Where is the soul of Seoul? / 首爾的靈魂呢？

攝於樂天世界‧首爾

photos taken at Lotte World, Seoul

每次去大城市旅行回來，總是告訴自己下次不要再往城市跑了，我想看的是自然的風景，而不是人工建築或百貨公司。很可惜，今年居然high到忘記這件重要的事，再加上韓劇的海外促銷太過成功，我便傻傻地跑去首爾了。

Every time when I traveled to big cities in other countries, I always ended up reminding myself not to repeat the same mistake. What captivates me is natural scenery, rather than artificial architecture or department stores. It was a shame that I was too high to bear that in mind this summer. Besides, with the brain-washing effect of Korean TV series, I found myself in Seoul.

跟團的行程讓我沒有機會和當地人互動，我一路上想著這個城市的貧乏，就算街上充斥著各式各樣的美女，我卻沒有被感動，事實真是如此，還是我沒有看清楚？

Traveling with a tour group deprived me of the opportunities to interact with local people. On my way, I couldn't help complaining about lack of style of this city. Even though the streets were crowded with all kinds of beautiful women, I did not feel moved at all. Was it really so, or I was too blind?

今天早上整理相片時，我的想法有了一百八十度的改變。我看了自己隨手亂按快門拍下的照片，發現這個城市的人們還挺適合黑白照的。導遊說，首爾人沒甚麼娛樂，所以連去到區區的樂天世界都是件開心的事，樂園裡處處都是背著專業大相機的人群，看來我不以為然的地方，對韓國人還真是意義非凡。

This morning when I was sorting out the photos, my idea took a U-turn change. I stared at the pictures I had taken randomly, and I found people in this city looked good in black and white. The tour guide said that there aren't many places to go in Seoul, so even a visit to a mere Lotte World makes them happy. The theme park was full of potential photographers carrying large and professional cameras. It seems that such a place, which I do not think very highly of, has much significance for Koreans.

五光十色的遊樂園在我的相片裡有種迷幻的效果，人們可以暫時脫離現實世界的苛求，盡情地大聲喧鬧嘻笑。全世界都知道韓國的經濟突飛猛進、文化傳統到有時會令人窒息，但是在這裡，我們忘了真實的首爾。但是又不同於韓劇裡那被包裝過的浪漫，遊樂園裡有各種情緒─迷失、低落、興奮、膽怯、解放，絕不是只有精美的男女主角兩人獨自包下偌大的溜冰場隨著優美的音樂起舞。

The theme park with all colors of light have a hallucinating effect in my photos. People get away from the strict demands of the real world to shout and laugh out loud for a moment. All the world knows that the economy of Korea has taken a giant leap, that their culture is so traditional that sometimes it can be strangling. However, here, we have forgotten the real Seoul. Still, this place is different from the well-designed romantic set in Korean TV series. The park boils with all kinds of emotion--being lost, low, excited, timid, liberated and so on. It is more than the classical scene in Korean TV series with the perfect-looking hero and heroine skating to melodious music on the vast skating rink.

比起冷冰冰的完美，就是對片刻的五光十色嚮往，也是一種美麗吧！

Compared with icy-cold perfection or lack of feeling, even the momentary longing for such glittering colors is beautiful...