3．風土民情扮古都

3．風土民情扮古都

在西安這座歷史文化名城里，飲食不再僅僅是“吃”的涵義，而是成為一種文化的象征。地方名吃和南北大菜在這里會聚，一道道佳肴，一種種小吃，任何口味的游人都可以在這里大飽口福。

奶湯鍋子魚　西安的傳統(tǒng)名菜，已經(jīng)有1000多年的歷史。是由唐代宮廷里的佳肴“乳釀魚”演變而來的。最先出現(xiàn)在宮廷御宴上，傳入民間后，經(jīng)久不衰。這道菜用黃河鯉魚、火腿、玉蘭片、香菇和奶湯等精心烹制而成，是一道蛋白質(zhì)、礦物質(zhì)、維生素含量豐富的菜肴。

葫蘆雞　據(jù)說，這道菜最早始于唐代。制作方法也很有趣，烹制前先把雞捆扎起來，這樣做出來的雞，形狀很像葫蘆，于是就被叫做“葫蘆雞”。葫蘆雞的制作分清煮、蒸籠、油炸三道工序。其風味特點是：色澤金紅，香醇酥嫩，并且含有豐富蛋白質(zhì)和人體所需的飽和脂肪酸。

貴妃雞翅　這道菜屬唐代宮廷里的佳肴，因為唐代貴妃楊玉環(huán)喜歡吃而得名。當年唐玄宗李隆基的寵妃楊玉環(huán)，在飲食上也極為講究，最愛吃雞翅膀。御廚按照旨意，反復研究琢磨，選用鮮嫩的雞翅膀，配以多種調(diào)味品，采用能保持原汁原味的蒸制方法烹制了這道高蛋白質(zhì)、低脂肪的佳肴。

牛、羊肉泡饃　牛、羊肉泡饃歷史悠久，早在明朝崇幀年間，西安就有了專門經(jīng)營羊肉泡饃的“天錫樓”。這道美味是用高湯來煮饃，碗的四周是湯，中間是饃，湯多饃散，香醇味美，吃完后更是余香滿口，回味悠長。

乾州鍋盔　相傳唐代時，修建乾陵的眾多民工急需大量飯食，所以就把小烙餅改成了大烙餅。大烙餅像口鐵鍋，又很像武士戴的頭盔，所以叫作鍋盔。鍋盔的邊薄心厚，表面鼓起，松軟可口，吃起來酥、聞起來香、回味久，而且吃了耐饑，便于長時間保存。

西安不僅是一座飲食文化名城，其民間藝術也令人嘆為觀止。在這塊有著久遠歷史文明的土地上，秦腔、戶縣農(nóng)民畫等民間藝術得到了充分的滋養(yǎng)，顯得格外富有生命力。

秦腔　秦腔起源于唐、宋年間，經(jīng)明、清兩代的發(fā)展，演變成現(xiàn)在以“慷慨激昂，蒼勁悲壯，寬音大嗓，直起直落”為主要特征的表現(xiàn)形式。在陜西境內(nèi)，根據(jù)不同語言特色和生活習慣，秦腔又分為東、中、西、南四路。西安秦腔吸取東、西兩路秦腔的長處和京劇等外來劇種的優(yōu)點，既保持高亢激越、粗獷豪放的原有風格，又融入柔和清麗、精致細膩的新格調(diào)。受大眾歡迎的傳統(tǒng)劇目有《玉虎墜》、《鍘美案》、《游西湖》等。

戶縣農(nóng)民畫　戶縣農(nóng)民畫是一種民間藝術，歷史悠久，有著明顯的地域特色，富于濃郁的鄉(xiāng)土氣息。它采用白描的形式，運用大膽而豐富的想象構圖，簡潔卻很充實；比較注重色彩對比，以大紅大紫的色彩，運用夸張的描述，追求強烈的直觀效果，非常講究裝飾性。現(xiàn)在以剪紙、繪畫、刺繡、編織等傳統(tǒng)藝術和工藝技術流傳于世，是中國民間藝術的精品。

結束語

時光的流逝難以抹平歲月留下的痕跡，現(xiàn)在，七大古都依然以它們傲人的姿態(tài)矗立在中華大地上。風雨變幻，滄海桑田，古都見證了中華的滄桑巨變，承載了中國的榮辱興衰，成為中國歷史留下的輝煌印記。

