It's saturday night, last night of Berlin. Last night with Iva, for now. So what am I gonna do? Enjoy it! We gon' clubbing and have us a good time. It's the only way. It's a funny feeling cause it doesn't feel like the last night at all. It feels like it's gonna last forever, like a cool tune in the club bouncing off the walls forming a perpetual sound. Vibes are strong, roots are deep and are only getting deeper. Good circumstances for any tree to grow tall.
Love me being cryptic? You're welcome. It's my duty as a poetry writer to translate my experiences in words. How do you do that? How to explain the seemingly unexplainable, and even if I explain will you get it? If you know what I'm talking about, it won't be so hard to see through the metaphors, but what if you don't. I wouldn't be able to get the taste of Chunky Chat Masala even if you wrote a book about it without having tasted it. When people ask me what it tastes like, I reply it tastes like eggs in the morning. Nobody gets this, and it don't surprise me.
So how are we going to open the eyes of people when there's nothing to show but text and speeches. Who's gonna listen to that, who's gonna feel inspired by that? Martin Luther had a dream and people felt it, that's why people listened. It's not because of the words that he used, no way. No dear, they listened because he was the manifestation of the belief in that dream. The flesh that people could grasp, could look at, made it easier for them to believe.
What does that mean? That we are not the doers. Martin wasn't the doer, he was just the link that people needed to bind themselves to something bigger than life. This is what makes a great leader; someone who stands for something, and who can inspire others to take a stand themselves. This is the mission, this is being an icon, this is what my life will be all about. Sharing the message, sharing myself.
Socratez is reborn.
Saturday, 28 November 2009
Monday, 23 November 2009
The Return of the King
Man I'm so tired. You don't wanna know. Especially cause I got sick in Syria because of the food, or the water, or whatever it was. As much as I love the food in Syria, you have to be careful with what you eat, and especially drink.
I experienced no problems during the first few days, but in Damascus it struck me. I got ill from a UNFO (unidentified non-flying object). It could have been some nuts we bought on the market, or the food we had at a restaurant, or contaminated water. You see, in Syria there are places where people fill their so called spring water bottles with tap water and pretend that they’re genuine. This even happens in some restaurants. So you always have to either check if the bottle has not been opened before, or you drink water that has been boiled; tea is always good.
So I've been traveling on a bad stomach for a while; it's been a pain in the ass. Or should I say stomach? Anyway, we had to hurry our asses all the way back to Turkey in order to make the flight that we took today very early in the morning to Munich. When we arrived in the country of the wealthy and unhappy people, we started hitching our way to Berlin. We got there after 6 hours. It's been a nice ride; even though my stomach is still giving me trouble, I have a certain hope that it should be ok in the next days. Besides, I really want to eat my beloved German bread again!
Anyway, to keep it short; the king is back. Who's your daddy bitchez.
I experienced no problems during the first few days, but in Damascus it struck me. I got ill from a UNFO (unidentified non-flying object). It could have been some nuts we bought on the market, or the food we had at a restaurant, or contaminated water. You see, in Syria there are places where people fill their so called spring water bottles with tap water and pretend that they’re genuine. This even happens in some restaurants. So you always have to either check if the bottle has not been opened before, or you drink water that has been boiled; tea is always good.
So I've been traveling on a bad stomach for a while; it's been a pain in the ass. Or should I say stomach? Anyway, we had to hurry our asses all the way back to Turkey in order to make the flight that we took today very early in the morning to Munich. When we arrived in the country of the wealthy and unhappy people, we started hitching our way to Berlin. We got there after 6 hours. It's been a nice ride; even though my stomach is still giving me trouble, I have a certain hope that it should be ok in the next days. Besides, I really want to eat my beloved German bread again!
Anyway, to keep it short; the king is back. Who's your daddy bitchez.
