2024-06-07 National Donut Day

【In Vain I Migrate】

Abdellatif Laâbi (1942-Now)

        I migrate in vain

        In every city I drink the same coffee

        and resign myself to the waiter's impassive face

        The laughter of nearby tables

        disturbs the evening's music

2024-06-06 National Yo-Yo Day

【My Mother's Language】

Abdellatif Laâbi (1942-Now)

         It's been twenty years since I last saw my mother

         She starved herself to death

         They say that each morning

         she would pull her headscarf off

         and strike the floor seven times

         cursing the heavens and the Tyr

2024-06-06 National Fish & Chips Day

【Dish Of The Day】

Abdellatif Laâbi (1942-Now)

            For today's special

            we'd like to recommend a very spicy

            'killer' stew

            The innkeeper

   &n

2024-06-06 National Eyewear Day

【Fingerprints】

Abdellatif Laâbi (1942-Now)

                If we could write

                simply by placing

                fingerprints

             &nbs

2024-06-06 D-Day for Normandy Landings

【I'm a child of this dreary century】

Abdellatif Laâbi (1942-Now)

            I'm a child of this dreary century

            a child who never grew up

            Doubts that set my tongue on fire

2024-05-31 National Smile Day

【The Sense of the Sleight-of-Hand Man (1923)】

Wallace Stevens (1879—1955)

        One's grand flights, one's Sunday baths,

        One's tootings at the weddings of the soul

        Occur as they occur. So bluish clouds

        Occurred above the empty house and the leaves

2014-01-10

【Aiden in English】

        Johannesburg, the largest city in South Africa, resembled an alien planet. It was only a step ahead of the other large African cities, but the difference was clearly visible. More modern technologies were used in the central business district. The houses were displayed extravagantly in European styles, and the lavish neighborhoods were built with high walls on leafy streets in the northeastern suburbs. The roads seemed so clean that a pie

2014-01-09

【Aiden in English】

        I always loved animals. At the zoo, I would spend hours looking at the large animals. But when I meant love, I didn't mean waking up at the crack of dawn love. Even so, that's exactly what we did. It started with a short ride on the highway to Chobe National Park, the first park established in Botswana. It was covered with dry savannah, floodplains, and teak woodlands, which became ideal habitats for various an

2014-01-08

【Aiden in English】

        The first night of sleep in Chobe Marina Lodge, Botswana, after a 30-day cruise, made me feel like I was landing and sleeping on the moon, which seemed impossible. When it was time for the boat cruise down the Chobe River in Chobe National Park, which borders Botswana and Namibia, I still had black spots under my eyes.

        This afternoon, the three-hour boat cruise was for wildlife. We immediatel

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 S

2014-01-06

【Aiden in English】

        After about a month at sea, the cruise was going well. It was too well. The sky was always cloudless, and the sun shone brightly, but not today. The day in Cape Town, the legislative capital of South Africa, was cloudy and foggy. The damp air and the ever-blowing winds from the Atlantic Ocean didn't help either.

        We were scheduled to ride a cable car up to Table Mountain. However, if it were too windy, we wou

2014-01-05

【Aiden in English】

        I was never really a shopper. The reason was that I never knew what to buy. That was why it became torture today trying to redeem things with my Big-O-Points as we left Durban for Cape Town and sailed across from the Indian to the Atlantic Ocean in South Africa.

        I had 112 points from Shuffleboard, Baggo-bean, Team Trivia, Miniature Golf, Table Tennis, and Brainteaser. The most expensive was the 50 lb. luggage sc

2014-01-04

【Aiden in English】

        Under the vast yellow sun, life in the Tala Private Game Reserve was remarkable. Everything was in motion and had a role in the ongoing cycle of life. Three African Big Five could be seen there: the black rhino, elephant, and Cape buffalo in the wild savannah outside Durban, South Africa.

