2021年1月18日 星期一

Entry #204


The end of the semester approacheth*.  With what sober meditation shall I begin this lengthy discussion?  Let us begin with St. Anselm, and his ontological argument for the existence of the Deity.

1. St. Anselm, and His Ontological Argument for the Existence of the Deity

Pineapples are my favorite fruit!

2. What's your name?

Some of the people reading this blog know my name.  It's not a great mystery.  If you're one of those who don't it's not a big deal.  I am in reality a very boring person, and many people find conversations with me confusing.

Would I like you if I met you?  Probably.  I like most people I meet.  For example, in the two schools where I work, I like 19 people out of the 20 or so I regularly see there.  In terms of other foreign residents, I think the ratio is similar.  I don't, however, trust people who say they like everyone.  Such people probably need to get more in touch with themselves.

3. How old are you?

I turned 46 recently.  I also have a daughter who recently turned 20.  Do I feel old?  Not really.  I feel pretty much the same as I always do.  I feel like me.

It's a very obvious thing to say, but exercise and eating right helps.  I've noticed that friends who don't eat right or exercise seem to get sick a lot easier.

4. What color is it?

It, as in the universe?  I like to think of the universe as being turquoise, like those stones you buy in desert places.  My favorite color is green, but I like to think of the universe as being turquoise.  I'll bet you anything that there's some weird religion or philosophy centered around colors, and that in this system of belief turquoise has a special connotation.

5. Is it a bird?

"Bird" in Taiwan is often slang for penis.  English teachers here must always be careful when using "bird" in the classroom, especially in conjunction with "small" or "big."  Junior high school students always have a field day with "bird."  When I was teaching junior high school "motel" was another danger word.

6. Are you fat?

No, not at all.  Some people tell me I'm too thin.  In the summer I sweat off a lot of weight, in the winter I'm slightly bigger.

7. Who's he?

You mean that guy outside, on the basketball court?  I believe he's the school PE teacher.  Today seems to be jump rope class.  I like PE teachers more when they don't yell all the time.  Some PE teachers are big believers in military-style discipline, and hearing them berate kids for not lining up properly gets old fast.

8. Are you a doctor?

No, I'm not.  I happen to be a teacher of English.  I've been a teacher of English for over twenty years, and yes, I still like the job.  Unlike some other foreign English teachers, I'm not looking to teach in a university (done that already), and I'm not overly concerned with how much I make in comparison to others.

And I don't mean to burst anyone's bubble, but most teachers in most universities don't make all that much money.  I think what keeps a lot of people employed in universities is a sense of prestige (or in some cases intellectual vanity), but the reality of teaching in a university is often quite different from what people imagine it to be.  Sure, if you're a halfway attractive person there's the lure of sexually inquisitive college students, but that can be a dangerous game to play.

9. Can you run?

Yeah, I ran yesterday.  How far did I run?  I'm not sure.  I definitely ran more than 6 km, but I'm not sure how far it is from my village to the next village over.  I'm guessing around 7 km?  Definitely not more than 8 km.

I run on Wednesdays now.  I'd like to run more, but that will probably have to wait.  I'll be able to run twice a week during winter vacation, but for now I'm a little hampered by bicycling back and forth between my house and my two schools.  There's also the garbage truck to consider.  If I run twice a week I'll probably miss the garbage truck.

10. Can you read?

Yes I can, thank you.  I've been reading since I was old enough to read.  Presently I'm reading a somewhat boring novel called Man's Fate.  It's about the communist revolution in China, and it was written by a Frenchman in the 1930s.

The characters in this book get into the most pointless conversations.  They'll be raiding a police station for arms, and then a character will start talking about fate, or the historical necessity for revolution, or something similarly irritating.  Then something violent will happen, but it wont' be something violent enough to keep you interested in the story.

Before Man's Fate I was reading another book called The God Machine, written in 1968.  I liked The God Machine much more.  That novel is definitely a product of its time - complete with a characteristic dose of misogyny - but I found its theorizing on nature of artificial intelligence interesting.

