Not A Travel Guide to Guangzhou

Upon request of Herr E who is finally moving his part-that-he-sits-on to Guangzhou, I tried to write some pointers for him. It was intended to be a rather simple scribbled list of interesting places spanning 20 lines or so, but grew to two long pieces that almost deserve to be called a book.

I was a bit taken aback by this rather unexpected result of my own effort. I spent almost 24 years in this city, and had always been trying to get out of it and regretting I didn't go for a Beijing university, feeling it's so depressing it's swallowing me alive. Now this brought me back into a nostalgic mood and I realised, again after all these years abroad, how deeply, fondly I actually feel about it. Guangzhou is by no means a love-at-first-sight beauty, without the epic imperial architectures inBeijing or the glitzy global chic of Shanghai. But as soon as one starts to appreciate the Cantonese food, the city will really grow on you. Then again it's after all China's third largest city and has a history of more than 2000 years, during almost 400 of which it served as China's only port open to the world. I'm actually disappointed that it preserves so little of its past, is so badly planned and destroyed, and has such a low profile overseas.

Now here comes the mega list. It may not include some of the most usual sights mentioned in every traveller's guidebook but that's the point. The order of the listing does not imply priority, or itinerary; I do NOT assume any liability in case you get lost, MUAHAHA!!!

1. 西关 Xi Guan (in 荔湾区 Li Wan district)

This is definitely the most essential of Cantoneseness... I'll list afew places with a brief introduction.

1.1 上下九 Shang Xia Jiu

This has always been a busy pedestrian shopping area, which also takesyou to a few interesting places along the way. It's actually two roads: 上九路 Shang Jiu Road which starts from 人民路 Ren Min Road (a major south-north road on which there's a hospital where I was born!!! - not sure if they have removed the appallingly ugly fly over yet), and 下九路 Xia Jiu Road. Not that I'm recommending buying anything there, but do eat at least one of the below places since this is where the most authentic Cantonese food all started (though not necessarily the best in the city now).

BTW a traditional Cantonese have 5 meals a day: breakfast (早茶 lit. Morning Tea), lunch,afternoon tea (下午茶 - no no sarnies cones whatever; it's very similarto the breakfast servings), dinner, and evening tea (夜茶). The restaurants refer to the 茶 tea sessions as 茶市 and the lunch/dinnersessions as 饭市. So you don't order lunch/dinner items during 茶市 when servings are basically dim sum + 粥粉面饭 (congee, rice noodles, noodlesand rice dishes), and although they may also serve dim sum during 饭市 it tends to be a downsized selection. These days most new/upmarket restaurants don't do 茶市 at all since margin is razor thin there(you'll soon notice how extremely competitive the Cantonese catering business is); but the traditional eateries still run all five of them, staying open some 6am till 11pm.

1.1.1 南信牛奶甜品专家 Nan Xin Diary Desserts

地址: 广州市第十甫路45号
Addr: 45 Di Shi Fu Road

Most famous for the traditional desserts, esp 姜撞奶(ginger milkpudding), 双皮奶(again a milk pudding), 豆沙(lentil dessert) and many oftheir variations. They also serve other non desert 小吃 too - the word小吃 in Chinese is a lot more than "snacks", since many of these areessentially non-formal dishes which include dim sum. Locals may have these for a light lunch, etc. They also do very good 云吞面 (won ton noodles - the cantonese 云吞 is similar to the Northern 馄饨), 肠粉(cantellini with rice pasty and lots of different fillings, the mostpopular being beef although my personal favourite is 猪腰 pig kidneys -MUAHAHA) and 粥congee (try: 皮蛋瘦肉粥 with "chemically marinated" eggs and pork, 及第粥 pork and miscellaneous pig liver/kidney/intestines - you've been warned, and 艇仔粥 with fish and fried peanuts and pork).

1.1.2 银记肠粉 Yin Ji Cheung Fen

Address: 文昌北路345号. 345 Wen Chang Bei Road

THE place for 肠粉. The place is tiny teeny and service is minimal though very efficient. This old shop is minutes away from where my grandparents used to live and my granddad used to take me here for a 肠粉... They serve pretty good congee too.

1.1.3 A few traditional restaurants (yes they all serve 茶市).

Worth checking out their traditional decor, even if you are not patroning.These tend to be in the mid price range, though they all have becomepricier since recent renovations.

陶陶居 Tao Tao Ju: 荔湾区第十甫路20号. 20 Di Shi Fu Road. Founded 1880.
莲香楼 Lian Xiang Lou: 荔湾区第十甫路67号. 67 Di Shi Fu Road. Founded 1889.
广州酒家 Guangzhou Restaurant: 荔湾区文昌南路2号. 2 Wen Chang Nan Road. Founded in 1930s. I remember this old branch has a banyan tree somewhere in their courtyard... Not sure it's still there.
泮溪酒家 Ban Xi Restaurant: 荔湾区龙津西路151号. 151 Long Jin Xi Road. Built on the site of where an ancient king used to hold his banquets, it has beautiful garden settings facing a lakewhich is part of the park 荔湾湖公园 Li Wan Lake Park, one of my major childhood playgrounds... Oh my glorious youth...

