克里特岛:体验希腊式复活节

复活节是基督教最重要的节日，是纪念耶稣基督被钉死在十字架之后第三天复活的日子。基督徒认为，复活节象征着重生与希望。公元325年，尼西亚宗教会议规定，每年过春分月圆后的第一个星期天为复活节。其日期是不固定的，通常要查看日历才知道。计算复活节的方法自古以来均十分复杂，而罗马教会和东正教会的计算亦略有差异，令东西复活节可在不同日子出现。例如2014年的复活节都是4月20日，而今年西欧的复活节是4月5日，东正教的复活节则是4月12日。

在庆祝活动方面，各国也发展出各有特色的传统，如美国就有复活节兔子和寻找复活节彩蛋的游戏。在信奉东正教的希腊，人们则喜欢在复活节前夜用焰火和爆竹庆祝（如希腊的希俄斯岛，人们就会用传统的土制火箭庆祝，上演一场火箭大战）。今年复活节，不如就加入希腊人的队伍当中，体验东正教的复活节吧！

I am not very 1）religious， but I have come to realise that there is more to Easter than traffic jams and Cadbury Creme Eggs注1. For the last four years， I’ve travelled to Crete， arriving around Good Friday注2 and 2）taking advantage of the holiday weekend. Greek Easter is a truly wonderful experience. I can’t 3）recommend it highly enough.

Crete might not be the 4）obvious choice if you’re heading to a Greek island， whatever the time of year. It does not have the same beauty of―say―Santorini or the picture postcard 5）charm of Hydra， Paros and many others. And Agios Nikolaos， where I stay， is unlikely to appear on the front cover of many travel books. There’s a harbour， a 6）marina， a lake， several beaches and a main square， but it took me months to work out how they were connected and there are still parts of the place I’ve never visited because I’m not sure how to drive there.

And yet Agios Nikolaos has a charm which grows on you the longer you stay. I love to sit outside a café in the harbour， simply watching life 7）slide by…people walking， kids on motorbikes， and， in front of me， the Aegean Sea a crystal blue that puts the rest of the Mediterranean to shame. Yes， there are dozens of tourist shops selling such 8）items as soaps and large knives. Yes， 9）cruise ships 10）pull in and let out crowds of visitors who will be gone before the sun sets. But this is a proper， working town with a life and a 11）tempo of its own.

At its very heart is a large lake―Voulismeni by name―and it’s a key part of the Easter story. According to local legend it is bottomless and it does have a strangely magical feel. You get the sense that the entire town could fit into this area and， at midnight on Holy Saturday， that is exactly what it does.

Easter is the most important day in the Greek calendar， even more important than Christmas. Starting on Clean Monday， it actually lasts 49 days， during which most Greeks will eat no meat or fish―nothing with blood.

The churches―hundreds of them―are 12）decorated beautifully， the 13）altars covered with buds and flowers that have been 14）woven together. On Thursday， everyone busies themselves colouring eggs （which 15）represent rebirth） with red paint （the colour of blood）. Crowds take to the street on Friday night with priests 16）chanting as the 17）bier， which represents Christ’s burial place， is carried through the streets. Everyone comes out onto their 18）balconies， greeting it with 19）incense and rose water as it passes.

But it’s the Saturday I enjoy most. The Greeks love handing out gifts at the best of times， but on this day they take it to another level with chocolate eggs， traditional cakes and sweet Easter 20）loaves. As night falls on Agios Nikolaos， everyone arrives at the lake. You have to imagine a thousand people， standing in the darkness， surrounding the water on two levels. Everyone is holding candles. There are balloon sellers and children throwing fire crackers in every direction…they go off with loud explosions.

Just before midnight， the bells of the church of St George begin to ring and the priests 21）emerge， chanting in deep voices. They are joined by their followers and carry a flame which has been flown to Athens all the way from Jerusalem where it has toured across Greece. This is my favourite moment. As I watch， the tiny flame is passed from one candle to the next， spreading until the 22）flickering lights are all around me. It’s a beautiful sight and night turns into day as hundreds of fireworks are 23）let off.

At the same time， a single fireball travels down a wire to the centre of the lake where a wooden statue of Judas Iscariot注3 stands on a floating platform. All of this is his 24）fault and he must pay， exploding into flame and， at the same time， melting away the 25）sins of the past year. The bells are still ringing. The priests are still chanting. People are already hitting the 26）raki and embracing each other. It is impossible not to feel 27）overcome with happiness.

And then it’s all over. Greek families who have been 28）fasting all day go off for a dinner which begins with a traditional soup―magiritsa. Lamb will also be on the menu the following day， for Easter Sunday is another celebration.

Crete is an excellent holiday destination， any time of year. Drive ten minutes out of Agios Nikolaos and you will find yourself a landscape that hasn’t changed in a thousand years with tiny， hilltop villages， breath-taking 29）monasteries and lovely 30）gorge walks. All you have to do is find the exit…through the main square and the first on your right. The road is narrow and hard to spot， but if you’re heading uphill， you’re probably going the right way.

