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Views to live for 香江道上,應接不暇

It’s indeed a real pity that air pollution has become a perpetual problem in Hong Kong as I mentioned in the last post. To make this problem worse, it is really inescapable to everyone’s eyes whenever the landmark Victoria Harbour becomes shrouded in this veil. Thankfully not everyday is like this, however.
上文提到香港空氣污染是個老問題,可幸有時也有些天色較好的日子,不致於令維港終日都「烏雲蔽面」。

I had this pleasant surprise on my second night in Hong Kong during my last trip in March, when I saw a perfectly crystal clear view of the Kowloon side as my taxi drove along the Eastern Corridor expressway. It boded well for the next day (14th March) as a day to appreciate the full beauty of the Harbour.
上次回香港的第二晚,乘計程車駛經東區走廊時,但覺對岸九龍的夜景份外明朗,心想翌日(3月14日)天色必定不錯,機不可失,不去觀賞海景真的太浪費了!

I wasn’t disappointed when I saw the morning sky the next day. I made my way to the roof and enjoyed a panoramic view of the surroundings as if even the last bit of dirt in the air has been mopped up by an omnipotent vacuum cleaner.
幸好我所料不差,早上的天色果然不錯,從酒店天臺遠眺四周,一切正好像被清水洗濯過一樣明晰,一塵不染。













The eastern part of Victoria Harbour, overlooking Kowloon Bay and surrounding districts
維多利亞港東部,面向九龍灣及鄰近各區。(各位香港讀者,如能猜出短片拍攝地點自有獎賞!請把答案寫在留言版。)


After lunch in Yau Ma Tei on the Kowloon side, my family and I sauntered through Kowloon Park to the harbour front of Tsim Sha Tsui. The seaside promenade was filled of tourists everywhere as it was one of the must-see items on many people’s itineraries, but unexpectedly we found a way to run away from them all. We only needed to walk up the steps to the terrace of the Hong Kong Museum of Art, and all of a sudden the crowd had disappeared and the noise seemed so far away. We spent time there for afternoon tea and a full view of Hong Kong Island across the Harbour without fighting for a spot with the rest. It really surprised us how easy it was to find a piece of serenity amongst the continual hustle and bustle of this city.
午飯過後,我和家人從油麻地經九龍公園走到尖沙咀海徬,那裡是遊客必到之地,自然人山人海,但我們祇消沿樓梯走到香港藝術館入口旁的茶座,便遠離了人群和熙攘,悠閑地享用下午茶和觀賞對岸香港島清徹的景色。沒想到在香港這片彈丸之地,一片繁囂中,隨便拐個角,也可換來一點清靜和情調。




The Avenue of Stars (left) and the view of Victoria Harbour from the Hong Kong Museum of Arts nearby (below)
星光大道(左)及在附近香港藝術館看到的景色(下)










In the evening we went to the fishing village of Lau Fau Shan for dinner. What a difference one hour could bring about, as the city scene gave way to a village landscape, the shops became fishmongers and grocery stores of dried seafood, and the Victoria harbour turned into the tranquil Deep Bay which separated the mudflats and dunes made of oyster shells at Lau Fau Shan from Shenzhen on the other side of the bay. It was sunset by the time we arrived. The puddles of water in the mudflats glistened with the brilliance from the sun, while looking attentively farther afield the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Corridor and Shenzhen became visible through the evening haze. Onlookers all took the opportunity to capture the moment before it faded.
那天晚上到流浮山用膳,祇消一小時的行程,身邊的景緻由繁華鬧市換成一片鄉郊漁村,大街兩傍仍商店林立,但盡是賣海鮮和海味的,大街盡頭也有個海,不過是個泥灘,岸邊有一片用蠔殼推成的小丘,而隔了這個后海灣便是深圳,真是另一番海景。到達時剛好是日落西山,但見太陽徐徐西下,金黃的光芒反映在泥灘中的水潭中,彼岸的深圳和矗立在海中的深港西部通道大橋在煙霞中隱約可見,遊人都紛紛捕捉這璀璨美好的一刻,夕陽無限好,此刻正好體會到。