Baby on Auto-Tuner
So we took a cab to his house, met his family, and had great food. Syria is a great place for a vegetarian; lots of salads, lots of fruit. Especially on the streets there are many juice bars where you can buy fresh juices for little money. Later on we went with him to a café where we smoked some fruit tobacco in the water pipe, and had some drinks. However I did notice that he took a special interest in Iva; these people are too obvious.
This was a trend I also noticed in Latakia when we were with Faisal and his family. Now let me tell you something. Syria is a great country, but you have to watch your back, and more importantly yours girlfriend’s. When you’re careful, you’ll experience all the good things, but you just gotta know how the game is played here. I remember when we went to the Ruins of Ugarit, an ancient city near Latakia, we met a family from the UK there. Their son had been working in Saudi Arabia for a while and he spook pretty fluent Arabic, he talked to Faisal and asked if he could have a word with me.
The ride to Aleppo was smooth. We had a good lunch while on the road, because we bought these croissant kinds of things filled with nuts and honey; very good. It took us about 3 hours to get to Aleppo, and we weren’t even there for 2 minutes and we already got another taste of Syrian hospitality. A guy offered us to have tea as his house, he was about my age and he told me he worked for the police.
Oh, and one more thing about the bus ride. There was this TV with Arab music on it, but at one point you could hear a baby crying on auto-tuner! Maybe you can already imagine, but I promise that if you want to hear something really funny, get a recording of a crying baby and put it on auto-tune. Works the laughing muscles guaranteed!
Then he told me that in Syria the people are indeed very nice, but you have to take into account that there can be a hidden intention. It’s definitely true that there are people in Syria who will be happy to help you unconditionally, but he said that some people will be after your money, or other things. Now the people I’ve been staying with had plenty of money, but also plenty of sexual desires. One time I left Iva alone in Faisal’s house for about half an hour; I thought I’d be back sooner, but it was out of my control. His friend took me to a woman to see if she had accidently taken some of my clothes that I lost, and he told me we’d be right back.
Wrong. They started chatting and it took about half an hour to get back. During this time, I suddenly started to get a bad feeling. I wanted to get back to the house. Some part of me thought I was just being paranoid, that I shouldn’t be so cautious of these wonderful people, but my bad feeling turned out to be accurate. When I came back to the house, everything looked normal; Iva acted normal, so I figured I was just being paranoid. However, later on she told me Faisal was actually trying to make advances on her. I was furious; while I was going home I could already see myself kicking in the door and beating the crap out of him if I would expect anything like that. Iva probably knew this and that’s why she didn’t tell me until we left Latakia.
I really don’t care if it’s the president himself; nobody touches my girl. And they’ll know I’m serious cause I’ll teach them a lesson they won’t ever forget. I’ll make such a hard example that the whole country will know never to mess with a dutch guy’s girlfriend. It’s disgusting, disrespectful, and barbaric. Anyway, enough bad things about Syria, it is still a beautiful place to be, but like I said, you just gotta know how to play the game. Don’t ever leave your girl alone for too long in these countries. And I wouldn’t advice going on holiday into these countries alone as a woman, unless you’re like complete alpha female with kung fu skills.
I suppose there’s something good and bad to be said about pretty much any place on earth. I would say to appreciate the good, and avoid the bad. And even if it strikes you, don’t let it make you forget about the beauty that is always surrounding you.
This was a trend I also noticed in Latakia when we were with Faisal and his family. Now let me tell you something. Syria is a great country, but you have to watch your back, and more importantly yours girlfriend’s. When you’re careful, you’ll experience all the good things, but you just gotta know how the game is played here. I remember when we went to the Ruins of Ugarit, an ancient city near Latakia, we met a family from the UK there. Their son had been working in Saudi Arabia for a while and he spook pretty fluent Arabic, he talked to Faisal and asked if he could have a word with me.
The ride to Aleppo was smooth. We had a good lunch while on the road, because we bought these croissant kinds of things filled with nuts and honey; very good. It took us about 3 hours to get to Aleppo, and we weren’t even there for 2 minutes and we already got another taste of Syrian hospitality. A guy offered us to have tea as his house, he was about my age and he told me he worked for the police.
