Shanghai

At last, I tried the maglev train in Shanghai when I visited the city last month. It was all very sleek. Electronic indicators on board showed the speed of the train, and as the train accelerated from zero to some 300 km per hour within seconds, I was only grateful that the readings did not reflect the rate of increase of my blood pressure. There was no discomfort caused by the speed at all. If the train scene was a snapshot of the city profile, Shanghai is as cosmopolitan as you can get: there were conversations in Mandarin, Cantonese, English and French within my earshot, but mind you, the train was not crowded.

In the advent of the World Expo, the city was having a face-lift. Construction work was everywhere. I was unable to view the river from the Bund. Even some tourist attractions were closed for renovation. They were surrounded by fences and covers that say "Better City, Better Life", the theme of the 2010 Expo. Allow me to be critical, but the comma in the slogan appears unnecessary. In any case, the English version of the theme has a different meaning from that of the Chinese version ("城市，讓生活更美好"), which, in my opinion, also contains a superfluous comma.

I was delighted to discover a bohemian area hidden among the alleys within a block. There were enough little shops, cafes and galleries to make one lost in the maze. I hope those secret corners will not be replaced by skyscrapers as Shanghai strives to become a better city and for a better life.

塌樓

圖一

圖二



土瓜灣的塌樓悲劇，令我想起自己許多年前的一個經歷，現在猶有馀悸。大三那年，畢業考試前約兩個星期，一個寧靜的星期天早上，我正專心地溫習筆記。忽然，轟隆一聲，彷是天塌了下來。空氣中灰塵彌漫。抬頭一看，天花板出現了一個大洞！（見圖一）天花的洞口直徑應該有半米長。後來聽說，那是因為天花內的木樑潮濕發漲，令石屎裂開跌落。
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天花塌下後，房間地上佈滿石屎碎片。（見圖二）定神回想，剛才大塊石屎擦身而降，我要是當時躺在床上，或者站過一點點，便已受傷，甚至被擊中昏倒。我受驚得不知如何反應。打開房間的門，屋內的樓梯靜悄悄的。那古老的英國房子三層高，每層有兩間房。鄰房沒有人走出來看個究竟；似乎屋內除我之外，無人知道塌天花一事。我又走回房間看一遍頹垣敗瓦。完全不知所措。
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我走到街上的電話亭，手一邊震一邊撥長途電話回家，媽一提起聽筒，我便嚷：我剛才差點死了！
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走到College找porter，鎮定情緒說了一次來龍去脈，還怕沒有人相信。Porter說，今天是星期天，辦公室沒人上班，他們愛莫能助。典型的英式efficiency。

我回到房間，竟然嘗試徒手拾起石屎塊丟進垃圾袋。原來石屎碎塊也挺重的。筆記薄薄的鋪了一層塵。我竟然還嘗試吹氣吹走一些塵。
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自己似乎清理不了房間，便走上去告訴樓上房間的同學小心，因為樓下有個洞呢。他好像卻不大擔心。現在想來，屋內其他五伙都應搬走；房子可能有倒塌危險！約了我吃中飯的同學上來，不敢相信眼前所見。我只懂傻笑。因為不知還有甚麼可以做，便出外吃了中飯再算。
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下午，porter來向我交了一條鑰匙，叫我當晚到隔壁另一棟房子一個多馀的房間睡。那總算有點良心。那天晚上，我躺在陌生的床上（床單都沒有），張眼望天花，覺得一切都不可思議。
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土瓜灣舊樓居民的徬徨心情，我是理解的。

Education

"Education, education, and education" were Tony Blair's three main priorities for government, so he said in 1996. Those who have seen Iris will remember: Judi Dench as Iris Murdoch, in reaction to Blair's speech on television, said, "John! John! Why does he keep saying that?"

It would have been good to hear what Blair had to say about the point of education. What's the point, really, for studying, asks the 17-year-old Jenny in An Education, who has just been proposed to. Emma Thompson, her principal, holds out two career options: teaching and civil service. 17-year-old has fallen for the worldly lifestyle the man twice her age offers, refuses to be bored now and bored for the rest of her life, so quits school to get ready to be married. Father of the girl sees no point in his daughter going to university now that she is "taken care of". Of course, the "fiance" turns out to have a wife already; 17-year-old realizes her mistake in time to break off the "engagement" to return to Latin and Oxford entrance exam and is eventually admitted.

But what if it weren't a con man but a perfectly wonderful husband, and they lived happily ever after? The Oxford degree wouldn't have been a lifesaver as much. What's the point of education is no easy question to answer: to be enlightened (but how many are enlightened by their degrees?) / to find happiness (but ignorance is a bliss) / for the sake of it (just like the point of living) / to get a job (but ask Donald Tsang what he plans to do with the jobless "post-eighties" who are equipped with at least associate degrees) /none of the above / all of the above...? The film title makes a pun on the fact that the girl has probably learnt more from the brief relationship than from school!

Titbits: When Jenny returns from Paris, she gives a Chanel No. 5 to Miss Stubbs, and the way the latter says "I cannot accept it" is soo similar to (oh dear) Elizabeth Bennet refusing the first propsal from Colin Firth's Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice (BBC's mini-series).

And I note from IMDb that Rosamund Pike, who plays the dumb blonde, is actually an Oxon alum.

