The crested letters, “VR”, adorn the former British Consulate’s wall in Zhenjiang. They stand for Victoria Reign, from Britain’s then Queen Victoria. As a great place from which to begin a visit to Zhenjiang, they are also just a hint at a lot more history to come, from Chinese dynasties dating back to when William the Conqueror sat on the English throne.
冠状字母“VR”装饰着前英国驻镇江领事馆的墙壁。 他们代表维多利亚统治，来自英国当时的维多利亚女王。 作为开始访问镇江的好地方，它们也只是暗示了未来更多历史，从中国王朝可以追溯到征服者威廉坐在英国王位时。
For Xijindu Street in Zhenjiang has been in continuous use for 1,000 years. Previously called the Suanshan Dock, Marco Polo is said to have landed here on his way from Yangzhou. The ferry remained an important Yangtze River crossing until well into the 1980s and its final closure in 2003.
镇江的西津都街已经持续使用了1000年。 马可波罗以前被称为苏安山码头，据说他在从扬州来的路上降落在这里。 渡轮一直是一个重要的长江渡口，直到20世纪80年代，2003年才最终关闭。
As National 4A-class tourist attractions, the Xijin Ferry historical and cultural blocks are located in the northwestern part of Zhenjiang city where the Yangtze River and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal intersect. As such, the Xijin Ferry soon became a very important transportation hub.
作为国家4A级旅游景点，西金渡口历史文化街区位于长江和京杭大运河交汇的镇江市西北部。 因此，西津渡轮很快成为一个非常重要的交通枢纽。
Yes, it’s a tourist site today, but it’s one where Zhenjiang cultural relics and heritage are preserved intact to the largest possible extent.
是的，今天它是一个旅游景点，但它是镇江文物和遗产尽可能完整地保存的地方。
But something should be pointed out before buying a train ticket to Zhenjiang. Don’t come here expecting to find a ferry, as in a large ship to transport you across the river.
但在买去镇江的火车票之前，应该指出一些事情。 不要指望来这里能找到渡轮，就像一艘大船把你送过河一样。
For “ferry” in this instance refers to the entire area around the Yangtze River’s southern crossing point in Zhenjiang.
在这种情况下，“渡口”是指长江南过境点在镇江的整个区域。
And being around for a millennium means it has grown and shrunk, been built and raised with the ebb and flow of political power and the comings and goings of dynasties and foreign influence.
存在了一个千年意味着它随着政治权力的起伏、王朝和外国影响力的来来去，它得到了发展和缩小。
Still with the terminology, English-speaking visitors to Xijin Ferry might also wonder at the common usage of the word “marina”. You won’t find any expensive yachts in Big Marina, Small Marina or the Yushan Marina. For these were the ancient times, and thus in reality these were the docks of Zhenjiang.
仍然使用术语，西金渡口的英语游客也可能对“码头”一词的常用感到好奇。 在大码头、小码头或玉山码头，你不会找到任何昂贵的游艇。 因为这些是古代，因此实际上这些是镇江的码头。
Further compounding the confusion is another former moniker; the Jinling Ferry. And we have Tang Dynasty poet, Zhang Hu, to thank for that.
另一个以前的绰号是金陵渡轮，这进一步加剧了混乱。 我们感谢唐朝诗人张虎。
Tang Dynasty poetry is considered by many to be among the greatest in all of Chinese history. Zhang made use of the era’s “seven and four” style in his poem, “On Jinling Ferry”, in which four lines are comprised by seven words each. In this instance, Jinling is not a reference to one of the former names for Nanjing, but instead refers to the Runzhou District of Zhenjiang, i.e. the part of city around the Xijin Ferry.