11. What do you want?

I'm getting evaluated today, so I want that to go well.  I don't have any reason to think it won't go well, but I've heard of teachers getting the odd, adversarial evaluator.  Some people are on a power trip; some other people think "earning their money" means pointless criticism.

Beyond that I think I'd like pizza for my birthday.  I'm thinking about driving up to Donggang, buying a pizza at Domino's, and then taking the pizza to a bar I like.  That sounds like a fine birthday to me.  I'd probably come up with a more ambitious plan if my birthday wasn't on a weekday.

12. Do you like apples?

No, not really.  I'll eat them if they're put in front of me, but I've never enjoyed apples.

13. How can I resolve my ontological dilemma?

Maybe have a pineapple?  Pineapples always make me feel better.

14. What time is it?

It's definitely NOT Hammer Time, because as we all know, MC Hammer only appears and kills you with his dance moves if you type his name THREE times.

At the time of writing it's 12:11.  I just ate lunch and washed my lunch bowl in the sink outside the office.  It's dark and cold and I'm kinda sleepy.

15. Where's the ball?

My ball is in the English classroom, on the other side of the school.  My ball is a green and blue soccer ball.  I haven't used my ball that much in class, mostly because I've been lazy to take the kids outside for ball games.  I think we played dodgeball once.  Next semester I should really take the kids outside more.  This will also be easier next semester, because my class at the other school was moved down to the second floor from the third.

16. Where are you?

I'm sitting in front of a computer, in an office with several other teachers, in Fangliao Elementary School, in Fangliao Township, in Pingtung County, in south Taiwan, in Asia, in the northern hemisphere, on a planet orbiting a sun which is just the right distance away to allow for the presence of water in its liquid state.

I think water works best a a liquid, don't you?  You can drink it, you can swim in it, and fish seem very fond of it.  I don't like water as a gas so much.  It makes everything rainy.  I also don't like water as a solid, because it makes running and bicycling more dangerous.

17. How's the weather?

As said above it's dark and cold.  Even on the Hengchun Peninsula it gets dark and cold in the winter.  It won't last long though.  Soon it'll be sunny again, and then I can go swimming.

18. Where are you from?

I'm from the country that gave you Donald Trump.  I'm from the northwest corner of that country, near Canada but not as far up as Alaska.  I'm from a city famous for its gourmet coffee and the operating system beloved by hackers everywhere.

19. What language do you speak?

I speak English and Chinese.  I also like to think that my cats understand me when I speak to them.  And how does one "reach" a two month old kitten, anyway?  How do I enter into an embarrassing discussion of cat turds deposited outside the litter box?  Or should I ignore this problem, hoping it will go away?

20. In an ever-expanding universe headed for certain doom, how can I prepare myself for the theological ramifications of the COVID virus, Mr. Donald Trump?

Again, pineapples.  Pineapples are there for you.  Of course I'm not Donald Trump (I'd be trying and failing to type this on Twitter if I was), but I think pineapples are your best bet.

Related Entries:


*In case anyone in Pingtung is reading this, no, I'm not quite finished yet. But I always stop writing this blog during the last week of regular classes. I'll start again next semester.

2021年1月15日 星期五

台灣地名故事 Taiwanese Place Name Stories 2


The Chinese text below was taken from "Taiwanese Place Name Stories" 台灣地名故事, published by Windmill Ltd. 三暉圖書發行有限公司 in 2012.  The Chinese text was written by 張青史, and the English was written/translated by me.


小琉球的烏鬼洞
Xiaoliuqiu's Wuguei Cave (1)

公元1624年 , 荷蘭人攻佔南台灣後 , 同時也把黑人引進台灣 .  這些黑人是荷蘭人從非洲搶奪來的 , 他們的主要工作是服侍主人的生活起居及做一些低賤的工作 . In 1624, after the Dutch captured Taiwan (2), they brought black people to the island.  These black people were taken from Africa by the Dutch, and for the most part they were used as servants or given menial tasks.

