2013-09-02

        上世纪八九十年代，我们这批走出国门的年轻人，大多拥有理科或医学背景——“学好数理化，走遍天下都不怕”是我们信奉的箴言。可若追本溯源，我们小时候并未像下一代那样全方位接触“科学”实践，它更像一座虚幻的空中楼阁，看不见摸不着。但口号蛊惑人心，我们仍坚定不移地追求它，将它提升到人生志向的高度。若非

2013-09-01

        距离开学还有最后一个周末，孩子们丝毫未放缓脚步，反而抓紧时间与暑假赛跑。放假是玩，上学也是玩，只是玩的范围受限、级别从全职转为业余，心中难免失落。迎接新学年之际，信步“三万里河东入海”，跋涉“五千仞岳上摩天”，游山玩水显得别有意义。闺蜜家的蒙蒙、浩浩继续深入科罗拉多“红色”州阿斯彭“大齿杨”腹地——落

2013-08-24

        在美国，无论加利福尼亚“火炉”州都市还是宾夕法尼亚“山林”州乡间，亲朋好友对身外世界的眼光与向往总是惊人地相似。每逢暑假，大家不约而同分头行动——或送孩子进夏令营，或带他们出国旅行，或奔赴名山大川探险，相信丰富的校外活动能助孩子增长见识。仲夏八月，夏令营接近尾声，忙碌了一年的父母便借此为自己找

2013-08-13 七夕节

        我第一次听说“骊靬村”，源于儿时读的香港武侠小说——热血少年独闯西汉塞外名城，试图发掘2,000年前古罗马“力量”第一军团失踪之谜。相传公元前53年，罗马将军克拉苏“坚固”(Crassus)东征帕提亚“安息”(Parthia Empire)，战死卡莱“十字路口”；其长子率第一军团突围，辗转流落至中国骊靬，从此定居繁衍。19

2013-08-04

        特拉华“好战者”海滨州立公园如一道细长的石堤，沿海岸将里霍博斯“阔地”河与印第安河两个海湾紧紧环抱。北部里霍博斯湾是障壁坝型河口，淡水河流顺势注入；南部印第安河湾属水淹河谷，海洋潮汐缓缓渗入。里霍博斯湾素有“国家避暑胜地”之称——扬帆、滑翔、皮艇、摩托、风筝、挖蛤、钓鱼、晒太阳，水温温和，风浪平

2013-08-03

【Aiden in English/红霞译】

Mon. July 29, 2013

        Today was my first day of Lavner Video Game Design at Germantown Academy Summer Camp, following my participation in Belfry Theater Camp over the past five weeks. But I was only able to catch up with it for a week. After this week, I had no more ca

2013-07-31

        每年夏季，费城“兄弟之爱”管弦乐团都会在曼恩“人类”艺术中心邀请世界各地青年新秀同台献艺——中国的郎朗、王羽佳都曾在此一鸣惊人。今晚登台的是旅美钢琴新秀吴迪，来自我的家乡南京。她演奏拉赫玛尼诺夫的《帕格尼尼主题狂想曲》——70多年前，正是费城管弦乐团与拉赫玛尼诺夫本人首演了这部充满“俄罗斯忧郁”

2013-07-27

        法国溪流州立公园位于斯库尔基尔“暗河”高原，森林覆盖广袤，湖泊纵横，湿地牧场交织，是一处远离都市喧嚣的世外桃源。六年前初次造访，我们便被栗树、橡树、枫树、胡桃树等高大乔木的密林所吸引；草木葱茏，枝蔓盘错，小径深不见底。这回哥哥轻车熟路，主动领路；妹妹初来乍到，脚下打滑，走路都成了问题。哥哥见

2013-07-26

【Aiden in English/红霞译】

Mon. July 22, 2013

        Today was the first rehearsal with MICs, which made the voice much louder. So now, we sounded tiny, weak, and especially quiet. The people who wore MICs were Millie, Jimmy, Miss Dorothy, Trevor Graydon, Ching Ho, Bun Foo, Mrs Meers, and Miss Flann

2013-07-24

        费城“兄弟之爱”管弦乐团已逾百余年历史，与纽约“新紫衫树之地”爱乐、波士顿“小村庄”交响、芝加哥“野洋葱”交响、克利夫兰“悬崖之地”管弦并称美国五大。其演奏技艺精湛，素有“费城之声”之誉。每年七八月间，乐团在曼恩“人类”中心、长木花园、海军基地等地举办大型户外演出，让民众不必走进金梅尔大厅，也能聆听一流天

2013-07-21

        美东七月，热浪如蒸笼般铺天盖地，“旱云飞火燎长空，白日浑如坐甑中”。惹不起，便躲——有人南下北卡外滩，投入大西洋怀抱，晒太阳、洗海澡，凉快闲适，儿孙嬉笑；有人包船出海，花两千美金租一艘快艇，清晨六点出发，深入暖流交汇处，80磅/73斤的金枪鱼便是盘中餐；云光、红丽夫妇随小女儿出征全美花样游泳锦标