當歷史的鉛華洗去，這些古都掩藏了頂上的光環(huán)，歸于寧靜。所有的故事和傳說，早已經(jīng)是這個歷史長夜里的絢麗點綴。點綴著這片江山，點綴著這片土地上百姓們的生活。

回望歷史，感慨萬千，展望未來，躊躇滿志。七大古都現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)融入了時代發(fā)展之中，正以它們深邃的眼光注視著嶄新的未來！

3. Local Food and Folk Art

In such a historically and culturally renowned city as Xi'an, food is more than food. It is a display of the local culture. Here, local delicacies and famous dishes originated from both the south and the north of China are ready to arouse the appetite of any visitors.

Fish Stewed in the Milk Pot is a famous dish originated from a royal delicacy of the Tang dynasty court. With a carp, ham, magnolia petals and fragrant mushroom stewed in the milk soup, this dish is rich in protein, minerals and vitamins.

Gourd Chicken is said to be originated from the Tang dynasty as well. The way of cooking the dish is quite amusing in that the chicken is bundled up before it is cooked,. Since the bundled chicken looks like a gourd, the dish is named "gourd chicken". The chicken needs to be boiled, steamed and fried. After going through the three steps, the dish looks appealing, smells good and tastes crispy. Containing much protein and saturated fatty acid, it is also nutritionally good for people.

Guifei Chicken Wing is another local delicacy originated from the royal court of the Tang dynasty. It was named such because Yang Yuhuan, the beloved concubine of Emperor Xuanzong who is also known as Yang Guifei ("Guifei" in Chinese literally means concubine), loved eating chicken wings. It was said that after a thorough study the royal cook chose the freshest and tenderest wings and cooked them with many flavorings. Cooked in a way to best preserve the original taste of chicken wings, Guifei Chicken Wing contains much protein and little fat.

Beef or Mutton Paomo (crumbled bread soaked in beef or mutton soup) is a local snack with a long history. Back in the late Ming dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Chongzhen, a restaurant called Tianxilou was specialized in making beef or mutton paomo,. When eating the food, one must tear the bread to pieces and soak the crumbled bread in the soup. Since the soup is seasoned with lots of flavorings, the delicious taste will remain in your mind long after you have finished eating.

Helmet Pancake is another local snack which tells an interesting story. When the Qianling Mausoleum of Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang dynasty was constructed, small pancakes were cooked for the manual workers. But there were so many manual workers and the need for food was so great than the original small pancakes were replaced by much bigger ones which looked liked helmets. Thus the pancake got its name "helmet pancake". Thick at the center and thin at the brink, the pancake is crispy and sweet-smelling and can be preserved for a long time.

Xi'an is famous not only for its food culture but also for its folk art. For hundreds of years, the land of Xi'an has provided fertile soil to different types of folk art such as Qinqiang opera and the farmers' painting of Hu county.

Qinqiang Opera, a folk Chinese opera originated from the rural areas of the ancient Shaanxi and Gansu, took shape in the Tang and Song dynasties and saw much development in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Now this folk opera is featured by melodies that do not have many changes yet sound impassioned and soul-stirring. Since the dialect and living habits vary from place to place within Shaanxi province, Qinqiang opera is classified into four schools: the eastern school, the central school, the western school and the southern school. Qinqiang opera performed in Xi'an has absorbed the merits of the eastern and western schools as well as those of other operas such as Peking opera. Thus it sounds loud and rough sometimes, soft and gentle at other times. Among the popular plays are The Tiger-shaped Jade Pendant, The Trial of Chen Shimei, and Wandering around the West Lake.

Farmers' Painting of Hu County has a long history and sends forth a strong local and country flavor. With imaginative pictures usually painted with bright colors and in an exaggerated way, the paintings can catch people's eyeballs at the first sight and have a strong decorative function. It is a treasure of the Chinese folk art.

Closing

Time flies and files. Thousands of years of changes in China have profoundly and forever marked those seven ancient capital cities which still stand today.

When the past glory removed, they look simple yet elegant. All the stories and legends about them are left only to adorn the land and the life of people who live on the land.

They have so much to tell about their past, yet stand ready for the future. Busily engaged in the modernization drive, the seven ancient capital cities are ready to be the witness of an ever brighter future!