It took me a week to finish, with quality time spent, my three final papers after the drama in COP 15. I then went on a trip down south, in search of warmer weather, Spanish guitar and Portuguese beach, for some crazy three weeks. Without much planning before hand, I did it (a friend was with me for the first part) within the 1000 USD budget I had estimated to stay in Copenhagen for a month. This was achievable mostly because I "couch surfed" (couchsurfing.org, new way of traveling!) in local people's beds or couches for free and of course I cooked Chinese cuisine in return, exerting the "Chinese Food Diplomacy" I am getting better and better. The couch surfing turned out to be most interesting and memorable part of my trip, giving it a whole new perspective and experience. Because new semester has started here in Copenhagen, I will just briefly lead you through my journey with highlights on the way. I have uploaded most of the pictures at this address: http://photo.163.com/photo/superwangyit/?u=superwangyit#m=0&p=1&n=12 I heard Flickr was blocked also? Just word on the street I have not tried. This is a Chinese website which is really strict about what word I use to descript my picture. I was refused twice for having too "sensitive" words, but it was just about a royal garden!!
Anyway, again, stories by pictures.
Spain and Gaudi:
Our time spent in Barcelona was basically devoted to Gaudi. A great master and driving force of modernism, Gaudi drew great inspirations from the nature environment and its inhabitants. And of course there is always this unreasonable human twisting of reality into something unreal and changing. But one has to maze at Gaudi's pieces and wonder how on earth this man thought of this.
Our Barcelona host. A young IT professional, he has a small apartment with a big couch for the two of us. We invited him for a Spanish guitar performance and he brought us to this what he said probably the oldest bar in Barcelona in return. A spit spot left on the mirror was believed to be left by some Spanish philosopher whose name I just slipped away for now. He is actually from southern Spain. But, this guy's got problems as well. We could chat about this over an afternoon tea or sth if you are curious.
A Chinese fruit shop in Barcelona. I just randomly walked in to buy some apples. We started chatting with the Chinese woman--she and her husband owned the shop. I have somehow taken on an anthropological point of view in digging out the story lines behind these Chinese immigrants, after a wonderful immigration/landscape class with Susannah. Just to know more their motives behind all this great human circulation, and there is always more to know from each single one of them.
Tavira, Portugal:
Martin and Beth, a British couple I stayed with in the countryside of a little cute town Tavira. Best part of my journey I consider, as it is always feels at home to come off cities and have a seemingly pollution-free rural life.
Martin Jackson, the husband. Very british and English. He said he and Beth were both hippies were after the green movement during the 70s. But now, he had almost given up on that. He maintained that it had always been that only 2 percent of the population are conscious and know what is really good for themselves and the world. The rest 98% just don't know what is going on. He said he was of course like me 30 years ago and assured me that 30 years later I would be the same as him. I am a little bit concerned, especially because their life right now is where I want to be ultimately. But hell, that is 30 years of "good work" I have done. I just feel that they more he insisted on that the world won't change much the more I am determined to prove him wrong. Well nothing can really be proved and what is really "wrong"?
Beth the wife, very cute woman. She like to recite verses from the Bible to me. It was such a pleasure to listen, her very soft voice. She said despite how crazy the world was now, she just wanted to wait for the New Earth the Bible descried, where lions would slick the sheep and snake plays with rabbit or sth like that. She and Jack met while they were both traveling in India when they were under 20. They were seekers, she said. (Jack would say hippies). They decided to settle in where they are now 30 years ago when they visited their friends nearby. Their two children died in a car crash when they were very young.
To be continued
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