公元1661年, 延平郡王鄭成功收復臺灣和澎湖, 趕走了荷蘭人.  由於荷蘭人撤退很匆忙, 所以少數分散在臺灣各地的黑人, 來不及和荷蘭人一起搭船離去. In 1661 [the Ming loyalist] Koxinga regained control of both Taiwan's main island and Penghu, thus driving out the Dutch.  Due to the haste with which the Dutch fled Taiwan, some of the black people living in other parts of the island had no time to board the Dutch ships as they escaped.

不過, 善良的臺灣人並沒有為難他們, 反而送給他們一艘船, 讓他們離開. The kindhearted people of Taiwan did not shun them however, but instead gave them a boat in which to depart the island. (3)

這艘滿載黑人的船開到屏東外海的小琉球附近時, 不幸遭遇颱風, 船撞上礁石沉沒, 許多黑人葬身海底.  幸運逃過一劫的黑人游到小琉球, 找到一個又深又崎嶇的山洞, 從此在島上住下來.  有些漁民知道他們藏身的洞穴, 就稱它為 "烏鬼洞". As the ship full of black people sailed into the waters off the coast of Pingtung, not far from Xiaoliuqiu, they encountered a typhoon.  Their boat then struck a reef and sank, and many of the black people went down with their ship, to the bottom of the ocean.  A few of these black people were able to swim over to Xiaoliuqiu, where they found a cave in which to weather the storm.  From that time onward they lived in the cave.  Local fishermen even began calling it Wuguei ("goblin") cave, after the black people dwelling there. (4)


小琉球是珊瑚礁島, 土地貧瘠, 農作物很難生長, 這些黑人只好到海邊打魚, 撿拾貝類過活. Xiaoliuqiu is a coral atoll.  The soil there is very poor, and crops grow with great difficulty.  The black people could only survive by fishing and collecting shellfish near the sea.

數年後, 一艘英國艦艇經過小琉球, 覺得風景不錯, 就放下一艘小艇, 載著幾名軍官, 在烏鬼洞西北方的蛤板登陸, 觀賞風光.  黑人以為英軍要來佔領這座島, 就仗著熟悉地形, 趁機燒掉小艇, 把英國軍官全部殺死.  到了下午, 英軍的艦長發現小艇沒有回來, 急忙派遣大批人馬到島上艘尋, 才發現已經艇燬人亡.  但是黑人潛伏在山洞裡, 英軍根本找不到. A few years later, a British ship was passing by Xiaoliuqiu.  Impressed by the scenery, several officers boarded a small boat and set out for the island.  They landed on Geban (Haban), northeast of Wuguei Cave.  The black people, thinking that the British were going to occupy the island, used their familiarity with the terrain to burn the British boat, and to kill all the officers.  In the afternoon the captain of the British ship, discovering that the small boat had not returned, sent a large group of people to the island to look for the missing officers.  They found the burned boat and dead officers, but the black people hid inside their cave and eluded capture.

英軍向漁民打聽, 才知道有黑人躲藏在 "烏鬼洞" 裡.  英軍先後派了幾批人進入山洞, 但是洞內曲折, 崎嶇, 非常黑暗, 英軍不得不撤退. The British talked to some fishermen and learned about the black people hiding inside Wuguei Cave.  Several marines from the British ship were sent to the cave, but the entrance was obstructed, it was difficult to navigate, and it was very dark inside.  The British marines had no choice but to turn back.

有人建議: "不知道堆柴灌油, 再引火燃燒, 即使不能殺死他們, 至少可以把他們逼出山洞." Someone suggested: "Maybe we could pile up firewood soaked in oil, set a fire, and even if this doesn't kill them, it will drive them out of the cave."

艦長決定照這個建議進行.  烏鬼洞內立刻濃煙四起, 陷入一片火海, 可是卻沒有任何一個黑人逃出洞外.  等大火熄滅後, 英軍進洞搜查, 發現黑人已經全部死在山洞裡. The captain decided to follow this suggestion.  Soon after, thick smoke was pouring into Wuguei Cave, and the interior was engulfed in a sea of flame.  Even so, none of the black people ran out of the cave.  After the fire was extinguished, the British searched the cave and found them all dead inside of it. (5)

Related Entries 相關的文章:


1. A more literal translation of "Wuguei" would be "goblin," but I've never heard it referred to as "Goblin Cave."  If you're visiting Xiaoliuqiu, the Chinese place names will serve you much better.

