Surrealism

In connection with explorations in journeys of life rounding rounding and rounding I find always extraordinary unexpected experiences full of fresh energies and extreme fullfilment what is rare  in a routine of life

Let's share my new inspiration it may make enjoy who can touch the heart of it

Years ago when I was at my last phases of doubt for departure from Iran on the road of new undrestandings and eager to smell the unknown tastes of other lives I made a magic  travel to Turkey in Istanbul I knew an Argentinian friend! when you travel It may happen that you find people of every part of the world but it is not usual that he comes from the south west of the planet wandering there for curiosity and eager to know the oriental culture maybe different from his south-american one

I was at the heart of Istanbul when I asked some one to take me a photo I love taking  photoes specially in journey and I love the idea of sharing my travel with all at least by the imagine I fix of some enjoyed details that was the fantasy of moment as the photo wasn't taken because battery of digital camera was at it's end but our fantastic friendship started at that ending point :)

We began wandering the city with our different curious eyes Me with having in culture more similarities with Turkey country of neighbourhood and one of divided pieces of Ancient Persia so two present status of one past at the same time Turkey being a European-Asian country had special taste for me He I don't know what attracted his South American eyes of  the exotism of Middle East culture

We had in common eagerness to know desire to enjoy and one language to comunicate  English 

One year later I left Tehran to continue in Milan knowing many other people of different cultures and knowing also people like me in travel 

The magic friendship went on in alternative connections by years far away but also near by the effect of social network casually from one extreme late time to another upsided down and it is the essence of life in travel always in progress with the eagerness to taste more magics 

Other magic of journey is language entering in another land one may know or don't know the destination language but all can manage comunication my passion to comunicate helped me and helps to learn other languages as much as I try and  the language itself becomes also one marvellous subject to find friends 

Last time my plan of jourey was to catch one great occasion to know the Spanish culture and specialy the exquisite culture of south Spain I went to Granada and stayed there for about one year and found myself in such an environment with the presence of world habitants with a variety of motivations It was a complete example of intercultural life not only with the habitatnts but also with people like me curious to feel that life of different cultures of different religions 

I made my adventure and connected my soul to every thing one can touch by heart and can drink like a red wine of that colorful Granada of lives traditions people monuments  science sun trees oranges olives gardens flowers mountains gypses caves flamenco dances Sierra Nevada sea wind and Alhambra and Spanish language ... 

It was marvellous when I began undrestanding life in Spanish a magic evaluation at that global city and a big challenge undrestanding people who used to speak rapidly the result of all my efforts was that I could have not only another world but also many big worlds at the same time I could undrestand Spanish people and all habitants of south America whose presence in Europe is so common Once I undrestood that I could enjoy also my favourite Spanish songs years ago in Iran I used to listen and to enjoy their magic tonality and music but later I could undrestand properly the essence of lyrics and it was just like a new born into world of my favourite songs

At my back to Milan I was continuing to be glad of infinite result of my last experience of learning language in streets in bus every where I was feeling that in the past I couldn't undrestand how many south American spoke in Spanish and I was like blind not to see them or better I was deaf to not hear them because I wasn't able to get their language such a energetic inspiration I had to undrestand the people around me

Time by time I reconnected to social network and it connected me virtually to people and by chance I reconnected to my Argentinean friend who asked me how was I and I began chatting him in his mother language which by his sensation was like a good wine to drink and it was a new non touched fabulous experience for me and for him for the fact that he was enjoying to connect a friend who before that very special moment of real surrealism expressed every minimum of her sensations in English and then he could be relieved by read on chat expressions in his mother language of course nearer to his soul and I by my side was feeling oh my God sensation of excitement for surprising him chating with words he was able to use from the begin such a vergine experience I still am analysing the effect it was not just a changing canal of television to hear another language and automaticaly adapt by ears to a different speech it was an I don't know how to express thing it's spread of energy in soul was just like I wasn't myself with friend but it was like I was another person an evaluation of me another metamorphosis and still I am practising to express myself out of my own Persian language

Metamorphosis

Decided to finish the adventure of living Granada for about one year, I entered to another phase of my growing up awaking more and changing place backing to Milan like entering in another city I didn't know before and I felt it differently because before departure from Granada I was so sad to leave that place of intercultures and traditions where I also felt myself closer to my own culture thanks to Arabs who were the connection of two  lives of Orient and West picking some customs from Persian land flying like birds to Spanish territory of the time and spreading the seeds from extreme south to half territory of that Spain so those seeds grew and made stong races as much as staying till now and so sweet and so desirable as the Spanish is pleasured to be owner of such Andalucian culture different from the european context. 