1.1.4 西关人家 Xi Guan Household

Address: 上下九路荔湾广场南塔4楼4DZ
4DZ, 4/F, South Tower, Li Wan Plaza, Shang Xia Jiu Road

Not really a traditional eaterie of any sort; but good for sampling different stuff in one same place.

1.2 西来初地 Xi Lai Chu Di, 华林寺 Hua Lin Temple

Address: 下九路北侧西来正街 Xi Lai Zheng Street, Xia Jiu Road

This is where the Chinese version of Buddhism, 禅宗Zen, started, when an Indian buddhist arrived here in 526. The temple is one of the Big Four in Guangzhou.

1.3 陈家祠 Chen Clan Academy

Address: 中山七路 Zhong Shan Qi Road right next to the 陈家祠 tube station.

Used to be a rich family's mansion and now converted to a museum dedicated to traditional Cantonese craftmanship and architecture.

1.4 荔湾博物馆 Li Wan Museum

Address: 龙津西路逢源北街84号
84 Feng Yuan Bei Street, Long Jin Xi Road

A museum converted from a traditional Cantonese mansion 西关大屋.

1.5 Traditional Cantonese neighbourhoods

Just wander around these places making spontaneous deviations here and there: 长寿西路耀华大街 Yao Hua Street Chang Shou Xi Road, 十八甫 Shi Ba Fu Road, 杨巷 Yang Alley, 恩宁路 En Ning Road, 逢源路 Feng Yuan Road, 宝华路 Bao Hua Road, 多宝路多宝大街 Duo Bao Street Duo Bao Road... Watch the locals go about their lives, granddads commenting on politics, grannies cooking and gossipping, playing mahjong...; the fragrance of homecooking during lunch/dinner hours... There's this place 十三行路 Shi San Hang Road that used to be the only place in China where European/Arabic merchants were allowed to do business in China. Sadly enough nothing has been preserved. When I was a child it used to be just another quiet leafy old neighbourhood and now it's the site of some massive wholesale market for texture, clothes, and stuff...

Couple of places worth checking out:

八和会馆 Ba He Club: a very old Cantonese opera club where locals still practise.荔湾区恩宁路177号 177 En Ning Road. Usually closed to non members but hey try flashing your Caucasian face and a couple of Cantonese words...

李小龙故居 former home of Bruce Lee: in fact he was born in 顺德均安, a small town not far away fromGuangzhou. But this is where his dad lived anyway... 恩宁路永庆一巷13号. 13 Yong Qing Yi Street En Ning Road

仁威庙 Ren Wei Temple: a Taoist temple where my granny used to go (not that she's any celebrity... it's a local place for worshipping). 龙津西路仁威庙前街. Ren Wei Miao Qian Street Long Jin Xi Road

2. 沙面岛 Sha Mian Island

An island to the west of 西关. Used to be a British/French concession(yes they had to share!) with colonial architecture. Probably the quietest spot in the city... Avoid the souvenir shops like plague. There's a hotel there called 白天鹅宾馆 The White Swan Hotel, the first 5 star hotel in mainland China opened in the very early 80s. They have a really impressive indoors waterfall in the lobby, which is worth checking out. There are several restaurants in the hotel and they do very, very good dim sum too, in a sun filled river side setting. Though on the pricey side, ofcourse. Near 白天鹅 there's a restaurant called 侨美 Qiao Mei which is pretty good and serves one of the best roasted baby pigeon in Guangzhou - again, a bit expensive.There's a park next to 白天鹅 and if you walk southwards along the riverbank, you'll see a couple of cannons right behind a tennis court (btw there's good Thai restaurant next to the tennis court). These are said to have been used in the Opium War against the Bri'ish; and, they were made in Germany (Thyssen Kruber?).

3. 长堤 Chang Di

Walk along the river from 沙面 Sha Mian, all the way eastwards. You'll see this 塔影楼 Ta Ying Tower which is again a historic building from the early 20th century,now converted to some posh wine club. You'll notice a clock tower too,that's the old Cantonese customs, once controlled by the Bri'ish. Not sure whether it's now a museum or not... Walk walk walk, and you'll see this restaurant called 大同酒家 Da Tong Restaurant facing the river - oh the best 蛋达custard tart! Very good 烧鹅 roasted geese too. Walk on and you'll see abuilding very similar to the Flat Iron in NYC - yes this is 爱群大厦 Ai Qun Tower and it was designed with inspirations from the Flat Iron. Used to be one of the best hotels in Asia - well back in the 20/30s. From there you can either carry on walking along the river bank all the way to 天字码头 Tian Zi Pier, or walk along the other side of 爱群大厦 where again lots of eateries and everything...

4. 北京路 Bei Jing Road

Not far away from 天字码头 Tian Zi Pier this is another pedestrian shopping area. Check out the display on one section of the road of these layers of ancient roads from different dynasties.

