A day in a life of a Backpacker . . .

Backpacking has become something of a rite of passage after finishing university, taking a year/months break backpacking around Europe & putting daily responsibilities on temporary hiatus. I would start my trip as far North as possible – Scandinavia, and learn to live by what Eurail train go where and when. Get on a train about 9 PM, travel all night and get off the next morning to explore where ever it is I have landed, then repeat it all over again, only stopping at hostels once in a while to recharge myself. I would start from the North, then Central and then the South, ending the travel in Greece to enjoy some time on the Greek islands of the Aegean! Traveling with a Video camera, MP3 Player and a desire for "authentic" contact with local culture – I yearn for this kind of life. Blogging from various Internet cafes around the world, I would stay in contact with buddies from home. Then as my wallet gets thinner, I start looking for temporary low-paid, unskilled work in the countries I’m at e.g. fruit picking in the orchards, camp counselors in the summer. From there, I continued on with my ‘journey’, wandering aimlessly going wherever my feet takes me, hopping on the next train, crossing the border to continue in search of finding myself and a whole new adventure.

Jeux D'enfants

Love Me If you Dare - Are you game?
Julien and Sophie were 2 mischievous kids who invented an outrages game, whoever held the tin box would meet the other’s dare. The rule was simple : Are You Game – or Not ? But as they grew older, the stakes grew higher, the dares became dangerous. Until the gamble was more than just a game, it was an obsession. Better than sex, better than love, better than life itself. For better, for worse, for now and forever – Love Me If You Dare.




Julien Jeanvier : [talking about Igor the gym coach] And how big are his biceps again?
Sophie Kowalski : Bigger than your brain
Julien Jeanvier : And you like this guy?
Sophie Kowalski : As a second choice [starts walking towards Igor]
Julien Jeanvier : [shouting] Second choice... who's your first? Sophie...

Cap Ou Pas Cap ?

Sophie : Say you're sorry !
Julien : Come on, it was fun !
Sophie : Say you're sorry !
Julien : Not game... don't play !
Sophie : Look. You know i'm game for anything ! Now apologize !
Julien : Don't hold your breath!
Sophie : [strugglin w Julien] Gimme the box!
Sophie : Kiss me. Dare you !
Julien : Dare ! [ Kiss her on the lips ]
Sophie : [smiling, climbing on the roof of a car] I say kiss me. [ Julien jump on the car ]
Driver : Are you crazy ? Get off my car ! Get down, I said. They're totally nuts ! Get down ! You hear ? Stupid Idiots ! [ Julien & Sophie jump down and run away ]
Sophie : [Kissing each other] Hold me.
Sophie : Love me.
Julien : Dare.
Sophie : [ Backing off ] Is this a game for you ?
Julien : No. A dare. You put it out there.
Sophie : Well if i did, you didn't take it.
Sophie : You fool, you'll miss your bus. [ Walking
away ]

Somewhere on This Planet it Must Exist.

Not quite ready to surrender himself to responsibility or mainstream society, a young American travels to Asia and discovers he is not alone in his feelings. . . . The Beach.



Etienne : Oh fuck! Richard! Fuck!
Richard : What?
Etienne : I saw a fin!
Richard : What? Are you joking?
Etienne : No, no. A fin!
Richard : OK, a shark fin?
Etienne : I don't know! Just a fin! Over there, about a hundred meters.
Richard : Well, was it big?
Etienne : Yes.
Richard : Well, what the fuck do you expect me to do about it?
Etienne : Nothing! I just thought you should know!
Richard : Well, to be honest, Etienne, I'd rather you hadn't told me!
Etienne : I'm sorry!
Richard : Well, it's a bit fuckin' late now, isn't it?

Paradise Found - Innocence Lost.

The wonders of modern technology, like computers, video games, cell phones, pagers and the Internet, were designed to make our lives more enjoyable and facilitate communications. Yet for many, the complexity of the digital world is overwhelming, leading to a feeling of unreality... of being disconnected.

Etienne : One kilometer.
Françoise : Two.
Etienne : Richard?
Richard : I dunno; I'm American.
Etienne : So?
Richard : I tink miles, nt KM
Etienne : Okay, so how many miles do u tink it is?
Richard : I dunno, but it looks a long way away. -

[ The Beach ]

’On seeing the 100% Perfect Girl one Beautiful April Morning'

One beautiful April morning, on a narrow side street in Tokyo's fashionable Harajuku neighborhood, I walked past the 100% perfect girl.

