12 cantons of Luxembourg.

广场中央是 1840 年至 1849 年期间荷兰国王和卢森堡大公威廉二世的骑马雕像。纪念碑的基座上展示着拿骚-奥兰治家族的家徽以及卢森堡12 个州的纹章。

In medieval time, Luxembourg was part of the medieval Kingdom of Germany, and later the Holy Roman Empire. It became a grand duchy in 1815 and half-independent state under the Netherlands. It gained full independence in 1867. The constitution of 1841 created the Assembly of Estates which formed the parliament of Luxemburg nowadays. Most of the administrative and legislative buildings of Luxemburg are located in this area not far from the Place Guillaume II. This building is the official residence of the Grand Duke of Luxembourg where he performs most of his duties as head of state of the Grand Duchy. It was first the city hall of Luxembourg from 1572 to 1795. After Luxemburg gained independence, it became the Grand Ducal palace. Now it is used to accommodate the foreign heads of state. There are two guards at the entrance.

在中世纪，卢森堡是德意志王国的一部分，后来就成为神圣罗马帝国的一部分。1815年它成为大公国，在荷兰统治下成为半独立国家。卢森堡最终在 1867 年获得完全独立。1841 年的宪法创建了现在组成卢森堡议会的三级会议。卢森堡的大部分行政立法大楼都位于这里，距纪尧姆二世广场不远。这座建筑是卢森堡大公的官邸，卢森堡大公作为大公国的国家元首在这里办公。1572年至1795年期间，它最初是卢森堡的市政厅，卢森堡获得独立后成为大公宫殿。它现在用来接待外国元首。门口有两个守卫把守。

In 19th century, the Chamber of Deputies of Luxemburg had no regular meeting place, so such a building was built in 1860 next to the Grand Ducal palace for the parliament meeting. The angels at the façade symbolize the legislative power, that is administrated by the Grand Duke in conjunction with the Chamber. The Chamber of Deputies is unicameral and contains 60 seats. Deputies are elected to serve five-year terms.

19世纪，卢森堡众议院没有固定的会议场所，所以1860年在大公宫旁边建造了图中这个建筑，以供议会会议使用。建筑立面的天使象征着由大公与议事厅共同管理的立法权。卢森堡众议院是一院制的，有60个席位。代表任期五年。

At the back of the Square Guillaume II, I could see the statue of Grand Duchess Charlotte which was designed by the French sculptor Jean Cardot. On 29th April 1990, the 2.75-metre high bronze statue was officially inaugurated in the presence of the Grand Ducal family to honor Grand Duchess Charlotte who ruled Luxemburg from 1919 to 1964 and was very popular with the Luxembourgers. She was from the House of Nassau-Weilburg which still ruled Luxembourg today which is a branch of the Nassau family from Netherlands.

在纪尧姆二世广场的后面，我可以看到由法国雕塑家让·卡多设计的夏洛特大公雕像。1990 年 4 月 29 日，这座 2.75 米高的铜像在大公家族的见证下正式落成，以纪念从 1919 年到 1964 年期间统治卢森堡并深受卢森堡人欢迎的夏洛特大公。她来自于今天仍然统治着卢森堡的拿骚-威尔堡家族，这个家族是荷兰的拿骚家族的分支。

The most beautiful part of this city must be this road called the scenic road which connects to the Grund quarter under the ‘Bock promontory’. It is praised as the most beautiful balcony of Europe by the Luxembourg writer Batty Weber. It runs along the Alzette valley on the ramparts built by the Spaniards and the French in the 17th century. The visitors could lean over the remnants of the historical walls to have a superb panoramic view of the valley of the Alzette and the houses of city district of Grund.

这座城市最美丽的地方一定是这条连接“博克角”下的格伦德区的风景走廊。它被卢森堡作家巴蒂·韦伯誉为欧洲最美的阳台。它位于 17 世纪西班牙人和法国人建造的城墙上沿着阿尔泽特山谷延伸。游客可以俯身在当年的残垣断壁上，欣赏阿尔泽特山谷和格伦德区的壮丽全景。

The Casemates Bock is a network of underground fortifications, built in the 18th century. The fortifications are recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. The Bock itself is the rock on which the first castle stood, founded in 963. Luxemburg used to a military fortification which is important for both French and German. The fortress was of great strategic importance for the control of the left bank of the Rhine and the border area between France and Germany. The fortification is later expanded by Vauban, the famous French military engineer. The subterranean defensive passages were placed on different levels and reached down as far as 40 meters. These impressive defensive works conferred Luxembourg the name of “Gibraltar of the North”.

博客要塞（Casemates Bock）是一个地下防御工事网络，建于 18 世纪。这些防御工事于 1994 年被联合国教科文组织列为世界遗产。博克本身就是第一座始建于 963 年城堡所在的岩石。卢森堡历史上是一座对法国和德国都很重要的军事要塞。它对于控制莱茵河左岸和法德边境地区具有重要的战略意义。这里的防御工事后来由著名的法国军事工程师沃邦扩建。地下防御通道分布在不同的层次，最深可达40米。这些令人望而生畏的防御工程令卢森堡获得“北方直布罗陀”的称号。

This is the black-and-white photo taken in 1867. The Fortress of Luxembourg at that time looks exactly the same with what I have seen now. It’s a miracle that it could be kept well for so long time.

这是1867年拍摄的黑白照片。当时的卢森堡要塞和我现在看到的一模一样。昔日的山河还能完整保存这么久，真是个奇迹。

After the dismantling of the fortress in 1867, 17 kilometers of the casemates were spared, left in good condition. The Bock casemates have been open to the public for visit from 1933. When I walked around the Grund, I always stopped a while and looked at these remnants above me closely. The embrasures (shooting holes) of canons are still kept on the walls. They represented the long history of this city as a strong fortification.

1867年后这些堡垒均被拆除，不过有17公里的炮台完好无损保留至今。博克要塞从1933 年开始向公众开放参观。当我在格伦德区周围散步时，我总是会停下来仔细观察我上方的这些遗迹。一些大炮的射击孔仍然保留在墙上。它们代表着这座城市曾经作为坚固的防御工事的悠久历史。

The Grund is one of Luxembourg City’s oldest neighborhoods. As far back as the 14th century, there is a hospice located in the building that now houses the National Museum of Natural History. All the houses in this area have rooftops made of caesious brick and tiles. They will bring our memories back to the medieval times.

格伦德区（The Grund）是卢森堡市最古老的街区。早在 14 世纪，这里就有一家福利院，如今这座建筑是国家自然历史博物馆的所在地。这个地区的所有房屋都是青砖黛瓦制成的屋顶。它们瞬间将我的记忆带回到中世纪。

The Grund is a lower part of the city and there are many small routes that connect the Haute Ville with the Grund. The Alzette is a small river winding through the Grund. It is a pleasure to walk along the river and deplore the historical buildings in the quarter. The long bridge at the back ground is a two-track railway viaduct towards France.

格伦德区是卢森堡市的低地区，有许多小路连接它和高城区。阿尔泽特（Alzette）是一条蜿蜒穿过格伦德区的小河。沿着河边走走欣赏区内的历史建筑十分开心。背后的长桥是通向法国的两轨铁路高架桥。

Everyone will notice this building firstly when they glimpse through the Grund from faraway. After the original Benedictine abbey was destroyed in 1543, the Neumünster Abbey was built in the Grund. For centuries, its buildings were used as a prison, but today they are the site of the Neumünster cultural and community center.

每个人从远处扫视格伦德区时都会首先注意到这座建筑。这里曾经的原本笃会修道院于 1543 年被摧毁后，这座新明斯特修道院就此建立。几个世纪以来它被用作监狱，但如今它们变为文化和社区中心。

The Grund district is known for its quietness and its atmosphere of a small preserved village. It has a population of less than one thousand. It is quite suitable for travel. I preferred the old brick bridges over the river and some cobbled streets dated back to the 10th century. A gust of light wind whiffled through the trees and blew the yellow leaves into the babbling river. The houses perched at the highland were mirrored in the stillness of water. All the things are so silent except the whispers of winds. Here I could escape the hustle and bustle of the city center totally.

格伦德区以其宁静和保存完好的小村庄而闻名。它的人口不到一千。非常适合旅行。河上的旧砖桥和一些追溯到10 世纪的鹅卵石街道令人感到倾心。阵阵微风拂过，片片黄叶落入潺潺的河水。高地的房屋倒映在寂静的水面上。这里的一切都是那么的寂静，唯有耳畔边风的细语，完全远离城市的喧嚣是多么的美好。

I was standing on one bridge and glanced at the surroundings. Their houses have the irregular shapes rooftops and equipped with chimneys but I am not sure whether these chimneys could be used or not today. The whole town was tranquil and there were only a few pedestrians passing by. Some Luxemburg local people were spending a leisure afternoon in the outdoors cafés at the riverside despite of the coolness of deep autumn.

我站在一座小桥上，环顾四周。他们的房屋有不规则形状的屋顶，并配有烟囱，不过不确定这些烟囱如今还是否使用。整个小镇如此安静，路过的行人寥寥无几。唯有若干当地人不顾深秋的凉意，在河边的露天咖啡馆度过了一个休闲的下午。

The buildings along the river were similar to the houses of German style. For me I liked this kind of old town with small rivers. It was nice to see some ducks frolicking in the stream. I preferred to spend more time in the Grund than the Haut ville. It is more like a scene in a bucolic poetry.

沿河的建筑类似于德国风格的小屋。对我而言我就特别中意这种在水一方的老城，同时也很开心看到一些鸭子在溪流中戏水。旅行途中我自然愿花更多的时间在格伦德区徜徉。这里更像是田园诗中赞颂的场景。

In the old town, I could always find many remnants of the Luxembourg fortress. This is the second gate of Trier constructed in 1590 in order to defend the fortress. It was equipped with a moat and a drawbridge that connected with the upper city. Today the drawbridge no longer exists and in its place it is just a footbridge over the Rue de Treves.

在老城区，我总能发现零零总总的卢森堡堡垒的遗迹。这是特里尔的第二座城门，建于 1590 年能够更好地保卫堡垒。它设有护城河和吊桥与高城区相连。如今吊桥已不复存在，取而代之的是特里尔街上的一座人行天桥。

The Three Towers are the remains of the old fortress of Luxembourg City as well. The square central tower dates from probably around 1200 while two circular flanking towers were added in the 14th century. They are one of the entrances to the old Town. From here I was leaving the old town and on my way back to the train station.

这个三塔建筑也是卢森堡城旧堡垒的遗迹。中间的方形中央塔的历史可能大约在1200 年左右，而在 14 世纪又增加了两座圆形侧塔。它们是老城区的入口之一。从这里我离开老城，踏上了回火车站的路上。

Before I left this city, I passed by this building accidently. Due to its historical façade, I thought it might be a museum or a school. However, it is actually a retirement sanatorium built in 1892. In 1853, Jean-Pierre Pescatore donated half a million francs to Luxembourg City to build it so this building was named by this philanthropist. It was really a great achievement, even today many old people still benefited from it.

在离开这座城市之前，我偶然路过这座建筑。由于它的古老外观，我一度认为它可能是一座博物馆或学校。然而它实际上是一座建于1892 年的退休疗养院。1853 年，让-皮埃尔·佩斯卡托雷向卢森堡市捐赠了 50 万法郎来建造它，因此这座建筑也被这位慈善家命名。这真是一项壮举，直到今天仍有许多老人从中受益。

It has been two years since I visited this city. I still conserved some memories of it, the colorful autumn leaves in the long valley, the undulations of ridges and hills, and the waving flags in the Constitution square. Luxemburg is indeed a small country but it still has many things to be explored as long as you have interests of old buildings and history. It’s a bit cold, cloudy, and misty in the autumn but the beautiful florid colors of fall foliage will bring unique charm to this city.

我游历卢森堡市已经过去两年了，至今还保留着一些残存的记忆比如幽长峡谷的红叶，起伏的山峦，宪法广场飘扬的旗帜。。。卢森堡确实是一个小国，但只要你对老建筑和历史感兴趣，它仍然有很多值得探索的地方。它的秋天冷冷清清，并且云雾缭绕，不过秋叶的绚丽色彩也为这座城市带来了独特的魅力。

Amsterdam, the city built on water

July 30, 2022August 4, 2022Posted in Netherlands, TravelTagged Amsterdam, Travel, World heritage site

水上都市阿姆斯特丹

Amsterdam is the capital of Netherlands and it was my last stop in the trip of Netherlands in September 2020. The name of the city originates from The Dam on the River Amstel since the city developed from a small village on the river Amstel. The city owns numerous canals which form a UNESCO World Heritage site. There are so many water cities in the world that are compared with Venice but in my opinion, Amsterdam is the one which is most similar to Venice.

阿姆斯特丹是荷兰的首都，这是我 2020 年 9 月荷兰之行的最后一站。这座城市的名字来源于阿姆斯特尔河上的大坝，因为历史上这座城市就是是从阿姆斯特尔河上的一个小村庄发展而来的。它拥有众多运河，这些运河也被联合国教科文组织列为世界文化遗产。全球上有如此多的水城号称威尼斯，但在我看来阿姆斯特丹是与威尼斯最为相似的一个。

Firstly, I took train from Rotterdam to Amsterdam central station. This stylish train station is surrounded by canals and behind the station there is a big lake. It is an historical building, and was designed by Dutch architect Pierre Cuypers and opened in 1889. It is a Gothic and Renaissance Revival station building with two turrets and many ornamental details like stone reliefs. When I stepped out of the gate of the train station, I was shocked as I felt that I was in a harbor.

伊始，我从鹿特丹坐火车直达阿姆斯特丹中央车站。这个风格迥异的火车站被运河环绕，车站后面是一个大湖。这是一座历史悠久的建筑，由荷兰建筑师皮埃尔·库珀斯设计，于 1889 年开启使用。它是一座哥特式和文艺复兴式结合的建筑，有两座尖塔和如石头浮雕等许多装饰细节。当我走出车站大门时，着实感到震惊，此刻仿佛自己置身在一个港口中。

Opposite to the train station, there is a neo-Baroque and neo-Renaissance Roman Catholic church. This will be the first grand building to be noticed by the tourists when you just got off train. Above its rose window, there is sculpture of the patron saint of the city of Amsterdam placed in a niche. The church is located in the old city center of Amsterdam. Most of the old buildings and beautiful canals are distributed around this area.

火车站对面是一座新巴洛克和新文艺复兴风格的罗马天主教堂。这将是刚下火车时游客注意到的第一座高大建筑。在它的玫瑰窗上方，有一个放置在壁龛中的阿姆斯特丹市守护神的雕塑。这座教堂就位于阿姆斯特丹老城区。大多数古老的建筑和美丽的运河都分布于这个地区周围。

The top of church has a iconic central dome, glowing with reflected gold under the sunset. This is the view of the church from the Oudezijds Voorburgwal, which is a famous street and canal. The canal is also lined with monumental stepped gable houses from the Dutch Golden Age. Here assembles the most traditional street view of Amsterdam. The famous Red Light District is located in the area as well. Bicycle is one of the most important transportation tools in Netherlands. Here along the streets or on the bridges, I could always find so many bicycles. For tourists it’s easy to rent a bicycle and visit the whole city as you want.

教堂上方有一个标志性的中央圆顶，在夕阳下反射出金色的光辉。这是从著名的街区 Oudezijds Voorburgwal 看到的教堂景观。运河两旁矗立着荷兰黄金时代的阶梯式山墙房屋。这里汇集了阿姆斯特丹最传统的街景。闻名遐迩的红灯区也位于该地区。自行车是荷兰最重要的交通工具之一。在街上或桥上，或多或少都能看到一些自行车。对游客来说，租一辆自行车随心所欲地游览整个城市确实易如反掌。

The urban plan of Amsterdam is different with other cities in the world. It consists of three main canals (Herengracht, Prinsengracht and Keizersgracht), which were digged in the 17th century. The interlocked canals form several concentric belts around the city intersected with small waterways and streets so travelers need to cross numerous bridges when they walked in the city center. These canals were listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010. It is recommended to take a boat tour to see the houses erected in the 17th and 18th centuries at the both sides of canal banks and observes the wild ducks’ frolic in water.

阿姆斯特丹的城市规划与世界其他城市截然不同。它由三条主要运河（Herengracht、Prinsengracht 和 Keizersgracht）组成，在 17 世纪挖掘而成。交错的运河在城市周围形成了几条辐射带，与一众小水道和街道相交，旅行者在阿姆斯特丹老城区行走时需要穿过许多桥梁。这些运河在2010年被联合国教科文组织列为世界遗产。特别建议游客乘船游览，参观运河两岸17和18世纪的房屋以及野鸭在水中嬉戏。

In Amsterdam, I have crossed so many bridges with different styles under my feet. Some bridges are even removable. The bridges and houses in this city are more modern than the ones in Venice. Additionally, I could still find many cars at the roadside of Amsterdam. In Venice, cars are totally not allowed to enter the city. When I immersed myself in the city, I can not stop to compare it with Venice. They have so many similarities.

在阿姆斯特丹，在我脚下穿过了那么多风格各异的桥梁。有些桥梁甚至是可移动的。这座城市的桥梁和房屋都要比威尼斯现代很多。此外我仍然可以在阿姆斯特丹的街边小巷发现很多汽车。然而在威尼斯机动车辆是完全不允许进城的。我沉浸在其中，不由自主地将它与威尼斯相提并论。因为它们有太多相似之处。

It is a pleasurable experience to walk along the canals after dinner. At night, this area is quite crowded with tourists. There are a lot of night clubs, coffee shops, and restaurants for people to spend a meaningful night life. The night of September is a bit colder. When the streetlights are all lighted, it bring a sense of warmness to me. I took a note of the lamp posts of this city. Its appearance is simple not like the richly decorated baroque style in Paris.

晚餐后惬意沿着运河漫步。夜幕来临，这个地区充斥着熙熙攘攘的游客。并有很多夜总会、咖啡店和餐厅，方便人们度过别有意义的夜生活。九月的夜晚有一丝冷意。当街上华灯初照，给我带来一阵温暖。我特别留意了这座城市的灯柱。它的外观简单朴素，不像巴黎那种装饰华丽的巴洛克式风格。

Amsterdam is a city intertwined with modernity and history. Some historical buildings hide in the unimposing corners of the streets. The Oude Kerk in this picture which in English means Old Church is Amsterdam’s oldest building. The building was founded around 1213 and after the Reformation in 1578, it became a Calvinist church, which it remains today. The church is located in the Red Light district In the history it became home to the registry of marriages and stored the city archives and the most important documents.

阿姆斯特丹是一座现代与历史交织的城市。一些古老建筑隐藏在不起眼的街角中。这张照片中的 Oude Kerk 在英文中的意思是老教堂，是阿姆斯特丹最古老的建筑。该建筑始建于 1213 年左右，在 1578 年宗教改革之后到今日，它成为了一座加尔文主义教堂。该教堂位于红灯区，历史上曾是市政婚姻登记处，并存放着城市档案和最重要的文件。

The church has a high brick tower with a crown like tower top. It well preserved the history of the city. The church contains 2,500 graves under which are buried 10,000 Amsterdam citizens. When I walked around this area, there is one interesting thing. The prostitute windows displaying the coquet are directly opposite to the solemn and divine church and there is a Bronze statue in front of the Oude Kerk with inscription saying “Respect sex workers all over the world.” So in Amsterdam, ‘sex’ is a culture of the city as well and the travelers should try to get used to it. Amsterdam is called the capital of sex as well.

教堂有一座高高的砖塔，塔顶有一座皇冠。它很好地诠释了这座城市的历史。教堂内共有 2,500 座坟墓，埋葬着 10,000 名阿姆斯特丹市民。当我在这片地方走来走去时，发现了有一件有趣的事情。展现妓女风情的橱窗就在庄严神圣的教堂对面，老教堂前有一尊铜像，上面撰写着“尊重全世界的性工作者”。在阿姆斯特丹，“性”也是城市的一种文化，旅行者应该尝试习惯它。阿姆斯特丹也被称为性都。

Another historical tower that left impression on me was the Munttoren tower. It stands on the busy Muntplein square, where the Amstel river and the Singel canal meet. Due to its perfect position, when I travelled in Amsterdam, I had passed by this tower and seen it for many times. Originally, It was part of Amsterdam’s medieval city wall built in 1480. Its name means Mint tower because the guard house on side of it was used to mint coins in the 17th Century. It has a symbolic clockwork with four clock faces and a carillon of bells made in 1668. The current carillon consists of 38 bells which chime every quarter of an hour. Every Saturdays, between 2 and 3 p.m., the Amsterdam city carillon player will give a live concert on the bells.

另一座给我留下深刻印象的历史塔楼就是图中这座蒙托伦塔。它位于繁忙的 Muntplein 广场上，Amstel 河和 Singel 运河在这里交汇。由于它的绝佳地理位置，当我在阿姆斯特丹旅行时，我多次经过这座塔并仔细观察过它。最初它是阿姆斯特丹建于 1480 年的中世纪城墙的一部分。因为它旁边的哨楼在 17 世纪曾用于铸币它的名字意为铸币塔。它有一个带有四个钟面的标志性钟表装置和一个 1668 年制造的钟乐器。目前使用的钟乐器由 38 个钟组成，每个钟每15分钟鸣响一次。每周六下午 2 点到 3 点之间，阿姆斯特丹市钟琴演奏家将进行现场演奏。

In the evening, when darkness had fallen, the lights of every house were lightened up and silence enwrapped the streets. At this moment, the stillness of canals was temporarily interrupted by the shuttling boats. I even noticed that some tourists were still in sprits to visit the city by boats at night. I believe definitely this would be a romantic experience for them.