2013-07-20

【Aiden in English/红霞译】

Mon. July 15, 2013

        This morning, I tested my costume designed for a mugger. But it had nothing in common with what I thought of. It was selected from one of the many racks in the costume room. I expected it to be a plain shirt and pants with holes. What I didn't

2013-07-14

        开心触摸博物馆坐落在费城“兄弟之爱”费尔蒙“美山”公园内，是全美第一家专为七岁以下儿童设计的教育机构——通过肢体直接与展品互动，在游戏中了解常识、接受熏陶、刺激智力发育。8年前娃儿首次涉猎时，它先后与自然博物馆和富兰克林“自由人”科学博物馆翘首相望，面积不大，人山人海，热闹得像农贸市场。2008年迁入

2013-07-13

【Aiden in English/红霞译】

Mon. July 8, 2013

        We did our first run of the show, Thoroughly Modern Millie Jr., on the first day of the week. Let's say that the teachers didn't accept it.

        First, Tommy almost lost his tap dance shoe when it flicked off his foot into the theater sea

2013-07-07

        费城“兄弟之爱”因地理之便成为美国诞生地，英才辈出，其中本杰明·富兰克林“右手之子·自由人”最为突出。他白手起家，以“诚实与勤勉”为终生伴侣，涉足政治、外交、新闻、邮政、医学、教育——起草《独立宣言》，出版报纸，发明避雷针与双焦距眼镜，创办公共图书馆与宾夕法尼亚“山林”州大学，与费城结下不解之缘。以他

2013-07-06

【Aiden in English/红霞译】

Mon. July 1, 2013

        The music teacher made us sing Thoroughly Modern Millie for the kick-off of the Gym. I didn't do anything much other than half of the song. That's 'cause the youngest group in Junior Theater Camp didn't memorize the lyrics. Half an

2013-07-04 美国独立节

        独立节高温，美国各地亲友无论多忙，都会放下手头事务，或携家远游，或结伴野炊，热闹堪比中国黄金周。洛杉矶“天使城”的蒙蒙和浩浩是娃儿儿时的发小，如今哥俩立足加利福尼亚“火炉”州，每逢节日必同游名山大川。今年他们深入内华达“多雪”山脉，考察狐尾松——这种长寿之树活过5,000年，即使死去，

2013-06-30

        这年头，网络娱乐渗透千家万户，娃儿对传统电视的需求日渐式微——若非追踪体育实况，家中影院配置几乎休眠。不看电视不代表不看电影，但凡好莱坞、迪士尼、皮克斯出新片，他必在第一时间抢鲜。周末他带上从未进过影院的妹妹，去美国多厅影院看《怪兽大学》，票价每人7.99美元，三岁以下免费。10年前他便迷上了毛怪

2013-06-29

【Aiden in English/红霞译】

Mon. June 24, 2013

        Today was the first day of Belfry Theatre Camp at Germantown Academy, and I saw many new faces. My mind couldn't keep up with all the names. One was Benjamin or Benjamin. It sounded kind of like a tomato and a tomato.

    &n

2013-06-23

        探险水族馆位于新泽西“草”卡姆登“蜿蜒的山谷”，与费城“兄弟之爱”隔河相望，是附近规模最大的州级海洋博物馆。周末驱车过富兰克林“自由民”大桥，不出个把钟头便能抵达。馆内设计极适合婴幼儿童智力发育，尤其在漫长冬日里，是户外活动受限时的绝佳去处——既科普海洋生物，又启蒙环保意识。我们早已购下家庭会员证，

2013-06-20 暑假第一天

        每年夏至前后，北宾夕法尼亚“山林”学区才宣告放假，开启近三个月的暑期生活。按照惯例，中日韩后裔多趁此远渡重洋，寻根访祖；而大多数留守的美国学生则成了“季节性闲散人员”——无作业、无返校，近乎完全脱离正规教育。他们便是夏令营商家的巨大客源。对于双职工家庭，夏令营既是安置幼童的去

2013-06-18

        四月春雨引来五月初夏繁花。蛰居一冬的左邻右舍纷纷敞开家门，端午一过，娃儿便步入四年级结业的最后时刻。北宾夕法尼亚“山林”公立小学虽分春秋两季，却按三学期制评估，每期各科老师齐上阵，就德智体写出书面报告。所有科目都把“进取意识”列为核心标准——听话、好学、互动，少不了优良品质。

