Mount Dandenong is the closest mountain range to Melbourne. While it’s not particularly high in altitude and may not boost of anything out of this world, it covers a large area and is impossible to see it in full all at once.
墨爾本附近的丹頂農山（Mount Dandenong），不算是甚麼高山，也非甚麼奇山異水，不過範圍頗大，每次前往都祇能涉足一小片。
Last August when my brother’s family came for a brief stay, I took them to the Puffing Billy Steam Train, not least to entertain my 2-year-old nephew. The train meandered its way through the woods along a winding track to the terminus Emerald Lake, which would have made for a very pleasant for a short visit if not for the cold wind and rain. Instead we spent most of the time taking shelter and keeping warm, and I felt as if I had been through an especially arduous day, which was a rather unusual feeling for me because I’m used to working and walking myself hard when I travel!
去年八月胞弟一家來墨爾本短暫一遊，其中一天便帶他們坐Puffing Billy蒸氣小火車，最主要目的當然是要逗兩歲姪兒開心啦！火車穿過一小片樹林後，在山中蜿蜒前往終點的Emerald Lake，很可惜天公不造美，刮冷風下微雨，祇顧著避雨和取暖，甚麼湖光山色也無暇欣賞，我平常旅遊在街上跑一整天也不覺倦，但那個早上卻覺得彷彿煎熬了辛苦的一天！
Full steam ahead!
長長的蒸氣火車
The day before New Year’s Eve my dad and I joint my cousin’s family for cherry picking in her colleague’s backyard farm. We’ve been there two years ago, and this time we were lucky enough to get in because it was actually the last day of the season. Indeed we could see that not many cherries were left on the trees, but after putting in the hard work to scavenge whatever was there we managed to gather quite a sizeable harvest. There were also blackberries on the farm, but like cherries the season was nearing an end. Although I did not pick so many, the fingers in contact with the fruit began to turn purple-red with a fruity fragrance. I would imagine that sucking those fingers would be like licking a lolli-pop, and I deliberately kept my fingers that way until I got home so that mum could also smell it!
除夕前一天我和家父跟表姐一家往山上表姐同事家的花園採櫻桃（港亦稱車厘子），對上一次是兩年前了，這次我們幸運地趕上了「尾班車」，因為那天剛好是櫻桃季的最後一天，而園內櫻桃也採得差不多，不過經眾人一番努力後也有點收穫。最有趣是採黑莓，雖樹上所剩無幾，但採了十來分鐘後，採果的兩根手指染了深紅色，還有股糖果般的清香味，我真不捨得洗手呢！
The last of the cherries
Towards the end of last month one of my Chinese colleagues organised a hiking and picnic, attended by more than 30 people including family members and partners of other colleagues. We started off the day from the Kokoda Trail Memorial Walk, which split up into two trails shortly after the starting point. I followed a group which chose the steeper but smoothened sand trail for ascend. The views were not particularly striking nor were there any viewing points for the landscape afar, but the occasional scent from the trees lining the trail was refreshing enough.
上個月底有個中國同事組織了一次爬山（港稱行山）和野餐活動，由於是闔府統請，所以總共有三十多人出席，夠浩蕩吧。我們先在該山的Kokoda Trail Memorial Walk爬山，沒多久路徑一分為二，我跟其中一組先走較陡的、依山坡開闢而平整過的沙石路上山，沿途風景沒啥特色，想找個開揚的觀景點也沒有，但偶而有一兩陣清香從兩旁的樹飄來，也頗提神。
The end of that trail joined the other one that split off at the foot of the hill. The two groups swapped their paths and I descended along the other trail. The beginning of the trail saw some rather dense woods along a rather narrow trail paved with rugged stone steps. The trail could just manage the two-way hiking traffic flow, and the unevenness of the trail did not make the life of knees easy. The vegetation and strenuousness of this trail, also called the Thousand Steps, led to its adaptation as a memorial for the Kokoda Trail that many Australian soldiers traversed during World War II because of their similarity.
該路的盡頭跟另一道山路匯合（剛上山時一分為二的另一道），我下山時便取該道而行，剛開始時兩旁叢林茂密，狹窄的山路鋪了凹凸不平的台階，而且迎面而來上山的人也多，所以下山也非完全輕鬆的事。那段林蔭羊腸台階小路，環境像澳洲軍隊二次大戰時穿越巴布亞叢林的Kokoda Trail，所以便籍這道亦稱「一千台階」的路紀念當年不少軍人踏足過的路途。
The Walk was very popular because it was in the middle of a long weekend and the weather was quite genial to hiking. What I didn’t expect was the number of people jogging along the trails. It must be a good way to keep fit!
