Travel Notes

Paris

Palestina

Anyone who wakes up early in the morning regularly knows that the first light from the eastern horizon is pure magic. A soft glow almost imperceptibly appears from the darkness in the deep dark sky. Slowly, the glow strengthens and turns into a crack of fire on the horizon. Shortly afterwards, the highest objects from the ground resting on the earth reflect the warm light that penetrates the blackness until all becomes aglow.

When I travel, I feel the same energy. There is the pre-trip glow that slowly occupies the totality my mind. Then, stepping off the train, plane, car or bus into a new place, the unknown is witnessed. The first impressions are often the strongest.

I remember coming out of Port Authority Bus Station in downtown Manhattan early in the morning, still dark. Nothing could have prepared me for the terror that I saw during my first steps into the street. Strangers with black faces coming from the black background reaching for my bag and offering rides. Already at that early hour, cars passing by with horns aflare. And the artificial city lights blazing everywhere.

Or my first walk from the Termini Train Station in Rome to Largo Argentina and then some narrow streets near Piazza Navona. In this case, the late afternoon turned to night on the way and I witnessed the pandemonium of the people, some passing next to me, some sitting at tables in street cafes, some sitting on the street with their backs resting on the decrepit building facades. All happening in such a small cramped space.

After the first impression of a new place, I begin to orientate myself and remember directions. I feel comfortable now and the ‘crack of fire’ turns into recognizable forms; structures and places that I feel that I have known forever.

In a short time, I am like a well-versed guide amongst the monuments, able to pick out the most important details from a myriad of places. The unknown is conquered and sights are turned for a ‘new day’ another new place.

When I travel, I am obsessed with trying to document this sensation that I have. the sensation of being in a new place, seeing new people and faces in new backgrounds with different light. I draw on an instant that captures my imagination or just happens because of a break in other activities. I like the idea of sharing this crack of fire, this opening of the horizon with others.

Paris takes two journeys, one in November and one in March. The former includes the more beaten trail of tourists the latter, my own meanderings through unknown quarters of the city.

Palestina is the most recent journey; The Holy Land, the land of terrorists and global conflict. I am here exclusively to paint so it is easier to concentrate.
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