Tag Archives: thoughts

The Places We Love

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Sometimes whenever I am meeting someone new, or making conversation with a friend, I ask the question: “If you could have a superpower, what would it be?”

I feel I can get a sense of who their person is and what their desires in life are by the way they answer the question.

I always say that I would want to teleport myself. My answer has never changed.

I am very much aware that I love traveling, but I always picture myself teleporting myself to the same places.

The same place I would just love to transport myself at the blink of an eye (in this case quite

Photo by Melissa Thomas

literally).

Maybe some places – just like some people – have a magnetic effect on us. We can’t seem to stop thinking about going back to these places, being there even if it’s just for an afternoon coffee. They feel like our place to be, They could feel like home.

Yet, something is stopping us from fully moving to these places.  Something is holding us back – or we truly believe that.

We want to appear there. Experience the place in short spouts, long spouts. Sometimes just yearn for them; yet not fully engage.

We say to ourselves, one day, one day I will go back and I will stay. I will make that place my home. For now, I will just dream about teleporting myself there from time to time.

 

JUMP TO A DIFFERENT WORLD – THANK YOU AVICII

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Not too long ago, there was a time in my life when I spent a significant amount of time in airports. Usually waiting for connecting flights. I always looked forward to the moment when I could just sit down, put my headphones on, close my eyes, and let music transport me to a different world – or a different reality.

I have gone through quite a few different music phases. When I lived in Venezuela, I would barely listen to any latin music. Now it consists of 70% of my music library. I would say there was a time 80% of what I listened to was EDM. In fact, all those times in airport, traveling back and forth from home to boarding school, then from home to university, I would let myself go with the likes of David Guetta, Swedish House Mafia, and of course, Avicii.

I would say music has introduced me to different cultures and it has the power to transform my emotional state. If I let it. Music is very ingrained in a culture, it comes from it. There is a reason Latin music is very different to that of Nordic European cultures. But once you can enjoy the beat, it’s almost like a bridge opens up to a different world. Different people. Different backgrounds. Different languages… different dance moves.

Photo by Jack Gittoes

A few years ago, I was lucky enough to see Avicii perform live in Boston’s TD Garden. I remember how Levels used to make me feel. Powerful. Free. Not to mention that I even got to enjoy country music (which is usually not my style), when he managed to combine EDM and country. It was incredibly innovative.

It was with incredible sadness that I received the news about his passing this weekend. Since then, I have gone on an Avicii music binge and reminded myself what I loved about his music. How it makes me feel, how it makes millions of people feel. Every person has a different experience with EDM. It’s hard for anyone not in the scene to understand it. I could watch a 30 minute Tomorrowland aftermovie and not get bored because of a lack of plot. It’s a vibe. It’s an experience that makes you believe and know life is and can be beautiful.

“He said one day you’ll leave this world behind, so live a life you will remember. My father told me when I was just a child. These are the nights that never die” – The Nights, Avicii

Thanks Avicii for bringing us into your world and for all the wonderful goose bump inducing music.

Local Perspective: Emanuela and the Fascinating Woman that is Napoli

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“You will either deeply love her or hate her, but one thing is for sure: you will never forget her”

There is no secret from anyone that knows me that I have a deep love and endless fascination with Italy and its culture. I even lived in Rome for a time that seemed all too short. In spite of not quite speaking the language (not yet fluently but, I have ambitions), I always felt at home in the beautiful country. This week, I decided on getting the perspective of a local Italian and her city: Naples, or Napoli. I have only visited the southern city twice, and briefly, but that didn’t stop me from writing about it’s beautiful chaos and its pizza. This time I talked to a native Neapolitan: Emanuela Cervo, who described the city as a place of contrasts living together harmoniously. She mentioned a particular intensity of the city, and compared it to an incredibly fascinating woman. I most definitely agreed.

