Nanyang has enough history to make writing about it difficult. There are emperors, strategists, physicians, temples, fossils, jade and one of China’s largest water projects. Put all of that into the first few paragraphs and the city starts to feel like a list of plaques.
南阳的历史太多，反而不太好写。这里有皇帝、谋士、医者、古庙、化石、玉石，还有中国规模最大的水利工程之一。如果一开始就把这些全摆出来，这座城市很快就会变成一串牌匾上的名字。
It is easier to begin with the land. Nanyang lies in a broad basin in southwestern Henan, between the Funiu and Tongbai mountains. Hubei is close to the south, and Shaanxi is not far to the west. The mountains do not dominate the city, but they hold the wider landscape together.
不如先从地形说起。南阳位于河南西南部的一片大盆地中，夹在伏牛山与桐柏山之间。往南不远就是湖北，向西则接近陕西。山并没有时时压在城市眼前，却把周围这片土地围在了一起。
The old name was Wan. During the Han dynasty, it became an important city and a centre of iron production. It was also closely connected with Liu Xiu, who later became Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han. That would be enough material for a respectable local museum. Nanyang has several more rooms to go.
古时南阳称“宛”。到了汉代，这里已经是一座重要城市，也是著名的冶铁中心。它还与后来建立东汉的光武帝刘秀有着密切联系。对一座普通城市来说，这些内容已经足够装满一座像样的博物馆。南阳后面还有好几间展厅。
From Wolonggang to the Medical Sage’s Courtyard
从卧龙岗到医圣的院落
Many people first come across Nanyang through Zhuge Liang. Wolonggang is traditionally regarded here as the place where he lived in seclusion before Liu Bei sought him out. Xiangyang has its own version of the story, and the disagreement has lasted long enough to become part of the inheritance.
很多人第一次注意到南阳，是因为诸葛亮。按照南阳的说法，他出山之前曾隐居卧龙岗，后来刘备前来相请。襄阳也有自己的说法，这场争论持续得太久，如今几乎也成了遗产的一部分。
There is probably no need for a visitor to settle it. The Wuhou Memorial Temple is worth seeing without treating the trip as a historical trial. Courtyards, trees, inscriptions and later generations’ admiration have done as much to shape the site as any single episode from the Three Kingdoms.
游客大概没有必要替两座城市作出裁决。武侯祠本身就值得一看，不必把行程变成一场历史审判。院落、树木、碑刻，以及后世一代代人的敬仰，都参与塑造了今天的卧龙岗，而不只是一段三国故事。
Zhang Zhongjing gives the city a different centre of gravity. Born in Nanyang, he became one of the foundational figures of traditional Chinese medicine and is still known as the Medical Sage. At the Medical Sage Ancestral Temple, the subject is not military strategy or imperial ambition. It is fever, cold, pain, herbs and the difficult business of keeping people alive.
张仲景让这座城市有了另一种重心。他出生于南阳，是中医学发展史上的重要人物，后世尊称其为“医圣”。到了医圣祠，谈论的不再是军事谋略或帝王功业，而是寒热、疼痛、药材，以及怎样设法让人好起来。
That change of scale is welcome. After several hours among famous men, it is useful to be reminded that most history was lived by people who were ill, hungry, tired or worried about someone at home.
这种尺度的变化很好。在一连看过几位名人之后，人也会想起来，大多数历史其实是由普通人度过的。他们会生病，会饿，会累，也会惦记家里的人。
Dinosaurs, Jade and Water on a Long Journey
恐龙、玉石与一场很长的水路
Nanyang’s timeline becomes stranger in Xixia, where large numbers of dinosaur egg fossils have been discovered. The Dinosaur Relics Park gives the finds a proper setting, although the eggs themselves do most of the work. They are round, heavy-looking and far older than any argument about Zhuge Liang.
到了西峡，南阳的时间线忽然变得有些奇怪。这里曾发现大量恐龙蛋化石，如今建有恐龙遗迹园。其实不需要太多解释，恐龙蛋本身就足够吸引人。它们圆圆的，看起来很沉，也比任何关于诸葛亮的争论都古老得多。
Dushan jade is easier to encounter in shops than in grand historical narratives. It comes in varied colours and has been carved and traded for centuries. Some pieces are beautiful; some are clearly intended for the gift cabinet. Both tell you something about the place.
