T79

12-03-09

Just came back from a trip to Parnaiba with Onna. Driving with the Volkswagen bus over endless roads for 7 hours on Monday. The road is well developed and nature is beautiful. It's rain season so everything is either green or soaked with water. Especially the amounth of different births is nice.

I had my GPS on the steer but still managed to get a wrong turn since there are almost no signs and…..all the roads seem to go in any but the right direction.

At about 1400 hours I crossed the state boarder (from Ceara to Piaui (peeauee) and that is funny…..the road changes from one with marks in one without. You enter straight into a national park what means that you find all kind of animals on the road (death and alive), Goats, pigs, dogs, cows, vultures etc. The road is smooth and without holes but the state is way poorer. Houses of wood and clay are more commen than Ceara and people wash their cloth in the river. Though the hospitality and smiles are heart breaking.

Sometimes you can wonder how well education is for us. What (in the end) do we need to know and isn't the simplicity not making things having more sperspective? I see a big difference in the people in Piaui and in Cumbuco (where more foreigners and 'educated people' have established themselves).  I will agree that knowledge is a good thing but it seems that we (humans) loose a lot of essentials when we start living away from the basics (and often into the so called commercialism).

We overnight in Parnaiba and we visit some friends we have here. We eat crab and oysters for 15 euro's and the nex day we leave to Barra Grande. This spot is the future, there isn't much yet and it breaths the atmosphere of Jeri but then 20 years back. There is a huge flat water area and they see there are sea horses in the water there. We don't overnight here because there is nothing to do. We drive to Jijoca close to Jeri where we find that we can't enter Jeri with the VW. So we stay there. Looking for food we come to what seems the only place open and we order a pizza. Here a Brazilian comes with a big smile and a big month entering the restaurant. He seems happy but wants to let people know he is there. I sit on the only table outside and soon enough he asks me if I play chess. 'Yes, I do'. Apparently Jijoca is chess city and I need to do a game. After the pizza I take a seat opposite him and we start. He moves fast and within 3 moves I know that he is far better then me….but I'll keep my calm.

He flirts openly with every girl that passes while I concentrate. 10 moves on the way I make my first big mistake and loose my bishop. I change my tactics. All or nothing. I'm a bishop behind but a soldier ahead. I change everything end we end up with him having a horse and me 2 soldiers……I win. He is pissed…congratulates me but keeps saying he owned  the game….people who where observing say that you can not own a game unless you win….I smile…get a ice-cream and see him playing against someone else. I look and they play fast…..after 0 minutes he gives up…to pissed that he lost from me J.

When we are loosing it, when the hope seems to fade away in front of our eyes, should we be more progressive in the choices we make. Doing nothing seldom changes the tide. And although I'm pro thoughtful and anti 'we always have to react fast on things'. I also see that loosing can only be overtaken by building up the strength to make a step. This step can be one to the side instead of to the front of course.

Pictures will come....

22-02-09

Suffering is happiness in reverse, it's not what has been done to us....it's what gets taken away from us.

Quote from Gregory David Roberts in his book Shantaram. Please read this found it amazing. Again you don't have to agree with things to like it but if this is his biography (and he says this) it is worth it. If it's fantasy…it very well done.

 

 

 

18-02-2009

 

And how beautiful can it be. How much does it change if after 7 months you suddenly have a place on your own.

Still there are responsibilities but it feels quit. It feels good, and although it might look strange because we see each other everyday 24 hrs a day, it's great to have so much contact with Onna. She also is delighted to take a breath and unload her shoulders from months of work.

And then you open your eyes and see the beautiful beaches, the beautiful place you created and you understand why people have a great holiday here.

We get heavy rain showers almost daily now and the wind is not very often kite-able. But this courses also wonderful skies and time for reading, writing, Onna is learning Dutch and every word she learns I learn in Thai again. We walk on the beach daily, I do exercises etc etc. But what is then the difference? For me is that I have the patience to do this stuff now. Because of the responsibility I (still) don't find a calm hart for this during the season.

  The video shop closed (right before the low season started!) but actually what do you miss when you miss a Hollywood movie? (From the last 5 times I went to I cinema only 1 I found worth watching).

 

Walking on the beach today (Onna running a hundred meters in front of me) I found that I still don't feel save here, that I'm always try to be alert. Moments later a police unit passed me in a brand new Hilux and I wondered where I was more scared of, them or a possible robbery. Months ago Onna and me where in a not forgettable incident with the police and since I felt we are on our own. The strange thing is that we never (knok knok on hard wood) had any bad experience concerning robberies or worse. But I know people close to me who did.

 

Besides the exercises our diet changed as well. In the season we have our (famous) BBQ weekly as well as the Thai food. Further we eat outside the hotel with guests often and when we don't we often eat the rest of the BBQ or lunch (read : tosti, hamburger, pancake, spaghetti and although we have it not so often the fish or chicken salad). Now we eat only salads, steamed or boiled stuff etc. Healthier and better taste…..

 

The high season here always kicks by at enormous speed. I often think that we grow older here twice as fast then anywhere else. The days are short and always full with things to do. But also in the low season I wonder, the days are still short……soon enough I will be 31……still living far from friend and family. People whom I miss are many but I feel it as a good feeling. Still it can be lonely here (especially in the low season) and the time goes on. But then, doesn't this all count for everybody? Even when you live next to your best friend?

 

For the kite-surfers: although I said for a long time I wouldn't, I'm practicing unhooked jumps now. For those who read this as Russian or Chinese.  The kites power normally goes to a harness that you wear in front of your belly. Trust me there is enough fun like this, big air, flips, loops etc. etc.  But for what some see as the 'ultimate' feeling you can choose that all the power is only in your two hands. In my case that means a upward lift of 93 kilos. The story becomes better when you know that with the kite hooked in you can de-power it (by push the steering bar to the front). Jumping Unhooked means a: no de-power b: only full power. I made a few hard crashes but seem to get better in it.