Oh, and one more thing about the bus ride. There was this TV with Arab music on it, but at one point you could hear a baby crying on auto-tuner! Maybe you can already imagine, but I promise that if you want to hear something really funny, get a recording of a crying baby and put it on auto-tune. Works the laughing muscles guaranteed!
Then he told me that in Syria the people are indeed very nice, but you have to take into account that there can be a hidden intention. It’s definitely true that there are people in Syria who will be happy to help you unconditionally, but he said that some people will be after your money, or other things. Now the people I’ve been staying with had plenty of money, but also plenty of sexual desires. One time I left Iva alone in Faisal’s house for about half an hour; I thought I’d be back sooner, but it was out of my control. His friend took me to a woman to see if she had accidently taken some of my clothes that I lost, and he told me we’d be right back.
Wrong. They started chatting and it took about half an hour to get back. During this time, I suddenly started to get a bad feeling. I wanted to get back to the house. Some part of me thought I was just being paranoid, that I shouldn’t be so cautious of these wonderful people, but my bad feeling turned out to be accurate. When I came back to the house, everything looked normal; Iva acted normal, so I figured I was just being paranoid. However, later on she told me Faisal was actually trying to make advances on her. I was furious; while I was going home I could already see myself kicking in the door and beating the crap out of him if I would expect anything like that. Iva probably knew this and that’s why she didn’t tell me until we left Latakia.
I really don’t care if it’s the president himself; nobody touches my girl. And they’ll know I’m serious cause I’ll teach them a lesson they won’t ever forget. I’ll make such a hard example that the whole country will know never to mess with a dutch guy’s girlfriend. It’s disgusting, disrespectful, and barbaric. Anyway, enough bad things about Syria, it is still a beautiful place to be, but like I said, you just gotta know how to play the game. Don’t ever leave your girl alone for too long in these countries. And I wouldn’t advice going on holiday into these countries alone as a woman, unless you’re like complete alpha female with kung fu skills.
I suppose there’s something good and bad to be said about pretty much any place on earth. I would say to appreciate the good, and avoid the bad. And even if it strikes you, don’t let it make you forget about the beauty that is always surrounding you.
Sunday, 22 November 2009
Bonnie & Clyde in the Middle East
Hey dear friends and family.
I had some downtime while I was in Syria, because we didn't have internet so often, and this site was actually blocked. In Syria I can't write or read my own blog! Also facebook and youtube are blocked from puclic acces. A bit of a totalitarian state indeed, when you see pictures of the president on pretty much every corner. But hey, Syria is not so scary, cause the people are really nice.
However, I did write some words down while I was there, so I'll make it a Syria report in 2 parts. I had both good and bad experiences, but overal I must say it was a very nice holiday!
And so we got to Istanbul on Friday the 6th. I tell you that town is huge. Like HUGE! There’s about 15 million people living there including the suburbs. Can you imagine the whole of the Netherlands stacked into one big city? We met with Cigdem, who invited us into her house and offered us to stay for a few days. It was good to have her as a guide because it’s quite easy to get lost in this metropol. Add to that the enormous traffic jams that are far from occasional, and you can spend hours on finding your way to whatever destination.
That’s the only thing I didn’t like about Istanbul; the public transportation is really not sufficient for a city of that size. There are no metros for one, so the public transport is pretty much limited to busses and trams. And because of the traffic jams it’s not always a good idea to travel by bus or take a cab. Often you’re even better off walking! But the people are really nice and warm hearted, the food is great, especially borek and baklava. I don’t get how people can eat all those sweets and not get fat, but somehow they manage.
So after a few days of Istanbul, we decided it was time to move on to a new place. After all, Iva wanted to see Lebanon and get tanned on the coast. It’s a bit unfortunate that we don’t have more time than we do, because you’d need at least a month to travel around and see places while not having the feeling of racing against the clock. My philosophy is to make a simple plan, not too detailed, and stay open to new ideas and suggestions. Stay in the places that appeal to you, leave the ones that don’t.