   &nbs

2013-06-01 国际儿童节

        要不是周六参加双胞胎扎克“上帝记得”(Zach)和约书亚“耶和华拯救”(Joshua)的贺岁派对，娃儿怎么也想不到今天竟是“六·一”国际儿童节。在美国蜜罐里泡大的孩子，物质丰足，课外被计算机、智能机、游戏机包围；精神上除身边趣闻外，偶尔关注“两伊”战争，甚少远大抱负；生活上无课业牵挂，放学便扎

2013-05-08

        在美国，若家有小学生，定不会对“算术24点”游戏陌生——据说它上世纪60年代起源于中国上海。规则简单：卡片上四个数字由1到10随机组成，用加减乘除算出24即可。如6、5、3、8，可解为3×8÷(6−5)=24。套路繁多，快而准是它的魅力所在。

        北宾夕法尼亚“山林”学区

2013-05-05

        金键盘音乐节是一项国际性青少年音乐盛典，旨在普及音乐教育，为年轻一代提供展示传统艺术的舞台。自2002年创办以来，每年春季在巴塞罗那“船歌”、维也纳“溪流森林”和纽约“新紫衫树之地”三地举行，参与者虽非专业出身，却以音乐为语言，将作品中的民族元素与时代风格生动呈现。纽约大都会区的参赛者多来自美东四州

2013-04-14

【儿歌执笔】

        小熊从睡梦中醒来，闻到一股香气，那是春天特有的味道，它知道春天来了。

        小熊爬出洞口向四周张望，只见一只小鸟从头上飞过。小鸟看见了小熊，好像多日不见的老朋友，赶忙落到地上跟小熊打招呼：“小熊，你好！”

      “你好，小鸟！”小熊礼貌地回答。

      “请问

2013-04-06—2013-04-07

【Aiden in English】

        Santa Cruz Island was the second-largest island in the Galapagos and home to Puerto Ayora, the largest town. In 1959, the Republic of Ecuador declared all the islands, except areas already colonised, as the Galapagos National Park. In the same year, the Ch

2013-04-05

【Aiden in English】

        In the northeast of San Cristobal Island, we lined up on the deck for a chance to see Kicker Rock in an odd form. It was a remnant of a vertical tuff formation, abruptly rising almost 500 ft/152 meters from the Pacific Ocean.

        Kicker Rock looked

2013-04-05 

【Aiden in English】

        San Cristobal Island was the easternmost island in the archipelago and one of the oldest eroded volcanoes, ascending to moist highlands nearly 2,400 feet/730 meters above sea level geologically. It was the first island Charles Darwin visited in the Galapagos in 1835

2013-04-04

【Aiden in English】

        North Seymour Island in the Galapagos was formed through a series of lava uplifts that originally erupted underwater, as evidenced by the discovery of marine fossils on its plateau, surrounded by low cliffs. These sporadic uplifts took more than a million years to elevate

2013-04-04

【Aiden in English】

        Santa Cruz Island was the center of the Galapagos archipelago, where volcanic activity had long ceased. Among the few islands that people inhabited, it had the most significant human population.

        By 9:00 a.m., the sun was already steaming hot. We had just begun to w

2013-04-03

【Aiden in English】

        In the Galapagos Islands, Bartolomé Island is an extinct volcano that features a unique mix of colors, including red, orange, green, and black volcanic rock formations, reminiscent of those found on Mars. It was considered the most spectacular setting in the Galapagos. As one of the relativ

2013-04-03

【Aiden in English】

        Here, we had the opportunity for a morning hike over a blackened landscape that was nothing less than a geologic wonderland in Sullivan Bay, northeast of Santiago Island. At every step, we would see the hardened twists and turns of Lava that flowed during a volcanic erupt

2013-04-02

【Aiden in English】

        After I went outside, my first statement was: "It's foggy." And that was true. The fog wasn't what you saw every month in your front yard. It looked like a white pillow on top of everything in sight. Even in the old days, superstitious pirates called th

2013-04-01

【Aiden in English】

        Mom and I had a quick lunch and began preparing for our afternoon activity. This time, we visited Rabida, an uninhabited island of red sand, rocks, and dirt made of iron-rich lava.

        Rabida Island looked like the top of an old

2013-04-01

【Aiden in English】

        The rocks crunched beneath our feet as we walked through tropical forests with singing mockingbirds and buzzing insects. This morning, we took our first shore excursion to the west bank of Santiago Island, in the center of the Galapagos archipelago.

      &n

2013-03-31 Easter

【Aiden in English】

        I yawned loudly as Mom and I entered our Celebrity Xpedition cabin. For the whole morning, we were seated on a LAN Ecuador flight, traveling from Quito, the capital city, to the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean, after stopping over in Guayaquil, the larg

2013-03-30

【Aiden in English】

        Pew! Pew! Pew! It went to my 3DS XL as Mario got zapped by Bowser Junior's Waldo magic for the fifth time. Mom and I have been waiting for our tour guide for about 10 minutes, and we're getting awfully bored. We were going to cross the equator and head to the

2013-03-29 Good Friday

【Aiden in English】

        Today was Holy Friday, and we stayed in Quito, Ecuador's capital city.