2. "Captured Taiwan" is something of an overstatement.  They captured the Chinese fortifications around Tainan.  At that time the island of Taiwan was a remote outpost, nominally under Dutch jurisdiction.  Outside the Dutch and Chinese settlements much of the island was still a wilderness under the control of the aboriginal tribes.

3. I know, right?  How kind of them.  This part of the story sounds like complete bullshit.

4. So... first the black people are given a boat and told to sail into a typhoon, and then they're mistaken for goblins by local fishermen.  Sigh.  It was a different time... I hope.

5. Alternatively, the black people living inside the cave never existed, somebody more local killed the British officers, and/or the name of this cave was explained away long after the fact.  It was the 1600s, there isn't a lot of documentation relating to this incident, and who really knows?

All of the above is, by the way, only one explanation of why it's called "Wuguei Cave."  There is another explanation involving the Dutch and the deaths of many of the island's aboriginal residents.

2021年1月12日 星期二

Pingtung in the News 屏東的新聞 (Central 中) 2

There are 29 townships, 3 municipalities and one city in Pingtung County.  It's exhausting to include news from every township, municipality and Pingtung City every time, so what I'll do instead is include news items from eleven different townships or municipalities in each entry.  This way I should be able to work my way through Pingtung County every three entries. 屏東縣包含了29個鄉, 3個鎮還有屏東市.  每次討論所有鄉鎮的新聞太累了, 所以我會每次討論11個鄉鎮的報告.  這樣子我每三篇新聞文章就會涵蓋到全縣內鄉鎮的新聞.


1. Majia Township 瑪家鄉

A. The Majia Township Office was attempting to exact a fee from drivers using certain roads.  This plan, however, might be illegal. 山友反戰大 !  屏東瑪家 "專五道路" 收費卡關

B. A mobile clinic has been assisting Majia residents as part of Pingtung County's integrated community care network. 打造有溫度照顧  屏東整合社區網路  猶如小型珍所到你家


2. Wandan Township 萬丹鄉

A. Wandan will be getting new police and fire stations.  The present location created hazardous traffic conditions, and the buildings were very old. 警消新聽舍相繼動工  完工後將成為萬丹鄉行政核心地區

B. Iguanas, iguanas, iguanas.  A great big bastard of an iguana was spotted in Wandan, relaxing next to a canal. 巨尾綠鬣蜥日光浴嚇壞民眾  屏縣府設陷阱捕捉

C. A woman from Wandan returned to the township to celebrate the installation of a piece of public art.  This woman was one of the first people to demonstrate the use of the mechanized tiller, way back when the central government began promoting the mechanization of farming on a large scale.  Her tiller demonstration, which took place when she was only 16, was commemorated on a 1 NT coin. 首位平民肖像印鑄一元硬幣的陳命珠阿嬤回萬丹鄉母校


3. Wanluan Township 萬巒鄉

A. A new park was recently opened in Wanluan.  I drove by the place not long ago, and it looks like a fun place for kids. 萬巒親水公園啟用  緊鄰生命園區添話題

B. A fight following a land appraisal led to one death and two people injured.  Of course alcohol was involved. 萬巒鄉民土地鑑界糾紛釀全武行 1死2傷

C. A historic church in Wanluan was renovated, and will be open to the public next week.  It will be promoted as a tourist site, alongside a nearby cocoa bean plantation and a facility selling products made from cocoa beans. 屏東新景點  百年教堂變身  可可跨域推廣所  預計1/23開幕


4. Taiwu Township 泰武鄉

A. The coffee bean crop in Taiwu has been damaged by coffee borer beetles, and the amount of beans suitable for harvest has been reduced by 50%. 屏東泰武咖啡面臨咖啡果小蠹蟲害  減產5成

