Twists and turns...

Life is always full of twists and turns, as often one door closed might open up another wider door, whereas a seemingly less desirable event could possibly lead to something interesting especially if one keeps searching and adjusts one’s perspective in order to make the best out of the new circumstance.

I arrived in Ljubljana on Friday evening with no plan nor expectation, hoping to just spend a relax weekends strolling in the city and get myself lost in small alleys and perhaps surprised by simple but unique things that the locals have to offer. In the hotel lobby I picked up a few brochures and noticed there are few interesting places which could be visited with a half day tour, one of them is Lake Bled. Unfortunately after several attempts to book a local tour at last minutes, I was told all tour groups were fully booked for the next day and apparently the only option was a private tour which cost 5-6 times of the standard price. When I was about to give up, a visit to the local tourism office reviewed that it is in fact possible to visit Lake Bled with local bus which cost less than half of the standard tour price.

When I was at the local bus station, the ticket officer convinced me to buy a combo package which includes return tickets, an entrance ticket to a castle which I have no clue how it looks like and where it actually located, and few other benefits. Only when I arrived at the lake side I was “shocked” by the height of the castle which is located on top of a hill. I was walking along the lakeside, occasionally thinking how silly I was without doing some simple research before purchase the combo ticket and now going to waste the money because I was in no appetite to walk up the hill just for a castle which I have already seen just too many. After couple of hours when I was about to catch the next bus returning to Ljubljana, I walked pass the entrance of the walking path lead to the castle and in split second I decided to give it a try anyhow. The walk up to the hill was not as tough as I have expected, within about 20-30 minutes I was already on the top and the view was simply splendid. The visit to the castle turns out to be the highlight of my short trip to Lake Bled, which I most probably would have never done if I didn’t have already purchased the ticket in Ljubljana bus station.

So that’s life, full of twists and turns and you never know what’s waiting for your at the next corner, so just keeps an open mind and get ready to be surprised…

My life, your life, his/her life…

My trip from Linz to Ljubljana (capital city of Slovenia) by train on last Friday afternoon had a small hiccup but nevertheless an interesting experience worth mentioning. When the train was near Austria border we were told part of the railway track got technical problem so all passengers have to get off the train on Villach city (Austria) train station, take a bus to cross the Austria - Slovenia border and then board a local Slovenian train in Jesenice (Slovenia) town train station to Ljubljana. The lady train conductor knew I don't speak a word of German nor Slovenian hence asked me to just follow a few Slovenian guys inside my wagon. The “transits” went smoothly, in fact one old Slovenian man occasionally check and nod at me to make sure I am “still around” and not lost in Austria - Ljubljana border...

Due to this unexpected episode, I got a chance to have a quick “free city tour” in Villach, and enjoyed slightly different scenery along the bus route. Inside the bus sitting next to me was a young and friendly Serbian engineer. When we were about to enter the Karawanks tunnel crossing the Alpine Karawanks mountain, he explained to me that the tunnel is 8km long and on the other side is Slovenia’s territory. After that we started to chat a bit, and he told me he is working in silicon industry and was on a business trip in Austria and now on his way to Ljubljana airport in order to catch a flight back to Belgrade (capital city of Serbia). I started to ask him about life in Serbia, and he joked about Yugoslavia (both Slovenia and Serbia were part of Yugoslavia before the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia collapsed in 1992, one year after Soviet Union collapsed in 1991), the civil war when he was a kid, the current standard of living and etc. He was very humble about Belgrade / Serbia and explained to me in term of development Belgrade / Serbia is perhaps only 40-50% of what Slovenia (the richest ex- Yugoslavia nation) is today, moreover Serbia is not even part of European Union…

Once we reached Jesenice town train station, one can easily noticed the significant drop in infrastructure standard in comparison to Western Europe. The fact is Europe is such a huge and diverse area consists of nearly 50 nations, although most of them are on the same continent sharing border but standard of living could be significantly different especially toward the eastern region. Countries like Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia are on the rapid development track since early 1990s, whereas countries like Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo are perhaps trying hard to catch up. To some extend it is quite similar to North Asia / South East Asia, whereas you have first world nations like Singapore, Japan, South Korea, and the rising stars such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippine, Thailand, Vietnam, and country like Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar which are still trying hard to catch up….

I have visited quite many Western Europe countries in the past 15 years and was always amazed by their rich history, beautify scenery, extremely well protected environment, near perfect infrastructure, advance economy and social system, but there is always a sense of detachment as one cannot really comprehend how all those modern nations have miraclely reached such high level of modernization. However once I have learnt more and more about the economy and society of other Eastern European nations which are perhaps equally rich in culture and history many centuries ago, but due to various historical reasons and they are now still at various different developing stages…only then I can truly appreciate the diligent and determination that set some European nations apart from the rest…This really remind us there’s no free lunch in the World and one must not take things for granted….

Ultimately human beings regardless of race and culture all share the same challenges and dream in life.

Somewhere in this World,

my life, your life, his/her life…

30 April 2016

Christmas with Santa Claus

My 2001 Christmas holiday highlight was a 2 days 3 nights trip to Rovaniemi – the largest town in the northern part of Finland. I left Helsinki by night train on the 30th Dec 2001, and arrived in Rovaniemi the next morning. Rovaniemi was much colder than Helsinki, and it was –31 C when I arrived in the city center. It was so cold that my eyelashes were frozen with a thin layer of ice as I walked on the main street for only few minutes! Rovaniemi is a popular place for skiing, and it also has a few tourist attractions that featured the famous Santa Claus. Although everyone knows that Santa Claus is only a fictional figure (well, almost everyone), but Finland is trying hard to promote to the world that it is the original home of the Santa Claus. For that reason, they built a Santa Claus Village (or more accurately a mini tourist shopping center) and a Santa Claus Theme Park (built completely within a manmade cave) near Rovaniemi.

I visited the Santa Claus Village on the first day I arrived in Rovaniemi. It took about 15 minutes by bus to travel to the Santa Claus Village from Rovaniemi city center. The village is located just within the Arctic Circle border. Although the whole environment setting and buildings are quite beautiful, it actually has not much to see, except some tourist souvenir shops and cafeterias. With a sum of fee, you can take a picture with the real “Santa Claus” in his Santa workshop (basically a photo studio with interesting background setting). In overall I think the most creative thing in the Santa Claus Village is the “Santa Claus Post Office”. It is basically a Finland Post Office branch with special interior design. However, they have promoted the place (or engineered the post office system) so well that the “Santa Claus Post Office” has so far received over 6-7 million letters from kids all-round the world! So if you want to write to Santa Claus, you can actually address to “Santa Claus, Finland” or even just “Santa Claus”, and the letter will arrive to this post office and deliver to “Santa Claus”. I guess you may actually receive a reply from “Santa Claus”! In the post office, you can fill up a form and request “Santa Claus” to send a letter to someone for the next Christmas (cost 35 FM or RM17 per letter). Otherwise the Santa Claus post office can keep your Christmas letters or gifts in their storeroom and send them for you during the next Christmas! What a creative service! I think whoever came up with this Santa Claus idea really deserve a big award from the Finland Tourism Promotion Board! Imagine how many tourists they have attracted to Finland simply because of this single idea!