5. 四大丛林the Big Four Buddhist temples in Guangzhou

光孝寺 Guang Xiao Temple (越秀区净慧路 Jing Hui Road, Yue Xiu District): This is the oldest Buddhist temple in Guangzhou and one of the oldest in China.
六榕寺 Liu Rong Temple (越秀区六榕路 Liu Rong Road, Yue Xiu District): another old temple with a nice pagoda inside which isopen to tourists.
华林寺 Hua Lin Temple (as above)
海幢寺 Hai Zhuang Temple (in 海珠区同福中路 Tong Fu Zhong Road, Hai Zhu District): this is about 15 minutes walk from where I grew up.It used to be really dilapidated when I was a child, and it's part of a park 海幢公园 Hai Zhuang Park. Now the park is part of the temple...

6. 南越王博物馆 Nan Yue Kingdom Museum, 三元宫 San Yuan Temple

Address: 解放北路867号
867 Jie Fang Bei Road

The site of the ancient kingdom's palace near the modern day 越秀公园 Yue Xiu Park, now a museum for the 南越 Nan Yue dynasty, a small kingdom (the first also) established in Guangzhou which later became part of China. Also worth checking out 兰圃, an orchid garden nearby.

三元宫 San Yuan Temple is the oldest Taoist temple in Guangzhou and is situated on 应元路 Ying Yuan Road which is on the south side of 越秀山 Yue Xiu Mountain.

7. 二沙岛 Er Sha Island

A recently established posh neighbourhood - not much to say about it but there's a good gallery there for contemporary art items esp those from local artists: 广东美术馆 Guangdong Gallery, 二沙岛烟雨路38号 38 Yan Yu Road, Er Sha Island. It's also next to a new concerthall, 星海音乐厅 Xing Hai Concert Hall. Hmm and it's next to one of the most expensive French restaurants in town, La Seine...

8. University campuses

中山大学 Sun Yat-Sen Uni (in 海珠区 Hai Zhu District): most beautiful campus in Guangzhou. Lots of old buildings, a nice river side piaza, and plenty of people watching opportunities ;) Oh and it's next to my high school 广州第六中学 Guangzhou No 6 Middle School. Also near the university there's an old Taoist temple 纯阳观 Chun Yang Temple which is hidden inside a massive texture market (中大布匹市场 Zhong Da Texture Market). One of the oldest in town but a pain to find...

华南理工大学 South China Uni of Tech: right, let's put things in perspective - this is where Istudied! Hohoho. Huge campus too; not as pretty as 中山大学(hey this is ascience and engineering uni).

9. 中山纪念堂 Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall

A hall built on 东风中路 Dong Feng Zhong Road as a memorial to 孙中山 Sun Yat-Sen, probably the most important Cantonese politician, at least in modern times.

10. 琶洲 Pazhou, 黄埔古港 Huangpu Ancient Port

These are in the east of 海珠区 Hai Zhu District. The Pa Zhou Pagoda 琶洲塔 is one of the three most famous ancient pagoda's in the area (the other two being 赤岗塔 Chi Gang Pagoda which is not far away, and 莲花塔 Lotus Pagoda which is in 番禺 Panyu, a bit of distance from central Guangzhou). The ancient port at Huangpu (黄埔古港) is in a village 黄埔村 in the southeast of 海珠区. In the Ming and Qing dynasties this was the only port in China open to foreign trade. They have refurbished temples museumsetc. It'd also be nice to stroll around the village.

11. The river ferry

Don't bother with the tourist cruises (eg 珠江夜游). Rip off. Instead use the commuters' ferry service - cheap, cheerful and local. I heard talks about renovating the ships with models similar to the Thames Clippers in London which are very nice; however I miss the old ones which were noisy like hell - very atmospheric. A suggested route would be from 中大码头 Sun Yat-Sen Uni Pier (next to the piaza to the north of the campus) to 天字码头 Tian Zi Pier, or from 黄沙码头 Huang Sha Pier (near 沙面) to 石围塘码头 Shi Wei Tang Pier which is in 芳村 Fang Cun. There used to be a nostalgic scene there reminiscent of the 70s/80s with industrial establishments etc; all gone now I'm afraid. I think there's at least another ferry pier in 芳村 but I'm not sure.

12. The German church

It's near a ferry pier, 芳村联合围码头 Lian He Wei Pier Fang Cun, on 信义路 Xin Yi Road, not far from a hospital forthe psychics (not trying to imply anything here...). But there are local news about plans to move the whole thing to a nearby location since a new tunnel will be built.

13. Food

Right, this is what I'm most proud of but I hesitate to make any recommendations apart from the traditional fixtures above, since the Guangzhou dining scene changes with the blink of the eye. If I can get hold of a couple of local contacts for you I'm sure they can recommend good places. Then again there are seasonal stuff you should try:荔枝 lychee, 龙眼 Long Ngan ("dragon's eyes"), 冬瓜water melon dishes,海带绿豆沙green lentil soup (sweet) with seaweed...

