What is one day...

A day will not end, except by the coming of a night. A night will not end, except by the coming of a day. That cycle constitutes a complete day. 24 hours, by the measure of our clock. That's the will of The Creator.

In four-season countries, the days last longer than nights during summer and shorter during winter seasons. In the northern hemisphere, the day-night cycle can be the whole year; six months of night.

So how do we measure one day then, is it by the hour or by the alternation of a day and a night. If a day is constituted by one daytime and one nighttime, then one day in the northern hemisphere could well be one year, isn't it?

Being a man...Javanese way

We are made to differ, as a person, a group, in origin, in culture, etc. We should celebrate the differences, for it is through those differences that we fulfill the needs of each other.

Nakamora was at Mangku Negara kraton the other day when he learned from Pak Agung, the guide who took him around the sultan palace, that for a Javanese to be a man he should have these five things: (1) wismo, which is building or a house; (2) wanito, that refers to wife, (3) vehicle, which he forgot what was it called in Javanese, but refers to means of transportation; (4) curigo, or suspicion that refers to the need to have weapons as personal defense when attached; and (5) burung or bird. These may just be symbolic of the traits that Javanese man should have.

Life cycle..

Empty chairs and empty tables. Like those in les miserables. Abandoned in the dark of the night. Expectedly so, as the road side stall is already closed. It was bustling then, with cendol and fruits. That was during the heat of the day, the battle aim is freedom from hunger, the battle act is consumption of the food.

For the seller, it is to make ends meet, to pay bills, to put food on the table, for family to eat.
That is the chain of needs, of others that we provide, and of us that others serviced.

That thought rhymed in Nakamora's head as he passed the cendol stall, looking like a device left and forgotten, to be used again during the day. That night, he was driving towards Pontian. Days ago they thought of fulfilling a need there, but didn't. Cendol was eaten elsewhere.

Travelling - it leaves you speechless, then...

The pyramids of Giza

The title of this post is just the first part of a quote "Travelling - it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a story teller." It's from Ibn Battuta, the famous Muslim traveler from Morocco in the 14th century. He traveled for 29 years, starting at the age of 20, and covered about 120,700 kilometers. That is a lot of travel, especially during that time when mobility is so remote from the convenience of today.

Travelling is one of Nakamora's passion too, but he may not cover that far neither that long a time. In the little travels that he made, he agreed that travels broaden his perspective on life and enhance his understanding of people, culture, and past civilizations.

The thin multi-story houses in Hanoi, for instance are so to avoid paying taxes for houses that are wider than 20 feet. The seemingly incomplete houses in Cairo, are so to avoid paying taxes too, if the house is completed. Hence the exposed reinforcing bars are there on top of the buildings to show that they are still under construction. To some of Egyptians, the pyramids were built by the subjects out of love for their kings, not by forced labor. These are just a few observations and information that he gathered as examples. There will more for next time, God willing. For now,
he needs to plan for the next travel.

Point and shoot

Holiday trip to some places are good time to educate us on with whom we share the world and how different is the topography from our area of habitats. In fact, according to many views, travel or going places is a better investment compared to buying gadgets and such. Memories increase in value, the experience lasts forever and non-tranferable. Gadgets and other nice to have items don't. In fact,  some of the items are liabilities as they depreciate in values.

During travelling the tendency is to record as much of the scenery by pointing and shooting the camera almost at any point of interest.
Recently Nakamora reviewed all the photos he took and raised many questions to himself. What happens at the edge of the picture. Why the person has no head, etc. That's point and shoot.
He tell himself that next time he need to take more time to compose the picture before shooting. But then, that is not always possible. Perhaps it is better to just enjoy the view, record it it memory, and snap only as as appropriate. Well, in the end, it all depends on the situation and the opportunity of the moment.

Here, there, and everywhere...

A view of Stephansplatz, Vienna

Can one truly claims that one has been here, there, and everywhere when in actuality one has been to the airport, hotel, and airport again but nowhere else here, there, and everywhere? Probably not. But correct to say that one has passed through those places.

That was Nakamora many years ago for work-related travels. Vienna, Monte Carlo, Ljubljana, Paris, Sydney, Seoul, Takasaki, Tokyo, Beijing, Dhaka, and Bangkok are some of his here, there, and everywhere places. Years later, Nakamora tried to recall what was it like in so and so place when he was there. How's the food, the weather, the people, the transport other than the taxi from airport to hotel and back? He neither strolled along the streets nor mingled with the crowd in shopping arcades, etc. He has no idea, no recollection beyond the meeting room in the hotel.

Not anymore. Nakamora really feels that he ought to know more, to see more, including the nearby places that can be reached in a fair amount of time by bus or train from a place that he considers his base. Brussels is only a few hours away by train from Paris. Prague isn't very far from Vienna by bus. Hiroshima can be visited readily by train from Osaka, etc. Well, that's what he is doing now, and he feels that he can claim that he has been here, there, and everywhere; not just passing through here, there, and everywhere anymore...