B. The policy requiring individuals to apply for a permit before visiting certain mountain areas was publicly debated.  This policy was previously implemented for the sake of national security, and to inhibit criminals from escaping into the mountains.  Several people in Majia and Taiwu townships spoke up in favor of maintaining the policy, in the interest of public order and preserving local ecosystems. 不願廢除山地管制區  瑪家 , 泰武 : 對治安有幫助

C. A survey of place names was conducted to determine which place names will be used in an official capacity next year. 泰武鄉領域地名調查成果  明年將與現行地號並列活用 (1)


5. Chaojhou Municipality 潮州鎮

A. A truck parked along a road in Chaojhou caught fire.  No one was injured. 屏東潮州鎮聯結車起火  無人員受傷

B. I believe this was mentioned here before, but here's another story about the temple in Chaojhou which was moved 10 meters.  This article has better pictures. 潮州鎮福安宮千人移廟好壯觀  一千多噸廟體緩挪10公尺

C. More and more residents of Chaojhou are using tap water (as opposed to groundwater).  As a result the Chaojhou Municipal Government has created a Chaojhou Operations Office, and the water utility company has also created a new district in the area. 屏東潮州自來水申請戶1萬2千戶  水公司成立潮州營運所


6. Xinyuan Township 新園鄉

A. A man driving through Shin Dong Village lost control of his car and crashed into a ditch. 屏東新園白色轎車疑失控  撞倒護欄側插進路旁水溝

B. There was another traffic accident on Highway 27 where it passes through Xinyuan.  In this case two vehicles were involved and several people were injured. 台27線新園段車禍4人傷1女童顱內出血傷勢嚴重 (2)

C. Accident statistics were released for intersections in and around Donggang.  Xinyuan Township, which is north of Donggang Municipality, ranked #1 in drunk driving-related fatalities and injuries. 屏東東港10大易肇事路口曝  酒駕死傷新園最多 "小琉球第二名"


7. Kanding Township 崁頂鄉

A. After the previous Township Chief was jailed for bribery, 70 year old Tseng Hui-de was elected Kanding Township Chief. 屏東崁頂鄉補選  70歲前鄉代會主席曾輝地當選 (3)

B. The Pingtung County Government is busy building a system of bike trails along the railways formerly used by Taisugar sugar refineries.  One of these bike trails passes through Kanding. 屏東萬金糖鐵自行車道啟用  前瞻計畫補助扮推手


8. Laiyi Township 來義鄉

A. Several legislators and other government officials recently visited Laiyi.  A "comprehensive service center" will be built there, which will combine elderly care, public outreach and a school focusing on the preservation of local aboriginal culture. 立委考察來義鄉部落之心  伍麗華催生原住民族學校

B. This article goes back a ways (November), but villagers in Laiyi are requesting financial compensation from the Taisugar Corporation, which owns several pig farms in the area.  Villagers in Laiyi are frustrated because residents of nearby Wanluan Township have been given more money in response to complaints of odor from the pig farms. 豬臭味難忍  來義鄉捍衛權益 (4)


9. Donggang Municipality 東港鎮

A. Building of a water resource recycling center in Donggang has started.  Droughts have been frequent, agricultural runoff is a big problem, and the County is spending a lot of money to clean up local waterways. 投近30億改善東港鎮廢汙水  水資源回收中心下月開工

B. Donggang Senior High School, the only senior high school in that area, has opened a "cram center" to accommodate students who need to study late into the night. 解決段考鎮圖塞爆  東港高中 "全年無休" K書中心揭牌

C. The mayor of Donggang has been working hard to clean up the area, pushing the local government to add night time garbage truck service and installing cameras at "hot spots" to prevent littering.  He's made some headway, even though the problem of locals dumping their garbage in certain locations persists. 棒子蘿蔔都出動 !  東港河堤溣髒亂熱點  增設監視器  日間定點車


10. Nanjhou Township 南州鄉

A. The recent cold spell has been causing locally grown wax apples to fall from the trees.  This year's wax apple crop has been drastically reduced as a result, and the local government is searching for solutions. 寒流一波波蓮霧蘋落果  屏縣府展開現勘