14. 东山

In the early 20th century this used to be outside of the city centre and attracted many local dignitaries to build houses here (think Chiswick). These houses were built in a hybrid style with western influences. It's always an escape from the general madness of the city. Stroll around these roads/streets: 新河浦 Xin He Pu, 恤孤院路 Xu Gu Yuan Road, 庙前西街 Miao Qian Xi Street (where there are a lot of shops that sell big label samples from the Pearl RiverDelta factories - you see most of Made in China are actually Made inPearl River Delta, and while most of these big label products go for ridiculous prices in the west, some samples stay humbly to their rootshere), most of which along a small canal called 新河浦 Xin He Pu.

A few interesting ones to watch out for:

春园 Chun Garden: 新河浦路24号春园 24 Xin He Pu Road. Where Mao Ze Dong and a few important early Chinese Communists used to stay. BTW since Guangzhou was one of the important bases for the Chinese Communist Party, there are quite a few such sites in the city. One of them is 恤孤院路３号 3 Xu Gu Yuan Road. Well you don't seem to be a fans of communism, still it's a German export...

可园 Ke Garden：恤孤院后街一号 1 Xu Gu Yuan Hou Street

隅园 Ou Garden：寺贝通津42号 42 Si Bei Tong Jin

陈济棠公馆 Chen Ji Tang Mansion：中山一路梅花村 Mei Hua Cun, Zhong Shan Yi Road. This was the official residence of 陈济棠 Chen Ji Tang who used to control 广东 Guangdong in the 30s.

白崇禧公馆 Bai Chong Xi Mansion：at the junction of 达道路 Dao Dao Road and 烟敦路 Yan Dun Road. 白崇禧 Bai Chong Xi is a famous Nationalist general in the World War II. This was his official residence inGuangzhou. His son, 白先勇 Bai Xian Yong, is a famous writer in Taiwan. One of his most important works, 台北人 The Taipei-ers, is a nod to the great Dubliners by James Joyce.

The 东山 Dong Shan mansions are notably different from the 西关 Xi Guan mansions, in that the former has more western influences and are mostly built with red bricks, while the latter has more traditional outlooks and most of them have dark green stones as facade. There's a saying: 东山少爷, 西关小姐. Since 东山 residents were mostly government big shots, their sons are surely 少爷(young masters); on the other hand 西关 were resided by the rich merchants and surely they could afford a luxury or two for their daughters 小姐. A summary of the old day glamours.

15. 怀圣寺 Huai Sheng Mosque (on 光塔路 Guang Ta Road).

China's oldest mosque, it was built around mid 7th century by an Arabic missionary (or merchant?). A bit dilapidated now but still worth a visit. There's a pagoda in the mosque which used to serve as a signal tower, since the site was close to the river in ancient times. 光塔路 Guang Ta Road used to be a muslim neighbourhoodhabited by Arabic merchants who came to Guangzhou to trade in the Tang dynasty.

16. 石室 "The Stone Chamber" Sacred Heart Cathedral (on 一德路, near 海珠广场 Hai Zhu Square)

This is an impressive stone Gothic cathedral (one of four in the world), designed by French architects and took local workers 25 years to build (1863 - 1888). It is situated in a rather chaotic market for dried food, which only makes the contrast in atmosphere even more dramatic. On the facade you can find two signs that read Jerusalem, noting one of the base stones was shipped all the way from there; the other Rome, since they shipped some soil from Rome that carries some symbolic importance (which I don't understand). Very exotic.

【旧文】记叙在2007年重返2005年的曼哈顿的企图

【完稿于2007年11月17日，伦敦。下文非全稿。】

曼哈顿永远有着一种戏剧性。当我在离开肯尼迪机场的的士上，即使沿路还只是贫淡无趣的皇后区，我能感觉到开幕前的那些兴奋，那些期待。我还记得曼哈顿。我记得它的热闹登场。我知道应该往哪个方向注视，帝国大厦，克莱斯勒大楼，它们有若女神花冠一般的光耀顶尖，将在天际线的何处出现。我熟谙它们出场的次序，它们如何利用布鲁克林大桥刚健的勒线隐现。两年了，它们，曼哈顿，还是有如一出常演不衰的百老汇音乐剧，每夜如样。我只是一个看客，一个被动的看客——我从未自行前来；皆是为稻粱谋。

但两年前我并非纯粹的看客——因为P，我曾在此间无意客串了一场。

这次来纽约之前不久，在网上偶尔看到一则新闻，说是下城的66餐厅，关门谢客了。让我隐约唏嘘了一下。那是做时尚餐厅出名的Jean-George，在此处处心经营的一所改良中国餐馆，以做高档西式餐厅的手段，内饰，菜肴设计和呈示，来做中国菜。让我想起餐厅吧台上写着中国字的红色飘帘，我当晚点的Halibut和盛装鱼的华美白瓷大碗。还有那天晚上我穿的黑白花的吊带裙，黑白几何图案的丝巾。还有P后来的评语。

我清楚记得几乎所有我们去过的地方。然而当时我似乎没有如此介意曼哈顿的不修饬：每条路都在修路，挖得坑坑洼洼；噪音日夜不息；楼宇，车辆，行人，皆痴傻粗大。因为不久前的sub prime mortgage金融危机，但凡交谈间，不时有人作末日论。2005年初春的一天，我饶有兴致地在中央公园瞎逛了一转，还沿哈德逊河直上哈林。这次我有天也在公园走了一遭，湖里死水的臭气把我熏得疾走。曼哈顿突然有一种蒙尘的感觉。虽然这只是日间的曼哈顿。

