Recently, has your social media also become a “Global Travel Award”? This short holiday has brought a wave of “revenge tourism” to the whole country, including overseas travel, inter provincial travel, and even city tours. Some college students have even started “special forces style tourism” – traveling 1300 kilometers back and forth in 30 hours to visit 6 scenic spots, walking 30000 steps a day, and returning to school on time for 8am the next day. The main focus is on efficiency. Did you also go out to play? It seems that every time spring comes, we can’t help but want to embark on a journey. It allows us to temporarily escape from the hustle and bustle, explore unknown worlds, and find inner peace. However, traveling is not just about admiring the scenery, but also about experiencing the local history, culture, and customs. In this context, Dangdang has partnered with Ctrip to launch the “One Book, One City” series of columns, bringing you a brand new reading and travel guide.
01 Asia – Cambodia
Encountering the Temple of Heaven depicted by Jiang Xun in Angkor Wat
The Zhenla Dynasty, which established its capital in Angkor, combined monarchy and divine power. Each monarch, in fact, represented the rule of a heavenly god on earth. The Phimeanakas in the west of Xiangtai is the place where the king receives commands from the gods, which is why Zhou Daguan of the Yuan Dynasty recorded: “The natives all say that there are nine headed snake spirits in the tower.” This so-called “nine headed snake spirit” is the “Naga” of Hinduism, which is the symbol of the gods borrowed by the rulers, making human rule supported by the gods. Image/Ctrip Community @ Nanhan Punctual Lingzhi The Angkor Dynasty left behind hundreds of temples, which are basically a highly theocratic expression. These temples not only worship the gods, but also often serve as tombs for kings. In religious ceremonies, the identity of the monarch is combined with that of the gods. Therefore, every king who ascends the throne will build a “national temple” for himself, while also worshipping himself and his identity as a heavenly god. For modern people, it is difficult to understand the relationship between monarchical rule and divine power, but all the cultures of the Angkor dynasty were built on the basis of “unity of gods and kings”, which is a necessary philosophical background for interpreting the temple architecture, sculpture art, and even ritual spaces in this area.
01 Europe – Italy
In Venice, searching for a dreamlike fairy tale kingdom
When people arrive in Italy, the cities they are eager to reach are not Rome, Florence, or Milan, but Venice. The reminder that ‘Venice is sinking every day’ makes people feel that even if they are delayed by one day, Venice may be swallowed up by the sea. Whether it is a city with a profound commercial tradition or not, the wonder and success of this tourism advertisement are probably only slightly inferior to De Beers’ diamond marketing. After more than ten years, when I went to Venice again, the sea level waterline I saw was still on the original scale. The Italian peninsula, shaped like a wish, has a long stem floating far away on the sea, and with two outlying islands, there are bays, ports, and coastal cities everywhere. Venice is a group of small islands trapped in the sea, densely packed with houses, Byzantine, Gothic, and Renaissance styles mixed together. From a distance, it is exquisite and wonderful like a kingdom in a fairy tale, but up close, it feels like a world apart, difficult to distinguish between waking up and dreaming. Due to seawater flooding, most buildings seem to rise from the bottom of the sea. The clear waves ripple, and the architecture blends seamlessly with its reflection, swaying as if it could collapse into the sea at any moment. The sea seems to be slowly rising, and it doesn’t seem like it will be long before it reaches the roof and becomes a true underwater kingdom. As long as you are in Venice, you cannot let go of this worry in your heart. This elusive sense of disillusionment makes Venice so beautiful that it is pitiable and heart wrenching. Like a frail beauty, it not only makes people admire its beauty, but also worries about its misfortune.
Take a break from the hustle and bustle of the city, choose a place you long for to buffer and absorb nutrients, feel the blooming of every flower and the dancing of every river, unload fatigue, and empty yourself to experience the long lost freedom and beauty
Everyone’s wish list is always filled with the word ‘travel’, which is a long-awaited impulse to meet the world
The cultural and tourism observation program “Love Traveler” produced by People’s Daily Online is currently popular. By recording the true emotions during the journey, it explores social and emotional hotspots, returns to the true essence, and seeks the meaning of travel
The meaning of travel is’ companionship ‘
Being together in the long years, not getting tired or bored, even if it’s plain, enjoying it. Perhaps this is the true essence of companionship
The small bridge and flowing water, the stone slab pavilion, Rong Suhe and his wife chose the Huaihe Academy and Lixiang Station in Shihe District, Xinyang, Henan Province for their trip. They accompanied each other in this world and recorded the beauty of nature.
The meaning of travel is to “find oneself” and cross mountains and rivers to find oneself during the journey. Da Yao and Xiao Yu were college classmates who got married, had children, and became full-time mothers. They were mothers, daughters, and lovers… but they became less and less themselves
