Somewhere in a flat or house in China is a Lonely Planet phrasebook in Mandarin which used to belong to me. It has ‘Anis Ibrahim, Feb 2005’ in big, happy letters on the inside cover.
I met Fan on the T56, the overnight train from Xian to Beijing. When I first saw him, he was sitting at the window bunk in my compartment, cleaning his glasses with one end of his t-shirt. He nodded and gave me a brief smile.… continued…
Consider the sailboat plying the waters off Waikiki.
With its billowy sails unfurling in the wind, a bow pointed toward the wide-open oceanic spaces of points unknown, the sailboat evokes a certain set of feelings and passions and desires. There are few images as iconic.
For some, the sailboat represents romance—locales of tropical and forbidden places.
For some, the sailboat represents a quest—a big adventure on the high seas.
For others, the sailboat represents freedom—getting away from everyday responsibilities and obligations that are, somehow, only land-based.… continued…
A driftwood sign at the end of the beach trail has an arrow pointing back towards the mainland: “Reality, 5 miles.” After hiking two and a half hours to the tip of the longest natural sand spit in the United States, you do feel removed from the rest of the world. For the general public, the spit and its historic lighthouse are only accessible by foot. For the lighthouse keepers, who man the light station in one week tours of duty, the assertion that reality is five miles away is especially poignant.… continued…
A boyfriend and I once attended a three-day wedding in Krems, Austria during the summer solstice. It took place at the groom’s father’s castle. One of the events of the weekend was a masquerade ball; we dressed in costumes rented from the Vienna Opera and were treated to a waltz lesson in the ballroom by a relative who was in the Vienna Ballet, followed by a spectacular fireworks display in the central courtyard.
The ceremony itself was moved from the courtyard to a hayloft because of inclement weather.… continued…
Is it possible to love a city as if it was the first city you have loved, or that loved you?
Start with a definition of love.
Love is not the adoration, constantly delivered, that keeps your pupils dilated, or the skin flush. Love is more like the horrible sense of self -awareness that your place in life is not going to be easy at first, or that it may sometimes be rather difficult, in fact.… continued…