这次我去了不少之前P带我去过的地方。有时和同事一起去，例如到EN Japanese Brasserie，一坐下就点了我曾经为之绝倒的Green Tea & Vodka Martini。我奇迹般地记得我曾经喜爱的菜，他们的菜单，一切有如节日般归来。同事们深为赞叹，我竟然知道这样的好地方。我暗笑。有时我宁愿自己暗访这些秘密。例如Bloome Street上的Marie-Belle，一方做朱古力做得人神共泣的小店。店中一切如旧，皆是我印象中的模样——饰柜，展示的朱古力，甜品堂食的几张小桌。我隐约记得我们当时坐的位置，也许当日我点的还是同一款甜食：signature dessert, chocolate terrine with passion fruit essence, sprinkled with pistachio flakes。我买了一小盒共9枚朱古力。包装的淡蓝色小盒和P第一次送给我的并无二致，但他们在上面撒了几片玫瑰花瓣样子的装饰。许是P拿掉了那些，另买了一株花。那天P带我沿河走了下城的好些地方，我们还进了Styvesan高中转了一圈——我的朋友Kostas，现在正住在旁边河畔的一所公寓里。记忆就是这样联系起来的，并没有抗拒的余地。有一晚到Prince Street上的一个餐厅和Kostas，Kimmy还有他们的几个朋友进餐，途中便看到我和P去过的Blue Ribbons寿司馆，依旧窝在地下室，依旧人气极盛，想必那些海胆还是嫩艳依旧，还有那些我已经想不起名字的sake。不远处就是Cub Room，我们那夜先是在这里见面，晚饭后P想起他忘了一件什么东西，于是我们折回此处。现在这里跟两年前模样差不多，但路破得不行。靠近第六大道有一间饰品店我曾经喜欢得不得了，买了好几样东西，当时店员是一个极其甜美的金发女孩，系着白底黑花的头巾。我这次临走的时候专程去了一趟，看店的是一个痴肥愚顽的黑女生，说话不清不楚，所售也甚无惊喜。空手而回。

有一些地方我并没有去，例如我原来所住Chelsea附近的几处餐馆，包括我曾经最喜欢的Biltmore Room——Grilled Quail on a bed of Green Tea Risotto，一道毕生难忘的菜。那些大理石的墙，还有极其不舒服的沙发。还有Gascogne，在第八大道上的小bistro，内进有露天小花园。初夏一个晴好的晚上，P和我在那里进餐。后来在出租车上，他说了很多很认真的话；我当时没放在心上，也没想到这些话以后会变得有如诅咒一般无法散去。再后来，他哭了。

还有他在TriBeCa的loft。那天到Greenwich Street和Kostas等人进晚餐的路上，行经此处。他住的那整一层，灯光通亮，煞白得让人担心。

2007年的秋天，那些来自2005年夏天的情节开始发散而模糊，甚至开始显得不真实。那些场所，那些对话，笑貌，争吵，食品，酒，人——什么能证明他们曾经存在过呢？也许只是曼哈顿这个舞台，让他们显得比他们自身更加真实？离开曼哈顿，那些光影中的摩天大楼渐次淡去，想象中的幕布实实在在的落下，发出似有还无的簌的声音。

【旧文】记一次春游

【完稿于2005年4月16日，曼哈顿】

纽约的阳光并不代表春天。我记得初到曼哈顿时的一个周末，走出残雪处处的Central Park，在阳光明耀的Madison Avenue上冷得半身麻木，狼狈不堪地冲进举目所见的第一间餐馆，Centolire。很好的意大利菜——这是曼哈顿最可喜处之一，随便冲进一家餐馆，都有好吃的。明黄的墙壁，中央有一株灿烂的桃花。令我想起之前去过的downtown McDougal Street上的一间法国餐馆；更让我想起小时家中迎春的桃花——当时正是春节前后。

征示春天的是曼哈顿满眼的绿草，水仙，和樱花，还有我的大衣——今天是我到纽约以来第一次无须披上大衣出门。当我从Upper East Side走进Central Park的时候，无数黄白相间的水仙蔓展在曲折起伏的亮绿坡地上，雪白和嫩粉的樱花半掩着暗色的亭阁；近处的小桥，园外的高楼，更远处的蓝天，现没在绿树的枝桠之间。这是真正带有暖意的阳光，我因而能够解下羊毛围巾，看着草地上笑闹的孩子，晒太阳的人们。想起去年在伦敦第一次感觉到春天的那天，从Victoria到Hyde Park，一路上有绿地的地方，就满展着享受着阳光的欢喜的身体。但是纽约春天的声息，毕竟和伦敦不一样。我怀疑，即使闭上眼，我也能分别这两个不同的春天；然而真要记下这两者的区别，却搜索不出任何词句——也许是“高楼”，但我所需要描述的区别，何止高楼。