那天天氣涼快，再加上是長週末，所以遊人如鯽，爬山的人固然多，跑步的也不少，那的確對鍛煉身體很有幫助！
After the hike we drove to the National Rhododendron Gardens for our picnic lunch. We didn’t waste much time in getting the picnic started because it was past 13:30 and everyone has had quite a bit of exercise. But a picnic prepared by a dozen of Chinese people was no ordinary one. Even the kookaburras knew that it was better than good stuff. They were waiting patiently for their opportunity up on a tree not far from us, and once the target food was locked in, they took a quick dive to our table, grabbed the food at lightning speed and retreated to the tree before we had time to react. We were stunned that the birds were so swift and unfazed by the presence of 20 people around the table.
回到山腳的起點，眾人便開車前往下一個地點——國家杜鵑花園（National Rhododendron Gardens），由於大家都運動過，而且時間也過了一點半，所以到達後第一件事是趕緊開餐！中國人的野餐，豐富不在話下，就連園內的笑翠鳥Kookaburra也知曉，牠們不但不怕人，更一直在附近的樹上細心伺機，瞄準目標，無懼二十來人圍繞桌子，出其不意撲通下來，然後啣著食物馬上飛返樹上，處心積慮而行動迅速，出乎大家想像！
The main picnic area
主野餐區
Everyone had too much food and decided that it was time to burn some energy off. We went in separate groups on the different trails in the garden for a tour. The garden was actually a rather big place, as it took us two hours for a round trip at a leisurely pace with a few photo stops. We didn’t expect to see so many flowers in the middle of summer especially because this summer has seen so little rain (although the many other wilted flowers were probably suggestive of the effect of this drought and our having missed the best of the season). The most impressive flower of them all was the hydrangea (hortensia) in white, blue and violet as these colours are generally quite rare in suburban yards. The uneven terrain within the garden made for a variety of sceneries, including small lakes, open views of the surrounding landscape or of small patches of woods elsewhere in the garden. The layout and landscaping of the garden have blended in with the surrounding environment so well that a walk in the garden felt like another hike in the mountain.
飽餐後得散步消化一下，我們分成幾組沿著花園內多條蜿蜒小徑遊覽一下。花園佔地挺大，以輕鬆的步伐邊拍攝邊走也差不多走了兩小時，難得的是在乾旱的盛夏中仍看到多種花卉（雖然也看到很多剛凋萎的花，很明顯是因為雨水少兼且剛錯過了開花的時候），最奪目的要算是外面難得一見的藍色、紫藍色和白色繡球花，那些花球可大呢！花園地勢起伏，造就較開揚的景觀，而且沿路經過好些小湖，也望到遠處山坡上的小山林，園內的人工打理和栽種，與四周的大自然融為一體，在遊花園中也有種爬山的感覺，能做到如此結合，實屬難能可貴。
Flowers everywhere
到處都是花
My colleagues and I were amazed at the variety of plants and views in the garden. We all thought that the garden would put on a new face and be worth a visit again every season. Mount Dandenong is like a bigger version of this garden: every time there will be something new to explore to give its visitors a new experience.
我和同事一邊走一邊讚嘆花園景色的千變萬化，大家都猜想每個季節都必各有特色，到時值得再來臨一遊，這個花園大概就像丹頂農山一樣，每次前來，都會有新東西讓人發掘，給大家另一番感受。
I was also delighted to see so many flowers in bright red, orange and purple colours so close to the Lunar New Year. Blooming flowers in these warm colours are regarded as auspicious signs for a new year and are liked by Chinese people for new year celebrations. May I take this opportunity to wish you all a prosperous and delightful Year of the Snake!
而能夠在過年前沒多久，看到這麼百花齊放、爭艷鬥麗的風景，的確是個好兆頭，在此謹祝大家蛇年花開富貴、心花怒放！
墨爾本附近的丹頂農山（Mount Dandenong），不算是甚麼高山，也非甚麼奇山異水，不過範圍頗大，每次前往都祇能涉足一小片。
Last August when my brother’s family came for a brief stay, I took them to the Puffing Billy Steam Train, not least to entertain my 2-year-old nephew. The train meandered its way through the woods along a winding track to the terminus Emerald Lake, which would have made for a very pleasant for a short visit if not for the cold wind and rain. Instead we spent most of the time taking shelter and keeping warm, and I felt as if I had been through an especially arduous day, which was a rather unusual feeling for me because I’m used to working and walking myself hard when I travel!