Anyway I entered Milan through my favorite point of departure the gigante central station where every time I come back I feel differences in my own sensations and in my vision of north Italian territory I say so since I do not have that stereotype view of southern Italy. Again I felt that coming back from my long journeys of every where to this poit of entering Milanese life I feel one stage nearer to this cloudy fashoinable expensive industrial city and even with the cold breathing air I ever felt from the first entrance it has also a deep possibility to like it becoming like it and I am not sure if I could be able to have the patience for that methamorphosy! slow and bended like its labirint alleys ending to the marvelous destination the gorgeous Duomo. That's the reality of contradictions! The modern Milan is full of strangers from all over the world who live and work and study here but I felt differences of surviving cultures in Milan and the intercultural life in traditional Granada. The aspect of modernity and economic development made big differences to this aspect of interculturalism; what in Granada happens has more connection to the reality of human lives while in Milan there is more the matter of labour and even there is a  big generational difference in two contexts while in Granada the famous city of Erasmus students they are all interested to know to participate and to live the traditional and historical context of Andalusia with the rich Cultural Heritage of humnaity in Milan they get obliged to survive the heavy economy of industrial and -I don't have time to think for cultural activity - city. 

Time

Some how the time of living goes faster than to book it ! I am running like a horse in the field of life ! what a delicious smell has the respiration ...

Crisis

Here in Europe I saw with my eyes shattering life of a family because of crisis !! I couldn't believe it was a real fact so close to my eyes she came back from Madrid with a quasi dead face but still trying to keep smiling...

The word I tried to undrestand well in Europe was Liberalism but as I travelled and developed my circle of information I saw it more false and more a dream people loved to achieve but in the real sense they couldn't;   they went through the illusion of having it and tried to be satisfied with what there is and not what is supposed to be! The fact that "the reality is manipulated by the powers" is a bitter shame of humanity because this power is not a past super power which we do not have access for change but it is a power of humanity in the world of modernism, what I didn't know because of living in my exotic oriental corner where every thing is stereotyped as wowly as far from the idea of modernism - in fact it is not - but of course it depends what does mean this modernism so we can come near to it with a modern thought and instead of being afraid of it's unknown exoticism we can enjoy it's liberal smell of original life! we love much more intense we share it with eagerness d we live it and even we understand its value much more when we try to arrive to that point of occidental modernism based of money and based of being so individual as much as being egoist to not bother ourselves to care for anyone. And all it's complication to even write about is because of simplicity of life got the way  destinated to crisis.  Now all are rebelled with different aims against this crisis of modernity. 

Fabulous Arab habitants

The first weekend of spring I went to Ronda an splendid southern city in Andalusia with a strange but intelligent structure of construction; in fact strange is subject expression of what we can not imagine based on our knowledge and my expression at first look to this city was:
"I am going to fall down the valley, why they chose to live here"
When began to explore the city walking through the narrow alleys and watching the marvelous view of farms down the valley and the houses on top of the rocks and the giant bridge that connect the habitats with exterior you go for the reason and that can not be except the logic of survival so you should  better study history of Spanish conquest and Arab survival decision.

The fantastic fact is that now Spanish is living in the same houses conserving the structures since they function very well and they are adapted the best way to the present context of European living style. The Muslim, is used to have an interior life and Arab housing is based of this ideology; they kept inside perfectly and made it all a paradise with extremely colorful gardens and orange trees and all facilities of an entire life.

An interior courtyard of  Arab house

Now the archeologic site "Casa de Gigante"  

Watching the structure of a house while the enthusiast and  prepared guide was telling the story of the Arab family who gathered in the patio in the summer wing and warmed by the natural and sustainable system of air in the winter part I was remembering the Persian cities I had the fortune to visit before my long departure for new explorations; the houses with some similarities to Arab ones plus the Persian art- works every where as an inevitable part of life and what makes the particular distinction between two cultures. The Persian Garden-Houses I visited in Kashan, Isfahan Yazd and Shiraz and others had also two habitant areas adapted for winter and for summer with a blue pool between with trees all surrounded and a underground for storage of food;  In Yazd even they had digged the ground to have water streams at house such a perfect paradise that they rarely needed to connect outside; I remember that I had the chance to play in my childhood at my grandmother's house at Ray, one of the Ex-Iranian's Capital which now for a different history doesn't exist any more.

Passing the Arc of Ronda to enter the city there was the famous Arab Bathroom for washing the journey dust of tiredness before settling down into the city. Now it's no more functional but still is the cause of admiration for such an idea and perfect construction on top of the rocks. 

What remained of a functional bathroom

The city with it's labyrinth structure and narrow alleys was so pleasant and the co-habitant of two lives of Muslims of a time not so much far in the history and the actual what is the fruit of christianism of Catholics Kings of Spain.