We took a train to Adana, quite a big city on the east side of Turkey. We only stayed there for one night, because it was too late to go on to Antakya. I didn’t really like Adana; it had no charm, no flair. I was happy to be on the way to Antakya. When we got there, we got jumped by numerous cab drivers who all wanted to take us somewhere. We decided to go with a guy who spoke understandable English who was going to drive us to Latakia in Syria. Our initial plan was to go to Aleppo, but Latakia seemed like a nice place to see, it being on the coast and all.
When we crossed the Syrian border we had to wait for a while before we got in, the visa was quite expensive (67 dollars together), but it was totally worth it. Because Syria is actually a really nice country, contradictory to the American propaganda. I couldn’t believe the warm heartedness and hospitality with which we were welcomed; the guy who drove us to Latakia bought us dinner at a restaurant at the side of a big lake (even though we couldn’t see much of it in the dark), and later on when we went onwards toward the city we met some of his friends in customs who gave us some tea. One of the officers actually offered us to stay in his house that night, and to buy us lunch the next day.
We never asked for anything, but it just happened. Such is the kindness of the Syrian people. It was a positive culture shock so to say. I couldn’t make this shit up. I kept wondering: Are these guys for real? And they are. We stayed at his house, and today he brought us to a nice restaurant looking over the Mediterranean Sea where we had a great lunch. The Syrian food is cheap, and damn good. Also it is much healthier than the Turkish food, offering a big variety in vegetables, nuts, and many delicates. I had one of the best fish ever, fresh from the sea!
Later that same day Faisal offered us to come and visit him in his other house (he has 6) where he lives with his wife. Apparently, once you’re married, you need to have your own house and can’t live together with your parents; that’s why he has so many houses, because he has many kids; 3 boys, 2 girls. It was an amazing experience; we met all his children, the oldest being about 26, and the youngest 15. His oldest also brought his wife and baby, a very cute little girl.
One of the guys offered me to take me around the neighborhood on his motor bike. That was really cool! He sounded the horn at pretty much every shop we passed; he knew everyone. Later after we got back we would all go (the men that is) to the local café, and we had tea and water pipes. Imagine that you’re with people that you barely know, and you barely understand each other, and yet you have such a deep sense of belonginess to another. We talked for about 2 hours, had a lot of fun, and then went back to the house.
During our whole stay in Syria, me and Iva pretended to be married. I think this makes our lives here a lot easier, since it’s simply not accepted by everyone to have such a thing as a girlfriend. No sex before marriage kind of thing. Don’t be fooled; of course the single Syrian girls have boyfriends, and of course the single Syrian guys have girlfriends, but this all happens in secrecy. Even though I haven’t seen most of the world, I realize that people are still people where ever you go. We all have the same impulses and desires; just because society has different values doesn’t mean that the game changes; just that the rules of engagement are slightly different.
Of course I don’t believe in no sex before marriage, but that doesn’t mean I have to be a prophet about it and tell people how ignorant they are, and how civilized we are back in the West. Bullshit, we don’t know anything about the things that make Syria such a beautiful country. It is us who are ignorant, mainly because we think we know everything. Arrogant fools, who wouldn’t burn our flags here?
Yes my friends, Syria is a great country. It’s a shame that with my Syrian visa, I will not be able to visit Israel, because that is also definitely a nice place to see. I believe that the Middle East is one of the most hospitable places on earth, and we in the West could learn a lot from the kindness with which they greet foreigners. We can learn a lot from each other. But you can’t give someone a pizza who didn’t ask for it; it’s up to them to order it. What I’m saying is that we can’t go judging other people based on our values. If we want to do something good to the world, we could start by taking responsibility for ourselves first and learn from others the values that we seem to have forgotten.