姗姗来迟的夜幕中点亮万家灯火，街道上此时一片寂静。运河上短暂的静谧被穿梭的小船突然打断。我无意中注意到一些游客在夜幕中依然兴致勃勃乘船游览这座城市。这样的秉烛夜游绝对是一次浪漫的经历。

Before the darkness reigned the city completely, I still had enough time to sit at the bench at the river bank and caught a glimpse of the landscape by riverside. I enjoyed the free time during the busy journey. Although I was extremely tired, I still preferred to stay longer in the pleasant environment and leave more imprints of this city in my memory. The beautiful scene along the canal really reminded me the night in the Saint Marc square in Venice. It was really superb!

在夜色完全笼罩城市之前，我还有充足的时间闲坐在河岸的长椅上，一瞥岸边的风景。我由衷享受繁忙旅途中的空闲时间。虽然疲惫不堪，但我还是更愿在这片宜人的景色中多呆一会儿，在大脑记忆中留下更多这座城市的印记。运河沿岸的美景让我想起在威尼斯圣马可广场的夜晚。这种感觉实在太棒了！

When night approached finally, I needed to look for something to fill in my stomach. Pancake is a good choice definitely. I would like to mention the Dutch pancake which is a bit different with the American pancake. Dutch pancake is larger and much thinner than the thick and fluffy American pancakes. The traditional pancake is too sweet with toppings like bacon and cheese. For me I think Dutch pancake is better, its taste is modified and added with salmon, chives, onion and even peppers. The taste is more acceptable for Chinese.

深夜彻底降临，我需要找点美食大快朵颐一番。煎饼绝对是个不错的选择。我特别提一下与美国煎饼有点不同的荷兰煎饼。荷兰煎饼比厚而蓬松的美国煎饼更大更薄。传统的美式煎饼配上培根和奶酪等配料实在有点甜了。对我而言荷兰煎饼的口感更好，它的味道经过改良并添加了鲑鱼、细香葱、洋葱甚至辣椒等调料。华人更能接受这种味道。

**Equestrian statue of Queen Wilhelmina**

Amsterdam is the capital of Netherlands so at its street corners, tourists could easily find some symbols representing this country. This statue of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands was sculpted in bronze by Theresia R. van der Pant. Wilhelmina, who is the member of the House of Orange-Nassau, was the Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 until her abdication in 1948. During the invasion of the Netherlands in the second world war, Wilhelmina fled to Britain and took charge of the Dutch government-in-exile. She frequently spoke to the nation over radio and was regarded as a symbol of the resistance. This statue and the national flag of Netherlands represent the tenacious spirit of the country.

阿姆斯特丹是荷兰的首都，所以在它的街角，游客可以很容易地找到一些代表这个国家的标志。这尊荷兰威廉明娜女王的雕像由特蕾西亚·R·范德潘特用青铜雕刻而成。威廉敏娜女王是奥兰治-拿骚家族的成员，从 1890 年开始就一直担任荷兰女王，直到 1948 年退位。在第二次世界大战德国入侵期间，威廉敏娜女王逃往英国并建立荷兰流亡政府。她经常通过无线电向全国发表讲话，同时也被视为抵抗运动的象征。这座雕像和荷兰国旗代表着这个国家顽强的精神。

This is another national monument which is located opposite to the famous Dam square. A national Remembrance of the Dead ceremony is held at the monument every year on 4th May to commemorate Dutch fallen soldiers in the second World War. The cenotaph made of white travertine stone consists of a main pillar with four chained male figures. Two male sculptures at the both sides represent members of the Dutch resistance and a depiction of a woman with a child and doves flying above represents victory, peace, and new life.

这是另一个国家纪念碑，它位于著名的水坝广场对面。每年 5 月 4 日在纪念碑举行全国死难者纪念仪式，以纪念在第二次世界大战中阵亡的荷兰将士。由白色石灰华石制成的纪念碑由一根主柱和四个带铁链的男性人物组成。两侧的两尊男性雕塑代表荷兰的抵抗而上方一个带着孩子和飞翔的白鸽的女性雕塑则代表着胜利、和平和新生活。

Dam square is the well-known and most important locations in Amsterdam. It derives its name from its original function which acts as a dam on the Amstel River built in 1270. This is the place where you could always find scores of pigeons, busy tourists, and freestyle street performers. The building at the background is the royal palace. The original structure was built as a town hall in the seventeenth century. In history the square is at the water side and thousands of ships stopped here every day. It was a market place as well at that period. In 1808, Louis Bonaparte, the Emperor Napoleon’s brother, also King of Holland took the city hall on Dam Square as his Royal Palace. The bronze statue on the façade of the building represents peace.

水坝广场是阿姆斯特丹最著名和最重要的地点。它的名字来源于它最初是建于1270 年的阿姆斯特尔河上的水坝。在这里，总能看到无数鸽子、忙碌的游客和自由的街头表演者。这个照片的背景建筑是皇宫。它最早是在十七世纪建造的市政厅。历史上的水坝广场就在水边，每天都有成千上万的船只停靠在这里。在那个时期，它也是一个交易市场。1808年，拿破仑皇帝的弟弟、荷兰国王路易·波拿巴将水坝广场上的市政厅作为他的皇宫使用。这座建筑正立面上的铜像代表着和平。

After entering the entrance of the royal palace, visitors will see this grand Citizens’ Hall at first. The hall’s marbled floor is formed of world maps and star charts. The statues inspired by Romans and Greek mythology and the chandeliers in the hall are really magnificent. The plaster statue bearing a celestial globe on his shoulders is Atlas, the Titan in the revolt against the gods.

进入皇宫入口后，首先映入眼帘的是这座宏伟的市民大厅。大厅的大理石地板由世界地图和星图组成。罗马和希腊神话诸神的雕像和大厅里的大吊灯尤为壮观。这座肩负天上星球的石膏雕像是神话中反抗众神的泰坦阿特拉斯。

The architect Jacob van Campen designed this building as a miniature universe. The marble reliefs with the four elements and garlands of flora and fauna together make up the terrestrial microcosm. The four elements are earth, water, fire and air. The figure enthroned at the center of this universe is the Maid of Amsterdam which represents the city. Around her are four child-like small statues depicting the four elements. The two sculptures at her flanks represent the symbol of Wisdom, Minerva, and the symbol of strength, Hercules.

建筑师 Jacob van Campen 将这座建筑设计为一个微型宇宙。四种元素的大理石浮雕和动植物花环共同构成了地表世界。这四大元素分别是地、水、风和火。位于这个宇宙中心的人物雕像是代表这座城市的阿姆斯特丹女神。她的周围是四个孩子般的小雕像，代表了四大元素。她两侧的两尊雕塑分别是代表智慧的密涅瓦和象征力量的大力神。

This is the gallery connecting the citizen’s hall and other rooms. The palace is now used mainly for entertaining and official functions, such as state visits, New Year receptions and other official occasions. The royal family did not live or work here. The arched ceiling of the building is really amazing. I think it may symbolize sky and the numerous delicately decorated reliefs represents the gods. The blue globe above the chandelier looks like earth.

这是连接市民大厅和其他房间的走廊。这座宫殿目前主要用于娱乐和例如国事访问、新年招待会和其他官方场合等公务活动。王室并没有在这里生活或工作。这座建筑的拱形天花板真是美轮美奂。在我的想象中它可能象征着天空，许多装饰精美的浮雕代表着众神而吊灯上方的蓝色球体则看起来像地球。

All of the rooms in the palace had a specific function. This is one of the most famous rooms in the palace. It is called the Burgomasters’ Cabinet or Former Councilors Chamber. In this room, Amsterdam’s four ruling mayors met with a group of previous mayors who acted as a sort of advisory board. Two enormous paintings above the two fireplaces constantly remind them that a good mayor must be honest, incorruptible and steadfast. The large painting called ‘An elephant behind the curtains’ hangs above.

This painting created by Ferdinand Bol depicts this story. The Consul Caius Fabritius Luscinus had to negotiate the release of prisoners-of-war with King Pyrrhus in Greece. When Pyrrhus who wears a turban and crown couldn’t buy Fabritius off with gold and silver, he set a dangerous elephant onto him. Everyone in the painting was afraid, except Fabritius. He wears the white plumed helmet and fearlessly holds his ground.

宫殿中的所有房间都有特定的功能。这是宫殿中最著名的房间之一。它被称为市长内阁或前议员会议厅。在这个房间里，阿姆斯特丹的四位执政市长与担任顾问委员会成员的前任市长进行会晤。壁炉上方的两幅巨幅画一直在不断提醒他们，作为一个好市长必须要秉承诚实、廉洁、坚定的信念。这幅油画名为“幕后的大象”。

费迪南德·波尔创作的这幅画描绘了这样一个故事。法布里蒂乌斯与希腊国王皮洛士就释放战俘进行谈判。当画中戴着头巾和王冠的皮洛士无法用金银收买法布里蒂乌斯时，他将一头危险的大象置于后者的身边。此刻每个人都显得惊惧。只有戴着白色羽毛头盔的法布里蒂乌斯无所畏惧地坚持自己的立场。

In 1806, Napoleon Bonaparte made his brother Louis the first King of Holland. This room belongs to King Louis’ bedroom. He ordered this four-poster mahogany bed decorated with gilded bronze from the Jacob-Desmalter firm in Paris. It is shaped like a boat and is therefore called ‘boat bed’. The interior decoration of this room is a bit similar to the style of Versailles Palace. The gorgeous damasks, gilded clocks, crystal chandeliers mark the luxury of royal house.

1806年，拿破仑·波拿巴将他的好兄弟路易推为荷兰的第一位国王。这个房间就属于路易国王的卧室。他从巴黎的 Jacob-Desmalter 公司订购了这张用镀金青铜装饰的四柱桃花心木床。它的形状像一艘船，故此被称为“船床”。这个房间的内部装修有点像凡尔赛宫的风格。华丽的锦缎、镀金时钟、水晶吊灯标志着皇室的奢华。

On the ground floor of the Palace, it is the tribunal space which later served as the king’s chapel. When the building was still a town hall, this was where the death sentence was pronounced. The Tribunal was decorated elaborately with the marble works of sculptor elder Artus Quellinus who was the most important representative of the Baroque in sculpture in the Southern Netherlands. On the wall, there are four huge sculptures of offenders waiting to be hanged.

在宫殿的底层，是曾经的法庭，后来成为国王的礼拜堂。当这座建筑还是阿姆斯特丹市政厅时，这里是宣判死刑的地方。著名雕刻家阿尔图斯·奎里努斯（Artus Quellinus）用大理石雕刻精心装饰着这里，奎里努斯是南荷兰最重要的巴洛克代表雕塑家。墙壁上一共有四座巨型等待被绞死的罪犯雕塑。

On Dam Square, there is a 15th-century church called New Church located next to the Royal Palace. There is a sun dial on the façade. Now, it is no longer used for church services but is used as an exhibition space. The church is also used for Dutch royal investiture ceremonies and royal weddings. As usual, I liked to sit at the benches in the square and look around the old buildings like the palace and the church. It is the heart of Amsterdam and represents the long history of this old city. Besides there were always so many doves flying over the square and left me deep impressions.

水坝广场上，皇宫旁边有一座 15 世纪的教堂。它的正面有一个日晷，被称为新教堂。现在，它已不再用于教堂礼拜，而是用作展览会场。这座教堂还用于荷兰皇室授职仪式和皇室婚礼。像以往一样，我喜欢坐在广场的长椅上，环顾四周的宫殿和教堂等古老建筑。这里是阿姆斯特丹的中心，也代表着这座老城的厚重历史。另外广场上总是那么多的鸽子盘旋翱翔，也给我留下了深刻的印象。

In the city center of Amsterdam, you can easily find such a big shopping mall as well to satisfy your desire of shopping. The Magna Plaza is a modern shopping mall but with a historical appearance. It was built in 1895–1899 in Neo-Gothic and Neo-Renaissance style. The stylish two towers reminded me of a castle or a cathedral however this building was the Amsterdam Post Office in the history. Due to the iconic pear shaped crowns on top of the towers the building is named as ‘pear burg’. Its façade is decorated with polychromatic brick and dimension stone.

在阿姆斯特丹市中心，你也可以轻松找到这样的大型购物中心满足你的消费欲。麦格纳广场是一个非常现代化的购物中心，不过却具有一幅历史悠久的外观。它建于 1895-1899 年，采用的是新哥特式和新文艺复兴风格。风格独特的两座塔楼则让我不禁想起了某座城堡或大教堂，但这座建筑却是历史上的阿姆斯特丹邮局。由于塔顶标志性的梨形冠冕，这座建筑也被命名为“梨堡”。它的外立面用彩砖和规格石料装饰而成。

Amsterdam is a great place to explore the Dutch art and culture of the Golden Age. You can find many museums in this city. Among them the most representative is the Rijksmuseum which is the national museum of the Netherlands. The museum was founded in The Hague in 1798 and moved to the current building which was first opened in 1885. When I visited Amsterdam, there was a temporary exhibition of the work of Caravaggio. This museum collects many masterpieces created by the greatest Dutch painters like Rembrandt and Vermeer.

阿姆斯特丹也是探索黄金时代荷兰艺术和文化的最好地方。游客可以在这个城市游览许多博物馆。其中最具代表性的当属荷兰国立博物馆Rijksmuseum。该博物馆于 1798 年在海牙成立，后来搬迁到现在的建筑，并于 1885 年首次开放。当我游览阿姆斯特丹时，这里有一个卡拉瓦乔作品的临时展览。这个博物馆收藏了伦勃朗和维米尔等荷兰最伟大的画家创作的诸多杰作。

This museum has a beautiful garden with blooming flowers and small fountains. Even you don’t want to visit the museum, you could still take a short break here. The Dutch architect Pierre Cuypers who also designed Amsterdam’s Central Station designed this garden. The garden consists of four parts. Each part has different style. This garden in this photo is in French-Classicist style.

这个博物馆还包括了一个美丽的花园，里面有盛开的鲜花和小喷泉。即使没有参观博物馆的兴趣，不妨在这里稍作休息。同时设计了阿姆斯特丹中央车站的荷兰建筑师 Pierre Cuypers 设计了这个花园。它由四个部分组成，每个部分都有不同的风格。这张照片中的这个花园是法国古典主义风格的。

The Gallery of Honor is an extended corridor displaying the masterpieces by the great artists of the seventeenth century. The cast iron beams are inscribed with the names of the famous painters of the age. Semi-circular arched wall sections display the coats of arms of the eleven provinces of the Netherlands and their respective capital cities. The section of the gallery displayed the most famous painting created by Rembrandt – The night watch. This painting is extremely large, up to 363 by 437 centimeters. It is famous for its colossal size, the dramatic use of light and shadow and the perception of motion in what would have traditionally been a static military group portrait.

著名的荣誉画廊是一条延伸的长走廊，它展示了十七世纪伟大艺术家的杰作。铸铁横梁上刻有当时著名画家的名字。半圆形拱形墙部分展示了荷兰十一个省及其各自首府的徽章。这部分的画廊展示了伦勃朗创作的最著名的画作—夜巡。这幅画非常大，足足有 363 厘米 x 437 厘米。它以其巨大的尺寸、对光影的巧妙使用以及对本是静态团体人物的动态描绘而闻名。

Another master piece in this museum is this oil-on-canvas painting called ‘The milk maid’ which was created by the famous Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer. It is regarded as “one of the museum’s finest attractions”. The painting shows a milk maid pouring milk into a earthenware container on a table. Vermeer employs light well to depict this woman with downcast eyes and pursed lips. Its artistic effect is similar to the ‘Mona Lisa’. People can not help to think what this woman is thinking when she prepares the food.

这个博物馆的另一件杰作是这幅名为“牛奶女工”的油画，它由著名的荷兰艺术家约翰内斯·维米尔创作。它被认为是“博物馆最好的作品之一”。这幅画描绘了一位牛奶女工将牛奶倒入桌子上的陶制容器中。维米尔（Vermeer）很好地运用了光线来描绘这位眼睛低垂、嘴唇撅起的女人。它的艺术效果类似于“蒙娜丽莎”。让人们不禁联想这个女人在准备食物时内心在思考什么。

Behind the Rijksmuseum, there is a large piece of meadow. The museum square is used for mass events such as festivals, celebrations, and demonstrations. Three major museums including the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, and Stedelijk Museum are located near this square. It is recommended to come here and visit the two most influential museums together.

在国立博物馆后面，有一大片草地。这个博物馆广场用于举办节日、庆典、游行等群众性活动。国家博物馆、梵高博物馆和市立博物馆等三大博物馆都位于这个广场附近。建议游客来这里，一起参观阿姆斯特丹最有影响力的几个博物馆。

For me Van Gogh is one of my favorite artist and the best artist and Van Gogh museum is a must-see during my trip in Amsterdam. I have visited Arles before where Van Gogh created most of his work in his life. These works will only be seen in this museum. The building of the museum was a very modern one designed by Gerrit Rietveld and Kisho Kurokawa.

在我心目中梵高是我最喜欢的艺术家也是最好的艺术家，梵高博物馆也是我在阿姆斯特丹旅行期间必去的地方。之前我曾游览过阿尔勒，梵高一生中大部分作品都是在这里创作的，然而这些作品只能在这个博物馆亲眼目睹。整个博物馆是由 Gerrit Rietveld 和 Kisho Kurokawa 设计的非常现代的建筑。

The museum was opened in 1973 and has the largest collection of Van Gogh’s paintings and drawings in the world. At the first floor the sculpture of Van Gogh could be seen. Most of his self portrait was collected here. I remembered in one British science-fiction television program ‘Doctor Who’, Van Goh was invited to visit his art gallery in Museum Orsay. When he saw his paintings and heard the comments of himself from one art master ：’ Van Gogh is the finest painter of all time. His command of color is the most magnificent. He transformed his pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty.’, he was so excited that he could not control his tears.

该博物馆于 1973 年开放，收藏了世界上最多的梵高绘画和素描收藏。在一楼可以看到梵高的雕塑。他的大部分自画像都是在一楼收集的。我依然记得在一档英国科幻电视节目《神秘博士》中，梵高受邀参观他在奥赛博物馆的艺术画廊。当他看到他的画作并听到现代大师对自己的评论 “梵高是有史以来最优秀的画家，他对色彩的驾驭是最为出色的，他把自己曾受的折磨和痛苦转变成美好的艺术”，他激动地潸然泪下。

The whole life of Van Gogh was a tragedy. Although he created so many great works, no one recognized his talent during his lifetime. I believe if Van Gogh could revive and visit his museum in Amsterdam, he would be extremely excited and be proud of himself. The museum of Van Gogh indeed proved his value. This painting is called ‘The Langlois bridge’ created in Arles. The sky was grey when Van Gogh painted this bridge in Provence. This painting had left me deep impression because when I visited Arles, I passed by it as well. The bridge is famous for his painting and is well conserved until today.

梵高的一生是一场悲剧。尽管他创作了这么多伟大的作品，但在他的一生中并没有人认可他的才华。我相信，如果梵高能够复活并参观阿姆斯特丹的属于他自己的博物馆，他一定会无比兴奋并为自己感到自豪。这个梵高博物馆确实证明了他的价值。这幅画名为“朗格卢瓦桥”，创作于阿尔勒。当时梵高在普罗旺斯灰暗的天空下创作了这幅画。这幅画给我留下了深刻的印象，当我游历阿尔勒时，我也曾经过了它。这座桥以他的绘画而闻名，至今保存完好。

One of his most famous paintings must be the ‘Sunflowers’. He created this series of paintings in Arles as well. There ware several versions of ‘Sunflowers’ conserved in the different museums in the world. Van Gogh has used a lot of yellow pigments in this painting. I believe he must be influenced by the golden sunflower fields in Arles.

梵高最著名的画作一定是《向日葵》。他也在阿尔勒创作了这一系列画作。世界上不同的博物馆中保存着多个版本的“向日葵”。梵高在这幅画中使用了大量的黄色颜料。我猜想他一定是受到了阿尔勒金色葵花田的影响。

The ‘Sunflowers’ is so famous that this museum has set a wall with background of sunflowers for visitors to take a picture and share it on Instagram. I think it is a good method to let more people know Van Gogh and his art works. The duplicate of this painting could be purchased in the museum as well which costs 200 euros.

“向日葵”是如此远负盛名，梵高博物馆特意设置了背景就是向日葵的一面墙，供游客拍照并在 Instagram 上分享。我认为这是让更多人了解梵高和他的艺术作品的好方法。这幅画的复制品也可以在博物馆购买，价格为 200 欧元。

When I left the Van Gogh museum and stepped on the meadow, there was a beam of sunlight shining the building in the opposite. The weather is always gloomy in Netherlands so I would feel happy when it’s a sunny day. Sun light will give hope to people who always live in darkness. I like such a large piece of greenery amid the crowded city. It makes the traditional city landscape not so monotonous and more beautiful.