        As we drove through, the first animal we saw was a gun that was sitting in the middle of the road. Its short, pointy horns st

2014-01-03

【Aiden in English】

        If you love hippos, crocodiles, and aquatic birds, the iSimangaliso Wetland Park in South Africa is the place to be, especially when you happen to be in Zulu territory, on the outskirts of Richards Bay. Many animals reside there, and it has also been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

        The iSimangaliso Wetland was well protected since St. Lucia Lake flourished with life, thanks to a rich supply of fish. The h

2014-01-02

【Aiden in English】

        When I was little, I loved natural history museums. But never in my life had I seen something like this. The Natural History Museum in Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, was like none other. 

        An artificial 4-D of a typical African ecosystem is collected from the first floor. It had the African Big Five: the lion, leopard, Cape buffalo, elephant, and rhino. The 4-D picture had them set around a small pool of

2014-01-01 New Year's Day

【Aiden in English】

        The first day of 2014 wasn't going so well. I felt queasy about the food I ate last night while crossing the Mozambique Channel from Madagascar to Mozambique. I also overslept at the golf tournament. If I were to catch up to a table tennis tournament, I had to hurry.

        The problem wasn't "Am I going to make it to the game," but "How am I going to d

2013-12-31 New Year's Eve

【Aiden in English】

        The liveliness of New Year's Eve was spectacular. Everyone was getting ready for the New Year Show, which didn't begin until another hour later. The Nautica lounge was packed, and I couldn't wait for the show to start.

        The first song the cruise entertainers performed was a classic about New Year's and Christmas. I could see everyone enjoying it because the a

2013-12-30

【Aiden in English】

        The lemurs of Madagascar had large eyes and resembled cats in size. Their long, puffy tails dangled down while they rested. It was an endemic primate, and Mom and I didn't want to miss it. In addition, the lemurs were so famous that they were featured in the Hollywood cartoon Madagascar by King Julien.

        We boarded a Dinghy, a small speedboat like a tender, and came to Nosy Be Island, Madagascar. From there, w

2013-12-28

【Aiden in English】

        Mom and I were woken by the morning call to start the day. It was 6:30 a.m., and we had a tour at 7:45 a.m., so we had to hurry to catch it.

        The upcoming tour was a safari, and it began with a short flight on a propeller-driven private plane from the capital city, Dar es Salaam, also known as the "Abode of Peace," to the Selous Game Reserve, the first and oldest national park in Tanzania and a UNE

2013-12-27

【Aiden in English】

        The narrow, winding, and serene alleys made it a mysterious place. The bare stone walls, iron-bar windows, and pointed wooden doors created a gloomy atmosphere. But as I entered the more extensive road, the place burst into excited activity. I felt as though I was transported back to the "Arabian Nights" in ancient times (1706-1721). This is Stone Town, Zanzibar, in Tanzania, a Swahili coastal trading center in East Africa

2013-12-26

【Aiden in English】

        Kenya is now one of my favorite places. I went on my first wilderness safari there right after Christmas Day.

        The Safari began with a two-hour drive from Mombasa to Tsavo National Park, the largest park in Kenya. That's when we climbed aboard a van. At first, the van didn't look like something fit for the Safari. But as if the truck was trying to prove me wrong, the roof opened, allowing the passengers t

2013-12-23

【Aiden in English】

        The closest thing to the Seychelles is Hawaii, except that the Seychelles are located in the Indian Ocean, while Hawaii is situated in the Pacific Ocean. Our tour took Mom and me to the National Botanical Gardens in Victoria, the capital of the Seychelles. Victoria is on Mahe, the largest island in the nation.

