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One 1)whiff can paint a thousand words, transport us to a different city and a different time. A handful of aromas, whether sickly or sweet, can summarize a lifetime. So, which smells would 2)be bottled up and packed in the scented suitcase of your life?
Early Days: 3)Sugar Cane 4)Crush
5)Molasses. I’m twelve years old, I have my first crush on the new girl in my class, Kara McCarthy, and all I can smell is molasses. Much like Kara, the 6)sticky scent greets you packing a punch and knocks you backwards a few paces. But once you 7)warm up to it, its sugary fingers8)tickle your senses and have you 9)under a spell.
We are on a 10)field trip to the sugar 11)mill in 12)Nambour—not far from my hometown. Stalks of sugar cane wave to us as we drive into the once-thriving farming town. Smoke 13)wafts into the bus as the sugar cane is burned in preparation for harvest.
Stepping down from the bus, the molasses 14)fumes hit me—15)pungent, thick, irresistible. We take the factory tour: growing, harvesting, extraction, evaporation. But all I see are golden16)locks, freckles on soft pink skin and a 17)cheeky grin with a slightly 18)crooked front tooth.
My teacher set out to teach us about production, supply and demand—things twelve-year-olds have no interest in. But I do remember something from that day…the lingering fragrance of liquid sugar and the candy-coated vision of Kara McCarthy.
Uni Years: Morning Breath
Sunday morning, 9 am. Head 19)throbbing. Gut 20)churning. Mouth dry. Nightclub music still pounding. The last thing you want? The smell of alcohol drifting in the window. But, unfortunately for this university student, a21)bouquet of 22)brewing beer came with the territory.
My share-house, just out of 23)Brisbane’s 24)CBD, was like most student accommodation in the area—rotting floorboards, 25)sagging front steps, 26)cobwebs on the ceiling—but with one 27)twist: it was a stone’s throw from the 28)Milton brewery, which pumped out 29)boozy odours seven days a week.
The main 30)culprit for the overwhelming 31)stench was a plant called 32)hops, a key ingredient in beer production. My grandpa, who used to make his own beer, once described hops as being “fresh, spicy and herbal like evergreen pine trees.” Sorry, Grandpa, you’re wrong. The smell is toxic and would come at unpredictable hours. Needless to say, many 33)alfresco evenings were quickly packed up and moved indoors.
To this day, on the very rare occasions 34)ale wets my whistle, I think of my college years—parties, 35)cramming for exams and Sunday morning beer breeze—and I36)retch just a little…then I smile. My year in Milton was amazing.
China Time: Sweet and Sour…and Salty
If I had to sum up China in one word it would, without a doubt, be “contrast”—it is the land of yin and yang, after all. So it is only fitting that my memories of the middle kingdom are 37)encapsulated by two of the most contrasting scents you are ever likely to come across; scents that can be found daily, side-by-side in back alleys and hanging out above highways on crowded foot bridges. I’m talking, of course, about the unmistakable smells of chou doufu (38)stinky tofu) and the sweetness that is roasted 39)chestnuts.
These fragrances have been a constant in my life in China from day one. Walking to school to teach children in Putian. Sweaty summer nights on the streets of Shenzhen. Afternoon strolls through 40)bustling Guangzhou. And just like my time here, the scents are truly unforgettable.
Yet, through the multitudes of scents I have encountered, there is nowhere my nose feels more at ease than on the beaches of Australia. When I visit my parents in41)Byron Bay, I find myself spending hours lazing on the sand. Salt and seaweed dance together, filling my lungs and warming my heart. My nostrils know where home is.
一阵香味,万语千言尽在其中,能将我们带到一个不一样的城市,不同的时空。一些味道,无论苦涩还是甜蜜,就可道尽一生。那么,你会将什么气味储藏起来,纳入到你生命的“百味行李箱”呢?