On the 31st Dec 2001, I joined a local tour to participate in a “New Year Outdoor Celebration” in the millennium village. At around 10:00pm, a couch picked me up from the motel and drove me to the “millennium village” located in an open space. It was an area that surrounded with tents, campfire, ice built lanterns and a snow-built center stage. I think there were probably close to 1 to 2 hundred people gathering there. Half an hour before the midnight, there was a live stage performance, including dancing, music, elves, show queen, legendary figures and other special performers. The show peaked to the countdown of the New Year under the leadership of Santa Claus; everyone was given a glass of wine, and enjoyed the impressive fireworks. Overall it was an unforgettable experience. On the other hand it was also quite a torture to spend close to two and half hours in the open space under such an extreme weather. I think it must be at least –30 on that night!

On the New Year day, I joined a reindeer safari organized by a local tour. The tour operator picked me up from our motel and dropped me in a small lakeside village located 15 km from Rovaniemi. From there I started our 30-40 minutes reindeer safari by sitting in the sledge pulled by a strong reindeer. The short safari led me through a silent and snowy forest. After the safari, I was served with coffee and sandwich around the open fire in the Lappish tent. I also met some people who joined the snowmobile safari, which they ride the snow motorbike on a frozen river.

Overall the 2 days 3 nights trip to Rovaniemi was quite interesting. Unfortunately most pictures taken during that few days did not come out well, because the camera lenses was either frozen or covered by a layer of moist…

Oct 04, 2006

First impression - Helsinki / Finland

Helsinki is the capital city of Finland, with about 2 million population working and living there (the whole Finland is about 5 million). Basically it is a city built next to the harbor, with architectural designs that are strongly influenced by Sweden and Russia. As compare to London or other parts of UK, I must say the buildings in Helsinki are relatively plan. Probably because Finland was ruled by Russia for many years, the whole city architectures still carries a strong communism flavor. The common scenes in the city are rows of rectangle shape milky color buildings with many rectangle shape windows, which make the streets look very orderly and systematic. There are also quite a lot of medium size green parks around the city, and two huge lakes located in the northern part of the city center. The city also has a huge harbor, where the giant ships load and upload passengers and goods. Those ships travel to Sweden, Germany and some nearby countries. Generally speaking, Helsinki is a very neat, clean and safe city.

As compare to London, Singapore and Hong Kong, Helsinki is not that crowded with high-rise buildings. In fact, the highest building in the city center is probably less than 20 stories high. The city center is the National Central Railway Station, which is also at the heart of Helsinki. Helsinki has a very extensive and efficient transportation network of bus, trams (small electric powered trains traveling within the city and suburb), trains (high quality train travel to nearby areas and all other major cities), underground (like MRT in Singapore, but only travel between east and west cost), and ferries (travel to nearby islands). As a local resident, I usually purchase a monthly ticket (190 FM per person, about RM110), which will give me unlimited travel with any transportation mode within one month.

There are two official languages in Finland – Finnish and Swedish. Basically all newspaper, radio, TV, sign boards are all written in Finnish or Swedish. English is a common spoken language among the young and educated, especially in the urban area, but less common in the suburb area and smaller towns. For the first few weeks, I was really having a hard time on my day-to-day life. While I was doing my shopping in the Supermarket, I couldn’t even differentiate between butter and margarine. The situation is much better now after some tries and errors.

Living expenses in Helsinki is very high, even in Europe standard. A basic meal in fast food restaurant will cost at least 35 FM (RM20) – 50 FM (RM30), a movie ticket will cost between 35 FM (RM20) – 60 FM (RM35), and a simple 2-3 bedrooms apartment in Helsinki area will easily cost half a million Finnish Mark (RM290,000).

The People:

Generally speaking, Finnish people are relatively shy and reserve. They don’t usually talk to stranger, and will prefer not to speak up unless it is necessary. However, most Finns I met are quite friendly, and very helpful too.If compare to other people living in other developed nation, Finns live a fairly homogenous lifestyle. In Finland culture, it is inappropriate to show off your wealth. So you can hardly see rich people driving fancy car. Huge bungalows with fancy garden are also extremely rare. Finland is a welfare state. The government imposes very high income tax (can go as high as 50-60% of your total income), and gives a lot of financial assistant to students, those who are unemployed or less fortunate. According to my quick survey, the average salary in Finland is not that high either. So I guess the local people probably don’t have a lot of disposable income as compare to people work in Hong Kong and Singapore.

The Weather:

After staying in Finland for 4 weeks, more and more people started to warn me about the “Cold, dark and long winter”. According to the local people, the weather will start getting very cold in November. During the winter, the temperature can go as low as negative 25-30 degree C (yes, no kidding). Basically the snow will stay on the ground for few months, all the lakes and rivers will be completely frozen, and we will only have 6 hours sunlight everyday. In the northern part of Finland, they don’t even get any sunlight during winter. It does sound quite scary. Nevertheless, I am kind of looking forward to the coolest Christmas that I ever experienced. It will be fun, I think. ; )

Note: I wrote this article 1 month after I landed in Helsinki (September 2001). It is fun to read my own first impression of this country, which turned out to have so much connection with me for the following years. I started working for a Finnish company after graduated from my MBA program, and since then made many return (perhaps over 10 times by now) visit to the country.

Oct 4, 2006

万般惊险， 无限风光，在川藏

二零零五年八月七日回到北京, 正式完成了为期十五天的西藏之旅。这次行程可说是这么多次出外旅游以来最为辛苦的一次。

于七月二十四日从成都开车出发, 一路沿川藏公路南线往西走, 一直到八月二日才到达拉萨市, 前后坐车坐了三千多公里的路。由于每天都是在三四千米以上的高原上赶路, 在前三四天都感受到相当程度的高原反应, 不但有轻微的头疼,胃口极差, 晚上也睡得不好。幸好在第四五天后高原反应逐渐消失, 游玩的兴致才慢慢得高起来。这次行程一共拍了近七百多张数码照片, 从中我选些比较有代表性的照片放在网上。此外, 我也把这次川藏之旅的行程表, 和我在网络上找到的一些有关川藏公路的介绍, 抄录如下。希望对川藏公路有兴趣的驴友们有帮助。

转载。。。

川藏公路

目前，西藏自治区仍是中国惟一没有铁路的省份，进出藏主要依靠的是公路和航空运输。而由于特殊的自然环境，西藏已有的青藏、川藏、滇藏、新藏公路中，只有青藏公路能保持常年畅通。川藏公路是连通四川成都与西藏拉萨之间汽车通行的第一条公路。在此路修通前，千百年来，中国西南部各民族的经济、文化交往枢纽就是逶迤在横断山区和西藏高原的崇山峻岭之间，一条世界上地势最高、路况最为险峻的交通驿道---茶马古道。从四川雅安到西藏拉萨间的两千多千米，靠牦牛运输，一年只能往返一次,骑马旅行也需要半年多的时间。川藏公路于1950年4月开建，新中国的筑路大军劈山治水,终于在1954年12月25日与另一条同样伟大的、堪称“人类开创史之壮举” 的“青藏公路”同时开通，一曲《歌唱二郎山》的战歌，一时流行全国。在修筑川藏公路时，有3000多名筑路英雄光荣牺牲。沿川藏公路进西藏，须翻高山、跨急流，路途艰辛且多危险，但一路景色壮丽，有雪山、原始森林、草原、冰川和若干大江大河（金沙江、澜沧江、怒江等），是旅游探险爱好者和摄影师的极乐所在。 如今，川藏公路已经是国道318的重要组成部分，并有南线和北线，分线点位于四川省甘孜州新都桥镇前的东俄洛乡。