        There were exotic flowers and trees, such as trumpet pitchers, screw pines, Coco de Mer, Spanish dagger

2011-04-12

        開羅，世界上最古老的城市之一，既是埃及與阿拉伯“游牧”國家最大的首府，也是整個中東政治、經濟與商業的中心。2,000萬人口，幾乎與北京相當——全埃及四分之一的人聚居於此。這座“征服者”之城、“勝利者”之都，遠比我們想象中更加雄偉。尼羅“溪谷”河昂首穿過市中心，成千上萬的宣禮塔如地對空導彈齊刷刷列隊，無愧“千塔之城”的美譽；圓穹形清真寺鱗次櫛比，是開羅最醒目的標誌。每日五次喚拜，都市的喧囂、浮躁、擁擠、污濁、富貴與貧窮，都在那一刻沉澱淨化。科普特“埃及人”

2011-04-10

        過去10天裡，我們沿尼羅“溪谷”河兩岸尋古探幽——驅車跋涉古都孟斐斯“恆美之城”，縱貫飛越中王朝重鎮阿斯旺，又順流漂至新王朝名城底比斯“權杖之城”，不覺跨越了7,000年時光。放眼尼羅河西，撒哈拉“沙漠”空闊無際；東望阿拉伯“游牧”沙漠，廣袤千里，貧瘠蒼涼。近在水一方，8,000萬埃及子民依河而生——尼羅河不僅養育了這片土地，更孕育了整個人類的文明。按既定行程，我們繼續上路，很快便消失在通往紅海的東部沙漠中。

        從盧克

2011-04-09

        古埃及發明了香水，稱它為全世界香水文化的祖師爺，恐怕並不為過。1096年至1291年間，十字軍東征讓法國不僅領教了伊斯蘭“向神臣服”文明，也見識了埃及的香水文化。從那時起，法國開始“山寨”埃及國粹，此後香水業蒸蒸日上，幾近一統天下。香奈爾(Chanel)5號的嫵媚、蓮娜麗姿(Nina Ricci)的飄逸、蘭蔻(Lancôme)的甜美、迪奧(Dior)的神秘——無一不成為世人推崇的裝飾之品。身在埃及，自然少不了體驗正宗的香水文化，親自鑑賞當年法老王后慣用的品牌。不到半個月，我們在開

2011-04-09

        站在遊輪甲板上向對岸望去，盧克索“宮殿”神殿坐落在市中心河濱大道旁，外形酷似運送神明的聖三桅帆船。3,500多年前，阿蒙霍特普“太陽神滿意者”三世與拉美西斯“太陽神拉之子”二世跨越時代聯手，與其他法老合力推出這座供奉底比斯“權杖之城”三柱神的大型廟宇。此後，每年一度的奧佩特“河馬女神”節都在此舉行盛大慶典——法老與祭司舉國上下，爭相表達對阿蒙“太陽神拉”、穆特“眾神之母”與孔蘇“月亮之神”的熱忱愛戴，藉此強化宗教奴役，鞏固王權。盧克索神殿與卡納克“聖地”綜合神

2011-04-09

        距盧克索“宮殿”以北不到2公里/1.2英里，有一個名叫卡納克“神聖之地”的小鎮。古時隸屬尼羅“溪谷”河東岸的“生者之城”——東底比斯“權杖之城”。因聖廟、聖塔、聖像、聖湖薈萃於此，一舉成為古埃及最受崇敬的朝拜聖地。如果說盧克索是世界上最大的建築博覽會，那麼卡納克綜合神殿便是古埃及最古老的露天博物館，1979年列入世界科教文組織《世界遺產名錄》。穿過拉美西斯“太陽神拉之子”二世及其女兒把守的塔門，我們便置身於別具埃及風格的古代建築群中。這裡自公元前1991年中王國時

2011-04-08

        哈布“心愛”神殿祭廟本不在我們的計劃之中。因埃德夫“復仇之城”神廟行程臨時變故，導遊急中生智，在前往帝王谷與王后谷的路上兜了個彎，繞到這裡，算作補償。說實話，尼羅“溪谷”河黃金線路上的每一處古蹟，除非已成廢墟，都不該落下——它們幾乎盡數收錄於世界科教文組織《世界遺產名錄》。哈布城神殿祭廟位於帝王谷與王后谷東南，同屬尼羅河西岸的“死者之城”——西底比斯“權杖之城”。3,200年前，第20王朝第二位法老拉美西斯“太陽神拉之子”三世在此修建大型王宮兼靈堂祭廟，其規模

