In his log of Jan 15,1493, he writes of Hispaniola that " there
is also plenty of ají, which is their pepper, which is more valuable
than [black] pepper, and all the people eat nothing else, it
being very wholesome. Fifty caravels might be annually loaded
with it [from Hispaniola]."
Peter Martyr, the Italian humanist at the Spanish court, noted
that five grains of the new plant brought back by Columbus were
hotter and more flavorful than twenty grains of Malabar pepper.
Not even such a dreamer as Columbus could have foreseen the
future success of his ají: It was, of course, the chili, and it was
growing wild all over Spain's new possessions. Within decades
the plant had spread so rapidly around the world that Europeans
traveling in Asia expressed confusion as to its origin.作者: thesunlover 时间: 2009-7-9 10:32 Dear xw,
I miss you so much. Where have you been? 作者: xw 时间: 2009-7-9 10:44 章凝也好！这论坛一打架，莫说贴文，贴诗都不可以。更别说酝酿什
么诗歌。我也只是到处逃生，到处躲避。作者: xw 时间: 2009-7-9 14:28 自然笔记：古柯
可口，可心，可神
亘古一丛灌柯
天神送给人间的礼物
承受重大创伤后
的苦楚。悲剧英雄
由此变得干练
而山谷中盲思的母亲
忧郁，伤心彷徨
荒野山梁，疲乏中
摘一柯叶含入口舌内
甘露，蒙神伶悯
幻化出新生机
英雄的儿子，荒淫
执迷于一位佳人
堕落风尘放浪，却为
所有的男人痴情
不幸，遭天雷劈开
身体成两叶半，埋葬
墓地上生出枝柯
美好，怡人，倾心
07/07/09
===
我写古柯，是重新思考一下“古柯”这个译名，确实顶级棒，当然不
涉及到可口可乐，或者可卡因。在厄瓜多尔首都基多，坐缆车登Tele-
feriQo，再爬安第斯高峰Ruccu Pichincha(4680m)，一路上高原反
应得紧。就有人推荐我喝古柯叶茶，Mate de Coca。
行前订了一本叫Cocaine的书，书写得不错。里面提到古柯：
The very word 'coca' is thought to be derived from Aymara,
the language of the pre-Incan Tiwanaku tribes, in which 'khoka'
means 'plant', or 'tree'. There is an emphasis not carried across in
the translation here, however, in that 'khoka' denotes not just
any old plant, but the qintessential, the original, THE plant.