川藏南线

川藏南线于1958年正式通车。南线从雅安起与国道108分道，向西翻越二郎山，沿途越过大渡河、雅砻江、金沙江、澜沧江、怒江上游，经雅江、理塘、巴塘过竹巴笼金沙江大桥入藏，再经芒康、左贡、邦达、八宿、然乌、波密、林芝、墨竹工卡、达孜抵拉萨。南线相对北线而言所经过的地方，多为人口相对密集的地区。沿线都为高山峡谷，风景更为秀丽，尤其是被称为西藏江南的林芝地区。但南线的通麦一带山体较为疏松，极易发生泥石流和塌方。川藏南线成都至拉萨全长2142千米，途经最高海拔4700米，有“世界高城”之称的理塘。

南线成都至雅安段由川西平原向盆原低丘行进，全为高速公路。雅安至康定段处于川西高原，也即青藏高原东南低缘，特别是在雅安天全县境内曾有“川藏公路第一险”之称的二郎山，地势逐步抬升，山河走势呈南北线纵向分布，公路基本是越山再沿河，再越山再沿河往西挺进。二郎山高3500米左右，隧道通行以后不再有“天险”之称，但越山后，泸定至康定间的瓦斯河一段，雨季时柏油路面常被漫涨的河水淹没和冲毁，并时有泥石流。

出康定即翻越山口海拔4290米的折多山。此山是地理分界线，西面为高原隆起地带，有雅砻江，右为高山峡谷地带，有大渡河。折多山是传统的藏汉分野线，此山两侧的人口分布、生产、生活状态等方面都有较显著的差别。大渡河流域在民族、文化形态等方面处于过渡地带，主要分布着有“嘉绒”之称的藏族支系。其地域往北可至四川省阿坝州的大小金川一带。

折多山以东属亚热带季风气候，基本处于华西丰雨屏带中，植被茂密，夏季多雨，冬季多雪，地表水及河流对山体和路基的冲蚀和切割作用明显；折多山以西属亚寒带季风气候与高原大陆性气候的交揉区，气候温和偏寒，亦多降雨，缓坡为草，低谷为林，且多雪峰及高山湖泊。 折多山至巴塘一线海拔4000米左右，由东往西有剪子弯山、高尔寺山和海子山等平缓高山。理塘是此线重要的分路点，往北可抵新龙和甘孜，往南则抵稻城、乡城和得荣等地。宽阔平坦的理塘地处毛垭大草原，是此线平均海拔最高的县，其县城号称“世界高城”。巴塘往西逐渐进入金沙江东岸谷地，地宽而略低，是藏族传统的优良农区。但巴塘地处地质板块的吻合带，常有地震。 过竹巴笼金沙江大桥后，川藏线进入著名的南北纵向横段山脉三山三江地带。公路由此进入了长达800余公里的，呈不断上升的“漕沟状地质破碎路段”。在西藏波密至排隆间，雨季盛行时，肆虐的泥石流及山体滑坡令大地几成“蠕动状”，其威力足以使车行此地的人惊心动魄，直至翻过西藏林芝县境内的色季拉山口。此线有盘不完的山，淌不完的河。川藏线上几乎所有的天险都集中在这一段。色季拉山口后特别是林芝后，全为高等级公路，直到拉萨。

川藏之旅行程表, 全程约3500公里

七月二十四日：成都/雅安/泸定/康定/新都桥 (431公里)早上从成都沿成雅高速抵达雨城雅安，沿秀美青衣江直至巍巍二郎山，穿越二郎山隧道（4.1公里），抵达大渡河河谷（川西最大最深峡谷）经泸定铁索桥。抵达情歌发源地康定征服塞外屏障折多山（海拔4298米）。抵摄影天堂---新都桥。
七月二十五日：新都桥/雅江/理塘/稻城(397公里)早餐后新都桥新都桥出发然后翻越高尔寺山（海拔4412米）抵雅江，翻越剪子弯山(海拔4659米)、卡子拉山（海拔4712米），抵世界高城理塘（海拔4000米），远观兔子山，翻越青藏高原最大的古冰川遗迹海子山自然保护区（海拔4000-5000米左右）。抵稻城。
七月二十六日：稻城/日瓦乡/亚丁村/冲古寺/落绒牛场(60公里) 由县城前往亚丁自然保护区，沿途观万亩杨树林欣赏赤土河谷迷人风光及世外桃源般藏式建 筑村寨，朝拜贡嘎郎吉岭寺，日瓦乡午餐后前往亚丁景区。住亚丁村
七月二十七日：亚丁村/稻城/理塘/巴塘(405公里) 经稻城后返回世界高城--理塘。驶进海子四布的海子山，说是海子山，但由东向西道路平缓，驾驶车辆不知不觉便到了山顶。之后抵达巴塘，巴塘县是藏东有名的水果之乡。
七月二十八日：巴塘/芒康/左贡(265公里)离开四川省，进入西藏境内。跨过金沙江。抵达藏东最后一个县城--芒康。从芒康出发，芒康海拔3900米，川藏南线，滇藏公路交汇于此，沿途可欣赏西藏江南和横断山脉美丽的自然风光。住左贡
七月二十九日：左贡/八宿/然乌(291公里)　　早餐后乘车经左贡抵达八宿。乘车从八宿出发，途经然乌，参观然乌湖，湖面海拔3850米，面积22平方公里，周围森林茂密，冰川晶莹，雪山皑皑，景色之秀，山川之美，素有＂西藏小瑞士＂之美称，沿途欣赏＂西藏江南＂和横断山脉美丽的自然风光。住然乌。
七月三十日：然乌/波密(129公里)　 离开然乌,抵达＂西藏的江南＂--波密。
七月三十一日：泥石流把通往通麦的唯一通道冲走了,当天只好在波密再留宿一晚
八月一日：波密--通麦--八一镇（235公里）早餐后乘车出发，穿越通麦＂死亡地带＂，途经鲁朗林海，之后抵达色积拉山口远眺雄伟壮丽，海拔7756米的南迦八瓦峰。到达林芝，参观林芝的“巨柏王”。沿途自然风光秀丽，道路崎岖险峻是川藏公路最难通行的一段。
八月二日：林芝－八松湖---拉萨（490公里）早餐后乘车前往巴松错湖，沿途欣赏尼洋河风景区自然风光。抵达国家四A级旅游风景区－八松湖参观浏览；之后翻越海拔5230米的米拉山口，抵达拉萨。
八月三日：拉萨市内观光（大昭寺、八角街、小昭寺, 色拉寺）上午参观建于七世纪的大昭寺，大昭寺位于拉萨旧城中心，是西藏的佛都中心和藏传佛教信徒中心的圣地。中午从大昭寺出来，八角街特别值得一逛，这里既是转经路，也是购买纪念品和体验藏民俗最佳之地。顺道到附近规模较小的小昭寺看看。下午到位于拉萨北郊的色拉乌孜山下的色拉寺参观. 色拉寺是一所具有代表性的黄教寺院，是藏传佛教格鲁派六大主寺之一，也是拉萨三大寺中建成最晚的一座寺院。色拉寺喇嘛的一项为人熟知的功课是辩经。
八月四日：雪顿节当天到哲蚌寺观看哂大佛, 到罗布林卡看藏戏今天正好是西藏传统的雪顿节的第一天. 雪顿节意为酸奶节,为拉萨僧俗人众喝酸奶看藏戏的节日.早上四点多就起床,乘出租车到哲蚌寺山下, 再摸黑上山等待观看闻名已久的哲蚌寺哂大佛仪式.下午移到罗布林卡(藏语总称为宝贝园林)，建于18世纪40年代。观看藏戏表演.
八月五日：拉萨/当雄/纳木措(260公里)从拉萨经过当雄县到纳木措圣湖. 纳木措藏语意为“天湖”，湖面海拔4718米，从湖东岸到西岸全长70多公里，由南岸到北岸宽30多公里，总面积为1900多平方公里，是中国的第二大咸水湖，也是世界上海拔最高的咸水湖，，湖水清澈透明,湖面呈天蓝色，水天相融，浑然一体
八月六日：参观布达拉宫参观有世界屋脊明珠之称的布达拉宫.
八月七日：乘飞机离开拉萨,回到北京

