作者：Namrata Motiani
翻譯：潘澤彬
校對(duì)：Luz、Joanne
Namaste Everyone, I am Namrata and I am truly blessed, grateful, thankful and feel very fortunate with my life. 16 years ago, life brought me here with my small family – my husband and two lovely daughters. Before coming to Guangzhou, we were in Jakarta, Indonesia where we were staying in our comfort zones – full of luxury. We moved to Guangzhou when my husband started his small business in trading, which is quite popular here, among foreigners. In China, there are many cities that have accommodated many foreigners with jobs and businesses.
大家好（合十禮），我是 Namrata。生活在這里，我由衷地感到幸福，常懷感恩，感激生活中的一切。16 年前，生命的航船把我們一家子——我和丈夫以及兩個(gè)可愛的女兒——帶到這里。來廣州之前，我們?cè)谟∧嵫偶舆_(dá)過著奢侈的生活，那里是我們的舒適區(qū)。搬到廣州后，丈夫開始經(jīng)營貿(mào)易，公司雖小但十分受歡迎，在外國人中也是如此。中國的許多城市接納包容外國人，讓我們得以安身立業(yè)。
Namaste Everyone, I am Namrata and I am truly blessed, grateful, thankful and feel very fortunate with my life. 16 years ago, life brought me here with my small family – my husband and two lovely daughters. Before coming to Guangzhou, we were in Jakarta, Indonesia where we were staying in our comfort zones – full of luxury. We moved to Guangzhou when my husband started his small business in trading, which is quite popular here, among foreigners. In China, there are many cities that have accommodated many foreigners with jobs and businesses.
大家好（合十禮），我是 Namrata。生活在這里，我由衷地感到幸福，常懷感恩，感激生活中的一切。16 年前，生命的航船把我們一家子——我和丈夫以及兩個(gè)可愛的女兒——帶到這里。來廣州之前，我們?cè)谟∧嵫偶舆_(dá)過著奢侈的生活，那里是我們的舒適區(qū)。搬到廣州后，丈夫開始經(jīng)營貿(mào)易，公司雖小但十分受歡迎，在外國人中也是如此。中國的許多城市接納包容外國人，讓我們得以安身立業(yè)。
Guangzhou is a beautiful, well organized and large city with beautiful structural buildings, complexes, malls, gardens, parks. There are amazing Chinese people all around who are very joyful, charming, generous, courteous, helpful and are super active. Age is not a barrier here – and everyone follows this – in fact, they are an example for us, and I have learnt so much from them. I think, when we want to be better or when life wants to teach us something in our lives, it puts in that place or in such circumstances where we can grow accordingly. At the beginning, language was really a barrier for me, and it was not easy to communicate nor was it easy to learn. But I was lucky to have a few people at my husband’s office, the staff and a few neighbors who helped me a lot with everything I needed. I’m really thankful for their help. They encouraged me and my daughters to learn the language too. My daughters picked up the language quickly and I managed to learn everyday basics including shopping and transportation phrases.
廣州是個(gè)美麗繁華、井然有序的大都市，結(jié)構(gòu)建筑、樓群、商場(chǎng)、花園、公園，無不盡顯美的感受。這里生活著了不起的中國人，他們非常歡樂、可愛、慷慨、有禮貌、樂于助人，而且超級(jí)活潑。每個(gè)人都奉行“年齡不是障礙”這一信條。他們不愧是我們的榜樣，我從他們身上學(xué)到了很多。我想，當(dāng)我們想變得更好，或者說當(dāng)生活想教會(huì)我們一些東西時(shí)，它就會(huì)把我們帶到這樣的環(huán)境中，讓我們可以成長(zhǎng)。一開始，語言不通對(duì)我而言的確是一個(gè)障礙，溝通不容易，學(xué)習(xí)亦困難。好在有丈夫的同事、職員和鄰居的幫忙，他們?cè)谖倚枰囊磺蟹矫娼o了我很多幫助。我真的很感謝他們。他們也鼓勵(lì)我和女兒學(xué)習(xí)漢語，我女兒學(xué)得很快，我也學(xué)會(huì)了日常用語，購物和出行時(shí)派得上用場(chǎng)。
Living in this beautiful city with lovely people is fascinating in itself. Life brings all kinds of twists and turns, ups and downs, sadness and happiness but when we start liking our surroundings, we automatically start liking everything. The Chinese culture is similar to our Indian culture – the New Year celebration, making and buying sweets, cleaning of houses, decorating, buying fresh flowers and clothes, praying, meeting family members and friends, giving them sweets, gifts and red envelopes. During the time of Chinese New Year, the city looks more beautiful with all the decorations, lightings, and you can see people wearing new clothes in red which is very auspicious. The importance of family members celebrating together and having meals is also cherished and I find this to be a beautiful part of life.
生活在這個(gè)美麗的城市，和這群可愛的人們?cè)谝黄?，這本身就令人著迷。生活帶來了各種曲折起伏、離合悲歡，但是當(dāng)我們開始喜歡周圍環(huán)境時(shí)，我們就會(huì)不自覺地喜歡一切。中國文化與我們印度文化有相似之處——我們也過新年，制作和購買糖果、大掃除、裝飾、買鮮花、買新衣服、祈禱、與親人朋友團(tuán)聚、送他們糖果、禮物和紅包。中國新年期間，城市看起來更加美麗，街頭巷尾都被裝飾一番，華燈璀璨，人們換上紅色的新衣服，這代表著吉祥。家人們共慶佳節(jié)，吃團(tuán)圓飯，這一時(shí)刻彌足珍貴，我覺得這就是生活中的點(diǎn)滴美好。
Within Guangzhou, there are many main attractions that not only attract tourists, but locals as well. My personal favorites would include parks, gardens and malls. The feeling of freshness soothes through the parks and gardens, with the attraction and fragrance of the flowers. They are well constructed with many facilities of washrooms, restaurants, convenience stores and pleasant sceneries. In these areas, there are quite a few activities led by locals such as dancing, singing and playing.