        At 9,350 feet/2,800 meters above sea level with a latitude of 0 ° 15  'S, Quito was the highest and only capital on the Equ

2013-03-28

【Aiden in English】

        Nothing was better to start my trip than waking up at the crack of dawn and driving to the Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) at 4:000 am. On the road, I was exhausted, sleepy, and stressed. When we arrived at PHL, my eyes felt like they weighed over 100 pounds/45 kilograms.

  &nbs

2013-03-27

        每年三月底或四月初，耶稣受难日与复活节相连，北宾夕法尼亚“山林”州学区便放三天春假——从星期四到星期一，满打满算大半个礼拜。坦率讲，我做梦也没想到，适龄青少年可以这般向春天讨价。在国内，我从未经历春假；来美后虽早有耳闻——墨西哥坎昆“蛇巢”是女生的圣地，佛罗里达“花”州代托纳“白日镇”海滩是男生的天堂—

2013-01-11 International Parity at Work Day

【Aiden in English】

〖Prelude〗

        There was no place on Earth like Rio de Janeiro, as the natives proudly said.

        Founded in the early 16^th Century, Rio was the capital of the Federal Republic until 1960. Th

2013-01-10

【Aiden in English】

        This summer, torrential rain was highly unusual in Rio de Janeiro. We spent the whole morning watching the rain pour on and on. By noon, nothing was improving unless somebody called raindrops the size of bird pellets growing to the size of golf balls "improving."

2013-01-09

【Aiden in English】

        We missed the tour bus in the morning, so Mom and I decided to set out on our own and explore the Brazilian capital, which was created ex nihilo in the country's center in 1960. The glaring sun burned my neck as my mom and I walked around the Monumental Axis of Brasil

2013-01-08

【Aiden in English】

        To start the day, Mom and I were treated to a breakfast banquet in a Brazilian style, featuring everything from ham to an ice cream cake, at Hotel das Cataratas. Like its neighbors, Chilean and Argentine cuisine, Brazilian cuisine also looked delightful in South America.

2013-01-07

【Aiden in English】

        The calm wind blew in my face as a ferryboat zipped along the water, docking at the beach of San Martin Island. San Martín was a small, lush island in Argentina's Iguazu National Park, offering the closest views of the falls. The island was rough and strenuous to cli

2013-01-06

【Aiden in English】

        One good thing about plane flights was that I could sleep all the time, as much as I wanted, between takeoff and landing. However, I bonked my head against the seat in front, which disrupted my wonderful dream of dancing with bunnies.

      &n

2013-01-05

【Aiden in English】

        The wheels on the bus went round and round as the air filled with the sound of the sunny morning chirps of birds. Buenos Aires blew out "Good Airs" or "Fair Winds." They eclectically blended their contemporary vitality and old-world languor on the west

2013-01-05

【To A Cat】

Jorge Luis Borges (1899—1986)

         Mirrors are not more silent

         nor the creeping dawn more secretive;

         in the moonlight, you are that panther

         we catch sight of from afar.

2013-01-04

【Aiden in English】

        Two weeks flew by on the cruise, and before I noticed, Mom and I were leaving the ship in the "Paris of the South"—Buenos Aires for good. We booked a day tour to La Recoleta Cemetery in the metropolitan center and the Argentine Estancia in the countryside.

2013-01-03

【Aiden in English】

        As I came to my senses from waking out of deep sleep, the smell of muffins wafted toward me. With an unappetizing breakfast, I hurried down to meet our group. I headed for Uruguay, the second-smallest country in South America, and its oldest town, the Historic Quarter of

2013-01-02

【Aiden in English】

        Hooray! I was cruising at sea today.

        My whole morning was spent in tangles of dreams, wrapped in a small, cozy bed with a new punching bag and a teddy bear. I put the bear to sub-mission before falling into a deep sleep, and I'm pretty sure

2013-01-01 New Year's Day

【Aiden in English】

        Puerto Madryn, a Welsh town in the Atlantic Ocean, was dominated by a vast smelter that produced aluminum from bauxite ore shipped from Australia, Suriname, and other countries. The production of ceramic tiles made it the biggest supplier in the na

2012-12-31 New Year's Eve

【Aiden in English】

        It's New Year's Eve today, and we were cruising at sea again.

        I yawned widely as I got up in the morning. As I checked the clock, I toppled out of bed. It was 10:30 am. I was still in pajamas a

2012-12-30

【Aiden in English】

        The islands we bound for had two different names in the Atlantic Ocean. It depended upon whom we spoke with and what we talked about. Concerning the Argentine, the Islas Malvinas became a matter of national sovereignty. To the English, the Falkland Islands are a British O