Oct 02, 2006

明朝伯虎逍遥处

苏州可说是个人杰地灵，名人辈出的好地方。其中一位苏州名人姓唐，名寅，字伯虎 (1470 - 1523年)，是明代著名的书画和文学家，诗词曲赋与文征明、祝允明、徐祯卿并称“江南四大才子”。 大家所熟悉的唐伯虎是个风流才子，一生中有九个如花似玉的夫人，其中和秋香姐的三笑姻缘更是家喻户晓。其实根据史料，这些关于唐伯虎的风流韵事，都为杜撰，可以一笑置之。

真实的唐伯虎也确实是当年一时无俩的才子，但其一生却是怀才不遇，坎坷多变，郁郁而终。唐伯虎自幼天资聪慧，熟读古书。16岁时参加童生试得第一名案首。25岁那年父、母、妻、妹在一年之内相继去世，唐伯虎化悲痛为力量，更加努力治学。29岁时参加应天府 (现南京)乡试考秀才，又高中解元(第一名)，可说是少年得志，前途似锦。第二年，30岁的唐伯虎在进京参加会试的路上遇到同去赶考的江阴富家子弟徐经（著名的旅行家徐霞客的曾祖父），成为至交。不幸的是，徐经在京城贿赂主考官程敏政的家僮，得到试题，还骗请唐伯虎提前帮他写好了文章。此事被人告发，两人入狱。在一年多的审讯中，唐伯虎在狱中吃尽苦头，后更被贬谪往浙江偏远之地为小吏。31岁的唐伯虎心灰意冷，后在浙江，安徽，湖南，湖北， 江西，福建等地“游山玩水”近一年多，山穷水尽后返回苏州，而此时妻子(续弦)已弃他而去。

唐伯虎大病一场后，性情大变，开始游戏人生。史载，唐伯虎曾和祝枝山等扮为乞丐，沿街唱莲花落讨钱，钱讨来了，就上酒楼喝酒。唐伯虎在36岁娶患难中的红颜知己沈九娘为妻，随后在苏州金阊门外桃花坞筑屋，取名桃花庵(遗址在苏州今桃花坞大街)，慢慢走出人生低谷，以卖文卖画为生。唐伯虎晚年精神空虚，“皈心佛乘，自号六如”。明嘉靖二年(1523年)，唐伯虎去世，享年54岁，幸有好友祝枝山资助，把他归葬于横塘的宗族墓地，可说是天妒英才，萧条一生。

唐伯虎留给世人不少诗词书画精品。从以下这几首我随意挑选的诗词，就能看出唐伯虎的才情和体会他对人生无奈的感慨。下回你到苏州，不妨带本唐寅诗集，在小桥流水桃花处，品茶，读诗，别有一番滋味在心头。

桃花庵歌

桃花坞里桃花庵，桃花庵下桃花仙；桃花仙人种桃树，又摘桃花卖酒钱。酒醒只在花前坐，酒醉换来花下眠；半醒半醉日复日，花落花开年复年。但愿老死花酒间，不愿鞠躬车马前；车尘马足富者趣，酒盏花枝贫者缘。若将富贵比贫贱，一在平地一在天；若将贫贱比车马，他得驱驰我得闲。别人笑我忒疯癫，我笑别人看不穿；不见五陵豪杰墓，无花无酒锄做田。

一世歌

人生七十古来少，前除幼年后除老。中间光阴不多时，又有炎霜与烦恼。花前月下得高歌，急需满把金樽倒。世人钱多赚不尽，朝里官多做不了。官大钱多心转忧，落得自家头白早。春夏秋冬捻指间，钟送黄昏鸡报晓。请君细点眼前人，一年一度埋荒草。草里高低多少坟，一年一半无人扫。

言志

不炼金丹不坐禅，不为商贾不耕田。闲来写就青山卖，不使人间造孽钱！

Jan 07, 2007

春秋夫差含恨此

在春秋战国时期，江苏省的苏州市一带曾是吴国的都城。公元前496年，吴国和近邻越国交战于檇李（今浙江省嘉兴南），吴为越所败，吴王阖闾(? - 公元前496年) 受伤而亡，其子夫差继位（? - 公元前473年）。两年后吴王夫差大败越军于夫椒（在太湖之中），大举入攻越国都城会稽（今浙江绍兴）。越王勾践(? - 公元前465年) 求和，夫差许。越王勾践和大臣范蠡滞留在吴国当人质长达三年，受尽屈辱苦难。回国后，越王勾践广纳贤士，卧薪尝胆，忍辱负重，还把西施送给夫差，使其疏理国事。越国修养生息多年，终于在公元前473年大败吴国，吴王夫差被围困在吴都（今江苏省苏州）西面的姑苏山上，求降不得而自杀，吴亡。越王勾践终于报了20多年前的战败之仇。

当勾践刚刚灭吴称霸，其手下最大之功臣范蠡马上功成身退。据说范蠡后改名陶朱公，和西施退隐于杭州一带，并经商而成为富甲一方的富豪。

这些都是两千多年前发生在苏州，杭州，嘉兴，绍兴等地方的事了。今天有上千万的老百姓在这些城市里为生活理想而奔波，高速公路上货车川流不息，饭馆酒吧里喧哗声此起彼落，确实很难想象这就是当年吴越争战的沙场。。。

Jan 07, 2007

苏州评弹

前些时候在苏州拙政园游园赏景，无意间经过一间小阁楼。 阁楼里流淌着如行云流水似的琵琶声，和一段段时而缠绵，时而幽怨，时而刚强，婉约多姿的古典女声唱腔。仔细一听，奇怪？这即非京剧，又不像昆曲，更不是黄梅戏。于是好奇的从窗外往内观望，原来阁楼内是一茶馆。只见一身穿旗袍，样貌娟好的女子正端坐中央，右手抱个琵琶，纤纤玉指熟练的在弦上弹、挑、扫，拂，敲。。并带着浓厚的苏州韵味和口音唱着那甚为动听的曲子。终于还是轻轻的推门而入，向接待的小姑娘一询问，才知道那是有名的苏州评弹，唱的正是《新木兰辞》。