我今天的目的地，并不是Central Park。尽管每次到Central Park，都有不同的景致，但它永远只是我计划路线中的中途站——它也许是曼哈顿最好的中途站。曼哈顿不像伦敦市中心，到处都是公园；除却正中央名正言顺的Central Park（由此可管窥曼哈顿街道命名的词语贫乏），地图上只有被挤压在纵横分明的道路网外的几片绿地。几天前不经意间听人提起Upper West Side位于Hudson河畔的Hudson River Park，忽然就有了去走走的想法。

Central Park两旁由东而西排列着纽约最名满天下、最活色生香的大道。从公园东侧Upper East Side的Lexington，Park，Madison，5th，到西侧Upper West Side的Central Park West，名声稍逊的Columbus，Amsterdam，还有斗胆斜穿曼哈顿的异类的Broadway。一路上，最明媚的都是樱花，从灿灿的白，到娇娇的红。转念间便想起鲁迅在《朝花夕拾》的《藤野先生》一篇中所述，东京的春天舒展在城市低空的如云的樱花。如云的樱花：这个比喻，不知怎的记得特别牢固。

Hudson River Park，其实就是地图上可怜兮兮呈香肠状的一块窄长的绿地，趴在Hudson河边。河的对岸，似乎便是New Jersey。纽约对于纽约以外的人们，无非就是曼哈顿；纽约对于纽约人，居所却大多在曼哈顿以外：Queens, Bronx, Brooklyn……甚至州界以外的New Jersey。住在曼哈顿的多是租住的过客，绝少听说哪个New Yorker就举家住在曼哈顿岛上。也许是我还没攀识到有本事在曼哈顿金贵的地皮上成家立室的New Yorker。附注：所谓New Yorker，仅限（部分）家庭成员都在纽约的人们；纽约客，纽约客，没有“世居纽约”这一回事。

纽约的公园和伦敦的公园的差异，部分地浓缩了纽约和伦敦，甚至和其他欧洲城市的差异。Arnoud曾经向我抱怨，他每天早上在Hyde Park跑步的时候，被公园旁Park Lane上车流的声响烦坏了，而且伦敦市中心的空气让他“根本无法呼吸”。这也许是鹿特丹和伦敦的区别。在纽约，虽然空气质量尚可令水鸟和鸽子生息，却也不时会让人灰头土脸。日夜不绝的市声，甚至和广州相当。在纽约街头拍照，永远无法拍到伦敦和欧洲城市街头令人绝息的美；尽管纽约对旧大陆城市的形神拷贝绵绵不绝，然则广厦宽街究竟滋生不出精致、雍容而略带慵懒和忧郁的气质。美国人对“量”有一种执着的痴迷，对城市的理解和处理也是粗笔重墨。华盛顿虽说由法国人设计，处处带着对巴黎模仿的痕迹，然而其粗大广阔以及缺乏细节，和巴黎明显不一样。纽约虽像旧世界的一片飞地，但这个城市毕竟属于车背上的民族，行人的空间被车道严重蚕食。这是我对纽约最大的不满之一。曼哈顿岛中心自不待言，沿河一周，虽说也有绿地（或说，绿带罢），也有河边的行人道，却环岛建了半高速路，车流便生生地刮穿了沿河的景观，也使得公园里嘈吵不堪。（可悲的是，广州的情况更要糟糕——不说也罢。）Hudson River Park也不例外。当然，铺展在沿河坡地上的花草还是热闹可爱的，沿路的樱树也繁花缤纷；尤其在北边的一段Cherry Walk，满眼的红粉绯绯，很是动人。周末的公园里游人甚众，跑步的，骑车的，遛狗的，打球的，发呆的，生相各异，倒也大致是嘴角上展的脸容。Hudson河上的水鸟三两相逐，流水匆匆，远远可眺见George Washington Bridge。桥附近停泊的一艘鲜红的船，尤为夺目。然而5米开外就是啸叫而过的群车。美国，美国。

Hudson河似乎比Thames要奔流迅速——我在downtown的岸边甚至看到河涛拍岸的动态，甚至闻到一股似是而非的盐腥；这让当时同行的希腊朋友高声大叫：“海的气息啊！”我知道，他想家了。

我也许也想家了。国外生活似乎更让我欣喜开怀，想家的念头并不经常让我感到酸楚，虽然我不时会被“那时只想着流浪的快乐远方的幸福决意一去不回，从来没有人告诉我想家的苦涩滋味”之类的字句击中打痛。只是，一些细节，一些气味，意象和声息，能把我马上牵回我记忆中的广州去。那是一个由想象和记忆重组的城市，在空间上仅限于布有我生活痕迹的那些点和线，在时间上压缩了我自幼而长的那许许多多年；这个仅存在于我脑海中的城市，和卡尔维诺笔下的迷失在雪中的城市性质相近，而和南中国那个真实的城市并没有太多关联——也许这些关联都在我成长和离开的过程中慢慢消失掉了。这个由我重构的城市，充满着南中国潮湿、懊热的气味，日夜不眠，操粤语的市声，恒河沙数的美食（以至我的舌头总是第一个想家）。湿冷渐而湿暖的面目可憎的春天，火蒸油滚的夏天，唯一让人敢于行于正午日下的舒适却短暂的秋天，还有模模糊糊的冬天。最重要的是，这个城市是由一条宽畅的河流定义的。

