Hammamet on a waxing gibbous moon

Heading out of Tunis from Tunisville Train Station

Tunisian landscape in fleeting images escaping my quizzical gaze due to train travel. In some sense this gives me a sense of peace as all I can do is behold the beauty of the moment of landscape as it parades by. I feel calm & sedated by the late afternoon sun bursting in through my window seat as it tantalizes me to dare to ponder what knowledge the landscape indeed does hold. What memories those mountains must contain. Why was that strip clear-cut? Is there indeed a trail that leads up to those repeater towers? Can I get there? Will there be bandits awaiting our caravan on the other side? Where does the desert begin? So, this is my mode of thought on the train...

Introducing Hammamet- The sun nearly setting presented a romantic welcome. We wandered down Avenue Habib Bourguiba instinctively heading for the sea. The sea delivered. It always delivers. The moon is rising over the kasbah and and I'm ready to rock. The Hammamet Kasbah is especially intriguing as it's backdrop extends down onto the shores of the Mediterranean, broken only by a sweet promenade. Incidentally, it looks as if there is a little longboard break that goes off during storms... So solo ojo and myself, weary from our journey as well as anticipating where exactly we were going to sleep later that night, settle into a dreamy little outdoor cafe where throw pillows, carpets and big blocks of white limestone reigned. The open sky hovered above us with a faint outline of distant stars, cafe direits were served, sheesha (water pipe) loaded with tufa (apple-flavored tobacco), Tunisian Arabic rhythms flowing through a sweet sound system, incense wafting- hedonism (as in pleasure minus pain) prevailed in those moments. The minimal lights of the top of the kasbah hinted at the grandeur of the spectacle that we beheld: what were those walls of the kasbah trying to tell me? The history, the people, the battles, the architecture hinted at these truths, and the intoxicating smells took me back in time.

As time passed, soon we realized we needed to secure a sleeping spot for the night. I entertained the thought of sneaking onto the roof of the cafe right in the shadow of the towering kasbah walls... Reality found us wandering on the beach en route 2 kilometers towards Hammamet sud. A suitably dark spot of open beachfront between resorts determined our journey came to an end for the night. Setting up camp took all of... 2 minutes! Out came the sleeping bags and into them we went. Good night. Of course, I slept with one eye open for a long time as I had heard about the infamous 'bandits' that roam the beach. At some point I came to my senses and while watching the moon glide across the sky towards the west fell asleep. When I awoke the moon had already set, and my familiar night sky had emerged front and center stage. Cassiopeia was the first to catch my eye, then Pleiades, and finally the dippers big & little and Orion. As I laid awake and listened to the stars, I realized that Orion appeared as if 'he' was leaping out of the sky and diving into the ocean head first! This thought entertained me for quite a while- until contemplating what I would do if/when the 'merman' would rise from the ocean and come onshore and sweep me off my feet and take me back into the dark, murky depths with him to live in his oceanic kingdom. Yes, I must of dozed off at this point...

The moment of sunrise was a symphony of silent cacophony. I can't exactly recall what woke me but the noise of the sunrise indeed was brilliant in its textured hues of arrival. The silhouette of a long decrepit ship lay in waste a few meters from our sleep spot in its haunting splendor. Like an exoskeleton of a creature that still sparked life in its decay (and haven't I observed this phenomenon so many times in my archaeological career). 

said sleeping spot

we decamped (haha!) and headed up the beach to search for an early morning coffee. The town was still asleep at 8am but we did find this sweet space here serving illy Coffee- which was GREAT! Furthermore, a mamma kitty and her 2 kittens entertained us with their antics and all around good attitudes towards being street mascots. Their chocolate croissants were also pretty tasty and much appreciated.

this, of course, is Don Quichotie... 