留下来，欣赏片刻。。。确实，很不错。

《新木兰辞》词：1958年夏史参照《花木兰》开篇据古乐府《木兰辞 》改编

唧唧机声日夜忙，（木兰是）频频叹息愁绪长。
惊闻可汗点兵卒，又见兵书十数行。
卷卷都有爹名字，老父何堪征战场。
阿爷无大儿，木兰无兄长，（我）自恨钗环是女郎。
东市长鞭西市马，（愿将那）裙衫脱去换戎装。
登山涉水长途去，代父从军意气扬。
朝听溅溅黄河急，夜渡茫茫黑水长。
颦鼓隆隆山岳震，朔风猎猎旌旗张。
风驰电扫制强虏，跃马横枪战大荒。
关山万里如飞渡，铁衣染血映寒光。
转战十年才奏捷，归来天子坐明堂。
策勋十二转，赏赐百千镪，木兰不愿尚书郎。
愿将明驼千里足，送儿早早回故乡。
爹娘闻女来，出廓相扶将。
姐姐闻妹来，帮我理红妆。
小弟闻姊来，欢呼舞欲狂；磨刀霍霍向猪羊；一家喜气上面庞。
开我东阁门，坐我西阁床；脱我战时袍，着我旧时裳；当窗理云鬓，对镜贴花黄；含笑出门寻伙伴，伙伴见她尽惊慌。
同行一十有余载，不知将军是女郎；谁说女儿不刚强。

近代苏州评弹名家盛小云版新木兰辞网上试听

Jan 13, 2007

千湖

芬兰，一个谦称自己是“千湖之国”，但事实上却拥有近十九万个美丽湖泊的国家。这几年来因为学习和工作，在芬兰来回呆过不少时间，但最难忘的还是她那一个个宁静又祥和的湖泊。

仲夏时节，湖泊的四周都挤满了绿得发亮的松树，桦树，和杉树。湖水清澈，且平静，偶尔一阵清风，水波荡漾，在温暖的阳光照耀下，闪烁着点点磷光。悠闲的，在岸边，漫步，歇，瞭望彼岸，静静的享受着，一个人守着一片湖的奢华，直到，那夕阳西下。。。

Feb 03, 2007

非常难忘，如此多娇

认识一个城市，就好像结识一个朋友，确实需要耐性和时间。初次碰面，能观察到的往往只是他/她的仪表和风范。接触多了，就会逐渐知道他/她的喜恶，兴趣，偏好和观点。如有机缘而能更深入地相互认识，也许还能从他/她的家庭背景，成长过程，言行举止，生活方式等方面，进一步了解他/她的性格，思路，价值观和对未来的展望。到了这一步，你可能会更全面，更深刻地理解他/她的多面性，多层次性，矛盾性，复杂性，而同时又存在那一种对生活的质和量不弃不舍追求的一致性。

用这种渐进的方式去发现，认识和欣赏一个人或一座城市，别有一番滋味。

Nov 26, 2006

京城春，浓得，化不开。。。

二零零四年一月，我第一次在中国北京过春节。在中国，春节的假期共有七天。但其实真正的公共假期只有三天，不过国家规定春节前的周末为工作日, 而把那两天的假期改在春节期间，再加上春节期间的周末，所以前后一共有七天假期。 由于老百姓(尤其是在外工作的民工)都安排在春节期间回家过年，所以春节前后可说是人流的高峰期。据说春节期间全中国有上千万的人次往返各乡镇省市。各火车站，车站，机场等交通枢纽都一早准备就绪，如临大敌。有时侯我们实在很难想象一些中国人回乡时所面对的困难。要知道中国国土面积庞大，而且一些偏远乡县的交通也不发达。许多人需要在路上熬上好几天几夜，乘火车，转公交（小巴），再乘小车，可能还要走一段山路才能回到家。可说是跋山涉水，披星戴月，确实是很不容易。

北京的春节除了一般的年夜饭(团年饭)，拜年等等活动外，主要还是逛庙会。据说庙会起源于祭神活动, 但今天的庙会已转变成全民同欢的集市。基本上和我们亚庇年二十九晚上的夜市，或加雅街集市很相似。 北京的庙会从年初一早上开始，每天上下午营业，一直到年初六才收市。 北京的庙会的地点可多了，计有历史最悠久的广甸庙会，最富有宗教色彩的白云观庙会，最有文化气息的红楼庙会，风景秀丽的龙潭湖庙会，最热闹的地坛庙会等等。一般来说各庙会的分别不大，主要还是卖些小吃，年货，还有些零零星星的传统文化工艺表演。 我趁着新年假期，从初一到初三走马观花似的逛了五个庙会，可说是开了眼界。

Nov 19, 2006

向来痴，从此醉

金庸在"天龙八部"的第十一章（向来痴）和十二章（从此醉）里有好几段对江南水乡（浙江北部和苏州南部一带，自古统称江南）的描述，相当传神。

话说鸠摩智把段誉从大理劫持到苏州城，正打算到“参合庄”拜访慕容博后人。在湖边彷徨之际。。。

“湖面绿波上飘来一叶小舟，一个绿杉少女手执双桨，缓缓划水而来，口中唱着小曲，听那曲子是：“菡萏香连十顷陂，小姑贪戏采莲迟。晚来弄水船头滩，笑脱红裙裹鸭儿。”歌声娇柔无邪，欢悦动心。。。。 （从略） 。。。这时那少女划着小舟，已近岸边，听到鸠摩智的说话，接口道：“这位大师父要去参合庄，阿有啥事体？”说话声音极甜极清，令人一听之下，说不出的舒适。这少女约莫十六七岁年纪，满脸都是温柔，满身尽是秀气。。。（从略）。。。舟行湖上，几个转折，便转入了一庄大湖之中，极目望去，但见烟波浩渺，远水接天。。。（从略）。。。崔百泉见她交还兵刃，登感宽心，当下依言将小舟划入一处小港，但见水面上生满了荷叶，若不是她指点，决不知荷叶间竟有通路。崔百泉划了一会，阿碧又指示水路：“从这里划过去。”这边水面上全是菱叶和红菱，清波之中，红菱绿叶，鲜艳非凡。阿碧顺手采摘红菱，分给众人。。。（从略）。。。菱塘尚未过完，阿碧又指引小舟从一丛芦苇和茭白中穿了过去。这么一来，连鸠摩智也起了戒心，暗暗记忆小舟的来路，以备回出时不致迷路，可是一眼望去，满湖荷叶、菱叶、芦苇、茭白，都是一模一样，兼之荷叶、菱叶在水面飘浮，随时一阵风来，便即变幻百端，就算此刻记得清清楚楚，霎时间局面便全然不同。鸠摩智和崔百泉、过彦之三人不断注视阿碧双目，都想从她眼光之中，瞧出她寻路的法子和指标，但她只是漫不经意的采菱拨水，随口指引，似乎这许许多多纵横交错、棋盘一般的水道，便如她手掌中的掌纹一般明白，生而知之，不须辨认。。。（从略）。。。如此曲曲折折的划了两个多时辰，未牌时分，遥遥望见远处绿柳丛中，露出一角飞檐。。。（从略）。。。众人逐一跨上岸去，见疏疏落落四五座房舍，建造在一个不知是小岛还是半岛之上。房舍小巧玲珑，颇为精雅。小舍匾额上写着“琴韵”两字，笔致颇为潇洒。鸠摩智道：“此间便是燕子坞参合庄么？”阿碧摇头道：“不。这是公子起给我住的，小小地方，实在不能接待贵客。不过这位大师父说要去拜祭慕容老爷的墓，我可作不了主，只好请几位在这里等一等，我去问问阿朱姊姊。”