B. Police discovered drivers providing illegal taxi service after several cars, all bearing white plates, were reported near the Nanjhou Train Station.  The drivers were fined, and both their licenses and registrations were revoked. 白牌車南州地區載客  吊扣駕照 + 牌照再吃10萬罰單

C. Last month was bitter melon and papaya season in Nanjhou. 南州雙瓜節登場  由苦瓜 , 木瓜讓歲未苦盡甘來


11. Xinpi Township 新埤鄉

A. No news from Xinpi this time.  Maybe no news is good news?

Related Entries 相關的文章:


1. Compounding the problem of place names in Taiwu Township is the fact that many place names were taken from aboriginal languages and adapted into Chinese.  Sometimes these place names attempt to preserve the sound of the aboriginal words, sometimes the meanings.  English spellings of aboriginal place names can also vary.  Further complicating the issue is the dwindling number of local people who really use these languages on a regular basis.

2. Highway 27 is the road between Pingtung City and Donggang.  Were I a wanted criminal seeking to evade police custody, that would be the road for me.

3. Corruption among government officials at the township level seems to be a big problem in Pingtung.  This kind of news story is not unusual.

4. Pig farming is big business in Pingtung, and the Taisugar Corporation owns all of the big farms.  Most of these farms are located near the Mountainside Highway 沿山公路, which stretches between Fangliao Township and Sandimen.  I don't live near any pig farms, but I bike past one on my way to work twice a week.  The stench can be intense if the wind is blowing away from the farm.

A Few More Pictures 多一些照片

 

Gangdze Village 港仔村, Manjhou Township 滿州鄉, Pingtung County 屏東縣


Gangdze "Desert," 港仔砂摸 Manjhou Township 滿州鄉, Pingtung County 屏東縣




Highway 26 台26線, Manjhou Township 滿州鄉, Pingtung County 屏東縣


Nanjhou Junior High School 南州國中, Nanjhou Township 南州鄉, Pingtung County 屏東縣


Fangliao Fishing Port 枋寮漁港, Fangliao Township 枋寮鄉, Pingtung County 屏東縣




Old Iron Bridge 舊鐵橋, Dashu District 大樹區, Kaohsiung City 高雄市


charcoal "factory," Dashu District 大樹區, Kaohsiung City 高雄市


old kiln, Dashu District 大樹區, Kaohsiung City 高雄市


Old Iron Bridge 舊鐵橋, Dashu District 大樹區, Kaohsiung City 高雄市


Old British Consulate at Takao 打狗英國領事館, Gushan District 鼓山區, Kaohsiung City 高雄市


Nanhe Village 南和村, Laiyi Township 來義鄉, Pingtung County 屏東縣


Highway 185, Neipu Township 內埔鄉, Pingtung County 屏東縣

2021年1月6日 星期三

No Man is an Island, and Some Islands aren't Big Enough for the Two of Us


The most isolated person I can think of is the guy who lives somewhere in the mountains behind the village where I live.  He's very far up there, with only the forest stretching away from him in every direction. 我想最與世隔絕的人應該是住在我們村子後面的某座山裡某個地方的那個先生.  他住在遠離人煙的深山樹林裡.

Less isolated than that guy is the village where I live.  How many people live in this village?  I'm guessing a few dozen.  In this village there are a few small temples and a couple tiny stores.  When the people running the stores don't feel like opening them I have to go down the hill, to Shuidiliao, to buy things. 沒有那麼封閉的是我居住的村莊.  村裡有多少人?  我猜是幾十個.  這個村子裡有幾間小廟和兩間雜貨店.  雜貨店的老闆不想做生意的時候, 我就要往下去到水底寮買東西.

More convenient than my village is Shuidiliao.  Shuidiliao has two 7-11s and two Family Marts.  Shuidiliao has a few restaurants, a grocery store, and a market where we sometimes buy vegetables.  Shuidiliao also has a night market, but not many people go there now. 水底寮比我住的村莊方便多了.  那裡有兩家7-11, 也有兩家全家和幾家餐廳, 一家超級市場, 還有我們偶而去買菜的菜市場.  水底寮有觀光夜市, 可是最近去夜市的人不多.