“Just like an incredibly fascinating woman, there is no way the city won’t shock you. You will either deeply love her or hate her, but one thing is for sure: you will never forget her”

I have known Emanuela for a couple of years now, we met in yet another fascinating city, New York, when she was working as an intern for the Italian Mission in the United Nations. I admire Emanuela and see her as a kindred spirit, but this time I got to know her through her love for her hometown. The city that flows in her blood and is a “bittersweet curse you bring in your heart wherever you are.”  I asked her a few questions about Napoli, and through her answers, I quickly realized it would be impossible for me to write a short article and still do her love for the city justice. Although I will try my best while still offering my perspective.

Through the questions I asked Emanuela, I became even more enamored by the city I briefly visited. She described a gorgeous microcosm that “has witnessed the course of European history, as a result of numerous civilizations that have dominated it”. Ughh, I love history. She also mentioned an interesting fact; something that envelops the city and its citizens: Because of its history, Naples has experienced many catastrophes, and as a result, the city has developed a particular cohabitation with death which translates into a fascinating esoteric approach to life. Ahh, yes, fascinating.

By now, as I write these words, I crave going back to Naples. I crave the excitement, the warm summer nights, the pizza. It feels incredibly familiar to me, for the sort of feeling that captures me in Naples is akin to the one I get when I visit my own city of Caracas, and view it with the eyes of a visitor. Perhaps it’s the cultural affinity; Italians and Latin Americans both share a cultural bond that comes from a tumultuous distant past and the shared origin of our language: Latin. Even Emanuela mentions Latin American music is very popular in Napoli for it fits the city’s rhythms! In Naples, you’ll find yourself in a city with an “ancient soul,” you will not only see it through its historical architectures – you’ll feel it.

I miss this place that was never mine. I crave the proximity to the Mediterranean and southern Italy’s beautiful islands, which many Neapolitans, as Emanuela tells me, visit in the summer weekends. Her favorites being Capri, for it’s magic, and the dream that is Positano. I had the fortune of visiting both of these places, and not only do I agree, but remember looking at Positano and feeling some magical nostalgia for the place I would soon leave. I was visiting with a couple of friends whom I told I was there with them by a weird funny irony; because this is a place that I would best enjoy with a future love.

Emanuela tells me she feels it a blessing to be a Neapolitan, and that to know the city genuinely and profoundly, it is essential to get to know some locals. The staple of a true Neapolitan is “humor and intensity” she tells me. I crave it’s delicious food (Emanuela didn’t hesitate to recommend an array of things and places to try while in Naples), I asked what I should do if I only had 24 hours in Naples. She said to stay longer. Sounds about right.

To end, she finished with these words: “Napoli is a true and genuine city, which can seem untouched by globalization from certain points of view. Getting lost in its craziness and chaos will definitely make you feel alive and its contrasts will shake you from within.”

My suspicions were I would not be able to do justice to the Napoli she described me. I was right. Not only did she tell me about Napoli’s history, about its passion for the game of “calcio,” and her recommendations for some wonderful food. She filled me with excitement to go back. On that note, I will publish a full transcript of her recount of Naples in a few days, for anyone who is curious for more.

Cheers!

Photo by Emanuela Cervo

GLOBALIZATION AND CHANGE, NOTHING NEW

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“This is what globalization is all about”

I said as I took a bite of my arepa (aka. the Venezuelan daily bread) filled with mozzarella cheese. In the background, the beat of the Norwegian DJ Kygo filled the room. I made the observation with bemusement, and my friend who had spent the last week exploring Los Angeles and some of San Jose shared the feeling; after all, my friend Gesi was from Germany, and we had known each other for two years after meeting in New York City. While taking another bite, Gesi tapped the table, which only drove the point home for me. Swedish furniture. Sweden was also present in our dining experience.

Perhaps there are still corners of the world where this kind of diversity is kept to a minimum. Perhaps it goes by unnoticed. Certainly in the metropolitan cities of the world this is no longer the case, no matter how much people fight it. The exchange of cultures is not a new tendency, it has just become quicker and more widespread in our modern age.

