2014-01-07

【Aiden in English】

        Finally, it was time to get off the cruise ship Nautica Oceania. After 30 days of swaying and bumpy nights, I wanted to free myself. But I didn't want to wake up at 4 a.m. to catch a flight from Cape Town to Johannesburg. From the most populous city in South Africa, we flew to Victoria Falls National Park, situated on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, to see one of the world's largest waterfalls and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

        Once you've seen the Iguazu Falls of Brazil and Argentina, and the Victoria Falls of Zimbabwe and Zambia, you may never go back to the Niagara Falls of the US and Canada, because both Iguazu and Victoria are at least twice the size of Niagara.

        Victoria is famous for its width, which is approximately 2 meters/1.2 miles long. The Iguazu is popular for its number of falls, consisting of three significant and 272 minor falls. Niagara is unique for the tremendous volume of water it carries, among the three most significant falls on Earth. All are shared by two countries internationally. Additionally, Angel Falls in Venezuela is the world's tallest waterfall.

        Today, I came to Victoria Falls in person. I was swept away like the water when I first saw the waterfall. A massive curtain of water gushed from above a giant granite ledge. And where the falls met the Zambezi River below, enormous hazes of mist rose underneath splendid rainbows against the sun. If you thought that was amazing, the Devil's Throat might give you a heart attack. The Devil's Throat was the closest you could get to the waterfall. I don't recommend bringing the camera with you unless it is waterproof. The spray was so large that it formed raindrops the size of golf balls. I didn't stay very long at the Devil's Throat, and nobody did.

        Victoria Falls is truly magnificent on the African savannah, even though the Iguazu is the most beautiful and the Niagara is the most powerful on our planet. I still think Victoria comes in a very close second to the Iguazu. Sooner or later, I will see the world's tallest Angel Falls back on the American continent. But for now, I indeed had enough water.

        In 1989, Mosi-oa-Tunya/Victoria Falls was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

【紅霞譯】

        終於到了該下“大洋·航海”號遊輪的時候，經過30天搖曳不止顛簸不休的日日夜夜，我巴不得恢復正常生活，但萬萬沒有想到凌晨4點便要起床打點行裝，為的是趕赴開普敦“雲朵聚集之地”國際機場乘坐飛往約翰內斯堡“金城”的班機，然後再從這個人口爆炸的南非都市轉去津巴布韋“石頭房子”和贊比亞“大河”之間的維多利亞“勝利女王”瀑布國家公園，鑑賞世界上三大瀑布之一、聯合國科教文組織《世界遺產名錄》非物質文化保護地。

        如果你親眼見過巴西、阿根廷之間的伊瓜蘇“洪水”瀑布，並且有幸目睹津巴布韋、贊比亞之間的維多利亞瀑布，想必你不願再光顧美國、加拿大之間的尼亞加拉“雷鳴”瀑布，因為前兩個瀑布至少要比後一個大上兩倍之多。

       維多利亞瀑布寬幅最大，前後橫跨2公里／1.2英里之遠；伊瓜蘇瀑布數量最多，共由三個大瀑布和272個小瀑布組成；尼亞加拉瀑布流量最強，為北美水利發電創造了先決條件。上述三大瀑布各自跨越兩個不同國土，唯有地球上最高的天使瀑布獨居委內瑞拉境內。

        今天我蒞臨津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布，實地觀摩其壯觀場面，初來乍到立刻被滔天洪水淋成落湯雞。煙霞渺茫，洶湧澎湃，波濤沿巨大花崗岩斷面狂瀉直下，狠勁跌入贊比西“大”河，由此掀起“霹靂之霧”，使得陽光下的彩虹七彩斑斕，份外妖嬈。如果你為之陶醉傾倒，那麽“魔鬼喉 ”轟鳴作響的浩大聲勢足以叫你心驚肉跳。“魔鬼喉 ”是遊客走近維多利亞瀑布的極佳景點，正因如此，我建議你最好不要攜帶相機，除非有防水功能。瀑布噴出的水珠大如高爾夫球一般，“魔鬼喉 ”絕非久留之地，大家有目共睹。

        在我看來，儘管維多利亞瀑布不及伊瓜蘇瀑布美妙秀麗，也不如尼亞加拉瀑布氣壯山河，但在非洲大草原的襯托下蔚為奇觀，因而僅次於最美的伊瓜蘇瀑布，相信不久的將來，我要親自考察位於美洲大陸全球落差最大的天使瀑布，不過時下我已經看足了瀑布。