And it is up to them to change their views about marriage, women, gay sexuality and whatever else we think we have a more sophisticated opinion on. You can’t start a war to bring democracy, shove it down their throats and expect them to accept it. It’s disrespectful and creates a lot of bad blood. Of course the well informed amongst us know that there was never a war for democracy; our political leaders don’t fight for ideas, but money and power.
Talking about money, the dollar will collapse sooner or later; probably more soon than later. Better invest your money in something that doesn’t lose its value, or spend it on traveling; seeing the world is always a life richening experience. But more about the dollar some other time, else this post will just get too long.
As I’m typing this, I’m on the way to Aleppo together with my wife, Iva. I rather like the idea of being married to this lovely girl actually. At least it aint too hard to pretend! Having a good marriage, kids, and having a warm heart for everyone around you, are values that really appeal to me. You can learn something new anywhere you go; never ever think that you know it all, for you are the biggest fool walking on the face of the earth.
I had some downtime while I was in Syria, because we didn't have internet so often, and this site was actually blocked. In Syria I can't write or read my own blog! Also facebook and youtube are blocked from puclic acces. A bit of a totalitarian state indeed, when you see pictures of the president on pretty much every corner. But hey, Syria is not so scary, cause the people are really nice.
However, I did write some words down while I was there, so I'll make it a Syria report in 2 parts. I had both good and bad experiences, but overal I must say it was a very nice holiday!
And so we got to Istanbul on Friday the 6th. I tell you that town is huge. Like HUGE! There’s about 15 million people living there including the suburbs. Can you imagine the whole of the Netherlands stacked into one big city? We met with Cigdem, who invited us into her house and offered us to stay for a few days. It was good to have her as a guide because it’s quite easy to get lost in this metropol. Add to that the enormous traffic jams that are far from occasional, and you can spend hours on finding your way to whatever destination.
That’s the only thing I didn’t like about Istanbul; the public transportation is really not sufficient for a city of that size. There are no metros for one, so the public transport is pretty much limited to busses and trams. And because of the traffic jams it’s not always a good idea to travel by bus or take a cab. Often you’re even better off walking! But the people are really nice and warm hearted, the food is great, especially borek and baklava. I don’t get how people can eat all those sweets and not get fat, but somehow they manage.
So after a few days of Istanbul, we decided it was time to move on to a new place. After all, Iva wanted to see Lebanon and get tanned on the coast. It’s a bit unfortunate that we don’t have more time than we do, because you’d need at least a month to travel around and see places while not having the feeling of racing against the clock. My philosophy is to make a simple plan, not too detailed, and stay open to new ideas and suggestions. Stay in the places that appeal to you, leave the ones that don’t.
We took a train to Adana, quite a big city on the east side of Turkey. We only stayed there for one night, because it was too late to go on to Antakya. I didn’t really like Adana; it had no charm, no flair. I was happy to be on the way to Antakya. When we got there, we got jumped by numerous cab drivers who all wanted to take us somewhere. We decided to go with a guy who spoke understandable English who was going to drive us to Latakia in Syria. Our initial plan was to go to Aleppo, but Latakia seemed like a nice place to see, it being on the coast and all.
When we crossed the Syrian border we had to wait for a while before we got in, the visa was quite expensive (67 dollars together), but it was totally worth it. Because Syria is actually a really nice country, contradictory to the American propaganda. I couldn’t believe the warm heartedness and hospitality with which we were welcomed; the guy who drove us to Latakia bought us dinner at a restaurant at the side of a big lake (even though we couldn’t see much of it in the dark), and later on when we went onwards toward the city we met some of his friends in customs who gave us some tea. One of the officers actually offered us to stay in his house that night, and to buy us lunch the next day.
We never asked for anything, but it just happened. Such is the kindness of the Syrian people. It was a positive culture shock so to say. I couldn’t make this shit up. I kept wondering: Are these guys for real? And they are. We stayed at his house, and today he brought us to a nice restaurant looking over the Mediterranean Sea where we had a great lunch. The Syrian food is cheap, and damn good. Also it is much healthier than the Turkish food, offering a big variety in vegetables, nuts, and many delicates. I had one of the best fish ever, fresh from the sea!