独山玉比许多宏大历史更容易在店铺里遇见。它颜色丰富，开采、雕琢和交易的历史也很长。有些玉件确实漂亮，有些显然更适合放进礼品柜。这两种都能说明一些南阳的事情。
The largest story, at least in physical terms, lies farther south in Xichuan. The Taocha canal head and Danjiangkou Reservoir feed the middle route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. Water begins its journey from here toward northern China, including Beijing.
从规模上看，更大的故事在南边的淅川。陶岔渠首和丹江口水库与南水北调中线工程相连，水从这里开始向北输送，最终到达包括北京在内的许多地区。
It is difficult to grasp the project from a map alone. In Nanyang, it becomes less abstract. Villages, roads and reservoirs sit beside a national promise to move water over a very long distance. For local people, the story also includes relocation, change and places that no longer look as they once did.
只看地图，很难真正理解这项工程。到了南阳，它会变得具体一些。村庄、道路和水库，与一个把水远距离送往北方的国家工程放在了一起。对当地人来说，这个故事也包括搬迁、变化，以及一些已经不再是原来模样的地方。
A Bowl That Does Its Job
一碗把事情办好的面
Nanyang food is not short of names. There is beef soup, Fangcheng hui mian, Xinye ban mian, Sheqi hu la tang, Tanghe liangfen, Bowang guokui and Zhongjing jiao’er, a dumpling associated in local tradition with Zhang Zhongjing.
南阳吃食的名字也不少。牛肉汤、方城烩面、新野板面、社旗胡辣汤、唐河凉粉、博望锅盔，还有在地方传说中与张仲景有关的仲景饺耳。
A list does not help much when you are hungry. A bowl of Fangcheng hui mian does. The noodles are broad, the broth is hot, and the serving is usually generous enough to make further discussion unnecessary. It is the sort of meal after which people sit back from the table for a moment before deciding what to do next.
饿的时候，名单没什么用，一碗方城烩面才有用。面宽，汤热，分量通常也很实在，吃到后来就不太需要继续讨论了。很多人吃完之后，会先往椅背上一靠，再考虑接下来去哪儿。
That may be the best way to approach Nanyang generally. Do not try to consume all of it at once.
这或许也是认识南阳比较合适的方式。不要想着一次把它全吃完。
Direct high-speed trains from Nanjing South to Nanyang East generally take around four to five hours. Nanyang Jiangying Airport serves some domestic routes, but rail is likely to be the simpler choice from Nanjing. The journey is long enough for the scenery to change, but not long enough to become an expedition.
从南京南乘高铁到南阳东，通常需要四到五小时。南阳姜营机场也有部分国内航线，但从南京出发，坐高铁往往更省事。路程足够让窗外的风景发生变化，却还没有长到像一次远征。
Two or three days will only give a first impression, especially because many of the major sites lie well beyond the city centre. Wolonggang and the Medical Sage sites can share one day. Another can be left for the older streets, food and a less organised wander. Xixia or Xichuan needs more time and a willingness to spend part of the day on the road.
两到三天只能算初步认识，尤其是南阳不少重要景点都离市区较远。卧龙岗和医圣相关地点可以放在一天。另一天留给老街、吃饭和没有太明确目的的闲逛。西峡或淅川则需要更多时间，也要接受一天里有相当一部分时间是在路上。
Nanyang has produced enough famous names to fill many introductions. The city itself is harder to reduce. A strategist, a physician, dinosaur eggs, jade shops, bowls of noodles and water travelling north do not form one tidy story.
南阳有足够多的名人，可以填满很多篇开头。但这座城市本身很难被压缩成一句话。谋士、医者、恐龙蛋、玉器店、热面，还有一路北上的水，并不能拼成一个特别整齐的故事。
That is probably fine. Cities do not have to mean one thing. Sometimes they are simply places where many things have happened, and where lunch is getting cold while you are still trying to explain them.
这其实没什么不好。一座城市不必只代表一件事。有时候，它只是一个发生过很多事情的地方。而你还在努力解释它们时，桌上的午饭已经快凉了。