我并不是很虔诚的教徒，但我终于意识到复活节不仅仅只有塞车和吉百利奶油彩蛋。在过去四年，我都会利用周末的公众假期来到克里特岛，一般在耶稣受难日左右抵达。在希腊过复活节的确是一次无与伦比的体验，我极力推荐。

如果你要去希腊的某一个岛屿，克里特岛也许不是第一选择，不管是在哪一个时节。它没有圣托里尼岛那样的美景，也缺乏像伊兹拉岛、帕罗斯岛及其他许多岛屿明信片般的迷人魅力。而我停留的圣尼古拉奥斯城，大概也不会出现在旅游指南的封面。这里只有一个港口、一个小船坞、一个湖泊、几个海滩和一个中央广场。但我花了几个月才搞清楚它们之间的位置关系，还有一些地方我从来没去过，因为我不清楚驾车路线。

然而，圣尼古拉奥斯自有其魅力，住得越久，你越能感受这种魅力。我喜欢坐在海港边的咖啡店外，看着人间百态……人们在散步，孩子骑着摩托车；在我面前，湛蓝色的爱琴海让地中海的其他区域黯然失色。是的，这里有数十间售卖肥皂、大刀等商品的旅游观光商店；是的，一艘艘游船靠岸，放下一群群日落之前就会离开的游客。但圣尼古拉奥斯是一个运作良好的城市，充满活力，有着自己的节奏。

在圣尼古拉奥斯的中心有一个大湖―名叫武利斯梅尼湖，它是复活节庆典的关键。根据当地传说，这个湖深不见底，它也确实给人一种奇异的感觉。你会觉得这个区域装得下整个城市的人―在复活节前夕的午夜，真的是这样呢。

复活节是希腊日历中最重要的日子，甚至比圣诞节还重要。复活节从“洁净星期一”开始，实际上要持续49天。在这段时间，大部分希腊人不吃肉或鱼，有血的都不吃。

数百座教堂被装饰得美轮美奂，祭坛铺着编织在一起的花蕾和鲜花。星期四，所有人都忙着将鸡蛋（代表重生）染红（血的颜色）。星期五晚上，群众走上街头，随着牧师的吟诵，人们抬着代表基督埋葬地的棺木穿过大街小巷。所有人都走出阳台，在棺木经过的时候用乳香和玫瑰水迎接它。

但我最喜欢的是星期六。希腊人热爱在欢乐的时节送礼物，但在这一天，他们用巧克力蛋、传统蛋糕和复活节甜面包将这种送礼风潮推向另一个境界。夜幕降临，所有人来到湖边。你必须想象一千人站在黑暗之中，围着水面站成两层。每个人手里都拿着蜡烛，周围有卖气球的人，每个方向都有扔鞭炮的孩子……鞭炮爆开的时候发出巨大的声响。

就在午夜前，圣乔治教堂的钟声响起，牧师们出现，用低沉的声音唱着圣歌。牧师们手持一个火种―这个火种从耶路撒冷一路飞抵雅典，此前已经走遍全希腊―信众陆续加入他们的队伍。这是我最爱的时刻：我看着小小的火焰从一根蜡烛传向另一根，不停散播，直到我的周围一片闪光―多么美好的画面。数以百计的烟花发射上天，整个夜空顿时变成白昼。

与此同时，一个火球沿着一条线到达湖中心，一个木做的加略人犹大雕像立在浮台之上。一切都是他的错，他必须付出代价―炸成火球，同时让去年的罪过也一起熔化。钟声依然在响，牧师们还在吟唱，人们已经喝起了拉克烧酒，互相拥抱。这一刻，除了幸福，实在不能再有其他感觉。

然后，一切结束了。斋戒了一整天的希腊家庭出发去吃晚餐，第一道菜是传统的马伊利擦汤。第二天的菜单上也会有羔羊肉，因为复活节当天又是一番庆祝。

克里特岛是一个很棒的度假胜地，任何时候都是。从圣尼古拉奥斯开车出城只需十分钟，你就可以欣赏到一千多年来从未改变的风景：山顶的小村庄、让人叹为观止的修道院以及美丽的山谷步行小道。你需要做的，就是找到出口……穿过中央广场，右手边第一个。路很窄，也不容易发现，但如果你走的是上坡路，也许就走对了。

注1：吉百利奶油彩蛋诞生于1963年，其外壳是一层厚厚的牛奶巧克力，里面包裹着白色和黄色的奶油，模拟蛋黄和蛋白。元旦、圣诞节和复活节期间，这种奶油彩蛋是英国最畅销的糖果。

注2：耶稣受难日（Good Friday），是基督徒纪念基督耶稣被钉死受难的日子。按现今计算复活节的方法，该日是复活节前一个星期五。下文的复活节前夕（Holy Saturday），又称圣周六、神圣周六、复活节前夜（Easter Eve）等，是耶稣受难日的隔天，复活节的前一天，基督教圣周的最后一天。

注3：在《圣经》中，加略人犹大是耶稣的十二门徒之一，被指责为了三十个银元的贿赂而背叛耶稣，令耶稣被处死。