金庸是浙江海宁县人，从小在江南长大。海宁县位于杭州市近郊，从那到浙江北部的南浔，西塘，乌镇，距离不算太远，估计步行也就是一两天的路程。而苏州南部的周庄，同里，甪直也在周边。近年来数次到访江南水乡，有时候坐在河道旁柳树下的石板凳上歇息，望着小桥，流水，人家，不禁会寻思那让金庸“向来痴，从此醉”的宋代江南，究竟是怎么样的一幅光景？ 煞是耐人寻味。。。

Nov 12, 2006

急躁如火，冷漠似冰

昨晚本计划乘东航班机从成都回到上海，但很不幸的是，这回终于让我遇上了航班取消这种麻烦事。

经常出差或旅游的朋友们都知道，内陆航班延误在国内基本是惯例。运气好的一般也就等个十来分钟半小时，运气不好的话，望穿秋水数小时也是常事。较长时间的航班延误，多半归咎于雨，雾，雪等天气问题，受影响的航班也较多。昨晚估计是成都地区大雾导致许多航班无法依时降落，因此造成绝大部分航班严重延误。其实因为自然且不可抗拒的因素而导致航班延误，也是情有可原之事，但航空公司处理航班延误的方法和态度，和往常一样，实在是不敢恭维。

航班原预定于旁晚五点半登机，六点钟起飞，但到了六点多了还没有任何消息。到了晚上七点半，指示牌上显示的还是旧的讯息，询问登机员，得到的回答也是支支吾吾的。后来得知飞机还在上一个地点等待起飞，估计能在八点半左右抵达成都，预计九点十分能从成都起飞前往上海。但正如我所料，九点十五分后还是没有任何动静。接近晚上十点钟左右，登机员突然宣布该航班已经取消，原因不明，航空公司将安排乘客到民航宾馆休息一宿，明早再行通知航班时间，而每人将获赔偿人民币六百元的代金卷(ticket voucher)。可是宣布的方式却很不专业，没有任何布告，通知单或广播，也就只是那几位登机员在现场“相当随意”的向走过来询问的乘客简单的解释几句。那些已等侯了近一宿的乘客们自然气上心头，蜂拥而上的围绕着那几名一脸无辜样的登机员大事声讨，兴师问罪。要知道当晚几乎所有航班都严重延误，整个成都机场已是一片混乱。乘客们近乎声嘶力竭的怒骂，指责，不知究竟的看官们还以为他们和那几位登机员有啥深仇大恨，搞得几乎要大打出手似的。后来我仔细一听，争吵的也不外是“俺非要今晚登机不可”，“我死活不住两星级宾馆”，“凭什么别的航班能起飞，我们的就不行”，“究竟赔多少，你给我白纸黑字写清楚”之类的课题，大都是无理取闹的居多。但我后来回想，除了个别乘客个人素质确实有问题外，很多乘客也许早已有许多被航空公司忽悠（欺骗/开空头支票）的经验，在几乎完全没有任何互信的基础下，乘客的脾气自然免不了大了些。

深夜时分，终于拖着疲惫的身体从机场大厅走出来。正在等候去民航宾馆的车时又发生了一段插曲。一名乘客惊讶的发现有一名约二十来岁的少女坐倒门前，一手按抚着自己的心脏部位，脸青唇白，满头汗水，奄奄一息。其中一名乘客赶紧向一群站在一旁正等着下班的机场保安们呼救，让人吃惊的是，机场保安们个个一脸冷漠，不屑一顾，继续谈笑风生。后来几个乘客手忙脚乱的把少女抬上一部车送往医院急救。几分钟后，机场保安们的班车到了，而他们也都开开心心的回家去。

医书说道，一热一冷，容易犯感冒。

看来, 我们这社会有许多人确实有病，而且还病得不轻。

Aug 13, 2007

拥挤的天堂

几年前随意给自己列了个到中国各地旅游的清单，其中九寨沟，丽江/香格里拉和西藏不分先后的名列三甲。前几天从九寨沟归来，虽然这次去的不太是时候（不是在红黄遍野的秋天），但也算是圆了多年的愿望。这次入沟走的是陆路，从成都到九寨沟约四五百公里/十多个小时/两个半天的路程，比起川藏线来说，不算非常艰险。相对较为惊险的有两段路，一是从都江堰市沿着岷江边上的山路逆流而上约一百多公里到达茂县，二是从茂县走约五十多公里的盘山路到达海拔三千多尺的叠溪海子（高山湖泊）地震遗址，然后再走七八十公里的山路抵达松潘古城。从松潘古城开始，路就平坦多了。松潘古城距离九黄机场的所在地川主寺镇约十七公里，而从川主寺镇到九寨沟八十多公里的山路，路况好得几乎让人难以置信，而且一路上两旁松树杉树参天，蓝天白云，风景如画，确实让人有点置身于瑞士高原的感觉。

当天到达九寨天堂度假酒店时已是下午一点多了。稍作安顿后，就赶到附近的“神仙池”一游。从九寨天堂度假酒店到“神仙池”有五十多公里的盘山路，而且还相当危险，尤其是下山的那段二十八道弯，若非经验丰富的开车师傅，我奉劝千万莫试。“神仙池”景区内钙化彩池群的规模比黄龙景区小得多，但基本上属于同类的自然景观，所以后来黄龙景区就没去了。第二天到访九寨沟，清晨到了景区门口后一看，才知道九寨沟景区每天接待一两万名游客是个怎么样的景象；那万人空巷的伟大场面，确实壮观。

九寨沟景区是由树正沟，日则沟和则渣洼沟三沟组成的一个“Y”字形路线，主要的景点就是沿着这三条沟上。总的来说，景区的规划和管理可说是非常的完善周到，尤其是在平衡自然环境保护和接待大量游客的工作上，用国内的话来说，就是已达到“世界先进水平”。景区内设有游览车队，让那些不愿全程跋山涉水的游客们能随着自己的行程安排自由的在多个转乘站上下车，然后再步行到各个景点游玩。但由于大部分游客的行程安排基本大同小异，所以在几个主要的转乘站和景点，如树正瀑布等，往往都是人满为患。你可以试着想象一下那种近乎嘉年华晚会似的热闹氛围：上下游览车时前拥后挤，取景留影时分秒必争，观赏流水瀑布时争先恐后，体会高山空灵时喧哗吆喝声此起彼落 。。。我本来还计划在哪年的秋天再次到访九寨，但一想到那满山遍野的人群，心想还是算了吧。

客观地说，从自然环境和人文景观而言，九寨沟，确实是尘世间少有的天堂。

遗憾的是，这是一个拥挤的天堂。

Aug 13, 2007

雾灵山中遇凤，司马台上见龙。

二零零四年九月,和一班朋友到北京东郊的怀柔区住上一宿, 并游览了雾灵山国家森林公园和令人叹为观止的司马台长城。 司马台长城是明代长城保留的较好的一部分, 其之所以名满天下是因为这段长城建设在非常险峻的山峰上,如不是亲眼所见, 实在难以置信。乘坐缆车到达山腰, 之后再坐登山车到达长城墙脚, 再攀登一段山路后就到达司马台长城第八号城楼. 从城楼往山下望去, 大好河山, 一览无余。当天晴空万里, 在山上能非常清楚的看到长城就如一条万里巨龙, 源源不断的盘绕在起伏不定的翠绿山脉. 那种壮观的画面, 实在震撼人心, 让人一见难忘.