当我离开梵高博物馆，踏上广场上的草地时，一束阳光洒在对面的建筑上。荷兰的天气总是阴沉沉的，所以在阳光明媚的日子里我会感到格外高兴。阳光会给那些生活在黑暗中的人带来希望。我也很欣赏在拥挤的城市中能够看到这么大的一片绿地。它使传统的城市景观看起来不再那么单调并更加美丽动人。

I have spent totally three days in Amsterdam. This is really a memorable experience. I always like cultural and historical cities at water sides. Confucius had said that the clever person prefers water and the kind person prefers mountain. Before I left at last, I took this picture on one bridge. It could best represent this charming city, the peaceful canal, the arched bridge, the clean streets, and the colorful flowers, they looked so amazing under the pleasant morning sun light. I wish I could come here again in the future.

我在阿姆斯特丹共计度过了难忘的三天。我一直钟情于依水而畔的文化和历史名城，子曰：知者乐水，仁者乐山。在我最后告别之前，我在一座小桥上驻足拍下了这张照片。它最能代表这座魅力城市，宁静的运河，小桥流水，干净的街道，五颜六色的鲜花，它们在宜人的初日下显得如此迷人。我也衷心希望我以后能故地重游。

Giethorn in drizzle and breeze

June 24, 2022June 29, 2022Posted in Netherlands, TravelTagged Giethorn, Travel

斜风细雨中的羊角村

Tassel

Giethoorn is a small village in the east of Netherlands near the city Steenwijk. It is the most popular tourist site in Netherlands especially for Chinese tourists due to its fairytale and idyllic landscape with numerous bridges and canals. Giethoorn has a reputation of “Dutch Venice” as well. The village has only two thousands habitants but it receive over 1 million tourists each year. It’s really a great achievement for such a small place.

羊角村是荷兰东部的一个小村落，靠近 Steenwijk 市。它是荷兰对中国游客而言最受欢迎的旅游景点，它有着童话般的田园风光，拥有众多的桥梁和交错的运河。羊角村也享有“荷兰威尼斯”的美誉。虽然村中只有两千居民，但它每年接待超过 100 万游客。对于这样的弹丸之地来说，这着实是一项了不起的成就。

Giethoorn is located inside the National Park De Weerribben-Wieden. For tourists the easiest way to get there is to take bus No.70 or walk from the train station of Steenwijk. When I arrived, it was a rainy day in September 2020 and it was a bit cold outdoor. Although Steenwijk is just a stopover, I still had half-forgotten memory of its street view, especially its high cathedral tower and the neat brick-paved roads. It was a cloudy morning with patchy drizzle. I dragged my feet along the wet sidewalks. Only very few cyclists passed by and the whole town was so quiet that I could hear my foot steps clear.

羊角村位于德维尔本-威登国家公园内。对游客而言，到达那里最简单的方法便是是乘坐 70 路巴士或从 Steenwijk 火车站步行。当我抵达Steenwijk的时候是2020年9月的一个阴雨天，室外有一丝寒意。虽然这里只是一个中转站，但我仍然对它的街景记忆犹新，尤其是它那高耸的大教堂塔楼和整洁的砖砌道路。这是一个阴沉的早晨，下着绵绵细雨。我在湿漉漉的便道上徐徐前行。那时只有极少数骑自行车的人经过，整个小镇是如此的静谧甚至连我的脚步声都听得一清二楚。

On my way to Giethoorn, I accidently passed by one delicately decorated villa. It has flamboyant features of Art Nouveau like the colorful stained glass windows, curve formed doorway and its unsymmetrical design. This building was built in 1899 as a residence house of wealthy Tromp Meester family and now it becomes a museum for visiting. There is a beautiful English style garden in front of the villa and behind the villa it is a 10-hectare park. This area is spacious, really a suitable place for relaxing and breathing fresh air.

在去羊角村的路上，偶遇一栋装饰精美的别墅。它具有如彩色玻璃窗、曲线门廊和不对称设计等典型的新艺术运动的风格。这座建筑始建于 1899 年，是富有的 Tromp Meester 家族的私人住宅，如今成为供参观的博物馆。别墅前面有一个美丽的英式花园，别墅后面是一个10公顷的公园。这片区域很宽敞，非常适合放松和呼吸新鲜空气。

In the south of Steenwijk, there is a large piece of wetland full of vegetation like reeds, and quaking bogs. This land is the national park of Weerribben Wieden and its area is 100 square kilometers. It is a perfect place of feeling the breathtaking nature of Netherlands. It owns a typical Dutch landscape like wide lakes, stretching waterways, and sheep browsing on grass.

在 Steenwijk 的南部，有一大片湿地，上面长满了芦苇等植被以及遍布泥泞的沼泽。这片土地就是威登国家公园，面积为100平方公里。这是感受荷兰令人叹为观止的自然风光的绝佳场所。它拥有例如宽广湖泊、连绵水道和草上觅食的羊群等典型的荷兰景观。

When I stepped on the National park, I was on this way in the photo straight towards Giethoorn. This famous village was just 3km ahead of me. The weather today was not very good but it did not affect my mood too much. Most people don’t like walk in their trips because they could not tolerate the unexpected bad weather or the exhaustion because of strenuous marches. However for me I think travel on foot is the only way to be close to your destination with zero distance and it’s the easiest and most direct way to discover the unknown beautiful world that only existed in other’s photo albums before.

踏上国家公园，我沿着照片中的小路直插羊角村。这个著名的景点就在我正前方3公里处。今天的天气较差，但并未影响我的心情。绝大多数社畜因为无法忍受意外的恶劣天气或苦于疲惫不堪的强行而厌恶徒步旅行。但对在下而言徒步旅行绝对是零距离接近目的地的唯一方式，也是发现以前只存在于他人相册中的美丽世界的最简单、最直接的方式。

Along the way towards Giethoorn, I found many private houses. The local people in this area all lived in this kind of triangle roof house. There is no fences or wall protecting the houses so I guess that social security in Netherlands should be very good. This kind of rural life is really admirable. The house is surrounded by trees and meadows. Everyday the people living here could see greenery and colorful flourishing flowers just outside the windows.

羊角村的路上，我目睹了很多私人住宅。这片地区的当地人都住在这种三角屋顶的房子里。周围并没有栅栏或围墙保护房屋，我猜想荷兰的社会安全应该是一流的。不过这样的田园生活真是令人羡慕。房子周围环绕着树木和草地。这里的居民每天都能看到窗外的成荫绿树以及五颜六色盛开的鲜花。

This is another private house hiding amid the forest. This area belongs to the village of Giethoorn but it is not at the crowded tourist site. Only when you walk to the village, you could find it on the way surprisingly. It is an ideal residential place with wonderful nature environment. The house perches exactly at one cape surrounded by waterways with reeds. At the beginning of autumn, the silent surface of water is padded with freely dispersed small lily pads. A slow breeze causes gentle ripples across the still surface. It forms a perfect rural landscape of Netherlands in my heart.

这是另一个藏匿于森林中的私人住宅。这片地区虽然属于羊角村，但它不是众人蜂拥的旅游景点。只有恰好徒步，才能在路上惊喜地发现它。这里绝对是个人理想的居住地，自然环境优美。房子正好坐落在一个被芦苇遍布的水道包围的岬角上。秋日寂静的水面上散落着伶仃的小睡莲。一阵细小的微风在静止的水面上掀起柔和的涟漪。它就是我心目中完美的荷兰乡村景观。

I walked around 1 hour in the light rain until I arrived at the entrance of the village. All the bus or cars can only stop here because the village is only accessible by foot or boat. The canal connect the small waterways in the village. There is one lift bridge over the canal. When boat passes by, the bridge will lift up automatically. This is the first time to see traffic light in the canal. It’s quite interesting!

在羊角村的大路上栉风沐雨疾走1小时后终于抵达村口。所有的公共汽车或私人汽车都只能在这里停下来，羊角村只可以乘船或者步行进入。这条主运河连接村里的小水道。运河上有一座升降桥。当船经过时，桥会自动升起。我平生第一次在运河里看到交通灯，真是大开眼界！

The village consists of canals and small islands which are inter-connected by 176 bridges to the mainland. This is the service area of the village with more modern houses. Tourists could rent a boat to travel the village. There are some tourist shops and restaurants here. Because there are so many Chinese tourists every year, I can even find a Chinese beef noodle restaurant here. All the way towards the end, there is a small bridge which will lead the tourists towards east or west of the village.

该村由众多运河和小岛组成，通过 176 座桥梁与外部相连。这片区域是村里的服务区，房子相对比较现代。游客可以租船游览村庄。这里有一些旅游商店和餐馆。每年大量中国游客蜂拥而至，我居然可以在这里找到一家中国牛肉面馆。沿着图中的路一路走到尽头，有一座小桥将游客引向村子的东边或西边。

I was standing on this old bridge which could be regarded as the entrance of the village center. From here the tourists could view the best picturesque landscape of Giethoorn. Behind me it was the most representative house here that appear on travel magazines for many times.

我站在这座可谓是村中心入口的古桥上。从这里游客可以欣赏到羊角村最美的风景。在我身后的是这里最具代表性的房子，这幅美景曾多次出现在旅游杂志上。

The center of the village is just a small area where the local residents live now. The tourists assemble in this area usually and take around 2 to 4 hours to visit every part of it. Its iconic landscape is the thatched roof farmhouses which are built in the 18th and 19th centuries. The houses are used as barn historically and surrounded by green well-kept lawns with beautiful flowering hydrangeas.

羊角村的中心只是当地居民现在居住的一个小区域。游客通常聚集在这个区域，大约需要 2 到 4 个小时才能参观完它的每个部分。这里标志性景观当属建于 18 世纪和 19 世纪的茅草屋顶农舍。这些房屋在历史上被用作谷仓，周围环绕着修剪完好的绿色草坪和美丽的绣球花从。

Although Giethoorn is called the Venice of Netherlands, it is obviously different with Venice. The waterway and canal here is not large as the Grand canal of Venice. Small boats cruising through the canal could only occupy two or four people. The verdant rural landscape with traditional thatched huts is different with the cultural renaissance palace in Venice as well. Giethoorn is a water village where people could embrace the nature fully. It is in fact more like a small piece of exquisite emerald which is not fully carved and polished.

尽管羊角村被称为荷兰的威尼斯，但与威尼斯有着明显的不同。这里的水路和运河没有威尼斯的大运河那么宽广。此处小船在运河中游弋，只能容纳两到四个人。青翠的乡村风景以及传统的茅草屋交织相应，自然与威尼斯的文艺复兴宫殿大相径庭。羊角村是一个人们可以充分拥抱大自然的水乡。它其实更像是一块未经雕琢和打磨的精美翡翠。

Tourists could also visit Giethoorn on foot along the canal. On one side of the canal, it’s the path for bicycle and pedestrian. The footpath is very narrow and only allows one person to pass by. On the other side of the canal, they are the private houses of local people. Each house has one small bridge connecting to other side. Tourists could take a beautiful picture on the bridge but not disturb the life of the residents. In this village it’s easy to find some mini docks near the resident houses. Small private boats are just left there unattended under the autumn rain. What a leisurely and pleasant life!

众多游客也会选择沿着运河步行游览羊角村。在运河的一侧，是自行车和行人的通道。这种人行道十分狭窄，只允许一个人通过。运河的另一边，是当地人的私人住宅。每间房子对应着一座小桥连接到另一边。游客可以在桥上拍到美丽的照片，但尽量不要打扰居民的生活。在这个村落里，一些迷你码头在居民住宅附近举目皆是。秋潮带雨晚来急，野渡无人舟自横。真是宜人的生活啊！

On the small bridges it was easy to observe the panoramic view of the village. Historically, this village could only be accessed by water. The canal was the main gateway to connect it with the world outside. Obviously it was quite narrow as it’s the main transportation route. If there are many tourists, it will be too crowded on the water. I was fortunate enough to visit it at a suitable time. At this moment, only a few boats traversed to and fro under the bridges.

在小桥上观察村庄的全景。历史上看这个村庄只能通过水路进入。运河是连接外界的主要通道。显然作为主要交通线路它实在太狭窄。如果有很多游客水面会拥挤不堪。我有幸在这个适宜的时机参观了它。此时只有寥寥几艘船在桥下来回穿梭。

Most of the time I was travelling along the axis of the village which name is called Binnepad. The village has a long and narrow shape and is separated by three tiny settlements: Noordeinde, Middenbuurt and Zuideinde. The Dorpsgracht is the central canal that connects these separate settlements. Punter is a kind of traditional flat bottom boat similar to Gondola that is used for transportation over the canals. Some visitors prefer to rent such a boat to drift around the village under the wooden bridge one by one. And some visitors troll around on foot like me.

大部分时间我都沿着村庄的中轴线旅行，这条轴线道路叫做 Binnepad。整个村庄呈狭长形，由三个小定居点分割：Noordeinde、Middenbuurt 和 Zuideinde。Dorpsgracht 是连接这些独立定居点的中央运河。名为punter的平底船是一种传统的类似威尼斯刚朵拉的平底船，用于在运河上进行运输。有的游客喜欢租这样的船在木桥轻舟荡漾。其他游客则像我一样徒步穿行。

Although the village is very small, it still has one museum to record the local history. There are some renovated farmhouses which are the Giethoorn ‘t Olde Maat Uus museum. inside the museum, Visitor can discover how the local people lived more than 100 years ago and how they cut peat and built small boats at that time. There is also a fishing house and a boat house in the yard. It allows you to know how they live difficultly in the history and how they strived for the admirable life nowadays.

村子虽小仍有一座博物馆记录着当地的历史。一些经过翻新的农舍是 Giethoorn ‘t Olde Maat Uus 博物馆。在博物馆内，游客可以了解100多年前当地人的奋斗历程，以及当时他们是如何开采泥炭和建造小船的。院子里还有渔屋和船屋让游客了解历史上的艰难困苦以及如何争取出如今令人羡慕的生活。

The village was built on peatland historically. It was cut into many pieces by the workers and the small islands are formed in this way. The bultrugboerderij is a common type of old farm houses with chimney in Giethoorn. The canals are built to transport peat and the farmers lived in these neatly arranged houses since 16th century. It was really a serene place and what you could hear was only the quacking of a ducks and whispers of wind.

该村历史上建在泥炭地上。它被工人切成了许多块，诸多小岛就是如此形成。图中名为bultrugboerderij 是羊角村常见的带有烟囱的旧农舍。运河也是为了运输泥炭而建造的，自 16 世纪以来，农民就住在这些坐落有秩房子里。这里真是一个宁静的地方，耳畔中唯有阵阵鸭鸣和风之细语。

Giethoorn is not large but it’s recommended to visit it in a slow pace so that you can observe every its detail with your eyes. At noon, I enjoyed to take some time sitting at waterside under willows. Slight raindrops soaked my sleeves and a gust of not-so-cold wind stirred the willow twigs and blew my face at the same time. I kept my eyes on the every plants and animal. Lovely wild ducks filed in a row at the river bank and looked for food. It was really a natural environment to combine human beings and nature perfectly. You will easily be assimilated into it.

羊角村规模不大值得游客慢慢游览，细细品味，用自己的眼睛洞察它的每一个细节。晌午时分，我悠然在柳树下的水边闲坐。岸边柳林处，沾衣欲湿杏花雨,吹面不寒杨柳风。我注视着周围的一草一木。可爱的野鸭在河岸边排成一排觅食。这真是一个人与自然完美结合浑然天成的环境。你会不由自主地融入其中。

The major color style of this fairytale village must be green as there are so many luxuriantly green vegetation all around the village. However it’s not so monotonous since the greenery is always interspersed with some colorful flowers. Giethoorn is famous for hydrangeas or Hortensia. This kind of gorgeous purple and pink flowers bloom in the summer until the end of September. The life here is as beautiful like summer flowers.

这个童话般的村庄的主色调一定是绿色。村子上下遍布茂盛的绿色植被然而它并不显得单调突兀。这些绿色植物从中总是点缀着一些五颜六色的花朵。羊角村以这种彩色绣球花而闻名。这种艳丽的紫色和粉红色的花朵在夏天烂漫盛开直到到九月底，这里的生活就如同夏花般灿烂。

Occasionally I found this is the flag of the village. As the its name Giethoorn states, it has a goat horn on the flag. Giethoorn’s name originates from the first inhabitants’ discovery of hundreds of goat horns (gietehorens) in the marshland in the 10th century.

我无意间窥见羊角村的旗帜。正如它的名字所言，它的旗帜上有一个山羊角。羊角村的名字源于10世纪，第一批居民在沼泽地发现了数百个山羊角（gietehorens）。

I continued to walk forward until I arrived at this area, it was the end of the village. Of course, you could continue to move but the landscape is not as beautiful as the center area of the village. Here is a campsite where visitors could rent camping pods for two people or a wooden log cabin for family. Although the village is extremely small, it still provides enough facilities to spend a nice holiday.

当我继续乘兴前行，直到到这片区域，便要路尽河回人转舵。当然游客还可继续向前探索，但彼岸的风景却远不如羊角村宛然动人。这是一个露营地，游客可以租用两个人的露营舱或家庭用的木制小木屋。村子虽小，但仍能向游客提供足够的设施度过一个愉快的假期。

I took around 3 hours to finish the visit of the whole village of flowers and trees. Every corner of this village was worth of taking photo. In the early autumn, the flourishing flowers brought special charm to the village. A blow of cool wind flew through flowers with dewdrops and several petals dropped down and floated on the flat surface of flowing water. It was undoubtfully a romantic place but it was only pity that the weather is not so good. All the photos taken appear to be too somber. So before you come it is necessary to check the weather forecast. I believe that rowing in Giethoorn on a sunny day will provide an unforgettable experience to travelers definitely.

我总计用时大约 3 个小时倘徉在这个鲜花与绿树的世界里而不能自拔。这里的每个角落都值得拍照留念。初秋时节，繁花似锦，给羊角村带来了别样的韵味。微风拂过，花自飘零水自流。这无疑是一个无比浪漫的地方，但可惜天公不作美，所有拍摄的照片都显得过于阴沉。因此在游览此处之前，有必要查看当地的天气预报。我相信阳光明媚的日子里在羊角村荡舟一定会给旅行者带来一生难忘的体验。

Trip in Den Haag, the royal capital of the Netherlands

May 28, 2022May 31, 2022Posted in Netherlands, TravelTagged Den Haag, Netherlands, The Hague, Travel

荷兰帝都海牙之旅

Den Haag is a city on the west coast of Netherlands bordering the North Sea. It’s well known for the International Court of Justice of the United Nations. The city’s name originates from the name ‘des Graven hage’ in the 15th century which means “The Count’s Wood”. When you travel in Netherlands, you could take one day to look at it. The city is not large and its public transportation is very convenient. Most people know that Amsterdam is the capital of Netherlands but they may not know that Den Haag is the royal capital and the seat of government.

海牙是荷兰西海岸与北海接壤的一座城市。它以联合国的海牙国际法庭而闻名。这座城市的名字来源于 15 世纪的名字“des Graven hage”，意思是“伯爵的森林”。当你在荷兰旅行时可以花一天时间了解一下它的历史。这座城市不大，公共交通十分便利。相信大多数人都知道阿姆斯特丹是荷兰的首都，但可能不知道海牙却是皇家的首都和政府所在地。

I took the RandstadRail tram from Rotterdam to Den Haag central station in the sunny morning of September 7th 2020. It’s an historical city perfectly combined with modernity and history. The train station is in the city center, just a stone’s throw away from the area of government office. This area has an old history. Faraway at this side of road I could see some pedestrians walking slowly across the ancient arches. Occasionally, at the street corner, some trolley cars passed by me with a soft silvery tinkling. Here I could really feel a tinge of the old past.

2020 年 9 月 7 日阳光明媚的清晨，我从鹿特丹乘坐 RandstadRail 地铁前往海牙中央车站。这是一座完美结合现代与历史的古老名城。火车站就位于市中心，距政府办公区仅一步之遥。这个地区有着悠久的历史。路这边远远地遥望行人缓步穿过古老的拱门。不经意间的转角，有轨电车与我擦身而过，发出柔和清脆的叮当声。此刻一种莫名的历史沧桑感油然而生。

When I travelled in European city, I always paid attention to every statue erected in public square. The figures that could not speak represented the history of the city or the country perfectly. The bronze equestrian statue of King William II at the square Buitenhof is a replica of the equestrian statue of King William II by the French sculptors Antonin Mercié and Victor Peter, which was erected in Place Guillaume II in Luxembourg in 1884. During the reign of King William II, the Netherlands became a parliamentary democracy with the new constitution of 1848. Behind the statue, it is the lake called Hofvijver. The houses around the square were the lovely traditional Belgium triangle houses.

行在欧洲之时，我总是着眼于广场上竖立的每一尊雕像。这些不会说话的塑像完美诠释了每一个城市或国家的历史。 Buitenhof广场上的这座威廉二世国王的骑马铜像是1884年在卢森堡纪尧姆二世广场上竖立的雕像复制品。法国雕塑家安东宁默西和维克多彼得设计的该雕塑。在威廉二世的统治期间荷兰在1848 年的新宪法下成为议会民主制国家。雕像后面是名为霍夫维耶弗的湖。广场周围环绕的民居是传统的比利时三角房子。

The most representative and inviting view of this city is the lake Hofvijver. In the middle of the lake, there is a small island with plants and trees. These ancient buildings with numerous small chimneys at the waterside are the government complex of Dutch republic since 1584. The city of Den Haag has a history of more than 700 years. Opposite to the lake, there is a piece of green land with long benches. Travelers could take a short rest under umbrage and look at the historical buildings in the surrounding. They kept the original appearance in medieval times.