2011-04-08 

        底比斯“權杖之城”，橫跨尼羅“溪谷”河中游兩岸，是繼孟斐斯“恆美”之後古埃及中王國與新王國時期最重要的都城，距今已有4,000餘年。據載，當時城池百座，人口稠密，建築壯麗，被荷馬盛讚為“百門之都”。尼羅河東岸為“生者之城”，西岸為“死者之城”。公元27年，一場大地震徹底摧毀了這座古都，如今只剩下殘垣斷壁，散落在盧克索“宮殿”地區，1979年列入世界科教文組織《世界遺產名錄》。底比斯地域不大，集中坐落在梅雷特塞格爾“亡靈女神”山腳下，帝王谷、哈特謝普蘇特“貴婦

2011/04/06—2011/04/08

        從阿布辛貝“風信子之父”返回的途中，我們再次穿行西部沙漠。天色已黑，氣溫驟降，陣風卷着沙塵一路尾隨，我們以鬼魅般的速度殺回阿斯旺“市場”。一提起《尼羅“溪谷”河上的慘案》，娃兒立刻來了精神——接下來我們要乘尼羅河遊輪，開始世界第一長河的水上游弋。他素來喜歡偵探推理，對福爾摩斯“低洼草地”崇拜有加，想不到比利時偵探波洛“梨販”同樣擅長抽絲剝繭。讓他驚訝的是，三起謀殺案就發生在眼前這艘遊輪上。我暗自慶幸自己未曾讀過克里斯蒂“基督追隨者”的原著，

2011-04-07

        尼羅“溪谷”河一定長過天河，否則何以有如此綿綿不絕的神話？古埃及人不嫌其久，不嫌其玄，也不嫌其多——哈羅里斯“鷹首”、索貝克“鱷魚神”、阿努比斯“胡狼頭神”、伊西斯“救世女神”、哈索爾“天空之神”……眾神皆從水中走出。康翁波“黃金之山”雙神廟，便是這樣一座同時祭奉鷹首神荷魯斯與鱷魚神索貝克的“雙神殿”。它坐落在尼羅河南岸，周圍農田綠洲環繞。每年七月十五河水泛濫，為河谷村莊覆上一層厚厚的淤泥，土地肥沃，莊稼一年三熟。四月上旬我們到訪時，正值努比亞“黃金”人的

2011-04-06

        中午從阿斯旺“市場”出發，沿納賽爾“勝利”人工湖南下，很快便駛入西部沙漠。這片占埃及近三分之二國土的荒原，沙丘綿延，礫石遍布，與撒哈拉“沙漠”一脈相承，幾乎無人居住，連旱生植物都鮮少光顧。一路上除了我們這輛大巴，難得見到別的車輛。隨行的武警戰士始終警覺，自動步槍挎在腰間寸步不離——四月初的氣溫已逼近體溫，足足三個小時，才抵達阿布辛貝“風信子之父”，距蘇丹邊境僅40公里/25英里的埃及西南重鎮。

        阿布辛貝神廟

2011-04-07

        離開開羅“勝利者”，乘飛機不到兩個鐘頭，便抵達阿斯旺“市場”——努比亞“黃金”腹地的心臟之城。據說努比亞乃世上最早的黑人文化，乃至整個人類的起源，傳說中的伊甸“天堂”園也與之緊密相連。阿斯旺位於上埃及，是埃及的南大門、黑非洲的要塞，年降雨量幾乎為零，堪稱地球上最乾燥的地區之一。大清早我們在納賽爾“勝利”湖畔集結，輪渡早已守候，三桅帆船整裝待發。遠望桔黃色的努比亞村舍依山而立，水鳥緊隨船後，在水面與湖岸間忙碌不息。