懵懂之年:甘蔗·情窦
蜜糖的气味。十二岁那年,我第一次暗恋上了班上新来的女孩——卡拉·麦卡西,而钻进我鼻子里的都是蜜糖般的甜甜气味。就像卡拉那样,那种扑面而来的粘稠的甜甜的气味如同迎面有力的一击,让你后退数步。但是一旦你适应了这“甜蜜的一击”,那甜甜的气味就像手指搔动你的神经一般,让你身陷其中。
一次,我们到在楠伯的一家制糖厂进行参观,那里离我家乡并不远。当车子驶进这一度繁荣兴旺的农业小镇时,那一杆杆的甘蔗仿佛在向我们挥手致意。准备收割甘蔗之前,叶子要先烧掉,田里那缕缕烟雾飘入了车厢。
一踏出车门,“糖蜜烟雾弹”向我袭来——刺激,浓重,难以抗拒。我们参观了整个工厂,了解甘蔗制糖的整个过程:种植、收割、榨汁、蒸馏。但当时我满眼看到的只有卡拉那缕缕金发、粉嫩肌肤上的雀斑和她调皮地咧嘴而笑时露出的不太整齐的门牙。
老师开始讲解甘蔗的生产和供求的问题—— 一些十二岁的孩子不感兴趣的事。但那天的一些事,还真切地印在了我脑海中……挥之不散的糖浆芳香,还有甜美的卡拉·麦卡西。
大学时光:早晨·臭气
星期天早上的九点钟。头痛欲裂。五脏六腑翻江倒海。口干舌燥。夜总会的舞曲还在耳边轰鸣。此刻你最反感的东西?从窗口飘入的酒味。然而,不幸的是,对这个大学生来说,这地方总摆脱不了一股酒味。
我与人合租的那个房子,位于布里斯班的中心商业区,跟这个区内大多数的学生宿舍一样,木地板坏朽,前门台阶凹陷,天花板上挂着蜘蛛网——但有一个“惊喜”:它与米尔顿啤酒厂仅一石之遥,而酒厂一周七天都飘出熏天的酒气。
造成这股恶臭的罪魁祸首是一种叫蛇麻草的植物——啤酒酿造的一种重要成分。我的祖父以前就经常自制啤酒,他曾形容蛇麻草是“香沁、辛辣,像松树一样常青的草本植物”。抱歉,祖父,您说错了。那是一种毒气,不知道什么时候就会突袭而至。更不必说,那些户外的夜间活动都因为它得匆匆收场,移至室内。
直到今天,甚少喝啤酒的我,每当啤酒沾湿喉咙,就会想起大学的时光——派对,考试前的临急抱佛脚,还有星期天早晨飘荡在微风中的啤酒气——开始我会觉得有点恶心……然后我就会笑着回味。在米尔顿的日子真的太美妙了。
旅居中国:甜味,酸 味……和咸味
如果要我用一个词来概括中国,我会毫不犹豫地说是“反差”——毕竟这是个信奉“阴阳”的国度。有两种截然不同的气味能将我对这“中土大国”的印象概而论之:那是你每天都能闻到的,飘荡在小巷子里和人头涌动的人行天桥上的气味。当然,我说的是,再分明不过、最不会混淆的两种气味:“臭”如臭豆腐,“香”如炒栗子。
从到中国的第一天开始,所到之处都是这些香味。在莆田市去学校教孩子的路上。溽热夏夜,深圳的街头。广州午后熙熙攘攘的街头。跟我在中国的日子一样,这些气味真的让我终生难忘。
然而,在闻过的这许多气味当中,还是澳大利亚海滩的气味让我感觉最自由舒适。看望住在拜伦海湾的父母时,我会在沙滩上消磨时光。海水的咸味和海草的味道夹杂在一起,沁肺暖心。我闻到的是家的方向。
Early Days: 3)Sugar Cane 4)Crush
5)Molasses. I’m twelve years old, I have my first crush on the new girl in my class, Kara McCarthy, and all I can smell is molasses. Much like Kara, the 6)sticky scent greets you packing a punch and knocks you backwards a few paces. But once you 7)warm up to it, its sugary fingers8)tickle your senses and have you 9)under a spell.
We are on a 10)field trip to the sugar 11)mill in 12)Nambour—not far from my hometown. Stalks of sugar cane wave to us as we drive into the once-thriving farming town. Smoke 13)wafts into the bus as the sugar cane is burned in preparation for harvest.
Stepping down from the bus, the molasses 14)fumes hit me—15)pungent, thick, irresistible. We take the factory tour: growing, harvesting, extraction, evaporation. But all I see are golden16)locks, freckles on soft pink skin and a 17)cheeky grin with a slightly 18)crooked front tooth.
My teacher set out to teach us about production, supply and demand—things twelve-year-olds have no interest in. But I do remember something from that day…the lingering fragrance of liquid sugar and the candy-coated vision of Kara McCarthy.
Uni Years: Morning Breath
Sunday morning, 9 am. Head 19)throbbing. Gut 20)churning. Mouth dry. Nightclub music still pounding. The last thing you want? The smell of alcohol drifting in the window. But, unfortunately for this university student, a21)bouquet of 22)brewing beer came with the territory.
My share-house, just out of 23)Brisbane’s 24)CBD, was like most student accommodation in the area—rotting floorboards, 25)sagging front steps, 26)cobwebs on the ceiling—but with one 27)twist: it was a stone’s throw from the 28)Milton brewery, which pumped out 29)boozy odours seven days a week.
The main 30)culprit for the overwhelming 31)stench was a plant called 32)hops, a key ingredient in beer production. My grandpa, who used to make his own beer, once described hops as being “fresh, spicy and herbal like evergreen pine trees.” Sorry, Grandpa, you’re wrong. The smell is toxic and would come at unpredictable hours. Needless to say, many 33)alfresco evenings were quickly packed up and moved indoors.
To this day, on the very rare occasions 34)ale wets my whistle, I think of my college years—parties, 35)cramming for exams and Sunday morning beer breeze—and I36)retch just a little…then I smile. My year in Milton was amazing.