这座城市最具代表性和吸引力的景观是霍夫维耶弗湖。在湖的中央，有一个小岛，上面种满了植物和树木。这些矗立在水边有众多小烟囱的古老建筑是自 1584 年以来荷兰共和国的政府建筑群。海牙这座城市足足已有 700 多年的历史。湖对面是一片绿地，布置着长凳。游客可以在树影婆娑中稍作休息，环视周围保留了中世纪的原始外貌的历史建筑。

Another historic building in the lakeside is the art museum, Maurituis. The museum houses the Royal Cabinet of Paintings which consists of 854 objects, mostly Dutch Golden Age paintings. It was the residence of count John Maurice, the governor of Dutch Brazil, and the Prince of Nassau-Siegen in the 17th century.

湖边的另一座历史建筑是莫里斯艺术博物馆。该博物馆收藏了包括 854 件物品的皇家珍品内藏，其中主要是荷兰黄金时代的绘画。它曾经是 17 世纪荷属巴西总督以及拿骚-锡根亲王约翰·莫里斯伯爵的住所。

The most famous oil painting of this museum is the ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’. It was created by the Dutch Golden Age painter Johannes Vermeer in 1665. It depicts a European girl wearing an exotic dress, an oriental turban, and a very large pearl as an earring. This painting is as famous as the ‘Mona Lisa’ since both young girls in each painting have an enigmatic smile on their beautiful faces. Vermeer has a wonderful mastery of light effect and he used chiaroscuro rather than line to create form. The reflection on her lips and on the earring show the effect of light on different surfaces. This painting is no doubt the centerpiece of the museum. Even faraway from the museum, the banner of this painting could be seen clearly.

这座博物馆中最著名的油画是《戴珍珠耳环的女孩》。它由荷兰黄金时代的画家约翰内斯·维米尔（Johannes Vermeer）于 1665 年创作。它描绘了一个身着异国情调的连衣裙，头戴东方头巾，以及一颗巨大珍珠作为耳环的欧洲女孩。这幅画与《蒙娜丽莎》一样著名。这两幅画中的年轻女孩美丽的脸上都挂着一丝神秘的微笑。维米尔对光线效果有着出色的掌控，他使用明暗对比而不是线条来塑造外形。女孩的嘴唇和耳环上的反射展示了光线在不同表面上的效果。这幅画无疑是博物馆的镇馆之宝。即使在远处，也能清晰看到这幅画的宣传横幅。

Alongside the Mauritshuis, there is an ancient path of bricks leading towards the quiet inner courtyard of Binnenhof. The Binnenhof is a series of government complex. It houses the meeting place of both houses of the States General of the Netherlands and the Ministry of General Affairs. The houses look like the medieval gothic castles. They were built in 13th century and were the oldest Parliament buildings in the world. Even nowadays they are still in use and the North Wing is still the meeting place of the Upper House. The coat arm of Dutch Republic and the House of Nassau is a blue checkered shield with a lion grasping a sword in one hand and a bundle of arrows in the other. This kind of lion could be observed frequently in the Dutch royal building, for example on the lintel of the arch.

在莫里斯艺术博物馆旁边，有一条铺满红砖的古老道路通往安静的内院。Binnenhof 内院是一系列政府建筑。它是荷兰国家议会和参众两院的议会场所。这些看起来像中世纪的哥特式城堡的建筑建于 13 世纪，是世界上最古老的议会建筑。时至今日，它们仍在正常使用，建筑群的北翼仍是上议院的议会场所。荷兰共和国和拿骚家族的徽章是一个蓝色的格子底以及一只狮子一手握着剑，另一只手握着一束箭。这种造型的狮子经常出现在荷兰皇家建筑中，例如本照片中拱门的门楣上。

This area has been the center of Dutch politics for many centuries. The cathedral like building in the inner court yard is called Ridderzaal or Hall of Knights. It was completed in 1280 and used for festival occasions in the history. Only in the 20th century, the Hall of Knights was repaired and became the main venue used for the congress and important meetings. The interior is decorated delicately with nineteen wall hangings bearing the arms of the twelve Dutch provinces and the overseas parts of the Kingdom. The Dutch parliamentary democracy consists of three parts: execution, legislation, and jurisdiction. For legislation, the Dutch parliament is made up of two chambers: the 150-seat, directly-elected lower house (House of Representatives) and the 75-seat upper house (Senate). Both houses traditionally meet in the hall of Ridderzaal on the third Tuesday of September.

几个世纪以来这片区域一直是荷兰政治的中心。这座内院里的大教堂式建筑被称为 Ridderzaal 或骑士厅。它于1280年完工，历史上曾用于庆祝节日。直到20世纪，骑士厅经过修复，成为两院会议以及一些重要会议的场所。它的内部装饰精美，共有十九个壁挂，上面挂着荷兰十二个省和海外地区的徽章。荷兰的议会民主由三部分组成：行政、立法和司法。在立法方面，荷兰议会由两院组成：150 个席位的下议院（众议院）和 75 个席位的上议院（参议院）。两院传统上每年 9 月的第三个星期二在这里的大厅举行会议。

At the moment I was standing on the brick paved ground. Behind me, it’s the north wing of the government parliament. It has a beautiful arcade of renaissance style. There is small gate called Stadhouderspoort leading to the outside. It was a beautiful sunny morning in autumn and some Dutch people took bicycles and passed through the gate cozily. In the history, the gate was only available for the chief magistrate (stadholder) and after 1795 it was allowed to be used by everyone.

此刻我正站在内庭砖砌的地面上。在我身后，是政府议会的北翼。它有个美丽的文艺复兴风格的拱廊。一个名为Stadhouderspoort的小门通向外侧。这是一个阳光明媚的美好秋日早晨，一些荷兰人骑着自行车悠然穿过这座拱门。历史上，这座城门只供城市的管理者（stadholder）使用，只是1795年后才允许所有民众使用。

The political system of the Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy, similar to Great Britain. King acts as the head of state. Noordeinde Palace is one of the three official palaces of the Dutch royal family. It was used as the official workplace of King Willem-Alexander since 2013. The palace originated as a medieval farmhouse, which was converted into a spacious residence in 1533. This neoclassical palace looks modest and simple, hiding among the residential houses and shops. After the restoration in 1984, the Palace became the Dutch Monarch’s workplace and office. When I arrived, the flag at the back of the house was raised. It means that the King was working in the office that day.

荷兰的政治制度是类似于英国的君主立宪制。国王担任国家元首。 Noordeinde Palace是荷兰王室的三个官方宫殿之一。从2013 年起，威廉-亚历山大国王就用它作为的官方办公场所。这座宫殿起源于中世纪的农舍，1533 年被改建为宽敞的住宅。这座新古典主义的宫殿看起来质朴简单，有种大隐隐于市的味道。 1984年修复后，它成为荷兰君主的工作场所和办公室。当我抵达时，房子后面的旗帜已然升起说明国王这天在办公室里勤政为民。

In front of the palace it is the bronze statue of William I of Orange. This statue was erected in 1845 and designed by a French sculptor. William the prince of Orange was the founder of the House of Orange-Nassau. He played a critical role in the independence of the Netherlands. He organized the Dutch revolt against Spanish rule during the Eighty Years’ War and was assassinated for many times due to this reason. Several members of the Orange-Nassau house reigned the Netherlands Republic as governor or stadholder. After 1815, the Netherlands Republic became a monarchy under the House of Orange-Nassau.

宫殿前是奥朗日威廉一世的铜像。这座雕像由一位法国雕塑家设计建于 1845 年。奥朗日王子威廉是奥朗日-拿骚家族的创始人。他在荷兰的国家独立中发挥了关键作用。在八十年战争期间他曾组织了多次荷兰人反抗西班牙统治的起义，并因此多次被暗杀。奥朗日-拿骚家族的几位成员后来以总督的身份统治着荷兰共和国。1815年后，荷兰共和国成为奥朗日-拿骚家族下的君主制国家。

The iconic building in Den Haag is the Peace Palace. It houses the International Court of Justice which is the principal judicial body of the United Nations. In 1903, the American steel magnate Andrew Carnegie donated US$1.5 million to build it. Laterally, an eternal peace flame was installed in front of its gates to reminder people the importance of peace. During the 19th century, the idea of peace flourished in the world. The “First Peace Conference” was hold in Den Haag to call for global disarmament, international jurisdiction and arbitration through the establishment of the Permanent Court of Arbitration and International Court of Justice. The Peace palace was built to house these organizations under the environment. Although it is an UN building, you could still book a tour online to visit the inside.

海牙的标志性建筑当属和平宫。它是联合国的主要司法机构国家法庭的所在地。1903年，美国钢铁大王安德鲁·卡奈基捐资150万美元建造了这座建筑。后来它的大门前安置了永恒的和平火焰，以提醒人们和平的重要性。19世纪，和平理念在世界范围内盛行。 “第一次和平会议”即由此在海牙召开，呼吁通过设立仲裁法院和国际法院，实现全球化裁军、国际管辖和仲裁。和平宫就是在这种国际环境下建造而成。虽然它是联合国大楼，但仍然可以在线预订游览并参观内部。

In the city center of Den Haag, I could still find some historical buildings although most of items are so modern. The New church is a Dutch Baroque Protestant church built in 1649 after the Great Church was too small to hold so many devotees. The church has an abundance of wood carvings from the 17th century, an oak roof construction and stained glass windows. Maybe because of Protestant belief, the outlook of this church is not like the traditional church, it has a weird hexagon shape instead.

在海牙市中心，尽管如今举目都是现代元素但仍然可以看到一些历史建筑。这座新教堂是一座荷兰巴洛克式新教教堂，建于 1649 年。当时的主教堂太小，无法容纳这么多信徒故此诞生了这座教堂。教堂装饰有大量的 17 世纪木雕、橡木屋顶和彩色玻璃窗。也许是因为新教的缘故，这座教堂的外观并不像传统的教堂，而是奇怪的六边形。

From 1588 to 1672, it was a great period for Netherlands called The Dutch Golden Age. During this period, Dutch trade, science, and art were among the most acclaimed in Europe. The most important Dutch philosopher at that time must be Spinoza. In his book Ethics, Spinoza discusses his beliefs of three kinds of knowledge, the knowledge of experiences, the knowledge involves reasoning plus emotions, and the knowledge of God. His philosophy system is called Spinozism. If I didn’t come here, I would not know that such a great person was buried in this church. The Greek letters on his grave are ‘Terra hic Benedicti de Spinoza in Ecclesia Nova olim sepulti ossa tegit’ which means ‘The earth here covers the bones of Benedictus de Spinoza once buried in the New Church.’

1588 年到 1672 年间，这是属于荷兰的一个伟大时期，被称为荷兰黄金时代。在这期间，荷兰的贸易、科学和艺术在欧洲广受赞誉的。当时最重要的荷兰哲学家一定是斯宾诺莎。斯宾诺莎在他的《伦理学》一书中讨论了他对三种知识的信仰，即经验知识、涉及推理和情感的知识以及对上帝的认识。他的哲学体系被称为斯宾诺莎主义。如果我不是恰巧路过这里，也就不会知晓这位伟大的哲学家就埋葬在这个教堂里。他坟墓上的希腊字母是“Terra hic Benedicti de Spinoza in Ecclesia Nova olim sepulti ossa tegit”，意思是“这片土地覆盖了曾经埋葬在新教堂的斯宾诺莎的骸骨。”

The oldest building in Den Haag must be the Great church built in 13th century. Most of its structure are made of brick. It has a symbolic six-sided high tower up to 93 meter. On the top of the tower, the big bells’ history could be traced back to 17th century. Nowadays this church is not used for religious activities, except for royal baptisms and weddings. Members of the House of Orange-Nassau like King Willem-Alexander and his daughter Princess Catharina-Amalia have been baptized there. It was three o’clock in the afternoon at the moment of my arrival. I still remember that I passed by the church and looked up the brown tower against the blue sky in the autumn. Den Haag is not a city famous of tourism but it will still leave something in my memory.

海牙最古老的建筑当属建于13世纪的大教堂。它的大部分结构都是用砖砌成的并且有一个高达93米的标志性六边形高塔。塔顶大钟的历史可以追溯到17世纪。如今这座教堂除了皇家洗礼和婚礼外，不再用于宗教活动。奥朗日-拿骚家族的成员，如威廉-亚历山大国王和他的女儿凯瑟琳娜-阿玛莉亚公主，都曾在此受洗。时至今日仍然会回味那个秋天的下午三点，我恰好经过大教堂，仰望着蓝天映衬着棕色的塔楼。海牙不是一个以旅游业闻名的城市，但它仍然会在我的记忆中依稀留下一些掠影。

The city hall today used today is a very modern building which is a bit boring however it’s recommended to visit the Old City Hall which is a Renaissance style building near the Great Church. It is the former seat of the city’s government, and still keeps a place where residents hold wedding ceremonies, and where the Royal family register their family births. On the façade, there is letter ANNO 1565 which means the city hall was built in 1565. The 5 statues on the roof top depict “Faith”, “Hope”, “Love”, “Strength”, and “Justice”. They were made by the Hague sculptor Jan Baptist Xavery before 1742.

如今使用的海牙市政厅是一座非常现代的建筑略显沉闷所以特别建议到大教堂附近的这座文艺复兴风格老市政厅参观。这里曾是市政府所在地，至今仍保留着居民举行婚礼和皇室登记出生的功能。它的正面有ANNO 1565字样，意思是市政厅建于1565年。屋顶上的5尊雕像分别代表了“信仰”、“希望”、“爱”、“力量”和“正义”。它们由海牙雕塑家 Jan Baptist Xavery 在 1742 年之前陆续制作。

The city center of Den Haag is just a small area for travel. In the afternoon, I wandered around the outskirt of the city. Netherlands has perfect city plans. There are so many public parks and open spaces in the suburb. The life here is more comfortable compared to other crowded metropolis in the world. As we know, New York has a large central park but it only serves better the rich people living around it. The urban design in Netherlands is much better since everyone could easily visit the park which is near their houses and relax themselves fully on the weekend.

海牙市中心只是一个适合旅行的小快区域。下午我乘兴在城郊闲游。荷兰有完美的城市规划。海牙郊区有众多公园和开放空间。与世界上其他拥挤的大都市相比，这里的生活更加舒适令人向往。众所周知，纽约市中心有一个大型的中央公园，但它只是为周围的富人提供更好的服务。荷兰的城市设计则更加完善，每个人都可以轻松地游览自己居所附近的公园并在周末充分放松自己。

Clingendael park is one of the most beautiful park located between The Hague and Wassenaar. Since the sixteenth century, various garden and landscape architects have contributed towards its look and atmosphere. In the 19th century the garden architect Zocher replaced the garden’s original French design by the English landscape style. ‘Clingendael’ is the name of the 17th-century manor house in this picture. It means valley in the dunes. Nowadays the manor houses the Clingendael Institute.

Clingendael 公园是位于海牙和瓦塞纳尔之间的美丽的公园。自十六世纪以来，各种花园和景观设计师为其景观加砖添瓦。19世纪期间，园林建筑师佐赫以英式景观风格取代了花园原有的法式设计。 “Clingendael”是这张照片中 17 世纪庄园的名称，意为沙丘中的山谷。如今，庄园内设有 Clingendael 研究所。

This park is extremely spacious. Behind the manor, there is a large playground and field where children play and families enjoy picnics. Large pieces of meadows allow the lambs browsing on grass freely and leisurely. The world in Netherlands is placid and peaceful. I can always discover some wild animals living together with human beings harmoniously.

这个公园非常宽敞。庄园后面有一个大型游乐场和田野，供孩子们玩耍和家庭野餐。小羊们在大片的草地上悠闲自在地觅食，小日子悠哉悠哉。荷兰的生活总体平静祥和，这里总能发现一些与人类和谐相处的野生动物。

This is one street view of Den Haag. There are not so many tourist attractions in this city so I have plenty of time to observe how the local people live. Like other cities in Netherlands, bicycle is one important transportation for them. Also, Dutch people are friendly and can speak English very well. In deed, English is widely used in this country. For tourists, they will not feel difficult when they come here. Although there is nothing special in this city, I think it is still recommended to visit it in a relaxing manner and enjoy one common leisure day in the midst of your rushed trip.

这是海牙一处街景。这个城市并没有那么多旅游景点，所以我有足够的时间来观察当地人的生活。与荷兰其他城市一样，自行车是他们的重要交通工具。此外，荷兰人也很友好，英语极其流利。英语在这个国家真的是被广泛使用。对于游客来说，来到这里旅游自然不会觉得困难。虽然这座城市并没有什么特别之处，但我认为还是建议在匆忙的旅途中抽空悠闲地游览一番，享受平凡一天的休闲时光。

Rotterdam’s modernism from past to present

May 11, 2022May 27, 2022Posted in Netherlands, TravelTagged Modernism, Rotterdam, TravelLeave a comment

鹿特丹现代主义的昨日今昔

Rotterdam is an important harbor connecting to North Sea. Unfortunately, it was completely destroyed in the World War II and rebuilt totally based on a modernist urban plan after the war. For tourists, if you want to explore the landscape of medieval city, it would not be your best choice definitely. It’s true that Rotterdam’s urban landscape is totally different from other cities in the Netherlands. However, in this city you could discover how it revived from the damages of the war tenaciously and how the architects modernists reinvented this city in the past 70 years.

鹿特丹是连接北海的重要港口。遗憾的是它在二战中被彻底摧毁，战后按照现代城市规划进行了彻底重建。对于游客而言，如果你想探索中世纪城市的风景，这里绝对不是你的最佳选择。鹿特丹的城市景观诚然与荷兰其他城市大相径庭。然而在这座城市，你会体会到它是如何顽强地从战争的破坏中缓步恢复并且目睹现代主义建筑师是如何在过去 70 年里重塑这座城市。

I visited Rotterdam in September 2020 after my trip of windmills in Kinderdijk. This is my first view of the city from the south bank of Nieuwe Maas which is a distributary of the Rhine River, and a former distributary of the Maas River. Rotterdam has the nicknames ‘Gateway to Europe’ because the river Nieuwe Maas connects the North Sea and the heart of Western Europe （like the highly industrialized area Ruhr) directly. Most of the buildings at the riverside are closed aligned skyscrapers. Rotterdam is famous for the excellent urban design and plan. In 2015, it was crowned the best urbanized city in Europe.

在小孩堤防的风车之旅之后，我于 2020 年 9 月游览了鹿特丹。这是我从新马斯河南岸对这座城市第一眼印象。这里是莱茵河的支流，也是马斯河的一个分流。这条新马斯直接连接北海和西欧的心脏比如高度工业化的鲁尔区故此鹿特丹有“通往欧洲的门户”的绰号。河边的大部分建筑都是紧密排列的摩天大楼。鹿特丹以卓越的城市设计和规划而闻名，2015 年被评为欧洲最佳市政规划城市。

The icon of city landscape is of course the Erasmus bridge stretching over the river. It is named by the city’s famous scholar Desiderius Erasmus and has a nickname ‘the swan’ due to its elegant shape. The bridge was designed by the Dutch architect Ben van Berkel and completed in 1996. It is a masterpiece of the urban modernism. The most awe-inspiring element is the span of the bridge, totally 802 meters.

鹿特丹的标志景观当属横跨新马斯河的伊拉斯谟大桥。它由当地著名学者德西德里乌斯·伊拉斯谟（Desiderius Erasmus）命名，因其优雅的造型而有“天鹅”的绰号。这座桥由荷兰建筑师本·范伯克尔设计，于1996年竣工，是城市现代主义建筑的杰作。最令人惊叹的是这座桥的跨度，全长802米。

It is a combined cable-stayed and bascule bridge. I walked from the southside of the river to the northside through the bridge enthusiastically. Under my feet, it is the busy water way for thousands of boats passing everyday. It has two platforms for pedestrians to have a rest and overlook the city. I took this picture under the bridge’s blue pylon which is extremely high, up to 139 meters. This single pylon is positioned on southside of the river with a backward lean and supported by 16 pairs of front stay cables and 2 sets of back stay cables.

它是一座斜拉式开合桥。我兴致勃勃地从河的南岸穿过大桥走到北岸。我的脚下便是过尽千帆的繁忙水道。大桥上有两个平台供行人休息和俯瞰整个城市。这张照片是在蓝色桥塔下拍摄的，桥塔很高，高达139米。这座唯一的桥塔位于河的南侧，并向后倾斜，由16对前拉索和2组后拉索支撑。

In the north of the Erasmus bridge, it is the Maritime District of the city. Here the tourists could experience why Rotterdam was the most important harbor in the world. Dutch Republic used to be a maritime superpower in the 16th and 17th century. The Maritime museum that records the origin of Dutch navigation is also located in this district. This ancient brigantine harbored in the Leuvenhaven which is the commercial port nowadays represents the glorious history of this maritime empire who ruled South America (modern Guiana and Brazil), south Africa, west Africa (modern Ghana), and North America (New York) in the 17th century.