去年八月胞弟一家來墨爾本短暫一遊，其中一天便帶他們坐Puffing Billy蒸氣小火車，最主要目的當然是要逗兩歲姪兒開心啦！火車穿過一小片樹林後，在山中蜿蜒前往終點的Emerald Lake，很可惜天公不造美，刮冷風下微雨，祇顧著避雨和取暖，甚麼湖光山色也無暇欣賞，我平常旅遊在街上跑一整天也不覺倦，但那個早上卻覺得彷彿煎熬了辛苦的一天！
Full steam ahead!
Menzies Creek station (left), en route to Emerald Lake (right)
火車途經數站，包括Menzies Creek（左），最後到達Emerald Lake（右）
The day before New Year’s Eve my dad and I joint my cousin’s family for cherry picking in her colleague’s backyard farm. We’ve been there two years ago, and this time we were lucky enough to get in because it was actually the last day of the season. Indeed we could see that not many cherries were left on the trees, but after putting in the hard work to scavenge whatever was there we managed to gather quite a sizeable harvest. There were also blackberries on the farm, but like cherries the season was nearing an end. Although I did not pick so many, the fingers in contact with the fruit began to turn purple-red with a fruity fragrance. I would imagine that sucking those fingers would be like licking a lolli-pop, and I deliberately kept my fingers that way until I got home so that mum could also smell it!
除夕前一天我和家父跟表姐一家往山上表姐同事家的花園採櫻桃（港亦稱車厘子），對上一次是兩年前了，這次我們幸運地趕上了「尾班車」，因為那天剛好是櫻桃季的最後一天，而園內櫻桃也採得差不多，不過經眾人一番努力後也有點收穫。最有趣是採黑莓，雖樹上所剩無幾，但採了十來分鐘後，採果的兩根手指染了深紅色，還有股糖果般的清香味，我真不捨得洗手呢！
The last of the cherries
碩果僅存
Sheep grazing in an adjacent paddock
在果園毗鄰放牧Towards the end of last month one of my Chinese colleagues organised a hiking and picnic, attended by more than 30 people including family members and partners of other colleagues. We started off the day from the Kokoda Trail Memorial Walk, which split up into two trails shortly after the starting point. I followed a group which chose the steeper but smoothened sand trail for ascend. The views were not particularly striking nor were there any viewing points for the landscape afar, but the occasional scent from the trees lining the trail was refreshing enough.
上個月底有個中國同事組織了一次爬山（港稱行山）和野餐活動，由於是闔府統請，所以總共有三十多人出席，夠浩蕩吧。我們先在該山的Kokoda Trail Memorial Walk爬山，沒多久路徑一分為二，我跟其中一組先走較陡的、依山坡開闢而平整過的沙石路上山，沿途風景沒啥特色，想找個開揚的觀景點也沒有，但偶而有一兩陣清香從兩旁的樹飄來，也頗提神。
The barbecue area at the starting point
起點的「燒烤」場（對中國來人說祇是「電煎」）
Along the trail
沿途風景The end of that trail joined the other one that split off at the foot of the hill. The two groups swapped their paths and I descended along the other trail. The beginning of the trail saw some rather dense woods along a rather narrow trail paved with rugged stone steps. The trail could just manage the two-way hiking traffic flow, and the unevenness of the trail did not make the life of knees easy. The vegetation and strenuousness of this trail, also called the Thousand Steps, led to its adaptation as a memorial for the Kokoda Trail that many Australian soldiers traversed during World War II because of their similarity.
該路的盡頭跟另一道山路匯合（剛上山時一分為二的另一道），我下山時便取該道而行，剛開始時兩旁叢林茂密，狹窄的山路鋪了凹凸不平的台階，而且迎面而來上山的人也多，所以下山也非完全輕鬆的事。那段林蔭羊腸台階小路，環境像澳洲軍隊二次大戰時穿越巴布亞叢林的Kokoda Trail，所以便籍這道亦稱「一千台階」的路紀念當年不少軍人踏足過的路途。
The Thousand Steps under shade
林蔭處處的一千台階
Left: an eye-catching tall tree 左：奪目的高樹
Right: a tree got the chop! 右：不知誰的鬼斧坎了下去！The Walk was very popular because it was in the middle of a long weekend and the weather was quite genial to hiking. What I didn’t expect was the number of people jogging along the trails. It must be a good way to keep fit!
