I seem to have a hard time writing these days. It seems more difficult to word my experiences, less appealing to write. I am getting blasée.
I guess that despite my frequent change of scenery, my daily life is getting boring. Whatever the place, I wake up, go to work, eat, sleep. I finally gave up meat for good (I've been off the stuff for 2 weeks now), and try to keep doing my daily yoga practice. It's a great exercise. It also helps me relax and sleep better.
I miss a bit Pakistan. There, I had a sort of youth, a return to teenage-hood, a sort of dream. We worked hard and played hard. It worked out well. My experience in Sierra Leone has been very different.
In Sierra Leone, I was in an enchanting scenery, in a very poor developing country, and I was almost alone. It's actually ok for a while to be quiet, to learn to be more contemplative, more reflective. Freetown is a fascinating city. Downtown reminds me of Dakar, more precisely Sandaga, the crowded market.
The city is surrounded by the ocean, and is composed of several mountainous peninsulas. To go from one point to the other, impossible to straight, you have to take a series of detours by a bridge between 2 hills, by a hillside road, or along a beach.
I do not feel empty. Rather, I feel full of wonder at the world and at its beauty. I feel privileged to travel so much, to see so many places and faces. But sometimes, I feel nostalgic of my home, though I know many of the things I dream of are idealized and that my life in Montreal would be the one I had before I left, and I would feel empty again. I lack balance in my life. I wish I could be home more between travels, and more often. Maybe eventually, I’ll be able to pull something like that off.
I am, however, not unhappy. I have been, for the purpose of these 3 little audits, paired with a teammate whom I will refer to as J. J is a devoted christian who enjoys life very much and has a great sense of humor. Together, we laugh a lot. She is also very open-minded, and we have had interesting conversations about religion. I also have been to church in Sierra Leone, an interesting cultural experience, which I did not repeat for fear of the stifling heat.
I have now arrived in Liberia, where I hope to find the heart to write for real.
ON ON!
The Beaver
My guest map is wonderful ! And you'd all be wonderful to post, all of you lurk mode readers!
Thanks and may the winds of Fate blow your way !
2 comments:
Salut Marie,
Tu vis un de ces maudits creux de voyage, juste comme je les déteste, ne t'en fait surtout pas c'est normal. On te garde ta petite vie ordinaire pareille comme elle était pour ton prochain retour ;) Profites en à plein pour moi en attendant!!
I do envy you. It sounds wonderful, and you can be excused for not blogging regularly when you have so many wonderful and exciting things which preoccupy you.
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