I travelled west of Beijing to a town which has preserved
我来到了北京西边的一个小镇来看
one of China's most extraordinary ancient light shows.
中国最非凡而古老的灯光表演之一
If you want to see a centuries-old slice of China, Nuanquan is a good place to start.
如果你想体验下中国百年前的风貌,那么暖泉镇是个不错的开端
Its name means warm spring town
暖泉意为温暖的泉水
and it's called that because it has a geothermal spring which never freezes,
因为这里有一口永不结冰的地热温泉
a bonus really here in the winter when the temperature dropped to minus 20 degrees.
冬季温度降到零下20度时,这着实是个福利
Because of this, Nuanquan has been inhabited for over 20,000 years
人们也因此在暖泉镇生活了2万多年
and much of what you can see here dates back to the Ming Dynasty,
而你所看到的这些大多可以追溯到明朝时期
and it's over 500 years old.
足有500多年的历史
But it is not just these ancient buildings I've come to see.
我来这里要看的不只是这些古建筑
I'm here because Nuanquan is a place
我来到暖泉镇还因为这里
where some of China's oldest New Year traditions have also been perfectly preserved.
完好保留了一些中国最古老的新年传统
One of the most spectacular and the most dangerous of them is called Dashuhua
而其中最为壮观和危险的就是“打树花”
which basically means creating a canopy of flowers.
基本上就是要造一顶花冠
A canopy of flowers made from flying shards of molten metal.
一种由飞溅的热熔铁水做的花冠
This tradition was started here 500 years ago as a cheap alternative to fireworks by a blacksmith like Mr Xue.
这项传统起源于500年前的这里,最初是一名薛铁匠做的一种廉价烟花替代品
His family have been blacksmiths here in Nuanquan for an incredible 14 generations
他的家族在暖泉镇世代为铁匠,至今竟然已传承了14代
and he is the last in a long line of Dashuhua masters.
这是一连串打树花大师中的最后一位
The tradition has been that the art is passed down from fathers to sons,
传统上这技艺是父传子的
and Mr Mr Xue has two daughters.
而薛先生有两名女儿
Who's next? Who is gonna take over from you?
她们谁会继承你的技艺呢
Creating a light show out of molten iron is a dangerous business,
用热熔铁水打出光耀是项危险的行当
but Mr Xue has agreed to show me how it is done.
但薛先生同意为我展示这一技艺
The molten iron has been cooking for about 45 minutes and it is looking pretty hot
铁水已经烧了大约45分钟了,看着也非常热了
but, before we let any sparks fly, Mr Xue has to get into protective clothing.
但在火花飞溅之前,薛先生需要穿上防护服
If you think he is going to don a full asbestos suit with some goggles and helmets, think again.
如果你觉得他会穿石棉消防服,戴上护镜,头盔的话,那可就错了
Ready to go in the most flammable protective gear I've ever seen,
薛先生穿好了我所见过的最易燃的护具后
Mr. Xue gives me my first ever demonstration of Dashuhua.
让我生平第一次见到了树花
That was a small-scale demonstration,
那只是场小型演示
if you want to see the full version
如果你想看完整版的话
you've got to go inside tonight into the theatre.
那你就得到今晚的剧院里