在伊拉斯谟大桥的北岸便是是鹿特丹的海事区。在这里，游客可以感受到鹿特丹缘何是世界上最重要的港口。荷兰共和国曾经是 16 世纪和 17 世纪的海上超级大国。记录荷兰航海渊源的海事博物馆也位于该区。这艘古老的双桅船停泊在如今的鲁汶港展览，它代表着这个17世纪统治南美（圭亚那和巴西）、南非、西非（加纳）和北美洲（纽约）的海上帝国的辉煌历史。

There are numerous boats, cargo ships, and gantry cranes at the pier. You could even get a Water taxi service like taking a bus normally. Overseas trade was always a traditional cornerstone of the Dutch economy. Rotterdam acted as a key role of connecting Netherlands with other parts of the world. From 1962 until 2004, it was the world’s busiest port by annual cargo tonnage. The port stretches over a distance of more than 40 kilometers so when you stood at the pier at the Maritime District and stared at the far west end, you could catch the view of hustle and bustle of those dockworkers under the glow of the setting sun.

这个码头内有众多小船、货船和龙门起重机。游客甚至可以像正常乘坐公共汽车一样获得水上出租车服务。海外贸易一直是荷兰经济的基石。鹿特丹在连接荷兰与世界其他地区方面发挥了关键作用。从 1962 年到 2004 年，按年货物吨位吞吐计算，它是世界上最繁忙的港口。整个港口绵延40多公里，站在海事区的码头，向西遥望着远处天边的尽头，夕阳余晖下码头工人络绎不绝。

In Netherlands, when you are free, you could always take your time to stroll along the river banks. The cities and villages in this countries are intersected by numerous canals and rivers. The Maritime District is also a piece of land divided by some artificial water ways. The new port and old port are connected with each other by the water ways. There are different types of boats wandering on the occupied river, barges, dinghies, and fishing boats assembling on this narrow water way. For Rotterdam, the life on water is so busy as well!

在荷兰，空闲之余亦可在河边悠然漫步。这个国家的城市和村庄由许多河道和河流交错相连。海事区也是一块被人工水道分割的土地。新港与旧港之间有水路相通。熙熙攘攘的河流上游荡着各式各样的船只，各种驳船、小艇和渔船皆聚集在这条狭窄的水道上。对鹿特丹居民来说，水上生活也是如此忙碌！

Although most of the old buildings are destroyed during the war, you could still find traces of past in the Oude Haven, i.e. old port. Many historic ships with stained and spotted hulls were narrating the origin of the city silently. The old port is the place where history and modernity fully unite. The building white glazed bricks at the background is the ‘White House’ built between 1897 and 1898 in the Art Nouveau style. At that time, it was the tallest building in the Netherlands. Also it was the only building remaining in the Oude Haven after the bombardment of German air force. In comparison with the surrounding uniform modernity, it is indeed a unique existence.

尽管大部分老建筑在战争中被毁，但在老港口游客仍然可以追寻昔日的似水年华。许多船体斑驳历史悠久的船只都在默默讲述这座城市的古老历史。老港口也是历史与现代充分融合的地方。背景里这座白色琉璃砖的建筑是建于1897年至1898年间的新艺术风格的鹿特丹白宫。当时它是荷兰最高的建筑。它也是老港口德国空军轰炸后唯一剩下的建筑物。与周围一致的现代风格对比，它确实是那独一无二的存在。

The old port is a popular place for locals to meet and have a fun night life. There are so many bars and restaurants here with which the tourists will feel difficult to choose. I was sitting at the terrace of one of the restaurants at the waterside and enjoyed the panoramic view of the port. The ripples under the sunsets and the reflected shadows were so appealing.

旧港口是当地人聚会和享受美好夜生活的绝佳场所。这里遍地酒吧餐馆，游客自然会很难抉择。我此刻坐在水边一家餐厅的露台上，欣赏着港口的全景。夕阳下的涟漪，倒映的疏影，是如此动人令人回味。

Another building surviving in the second world war is this bridge called Regentesse. When you traverse the waterways in the Maritime District, you will notice this bridge which architecture style is obviously different with the surroundings. This bridge made of Granite, cast iron, and sandstone was built in 1898. At that time, Art Nouveau was booming and the architecture style would approach modernism gradually however it still kept some decorative elements of the past. For example, you could easily find the sculpture of a small dolphin on each pillar of the bridge. In addition, the candlesticks invested with copper and the four bronze lions impressed me as well. When I walked on the bridge and touched the historical balustrade, I felt that It was really a miracle that it could withstand the damage of bombs and live until today.

在第二次世界大战中幸存下来的另一座建筑是这座名为 Regentesse 的桥。当你横穿海事区的水路时，你会注意到这座建筑风格与周围截然不同的桥。这座由花岗岩、铸铁和砂岩制成的桥建于1898年。当时新艺术运动蓬勃发展，建筑风格也逐渐过渡到现代主义，但仍保留了一些历史上的装饰元素。例如你可以一眼发现在桥底的每根柱子上都有一只小海豚的雕塑。另外镀铜的烛台和四只青铜狮子也给我留下了深刻的印象。桥上凭栏而触，我不由得感叹这座桥能经受住炸弹的破坏坚挺到今日着实是一个奇迹。

Rotterdam’s modernism in architecture could be well reflected by some ‘bizarre’ and creative designs in the city center. When you pass by them occasionally, you will utter an ‘omg’ exclamation definitely. The yellow Cube Houses in the photo are one of the city’s most iconic attractions that impress the tourists all around the world. These cubes designed by architect Piet Blom are tilted 54.7 degrees and are optimized to create the available space. The design represents a village within a city, where each house represents a tree, and all the houses together, a forest. They are still the private houses. If you are really curious of its interior, you may explore the Show Cube Museum.

鹿特丹市中心的一些“奇异古怪”和创造性的建筑设计最能彰显它的现代主义。当你无意间邂逅它们之时，一定会不由地发出“omg”的感叹。照片中的黄色立方体房屋就是是这座城市最具标志性的景点之一，也给世界各地的游客留下了深刻的印象。这些由建筑师 Piet Blom 设计的立方体倾斜 54.7 度，并经过优化以创造更多的可用空间。这种设计代表了城市中的一个村庄，每个房子都象征一棵树，所有的立方体房子汇聚起来就代表了一片森林。它们仍是私人住宅，如果真的对它的内部结构感到好奇，您你可以参观展示立方体的博物馆。

Another striking building to be mentioned must be the Markthal or market hall. Look at its ostentatious appearance! It has a shiny steel façade covered with glass that makes it look like a huge mirror. The shape is designed like a tennis racket. You could hardly imagine that this huge building which size is 40 m high, 70 m wide and 120 m long is just a indoor market. It is similar to the San Miguel Market in Madrid but it is really too large with more than 100 stalls selling from fresh bread to delicious cheese, fish, vegetable and poultry and even flowers and plants. Tourists could taste the local foods here and experience the exciting local life.

另一位闪亮登场的建筑当属Markthal 市场大厅。就看看它那张扬浮夸的外表！它有一个闪亮的钢制立面，上面覆盖着玻璃，使它看起来像一面巨大的平面镜。它的总体形状设计得像网球拍。你很难想象这座高40米、宽70米、长120米的巨大建筑只是一个室内市场。它类似于马德里的圣米格尔市场，但它确实太庞大了，里面共计有 100 多个摊位，从新鲜面包到美味的奶酪、鱼、蔬菜和家禽，甚至花卉和植物，应有尽有。游客可以在这里品尝当地美食，体验当地精彩纷呈的生活。

The vaulted interior is covered by a large mural painting, consisting of many small glass mosaics. Its theme is cornucopia which represents a symbol of plenty consisting of a goat’s horn overflowing with flowers, fruit, and corn in the Greek mythology. This modern art work is designed by artists Arno Coenen and Iris Roskam. It shows colorful images of so many foods and fruits alongside flowers and insects. The enlarged images are composed by Pixar software and printed onto perforated aluminum panels.

市场的拱形内部覆盖着一幅巨型壁画，它由许多玻璃小马赛克组成。它的主题就是希腊神话中代表着丰盛象征的开满了鲜花、水果和玉米的山羊的角。这件现代艺术作品由艺术家 Arno Coenen 和 Iris Roskam 设计。它展示了许多色彩缤纷的食物和水果以及鲜花和昆虫的图像。这些放大的图像由 Pixar 软件合成并打印在穿孔铝板上。

Although Rotterdam is a modernized city, there are still a few historic buildings in the city center. The Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk is a Protestant church built between 1449 and 1525. It is the only remnant of the medieval city of Rotterdam. It’s close to the market hall, its high tower is easy to be identified. This church is a special symbol of Rotterdam’s history. In the Middle Ages, citizenship of Rotterdam could be purchased by contributing 3000 stones to the construction of the church tower. It also represents the resilience of Rotterdam’s people who rebuilt this city from the rubbles of the second World War.

鹿特丹虽是一座现代化城市，但市中心仍保留有几座历史建筑。圣劳伦斯克就是一座建于 1449 年至 1525 年之间的新教教堂。它是鹿特丹唯一的中世纪城市遗迹。它靠近市场大厅，代表性的高塔很容易识别。这座教堂在鹿特丹历史也具有特殊意义。中世纪的居民可以通过捐赠3000块石头建造教堂塔楼来获得鹿特丹的公民身份。同时它也象征了鹿特丹人民从第二次世界大战的废墟中重建这座城市坚强不屈的精神。

Behind the church it is a small square full of dense greenery. Dutch urban plan is really fantastic. Although it’s a populated country with limited land space, I could always find some lawns and trees in every corner of the city. It was a warm afternoon. Many people walked leisurely around this area.

教堂后面是一个小广场，满是茂密的绿色植物。荷兰的城市规划真是令人赞不绝口。虽然这是一个人口稠密的国家，土地空间有限，但我总能在城市的每个角落发现一些草坪和树木。那是一个温暖的下午。许多人这一带信步闲庭。

In this square I found this bronze statue dedicated to Desiderius Erasmus, the Dutch philosopher who is considered one of the greatest scholars of the northern Renaissance. He lived in the time of European religious Reformation in 16th century and promoted syncretism, involving the merging or assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion. His most notable work is ‘In Praise of Folly’ which attack on superstitions and on the Western Church satirically. This statue was designed by the Dutch sculptor Hendrick de Keyser in 17th century.

这个广场上还树立了这座纪念德西德里乌斯·伊拉斯谟的青铜雕像。这位荷兰哲学家被认为是北方文艺复兴时期最伟大的学者。他生活在 16 世纪欧洲宗教改革时期，提倡融合或同化几个原本离散的宗教神学传统的融合主义。他最著名的作品是“愚人颂”，讽刺地抨击了封建迷信和西方教会。这座雕像由荷兰雕塑家 Hendrick de Keyser 于 17 世纪设计。

In the city center, another old building surviving the second world war is the city hall of Rotterdam. It was built between 1914 and 1940 as per Queen Wilhelmina’s request. It has a symmetrical design like a French palace and is designed in a Renaissance style that is not the typical style of Dutch city halls. The most impressive part of the building is the 70-meter high tower including a clock, a bell, and an angel of peace at the top. Tourists could enter the court yard through the arch entrance and look at the surroundings.

在市中心，另一座在二战中幸存下来的老建筑是鹿特丹市政厅。它根据威廉女王的要求建于 1914 年至 1940 年间。它具有法国宫殿般的对称设计并采用文艺复兴风格，与荷兰典型的市政厅设计风格完全不同。这座建筑最令人印象深刻的就是70米高的塔楼，塔顶有一个大钟和一个代表和平的天使。游客可以通过拱门进入庭院参观。

Close to the city center, I passed by a small piece of park with ornate gardens by the water. Het park is designed in 1852 by Dutch architect Zocher who was inspired by the English country style. There are small small pavilions and BBQ spots here. It’s a perfect place for family having a outdoor party. The park is at the corner of the observation tower Euromast.

在老城区我顺路经过了一个装饰有华丽的花园的水畔公园。这座Het 公园由荷兰建筑师 Zocher 于 1852 年设计，他的灵感来源与英国乡村风格。这里遍布小亭子和烧烤点，适合家庭聚会。公园位于Euromast观景塔的脚下。

Euromast is a modernism tower with height of 184.6 meters. It used to be the highest building of the Netherlands. Tourists could take lifts to the top of the tower and enjoy the panoramic view of Rotterdam. All the landscapes of row-upon-row skyscrapers, slender Erasmus bridge, scenic Het park, gushing Mass river are within my eyes. Indeed, from aerial view of city’s skyline, all the buildings no matter near or faraway are so modern!

Euromast 是一座高度为 184.6 米现代风格的观景塔。它曾是荷兰最高的建筑。游客可以乘电梯到塔顶，欣赏鹿特丹的全景。鳞次栉比的摩天大楼、修长的伊拉斯谟大桥、风景秀丽的Het公园、川流不息的马斯河，一切尽在我眼前。居高临下鸟瞰城市的天际线，所有的建筑无论远近都是如此现代！

I have spent one day in Rotterdam. Before I left the city, I remembered one more charming layout of this city is the canal lined with lawns on each side. The Westersingel is located near the Central Station and it’s a short canal decorated with old trees and vegetations. I could enjoy the view of modernism sculptures along this pretty canal and walk all the way towards the train station. During the second half of the nineteenth century, the city became overpopulated and the environment was unhealthy to live in. The Westersingel canal was dug as part of a water project in order to improve the quality of the surface water in the city. This was an effective way of tackling deadly diseases such as cholera.

我在鹿特丹度过了美好一天。在临行之际想起这座城市的另一个温馨的城市布局就是两旁种满了草坪的运河。Westersingel运河位于中央火车站附近，是一条用古树和植被装饰的小运河。我沿着这条美丽的运河一路欣赏现代主义雕塑直达火车站。在 19 世纪下半叶，鹿特丹人口过剩，居住环境不佳。为了改善城市地表水的质量，市政府进行了Westersingel 运河的挖掘工作并作为供水项目的一部分。这同时也是应对霍乱等靠脏水传染的致命疾病的有效方法。

At the end of the Westersingel canal, it’s the central station of Rotterdam under feet of high-rises and it’s the time to say goodbye to this lovely city. Compared with the black-and-white photos taken 100 years ago, all the things, buildings, and landscapes have experienced a total metamorphosis except the big clock on the front façade and the letters ‘Centraal Station’. Indeed, war had inflicted pains and damages on the old city but also gave a rebirth to the vibrant new city. The modern Rotterdam is like a volant phoenix, reviving from burnt ashes.

在 Westersingel 运河的尽头，高楼大厦脚下就是鹿特丹的中央车站，是时候与这座可爱的城市道别了。与100年前的黑白照片相比，除了正立面的大钟和“中央车站”字样外，所有的事物、背景建筑和景观都发生了彻底的蜕变。战争无疑给这座老城带来了巨大的痛苦和毁灭，但也让充满活力的新城就此重建。现代鹿特丹就像一只展翅欲飞的凤凰，涅槃重生。

Idyllic landscape in Kinderdijk

April 20, 2022April 22, 2022Posted in Netherlands, TravelTagged Travel, Windmill, World heritage siteLeave a comment

小孩堤防的田园风光

For the love of princess

Before I visit Europe, in my mind, Netherlands is a distant country at the other end of the continent which is famous of tulip and windmill. I never imagine that one day I will have a chance to visit this wonder land like Alice visiting the world that exists in the imagination. Netherlands also means ‘lower country’ due to to its low elevation. Only about half of its land is above sea level. Canal and wetland spread over the whole country and this forms an unique idyllic landscape that you can not find in other places.

游历欧洲之前，在我的脑海里，荷兰是一个以郁金香和风车闻名，位于欧亚大陆的另一端异常遥远的国家。我从未想过居然有一天我会像爱丽丝一样踏足这片神奇的土地，这片曾经只存在于想象中的世界。由于海拔过低，荷兰字面意思就是“低地国家”。它只有大约一半的土地高于海平面。运河和湿地遍布全国，形成了异域独特的田园风光。

In September 2020, after I finished the trip in Brussels, I took the train towards Netherlands directly. My first stop is Dordrecht. It is a small city near Rotterdam. Actually urbanization in Netherlands has reached a high extent so there is not too much difference between city and rural area. The most common scene in the city of Netherlands is the interleaving of canals flowing through many small bridges.

2020年9月，结束布鲁塞尔之旅后，我坐火车直抵荷兰。第一站便是多德雷赫特。这是鹿特丹附近的一个小城市。实际上荷兰的城市化程度很高，因此城市和农村之间没有太大的区别。荷兰城市最常见的景观就是运河交错，小桥流水。

I got off the train at the station of Dordrecht in this cool morning as it is the nearest place towards my dreamed destination Kinderdijk. This is my first time of visiting Netherlands so I was curious of every thing here. I didn’t stay a long time in Dordrecht but I still tried record what I had seen in my camera. There are not many high rise buildings in this city and most of the mansions and resident house look quite modern and new.

这个凉爽的早晨我在多德雷赫特站下车，这是离我梦中的目的地小孩堤防最近的城市。这也是我人生第一次探寻荷兰，故此对这里的一草一木都很好奇。我在多德雷赫特没未逗留很久，但仍然在相机中记下我的所见所闻。这座城市的高层建筑匮乏，大部分的宅邸和民居感官上都崭新现代。

Next in a short while, I took the direct bus from Dordrecht to Kinderdijk and began this fantastic trip. The name Kinderdijk in Dutch stands for “Children dike”. The windmills of Kinderdijk are one of the best-known Dutch tourist sites. Tourists could rent boats to visit this village. It has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997 since it represents the Dutch outstanding technology of handling water. From far away, their silhouettes against the sun light are really amazing, like the giants waving lance in the novel of Don Quixote.

顷刻之间我便乘坐从多德雷赫特到小孩堤防的直达巴士开启这段神奇之旅。 Kinderdijk 这个名字在荷兰语中意思就是“小孩堤坝”。小孩堤防的风车是荷兰最著名的旅游景点。游客可以租船游览整个村庄。它代表了荷兰人民高超的水处理技术，并于 1997 年被列为联合国教科文组织世界遗产。远远望去，在阳光照映下的风车身影真是令人陶醉，他们就像堂吉诃德小说中挥舞长矛的巨人一般。

Kinderdijk is a fascinating village with rural landscape of a total of nineteen 18th-century windmills. These ‘giants’ dancing in the wind are always the icon of Netherlands. These windmills are built to pump excess water into a reservoir from the polder and pump water from the reservoir into river when water level is low. Polder is a piece of low-lying land reclaimed from the sea. Its level will be below the surrounding water level in the long run due to the ground subsidence. As a result, it is a priority for Dutch people to get rid of water from the polder. Even today, this complex system composed of windmills, dykes, reservoirs, pumping stations are still used.

小孩堤防是一个迷人的村庄，共有 19 座 18 世纪建造的风车。这些风中舞动的巨人一直是荷兰的标志。风车的建造是为了将多余的水从圩田泵入水库，并在水位低时将水从水库引入河流。圩田是一片从海中开垦的低洼土地。由于地面沉降，长期以来它的水位将低于周围。因此荷兰当地人的首要任务就是清除圩田中的积水。时至今日，这个由风车、堤坝、水库、泵站组成的一体系统仍在启用。

Among the 19 windmills, two of them are built as museum and open for visit. This Nederwaard Museum in the center of this photo was a wooden windmill built in 1738. If you observe closely, you could find the word ‘Anno 1738’ on the white plaque of the mill. You’ll feel like a time-traveler when you enter through the ancient small wooden gate and stare at those remaining black-and-white photos and items used by real miller families. In the creak of the antiquated wheel axis, everything here breathes the atmosphere of ages past.

19座风车中，有两座被建成博物馆，对外开放参观。这张照片中央的这座内德瓦德博物馆是一座建于 1738 年的木制风车。如果仔细观察，可以在磨坊的白色牌匾上发现“Anno 1738”字样（纪元1738）。从历尽沧桑的木制小门进入博物馆，凝视那些当年生活在此的家庭遗留下来的黑白照片和物品时，人们就会感觉自己如同一个穿越者一般。在陈旧的轮轴的咯吱声中，这里的一切都弥漫着古老的历史气息。

Kinderdijk is situated in the Alblasserwaard polder at the south side of the river Lek. There is a visiting center at the entrance of the village. I walked along the canal from the entrance towards south. There is no need to buy any tickets if visitors just walk on the footpath at the both banks of the canal. 19 windmills are distributed evenly southwards. The distance between each windmill is quite large so I could just take picture with only one of them. Now I was standing at one small pier. It’s like a platform protruding from the path and is suitable for taking a perfect picture.

小孩堤防位于Lek 河南侧的 Alblasserwaard 圩田。村口便是游客中心。我从入口沿着运河一路向南。如果游客只是在运河两岸的人行便道上行走，无需购买任何门票。19座风车向南均匀分布。每个风车之间跨距甚远，无奈只能和它们的一员同框合影。此刻我站在一个小码头上。它就像一个从小径伸出的平台，适合拍摄一幅完美的照片。

On the way, I met a group of local people riding bicycles. Unlike other countries, cycling is a very common mode of transport in the Netherlands. Dutch have built a vast network of cycle paths even in the villages around the country. In Kinderdijk, there are some small bridges connecting both banks. They are convenient for the bicycle riders and me as well to cross the canal.