Later that same day Faisal offered us to come and visit him in his other house (he has 6) where he lives with his wife. Apparently, once you’re married, you need to have your own house and can’t live together with your parents; that’s why he has so many houses, because he has many kids; 3 boys, 2 girls. It was an amazing experience; we met all his children, the oldest being about 26, and the youngest 15. His oldest also brought his wife and baby, a very cute little girl.
One of the guys offered me to take me around the neighborhood on his motor bike. That was really cool! He sounded the horn at pretty much every shop we passed; he knew everyone. Later after we got back we would all go (the men that is) to the local café, and we had tea and water pipes. Imagine that you’re with people that you barely know, and you barely understand each other, and yet you have such a deep sense of belonginess to another. We talked for about 2 hours, had a lot of fun, and then went back to the house.
During our whole stay in Syria, me and Iva pretended to be married. I think this makes our lives here a lot easier, since it’s simply not accepted by everyone to have such a thing as a girlfriend. No sex before marriage kind of thing. Don’t be fooled; of course the single Syrian girls have boyfriends, and of course the single Syrian guys have girlfriends, but this all happens in secrecy. Even though I haven’t seen most of the world, I realize that people are still people where ever you go. We all have the same impulses and desires; just because society has different values doesn’t mean that the game changes; just that the rules of engagement are slightly different.
Of course I don’t believe in no sex before marriage, but that doesn’t mean I have to be a prophet about it and tell people how ignorant they are, and how civilized we are back in the West. Bullshit, we don’t know anything about the things that make Syria such a beautiful country. It is us who are ignorant, mainly because we think we know everything. Arrogant fools, who wouldn’t burn our flags here?
Yes my friends, Syria is a great country. It’s a shame that with my Syrian visa, I will not be able to visit Israel, because that is also definitely a nice place to see. I believe that the Middle East is one of the most hospitable places on earth, and we in the West could learn a lot from the kindness with which they greet foreigners. We can learn a lot from each other. But you can’t give someone a pizza who didn’t ask for it; it’s up to them to order it. What I’m saying is that we can’t go judging other people based on our values. If we want to do something good to the world, we could start by taking responsibility for ourselves first and learn from others the values that we seem to have forgotten.
And it is up to them to change their views about marriage, women, gay sexuality and whatever else we think we have a more sophisticated opinion on. You can’t start a war to bring democracy, shove it down their throats and expect them to accept it. It’s disrespectful and creates a lot of bad blood. Of course the well informed amongst us know that there was never a war for democracy; our political leaders don’t fight for ideas, but money and power.
Talking about money, the dollar will collapse sooner or later; probably more soon than later. Better invest your money in something that doesn’t lose its value, or spend it on traveling; seeing the world is always a life richening experience. But more about the dollar some other time, else this post will just get too long.
As I’m typing this, I’m on the way to Aleppo together with my wife, Iva. I rather like the idea of being married to this lovely girl actually. At least it aint too hard to pretend! Having a good marriage, kids, and having a warm heart for everyone around you, are values that really appeal to me. You can learn something new anywhere you go; never ever think that you know it all, for you are the biggest fool walking on the face of the earth.
Friday, 6 November 2009
Birthday in the Balkans
Hello kids. I'm back again with some news!
A lot has happened since my last post. So it's inevitable that I will forget something. So why not start with an announcement: I forgot my phone recharger in Leipzig. This means a few things. One is that I'm not in Leipzig anymore, second is that you can't reach me on the phone. Just FYI. I will get it back of course, but I'll be without my phone for a month or so.
So why am I not in Leipzig anymore? Because I left! I left on thursday the 29th, to go to Croatia to be exact. Man what a trip; ups and downs. On the wednesday evening before that we had quite a success with our introduction workshop. I felt good and I felt ok with leaving so I could see Iva on my birthday. It was not so easy to get out of Leipzig. Originally I had planned to take a ride with mitfahrgelegenheit (if you don't know this site you had better bookmark it, MUST-HAVE for any traveller!) just to get onto the highway, from which point I would hitch my way to Zagreb.