那天天氣涼快，再加上是長週末，所以遊人如鯽，爬山的人固然多，跑步的也不少，那的確對鍛煉身體很有幫助！
After the hike we drove to the National Rhododendron Gardens for our picnic lunch. We didn’t waste much time in getting the picnic started because it was past 13:30 and everyone has had quite a bit of exercise. But a picnic prepared by a dozen of Chinese people was no ordinary one. Even the kookaburras knew that it was better than good stuff. They were waiting patiently for their opportunity up on a tree not far from us, and once the target food was locked in, they took a quick dive to our table, grabbed the food at lightning speed and retreated to the tree before we had time to react. We were stunned that the birds were so swift and unfazed by the presence of 20 people around the table.
回到山腳的起點，眾人便開車前往下一個地點——國家杜鵑花園（National Rhododendron Gardens），由於大家都運動過，而且時間也過了一點半，所以到達後第一件事是趕緊開餐！中國人的野餐，豐富不在話下，就連園內的笑翠鳥Kookaburra也知曉，牠們不但不怕人，更一直在附近的樹上細心伺機，瞄準目標，無懼二十來人圍繞桌子，出其不意撲通下來，然後啣著食物馬上飛返樹上，處心積慮而行動迅速，出乎大家想像！
Columns of tall trees at the entrance of the garden
花園入口參天筆直的樹林
The main picnic area
A picnic that will last from lunch to dinner!
夠分午飯和晚飯吃的野餐！
A kookaburra, always on the look-out for the next meal
伺機而噬的笑翠鳥
Everyone had too much food and decided that it was time to burn some energy off. We went in separate groups on the different trails in the garden for a tour. The garden was actually a rather big place, as it took us two hours for a round trip at a leisurely pace with a few photo stops. We didn’t expect to see so many flowers in the middle of summer especially because this summer has seen so little rain (although the many other wilted flowers were probably suggestive of the effect of this drought and our having missed the best of the season). The most impressive flower of them all was the hydrangea (hortensia) in white, blue and violet as these colours are generally quite rare in suburban yards. The uneven terrain within the garden made for a variety of sceneries, including small lakes, open views of the surrounding landscape or of small patches of woods elsewhere in the garden. The layout and landscaping of the garden have blended in with the surrounding environment so well that a walk in the garden felt like another hike in the mountain.
飽餐後得散步消化一下，我們分成幾組沿著花園內多條蜿蜒小徑遊覽一下。花園佔地挺大，以輕鬆的步伐邊拍攝邊走也差不多走了兩小時，難得的是在乾旱的盛夏中仍看到多種花卉（雖然也看到很多剛凋萎的花，很明顯是因為雨水少兼且剛錯過了開花的時候），最奪目的要算是外面難得一見的藍色、紫藍色和白色繡球花，那些花球可大呢！花園地勢起伏，造就較開揚的景觀，而且沿路經過好些小湖，也望到遠處山坡上的小山林，園內的人工打理和栽種，與四周的大自然融為一體，在遊花園中也有種爬山的感覺，能做到如此結合，實屬難能可貴。
Some patches of woods in the garden
花園內的小樹林
Hydrangea so bright that it looked fluorescent
鮮豔得好像發螢光的繡球花
Flowers everywhere
Left: a pine with its leaves (needles) draping down from the branches
左：樹葉像布條下垂的松樹
Right: Eucalyptus trees that are more than 20 m tall with an opening in the trunk wide enough to act as a cave for children!
右：起碼二十多米高的桉樹，樹腳的「洞」大得可容下小童！
Tranquil lakes 恬靜的小湖
My colleagues and I were amazed at the variety of plants and views in the garden. We all thought that the garden would put on a new face and be worth a visit again every season. Mount Dandenong is like a bigger version of this garden: every time there will be something new to explore to give its visitors a new experience.
我和同事一邊走一邊讚嘆花園景色的千變萬化，大家都猜想每個季節都必各有特色，到時值得再來臨一遊，這個花園大概就像丹頂農山一樣，每次前來，都會有新東西讓人發掘，給大家另一番感受。
I was also delighted to see so many flowers in bright red, orange and purple colours so close to the Lunar New Year. Blooming flowers in these warm colours are regarded as auspicious signs for a new year and are liked by Chinese people for new year celebrations. May I take this opportunity to wish you all a prosperous and delightful Year of the Snake!而能夠在過年前沒多久，看到這麼百花齊放、爭艷鬥麗的風景，的確是個好兆頭，在此謹祝大家蛇年花開富貴、心花怒放！
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