04 Oct, 2006

Amazing UK

I visited United Kingdom the very first time (stayed about 10 days) when I was on my way to Finland during August 2001. In overall, I must say I am really impressed with the country, both in term of her breathtaking architecture, amazing history, beautiful countryside and fantastic infrastructure.

London is just superb. I have seen London many times from postcards and TV, but nothing like to be there personally. The architectures in London are simply breathtaking. The big Ben, parliament house, Tower Bridge, St Paul’s Cathedral, British Museum, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace and many more are just amazingly beautiful and grand. The Hyde park is beautiful, the speaker’s corner on Sunday is interesting, the Madam Tussaud’s Museum and Covent Garden is fun, the London tube system is impressive, and the service in Wong Kei (the famous Chinese restaurant in China town) is actually not too bad after all! As recommended by many of my friends, I also watched the Les Miserable show, walked around SOHO, cruised along the river Thames, passed by Harrods and Imperial College, as well as traveled to Greenwich to see the abandoned Millennium dome.

However, the living expenses in London are just overwhelmingly high. I was really lucky to be able to stay with a friend while I was in London, otherwise my wallet would has been "bleed to dead" long time ago. Nevertheless, it was still worth it.

After spent 4 days in London, I joined a local travel group for a 6 days UK tour. Departing from London, the tours took me heading north to Oxford, Stratford Upon Avon (Shakespeare’s birth place), Warwick, Chester, then took a detour to Ruthin (North Wales), and continue north to Lancaster, passed by Lake District National Park and arrived in Edinburgh (Scotland). While I was in Scotland, I also took a detour to Trossachs (The highland in Scotland). After that I traveled back south, bypassing Newcastle, stopped by in York and Cambridge and finally backed to London.

For the whole 6 days, I think I enjoyed Oxford, Stratford Upon Avon, Chester, Edinburgh, York and Cambridge the most. All are classic English towns/cities, with extremely interesting architecture and city planning. I am most impressed by Edinburgh, which the whole city is just like a huge castle emerged from the fairly tale. Almost 80% of the town is still remains as it was hundreds years ago. When I toured around the city, the tour guide talked about how Robert Louis Stevenson created the fabulous novel Treasure Island, how the famous Economist Adam Smith wrote his classic “The Wealth of the Nations” and etc. Surrounded by fabulous architectures buildings constructed in the 18th centuries, and viewed the Edinburgh castle on the hill; I was totally immersed into the charisma of Edinburgh. The best of all, Edinburgh was in the middle of its annual Edinburgh art festival, the largest art festival in the world. The whole city was packed with tourists watching artists around the world performing on the streets. The atmosphere was just unforgettable.

04 Oct, 2006

二零零三年十月，初到北京

由于在这之前已经来过北京好几次, 所以对这城市并不会觉得陌生. 基本上北京还是繁华如皆, 路上车水马龙, 新高楼如雨后春笋般在古届城楼旁冒出, 让这座已有八百五十年历史的古城更显得与众不同.其实北京的城市规划可说是非常不错, 许多建设基本上还是根据几百年来的旧规格. 北京大大小小的道路就如棋盘般横竖交错, 而环线地铁,二环, 三环, 四环和五环绕城高速公路就一圈一圈的把北京城由内往外一层一层的包起来. 长安街和地铁一线贯穿北京东西两侧, 而另外八条高速公路则如直线般从北京城由内往外放射出去, 直通八达岭, 天津, 石家庄等地, 可说是巧夺天工. 但是如此相对完善的公路建设, 还是解决不了北京一千多万人的交通问题.堵车在北京可说是家常便饭. 听一些出租车师傅说, 北京以前是在早上七点半以后才开时堵车, 而现在以提前到七点了. 就如其它大城市一般, 许多北京司机开起车来也是横冲直撞的, 再加上北京骑自行车的人不少, 路上少不了一些惊险镜头. 晚上乘出租车回家时, 车堵在车水马龙的三环高速公路上, 默看身旁两侧无数高楼丛起,霓虹灯和车鸣声不段的在眼前耳边徊绕, 遥想几百年前李自成, 康熙, 雍正, 乾隆等人也许就曾在这段路上经过, 心里多少不免有点感慨.

前一段时间放了七天的国庆长假, 趁这机会到天安门广场周围逛逛. 那几天全北京可说是人山人海,而中国人口之多也实在是名不虚传.尤其是天安门一带更不用说, 几乎到处都是捉襟见肘.连地铁通道也塞人塞得水泄不通. 勉勉强强从前门挤到天安门广场北端, 就已经受不了要打退堂鼓了. 后来那几天也不敢再到游客多的地方,以免重蹈覆辙，怕怕。。。: )

03 Oct, 2006

桂林奇峰秀水

二零零四年四月，出差到广西壮族自治区的南宁市, 也就乘这机会和老板请一天假, 到南宁市往北四个多小时车程的桂林市度过一个周末。桂林市的市区并不大, 而且老区的建筑群也非常陈旧。 但桂林市的山水确实不错, 尤其是从桂林市附近乘船,游了漓江河五个小时最终到达阳朔县, 那段水路两岸的奇峰秀水, 果真名不虚传。 这次的桂林之旅有点匆忙, 希望以后有机会能和再到桂林一游。

03 Oct 2006

简朴自然，奢华现代。

五一假期间到巴里岛度假，最后几天住在离巴里岛艺术文化中心 - Ubud / 乌布村大约十几分钟车程的Alila Ubud 度假村。短短的两三天，已对Alila Ubud留下了深刻的印象。

一般的星级度假酒店, 虽都舒适豪华, 但为了照顾大众的消费习惯, 酒店的整体概念, 大堂设计, 客房装潢, 花园格局, 基本设施, 服务内容等等, 几乎都是大同小异, 基本上万变不离其宗。相比之下，有特色的Boutique Hotel / 精品酒店或Design Hotel / 设计酒店，就显得有意思的多了。Boutique Hotel / 精品酒店或Design Hotel / 设计酒店和一般的星级度假酒店最根本的区别在于 – 其整体概念独特，风格鲜明，在细节上费尽心思，把当地的历史，文化, 自然环境特色和酒店的点点滴滴巧妙的融为一体。由于走的是精品路线, 这类酒店的规模一般不大，大都在五十间到一百间客房左右；有些是把具有特殊历史意义的老建筑物翻新改造（如香格里拉县城的松赞绿谷酒店），或把酒店设计得如民宅村庄, 有些甚至把酒店建在幽深的原始森林之中或雪山峭壁之上, 而Alila Ubud就是其中一个典型的例子。