      &n

2011-04-05 清明節

        埃及人信神靈，痴迷來世。他們視塵世短暫，而靈魂的升華才是永恆——這份信念深植於古埃及的繪畫之中。線條簡練平直，場景橫帶鋪展，如被時間的水平線切割出迥然有別的界面。動物造型陸續登場，平面排列漸次凸顯；柔和細膩的着色烘托出親切樸實的質感：棕紅偏暗、面無表情的強健男性，淡黃淺紅、姿態端莊的美麗女子，褐白黃紅間以藍綠的神氏象徵——人神同框，生死相融，使亡靈的永生之旅變得溫馨而恆遠。坦率說，我們素來受唯物意識影響，對此異邦文化缺乏感性

2011-04-05 清明節

        從沙姆沙伊赫“教長灣”飛回開羅“勝利者”，已是晚上八點多。次日凌晨，我們要與來自美國各地的21位團友會合，直驅南下，開始尼羅“溪谷”河兩岸的尋古之旅。這是2011年4月，埃及“一月革命”後首批美國私人旅行團。大家素昧平生，自投羅網地結伴同行——想來多半像我一樣，並非不遠萬里到非洲投身革命，而是平日安居樂業的生活，早已教我們隨遇而安，徹底喪失了階級鬥爭的覺悟。不過，既來之則安之。

        一行26人從開羅出發

2011-04-05 清明節

        古埃及乃世界四大文明古國之一，吉薩“鑿刻的石頭”金字塔則是其最經典的代表作，被尊為埃及的象徵，1979年列入世界科教文組織《世界遺產名錄》。古埃及人篤信宗教，視死亡為塵世的延續。法老從登基之日起，便開始為自己修築通往天國的階梯——金字塔。那方錐形的結構，既為靈魂升天提供了通途，也表達了對光芒四射的太陽神拉的無限崇拜。至今埃及已發現96座金字塔，大多分布在尼羅“溪谷”河西岸古城孟斐斯“恆美”周圍，其中最著名的當屬開羅西側吉薩的三座。

 &nb

2011/04/03-04

        從開羅“勝利者”飛往沙姆沙伊赫“教長灣”，只需一個小時。飛機越過蘇伊士“開端”運河後，很快便進入山巒起伏的西奈“荊棘”半島。蘇伊士運河1869年竣工，是亞非兩洲的分界線，卻因扼守歐洲至印度洋及西太平洋的最短航道，在政治、經濟與軍事上舉足輕重。埃及為收回運河主權與英法以周旋數10年，直至1956年才收歸國有。西奈半島北臨地中海，東接亞喀巴“山口”灣，西連蘇伊士灣，南瀕紅海。南部的西奈山被猶太教、伊斯蘭教和基督教共奉為聖地——據《出埃及記》記載，摩西在此領受

2011-04-02 

        亞歷山大“人類捍衛者”城坐落在埃及北部地中海南岸，恰處亞、非、歐三洲交匯之地，是通往尼羅“溪谷”河與地中海的要衝。它僅次於開羅“勝利者”，是全國第二大城市，我們的埃及之行便從這裡拉開序幕。這座城始建於公元前332年，以亞歷山大大帝之名立城，歷經馬其頓、托勒密、古希臘與奧斯曼帝國的統治，曾為托勒密王朝的首都。抵達埃及次日清晨，從孟菲斯“恆美”旅行社雇用的專車準時來到開羅酒店門口。司機笑容可掬，話卻不多，一路播着阿拉伯情歌；導遊阿莫爾“愛”倒是個健

2011-03-21

        人的嗅覺若是因季節性過敏而遲鈍，倒不算什麼——一片仙特敏(Zyrtec)下去，衰弱的嗅覺便能失而復得。可政治嗅覺一旦麻木，懵頭懵腦撞進風起雲湧的變革之中，縱有靈丹妙藥，怕也難打救了。我便屬於後一種。否則怎會剛剛安排好去埃及的行程，就趕上了那場空前絕後的“一月革命”？倒是娃兒嗅覺靈敏，聞出異樣，連舔到嘴邊的美味都顧不得咽，立刻拎起報紙、打開廣播、牽上網線，又揣着小道消息，把中東與北非的時事擺到我面前——我當即成了不折不扣的“問題專家”。唉，都是好奇