Escaping Modern China: Unwind in Historic Huizhou远离现代喧嚣，徜徉古风惠州

托马斯·伯德

It is said that an immortal from the north flying on a goose was so taken by the scenery at Huizhou’s West Lake that she landed and her goose turned into Flying Goose Mountain. This is how Huizhou got its term of endearment， “City of the Goose”.

Located on the eastern periphery of the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong province， Huizhou can feel a world apart from the surrounding industrial region of the Pearl River Delta—China’s manufacturing powerhouse.

Urban upstart cities like nearby Dongguan and Shenzhen might outsize and outpace Huizhou （sounds like ‘hway-joe’）， but old Goose Town’s lakes， waterways， and verdant1 hills， not to mention its many historic attractions， make it the perfect antidote2 from the rush and clamour of modern China.

Poet’s path

The delight most feel when first confronted with Huizhou’s West Lake is not unique. The Song Dynasty scholar Su Dongpo （also known as Su Shi） was equally awestruck. Su hailed from Sichuan province， but had grown to prominence in the Song capital， Hangzhou， only to be exiled from the court for his contrarian3 views. In those days， anywhere south of the Nanling Mountains—which long sequestered far south China culturally and geographically from the rest of the country—was deemed barbarous， a malarial swampland4 on the very edge of civilization. Yet Su was genuinely taken by his home-of-exile， waxing lyrical5 about the local scenery， wine， tea and exotic fruits. Over his three-year stint6 in Huizhou， beginning in 1094， Su penned7 more than 500 verses ode to Huizhou and its people.

Today， Su’s lyrical endorsement is celebrated in the Huizhou West Lake Scenic Area. His poems have been carved into sculptures lining the Su Embankment， which leads towards Huizhou’s must-have photo， the Sizhou Tower—an 80-metre-high， seven-storey， hexagonal Buddhist pagoda first constructed during the Ming Dynasty.

In and around the Su Dongpo Memorial Hall， there are several sculptures depicting the wise and benevolent scribe8 enjoying southern9 life. The hall itself houses a collection of Su’s calligraphic verse. There’s limited English language information， but it’s a pleasant place to walk around， as its design is based on the classical Chinese gardens synonymous with the Song Dynasty.

Opposite the Memorial Hall， one can follow the Jiuqu （‘nine bends’） Bridge across Diancui and Fanghua Islands. The islands afford shade from the subtropical10 sunshine and are a great place to watch people potter11 about on pedal boats.

Religion and revolution

On the lake’s north shore， there’s more history to uncover， both religious and revolutionary. Tucked away in an old， mottled neighbourhood is Yuanmiao Temple， which was first constructed in 748 during the Tang Dynasty. Rebuilt again in 1990， this is incense-imbued homage to Lao Tzu， the philosopher at the heart of the Taoist tradition， is very much a living temple and a place where Huizhou folk come to venerate12 the gods （and presumably pray for some good fortune）.

As China reasserts itself， ancient culture is enjoying a renaissance.

A reconstruction of the Ming Dynasty city gate13 serves as another bold symbol that Huizhou is back in business. Walking through the gate， confronted by the surging Dong River and the gilded new district of Jiangbei across the water， lie the remnants of the original Ming wall preserved along the riverfront. This is clearly the boundary between the old and new， the China of scribes and temples within， the China of malls and manufacturing beyond.

The final piece of Goose Town’s historic jigsaw—a statue of Sun Yat-sen—is located in a park just behind the old wall. Intensely proud southerners revere Sun mostly because he hailed from Guangdong province; Sun even led a popular uprising from Huizhou in 1900.

Golden Belt Road

It can be thirsty work circumnavigating14 West Lake. Luckily， not far from the entrance to the Scenic Area is a quaint， two-storey coffee shop. Over a ¥30 fruit juice， the friendly patron15 will offer advice about the surrounding laneways. The adjacent16 alleyway， Jindai Jie （‘Golden Belt Road’）， is among Huizhou’s most historic streets.

First constructed in 1389， the winding old lane was once the commercial hub of Huizhou. Family houses and ancestral shrines line the route， affording a rare glimpse of a way of life fast fading from view in modern China.

Sacred slope

In Su Dongpo’s poem， Huizhou Yi Jue， Mount Luofu is lionised17， making for an easy excursion from Goose Town. Two hours by bus through disconcertingly18 messy industrial hamlets19 does little to invoke much anticipation： clearly， times have changed since Su’s day.

But the mountain， now a quintuple20-A tourist site， is spellbindingly21 beautiful. The tapestry of history one finds around West Lake is also weaved into the experience here. The central attraction is the beguiling22 atmospheric23 Chongxu Temple， first founded by Taoist abbot24 Ge Hong in 327， though it was rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty.

It’s extraordinary to think a temple stood here in Su Dongpo’s day. Su is said to have first tasted lychee here， a spot now commemorated in the Lychee Virtue Garden.

In summer， the tropical25 climate can make climbing the mountain unappealing， but there is a chair lift to the top. The ride up offers a birds-eye of the abounding26 forest， making it hard to believe you are still in the heart of China’s manufacturing region. During the final assent on foot towards Luofu’s summit， you can’t help but feel a bit like poetry in motion.