巴里岛以其洁白的沙滩, 丰富的文化和热带田野风光闻名于世。Alila Ubud取材于后两者, 在某种程度上成功的打造了一座幽静且美丽, 简朴但奢华, 自然却现代的世外桃源。从Ubud / 乌布村开车前往Alila Ubud, 一路上经过弯曲起伏的乡间小道, 大约十来分钟左右，Alila Ubud不显眼的门牌就显示在路旁。把车开入Alila Ubud的范围内，路的两旁都是金黄色的热带稻田和高耸的椰树，偶尔遇到当地村民在赶鸭, 收割稻米，或在田间小径漫步回家。几分钟后，过了最后一个安检，不久车子就停在酒店的中庭花园。位于中庭左边的单层独立式巴里传统建筑就是宽敞的开放式酒店大堂，七八根细长的木柱把茅草屋顶高高撑起，大堂的一端安放着一张宽大简朴的木制前台，前台后的巴里大婶一身洁白的巴里传统服装，举止端庄大方，面带温和笑容，用一口异常流利的英语向来宾亲切的问好。入住登记手续简单快捷，随后，酒店的客户服务经理（一名日籍女子，估计日本游客不少）到来嘘寒问暖一番，把酒店的情况简单的介绍一遍，在她引领下大致参观了一下酒店的各个角落。

Alila Ubud就建在Ayung River / 阿咏河边的山丘之上，整个度假村被原始森林和满山遍野的椰树林环抱。五十六间客房都是单层建筑，每间客房的阳台面向河谷森林，山谷下的河水激流声，鸟叫声，虫鸣声，夜里的风声雨声，尽入耳中。客房的装潢和家具都尽量选用自然材料（木材，石头，茅草），整体的感觉简朴，大方，实用，高雅，且禅意十足。客房没有电视机，宽带上网等“现代设施”，而浴室的窗户是一整片的落地玻璃窗，让客人在淋浴时能欣赏户外的森林景观，犹如置身山野荒林之中。从Alila Ubud开放式的主餐厅居高临下的向对面的山谷瞭望, 属于另一间酒店的十来栋巴里式别墅, 错落有致的遍布在丘林椰树当中。而Alila Ubud闻名于世的infinity pool / 无边际泳池，无可质疑是最精彩的一笔。深碧蓝色的长方形泳池, 端庄平稳的置放在山崖边上, 碧绿平静的水面把蓝天白云尽收怀里，泳池的尽头就是山崖, 一眼望去，碧水和蓝天衔接得没有一丝隙缝，美丽得几乎让人窒息，让人一见难忘。。。

Alila Ubud整体的设计无疑是成功的。

下次你到巴里岛度假，有机会真的不妨去看一看。

May 06, 2007

云的南端

前年趁圣诞节和元旦假期到云南省走了一趟, 前后一共呆了大约十三天。二零零四年十二月二十四号一早从北京飞往云南省的省会昆明市, 在昆明市住了两天一夜, 游逛了昆明市区和附近的石林公园。 老实说, 昆明市就好像中国许多著名的历史名城一样, 经过多年战争和文化大革命的洗礼, 已经几乎完全找不到历史的痕迹了。大部分的所谓古迹都是后来重建, 新盖的高楼大厦也和别的城市没什么分别, 实在是非常可惜。不过云南省由于地处西南山区,地理环境和气候非常适合生长各式各样的野菜和菌类,故在饮食方面到别有一番风味。如果说广东人热衷于野味,那云南人可说是迷念于野菜和菌类。其实就饮食方面来说, 每年的夏季才是到访云南省的好季节,到时候水果鲜花大丰收, 各式各样的野菜和菌类可让你大饱口福。由于季节不对, 在云南省的那两天基本上没吃到什么野菜菌类, 但简单扼要的品尝几道云南省菜也足以让我大开眼界了。此外, 昆明市位于海拔一千八百米左右,空气有点稀薄,初到昆明市时似乎有点高原反应, 感觉有点头疼,呼吸有点困难等,但呆上一两天后就恢复正常了。

在昆明市呆了两天后, 就乘晚上十一点的火车从昆明市到三百多公里外的大理市。从昆明到大理的火车车厢都是开放式(没有独立房间)的卧铺, 故感觉更加密集, 杂乱。昆明到大理的火车行程大约是七个多小时, 到达大理市已经是第二天凌晨七点左右了。大理也算是历史名城了, 但和昆明市一样, 现在残留的遗迹已经不多。还好大理的自然环境优美, 古城又位于高山和巨湖之间, 山光水色, 景观相当怡人。中国五十多个少数民族, 有过半是居住在云南省, 而大理市的白族就是其中一个非常重要的民族。白族妇女的民族服装有个很好听的名字,叫”风花雪月”,相当具有代表性。

在大理市住上一晚后, 第二天就乘大巴前往闻名中外, 收录为联合国世界文化遗产之一的丽江古城。丽江古城是云南省另一种少数民族, 纳西族聚居的地方。在元明清时代, 丽江古城是云南省茶马古道的必经之地。所谓的茶马古道,就是相等于中国西南地区的丝绸之路。古时候中国西南地区山多路少, 云南省西南地区的茶叶和土产需由专门从事运输的马帮们, 翻山越岭, 把货品从昆明市, 西双版纳市等地, 途径大理市, 丽江市, 香格里拉市, 德钦市,一路往北运至西藏拉萨市, 甚至到印度, 尼泊尔等地, 把商品交换成牛皮等土产再运回云南省. 像丽江市, 香格里拉市这种几个重要中转站, 经过多年的发展变化, 已逐渐形成规模不小的商品聚散地, 也因此发展成中小型的城镇。丽江是其中最特别的一个城镇。它位于雄伟的玉龙雪山边上, 整个城镇的规划可说是巧夺天工, 源源不断的山泉引人城镇后再分流成无数的小溪, 穿流于千家百户之间, 古色古香的明清民宅, 错落有致的分布在纵横交错的光滑石板块小巷两旁. 在古城内还能常看见纳西族老太太, 穿着名为”披星戴月”的民族服装, 缓缓的漫步在小桥流水旁,实在是一副副令人难忘的景象。虽然说现在的丽江市已不再算是一座远离人烟的世外桃园, 每年从世界各地蜂拥而来的游客有数十万之众, 但丽江市作为一个世界文化遗产兼旅游胜地,在商业规划和保护工作上的平衡, 还是相当可取的。

在丽江市呆了数天后,又前往卢沽湖,虎跳峡和香格里拉市等几个周边的景点。卢沽湖距离丽江市两三百公里, 路途虽不算遥远, 但一路上要翻越五座高山, 路况实在不太好。卢沽湖是位于云南省和四川省边界的一个高原湖泊, 在湖的四周住了几万摩梭人, 过得是世界上仅存的母系社会。基本上摩梭人过着男不婚女不嫁的原始阿夏走婚生活, 男女双方终身各居母家, 男子夜晚到女子的花楼留宿, 感情破裂则自然终结关系。孩子随母亲生活, 从小接受妈妈和舅舅的管教, 在感情和经济上都属于母亲家。可算是人类社会生活方式的活化石。 而香格里拉市则位于丽江市以北两百多公里, 是云南省的藏族自治州。当地的风土人情和云南省其他地方很不一样。藏族的文化气息显得非常浓厚。也许藏族的文化注重家庭关系，再加上高原上地广人稀， 藏民的房子盖得虽然简单，但又高又大, 显得气势非凡. 回到北京后, 回想云南省一行, 感觉中国的确是太大了, 单是一个云南省已蕴涵如此丰富多彩的人文景观, 足以让人叹为观止了。。。

2006年10月4日