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Hi fromĀ Phuket!
Out of the past 12 months, I spent one-fourthĀ inĀ Thailand. For another three months, I was inĀ Croatia, working on its coast. And then there was a trimesterĀ inĀ Switzerland, too, a country from which I actually write this newsletter at the moment. During the rest of theĀ scatteredĀ fourth quarter,Ā this beeĀ was hopping betweenĀ theĀ Philippines,Ā Malaysia,Ā Italy,Ā Austria…
Soon, I’ll be buzzing off toĀ Africa. But before theĀ next adventure begins, I had to make this short intercontinental and very mental layover inĀ theĀ Land of Smiles,Ā whichĀ only briefly took mine away with thatĀ overstay stamp in the passport.
I loveĀ Southeast Asia;Ā it is among my favorite replacements for the European winter. But as this winter will be cut short for me (I have a new job appointment fromĀ February), I thought to myself that, if I want to warm my lizard skin under a Christmas sun, I’d better do it somewhere closer, such asĀ Northern Africa.
A return to Thailand, to its wellness resorts and exceptional vegetarian food, will have to wait for another occasion.
But I couldn’t skip commemoratingĀ the 200th anniversary of theĀ Nine Emperor Gods FestivalĀ in this newsletter, a mysterious celebrationĀ I got to experience last year.
I already wrote about theĀ festival that leaves scarsĀ a year agoĀ (follow the link to see the gallery of the shrine that leads the first of the numerous processions in that specialĀ week).
But now I wanted to bring you to the place where it all started, in 1825.Ā Phuket’sĀ Kathu ShrineĀ was erected on the foundation stone of miracles, and this idea that temporary suffering can bringĀ long-lasting benefits continued to liveĀ among Taoists for two centuries. You can experience some of the festival’s mysticism inĀ this YouTube video.
In ourĀ disturbing world, exploding with humanĀ suffering, traveling has become a practicallyĀ awkward privilege. I wish I knew how to minimize the feeling of shame that comes withĀ borderless nomadism, and how to truly help those imprisoned,Ā tortured, and terminated due to the very nationality they’d have written in the passport (if they had the privilege to just miraculously leave to a “better place” than home).
Worldly pleasures don’t makeĀ sense in aĀ world ruled by pain. I wish Taoists were right: that one pierced cheek could heal everyone, and bring smiles to all other faces.
In a perverted version of what we continue watching in the “Middle East”, human suffering brings not smiles, but evil laughter to those who inflict such disastrous woundsĀ on the history of humankind. It won’t recover like scars.
Have a reflective week,
Ivan KraljĀ Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā
Pipeaway.com
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