of Melbourne and a mistake

we're back from Melbourne.. actually, not really. i left my heart there, and my spirit is both here and there. the body had no choice but to board the flight back. aish. i must have taken close to a thousand photos, both on my iPhone and on our camera but i am too lazy to sort them out. one day, one day... i'll story you every one of my many, many memorable Melbourne moments, such as this, taken at the Royal Botanics Garden, not 5-minute walk away from where we stayed:

That day was my favourite day in the city. We didn't do much, other than having a value-for-money brekkie of coffee+muffin (AUD5/set), hanging out at the park, lunching at an Italian restaurant before tea/coffee again at a rather well-known cafe. Hearty meals, coffee and cakes, books, gorgeous weather, *heart*... Just before this pic was taken, we had walked over to the park across the street from the cafe where we had brekkie and just finished a 1.5-hr stroll, and the husband decided to catch 40 winks at one of the huts. I thought I should get started on this book (Patricia Wood's Lottery)(I brought three books on this trip, and I told myself that I MUST finish at least one to justify the luggage space). It was a bright but still pretty cold day so I chose a spot on a grassy knoll right under the afternoon sun to get some warmth. I was reading away but was also somewhat distracted by my realisation of how much I was enjoying the moment hehe! 

that's it for now.

onto today's song, 花田錯 Mistake in the Flower Field, is one of my all-time favorite Lee Hom songs, but also one of the hardest for me to translate because of its poetic nuances. afaik, the lyrics made reference of some Chinese literature and opera, which i am obviously unfamiliar with, so i'm going with the surface, the literal meaning. it should be close enough. i wish i understood better, it would make for a richer listening experience :) this song is one of the perfect example of the chinked-out sound that he was (and is) trying to promote, combining chinese opera/instrument and western style music, and they do sound good together :)

i love both the CD and concert versions of this song: the former has a bassline which i don't think might not be anything special but for some reasons (I guess it's because of the pairing with traditional Chinese instruments) tickles my fancy, and the latter is a air fist-pumping rock version. oo-ee. ^_^

have a good weekend ahead. just me, over and out.


夜好深了　紙窗裏怎麼亮著
那不是徹夜等候　你為我點的燭火
不過是一次邂逅　紅樓那一場夢
我的山水 全部退色　像被大雨洗過
the night is getting late but there's a light from behind the paper window
is that what i've been waiting for the whole night -- the candle that you have lit for me?
but it was only a mere coincidence, that dream of the red chamber
my landscape has all but faded as if washed by a heavy rain

杯中景色詭魅　我忘了我是誰
心情就像夜涼如水
手裏握著蝴蝶杯 單飛　不醉不歸
in my cup are visions of beguiling charm, i've forgetten who i am
my mood is like the night, cool like water
in my hands is a cup with butterfly motif
flying solo, i won't start making my way home while i'm still sober

花田裏犯了錯 說好　破曉前忘掉
花田裏犯了錯 擁抱　變成了煎熬
花田裏犯了錯 犯錯像迷戀鏡花水月的無聊
花田裏犯了錯 請原諒我多情的打擾
a mistake was committed in the flower field
but we agreed that everything would be forgotten before daybreak
a mistake was committed in the flower field
when an embrace becomes torture instead
a mistake was committed in the flower field
a mistake that makes as much sense as being infatuated with mirror reflections
a mistake was committed in the flower field
please forgive my bothersome affection

醉 怎麼會喝醉
美 因為你的美
愛匆匆一瞥不過點綴
飛 看大雪紛飛
卻再也找不回 被白雪覆蓋那些青翠
intoxicated, how did i get myself so drunk?
beauty, it's all because of your allure
love, hurriedly, as in the blink of an eye, is mere adornment
fly, look at the big snowflakes swirling about
yet i could not find again the greens that are covered by the white snow

當時空成為擁有你唯一條件　我又醉
琥珀色的月　結成了霜的淚　我會記得這段歲月
at that time, emptiness became the only condition to have you
i got intoxicated again
the amber moon melded with the tear of the frost
i will remember this period in time

我的山水全部退了色
多情的打擾請原諒我
不是徹夜為我點的火
在那花田裏我犯了錯
my landscape has faded
forgive my bothersome affection
it's not the night-long fire that is lit for me
in that flower field, i've committed a mistake



徹/彻夜 chèyè - the whole night
燭/烛火 zhúhuǒ - candle flame
邂逅 xièhòu - to meet by chance / to run into sb / chance encounter
诡 guǐ - sly / crafty
魅 mèi - demon / magic / to charm
破曉/晓 pòxiǎo - daybreak/dawn
煎熬 jiān'áo - to suffer / ordeal / suffering / torture / torment
镜花水月 jìnghuāshuǐyuè - lit. flowers in a mirror and the moon reflected in the lake (idiom) / fig. an unrealistic rosy view / viewing things through rose-tinted spectacles
打扰/擾 dǎrǎo - to disturb / to bother / to trouble
一瞥 yīpiē - a glance / a glimpse
点缀/綴 diǎnzhuì - to decorate / to adorn / sprinkled / studded / only for show
覆盖/蓋 fùgài - to cover
青翠 qīngcuì - fresh and green/verdant
琥珀 hǔpò - amber
霜 shuāng - frost / white powder or cream spread over a surface / frosting / (skin) cream

the CD version

concert version (the song starts at 6:22)

花田錯 Mistake in the Flower Field

作詞：陳鎮川
作曲：王力宏

夜好深了　紙窗裏怎麼亮著
那不是　徹夜等候　你為我點的燭火
不過是　一次邂逅　紅樓那一場夢
我的山水　全部退色　像被大雨洗過

杯中景色詭魅　忘了我是誰
心情就像夜涼如水
手裏握著蝴蝶杯
單飛　不醉不歸

花田裏犯了錯 說好　破曉前忘掉
花田裏犯了錯 擁抱　變成了煎熬
花田裏犯了錯　犯錯...
像迷戀鏡花水月的無聊
花田裏犯了錯 請　原諒我多情的打擾

醉　怎麼會喝醉　美
因為你的美
愛匆匆一瞥不過點綴
飛　看大雪紛飛
卻再也找不回 被白雪覆蓋那些青翠

當時空成為擁有你　唯一條件　我....又醉
琥珀色的月　結成了霜的淚　我會記得這段歲月

我的山水全部退了色
多情的打擾請原諒我
不是徹夜為我點的火
在那花田裏我犯了錯

花田裏犯了錯 說好　破曉前忘掉
花田裏犯了錯 擁抱　變成了煎熬
花田裏犯了錯　犯錯... 像迷戀鏡花水月的無聊
花田裡犯了錯　請.... 原諒我多情的打擾