mind.ful of mirrors » 2004

in the trenches of life again

WARNING: This is a very self-indulgent cryptic post.

Life is just one big battle after another. Any temporary respite you get is merely the calm before the storm. Revel in it while it lasts because no sooner does it begin, you’ll be swept up in the next wave of the roller coaster of life.

Up and down and up and down and a merry go round. Fairy tales were easier to stomach. But the nightmare of life only induces vomit.

I used to think life too precious to tamper with. I used to have stronger beliefs in a Greater Being out there. I used to think that no matter what, I should hang in there because you never know. You never know…

I wished I did know. I wish I do. Perhaps I might have tailored my expectations and actions to the knowledge. Perhaps I might have lived otherwise. Perhaps I would have chosen not to belief in fairy tales or unfounded ideas of what I can or cannot achieve.

But now, I’m too far gone. Down a brick road, tainted red with the blood of effort, experience and expediency. I’ve taken paths I otherwise might not have, had I known… There’s so much uncertainty out there, just as there was in the past. Not all of it has turned out to be bad, but much of it is not good. One wonders all the time where it will all lead, but I think I’m too far gone. The question is, how much further will I go?

Posted on April 30th, 2004 by jl
Filed under: Notable: Personal | No Comments »

killing me softly

there’s something particularly lethal about the combination of rain, the night and an hour of pop/rock ballads on the radio on your way home from a romantic comedy film.

Posted on April 29th, 2004 by jl
Filed under: lost blah blah | 1 Comment »

Egypt: The Hassling and Tipping

If you’ve never been there, and if you’ve never heard the experiences of former travellers to Egypt, you would not believe how much, how often and how persistent you can be hassled in Egypt by not just shopkeepers but also taxi drivers, travel guides, guardians at mosques/museums/sites/toilets… in fact by just about everyone. And I am not exagerrating.

The Egyptians are infamous for hassling tourists. It begins from the moment you arrive in the country and it doesn’t stop. It happens everywhere you go. Once they know you’re a tourist, and it’s not difficult to assume that everyone who doesn’t look like a Middle Eastern is a tourist, they will hit on you, and not in a welcome way.

Taxi Driver: You want taxi?
Me: La, shukran (no thank you).
Taxi Driver: Where you want to go?
Me: La, shukran.
Taxi Driver: Taxi? Very cheap!
Me: Shukran.
Taxi Driver: You want to know how much?
Me: (shaking my head) Shukran
Taxi Driver: Only 5 pounds anywhere you want. Very good price. Today’s special.
Me: La shukran
Taxi Driver: You want taxi?!

And this is repeated everywhere! Over and over again. I’ve been hassled:
* in souqs (bazaars) in Aswan, Luxor and Cairo;
* in every single tourist site I went to, including places of worship;
* by a representative of my travel agent in Cairo;
* by taxi drivers everywhere;
* and even in toilets!

Posted on April 26th, 2004 by jl
Filed under: The Egypt Holiday | 2 Comments »

Egypt: An Amazing Country

Egypt is an amazing country. The monuments and archeological sites were a marvel and certainly very impressive. There are such contrasts in the country that even the less “welcome” experiences were amazing (if in a flabbergasted sort of way) in themselves. On the whole, I had a fabulous time and I would most certainly recommend the holiday to just about everyone.