However things did not go that way; Alex told me that I could take a bus that would take me close to the highway from which point I should be able to get a ride. But I couldn't find any rides going there, and I felt completely stupid standing along the road with my cardboard sign waiting for someone to stop. It just didn't feel right; if it was gonna be easy to get a ride it would've already happened by now. I ended up being at that particular place for 2 hours, which highly pissed me off. I got up at 6 am just to make sure to make it in one day. The worst thing that could happen to me was stuff like this. At the same time I was calling my friend Cezar to see if he could arrange for any rides on the internet, but no luck.
Then I decided to go back to the main station, see how much a train ride to Zagreb costs. Now I know that Germany aint the cheapest place for train travel, but 258 euros + 30 for a sleeping compartment?! No fucking way. Frustrated I went back home, with all my luggage, and went on the internet to look for a ride. On the way home something must have happened. I swear I could've breathed fire if such a thing was possible, that's how angry I was. I kept saying that no matter what I would leave this city. The first guy I called when I came home was a positive hit. I didn't have much time to get to the rendezvous point, so I left immediately. From this point on, everything went smooth.
I left Leipzig at around 3 pm. It was hard to believe that I would make it to Zagreb that same day, but I said to myself I wanted to be there at midnight. I had learned from setting goals; it really does work. And it worked again because I actually arrived at 1 am. Quite a good job if I say so myself! I got a ride near Munich from a very kind Austrian guy. I always had a prejudice against Austrians, but no more. Then somewhere near Salzburg I took a ride with some Serbians who were passing Zagreb; fucking jackpot! Iva had a car, coincidently, and could pick me up at the place where they dropped me, right outside of town. I always say everything happens for a reason.
So birthday in the Balkans for me! First time in Eastern Europe. I met some of Iva's friends, who were really nice. And her family is also really nice. We stayed at her mom's place for a couple of days, and then went to take a train to Istanbul. This was like 2 days ago. As cold as Croatia and Serbia were, as warm it was today in Istanbul; I love this place! Kind people, best borek you've ever had, and beautiful sights. The train ride was cheap and pretty comfortable, and we managed to get ourselves a place to stay here in Turkey with Cigdem, a friend of ours that we met on CLP.
We'll be staying here for some days for sure, the weather forecast says the temperature will start dropping next wednesday, so that might be a good point to leave and move on. We still don't know where we will go next, just that Izmir will have to be the end destination in Turkey because we'll take a flight from there on the 23th. We were thinking of Syria and Libanon, or just to cruise around the Turkish coast. Maybe even pay Egypt a visit. I suppose it will depend a lot on the possibilities available for traveling. Hitching this time of year is not so nice, so we'd be looking for cheap bus and train rides. What is for sure, is that it'll be fun, and that we'll be enjoying Istanbul the coming days.
It's been really good to see Iva again, the love is burning, and I've gotten better at this relationship thing. Isaac was really happy to see me as well, because Iva got obsessed with her kitten. Even though this troublesome creature is only busy attacking your feet as you walk around the place. She don't know when play time is over. But then again, neither do I; we're all innocent in our own way.
Birthday boy turned 22. Feel like a real man now! Got a book about Tantra, deep shit man. Not just about sex, but more about care, respect, and intimacy. Masculinity got a new dimension. Sexual Empowerment Seminars, wouldn't those be in high demand? Sri Sri I need to talk to you... ;)
PS. Hi from Cigdem!
A lot has happened since my last post. So it's inevitable that I will forget something. So why not start with an announcement: I forgot my phone recharger in Leipzig. This means a few things. One is that I'm not in Leipzig anymore, second is that you can't reach me on the phone. Just FYI. I will get it back of course, but I'll be without my phone for a month or so.