China Time: Sweet and Sour…and Salty
If I had to sum up China in one word it would, without a doubt, be “contrast”—it is the land of yin and yang, after all. So it is only fitting that my memories of the middle kingdom are 37)encapsulated by two of the most contrasting scents you are ever likely to come across; scents that can be found daily, side-by-side in back alleys and hanging out above highways on crowded foot bridges. I’m talking, of course, about the unmistakable smells of chou doufu (38)stinky tofu) and the sweetness that is roasted 39)chestnuts.
These fragrances have been a constant in my life in China from day one. Walking to school to teach children in Putian. Sweaty summer nights on the streets of Shenzhen. Afternoon strolls through 40)bustling Guangzhou. And just like my time here, the scents are truly unforgettable.
Yet, through the multitudes of scents I have encountered, there is nowhere my nose feels more at ease than on the beaches of Australia. When I visit my parents in41)Byron Bay, I find myself spending hours lazing on the sand. Salt and seaweed dance together, filling my lungs and warming my heart. My nostrils know where home is.
一阵香味,万语千言尽在其中,能将我们带到一个不一样的城市,不同的时空。一些味道,无论苦涩还是甜蜜,就可道尽一生。那么,你会将什么气味储藏起来,纳入到你生命的“百味行李箱”呢?
懵懂之年:甘蔗·情窦
蜜糖的气味。十二岁那年,我第一次暗恋上了班上新来的女孩——卡拉·麦卡西,而钻进我鼻子里的都是蜜糖般的甜甜气味。就像卡拉那样,那种扑面而来的粘稠的甜甜的气味如同迎面有力的一击,让你后退数步。但是一旦你适应了这“甜蜜的一击”,那甜甜的气味就像手指搔动你的神经一般,让你身陷其中。
一次,我们到在楠伯的一家制糖厂进行参观,那里离我家乡并不远。当车子驶进这一度繁荣兴旺的农业小镇时,那一杆杆的甘蔗仿佛在向我们挥手致意。准备收割甘蔗之前,叶子要先烧掉,田里那缕缕烟雾飘入了车厢。
一踏出车门,“糖蜜烟雾弹”向我袭来——刺激,浓重,难以抗拒。我们参观了整个工厂,了解甘蔗制糖的整个过程:种植、收割、榨汁、蒸馏。但当时我满眼看到的只有卡拉那缕缕金发、粉嫩肌肤上的雀斑和她调皮地咧嘴而笑时露出的不太整齐的门牙。
老师开始讲解甘蔗的生产和供求的问题—— 一些十二岁的孩子不感兴趣的事。但那天的一些事,还真切地印在了我脑海中……挥之不散的糖浆芳香,还有甜美的卡拉·麦卡西。
大学时光:早晨·臭气
星期天早上的九点钟。头痛欲裂。五脏六腑翻江倒海。口干舌燥。夜总会的舞曲还在耳边轰鸣。此刻你最反感的东西?从窗口飘入的酒味。然而,不幸的是,对这个大学生来说,这地方总摆脱不了一股酒味。
我与人合租的那个房子,位于布里斯班的中心商业区,跟这个区内大多数的学生宿舍一样,木地板坏朽,前门台阶凹陷,天花板上挂着蜘蛛网——但有一个“惊喜”:它与米尔顿啤酒厂仅一石之遥,而酒厂一周七天都飘出熏天的酒气。
造成这股恶臭的罪魁祸首是一种叫蛇麻草的植物——啤酒酿造的一种重要成分。我的祖父以前就经常自制啤酒,他曾形容蛇麻草是“香沁、辛辣,像松树一样常青的草本植物”。抱歉,祖父,您说错了。那是一种毒气,不知道什么时候就会突袭而至。更不必说,那些户外的夜间活动都因为它得匆匆收场,移至室内。
直到今天,甚少喝啤酒的我,每当啤酒沾湿喉咙,就会想起大学的时光——派对,考试前的临急抱佛脚,还有星期天早晨飘荡在微风中的啤酒气——开始我会觉得有点恶心……然后我就会笑着回味。在米尔顿的日子真的太美妙了。
旅居中国:甜味,酸 味……和咸味
如果要我用一个词来概括中国,我会毫不犹豫地说是“反差”——毕竟这是个信奉“阴阳”的国度。有两种截然不同的气味能将我对这“中土大国”的印象概而论之:那是你每天都能闻到的,飘荡在小巷子里和人头涌动的人行天桥上的气味。当然,我说的是,再分明不过、最不会混淆的两种气味:“臭”如臭豆腐,“香”如炒栗子。
从到中国的第一天开始,所到之处都是这些香味。在莆田市去学校教孩子的路上。溽热夏夜,深圳的街头。广州午后熙熙攘攘的街头。跟我在中国的日子一样,这些气味真的让我终生难忘。
然而,在闻过的这许多气味当中,还是澳大利亚海滩的气味让我感觉最自由舒适。看望住在拜伦海湾的父母时,我会在沙滩上消磨时光。海水的咸味和海草的味道夹杂在一起,沁肺暖心。我闻到的是家的方向。