        1989年，莫西奧圖尼亞“雷鳴般煙霧”/維多利亞瀑布被聯合國教科文組織納入《世界遺產名錄》。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2013: Iguazu Falls, Brazil(巴西伊瓜蘇瀑布)

2010: 澳洲大洋路(Great Ocean Rd, Australia)

Departure from JNB Intl Airport

(約翰內斯堡國際機場離境 01-07-2014)

Craft Shop @ JNB Intl Airport

(約翰內斯堡國際機場·工藝品店 01-07-2014)

Departure from JNB Intl Airport to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

(約翰內斯堡國際機場·前往津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布 01-07-2014)

River Limpopo, the 2^nd-Largest River Flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa 

(林波波“瀑布”河·非洲注入印度洋的第二大河)

Aerial View of Johannesburg (鳥瞰約翰內斯堡)

Arrival @ VFA Intl Airport, Zimbabwe

(津巴布韋·維多利亞瀑布鎮入境處 01-07-2014)

Outdoor Customer Inspection @ VFA

(津巴布韋·海關入境戶外檢查處 01-07-2014)

Victoria Falls Hotel, Zimbabwe, the 1^st Hotel Built in Victoria Falls in 1904, Overlooking the Zambezi River & Victoria Falls. Referred to as "the Grand Old Lady of the Falls," Due to Its Edwardian Grandeur & Colonial History 

(津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布酒店·建於1904年的維多利亞瀑布第一家酒店，俯瞰贊比西“大”河和維多利亞瀑布，因其愛德華時代的宏偉和殖民歷史而被稱為“瀑布的老太太” 01-07-2014)

Bulawayo Room of Victoria Falls Hotel, Zimbabwe

(津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布酒店·布拉瓦約“屠宰場”廳 01-07-2014)

Stanley's Room @ Victoria Falls Hotel, Zimbabwe

(津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布酒店·斯坦利“石場”廳 01-07-2014)

Craft Shop @ Victoria Falls Hotel, Zimbabwe

(津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布酒店·工藝品店 01-07-2014)

Flat Tire on the Way to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

(趕往津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布途中爆胎 01-07-2014)

Statue of David Livingstone @ Victoria Falls NP, Zimbabwe

(津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布國家公園·蘇格蘭籍非洲探險家雕像 01-07-2014)

Long-Lived Ebony (長壽的黑檀樹)

Amakwezi Dancers (津巴布韋星辰舞者)

Victoria Falls Bridge Between Zimbabwe & Zambia 

(介於津巴布韋與贊比亞兩國之間的維多利亞瀑布橋 01-07-2014)

Victoria Falls Bridge Viewed from Victoria Falls Hotel, Zimbabwe

(從津巴布韋維多利亞瀑布酒店遠望維多利亞橋 01-07-2014)

Victoria Falls by Batoka Gorge

(巴祖卡峽旁維多利亞瀑布)

Rainbow Falls, the Highest in Victoria Falls NP

(維多利亞瀑布國家公園·最高的彩虹瀑布)

Daylight Rainbow in Shower & Mist

(雨霧中日光彩虹 01-07-2014)

Cracks of Basalt Bedrock (玄武岩基岩裂縫)

Devil's Cataract w/ Approximately 70-Meter/230-Ft Drop

(魔鬼大瀑布·約70米/230英尺的落差)

Gorge Cliffs Composed of Batoka Formation

(由巴祖卡玄武岩熔岩流組成的峽谷懸崖 01-07-2014)

Victoria, the Widest in 2 Km／1.2 Miles

(維多利亞瀑布寬幅最大·2公里／1.2英里)

River Zambezi, the 1^st Largest River Flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa 

(贊比西河·非洲注入印度洋的第一大河)

Waterworn Roughhew Landscape

(被水沖蝕的粗糙地貌 01-07-2014)

Thundering Smoke (雷鳴般的煙霧 01-07-2014)

Devil's Pool in Zambia (贊比亞·魔鬼池)

Sunset over Zambezi River (贊比西河日落)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

2013: Iguazu NP, Argentina(阿根廷伊瓜蘇國家公園)

2012：紐約州尼亞加拉瀑布州立公園(Niagara Falls SP, NY)

Across the Indian Ocean(穿越印度洋)

Africa (漫遊非洲)

5th Grade(小學五年級)