Make it happen

Regular buses depart from Kowloon Tong Station in Hong Kong， Luohu Bus Station in Shenzhen and Tianhe Bus Station in Guangzhou. Huizhou is on the Xiamen-Shenzhen high-speed railway line. The Dongguan to Huizhou intercity railway opened at the end of 2015.        ■

传说中，古代有一位仙人骑鹅从北方飞来，看見惠州西湖景色迷人，于是降落在此地，不愿离去，她的鹅也变成了如今的飞鹅岭。惠州的昵称“鹅城”就是这么来的。

广东省珠江三角洲是中国制造业基地。惠州就位于珠三角东缘，给人的感觉可能与周边的珠三角工业区相去甚远。

邻近的东莞和深圳这类迅速崛起的城市，在城市规模和发展速度方面可能超过惠州，但古老的鹅城有众多湖泊、水道，有连绵的青山，而且还有许多历史名胜，是一个舒缓身心的好去处，正好可以消除现代中国都市的繁忙和喧嚣带来的压力。

诗人之路

第一次见到惠州西湖时，大多数人都会感受到同样的喜悦。宋代学者苏东坡（又名苏轼）也同样为之惊叹。苏东坡出生于四川省，在宋朝都城杭州声名鹊起，结果却因政见不合被逐出朝廷，流放到岭南的惠州。由于南岭的阻隔，中国最南端的区域在文化上和地理上曾长期与中国其他地区相隔绝，因此，岭南一带的所有地方在那个年代都被认为是未开化的，是一片瘴气弥漫的沼泽地带，处于文明的边缘。然而，苏东坡真的就被他的流放之地迷住了。他热情洋溢地赞美当地的风景、美酒、香茗和各种奇异水果。从1094年开始，苏东坡在惠州生活了三年，在此期间写下了500多首诗词赞颂惠州及惠州人民。

如今，人们在惠州西湖风景名胜区展示苏东坡这些赞颂惠州的抒情诗词，将它们刻在沿着苏堤陈列的石刻上。走过苏堤，就是游客拍照必不可少的惠州一景——泗州塔，一座80米高的七层六角佛塔，始建于明朝。

在苏东坡纪念馆内部及其周围有几尊雕塑，塑造了这位仁心慧思的文豪享受岭南生活之时的形象。纪念馆内陈列着苏东坡的诗词书法作品。虽然这里的英文介绍资料不多，但纪念馆本身也是个游玩的好地方，因为它的设计基于中国古典园林的造园艺术——古典园林正是在宋朝兴盛起来的。

穿过纪念馆对面的九曲桥，就能走到湖面上的点翠洲和芳华洲。这两座小岛上可以纳凉避暑，同时也是观赏湖景的好地方，可以在这里看游人乘着脚踏船泛舟湖上。

宗教与革命

在西湖北岸有更多的历史等着游客去发现，其中既有宗教历史，也有革命历史。始建于唐朝（公元748年）的元妙观坐落在一个斑驳的老街区。这座道观于1990年重新修建过，供奉着道教的核心人物——哲学家老子，如今仍然香火缭绕，惠州人会到这里来拜祭神灵（想必是为了祈求好运）。

随着中国在国际上重新发挥出重要影响力，中国古代文化如今正在复兴。

重建的明代城门楼是惠州重振雄风的又一个鲜明标志。穿过城门，面前是奔腾不息的东江水，沿江有一段保存至今的明代古城墙，东江对岸是闪着金光的江北新区。这里显然是新旧相接的边界，内有中国传统的文人和庙宇，外有现代的商场和制造业。

鹅城历史的最后一块拼图就在古城墙后面的一个公园里，那是一尊孙中山的塑像。岭南人崇敬孙中山，并深深引以为傲，这主要是因为孙中山是广东人。1900年，孙中山领导了轰轰烈烈的惠州起义。

金带街

绕着西湖走上一圈之后，可能会有些口渴，好在景区入口不远处有一家古色古香的两层咖啡馆。你可以点一杯30元的果汁，一边喝果汁一边听热情友好的店主介绍周边的大街小巷。咖啡馆附近的金带街，便是惠州的一条古街。

这条蜿蜒的老街始建于1389年，曾是惠州的商业中心。街上有很多老宅和祖祠，代表着中国人传统的生活方式。在现代的中国，这种生活方式正在迅速消失。

圣地之坡

苏东坡在《惠州一绝》这首诗中把罗浮山视作名胜，让人觉得从鹅城出发到罗浮山游玩会很惬意。两个小时的大巴，途经一些杂乱无章的小工业村，这个过程很难引起游客的期待。很明显，在苏东坡那个年代之后，已经时移物换。

不过，如今已经是5A级旅游景区的罗浮山，确实美丽迷人。在西湖周围发现的一些历史画面，也融入到了游览罗浮山的旅程之中。罗浮山最重要的景点是神秘而迷人的冲虚观。冲虚观最初由住持葛洪道人于327年创建，不过，如今的道观是在清朝重建的。

苏东坡那个年代就有一座道观矗立在这里，这真让人感到惊奇。据说苏东坡就是在罗浮山第一次品尝到荔枝的味道，现在山上的荔德园，就是纪念他当年初品荔枝的地方。

在酷热的夏天，爬山可能就没有什么吸引力了，不过这里有吊椅式索道可以直达山顶。乘索道上山的途中，可以俯瞰罗浮山茂盛的森林，这种景色令人难以相信自己仍然身处中国制造业地区的中心位置。在最后步行登上罗浮山最高点的过程中，你不禁会感到诗意盎然。

踏上旅程

香港九龙塘（港铁）站、深圳罗湖汽车站和广州天河汽车站都有固定班次的长途客车开往惠州。乘坐厦深高铁可以到达惠州。东莞至惠州的城际铁路也已经于2015年年底开通。 □

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖选手）