途中偶遇了一群骑自行车的当地人。与其他国家不同，自行车在荷兰是一种非常普遍的交通方式。荷兰人甚至在全国各地的村庄都建立了庞大的自行车道网络。在小孩堤防，有一些小桥连接两岸方便骑手和步行的我穿越运河。

The wide footpath is paved by bitumen flatly. It is well designed for both cyclists and pedestrians. On the road sides, reeds are planted and grow in exuberance. Here is a world away from the hubbub of city life and everything is so refreshing. The weather in Netherlands is not so good compared to the sunny Mediterranean coast. It has a typically moderate marine climate so in September, it is usually rainy everyday. I was fortune enough to see blue sky over this land on the day of my trip.

宽阔的人行道由平坦的沥青铺成。它专为自行车骑手和行人而设计。路边种满了枝繁叶茂的芦苇。此处是一个远离城市喧嚣的世界，眼前一切都是令人耳目一新。不过与阳光明媚的地中海沿岸相比，荷兰的天气实在不敢恭维。它是典型的温带海洋气候，在 9 月整月，通常都是阴雨连绵。我十分庆幸在旅行当天能够目睹这片土地上的蓝天白云。

Dutch culture is closely interwoven with the water. It is easy to find small rivers or canals or ponds in the country. The local people like to walk at the riverside or shuttle back and forth in the canals on small boat. This kind of landscape is extremely close to the southeast of China at the side of Yangtze river. At the start of Autumn, numerous dead reed leaves fall all over the sandbar, and the shallow cold water flows and hits the bank silently.

荷兰文化与水息息相关。在该国小河流或运河或池塘无处不在。当地人喜欢在河边散步或乘坐小船在运河中穿梭。这别样的风光似乎有一种似曾相识的感觉。没错秋天伊始，芦叶满汀洲，寒沙带浅流，这正是落花时节的江南好风景啊！

Netherlands will give people an impression of a country with green, flat landscapes and grazing cows. Of course when I stepped on this land, I would know that such a porotype impression is 100% true. In the south of Kinderdijk, there is a large area of meadow where hundreds of cows live in. Cows do not like soggy meadows so it’s important to exclude the extra water and keep the meadow dry. The cows in Netherlands has a more free and better life as well. Based on statistic, 71 percent of Dutch dairy cows were allowed to graze in the meadow. They are fed by grass of high quality in this land. Holstein Friesians is one famous breed of dairy cattle that originates in Netherlands.

荷兰给人的第一印象一般是一个绿意盎然、风吹草低见牛羊的国家。当我真正踏上这片土地时，我就发现这样的田园风光绝对是真实的。在小孩堤防的南部，有一大片草地, 数百头奶牛在这里生活繁衍。奶牛不喜欢潮湿的草地，排除多余的水并保持草地干燥就显得格外重要。当然荷兰的奶牛也拥有更自由、更美好的生活。据统计，71% 的荷兰奶牛都是放牧而生，它们以这片土地上的优质草料为食。Holstein Friesians就是一种起源于荷兰著名的奶牛品种。

I definitely believe Kinderdijk is an heaven for animals. Many pieces of lands are reclaimed from the sea and lined out for raising livestock. One horse family was browsing on the meadow silently beside the sluiceway. Their territory is separated by the fences so that no one will disrupt their peaceful life. I like the idyllic landscape here. Every creatures could live well in harmony.

我绝对相信小孩堤防就是是动物的天堂。这里许多土地从海中开垦出来，用于饲养牲畜。照片里马儿一家在水闸旁的草地上静静地觅食。他们的领地被栅栏隔开，没有人会干扰他们平静的生活。我尤其倾心这里的田园风光，各种生物都可以和谐相处。

I gave a close-up shot to one of the horses browsing grass. Horse is one of my favorite animals because my Chinese zodiac belongs to horse. I believe that horses will bring luck to me but I did not have chance to observe closely at them before. It’s possible that this horse is the breed of The Dutch Warmblood. It is an athletic breed of competition horse with better stamina and courage.

我特意给其中一匹正在安静吃草的马拍了一张特写。马是我最喜欢的动物之一，我的十二生肖就是马。我也相信马会给我带来好运，不过以前却没有机会仔细观察它们。这匹马可能是荷兰温血马的品种。它是一种运动型的跑马，具有较好的耐力和勇气。

I took around 2 hours to finish my trip in the country side of Kinderdijk. I seemed to gain endless energy from this magic land. Followingly, I walked around their residence area in Alblasserdam without any rest. The rural areas of Netherlands including their houses and streets really impressed me. These small canals which surfaces are interspersed with water lily pads extend to every corner of the neighborhoods. Small mansions with span-new walls and windows are lined up neatly along both banks.

大约 2 个小时在小孩堤防乡村的旅行戛然而止。而我似乎从这片神奇的土地上获得了无尽的能量。随后无需任何休息，我又在位于Alblasserdam的居住区周围四处漫步。荷兰的乡村包括他们的房屋和街道均给我留下了深刻的印象。这些水面散布着睡莲的小运河蜿蜒延伸到社区的每个角落。两岸一字排开的小宅邸，它们的墙壁和窗户都如此焕然一新。

The urban landscaping in the community is fantastic. There are always many trees, meadows, and water ponds. I love the cozy environment here. Under the umbrage of willows, I could tranquilly observe the ripples on the water, the frolics of swans, and overhear the whispers of the wind.

社区的景观绿化也异常完善包括许多树木、草地和水塘。这里舒适的环境令我由衷赞叹。在柳树的树荫下，我静静地观察水面的涟漪，天鹅的嬉戏，并且聆听风的低语。

In the afternoon, I bade farewell to the windmills in Kinderdijk and headed towards my next destination Rotterdam. The public transport system in Netherlands is really convenient. Boat or called water bus is one main mode of transportation is well. In the water bus station Alblasserdam, travelers could take the waterbus No.20 towards Rotterdam Erasmusbrug. In Netherlands, you just need to buy one OV chipcard then you can go anywhere with just one card. It covers all the public transport like metro, bus, ferry, water bus and even train.

午后我告别了小孩堤防的风车，前往下一个目的地鹿特丹。荷兰的公共交通系统绝对方便。船或称为水上巴士是也一种主要的交通方式。在水上巴士站 Alblasserdam，旅客可以乘坐 20 号水上巴士前往鹿特丹 Erasmusbrug站。在荷兰游客只需购买一张 OV 芯片卡就可以去任何地方。它涵盖了所有公共交通工具，如地铁、公共汽车、渡轮、水上巴士甚至火车。

Lastly I would like to highlight that Kinderdijk is a really fantastic and worthy place to see the beautiful landscape of windmills but it is not the only one. Zaanse Schans is also one recommended place to see the similar scenery. As for which one is better, I could not make comments easily. It depends on your personal experience when you explore them by yourselves in reality. After that definitely like Alice you will find a new world that only existed in your dream before.

最后寄语，小孩堤防是一个非常值得旅游的地方，那里有美不胜收的风车风景，但它不是唯一参观风车的地方。桑斯安斯风车村也是观赏类似风景的推荐地点之一。至于哪个更好，我不能妄下结论。也许当你真正自己去探索它们时，才会有一些自己的观点。不过肯定的是，探寻之后你会像爱丽丝一样发现一个以前只存在于你梦中的新世界。

The summer trip in the capital of Europe

March 30, 2022December 13, 2024Posted in Belgium, TravelTagged Belgium, Travel, Victor Horta, World heritage siteLeave a comment

欧盟之都夏日行

Brussels is the capital of European union and it is the first stop of my graduation trip in Low countries in September 2020. This was my first time of visiting Belgium and I had quite a high expectation of it. I took Flix Bus from Lille and it took around 1.5 hour to arrive at the city center of Brussel. When I was a child, I knew the legend story of the ‘Peeing Boy’. This time on my way, I really could not hold up the excitement in my heart.

布鲁塞尔是欧盟的首都，它也是我在低地国2020年9月毕业之旅的第一站。这是我第一次来比利时旅游，故此抱有很高的期待。我从里尔乘坐 Flix巴士，大约 1.5 小时抵达布鲁塞尔市中心。在我的孩提时代，我就知晓“撒尿小孩”的传奇故事。路途上我便难以抑制心中的激动心情。

Brussel is famous of its architecture art. When I walked around the central boulevards, I took notice of its buildings which were somewhat similar of Paris. The first one is the former Brussels Stock Exchange building built in 1873. It combines the neo-Renaissance and Second Empire architectural styles. The Ionic column and entablature decorated with bas-relief is always my favorite. There is one interesting point: the two monumental lion sculptures on each side of the main entrance’s staircase represent the two stock market trends “bull and bear”.

布鲁塞尔以其建筑艺术而闻名。当我在中央林荫大道上来回穿梭时，便感觉到它的建筑与巴黎的相似处。我所见的第一眼是建于1873年的前布鲁塞尔证券交易所大楼。它结合了新文艺复兴和第二帝国的建筑风格。艾奥尼亚柱和浅浮雕装饰的柱顶一直是我的最爱。有一处很有意思：正门楼梯两边的两尊巨大的狮子雕塑代表了股市中的牛市和熊市。

In each city of Belgium, the unique city square in the city center justifies the aesthetic wealth and highly successful blending of architectural and artistic styles that characterizes the culture and society of Low countries. The square in Brussel called Grand place has been a marketplace since the 12th century. It is an enclosed area and surrounded by guild houses and market halls, which are still mostly built of wood. It is highly recommended to have a drink at the cafeteria in the square and admire the splendid beauty at the same time. The square has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998.

比利时的每个城市中心独特的广场彰显了低地国家文化以及建筑美学和艺术风格的高度成功融合。布鲁塞尔的广场被称为大广场，自 12 世纪以来一直是城市的集市。这里是一个封闭的区域，周围环绕着中世纪公会房屋和市场大厅，大多是用木头建造的。强烈建议在广场的咖啡厅小酌一杯，欣赏四周华丽的风景。该广场于 1998 年被联合国教科文组织列为世界遗产。

It is a cobbled rectangular market square, surrounded by Baroque guildhalls in the west and the city’s Town Hall in the south, and the Brussels City Museum in the north. In this picture, the neo-Gothic building with steep-sloping roof and spires is the King’s House in 1860 which houses the Brussels City Museum. It collects paintings, sculptures, and tapestries from medieval times. It is called the King’s house because the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V was crowned King of Spain in 1516. This building has a neoclassical arched portal and is decorated with the baroque style’s small elliptical oeil-de-boeuf windows. Many green-colored bronze statues are easy to be identified and have a stark contrast with the grey color of the main body.

它是一个鹅卵石铺就的长方形集市广场，西边是巴洛克风格的工会大厅，南边是城市的市政厅，北边是布鲁塞尔市博物馆。在这张照片中，装饰有陡峭屋顶和尖顶的新哥特式建筑是 1860 年的国王居所，里面是布鲁塞尔市博物馆。它收集了中世纪的绘画、雕塑和挂毯。因为神圣罗马帝国皇帝查理五世于 1516 年加冕为西班牙国王，所以被称为国王之家。这座建筑有一个新古典主义风格的拱形门户，并装饰着巴洛克风格的小椭圆法式天窗。许多绿色青铜雕像清晰可见，与主体的灰色形成鲜明对比。

This square is called the ‘Grand place’ but obviously it is not so large. At this moment, I was standing in the center of the square on the historical stone-paved ground. Usually this place is extremely crowded however during this special period of coronavirus, most tourists are forbidden to coming Europe and I seemed to be the only one existence here. Behind me, a number of guildhalls and a few private houses are reconstructed after the bombardment of 1695. Their stylish golden facades with their rich sculptural decoration including pilasters and balustrades and lavishly designed gables are based on my favorite Italian Baroque with some Flemish influences. I enjoyed the special feeling of standing or sitting in squares and looking around the old buildings like I have done it before in Venice, Paris, Florence etc. Feeling the culture of the city is the meaning of travel.

这个广场被称为“大广场”，但显然它并没有那么宏大。此刻，我站在广场中心历史悠久的石板地上。通常这个地方人潮涌动，但是在这个特殊的新冠时期，大多数游客被禁止进入欧洲，我似乎成为这里独一无二的存在。在我身后，这些工会大厅和私人住宅在 1695 年的轰炸后重建。它们时尚的金色外墙以及丰富的雕塑装饰，包括壁柱和栏杆以及设计奢华的山墙均是我最喜欢的在佛朗德地区影响下的意大利巴洛克风格。我喜欢在威尼斯、巴黎、佛罗伦萨等地静静地坐在广场上环顾老建筑的特殊感觉。感受城市的文化韵味是才是旅行的意义。

The tallest building in the square is the town hall which was built between 1401 and 1455. It is very large building and is difficult to take the picture of its whole appearance. I tried to zoom in and record the numerous small statues on the façade clearly in my camera. These statues represent the local nobility and saints. The most spectacular thing is the 96 meters tall tower and is capped by a 2.7 meters statue of Saint Michael slaying a demon. Saint Michael is the patron saint of the city.

广场上最高的建筑是建于1401年至1455年之间的市政厅。这是一座非常庞大的建筑，很难拍下它的整体外观。我试着将镜头放大，把立面上无数的小雕像清晰地记录在我的相机里。这些雕像代表了当地的贵族和圣徒。最壮观的是96米高的塔楼，塔顶是2.7米高的圣迈克屠魔雕像，圣迈克也是这座城市的守护神。

When I was in the square, I was so busy in scrutinizing the every details of the buildings of different styles that I felt only two eyes were not enough for me. On the eastern side of the square, it’s one building close to French style, the House of the Dukes of Brabant. It is actually a set of seven guild-houses combined behind the same monumental façade and named after the nineteen busts of dukes of Brabant on the facade’s pilasters. It currently houses a restaurant and the square’s only hotel. Visitors could find the golden seals of the merchant trades that worked here centuries ago so it represents “Recovery of Trade and Industry.”

在广场上我忙于审视不同风格的建筑的每一个细节，顿时有种目不暇接的感觉。在广场的东侧，是一座接近法式风格的建筑——布拉班特公爵府。它实际上是一组由七个公会房屋组成的合体，位于同一巨大的立面后面，并以正立面壁柱上的 19 尊布拉班特公爵半身像命名。它目前设有一家餐厅和广场上唯一的旅馆。游客可以在这里找到几个世纪前在此间忙碌的商贸协会的金印，这些建筑也代表着“贸易和工业的复苏”。

In the south east corner of the square, there is a block of houses named in French. The house with a golden statue of a rider mounting on a horse is named of L’arbre d’or which means the tree of gold. It is House of the Corporation of Brewers dated from 1698 and is now converted into a brewery museum. Another houses at the right side of the L’arbre d’or is named of Le Cygne which is a romantic name, means swan. However, in the history of 17th century, it was the House of the Corporation of Butchers. It is very famous because Karl Marx wrote the Manifesto of the Communist Party in this house.

在广场的东南角，有一栋皆是法语名的房屋。这座装饰着一尊骑在马上的骑手的金色雕像的房子法语叫做 L’arbre d’or ，意思是金树。它是 1698 年的啤酒公司，现在改建为啤酒博物馆。 L’arbre d’or 右侧的另一座房子名曰Le Cygne，这是一个浪漫的名字，意思是天鹅。然而，在 17 世纪时期它是屠夫公司。它在历史上大名鼎鼎，卡尔马克思曾在这座房子里撰写了共产党宣言。

The house at the rightest side is the Maison de l’Étoile which means the house of the star. At the archway of this houses towards the square, the monument of Everard t’Serclaes can be found on its wall. It was created in memory of Everard t’Serclaes, a Belgian hero, who led the local people dispelling the Flemish troops out of the city. He breathed his last breath and died in the Maison de l’Étoile. It is said that touching the hand of his statue brings good luck and health so don’t miss it when you visit Brussel.

上图最右边的房子是 Maison de l’Étoile，意思是星辰居。在这栋房屋通往广场的拱门处，可以在墙上发现 Everard t’Serclaes 的纪念碑。它是为了纪念英雄 Everard t’Serclaes 带领当地人民将佛兰德军队驱赶出城市。他生前最后的弥留时刻就是在星辰居。据说触摸他的雕像的手会带来好运和健康，所以访问布鲁塞尔时一定不要错过它。

Brussel is good place of shopping as well. In the city center, there is one shopping arcades which is similar to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan. The Galleries Royal is a long gallery of two upper floors designed by Belgian architect Jean-Pierre Cluysenaer, and established in 1846 as a fashionable place for shopping and chocolate tasting. Belgium is very famous for its chocolate so around this area you can find many stores of the most prestigious Belgian chocolate brands for example Pierre Marcolini.

布鲁塞尔也是一个购物天堂。在市中心，有一个类似于米兰维多利亚长廊的购物商场。这个皇家画廊是由比利时建筑师让-皮埃尔·克鲁伊森纳设计的两层长廊，建于 1846 年，是游客购物和品尝巧克力的绝佳场所。比利时以其巧克力而闻名天下，畅游此地遍寻例如 Pierre Marcolini等众多负有盛名的比利时巧克力品牌。

Here is the end of the gallery. We can find many Italian Renaissance architecture elements here, for example, the utilization of columns, pilasters, and entablatures as an integrated system. It has one arched glass-paned roof which allows sufficient sunlight coming in.

这是画廊的尽头洋溢着众多意大利文艺复兴时期的建筑元素，例如柱子、壁柱和柱顶等系统的使用。它还拥有一个拱形的玻璃屋顶，让充分的阳光照射进来。

There are so many architecture master pieces in Brussels. However, when we talk about this city, the first impression will be this famous statue called Manneken Pis which means little pissing man. It is a naked little boy urinating into the fountain’s basin. The statue was designed by the sculptor Jérôme Duquesnoy and put in place in 1618. The Manneken Pis is located in the corner of one street, just a stone’s throw away from the Grand Place. It originates from the legend in the 14th century. Brussels was under siege by a foreign army who conceived of a plan to place explosive charges at the city walls. A little boy named Julianske happened to discover the plot. He urinated on the burning fuse and thus saved the city. Manneken Pis is dressed in different costumes and changed several times each week. It is an unique feature of this city. Honestly saying, at the first glance, I was a bit disappointed because the statue was too small and always surrounded by tourists…

布鲁塞尔有众多建筑杰作。然而，当我们谈论这座城市时，第一印象一定是这座名为 Manneken Pis 的雕像，即撒尿小童。小男孩肆无忌惮在喷泉的水池里小便的雕像由雕塑家 Jérôme Duquesnoy 设计，并于 1618 年安置在这里。撒尿小童位于一条街道的拐角处，距离大广场仅一箭之遥。它起源于14世纪的传说。当时布鲁塞尔遭到外国军队的围攻，他们策划在城墙上放置炸药的阴谋。也许上天有眼一个名叫朱利安斯克的小男孩碰巧发现这一切。他迅速在燃烧的导火索上小便，从而拯救了这座城市。如今撒尿小童身着不同的服装，每周都会更换几次。这也成为了这座城市的独特之处。不过乍一看，确实有点令人失望，这座雕像实在太小了，而且总是被趋之若鹜的游客围个里三层外三层……

After several hours’ walk, I decided to find a place to fill my stomach. This restaurant is called Nooedzee, Mer du Nord is a bit different with the usual ones. It has a very large blue name plaque with a symbol of fish on it so people will think that it is fish shop. All the tables are outside the store maybe because of coronavirus. Their menu is written in French on the blackboard by hands. People just order at the counter and tell them your names. Then the food is served based on your names. I tasted the fish soup with cheese, oyster with lemon and fried cod which is suggested by the staff. The food ingredient is extremely fresh but the amount is too small. Anyway this is my first taste in Belgium and it’s always imporatnt to keep a good mood..

几个时辰的奔波后，我决定找个地方大快朵颐一番。这家名为Nooedzee, Mer du Nord的海鲜餐厅与通常的海鲜餐厅有些不同。它有一个很大的蓝色牌匾，上面有一个巨大的鱼的标志，路人们也许会误判它为鱼店。可能因为新冠疫情它所有的桌子都陈列在餐厅外面。他们的菜单是用法语手写在黑板上的。人们只是在柜台订购并告知店员你的名字。然后根据姓名上菜。我品尝了工作人员推荐的搭配奶酪的鱼汤、牡蛎和炸鳕鱼。这里的食材确实非常新鲜，不过分量略少。不管怎么，这是我在比利时的第一次的品尝, 保持好的心情才是最重要的。

In every city of Europe, there are many squares with hundred years history. You don’t need to look for them intentionally. When you pass by them occasionally, you will be amazed by their elegances. The Place des Martyrs is a historic square which name represents the martyrs of the September days of the Belgian Revolution of 1830. It symbolizes the sacrifice of 466 persons who died in the fights of September 1830 for the independence of Belgium from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. This neoclassical square was designed in 1773. It is paved by cobble stone. Walking around the square, I could discover some monuments memorizing the heroes of Belgium.