唐代诗歌被许多人认为是中国历史上最伟大的诗歌之一。 张在他的诗《金陵渡口》中运用了那个时代的“七四”风格，其中四行各由七个单词组成。 在这种情况下，金陵不是指南京以前的名字之一，而是指镇江的润州区，即西金渡口周围的城市部分。
I lived in the pavilion in Jinling
Homesickness has tortured me the whole evening
Sun is falling while Moon is rising
Now lights in Guazhou can be seen
我住在金陵的亭子里，整个晚上的思鄉折磨着我，太阳在下山，月亮在升起，现在可以看到瓜州的灯光
Typical for Tang Dynasty poetry, the nostalgia Zhang expresses reflects his sadness at staying a night at Jinling Ferry in around the year 820 CE, thus also illustrating the longevity of the ferry and its import, even then.
典型的唐朝诗歌，张表达的怀旧反映了他在公元820年左右在金陵渡口过夜的悲伤，这也说明了渡轮的长寿及其进口，即使在那时也是如此。
Bringing our story more up date, visitors to this part of Zhenjiang will also be struck by the colonial influence of foreign powers. With Zhenjiang as the only point where the north-south and east-west waterways converge, it was key to exerting influence.
让我们的故事更加更新，镇江这一地区的游客也会受到外国势力的殖民影响。 镇江是南北和东西水道汇合的唯一点，它是施加影响的关键。
By 1903, Zhenjiang was second only to Shanghai in terms of the numbers of foreign trade ships, with no less than 11 countries’ steamships serving the needs of international commerce.
到1903年，镇江在外贸船数量上仅次于上海，不少于11个国家的蒸汽船满足了国际贸易的需求。
Among the first were the oil giants. Texaco, Mobil and Asiatic Petroleum all opened branch offices in Xijin Ferry around the turn of the century. As a subsidiary of Shell, the Asiatic Petroleum office is now the Zhenjiang Folk Art Museum, on Changjiang Road near the Ferry car park.
第一批是石油巨头。 德士古、美孚和亚洲石油都在世纪之交左右在西金渡口开设了分公司。 作为壳牌的子公司，亚洲石油办公室现在是镇江民间艺术博物馆，位于长江路，靠近渡轮停车场。
A little further afield, a visit to Zhenjiang would not be complete without two other important and historical stops.
再远一点，如果没有另外两个重要和历史性的停留，对镇江的访问是不完整的。
From 1928 to 1949, with Nanjing serving as the capital of the Republic of China, Zhenjiang became capital of Jiangsu Province. The former British Consulate, which is now a principal building in the Zhenjiang Museum complex, is an outstanding example of British colonial architecture. Today it is also listed as a Major Site Protected for its Historical and Cultural Value at the National Level. Admission is free all year round.
从1928年到1949年，南京作为中华民国的首都，镇江成为江苏省的首府。 前英国领事馆现在是镇江博物馆建筑群的主要建筑，是英国殖民建筑的杰出典范。 今天，它也因其在国家层面的历史和文化价值而被列为受保护的主要遗址。 全年免费入场。
Finally, there is the former residence of the celebrated American author, Pearl S. Buck. Based on her experience with local Zhenjiang people growing up, Buck’s “The Good Earth” won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1932. The title was the best-selling novel in the USA in both 1931 and 1932 and went on to be one of the most popular novels of the 20th century.
最后，还有美国著名作家Pearl S. Buck的故居。 根据她与镇江当地人一起成长的经历，Buck的《The Good Earth》在1932年获得了普利策小说奖。 该书名是1931年和1932年美国最畅销的小说，并成为20世纪最受欢迎的小说之一。
While Buck spoke Chinese with a thick Zhenjiang accent, then US President Richard Nixon praised her as “a human bridge between the civilisations of the East and West”. Her mother, Carie, and four siblings are buried in Zhenjiang in the city’s Protestant Cemetery; three of them moved from their resting place in Shanghai at the request of Carie in her will.
当巴克用浓浓的镇江口音说中文时，时任美国总统理查德·尼克松称赞她是“东西方文明之间的人类桥梁”。 她的母亲Carie和四个兄弟姐妹被埋葬在镇江的新教公墓；其中三人应Carie在遗囑中的要求，搬离了在上海的安息地。