This past week in my current SoCal city, I had dinner with a Roman in a Neapolitan pizzeria (MiDiCi, and I recommend), had breakfast in a Cuban bakery (Porto’s) with my German friend and an Italian from Naples, had dinner with a Puerto Rican and a girl who is from Miami, but is also from Peru and Argentina, sang to the beat of Hotel California with a friend from Russia, and had quesadilla with a friend from Mexico.

I no longer look at these moments with awe, or with any sort of surprise. Maybe I should. They are wonderful moments, and I have created a life for myself where there is a constant flow and exchange of cultural ideas. Listening to a different language being spoken can be music to my ears, and often it activates my hunger for learning. For language is the gateway for culture, and a different language can even represent a slight change in personality. Often I wish my friends who know me in spoken English, knew me in spoken Spanish. It is a different experience. It is like jumping into a parallel universe and into someone else’s world.

People who are multilingual are constantly jumping between worlds with ease, and with little thought.

There is still a fight by those holding on to an idea of Patriotism. Makes sense, we are tribal beings, but tribes are not always defined by where we are born. We have the power to choose them. But with a mix of nostalgia and hope, I look at the future and I know everything I know will be different. Languages that I cherish, will most likely perish or transform with time. Most likely not in my lifetime, but it will happen. I already feel the loss, regardless of the fact that I will not see that happen. We have to learn to embrace the change; for it is nothing new, it is just becoming more and more apparent with the rapid pace of our times.

WHY WE LOVE BIG CITIES – I DREAM OF NY, I DREAM OF EUROPE

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For a little over a year, I have been living in Los Angeles. I haven’t yet warmed up to the city to the extent that I feel comfortable to call it my home; yet, when I first arrived to Los Angeles I absolutely loved it. Why? The beaches, the weather, the mountains, the proximity to both ocean and snow, the diversity, the food, you name it! The creativity! There are so many people that come to this city with a vision of making their dreams a reality. So many artists, writers, musicians, filmmakers. I felt surrounded by people that understood my desire for a creative life. Yet, I haven’t been able to call it home.

After a long inner search, it finally dawned on me. I miss that constant novelty I got in New York City. Where all I had to do was step outside my door without worrying about a car or parking and I knew I could find a world of possibilities. An adventure awaited. LA is a big city, and unfortunately, not the best example for public transportation. There are great pockets to the city. But having to drive to them takes away from the spontaneity that I personally crave.

I am drawn to travel. I dream of a European home. Weekend trips to different cultures by simply jumping on a train; different architecture, different languages spoken. European cities are built for the human scale, for walking; for experiencing architectural beauty every few steps. I see that in my future, but for now, my craving goes to the concrete jungle in the East Coast. New York still holds my heart, even with all of its imperfections (aka. the subway at rush hour).

Turns out, my craving of novelty is a very basic human need. We are biologically disposed to want to be in locations with variety, with differences, with complexity. We all have different ways of fulfilling this need. Perhaps many don’t even realize why, or how to fill it. There is even research that suggests humans are healthier when we live among variety. That the cities of the future, especially here in the US, that are built for the bottom line, could cause even more depression – among other health issues. Boredom increases cortisol levels more than sadness.

Imagine the cumulative effects of working and living in the same dull environment. Day after day.  Ughh.

Yes, I realize this took a dark turn. It all started with a sunny happy description of Los Angeles. The wonderful city of Los Angeles. I truly do think it’s beautiful. It does need to work on it’s infrastructure for better public transportation. With so many artists in the city, I don’t think it is living up to it’s best potential just yet. For now, I am here to point this out, but I see myself moving back to New York City. After all, I know I have unfinished business with that town, and with that, be closer to my beloved Europe.

Cheers!

What do you think? How do you look for novelty in your life?