我所爱的城市多在河边。Thames蜿蜒而过伦敦，与广州的地理最为相仿；而纽约，我认识的纽约，或者说曼哈顿，根本就是一个岛。东边是East River（可叹美国的地名）和Harlem River，西边是Hudson River。一条大河两岸宽，它是一道流体，它是生动的，变异的，女性的；它指向远方，并促长对远方的想象和向往。我至今记得小时的一个梦，梦见我如常在珠江边玩耍的时候，忽然发现河对岸变出了一群西洋建筑，而一个没有根据的声音说，那里是英国。由于其怪异，一直留在我的记忆中。直至它变为事实，甚至我隐约觉得Thames在Westminster附近的Milkbank一段河岸，确实能看到相似的景象——自然，我的怪想而已。然而我每次到一个流淌有大河的城市，每次看到一条流经城市的大河，都不自主地想起生长在河边的我的城市，和我的有大河穿过的关于成长的记忆。从伦敦，到只是惊鸿一瞥的巴黎，到纽约。而纽约在我眼中，一端接着欧洲，一端却通往我的广州。嘈吵，纷乱，肮脏，拥挤，不漂亮。高楼林立。永远有工地在忙活着天知道什么鬼东西。马路想过就过，完全不须看交通灯——看也没用，因为车辆也是想过就过。商店里总在打折。食肆繁多，侍应殷勤。地铁里有中文指示。华埠的街道处处飘着烧腊和云吞面的香味（嗯……还有双皮奶，蛋达之类的好东西，还有小店卖汤煲、蒸笼一类的器具）。还有奔涌的大河里污浊的河水，河边或匆匆或悠悠的人们。

不过广州的春天从来是可恶的——可恶得我甚至不大愿意记得了，印象比较深刻的是有一年春天台海局势吃紧，有同学在教学楼楼梯拐角处总是罩着水汽的大镜上愤然大书：“打倒连战”（但是现在连先生不是要率领国军来破冰了么？）。而在地球的另一面，暮春四月，蓝天丽日，周六下午江风拂面的Hudson River Park是宜人的。不知不觉间，便轻步走过一个多小时，来到曼哈顿北端Harlem。实在看不出有什么可观的地方。想坐地铁到downtown，发现地铁站竟然是高架的，并且上行的电梯停掉了。暗骂一声，拾级而上。半空中所见的Harlem，也是平平。在地铁上，忽然想起New York Blues里面唱的：And I go uptown, downtown, east side, west side。

到downtown，是为了买TriBeCa电影节的观影票。TriBeCa电影节每年一遇，在downtown的TriBeCa区举办。所谓TriBeCa，就是Triangle Below Canal Street——顾名思义，Canal Street以南（即以下）一片三角状的区域。实在无法再忍受探究曼哈顿地名来源的无趣了。

出了地铁，沿Greenwich Street北上。Downtown是一个生活气息极其丰满的地方，其丰富程度难以言表，因而在此按下不表。黄昏的街道上人并不多，大概因为是周末，昼伏夜出的城市动物们还未苏醒的缘故。东张西望地走到票房，却发现已经早早关门，旁边的瑜珈学校大门上有一贴曰：此处非票房。恐怕是给烦急了。

一转身，又看到两个街区外漏出的河上仍然高挂的纽约春天的夕阳。又走到河岸，悠悠走了一段，心里轻松愉快的不行。回家热了昨天在公寓对面第七大道上一间中餐快餐馆买的没吃完的剩菜和自行烹制的白米饭。到国外之后吃中餐并不多，皆因自己口味给乡人和家人的美食娇宠坏了，对粤菜尤其挑剔，而番邦的出品每每让我不满。在同事三番数次的推荐下，昨天终于买了一份白菜牛肉。骗人的鬼东西。杂七杂八的碎菜，一片白菜的绿叶都没有。再也不帮衬了。

SATC

前几天和单位的几个女同志一起去看Sex and the City。怎么说呢，都是不大可能成为朋友的同事。一群衣貌朴素而心态狡黠的理工科女博士。

还是说说电影本身吧。一如以往，华衣美服，钟鸣鼎食，纸醉金迷，红尘妖雾。故事还是有不少细节令人很有共鸣的。最喜欢的是，剧中女流均年逾四旬，而风光风流不减；可见青春其实是一种心态。皱纹、斑点嘛，涂点脂粉，大不了弄个botox就是了。还有一处，Carrie说Big你好坏耶不给我写情书耶；后来Big给她发了N封冗长电邮，内容为名人情信电子版，最后第N＋1封是原创，合共两句话。当时我想，哈，那时候Paul给我写的长篇电邮都是精彩原创啵！他是挺有文采的，行文酣畅，而带有一种老派的幽默。最重要的是，现在想来这些基本都是真心拳拳的（我可不敢说全部；这年头，谁信谁呢，说到底他也不是好鸟）。可惜那时候先是对他不感冒，后来脸都撕破了，为求解脱把他的所有电子墨宝都永久删除了。现在轻舟已过万重山的时候看看，有点可惜；这些文字，也可以是自恋的材料嘛！哈哈，都没所谓了。

