POEM TRANSLATION ECHOES 499 WITH NOTES

POEM TRANSLATION ECHOES 499 WITH NOTES

FREEDOM FOR GLITTERING GOLD

（闪光金子的自由）

drove down a dirt road

驶过一土路

narrow, winding and thrill of

狭窄曲折而激动

spectacular sight

壮观的景象

pearls glitter in sun

光下珍珠闪

awesome Adriatic Sea

敬畏亚得里亚海

around walled bastions

围墙绕堡垒

shelled for seven months

炮击七个月

siege, survive empire throne games

攻、帝皇生存游戏

since medieval

自从中世纪

walk high city walls

走上高城墙

war miseries on limestone

战争难在石灰石

street, over- priced climb

街、高价攀登

Note:

It is believed that people treasured freedom more than gold; or rather, after the gold, they yearn for freedom, taking the other for granted. We miss what we lack, and ignore what we hold. It would be vain for me to answer for the people in Dubrovnik and the Balkans, the Catalonians in Spain, the Hong Kongers in China, and even the Malays in Malaysia. The more they demand for dignity, the lesser they have. Eventually, we destroy what we have in hand, and begin our walk on high city walls on limestone path, and boast about past history of grandeur, claims of long ancestry. I have read that we all human beings started from the savanna or jungle of Africa, and we drift across continents and oceans, changing our skin colour with the sun or diet.

The common usage that “all that glitters is not gold” may not be necessarily right. The stunning Adriatic Seas glitters like pearl in the Mediterranean during summer, with abundant tourism gold, The Pearl of the Orient, destroys their pot of gold with their destruct. The Golden Chersonese shines with its tin and other metals, rather than gold, and their luster has gone. We have a shared history.

MALAYSIAN HAIKU/SENRYU ECHOES 499: FREEDOM FOR GLITTERING GOLD

MALAYSIAN HAIKU/SENRYU ECHOES 499: FREEDOM FOR GLITTERING GOLD

drove down a dirt road

narrow, winding and thrill of

spectacular sight

 pearls glitter in sun

awesome Adriatic Sea

around walled bastions

shelled for seven months

siege, survive empire throne games

since medieval

walk high city walls

war miseries on limestone

street, over- priced climb

Note:

Our bus took a narrow country dirt road to detour. We drove in between houses with orchards, with skill to give way to pass. On the high ground, we saw the enchanting town from afar. The Adriatic Sea glitters like gold; no wonder it was honored as a “pearl”. Dubrovnik has survived under the rule of six empires and seven month of shelling by both Serbian and Montenegrin soldiers.  It treasured freedom more than gold. It has separated from Yugoslavia and become part of Croatia. The population has dwindled from a high of 49 thousand in 1991 to 26 thousand in 2019. It’s main earning is tourism.  It cost 28 Euro to climb and walk the city walls. The tour already provided a cable car, and, of course the view is different, but not under a hot sun for two hours. We sat in a shaded bar with a cool beer, and watched the drama nearby, including a couple of wedding. I am uncertain whether the residents here have found their new freedom or glittering gold in tourism trade.

Many pictures were copied and pasted from the web, for they are better than mine. Thanks. There’s no commercial value or gain for me.