廣州許多主要景點(diǎn)，不僅令游客流連，也讓當(dāng)?shù)厝送?。我本人最喜歡逛公園、花園和商場(chǎng)。在公園和花園里，鮮花的清新伴隨著芬芳，令人愜意。這些地方設(shè)施完備，有許多洗手間、餐館、便利店等，風(fēng)景宜人。當(dāng)?shù)厝嗽谶@里自發(fā)組織許多活動(dòng)，比如跳舞、唱歌和玩游戲。
Aside from parks and gardens, malls are also a huge attraction in Guangzhou. They are also very well constructed with many facilities and floors divided into sections such as restaurants, clothing stores, cosmetic sections and supermarkets selling fresh vegetables, groceries, drinks and basic items, etc. Another floor consists of all the restaurants with delicious authentic Chinese cuisine such as hotpot and some international cuisines.
All unique type of delicious foods gives an authentic aroma on that particular floor which creates the cravings for people. My family’s personal favorite is to have vegetarian Chinese food from hotpot, Sichuan cuisine, stir-fried vegetables, dim-sum, fried noodles, fried rice, tofu, etc. These delicacies have inspired me to learn and make Chinese food for my family.
除了公園和花園，商場(chǎng)也是廣州的一大風(fēng)景。商場(chǎng)的布局也十分合理，有許多設(shè)施和樓層，分為餐廳區(qū)、服裝區(qū)、化妝品區(qū)和超市區(qū)，超市出售新鮮蔬菜、雜貨、飲料和雜貨等。餐廳開在另一個(gè)樓層，這里有火鍋等正宗的中餐，還有外國料理。這些獨(dú)特的美食在這一層樓里散發(fā)著香味，讓人饞涎欲滴。我家人最喜歡吃火鍋里的素菜，還有川菜、小炒、點(diǎn)心、炸醬面、炒飯、豆腐等。這些美食激發(fā)了我為家人學(xué)習(xí)制作中餐的熱情。
Staying abroad in China for 16 years, I feel “Home away from Home” in Guangzhou. I feel a connection with people here that makes me feel like home. With all the great experiences which made me learn the better in my life. Since I was a teenager, I have had a few hobbies such as arts, crafts, painting, baking, singing, applying henna tattoos and teaching.
Both of my daughters have grown up and are always motivating me to develop my hobbies. For the last few years, I developed my hobbies and painted different styles such as Indian traditional paintings and abstract. I volunteered to apply henna tattoos in school events and taught baking and cooking to younger kids. Occasionally, I bake cakes, brownies and cookies, as well as cooking Indian food for my Chinese friends. I have also started giving singing performances at the Indian Consulate. All of these activities have changed my life and built my inner confidence.
我在中國待了 16 年，廣州就是我的“家外之家”。我感到自己與廣州人心心相印，他們令我有家的感覺。生活中一些很棒的經(jīng)歷也令我受益匪淺。十幾歲開始，我就養(yǎng)成了一些愛好，如藝術(shù)、手工、繪畫、烘焙、唱歌、畫海娜紋身和教育。我的兩個(gè)女兒都已長(zhǎng)大成人，她們一直激勵(lì)我發(fā)展自己的愛好。過去的幾年里，我的愛好得以發(fā)展，開始嘗試不同的繪畫風(fēng)格，如印度傳統(tǒng)繪畫和抽象畫。我自愿在學(xué)?；顒?dòng)中畫海娜紋身，教孩子們烘焙烹飪。偶爾，我也會(huì)烘焙蛋糕、布朗尼和餅干，為中國朋友做印度菜。我還在印度領(lǐng)事館演唱。這些活動(dòng)都改變了我的生活，建立了我內(nèi)心的自信。
I would really like to thank all the family and friends who help me and motivate me every time. I really feel blessed to stay here and would be happy to stay here for the upcoming years.
我真心感謝所有的家人和朋友，他們每次都幫助我、激勵(lì)我。住在這里我真的感到很幸福，也很高興今后能留在這里。
Life is a very beautiful journey; I will enjoy each and every moment with my family and friends. Whatever life brings for me, I accept it happily and positively. Every time life teaches a lesson, I won’t give up, instead I face and overcome every challenge.
生命是一個(gè)非常美麗的旅程，我將與家人和朋友享受每一分每一秒。無論生活帶給我什么，我都會(huì)積極樂觀地接受。無論生活帶給我什么教訓(xùn)，我都不會(huì)放棄，反而會(huì)直面并克服每一個(gè)挑戰(zhàn)。
I would like to share a beautiful prayer with everyone:
我想與大家分享一句優(yōu)美的禱告詞：
Om Sarve Bhavntu Sukhinah, Sarve Santu Nir-Aamayaah, Sarve Bhadraani Pashyantu, Maa Kashcid-Bhaag-Bhavet, Om Shanti, Om Shanti, Om Shanti.
This means: May All Become Happy, may none fall Ill, may all see auspiciousness everywhere, may none ever feel sorrow. Om Shanti, Om Shanti, Om Shanti.
意思是：愿快樂相伴，愿無災(zāi)無妄，愿眾人眼里皆是吉祥，愿無人感傷。Om Shanti, Om Shanti, Om Shanti.