走出影院的时候，周围的办公楼灯火通明。想起那年有一次和Arnoud到同一个地方听音乐会，散场后走在路上，他对着华灯感叹说：这些人这么晚还在卖命，这楼里一定是银行啊！要是所有人都像这些银行里的人那么勤奋，欧洲经济就少了很多问题了。哎，他就是这样宏大叙事，即使我们单独在一起的时候，还是政治啊经济啊金融啊社会啊宗教啊，我唯有默默的色心蠢动。呵呵，现在想来这种一本正经实在有点闷，不过此时彼时，不一样啦。

穿过City的办公区，街上空空荡荡，却灯光灿灿，像鬼域一样。快到地铁站，一对酣醉的少男少女在拌嘴。车站里面，一个歌手在唱Radiohead在OKComputer里的一首歌，歌名我忘了。这小同志也许累了，也许醉了，反正唱得有气无力，却一直坚持。挣个钱真不容易。

最近终于买了房子，现在刚开始走法律程序，办理贷款等，计划8月前入伙。有房子的女人有力量！

三毛——十数年后

书架上有一两本三毛的书，都是刚上初中的时候在五中附近的那间小书店买的。用途比较简单，就是每次如厕的时候随手捡起一本，随便翻开一篇，正事办完了，文章也基本看完了。也不是怎么喜欢她了，觉得她虽然传统文学应该看得不少，自己的文字功夫却不过了了；那些异国风情、漂泊他乡的文字，现在看来有点嚼蜡。只是阅读时间长短比较合适也。
于是想到马中欣好些年前写的《三毛真相》。那时候我年纪也小，头脑也简单，一加一没有道理不等于二的；毅然的给《羊城晚报》写了一篇支持马老的文章，说真的就是真的，假的就是假的，你们丫的感性什么呢。可惜这篇文章没有存底；那时我写的东西都很有意气的，年纪小嘛，鲁迅是我文字榜样喔。带着一点企图成名的虚荣，等啊等，文章终于没有登出来，马老却很意外的给我回了一封信，称赞我如何如何有勇气云云。哇，名人啊！俺于是给马老打了一电话（他在信上给我留的，说是他广州朋友家的电话），嗯，感觉：一，马老说的普通话很正宗，没有台湾音耶；二，马老是个老江湖。后来美女刘告诉我说马老很样衰，身材短小，脸黄黄的。故事结束了。
再后来，俺才惊觉，自己当年实在是没有把握到事情的重点！本来呢，小女人家写写自恋的文字，卖几个零花钱，真真假假，也算了；马老也忒认真（动机且不论），非要揭穿人家的画皮。人都作古了，还要一追到底，何苦呢。做人，要厚道。想想自己小时候，也是很傻，很天真。现在倒是一把年纪了，也早悟到，天凉好个秋，有些事情，真假并不重要；不就是出恭的时候想抄本闲书嘛。

Trainspotting

Just watched this again, after 12 eventful years. Just got an email from my friend, who is now on an exchange programme in Aussieland, whom I watched the movie with (pirate version on video tape with appalling quality - only in Guangzhou). I remember we laughed out really loud at the scene when Ewan McGregor swam down the toilet, and we didn't understand the Scottish accent at all. Most of my best teenage memories are shared with her. Those years.

Now listen to this iconic starting line:

"Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a starter home. Choose dental insurance, leisure wear and matching luggage. "

It now sounds like an oracle! More worryingly still, London was where Mark Renton chose to start his new life. Then what? Choose a life, a job, a starter home, dental insurance...

Note on a Beautiful British Summer Morning

It was like a long feared nightmare suddenly come true - it rained, after all these fleeting bliss of English sunshine, which, in hindsight, feels more like a dream.

For the first time since I received my iPod Nano as a leaving gift from my old colleagues, in the true London commuter fashion I put on my iPod this morning, loaded with songs freshly synced from my knackered old laptop. It's Lady A (Arvanataki, for the precision minded), it's Madredeus - the sweeter images of the sunny Mediterranean. The sea - in the sun.

In the rythem of a rocking boat I rode on the DLR, sealed off from my fellow commuters with the layer of music. Then came the alarm: someone pulled the emergency handle midway between Shadwell and Bank. All stopped - except my song. The driver went about normalising things, in the air of silent impatience among all onboard. It's all grey and wet outside; a very possible signal for the end of summer. So short that one ponders whether it really existed. How can it end so abruptly, when I still dearly remember the lovely Saturday afternoon spent strolling in Bushy Park and Hampton Court, the warm touches of sun, the swing of bushes in the summer breeze, my new dress?

My perfect solution then, is tuning to Sous le Ciel de Paris.

In that imagined spring sun I sprinted through the crowd, emerged in the rain, then my ears were drowned in the noises from the construction sites by the street. The delightful music persisted, all the way to my desk.

Then a truck drove by, said "oranjeboom pilsner". I said to myself: that would be very nice, for such a beautiful British summer morning.