but what is more interesting is where this found-objects sculpture is... It is the present day site of the International Cultural Centre, but is in fact a mansion designed ( & built) by Romanian millionaire George Sebastian. It's temporary inhabitants included architect Frank Lloyd Wright, uhhh... Erwin Rommel (Nazi commander) while the house was Axis HQ during WWII (he was supposedly a big fan of the baths there), and Winston Churchill (British Prime Minister during WWII) - who wrote his memoirs from here. The entire property is in a state of decaying splendor, and not exactly worth the $5 Tunisian Dinar entrance fee. Not to fear though, we made our efforts worthwhile in the end and roamed through the orchards there finding in our possession many succulent pomegranates, some aloe vera cuttings, and another clipping of another plant- which shall be the start of my small garden here in Tunis (Lil`D you should be proud of me- and I definitely thought of you during my diurnal raid- haha). 

Rommel's baths...

solo ojo's eagle eye spotted this mini turtle/tortoise creature guy- who peed when picked up. Poor thing was scared.

nice living no?

and... then we went back to the beach...

 

First Contact

The Great Feast of Eid-ul-Fitr

Like the color of silver,

in the night sky,

the new moon rises,

the holy month has past,

the fasting is over,

tomorrow is the great feast of Eid-ul-Fitr.

We will eat spicy chicken,

and mouthwatering pakoras,

I'll call my neighbors,

and friends on the street,

may the peace of Allah,

and joy of Eid,

be with everyone.

anonymous



Eid Mubarak!

I awoke this morning calm. There was not a stir amongst the magnificent date palms that line the avenue on my street. Through the filtered light coming in from my curtains on my bedroom's french doors, I viewed a haze of sleepy pink and yellow hues patterned on silhouettes of the city dwellers as the day begins. The corner venders are slowly setting up shop. The men are all shuffling to and fro. The man at the coiffeur pour hommes salon des artistes is sweeping his partition of sidewalk. I watch all this in wonder. I am full of gratitude to be a bit-part player in this moving picture show- a voyeur at best. I hide behind my curtains taking in the wonders of a life unknown to me until this moment- a life of a Tunisian denzien in Lafayette.

Looking at life below on the streets, it is textured with a sort-of fiction-esque mood. I find myself wanting to impose a logic to these characters as they go about their daily deeds. For you, my audience, I want to entertain and delight with the sounds and smells as I feel them. This experience is so vibrant and all the more heightened as it has just been down-pouring for 10 minutes and all my imported cast of characters have taken to the awnings for temporary relief. Oh the memories of 5 Corners, my beloved nest in the jungle of Maui for my new readers, floods my mind now as the heavy rains floods my salon.

Thunder is pounding the city so now my assorted cast has taken on the appearance of animated figurines in slow motion as seen through a hypnopompic dream where the set is seemingly flying through the air. It is like a strategic chaos as people are darting in between traffic looking for a space of relative safety from the oncoming invading army of raindrops and exploding ordnance.

The plot thickens, of course, as it is the last day of Ramadan- hence the above poem... (the "little") Eid begins tomorrow. Eid-Ul-Fitr marks the end of the month-long fasting during Ramadan. It is a day to thank Allah for giving the Muslim people the endurance to observe their fasts- especially relevant when Ramadan falls in the summer months when it is extremely hot and everybody is working and not drinking or eating from sun-up to sun-down. Eid officially starts when the 1st sliver of the new moon is visible, or, when Ramadan is officially over. So, on this day, or evening as sunset is the start of a new (lunar) day in Islam, all greet each other with, "Eid Mubarak"! Everybody wishes each other good luck.

From what I understand, everybody dresses up, children everywhere get gifts from friends and neighbors, and there is lots of food!

