I thought the fog yesterday really brought out the beauty of this willow tree. The very famous Chinese poet Xu Zhimo lived in Cambridge for a while - he is the reason we get so many Chinese tourists (and much needed revenue). He wasn't, however, thinking of fog when he wrote this - Chinese Wordsworth...
Leaving the Revisited Cambridge
Quietly now I leave the Cam,
As quietly as I came.
Gently wave farewell the clouded
Western sky aflame—
There the golden willow stands
a bride of sunset’s glow.
How its dancing ripples glint
and stir my heart below;
crowded rushes wave in water
bouncing with the weed
flowing slick by soft-soil’d banks—
I long to thus proceed!
Duckweed-crumpled rainbow’s pool
of iridescent dream
pure as springs ’neath elmtree’s bough—
O search the shrouded stream;
Punt toward the yonder whence
the emerald fields lie;
Return with joyous song engulfed
by tranquil starlit sky.
But as for me, I cannot sing
this muted summer’s evening;
Even insects hush, as silence
plays the flute for leaving.
Stealth’ly now I part from Cam,
As bid farewell I must.
Waving sleeve so gently lest
a cloudspeck I should dust.
fantastic!!! Good to see your amazing pics and you are still here. I stopped the project for about a year and half and now I am coming back... and back to follow you.
The poem goes beautifully with the picture Judith......that willow reaching down to the water is so gracefull......& I always love that stunning bridge!
I just put 10 faves on this picture - see it leap into PP! The air is so still that the willow hangs down gracefully and there is a mysterious light diffusing this fog to make the bridge and the surroundings almost clear! Wow!
@busylady it is very lovely but it would be nice to hear it read in Chinese (& understand it!) - it must be especially tricky to translate a rhyming poem.
This (the shot and the poem) are sooo beautiful. Wow, Judith, you never cease to impress me! And seriously - the city should pay you money for making people want to come to Cambridge to see the beauty you show every day with their own eyes.
Such a lovely photo. We visited Cambridge last year and had perfect weather so hard to imagine like this. Can't wait to visit again sometime as it was one of my favourite places in the UK.
