到處走，是為了尋找停下的理由。
I’m wandering in search of a reason to stay.
~ 林一峰 Chet Lam
I had a dream last night and the most vivid part of it was me bareback riding on a horse towards a vast expanse of beach. The horse was a handsome one with a shiny chestnut brown coat of fur and I was leaning down with my face near to his, fitting the curve of my body to the elegant lines of his and talking to him as he flew in the wind. The feeling was exhilarating as he carried me along in his long and powerful strides like a graceful warrior, and when the sea came into sight, he galloped faster as if wanting to get to the water as fast as he could. I, too, was filled with an overwhelming sense of happiness when I saw the sea, as if it were a friend I hadn’t seen in a long time…
It was with a slight sense of disappointment when I woke up and discovered all that was just a dream. I love horses and would love to ride on one again. The last time I rode one was in Glenworth Valley, north of Sydney, eight years ago. Riding in the natural wilderness is a fantastic experience compared to doing it in a stable rink. Perhaps part of my dream also stems from the fact that I haven’t been engaging in much sports these days due to injury. The plantar fasciitis condition on my feet still hasn’t healed and I haven’t been paddling either. I miss the sea a lot, but I can’t be asked to make my way to Sentosa because of the cost of doing so (no thanks to the opening of the casino). I’ve been such a geek in the past months…hardly going out…the fact that I’m writing this entry on a Sunday at 11am says a lot.
I feel as if I need to get out of Singapore again. Recently I came to know about Hong Kong singer-songwriter Chet Lam’s (林一峰) ninth album My Lonely Planet 思路, a double CD selection of Cantonese songs that speaks of his feelings towards leaving and returning home, and his thoughts as a world traveller as he jetsets to cities like cities like New York, Los Angeles, Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Dublin, Edinburgh, Shanghai and Xiamen.
Lam’s lyrics encapsulate many a traveller’s feelings, particularly those of us with a bit more of a literary streak and tend to ponder too much. Like Lam, my restlessness stems from the need of finding a reason to stay. If I meet the right person, I’d gladly settle down and have babies and what have you. If I were living in a place I love, I’d gladly stay put. While Singapore is not a bad place to be in, there are things I’d like in a place that it can never have. I want the great outdoors – hills and mountains to climb and streams and beaches I can swim in. Perhaps I’ve been in Singapore for too long – nothing about this city excites me any more.
Here I’ve selected some lines from two songs in My Lonely Planet which I love and translated them (taking it as practice for my translation classes). Hope you enjoy them too.
From: 维多利亚 Victoria
(In reference to Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour)
你是避风港等待着过客靠岸 You’re the shelter waiting for passengers to alight
在你怀里停歇的人不怕巨浪 People waiting in your arms aren’t afraid of the huge waves
让飘流的心得到一点温暖 You give wandering souls warmth
Oh my love, my Victoria
From: 游子意 A Traveller’s Tale
每個城市都有顆心　不能輕易被看見 Every city has a soul that’s not easily seen
馬路就像血脈一樣　把每個渴望相連 Roads are like blood vessels linking every glimmer of hope
每個城市都很熟悉　每個角落都陌生 Every city seems familiar yet every corner seems unfamiliar
停歇上路匆匆剎那　就等待那一個眼神 Taking a break from the journey, hoping to make some eye contact
…
每個旅人都有故事　你問他就會告訴你 Every traveller has a tale / Ask and he’ll tell
細節可能有點偏差　反正留下的只有回憶 Details might be differ but what’s left are memories
每個選擇都有遺憾　每個遺憾都有轉機 Every choice made has its regrets / Every regret can take a turn for the better
月落日出柳暗花明　人還在　心存感激 The sun sets and rises / there’s always light at the end of the tunnel / I’m thankful to be alive