So why am I not in Leipzig anymore? Because I left! I left on thursday the 29th, to go to Croatia to be exact. Man what a trip; ups and downs. On the wednesday evening before that we had quite a success with our introduction workshop. I felt good and I felt ok with leaving so I could see Iva on my birthday. It was not so easy to get out of Leipzig. Originally I had planned to take a ride with mitfahrgelegenheit (if you don't know this site you had better bookmark it, MUST-HAVE for any traveller!) just to get onto the highway, from which point I would hitch my way to Zagreb.
However things did not go that way; Alex told me that I could take a bus that would take me close to the highway from which point I should be able to get a ride. But I couldn't find any rides going there, and I felt completely stupid standing along the road with my cardboard sign waiting for someone to stop. It just didn't feel right; if it was gonna be easy to get a ride it would've already happened by now. I ended up being at that particular place for 2 hours, which highly pissed me off. I got up at 6 am just to make sure to make it in one day. The worst thing that could happen to me was stuff like this. At the same time I was calling my friend Cezar to see if he could arrange for any rides on the internet, but no luck.
Then I decided to go back to the main station, see how much a train ride to Zagreb costs. Now I know that Germany aint the cheapest place for train travel, but 258 euros + 30 for a sleeping compartment?! No fucking way. Frustrated I went back home, with all my luggage, and went on the internet to look for a ride. On the way home something must have happened. I swear I could've breathed fire if such a thing was possible, that's how angry I was. I kept saying that no matter what I would leave this city. The first guy I called when I came home was a positive hit. I didn't have much time to get to the rendezvous point, so I left immediately. From this point on, everything went smooth.
I left Leipzig at around 3 pm. It was hard to believe that I would make it to Zagreb that same day, but I said to myself I wanted to be there at midnight. I had learned from setting goals; it really does work. And it worked again because I actually arrived at 1 am. Quite a good job if I say so myself! I got a ride near Munich from a very kind Austrian guy. I always had a prejudice against Austrians, but no more. Then somewhere near Salzburg I took a ride with some Serbians who were passing Zagreb; fucking jackpot! Iva had a car, coincidently, and could pick me up at the place where they dropped me, right outside of town. I always say everything happens for a reason.
So birthday in the Balkans for me! First time in Eastern Europe. I met some of Iva's friends, who were really nice. And her family is also really nice. We stayed at her mom's place for a couple of days, and then went to take a train to Istanbul. This was like 2 days ago. As cold as Croatia and Serbia were, as warm it was today in Istanbul; I love this place! Kind people, best borek you've ever had, and beautiful sights. The train ride was cheap and pretty comfortable, and we managed to get ourselves a place to stay here in Turkey with Cigdem, a friend of ours that we met on CLP.
We'll be staying here for some days for sure, the weather forecast says the temperature will start dropping next wednesday, so that might be a good point to leave and move on. We still don't know where we will go next, just that Izmir will have to be the end destination in Turkey because we'll take a flight from there on the 23th. We were thinking of Syria and Libanon, or just to cruise around the Turkish coast. Maybe even pay Egypt a visit. I suppose it will depend a lot on the possibilities available for traveling. Hitching this time of year is not so nice, so we'd be looking for cheap bus and train rides. What is for sure, is that it'll be fun, and that we'll be enjoying Istanbul the coming days.
It's been really good to see Iva again, the love is burning, and I've gotten better at this relationship thing. Isaac was really happy to see me as well, because Iva got obsessed with her kitten. Even though this troublesome creature is only busy attacking your feet as you walk around the place. She don't know when play time is over. But then again, neither do I; we're all innocent in our own way.
Birthday boy turned 22. Feel like a real man now! Got a book about Tantra, deep shit man. Not just about sex, but more about care, respect, and intimacy. Masculinity got a new dimension. Sexual Empowerment Seminars, wouldn't those be in high demand? Sri Sri I need to talk to you... ;)
PS. Hi from Cigdem!
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