在欧洲的每个城市，都有众多具有百年历史的广场。无需刻意探寻也许当你偶遇之时，就会被这种优雅而折服。这座烈士广场也是一个历史悠久的广场，其名代表着1830 年比利时九月革命的烈士。它象征着 466 名在 1830 年 9 月为比利时脱离荷兰独立而战死的烈士。这座新古典主义的广场最早设计于 1773 年，由鹅卵石铺成。走在广场上，可以看到许多纪念比利时英雄的纪念碑。

Next, I was travelling along one street called Royale Street. There are many historical buildings relating to the creation of Belgium Kingdom and the royal family on this street. The first one is this high rising column that looks like Trajan’s Column in Rome. It commemorates the creation of the Belgian Constitution by the National Congress of 1830. It was erected between 1850 and 1859 according to a design by Joseph Poelaert. At the top of the column is a statue of Belgium’s first king Leopold I and at its base, the pedestal is surrounded by bronze statues personifying the four freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution including freedom of education, association, worship, and press. The tomb of the Unknown Soldier with an eternal flame lies at its foot. Brussel is the capital of Belgium so there will be some landmarks relating to government.

接下来，我沿着名曰皇家大街的主干道继续我的旅行。这条街上有许多与比利时王国以及王室建立有关的历史建筑。第一个便是这个神似罗马图拉真之柱的高耸的大立柱。它是为了纪念 1830 年国民议会制定的比利时宪法。它是根据约瑟夫·波拉尔特的设计于 1850 年至 1859 年之间竖立于此。柱子顶部是比利时第一任国王利奥波德一世的雕像，基座周围环绕着青铜雕像，体现了基本宪法保障的教育、结社、宗教和言论等四项自由。燃烧着长明火焰的无名战士墓就在它的脚下。布鲁塞尔是比利时的首都，故此拥有大量与政府有关的地标。

Neoclassical architecture is very popular in Belgium during the period of Austrian occupation in the mid-18th century and existed through periods of French and Dutch occupation, until the birth of Independent Belgium. This royal square is a typic neoclassical architecture and built between 1775 and 1782. The Governor of the Austrian Netherlands, Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine proposed to build it like the Place Stanislas in Nancy so its design follows the Place Stanislas with a statue in the center of the rectangular and symmetrical square surrounded by pavilions in the corner. The statue represents Godfrey of Bouillon the leader of the First Crusade waving the standard.

新古典主义建筑在 18 世纪中叶奥地利占领时期的比利时非常流行，并同时存在于法国和荷兰占领时期。这座皇家广场是一座典型的新古典主义建筑，建于 1775 年至 1782 年之间。奥属荷兰总督洛林的查尔斯·亚历山大王子提议将其依照南锡的斯坦尼斯拉斯广场一样建造。因此其设计完全沿用了斯坦尼斯拉斯广场的理念，在对称的正方形的广场中央有一尊雕像，四角楼阁环抱。雕像代表第一次十字军东征的领袖戈弗雷挥舞着胜利旗帜。

During the period of constructing the Royal square, Brussels Park is another part of the urban project as well. It is formerly known as the Royal Park because it lies on the site of the gardens of the former Palace of Coudenberg. This entrance is directly opposite to the Royal Palace of Brussels. It has a monumental fountain.

在建造皇家广场期间，布鲁塞尔公园也是城市项目的另一部分。它以前被称为皇家公园，位于前库登堡宫花园的遗址上。这个公园入口就在布鲁塞尔皇宫的正对面，有一个巨大的标志性喷泉。

The royal palace of Brussels is just in the south of royal square. This area is the location of old Coudenberg Palace, a very old palatial that dated back to the Middle Ages but was ruined in a fire. The new palace is built on its original site. It is the official palace of the King and Queen of the Belgians and houses the services of the Grand Marshal of the Court, the King’s Head of Cabinet, the Head of the King’s Military Household and the Intendant of the King’s Civil List. The Palace is also the location of receptions of foreign Heads of State during official visits. However the king and his family don’t live here. Their residence is in the Royal Palace of Laeken in northern Brussels.

布鲁塞尔王宫就位于皇家广场的南面。这个地区是旧库登堡宫的所在地，这是一座非常古老可以追溯到中世纪的宫殿，但在一场大火中被毁。新宫殿建在原址上。它是比利时国王和王后的官方所在地，同时也是法院内阁首脑、皇家军事首脑和文职大臣的工作场所。布鲁塞尔王宫也是接待外国国家元首的官方地点。然而，国王和他的家眷却不住在这里。他们的私人住所位于布鲁塞尔北部郊区的拉肯皇宫。

This building has an impressive façade. Its main color is gray with classical decoration and its style especially the flat roof really looks like a French building. The entrance of the palace is free and it’s worth of visiting it that records the history of Belgium. I enjoyed the cozy environment in this area. There are many open spaces. I could walk around freely and take the pictures in the preferred angle.

这座建筑的外观令人印象深刻。它的主色调为灰色，古典的装饰风格。特别是平铺的屋顶感官上极其接近法式建筑。参观宫殿的是免费的，这座记录比利时历史的宫殿值得一游。我很中意这片区域的舒适环境。放眼望去有诸多空地可以自由走动并以喜欢的角度进行拍摄。

**The Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium**

In this old royal district, there are many museums. The most representative one is the Royal Museums of Fine Arts. It collects over 20,000 drawings, sculptures, and paintings, which date from the early 15th century to the present. The museum was founded in 1801 by Napoleon Bonaparte. On its façade, 4 sculptures of figures atop the four main piers represent 4 forms of arts: Music, Architecture, Sculpture, and Painting. The three rondels represent the greatest Belgian artist at that time: Rubens, Van Ruysbroek, and Jean de Bologne.

这片曾经的皇家区域还包括众多博物馆。最具代表性的是皇家美术博物馆。它收集了从 15 世纪初至今的 20,000 多幅素描、雕塑和绘画作品。该博物馆由拿破仑于 1801 年创立。在正立面上的顶上4 个人物雕塑代表了 4 种艺术形式：音乐、建筑、雕塑和绘画。这三个圆盘浮雕代表了当时最伟大的比利时艺术家鲁本斯、范鲁斯布鲁克和博洛尼亚的让。

The museum is famous of collection of Early Netherlandish painting. This is one of the Netherlandish master piece drawn by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. The theme of this painting derives from one famous Greek mythology. In the story, Icarus flies with wings made by his father Daedalus who uses feathers secured with beeswax. However he ignores his father’s warnings and flies too close to the sun, melting the wax, and falls into the sea and drowns. In this picture, his legs can be seen in the water just below the ship.

这个博物馆以收藏早期荷兰绘画而闻名。这是荷兰画家老彼得·勃鲁盖尔绘制的杰作坠落的伊卡洛斯。这幅画的主题来源于一个著名的希腊神话。在故事中，伊卡洛斯用他的父亲代达罗斯制作的翅膀飞翔，代达罗斯用蜂蜡固定的羽毛。然而他无视父亲的警告，飞得靠近太阳，从而融化了蜡掉进了海水里淹死了。在这张名画中，可以看到他坠落之后的腿掉入船下方的水中。

When I continued to walk along the Royal street, I passed by one small garden and took a short break inside it. Opposite the garden, there is one cathedral called the Church of Our Blessed Lady of the Sablon. It was built in the 15th century with a Brabantine Gothic exterior and two Baroque chapels. Numerous small turrets and pinnacles make it different with other churches. In Europe, there are so many churches so most of time tourists could only pass by and leave a glimpse on them.

继续沿着皇家大道前行，途中路过一个小花园，顺便稍作休息。花园对面是一座名为萨布隆圣母教堂的大教堂。它建于 15 世纪，拥有布拉班哥特式外观和两个巴洛克式教堂。众多的塔楼和小尖塔令它与其他教堂卓尔不同。在欧洲旅行，教堂实在数不胜数，大部分时间作为匆匆过客只能留下短暂的眼缘。

The urban design in the low countries is superb. Even in this limited space in the city center, there is one small garden with benches for people to rest. This small garden called Square of Petit Sablon was built in 1890. It is surrounded by a wrought-iron balustrade, decorated with 48 bronze statuettes which represent the ancient crafts once practiced in Brussels. There are ten statues decorating the rear of the park, illustrating the country’s celebrated scholars and humanists the 16th century. The statues of the Counts of Egmont and Hornes in the fountain symbolize the fight against Spanish tyranny in the 16th century. The pedestal is decorated with the coats of arms of their families. The travel in Brussel is interesting. I just walked slowly and stopped when I found the new attractive elements.

低地国家的城市设计绝对是首屈一指。即使在市中心有限的空间里，也能创造出一个带长凳的小花园供人们休息。这座名为小萨布隆广场的小花园建于 1890 年。它被锻铁栏杆环绕，栏杆上装饰着 48 个青铜小雕像，这些小雕像代表了曾经在布鲁塞尔奋斗过的古老工艺人。公园后侧装饰着十尊雕像，展示了比利时 16 世纪著名的学者和人文主义者。喷泉中央埃格蒙特伯爵和霍恩斯伯爵的雕像象征着 16 世纪比利时与西班牙暴政的斗争。基座则装饰着他们家族的徽章。布鲁塞尔的旅行新奇有趣。安步当车般走走停停，不时发现新的惊喜。

At the end of the Royal street, there is a huge building standing on the high land of 20 meters’ height. It was the Palace of Justice, built between 1866 and 1883. It was the largest building constructed in the world in the 19th century. It’s a court building including the Belgium’s supreme court of law. This magnificent building suffered heavy damage during World War II even today most part of it is under renovation. Its dome and façade is covered in scaffolding.

在皇家大街的尽头，20米高的高地上矗立着一座巨大的建筑。它就是建于 1866 年至 1883 年之间的司法宫。它是 19 世纪世界上建造的最大的建筑。如今也是一座法院大楼，包括比利时的最高法院。这座宏伟的建筑在二战期间遭受了严重破坏，即使在今天，大部分建筑仍在翻新，它的圆顶和正立面被脚手架如包粽子般完全覆盖。

Even from far way, I could still distinguish this immense grey building with a large golden dome. Its style is a mixture of different styles. The interior of the building is decorated lavishly. It has a monumental marble staircase with Roman columns. The statues at the two flanks are Demosthenes, the famous orator of ancient Athens and Lycurgus, lawgiver of Sparta who established the military-oriented reformation of Spartan society.

即使在远方，我依然可以辨认出这座巨大的灰色建筑的轮廓以及金色的大圆顶。它的风格是不同风格的混搭。建筑内部装饰华丽。它有一个装饰着罗马立柱的巨大大理石楼梯。两侧的雕像分别是古雅典著名演说家德摩斯泰尼和确立以军事为主的斯巴达立法者莱库古斯。

Brussel is a large city with so many travel attractions that I had to take two days to visit them. My first day trip focuses on historical buildings in the city center. My second day trip includes some parks, gardens and private houses in the suburb. It was a sunny morning. Firstly, I visited this botanical garden. It’s an Italian garden with an orangery of a French geometry and a rotunda of French baroque style with dome and columns. The middle terrace in an Italian style, has a star-shaped rose garden and an Iris garden. I like this kind of green landscape interspersed in the crowded city.

布鲁塞尔是一个有诸多旅游景点的大城市，不得不花足足两天时间一一便览。我的第一天旅行着重于市中心的历史建筑。第二天行程包括郊区的一些公园、花园和私人住宅。这是一个阳光明媚的早晨。首先探足的便是这个植物园。这是一个意大利花园包含一个法式几何形状的橘园和一个带有圆顶和柱子的法国巴洛克风格的圆形大厅。中庭为意式风格的星形玫瑰园和鸢尾花园。我十分欣赏在拥挤的城市里点缀着绿色景观的布局。

In the east of city, there is a district of middle-class residential area. There are some gardens around this area. Marie Louise square is one of the elegant gardens with ducks swimming in the pretty tree-lined pond surrounded by greenery. A jet of fountain water comes out of a small island in the center of the pond. The garden is named by the French queen Marie-Louise, the wife of Napoleon.

城东有一片中产阶级住宅区。区域周围有诸多花园。玛丽路易丝广场就是其中一个风格优雅的花园，鸭子在绿树成荫的美丽池塘边嬉戏。一股泉水从池塘中央的一个小岛上喷涌而出。这座花园由拿破仑的妻子法国女王玛丽-路易丝命名。

There are numerous eclectic style mansions around the park. In front of the houses, there is a large surface of lawn decorated with bronze statues. I believe that the residents in these house must have a pleasant life every day when they open the window and face the greeneries and beautiful view outside.

公园四周环布风格各异的住宅。这些房屋前有一大片草坪，上面装饰着青铜雕像。脑补一下这里的住户每天打开窗户，面对外面的绿色植物宜人的风景，心情一定是舒畅无比的。

Then I passed by a series of common resident houses of Art Nouveau style. Nouveau means new in French so it means new art or modern art. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and flowers. This house only has three floors. Each block is separated by a rail fence. Although the court yard is very small, there is still a small area left for planting roses. Green moss leaves marks on the upper step and the rose vine looks like a green curtain in the yard. The small balconies are designed in different forms and their walls are painted in different colors. This kind of house is more interesting compared with the monotonous high-rise condominiums in Asian countries.

接下来我无意间路过了一列新艺术风格（Art Nouveau）的普通民居。Nouveau 在法语中的意思是新的，所以它代表着现代艺术。它通常受到自然形式例如植物和花朵的蜿蜒曲线的启发。这列房子只有三层。每个街区都由围栏隔开。庭院虽小，却留有一小块地种植玫瑰，宛然一种苔痕上阶绿,草色入帘青的感觉。小阳台被设计成不同的样式，墙壁也被涂上了不同的颜色。这种房子比亚洲国家单调的高层住宅有趣多了。

Continuing towards the east of the city, at noon I arrived at another landmark of Brussels, the Cinquantenaire Park which means the Fiftieth Anniversary. It is comprised of a set of gardens dotted with monuments and museums and dominated by a U-shaped triumphal arch with three arches. At this moment, I was standing at the large esplanade in front the arch, a very good place of taking pictures.

继续东行晌午时分我来到布鲁塞尔的另一个地标——五十周年纪念公园。它由一组散布着纪念碑和博物馆的花园组成，并以一个带有三个拱门的U形凯旋门为主。此刻我站在拱门前的大广场上，这是一个非常适合拍照的地方。

The most notable building in the park is of course this arcade. At its top, there’s a bronze quadriga entitled of Brabant Raising the National Flag and several sculptures representing the major cities and province of Belgium like Antwerp, Liege, Namur… This monument was built in 1880 for the 50th anniversary of the independence of Belgium. The pedestal in both directions bears the inscription: “This monument was erected in 1905 for the glorification of the independence of Belgium”. (One direction is in French and another direction is in Dutch.)

公园里最著名的建筑当属这个拱廊。在它的顶部，有一个名为国旗飘扬的青铜四尊马车和几座代表比利时主要城市和省份的雕塑，如安特卫普、列日、那慕尔……这座纪念碑建于 1880 年，以纪念比利时独立 50 周年。两个方向的基座上都刻有铭文：“这座纪念碑于 1905 年树立于此，以此纪念比利时独立的荣耀”。（其中一个方向是法语，另一个方向是荷兰语。）

In the suburb of Brussels, there are some Art Nouveau style private houses which are listed as World Heritage Site by UNESCO. They illustrate the outstanding local architecture arts to the utmost. The Stoclet Palace is a private mansion in the east of Cinquantenaire Park, very far away from the city enter. It was designed by the Austrian architect Josef Hoffmann for the Belgian financier Adolphe Stoclet between 1905 and 1911. It is built in the Vienna Secession style. I have never seen this kind of style before. The artistes of this style resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists in protest against its support for more traditional artistic styles. It is a kind of transition from Art Nouveau toward modernism. This house has a tower of stacked cubic forms with minimum ornament on the façade. Of course from my view I could not get its aesthetical value but it is listed as UNESCO heritage site in 2009 due to its influence on modernism in architecture. This house is still a private house owned by the Stoclet family and not open for visit.

在布鲁塞尔郊区，有一系列被联合国教科文组织列为世界遗产的新艺术风格的私人住宅。它们最好地展示了当地优秀的建筑艺术。这座斯托克莱宫是一座私人住宅，位于五十周年公园东边，离市区已经很远。它是由奥地利建筑师约瑟夫霍夫曼在 1905 年至 1911 年间为比利时金融家阿道夫斯托克莱设计的。它采用维也纳分离派风格建造。我以前从未见过这种风格。这种风格的艺术家曾经从奥地利艺术家协会辞职，以抗议其支持更传统的艺术风格。这种风格是一种从新艺术风格运动向现代主义的过渡。这所房子有一座堆叠的立方体塔，立面上的装饰朴实无华。当然，孤陋寡闻的我无法理解它的美学价值。但由于它对现代主义建筑的影响，它在 2009 年被列为联合国教科文组织遗产。这所住宅如今仍然是斯托克莱家族的私人住宅，不对外开放。

Before I visited Belgium, the only private residence that I visited was the house designed by Gaudi. This time, I was standing in front if the house of Victor Horta’s former house and workshop. Horta was an excellent Belgian architect and designer, and one of the precursors of the Art Nouveau movement. Four of his designed houses in Brussels are listed in UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000. Among the 4 houses, this museum is the most important with display of furniture, utensils and art objects designed by Horta. He has a great reputation of brilliant joining of the curved lines of decoration which can be expressed in his design of the balcony.

在游览比利时之前，我曾经参观的唯一私人住宅就是高迪设计的房子。这一次，我站在另一个大师维克多霍塔的故居前。霍塔是一位杰出的比利时建筑师和设计师，也是新艺术运动的先驱之一。他在布鲁塞尔设计的四栋房屋于 2000 年被联合国教科文组织列为世界遗产。在这四栋房屋里，这座霍塔博物馆是最重要的，它展出霍塔设计的家具、器皿和艺术品。他以出色的装饰曲线设计而享有盛誉，这可以在他设计的阳台中得到体现。

This is the living room of Horta’s house built in 1898. Horta is good at using steel frames , large windows, and skylights above stairways to bring light into the structures. His style is totally different with Gaudi. He prefers the single plain color theme in his design. The design like wooden floor, wooden door frame, and metallic doorknob is a bit closer to the modern interior decoration.

这是霍塔建于1898年的房子的客厅。霍塔擅长使用钢架、大窗户和楼梯上方的天窗为整个结构带来充足的光线。他的风格与高迪完全不同。他更喜欢在设计中使用单一的纯色主题。木地板、木门框、金属门把手等设计更接近现代室内装饰。

This is his bedroom. The wall and carpet is in dark blue which has a contrast with the yellow furniture. Horta is a great designer who designed large projects like Brussels central station. However all the furniture in his house like chairs and wardrobes are designed by him as well. Generally his room is arranged in relatively simple way. He like the big glass window that looks like a modern floor-to-ceiling window as well. Due to his great ideas of open floor plan, sunlight could come into the house easily and create a cozy environment.

这是他的卧室。墙壁和地毯是深蓝色的，与黄色的家具形成鲜明对比。霍塔是一位伟大的设计师，他还设计了布鲁塞尔中央车站等大型项目。同时他的所有家具，如椅子和衣柜，也是他自主设计而成。总体来说，他的房间布置得比较简单。他也喜欢很接近现代落地窗的大玻璃窗。由于对开放式设计的使用，阳光可以轻易进入房间创造出一个舒适的环境。

Brussels is large city and it has a perfect urban development plan with a good transportation system as well. For tourists it is easy to travel all the sites that I mention above in two days. Belgian city is not so famous compared with France and Italy. But there are different elements like parks, museums, palaces, squares and private houses for you to explore the history of Belgium. The trip could also widen your visions especially if you have not any ideas of the Art Nouveau. So don’t miss it as your next travel destination after the coronavirus ends.

最后补充一句布鲁塞尔是一座大城市，拥有完善的城市规划和良好的交通系统。对于游客来说，两天内游览我上面提到的所有景点易如反掌。与法国和意大利相比，比利时城市并没有那么出名。但也包括如公园、博物馆、宫殿、广场和私人住宅等不同的风格元素供游客探索比利时的历史。旅行还可以拓宽视野，特别是如果你对新艺术运动一无所知的话那么布鲁塞尔一定是你新冠病毒结束后的下一个旅行目的地。

In the morning light of Antwerp

February 20, 2022February 22, 2022Posted in Belgium, TravelTagged Antwerp, Belgium, Travel, World heritage siteLeave a comment

朝行安特卫普

Yanni in the morning light

In the morning of September 10th, 2020, I was on my way back to France from Amsterdam. My planned trip was from Amsterdam to Antwerp, Ghent, Bruges, then Lille. In September, the weather in Low countries is usually rainy. I was really favored by the God that when I arrived at Antwerp, it was a sunny day with little breeze. I could bask in the warm morning sunlight freely when I just stepped out of the gate of station.

2020年9月10日早晨，我踏上从阿姆斯特丹返回法国的归途。计划的旅行路线是从阿姆斯特丹到比利时的安特卫普、根特、布鲁日，最后是法国里尔。九月初，低地国家的天气通常淫雨霏霏。可是我真的受上天眷顾，到达安特卫普之时，天气晴朗，风轻云淡。刚迈出车站大门，就自在地沐浴在一抹温暖的晨光中。

Antwerp station was one of the most beautiful train stations in the world. I was stunned by its elegant designs when I got off the train. The architecture style of the station is eclecticism. It knits together the materials of the past (stone and marble) and the present(metal and glass). It was constructed in 1895. Its façade combines the neo-classical architectural elements characterized by the simple geometric forms and the Doric columns and the neo-renaissance architectural elements characterized by order and symmetry.