In other news, I've been asked by a few to take pictures while in the Medina (oldest part of the city with all the souks, etc.), but as of yet I have felt it inappropriate. Not to say that others aren't, but I kind of want to get established 1st and perhaps have people become familiar with me, and not seen as a tourist. Pictures will come soon. I hope I can abate you all with pictures of my new flat & neighborhood taken today...

http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2010/09/09/declaring-eid-is-an-inexact-science/

So... here we are: It's 2:15 p.m. & I'm off to find a clothes-horse thingy to dry laundry on. First contact, the title of today's blog, hasn't really been explained, and cannot really, but just know it was a fantastic evening last night & much progress has indeed been made...
signing off from North Africa,
Mauihollyday

Day 2: Tunisian Outpost

Day 2: 01/Sept./2010

Through a thinly veiled haze of jet lag and associated hazards, i.e. sore throat, aching body and general confusion as to where north, south, east & west is in this new city I call home, I emerged this evening in search of sustenance. I have arrived on the Mediterranean shores at the end of Ramadan- which means procuring food during the daytime is next to impossible, in public anyway. My temporary residence is in the El Jardin area of Tunis. This area, at first glance, seems pleasant enough, and close to work with a 10-minute walking commute to work. I’m not sure I will stay in this area though as there is so much of the city to check out, and so very little time to do it.

Tonight, while in the elevator at Hotel Ariha, I was going up to meet a colleague for some dinner and some ‘talk story’ as we say in Hawai’i. As I was getting off on the wrong floor Analisa (a fiery Italian woman with loads of energy) stepped into my existence and now we are forever bound in that ‘happenstance’ meeting circumstance. As well we are now Face book friends- of course…Analisa (originally from Naples) was temporarily in town from Roma visiting friends. In a matter of a few seconds we were in the elevator together on a mission for some supper. My original dinner date did not appear at his doorstep when we finally found the right floor so we went off together.

Myself, I was weak from not eating since my arrival on Tuesday late morning (I could barely get out of bed to go out and get food but I knew the situation was soon to be dire if I didn’t find any), and Analisa on her last evening in the city before flying out in the morning. We scoured the streets looking for a restaurant but to no avail until we came upon Café De Palmerie on Rue De Egypte in the Lafayette neighborhood. As it is Ramadan only certain food was prepared. I had the most delicious Chorba and some crunchy filo pastry thing with an egg inside and some spices that topped it off. I devoured my food as we devoured our life histories. Together we had traveled the world, each relating different experiences and how they were to shape our lives. Analisa is an actress and I have been invited to Rome to see her perform. Of course I will make this happen.

Munir, a musician friend of Analisa, joined us afterwards for tea and conversation. Munir is apparently a fairly well known musician here in Tunisia (jazz-fusion, Sufi, etc) and he invited me to his performance on September 4 in La Marsa, a coastal community/resort area a few kilometers from Tunis.

So this is my story for the day but the point I want to express is that life is just so … happenstance. I started out my evening with every intention of having a difficult journey from jet lag, not eating, and general flu-like symptoms, and ended up encountering 2 more amazing people that populate the planet. I spoke neither French nor Arabic and Munir little English but all 3 of us were able to communicate and make a connection that will bind us together forever. This is a beautiful thing and one of the main reasons for my incredible journey out of the comfort of what I know to what I don’t know and just throwing myself into the arms of destiny.

On an ending note, I can’t wait to see our pictures posted on Face book! Now if only I can rid myself of this nasty sore throat that has attached itself to my being, trying to suck out the very life inside of me…

recovery phase...

Seize the day...

It finally came to me this morning as I'm lying in bed on an overcast, mildly rainy morning here at 5 Corners: desire to blog... again. It's been a while and the last posting came from a very stressed out person on the edge of academic insanity! That last semester of grad school had lasting effects on me; the emotions, the stress, the lack of quality sleep, the work load added to school load, the desire to write the most honest works that I could muster up that represented what I believed in... the list goes on. In the midst of all this I turned my back on the one thing that could have brought immense relief to all my perceived & real pressures- YOGA.

Well I'm back, and stronger than evah- ROAR! I'm working back up to 2nd series (ashtanga) and it is amazing what the body remembers- when the body remembers, the mind surrenders. Love this!

party season... December, 2009 at Tane's lovely Paia Plantation house. A sweet get-together of yogi/yoginis friends & family centered around Indian food- delisch! Namaste!!! We all have a dedication to our mats & work hard to achieve goals on the mat, as well as learn how to harness that energy derived from the mat and carry it over into our everyday lives.