The nice co-habitant of two cultures 

Narrow alleys, Arab houses & Christian construction

Now it's just a pretty town under the sun- spite it was a rainy day and all our perception of the sun was of the photos we saw of our friends trip in a sunny- day with a gorgeous panorama with peaceful area of vivienda and specially this day a happy touring of different athletics who were doing their kind of competition asking direction from passengers through the circled alleys to an unknown end; some with bicycles, some running and others  practicing jogging and I wondered how it was possible for all these groups to manage and basically what a particular marathon it was in this hilly town!

NowRuz Intercultural Point

20 March 2012
Officially it was the first day of spring all over the world I mean on the earth that we are living for the moment   :) What I wonder every time more and more is to come closer to our origins of human being and to be more conscious about this reality. We youngsters of all over the world, I dare to say so because of such a sensation we had last night of old Persian year 1390 gathering to celebrate the New One "NowRuz" at my home here in Granada. The guys of Spain, Italy, France, Mexico, Bosnia, Marueco, United States and Iraq came curious to know and eager to take part in that intercultural celebration of Eid's night of Persian far from Iran actually not so much since the direct flight from Spanish capital to the Iranian one is just four hours. It was fabulous and I enjoyed the presence of friends from different countries, every one with favorite drink and a possible dessert of his origin and volunteers took part in traditional Spring-Welcoming with their flowers; they also enjoyed having this chance to experience an exotic fiesta as every thing at their eyes was wow for the famous big distance in their mental map about oriental countries and about that antique Persia covered with the dust of eras and so more with the pollution of mental wars; spite we are not any more far from the facilities of modern era but the exaggeration in comfort also made us to not think of necessity of knowing more than our living area.

The big social network makes us again to gather and to look for the things that seem lost; the distances in  our mental map become smaller and the humanity gap is going to disappear; when at the Persian night I tried to say some thing about nature as the origin of celebration what I saw in the eyes of audience was the confirmation about the fact that rebirth of the earth deserves to be celebrated so we danced our traditional way and every time we got through another aspect of sharing culture with our dances; we enjoyed the similarities of rhythms and foot moves and we also tried dances basically different from ours.
We listened to the Persian music of celebrating Nowruz in Iran and in all diaspora living areas of Iranians like that of Persian dance of students at Michigan University of the United States.

Symbols of life on the "7Sin" Table

My incomplete "7Sin"
We had: Apple, Garlic, Coin, Vinegar
We didn't: Samanu, Somagh, Senjed

In ancient era the Persian King Cyrus together with the folk celebrated the new sun when it began to warm-up the earth and to make grow the seeds so it was "NowRuz" The New Day of agriculture. The folk danced on the farms bringing to king the seeds symbol of life and abundance. What remained to us of the glorious era of earth and sun at about 4000 years ago is the celebration of NowRuz which recently is declared by the UNESCO "The Human Cultural Heritage".

The table of seeds with all symbols in Persian Culture in my Intercultural Fiesta was not as complete as it was in every Iranian home but thanks to the intercultural characteristics of Granada I was happy to introduce it to my friends of every where and to receive the bless of "Changing Time" in a fabulous presence of  different sensations in the air. 

At 6: 15' Madrid time equal 8:45' Tehran time the Nowruz horn announced the departure of "Cold-The Grandma'" and the happy arrival of "Nowruz-The Baba"; all family at this holy time of changes gather together for wishing the blessed energy of renewal and pray God to have positive change of every thing in life of all people.

"Nowruz" Horn 

Announcing spring arrival 

      

And now, at the day13 of this exotic New Year all the Persians go to be in the pure nature of green to have a direct touch with the spring and to brace it for receiving the energy of  new season for the year ahead.  

What a great sensation when you do the picnic in nature with family and friends wishing the best things in life for all and for yourself tying grass as the sign of fortune.

And what a greater sensation when you having travelled somewhere out of your culture you understand there is a same picnic in nature in a close time to your thirteenth day and you can get through this fabulous similarity in celebrations in the world because their origin is always the same; it's the proof of idea "all is one and one is all". 