阿凡達

原本我跟自己說，不會看這部片的。海報並不吸引：藍色的科學怪人，加上坦克模樣的機械，配原始森林的背景，怎看都像蠻夷的電影，不合我喜歡小品電影的口胃。後來有人說，很好看，一定要看，甚至聽說有人看完要再看。既是全城熱話，我最後屈服了，而且為公平起見，買了最貴的IMAX影院的3D版本的戲票，好讓我見識現代電影的最高視覺成就。

結果呢，唔，我覺得這部片，還不怎麼樣。

這是追求感官刺激的困境 -- 時下的觀眾，有甚麼沒見過呢，要討好他們，難啊。最先進的科技，更多時間的製作，最多是逼真到跟真的一樣，嘩一聲的讚歎之後，下一次的期望只有越高越難滿足。而且，個人來說，野人怪獸飛禽異卉蠻荒險地戰機炮火的場面，雖令人目眩，卻稱不上悅目。

影片大事宣揚環保意識，跟剛結束的哥本哈根峰會，相映成趣。然而，美式的電影就是這樣說教；要說些話也說得吵吵鬧鬧，沒一點像歐洲電影的留白，讓觀眾自己靜一靜想一想。

片中某些元素，從亞洲角度來看，雖則可能純屬巧合，卻有些抄襲之嫌。如潘朵拉星球的浮動山群，就像天空之城一樣；土著選飛禽坐騎，你選牠時牠選你，又講人禽合一，令人想起金庸小說裏郭靖與小紅馬。片名亦似故弄玄虛，整色整水：阿凡達是梵文，指生物的體現或身體的顯示，卻未必是片中借用軀體那種意思。

翌日，讀報得知，有粉絲巧遇占士金馬倫，要求簽名，卻遭大導以粗口對罵。如報導屬實，更使我對電影導演的印象扣分。

話說回來，阿凡達雖不合我的口味，但總算緊湊無冷場。而且，當全世界都吹捧這部片的時候，也只有親自看過，才有發言權。如是，我中了電影商的圈套，但又能怎樣，哈哈。

In love

"...Christianity is supposed to be all about love but it's utterly useless when you're in love. There's not a blind thing you can do about being in love it seems to me except to sit it out. Jesus said love one another. He said the only commandments that matter are to love God and each other. He didn't say that loving, especially each other, tears you to pieces. Might have been better if he had said Don't love one another. Just try and get along with each other and if you feel love coming on go for a long brisk walk like father tells Uncle Edmund..."

-- Jane Gardam, Bilgewater

布甸與綠豆沙

那天我不自量力的想，不如寫篇像村上春樹的小說的網誌。其事是因為一樁小事。但我當時覺得很像村上先生的小說裏的情節。

我在內街的一間小店吃午飯，因為只一個人，所以帶了本村上先生的薄薄的小說，打算邊吃邊讀。餐牌上的午餐，都是飯麵之類，任選一款，然後牌上印了這樣的字句：

送布甸及咖啡/茶或紅豆沙或綠豆沙

老實說，我不明白那句說甚麼。餐飲及甜品配搭的組合看來很複雜。我也懶得研究或訊問，或向店員指出字句意思含糊，免得自己好像常常職業病發作似的。我隨便點了熱奶茶，又順口問問布甸是凍或熱的。

「布甸是凍的。」

「哦...那麼我不要布甸，要熱的綠豆沙吧。」

「如果要綠豆沙，便不能又要奶茶。」

「哦，是嗎...那好吧，我要綠豆沙。」

心想大概組合分為中式（糖水）和西式（布甸及餐飲），因此不能又要糖水，又要餐飲。

飯來了；我吃完飯後不久，綠豆沙也來了。我邊用邊翻小說，忽然枱上出現了一客布甸。

「這是怎麼了？」

「午餐送的。」

「哦，是嗎...」

於是，我吃完綠豆沙，又吃下布甸。

很明顯，我之前那中式西式的分類錯了。看來，布甸在任何情況下都隨餐附送的。不能說這樣跟餐牌不符，但做法未免有點另類。為甚麼點了紅豆沙或綠豆沙的客人，還要多吃一客甜品（布甸）呢。而我當時捧著小說，心想村上先生在這樣的情況會說甚麼呢。

我說過，這是小事一樁。不過還是寫下來了。

Holding Hands

I cannot forget this scene. They were walking in the street, side by side and close to each other, and there was something in the air. The camera followed them from one side, gliding along at the same pace as they walked. They were on some business, but their steps were light, and the weather was perfect. Then a wall came between the camera and them, and the view was blocked, but the camera kept moving along the wall, so presumably they were still walking behind the wall; and soon it was the end of the wall, and they emerged, holding hands. They were smiling; nothing spoken, but everything understood.

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The camera panned upwards, the Old Town Square of Prague came into view, more and more of it, the Astronomical Clock, the Town Hall, and people; they still holding hands, swinging their hands slightly in the same rhythm as their light steps, treading through the tourists, smiling; they becoming smaller and smaller as the camera moved up and up, but not lost in the touristy crowd with their elegant outfit. Beautiful and young (but not too young), held in the hand of newfound love in the centre of Prague, the world was theirs.

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The power of screen couple chemistry. May I present to you Rachel Weisz and Adrien Brody, The Brothers Bloom.