Nadia & myself on Christmas morning at Mama's Beach in H`poko. We just came from Jaws where men were riding mountains... mountains of water. Beautiful morning indeed.

Now we are up in Polipoli Springs (conifer) Forest Reserve at 6200 ft. elevation of Haleakala, located in the fog belt of the Kua Forest Reserve. Breathtaking 4WD adventure that took us from the seacliffs of Peahi to the upper slopes of the mountain in less than 2 hours! We saw a friend along the way who was biking up the mountain & suddenly we both felt sheepish for driving- hah. At any rate watching his muscles flex as he rode made us swoon as he seemed so adonis-like in those moments (as well that he actually is- ahem). Anyhoo, back to the hollydaze adventures:  

                                                                         Here is Nadia & myself at Baby Beach for New Year's Eve w/the Blue Moon rising in the background (looks tiny, feels big & has a warm pull). We are getting our groove on as the others arrive to share in the celebration local-style

 Roseangela & me striking poses while recanting our good fortunes on life and all we have worked for & the continued achievement of our personal goals we set for ourselves & family. We are a diverse bunch aren't we??? Par-tay is in full mode at this point. What is great is that we are all over the world and yoga brings us together. Yoga transcends ethnicities, political agendas, work ethics, cultural ideologies- whatever! Oh, and the love for copious amounts of alcohol... occasionally...

our little soiree became bigger & brighter such as the full moon rising. Troubadours showed up w guitars...

...and tambourines- Yay Sunni!

Sunny's bod in background & mine in foreground seemingly dis-attached from our heads... This is a good thing as I always like my body to be of independent action than my brain. As well, our heads are most likely reeling in a pool of alcoholic haze? Well no, Sunni wasn't drinking. Myself, my head was swimming efficiently through a pool of semi-alcoholic haze...

Ok I think it's just about the time when some started stripping down to their barest assets (heh heh) & jumping into the ocean... Let's see if I can find any pics... Probably not at this juncture in the story as I should keep this G-rated...

Well I'll end w/the first moments of Twenty-ten in Hawaii.

2000-2009: A decade of the past

Twenty-ten, it's a number. I like it. I like the way it flows from my lips. I like the way I feel when I pronounce the sounds. That's all I have to say about that. I'm not one to look for a solution through numbers, yet the want/desire to start afresh from so many is infectious energy indeed.

No New Year's resolutions as well. Just the same as it ever was: health, happiness & spiritual growth. Well, I would like to work less... play harder...relax sweeter... Oh yea, airline tix need to come WAY DOWN in price.

Pau

bring on the hollydaze...

officially it's official today!!! I am with Masters Degree. What I have been through to achieve this... well it's been so educational in so many ways. It's just all so good. Nothing out of the ordinary from an outward glance, but I know it, and my pocketbook surely knows it...

It feels a bit anti-climatic honestly as work continues, small kine car annoyances persist, and I'm fighting some bug that decided to settle down and try to set up house during my festivities celebration. No matter though,  I'm going to bust it up tomorrow morning in yoga giving thanks in the form of 108 sun salutations in honor of the imminent solstice.

To my delight the weather has been complying w/my need for dressing in layers- at least a few days out of the year. It was in the low 60's the past few mornings. It also helps to not have a driver side window when driving to work @ 6:30 am so I get to bundle up regardless- ahaha! It's also fun when it's raining- which is pretty consistently always on the northeast shore so I can sorta maneuver the tarp to form a window of sorts, or I can just wear my raincoat to keep the rain off while driving. My chariot is seriously amusing. The windshield is cracked just about all the way through and now took a turn north about 2 weeks ago... I guess all the cops recognize my truck from job sites so know better than to ticket moi! Heh heh. Let's see, the rear passenger tire just blew out yesterday, or I should say the tread came off the tire. Was hoping to avoid fixing it until after the holidays when the island calmed down again & would not have to deal w/crazy shoppers but no such luck. I was forced to watch consumerism in full swing for almost 2 hours while I got 2 new tires (sadly the other one had wires showing as well- and throw in an oil change and I think I don't have to deal w/anymore of this maintenance for a while.