The mudflats and dunes of oyster shells at Lau Fau Shan
流浮山的泥灘和蠔殼山



An idyllic sunset (the bridge is the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Corridor)
令人悠然神往的黃昏





There is never a shortage of breathtaking views in Hong Kong. The only shortages seem to be my time and my rather limited knowledge on where to go to see them all!
借用陳奕迅《夕陽無限好》的歌詞,香港「好風景多的是」,每次回香港都總會讓我發掘到新的東西,令我有不同的感受。












Central by night
中環夜景(各位香港讀者也可競猜拍攝地點,答中有獎!)












Victoria Harbour from various points in Braemar Hill
寶馬山上維港景色目不暇給













Standing tall on Braemar Hill - the engineers ought to take full credit for buildings like these!
寶馬山上高樓屹立——工程師應記一功!













The impressive lobby of Langham Place - more stunning when viewed from the top!
朗豪坊的大堂,要從最高處向下望才能完全感受那種震撼!

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不求甚解,可以嗎?

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正字正確

廣州最近掀起保衛廣東話運動,早前星期日明報副刊一篇 文章 ,已對此作了精譬分析,我也不必插嘴了。 不過我想談談另一個相連的問題,相信久不久也會困擾好些港人,就是怎樣才算「正確」、「正統」的書面語。 我們自少便被老師耳提面命,廣東話絕不可用於寫作(雖然現在大行其道,我在網上留言甚至偶而寫電郵都會用廣東話),粵語和港式詞彙應以書面語(以普通話為標準的用語)取代,於是把雪櫃寫成冰箱、櫃桶寫成抽屜,諸如此類,從小已習慣,我也沒異議。 但香港實在很多獨有的或跟國內有差別的詞彙,應用於主要給香港人看的場合當然沒問題,但國內或其他華人就可能覺得蹩腳甚至不一定明白。同樣國內的好些用詞,港人看到也會覺得有點不自然甚至礙眼。我寫網誌不時都會掙扎,究竟用國內的用詞好(我想一般來說應該是比較「正規」的,而且近幾年跟來自國內的人多了交往,或多或少都學到一點他們的用語),還是香港的說法好(始終不少讀者都是香港人,用上國內的詞語他們或許會覺得有點怪怪的),所以我盡可能兩者兼用,港式說法通常以括號並列,但我有時祇會用國內的用詞,也有時祇用香港的說法,可見我也往往拿不定主意。 問題是應該怎樣劃界線,區別「正確」和「不正確」的書面用語呢?我們應該遵從甚麼的「標準」?比方說在香港,學生寫了一句「我的志願是太空人」,公認是沒有問題的,老師一般也不會勉強學生寫「我的志願是航天員」,好了,這樣便是承認了香港和國內的用語確有區別,但既然如此,為甚麼把該句寫成「我嘅志願係太空人」時,老師便一定不會容許?又或者為甚麼寫作時硬要把雪櫃寫成冰箱、櫃桶寫成抽屜?這道界線是誰定的,定立時又有甚麼理據?香港可不像很多國家般,有一個高高在上的法定語文機構(例如法國的Académie française),又或有權威性的詞典(例如英國的牛津字典,和國內的辭海),對語文作出一定規範,難免令人寫作時感到無所適從,甚麼香港和粵語詞彙可以用於書面、哪些不可。 用語的取向,也涉及文化取態的問題,我像一般港人一樣也認同寫作時要用書面語,盡量跟隨普通話的「標準」,但不會全盤用國內的詞彙和行文,一來不習慣,二來不免總有種維護本土文化的潛意識,特別是香港和國內社會制度上和文化上始終有點隔閡,這種矛盾不一定輕易化解。 究竟甚麼才算是「標準」、「正確」的書面中文,我想大概沒有「標準答案」,往往靠個人的見識和學養才可作出定奪,但隨著香港跟國內交往越來越