Environment

I should look better around since I am interested in finding connections... I am seeing that at the time of changing Persian year all of the world is changing, people do its particular fiesta, it seems that the sky is blue every where :) season change form the cold sleeping to a rebirth of the earth, the plants and almost every thing even the colors are more brilliant, don't mind where on the map the Persian is living now, all Persian houses are particularly cleaned and in a special good order, the new cloths for children and for adults are bought, it's presumed that the Old should leave, the little red fishes in the vases of glass are ready on tables, the green grass of grain is grown twenty centimeters in the artistic trays or simply in the plates, the new moneys are taken from the banks to be gifted to the grandchildren on the first day and the new shining coins, the new year abundance symbol are ready on the "Haft-Sin" Table, the dried fruits and the sweets are waiting to fill the family gathering enjoyment time and right now at 23:54' in the last hours of the year and about 30 hours to the "Nowruz Tamburing" if you happen to pass in the streets of Iran you see late people, every one for its particular reason is buying lacking pieces of the big fiesta.
I wonder about the fire fiesta which I thought is some thing exclusively for the antique Persian celebration and Zarathustra philosophy of purification but right yesterday I went to Valencia to see "Las Fallas" the fire Fiesta timely close to the Persian "Wednesday Celebration" of fire, the Valencia-n guide explained that people will burn the fallas at the end of the ceremony to not permit the evil enters the new season what exactly do Persian in his Wednesday burning fire fiesta.
At the last Wednesday when we kept fire burning and we jumped out of it wishing to take away mal-fortune of the coming year we didn't know some close time they will do some similar celebration in many other parts of this small earth, even Ani. the Bosnian friend told that they do such similar fiesta of fire.
Last Wednesday I thought that I loosed this fiesta being far from Persian friends in Milan, they celebrated it as much as they could make it original at diaspora living area.
Come on! you are doing the same celebration with people of the world with ESN students and with Valencia-n traditional people and how fantastic it is to feel being the citizen of the world as you don't see yourself alone in the last hours of your calender.
Tomorrow night you keep goodbye party of  "Noche Vieja" with curious friends of every where eager to take part in an exotic celebration :)

Day of Symbolism

Thursday was the Woman Day and I noted it on the front page of Google.
The same day I read on Facebook the news about the death of "Simin Daneshvar", mother of modern Persian literature and wife of Jalal Al-e-Ahmad.
We Iranian people are fond of considering symbolic traces in life and highlighting them as they have a great energy to be spread ed out into the life air. It seems that we orientals need to be connected to such symbolic energies.

The writer of Shiraz, the city of feelings and flowers, gifted to the world her masterpiece "Savushun", at the time traduced in 17 languages, and left at woman's day after 90 years of life. 

Subjectively, it was a peaceful day; actually the characteristic of travel days, or better, life of infinitive travels; a river just content of being current no hurry to find out when the sea will show off. Actually you feel peace when you feel in travel. 

These days my wanderings in the city have the new smell of coming spring with trees blossomed in pink and white and, I have a kind of new look to the city from a new arrival in hot August 2011 with no Spanish connection to an ended-Erasmus student in sour-sweet of March 2012. 

Arrival time in August was coincided with the emotions of touristic look at the city of Alhambra and I was tasting the exotic and fabulous intercultural life of Andalusian people with Arabs and, I was confused about how to survive without knowing the Spanish language; but now I am going to try the habitant's life more deeply as I know where to walk for being among Granadines of an ordinary life; of not a curious traveler  with wide eyes but, of a got-used-to the smells and beauties. Actually these essences are included in their souls and they do not need to mention it every time or to speak about it. They are as simple as they live.
Now I am a little citizen of Granada even if it's so soon to be a Spanish. But trying to be a citizen of world and to adapt to the environment makes me to enjoy more of what I see and what I add to my big box of Goofy.
The signs that before weren't to be seen now are showing off in front of my eyes: the lawyer office at the fifth floor of a building in Gran Via; the tour program of "Camino de Santiago" for citizens in the Civic center; the working hours of bank written on the closed door; many banks; the big parking almost near to the Cathedral; the big shopping center left to be re-opened, maybe-one-day, next to the parking; the gymnasium; the beauty center in one building of principal boulevard; the big insurance company in Plaza Ayuntamineto; the rush hour of backing home in the evening and God! many things of an ordinary life that are not important to see when you are a tourist and some how you miss them as a symbol of belonging to the city...
And the most amazing fact is to find out Persian people living nearby where you have passed many times wandering and watching and, even more adventurous than that is to speak Persian with a Spanish guy who had lived for years in Iran with about six thousand kilometers distance from Granada.
Every time I believe, with more emphasis, that the world is a small town deserved to be known and to be simply enjoyed.

Language

After challenges and analysis with myself, I decided to proceed writing as it comes through the passage of life  and to share this passage with the people I meet so; let it be it be if it comes English write it and if you are deeply thinking in Italian so it means that italian is playing well its part of intercultural role and if some how it comes thinking in Spanish so express yourself and actually express this culture you got through to know and to taste. If you think that you need to write your mother tongue because you owe to make known your culture out of dust of politics affairs and to pull it out of corridor of history you do it then you will have almost the world to be your audience and may you achieve your goal of wanting the small village of world deserved to be seen to be tasted and to be preserved leaving good smell of human trace.

So the stages of travel helped me to proceed with the new approach of globalization; a sustainable life for all as much as I can take part.

Start

یا هو
... Just I want to begin ...
There are infinite things to write and there is no idea how to begin.
Persian poet, Hafez, says: " The Love seemed easy first; but they showed up the troubles"
I am a traveler; my dear professor encouraged me to open my blog and to write as much as I have to say; as much as I have to write.

Since I come from the culture of life sharing so I begin with the idea of sharing my senses; my life and the exquisite smell of my travels ...