Central Fangliao, on the other side of Highway 1, is more developed than Shuidiliao.  It has a fishing port, a train station, more stores and restaurants, and two electronics stores.  Perhaps most importantly of all, Central Fangliao has a hospital.  Is there anything to do in Central Fangliao?  Not really, but a lot of people live there. 台1線另外一邊的枋寮市區比較發達.  它有漁港, 火車站, 較多的餐廳, 其他商店和兩家電子商店.  最重要的是, 枋寮有醫院.  枋寮哪裡最好玩?  好像沒有, 可是很多人住在那裏.

More developed than Central Fangliao are the three municipalities: Donggang, Chaodzou and Hengchun.  These municipalities have Starbucks, Domino's Pizza and Pizza Hut.  They have bigger banks and more Western food.  They also have their own tourist attractions.  Donggang has the Dapeng Bay National Scenic Area, and Hengchun has Kenting National Park.  Chaodzou, definitely the least interesting of the three municipalities, is nevertheless an important transit point in central Pingtung. 比枋寮更熱鬧的地方就是屏東的三個鎮: 東港, 潮州恆春.  這三個鎮有星巴克, 達美樂必勝客.  它們的銀行比較大, 還有更多的西方料理.  這三個鎮都有旅遊景點.  東港大鵬灣國家風景區; 恆春墾丁國家公園潮州是景點最少的鎮, 可是它一樣是重要交通樞紐.

More developed than the municipalities is Pingtung City.  Pingtung City has department stores and museums.*  Pingtung City has two Carrefours and a university.  The traffic in Pingtung City can be terrible, the air quality can be bad, but it's an interesting place to explore if you're in that kind of mood. 最熱鬧的是屏東市屏東市有百貨公司跟博物館.  也有兩家家樂福, 還有一所大學.  有時候屏東市的交通很糟, 空氣品質較低, 可是市區還值得逛一逛.

More "exciting" than Pingtung City?  That would be downtown Kaohsiung.  Downtown Kaohsiung has an MRT, Dream Mall, the Sanduo Shopping District, Costco, Ikea, an airport, several universities, and is near other attractions like E-Da World and Foguang Mountain.  Kaohsiung is as modern as any Taiwanese city with the possible exception of Taipei. 比屏東市熱鬧的地方呢?  這個地方就是高雄市高雄市有捷運, 夢時代, 三多商圈, 好市多, 宜家, 飛機場, 幾所大學, 義大世界佛光山也在附近.  不與台北比較, 高雄台灣其他的城市一樣現代化.

Taipei is as modern as Taiwan gets.  Taipei has everything, or nothing, depending on how much money you make and how you like to spend it. 台北台灣最現代化的地方.  台北什麼都有, 也可能什麼都沒有.  這取決於你賺多少錢, 和你如何花錢.

I sometimes miss the excitement of places like Taipei and Kaohsiung.  I sometimes miss the lights, the crowds, and the energy of a place that's always trying to reinvent itself, that's always trying to out-compete whatever other cities, in other countries, are in slightly different ways. 我有時候很想念台北高雄的那種熱鬧感.  我想念燈光, 人群和那種大城市一直在進步並與其他國家的大城市競爭所散發出來的活力. 每個城市都以些微不同的方式做著一樣的事.

But at the same time I feel happy when I hear the rustling of the trees outside my windows.  This, and there's always time enough to visit those places, wherever they may be.  They might have a few things my village doesn't, and they might offer the biggest version of everything, but those things are likely to remain where they are for the time being, and I'm in no hurry to visit them. 同時, 我聽到窗戶外面的樹葉沙沙聲時覺得很開心.  我想到自己會有機會去到那些地方.  那裡的東西比我村子裡的東西豐富, 比我村子的東西更大, 那些東西應該會繼續存在, 我不用急著得去找到它們.

I'm pretty sure the guy up in the mountains feels the same way.  Maybe I'll ask him sometime, if I ever meet him. 那位住在山區的先生應該也是這麼想的.  如果改天碰到他, 我會直接問他是不是這樣.

Related Entries 相關的文章:


*The Pingtung Bible Museum!  Hell yeah!