After Traveling / 旅行後

旅行之後，拖了一些時間整理行李，因為怕忘記另一個時空的空氣和味道，但總會走到得把一切歸位的時候。

I put off unpacking after traveling because I am afraid of forgetting the air and smell that belong to another world. But the moment arrives sooner or later when I have to move on.

旅行之後，我通常不閱讀，因為腦子和心太滿，得揮霍掉旅途中獲得的活力和熱情，等身體有些空隙時，我才能吸收新知識。

I usually put books aside after traveling because my brain and heart are brimmed with too much energy and passion accumulated along the way. I can’t afford to absorb more nutrients until there’s some empty space in me again.

可是這次旅行裡，我在圓明園拜訪了依麗莎白畢夏普詩中「令人無法看透的老舊石刻」，還有許許多多需要靠閱讀補齊史料的歷史古蹟，所以反而在旅行之後，我燃起了想要溫習歷史的慾望。

However, on this trip, I visited “some inexplicable old stonework” like in Elizabeth Bishop’s poem at the historic site of Yuanmingyuan and tons of ancient palaces with hundreds of years of history behind them. Thus, different from my previous experiences, this journey rekindled my interest in history and prompted me to do further reading.

到過圓明園現場，很難想像斷垣殘壁背後的慾望、權力、野心、掙扎、屈辱、暴力、破壞，我在四天之內讀了兩百年之久的故事，越到最後越感傷，紙上的旅行要結束，但是曾經偉大的帝國也會結束，從繁華到空白，甚麼都會走到盡頭，但走到盡頭不一定要如此絕對。

As a tourist who witnessed the remaining relics on the spot, it is difficult to imagine that this was once the sumptuous stage on which desire, power, ambition, struggle, humiliation, violence and destruction were played out. I read two hundred years of history within four days. When approaching the end, I couldn’t help feeling sentimental. My paper journey was over, so was the once-powerful empire. But there was a drastic contrast, from everything to nothing.

如今，風水輪流轉，世界的中心又轉回來，不過有智慧的人要永遠記得，只有太陽會每天升起落下，其他的永恆都不存在。

Now, the table has turned. The fallen empire is once again in the spotlight. Yet, wise people have to bear in mind, only the sun rises and falls, which is the only exception to this constantly changing world.