安特卫普车站被评为世界上最美丽的火车站之一。刚下火车，它优雅的设计就令我感到震撼。车站的建筑风格是折中风格。它将代表过去的建筑材料（石头和大理石）和代表现代的建筑材料（金属和玻璃）结合在一起。始建于1895年，它的立面结合了以简单几何形式和多立克柱为特征的新古典建筑元素和以秩序和对称为特征的新文艺复兴建筑元素。

The luxury design of the entrance hall of the station was really amazing. The staircase is decorated with marble balustrade like a Baroque palace. The big clock installed on the semi-circular glass panel is decorated with the gilded coat of arms of the city. There are many columns and arcades that makes me feel like that I was inside a renaissance building in Florence. The vast dome above the waiting room hall was designed by Louis Delacenserie and the vast (185 meters long and 44 meters high) iron and glass trainshed was designed by Clement van Bogaert. The principal designer Louis Delacenserie drew the inspiration from Lucerne Station in Switzerland. If I have a chance to visit Lucerne in the future, I will compare the difference and similarity of both stations firstly.

车站的入口大厅的豪华设计令人闻之瞠目。楼梯上装饰着大理石栏杆，宛如一座巴洛克式的宫殿。安装在半圆形玻璃面板上的大钟装饰着镀金的安特卫普城市徽章。众多柱子和拱廊仿佛将我置身于佛罗伦萨的一座文艺复兴时期的建筑中。候车室大厅上方的巨大圆顶由比利时建筑师Louis Delacenserie 设计，巨大的（185 米长和 44 米高）钢铁玻璃候车棚由 Clement van Bogaert 设计。车站首席设计师 Louis Delacenserie 从瑞士的卢塞恩车站汲取灵感设计了本站。愚以为若以后有机会去卢塞恩旅游，首先就会比较两个站的不同和相似处。

The most spectacular architecture of the hall is the 75-metre-high dome decorated with different types of marbles. The huge dome of the hall remind me of the Pantheon in Rome. At this moment, I felt like I was standing under the cupola of a cathedral.

大厅里最壮观的建筑就是75米高的圆顶，上面装饰着不同类型的大理石。大厅的巨大圆顶不由得让人想起罗马的万神殿。此刻我恍惚有种站在某个大教堂的圆顶下的错觉。

Outside the train station, there is a district of China town. As a Chinese, I was excited to see this Chinese style golden Pagodepoort (which means pagoda gate or paifang) in the land out of China. The Chinese character on the gate means the Chinese market in Antwerp. Another traditional Chinese element is the pairs of stone lions at the gateway. Antwerp Chinatown’s archway was the second Chinatown archway in Europe.

车站外有一片唐人街区。作为一个中国人，在海外看到这类中国风格的金色牌坊还是略感激动。大门上的汉字安市华埠也许通安特卫普中国市场之意。另一个中国传统元素就是门口的一对石狮子。安特卫普的拱门是欧洲的第二座唐人街拱门。

Antwerp is famous of Flemish arts. The most well-known local painters are David Teniers and Peter Paul Rubens. Their statues in the city square of Antwerp are worshipped by visitors all around the world. Near the train station, the first statue that was seen immediately was the statue of David Teniers. He was a Flemish Baroque painter, born in Antwerp in 1610. He is an innovators of painting and remembered as the leading Flemish genre painter of his day. From this statue, I was walking towards a notable pedestrian street called Meir with many shops and historical sites and started my trip in Antwerp.

安特卫普以佛拉芒艺术而闻名世界。当地最著名的画家是大卫·特尼尔斯和彼得·保罗·鲁本斯。他们的雕像自然在安特卫普的城市广场上接收各地游客的膜拜。火车站附近，第一眼映入眼帘就是大卫·特尼尔斯的雕像。他是一位佛拉芒巴洛克风格画家，1610 年出生于安特卫普。他是巴洛克绘画的创新者，被世人铭记为引领潮派的佛拉芒流派画家。从这座雕像出发，我走向一条名为 Meir 的有众多商店和历史遗迹的著名步行街，开启了我的安市之旅。

The historical city center is just in the west of the train station so it was convenient to visit all the monuments within few hours. The first famous building on this street is called palace in Meir. It is a beautiful rococo palace with three wings around a small courtyard. This building traced back to 18th century is used for reception of important rulers such as Napoleon Bonaparte, Willem I of the Netherlands and it is also used as the Belgian Royal House. Nowadays after so many years, it becomes a museum but when I arrived the museum was closed temporarily.

历史悠久的老城区就坐落于火车站的西边，几个小时以内就可方便地参观所有的古迹。这条街上第一座著名的建筑叫做梅厄宫(Paleis op de Meir)。这是一座美丽的洛可可式宫殿，三翼环绕着一个小庭院。这座建于 18 世纪的建筑曾用于接待拿破仑·波拿巴、荷兰威廉一世等重要统治者，它也被用作比利时王室驻地。如今时过境迁，它已经摇身一变成为了博物馆，遗憾的是，在我造访之日博物馆暂时关闭了。

Another well-known building in the Meir street is this ordinary-looking residential house. When we talked about the painting of Belgium, the painters that we can first remember must be Rubens and Van Dyck. Peter Paul Rubens is definitely the forever pride of this city. His house Rubenshuis not fat away from the royal palace is well preserved. Rubens purchased the house in 1610 and renovated it on the basis of designs by himself. After the renovations, the house had the outlook of an Italian palace, which reflected the unique artistic ideals of Rubens.

Meir街上另一座著名的建筑就是这座平凡无奇的民居。当我们谈到比利时的绘画，耳熟能详的画家一定是鲁本斯和范戴克。彼得保罗鲁本斯绝对是这座城市永远的骄傲。他曾经的居所，离王宫不远保存完好如初。鲁本斯于 1610 年购买了这座宅院，并在自己设计的基础上对其进行了翻新。整修后的房子呈现出意大利宫殿般的外观，体现了鲁本斯独特的艺术思路。

Rubens is regarded as the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradition. His Baroque style painting emphasized on movement, color, and sensuality. He ran a big art workshop in Antwerp so he had very close relationship with this city. Most of his works are history painting which are conserved in the reception room of his house. This photo shows his self portrait. From these artworks, you could get the insights into his talent heart even after 400 years.

鲁本斯被认为是佛拉芒巴洛克艺术传统中最具影响力的艺术家。他的巴洛克风格绘画强调运动、色彩和感性。这位德国画家曾在安特卫普开设了一家大型艺术工作室便和这座城市结下不解之缘。其大部分作品都是历史画，保存在鲁本斯故居的客厅。这张照片里展示的是他的自画像。即使400年后你也可以通过他的艺术作品洞察他天才的内心。

Through the entrance of the house, there is a Roman arch of triumph leading to a garden. This is the place where the artist, who acted as the official diplomatic role at the court of the Spanish Netherlands, grew his plants. Rubens designed everything of the house by himself based on Italian Renaissance palace architecture so we can find many elements of renaissance here. As an admirer of Renaissance building, I appreciated his design of Italian style which gave me a similar resonance.

穿过住所入口，一个通向花园的罗马凯旋门赫然出现。这是这位在西班牙荷兰宫廷担任外交官时期种植花卉的地方。鲁本斯根据意大利文艺复兴时期的宫殿建筑自主设计了这座房子的一切，所以众多文艺复兴元素遍地可寻。作为文艺复兴建筑的崇拜者，我由衷欣赏他的设计，这种意大利风也会引起我的共鸣。

Rubens created most of his works in this studio in the picture. There are many bas-reliefs and pillars on the façade of the studio. It looks like the palace in the street of Garibaldi in Genova. Outside the studio, it is the garden designed by Rubens based on his painting “Strolling in the Garden” . It’s an oasis of quiet in the bustling city. Rubens planted sunflowers, orange and fig trees in his garden. He could sit down at the window side and watch the shadows of garden in his spare time. After visiting this place, I think Rubens really had an admirable life. He could live in his own world leisurely and enjoyed the life in his own way. If you are interested in Flemish art or his life, Rubens house will definitely be a wonderful place to visit.

鲁本斯在照片中的这个工作室创作了他的大多数作品。工作室的正立面装饰有许多浅浮雕和廊柱。它看起来就像热那亚加里波第大街上的一座宫殿。画室外，是鲁本斯根据他的画作《漫步花园》设计的小花园。这里是繁华都市中的一片宁静绿洲。鲁本斯在他的花园里种植了向日葵、橙树和无花果树，在闲暇之余坐对当窗木，看移三面阴。参观完他的住所不由得一声感叹，鲁本斯的生活真的很令人羡慕。他可以自在地活在自己的世界里，以自己的方式享受生活。如果你对佛拉芒艺术或者这种生活感兴趣，鲁本斯故居绝对是一个值得游览的好地方。

Rubens is so famous that his bronze statue is placed on the Groenplaats place since 1843. There are numerous bars, cafes and fast food restaurants around this historical square. It is recommended to have a cup of coffee here and stare at the high rising cathedral in the back of the square.

鲁本斯大名享誉世界，他的铜像自 1843 年起就被放置在格罗恩普拉茨广场上。这个历史悠久的广场周围有许多酒吧、咖啡馆和快餐店。推荐在这里喝杯咖啡，遥望广场后面高高耸立的大教堂。

It is weird that Rubens’ figure is depicted as one Roman cavalry instead of a painter. He hold a sword around his waist and wore his iconic wide-brimmed hat and kept a gesture of fighting. There are several Latin words CIVI OLIM SUO – S.P. Q.A. – SUMPTIB. PUBL. ET PRIV. – P. – MDCCCXXXX on the base of the statue. It reminds me of the statues of Roman Emperors.

尤为奇怪的是，鲁本斯的形象被描绘成一位罗马骑士而不是画家。他戴着标志性的宽檐帽，腰间手握一把剑，保持着战斗姿势。几个拉丁字母 CIVI OLIM SUO – S.P. Q.A. MDCCCXXXX 刻在雕像的底座上，不由得让我想起了罗马皇帝的塑像。

In the photo above, it is the most famous church in Antwerp called The Cathedral of Our Lady. The church has a very tall bell tower, up to 123 meters. In Belgium, one of the special view points to be noticed by the travelers is the bell tower (belfry) in the city center. The belfry of this cathedral is included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites however when I arrived, it was under restoration and forbidden to visitors.

在上面的照片中，它是安特卫普最著名的教堂，叫做圣母大教堂。教堂有一座非常高的钟楼，高达123米。在比利时，游客着重参观的景点就是老城区的钟楼（也叫做belfry）。这座大教堂的钟楼同时也被列入联合国教科文组织世界遗产名录，但是我再一次乘兴而来，败兴而去，它这天正在修缮中，禁止游客参观。

It took totally 169 years to complete this church, from 1352 to 1521. It is really a miracle to build the highest building in the low countries at that time. It shows the ultimate gothic architecture art in the mean time. Also this church contains the superb Baroque art. Visitors could wander in this artistic mecca and focus on the magnificent large altar paintings by Rubens. On this photo, the painting in the choir above the main altar is called ‘The Assumption of the Virgin’. Rubens has a wonderful master of the colors in this painting.

这座教堂从1352年伊始到1521年，足足用了169年才建成完工。在中世纪就建造出了低地国家最高的建筑绝对是一个奇迹。它同时也展示了高超的哥特式建筑艺术并且包含了精湛的巴洛克绘画艺术。游客徜徉于这片艺术圣地专注欣赏鲁本斯宏伟的大型祭坛画。这张照片上，主祭坛上方的合唱团中的这幅画被称为“圣母升天”。世人皆惊叹鲁本斯的妙手丹青尤其是其对色彩的把握更是如火纯青。

Don’t forget that this church has an awesome dome. In the palace or church in Europe, the paintings on their ceilings always impress me. In the tower of this church, there is a huge circular painting on the ceiling as well. This beautiful painting’s diameter of 5.8 meters is created by Cornelis Schut. Its name is also ‘The Assumption of the Virgin’. Antwerp Cathedral is dedicated to the mother of Christ – the Virgin Mary so many artworks in the church is related with her. This painting depicts the story of Mary ascending into heaven.

另外这座教堂还有一个令人赞叹的圆顶。在欧洲的宫殿或教堂里，他们天顶上的壁画总会留下深刻的印象。在这座教堂的塔楼内，天顶上也绘制了一幅巨大的圆形画。这幅美轮美奂的画作直径 5.8 米，由 Cornelis Schut 创作。它的名字也是“圣母升天”。安特卫普大教堂是用于祭拜基督之母——圣母玛利亚，教堂里的许多艺术品自然都与她息息相关。这幅画描绘了圣母升天的宗教故事。

Another stylish church in Antwerp is the St. Charles Borromeo Church. This church has a very beautiful façade of Baroque style. Rubens contributed a lot to the decoration and design of the church. It was built between 1615 and 1621 by the Jesuits. There are many small sculpture of Jesus and the saints in the niches on the façade. The emblem of the Jesuits ‘IHS’ etched on a crucifix was at a conspicuous position above the entrance. ‘IHS’ is called a ‘Christogram’ and is an ancient way of writing the word ‘Jesus Christ’. This emblem hold by angels was designed Rubens.

安特卫普另一座别具风格的教堂是圣查尔斯博罗梅奥教堂。这座教堂拥有非常漂亮的巴洛克风格外观。鲁本斯对教堂的装饰和设计贡献良多。它由耶稣会士于 1615 年至 1621 年间建造。正面的壁龛中有许多耶稣和圣徒的小雕塑。耶稣受难像上雕刻的耶稣会会徽“IHS”位于入口上方的显眼位置。 “IHS”被称为“基督象征”，是一种古老的书写“耶稣基督”这个词的方式。这个天使环抱的标志是由鲁本斯设计。

Rubens has designed the altar surrounded by black marble as well. There is a pulley system to hang religious paintings on the altar. The Antwerp Jesuits used this system to change paintings periodically. Nowadays the paintings will be changed on important days like Easter Monday and the Feast of the Assumption.

鲁本斯同时还设计了黑色大理石环绕的祭坛。有一个滑轮系统可以将宗教画挂在祭坛上。安特卫普耶稣会士使用这个系统定期更换画作。如今，这些画将在复活节星期一和圣母升天节等重要节日进行更换。

**The Hendrik Conscience Heritage Library**

Behind the St. Charles Borromeo Church, there is a building with Dutch letters ‘stadsbibliotheek’. Many European languages are similar so I could roughly guess out the function of this building is city library. It is named after the Flemish writer Hendrik Conscience and the statue in this photo is him. Visitors could walk in freely and find out Antwerp’s history. Here there are more than 1 million collections of books about Dutch literature and the cultural history of Flanders.

在圣查尔斯博罗梅奥教堂后面，有一栋带有荷兰字母“stadsbibliotheek”的建筑。众多欧洲语言都是如此相似，所以我可以大致猜出这座建筑的功能是城市图书馆。它以佛兰德作家亨德里克命名，这张照片中的雕像就是此公。游客可以自由进出了解安特卫普的历史。这里有超过100万册关于荷兰文学和法兰德地区文化史的书籍。

The city center of Antwerp is steeped in history. In Belgium, another special viewpoint to be noticed by visitors is the triangle roof house in the grand squares. These old houses are the guild houses in medieval times. They are used by guilds for meetings historically. The Low Countries used to have guildhalls in every city, like Brussel, Antwerp, and Ghent.

安特卫普老城区历史悠久。在比利时，另一个值得游客驻足回首的便是是大广场上的三角形顶房屋。这些老房子属于中世纪的商贸公会。历史上它们被公会用于会议。低地国家曾经在每个城市都设有公会大厅，比如布鲁塞尔、安特卫普和根特。

If you want to look for the remnant of the sealed history, please move to the guild houses of Sint-Joris and de Valk that can be found in the Grote Market. It is a big square situated in the heart of the city quarter near the Scheldt river. It means Great Market Square. Historically many English merchants would come here and do business with merchants from the Hanseatic cities in north Germany. From the end of the fifteenth century, Antwerp overtook Bruges as the most prominent city of the Low Countries. This square is the most representative place of Antwerp. The city hall of Antwerp is located in this square.

若要追寻那段尘封的往事，请移步Grote Market广场上的Sint-Joris 和 de Valk 的公会之家。这里是一个宽阔的大广场，位于斯海尔德河附近的老城区。Grote Market意思是大市场。历史上，许多英国商人来这里与德国北部汉萨同盟城市的商人做生意。从十五世纪末开始，安特卫普取代布鲁日成为低地国家最出名的城市。这个广场也是安特卫普最具代表性的地方。安特卫普市政厅就坐落在这个广场上。

In the center of square, there is a bronze statue of a man throwing a huge severed hand. The statue was designed by the Belgian sculptor Jef Lambeaux and inaugurated in 1887. This statue is tribute to the great soldier Silvius Brabo. According to legend, there was a giant who built a fortress along the Scheldt River. The giant forced passing boats to pay a toll, If the travelers refused, the giant would cut off one of their hands and tossed it into the river. When Brabo arrived, he dueled with the giant bravely and chopped off the giant’s hand, which he threw into the river just like the giant once did. The name of the city ‘Antwerpen’ in Flemish also means ‘hand throwing’.

广场中央，有一尊男子投掷巨大断手的铜像。该雕像由比利时雕塑家 Jef Lambeaux 设计，于 1887 年落成。这座雕像纪念伟大的士兵布拉博。相传，有一位巨人在斯海尔德河沿岸建造了一座堡垒。巨人强迫过往的船只支付过路费，如果旅行者拒绝，巨人就会砍掉他们的一只手，然后把它扔进河里。当布拉博路过时，他勇敢地与巨人决斗并斩断了巨人的手，就像它一样，将手扔进了河里。“安特卫普”这个名称在佛拉芒语中也有“投掷手臂”的意思。

When tourists continue walking towards west, there is a castle standing at the riverside of Scheldt. It was built between 1200 and 1225, which was Antwerp’s oldest building. At that period, Antwerp belongs to county of Flanders, which was subordinate to the king of France. The name Het Steen in Dutch stands for ‘The Rock’. In history, Het Steen became the museum of archeology and maritime history as well. At the entrance, there is a bas-relief of Semini, above the archway. Semini is the Scandinavian God of youth and fertility. In medieval time, people have realized the importance of fertility. More population means stronger strength for one country.

当游客继续一路向西，有一座城堡矗立在斯海尔德河畔。它建于 1200 年至 1225 年之间，是安特卫普最古老的建筑。曾几何时，安特卫普属于法兰德斯郡，隶属于法兰西国王。它的名字Het Steen 在荷兰语中代表“岩石”。在历史上，Het Steen 城堡也成为了考古和海洋历史博物馆。在入口处，拱门上方是塞米尼的浅浮雕。塞米尼是斯堪的纳维亚神话里的青春和生育之神。在中世纪，人们已经意识到生育的重要性。人口越多，国家实力越强。

The museum of archeology and maritime history was moved to this building in the recent years. The Museum aan de Stroom was open in 2011. It was obvious a modern building which looked totally different compared to the old buildings in the city center. This postmodern Art Deco building was made of Indian red sandstone and curved glass panel. It collects mostly the maritime documents of international trade and shipping, art and culture work of the port of Antwerp.

近年来，考古和海洋历史博物馆搬到了途中这座建筑。 Museum aan de Stroom 博物馆于 2011 年开放。很明显，与市中心的古老建筑相比，这是一座完全迥异的现代风格的建筑。这座后现代装饰艺术风格的建筑由印度红砂岩和弧形玻璃面板制成。它主要收集了安特卫普港的国际贸易和航运、艺术和文化的海事文件。

When I arrived at the port of Antwerp, I was far away from the historical city center and there is nothing more special to mention. Antwerp is linked to the North Sea through the River Scheldt so it is one of the most important port in the world, second largest port in Europe. It is a quite influential city and is famous of diamond industry as well. For tourists who are interested in diamond, they can visit the diamond district in Antwerp.

到达安特卫普港时，距离历史悠久的老城区已经相距甚远，没有什么特别的景点值得一提的。安特卫普通过斯海尔德河与北海相连，因此它是世界上最重要的港口之一，也是欧洲第二大港口。它是一个颇具影响力的城市，钻石业独步天下。如果对钻石感兴趣的游客可以去安特卫普的钻石区游览片刻。

However for me I just enjoyed a pleasant half day in the city area which was good enough. If people asked me about this city, I would tell them excitedly that in one summer morning, I have visited the house where Rubens had lived and walked through the alleys with many towers and the medieval court yards. Of course, no matter what happens, travel in a good mood is always the most important because the golden year does not come again and it is difficult to return to the morning of yesterday.

然而对我而言，我只是在老城区度过了悠然自得的半天，这已经足够了。如果有人向我提及这座城市，我会兴奋地讲述，在一个美好的夏日清晨，我徘徊于鲁本斯的住处，穿行于塔楼遍布的深院小巷。当然，无论发生什么，带着好心情去旅行永远是最重要的。毕竟盛年不重来,一日难再晨。

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