Car problems surely make a girl freak and piss & moan & just all kinda crazy talk. I met some interesting sorts though during the process. The island is so small  & sweet in this way. So all these detours to detract from my shining glory of conquering academia. Yea, I'm the same as I ever was alright, just poorer...

ok bring on the hollydaze-
oh yea, I believe Santa is coming through for me...

Da Gargoyles

adventurer girls

stepping out girls

working girls

Da Gargoyles had their first band practice tonight! Yes right in Katie-girl's kitchen! Katie on guitar & myself on tenor uke. We're getting our first song down: Blue Moon of Kentucky- lovely little ditty. My fingers are raw. The uke a bit difficult for tuning w/AECG as don't quite have the ear but the electronic tuner helps. It was a hoot & my fingers are raw. Feels like my index fingertip has no fingerprint anymore... Freedom from school- I like it so far. I even passed up an evening w/a man tonight (the man I spoke of  in my last post- strangely enough). What was I thinking? Well, in due time & I'm not one to break previous commitments w/da gf's... We'll see if he makes an appearance at the Kit Kat Cabaret theatre tomorrow evening. Yes the intrepid explorer in myself is basking in the glory that is referred to as free time: "sun is shining, weather is sweet", sing it Bob.

commendable behavior- I command it

Closing in on the bewitching hour & I'm in fine form.  I am in my official last week of grad school for my masters degree! I turned in my final draft last week  & it seriously feels indescribable at this point, almost to the point of void.  Rather anti-climatic perhaps even. Maybe just dreamlike  I think it's a dream so don't want to count on waking up & it's not reality. Pinch me- this is really happening. As I was running through the eucalyptus forest tonight I thought to myself that I have changed. Not overtly but something inside of me- something is different. If anything I am more sensitive now- towards myself & towards others. I am more demanding of commendable behavior- mostly from myself. In fact, I command it.

Just having free time seems an insane luxury: beach, yoga, surf, running, clubbing, parties & all around cheerful behavior. Now if only that one man I've been putting off until after school is over... if only he should call me w/that offer for coffee, chat & surf again... I'd surely be up for the cause... lol. If not, well then my loss I suppose but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do to get 'er done right? There was no time for distractions this semester. And BTW if you're reading, I wanna snowboard Mauna Loa this winter okay...

Speaking of commendable behavior, I've finally seen the light on other matters. You know, I'm not really one to have skewed intuition so it is odd when I start to doubt myself. Could I really have it in myself to possess non-commendable behavior where another human being is concerned? I ran into some hard evidence this past week while checking out the surf to verify this question ... I kind of wanted to duck away, but the encounter was inevitable. In the end it was good & I'm glad it happened because it never sits well- silence. I understand his view now as I've been recently put in the same shoes. He just wanted answers- simple answers to simple questions that I wasn't prepared to answer, or even felt the need to answer. My fault entirely. I have felt lame for so long over that one (4 years...), and continue to do so, but being confronted was good, yet I still feel ashamed somewhat over my cowardly actions. I hope never to repeat these. I won't soon forget this episode; the look on his beautiful face, the sick feeling in my stomach- non commendable behavior in its finest hour.

So karma has revisited me & now I see some insights into what is commendable behavior & what is not. Ultimately I've decided I was not so far off in being so bold. If one wants something in life, they must ask for it, and ask precisely. Might not get an answer but at least intent was there- commendable behavior. There is usually a reason why no answer is given, and it generally tends to reflect back to why the question was originally asked... heh heh! In the islands we say that is their kuleana. I am an anthropologist- I love this stuff. I am gathering my own data. I'd like to think I've repaid my karma debt.

So through school, yoga & life's teachings I learn that one can never have all the answers. I still continue to ask questions though. Commendable behavior & I command it.

Well into the bewitching hour now & I've set my sights on my beautiful ukulele. Most excellent-