对于一个在北平住惯的人，像我，冬天要是不刮风，便觉得是奇迹;济南的冬天是没有风声的。对于一个刚由伦敦回来的人，像我，冬天要能看得见日光，便觉得是怪事;济南的冬天是响晴的。自然，在热带的地方，日光是永远那么毒，响亮的天气，反有点叫人害怕。可是，在北中国的冬天，而能有温晴的天气，济南真得算个宝地。
It would be a miracle for one who has lived in Beijing, like me, to see a windless winter. The winter in Jinan is so. It would be an oddity for one who has just come back from London, like me, to see a shiny winter. The winter in Jinan is so. The sunshine in tropic areas is so much that it makes people cringe. Although Jinan is in northern China, it has a pleasant winter. Jinan is really a good place.
设若单单是有阳光，那也算不了出奇。请闭上眼睛想：一个老城，有山有水，全在天底下晒着阳光，暖和安适地睡着，只等春风来把它们唤醒，这是不是个理想的境界?小山整把济南围了个圈儿，只有北边缺着点口儿。这一圈小山在冬天特别可爱，好像是把济南放在一个小摇篮里，它们安静不动地低声地说“你们放心吧，这儿准保暖和。真的，济南的人们在冬天是面上含笑的。他们一看那些小山，心中便觉得有了着落，有了依靠。他们由天上看到山上，便不知不觉地想起：”明天也许就是春天了吧?这样的温暖，今天夜里山草也许就绿起来了吧?”就是这点幻想不能一时实现，他们也并不着急，因为有这样慈善的冬天，干啥还希望别的呢!
It’s not extraordinary if there is only sunshine. Close your eyes and imagine: An old town, with hills and rivers, is lying under the sunshine and sleeping comfortably, waiting for spring wind to awaken it. Is it not an ideal world? Hills surround the town with its northern part open. This circle of hills is very cute in winter. It seems that Jinan is put in a cradle. The hills say quietly, “sleep tight as we will warm you”. It’s true as people in Jinan always go out with smiles in winter. Seeing the hills, they feel comfortable. They look at the sky then at the hills and all of a sudden, they think it will be in spring tomorrow. It’s so warm that the grass on the hills might become green during the night. Such a fantasy cannot come true for a while. But they do not worry as the winter is so kind. There is no need to long for the spring.
最妙的是下点小雪呀。看吧，山上的矮松越发的青黑，树尖上顶着一髻儿白花，好像日本看护妇。山尖全白了，给蓝天镶上一道银边。山坡上，有的地方雪厚点，有的地方草色还露着;这样，一道儿白，一道儿暗黄，给山们穿上一件带水纹的花衣;看着看着，这件花衣好像被风儿吹动，叫你希望看见一点更美的山的肌肤。等到快回落的时候，微黄的阳光斜射在山腰上，那点薄雪好像忽然害了羞，微微露出点粉色。就是下小雪吧，济南是受不住大雪的，那些小山太秀气!
The most wonderful moment is when it snows a little. Look, the pinons on the hills become greener with their tops covered with snow, like Japanese nurses. The hill tops are completely white, giving the blue sky a circle of snow. On the hillsides, some places have a thick layer of snow while some places’ snow is thin, showing the color of grass. It is like the hills were dressed in a patterned clothes with stripes of white and dark yellow. When the sun is falling, yellowish sunshine is laid on the hillsides. The thin snow shows a faint pink as a shy lady. A little snow is suitable as these hills are so elegant that they won’t stand heavy snow.
古老的济南，城里那么狭窄，城外又那么宽敞，山坡上卧着些小村庄，小村庄的房顶上卧着点雪，对，这是张小水墨画，也许是唐代的名手画的吧。
It is narrow inside the ancient Jinan but spacious outside. There lies some small hamlets on the hillsides and some snow on the house roofs. It’s like ink wash painting, maybe by some famous artist in Tang Dynasty.
那水呢，不但不结冰，倒反在绿萍上冒着点热气，水藻真绿，把终年贮蓄的绿色全拿出来了。天儿越晴，水藻越绿，就凭这些绿的精神，水也不忍得冻上，况且那些长枝的垂柳还要在水里照个影儿呢!看吧，由澄清的河水慢慢往上看吧，空中，半空中，天上，自上而下全是那么清亮，那么蓝汪汪的，整个的是块空灵的蓝水晶。这块水晶里，包着红屋顶，黄草山，像地毯上的小团花的小灰色树影;这就是冬天的济南。
As for the water, it does not freeze in winter. On the contrary, it is warm. The algae is very green and it seems that it shows the green it has saved for the entire year. The shinier the day is, the greener the algae become. Water cannot bear to freeze because of its greenness, let alone these weeping willows which want to leave its reflection in the water. Look! From the clear water to the upper sky, it’s all bright and clear, like a shiny crystal. In this crystal, there are red roofs, yellow hills and grey shadows of trees which are like patterns on a blanket. This is Jinan in winter.