Tell you the truth, she's not that good-looking. She doesn't stand out in any way. Her clothes are nothing special. The back of her hair is still bent out of shape from sleep. She isn't young, either - must be near 30, not even close to a "girl," properly speaking. But still, I know from fifty yards away: She's the 100% perfect girl for me. The moment I see her, there's a rumbling in my chest, and my mouth is as dry as a desert . . . . . .

"Yesterday on the street I passed the 100% girl," I tell someone.
"Yeah?" he says. "Good-looking?"
"Not really."
"Your favorite type, then?"
"I don't know. I can't seem to remember anything about her - the shape of her eyes or the size of her breasts."
"Strange."
"Yeah. Strange."
"So anyhow," he says, already bored, "what did you do? Talk to her? Follow her?"
"Nah. Just passed her on the street."

She's walking east to west, and I west to east. It's a really nice April morning.

Wish I could talk to her. Half an hour would be plenty: just ask her about herself, tell her about myself, and - what I'd really like to do - explain to her the complexities of fate that have led to our passing each other on a side street in Harajuku on a beautiful April morning in 1981. . . . . .

Now, of course, I know exactly what I should have said to her. . . .
It would have started "Once upon a time" and ended "A sad story, don't you think?" . . . .


[ Excerpts from short story written by Japanese author - Murakami Haruki translated by Jay Rubin ]

" Love at First Sight "

They' re both convinced
that a suddden passion joined them.
Such certainty is beautiful,
but uncertainty is more beautiful still.

Since they'd never met before, they're sure
that there'd been nothing between them.
But what's the word from the streets, staircases, hallways -
perhaps they've passed by each other a million times ?

I want to ask them
If they do remember -
a moment face to face
in some revolving door ?
Perhaps a "sorry" muttered in a crowd ?
A curt "wrong number" caught in the receiver ? -
But i know the answer.
No, they dont remember.

They'd be amaze to hear
that Chances has been toying with them
for years now.

Not quite ready yet
to become their Destiny
It pushed them close, drove them apart,
it barred their path,
stifling a laughter
and then leaped aside.

There were signs and signals,
even if they couldn't read them yet.
Perhaps 3 years ago
or just last Tuesday
a certain leaf fluttered
from one shoulder to another ?
Something was dropped and then picked up.
Who knows, maybe the ball that vanished
into childhood's thicket ?

There were doorknobs and doorbells
where one hand had covered another
beforehand.
Suitecases checked and standing side by side.
One night, perhaps the same dream
Grown hazy by morning.

Every beginning
is but a continuation,
and the book of events
is never more than half open.

[Wislawa Szymborska]

[ Reality Bites ]

" You only live life once, and I want to at least give it a shot. I've only been running away since. This is my last year in Uni and I didn't work hard towards finding my dream, or come to terms with reality. I was afraid of the consequences and kept stepping on my brakes. Look at what I'm doing now. People who went into stocks and teaching are going to be wearing nice suits, as if they are so much better. If I knew it was going to be like this, I wouldn't have gone into this major. I could have gone to a better college, come to terms with reality and become a contributing member of society. ”

- “ Are you going to work in an office for the rest of your life ? ”

“ Of course not ! ”

- “ Thats what I mean about not coming to terms with reality. Its impossible to keep working and still film what I want, both in terms of time and money. Making a living through multimedia production was nothing more than a distant dream.”

“ When you think dreams end ? ”

- “ Well, when you reach it or give it up. If you give up, your dream would end.”

Following Someone else's Footsteps

“ You're still doing __ as a hobby rite ?

“ I'm so jealous, as long as you are happy with that, your job doesn't really matter to you. Otherwise you wouldn't be still playing around after going into that major, instead of committing yourself to a company, any company like us. See, you're different from us, because you are not following anyone's footsteps. You can create something on your own. ”

- “ In the end I am still following someone else’s footsteps...... ”

Borrowing Someone else's Dream

My parents and everyone around me thought I would go to a decent school and get a decent job. Then I started thinking, maybe that’s the best for me, too. I've always followed in someone's footsteps. I claimed to want to be a Designer in Primary School, an Architect in Secondary School. Multimedia Production, too, was my friend's dream at first. But she gave that up quickly and became a high-income white-collar worker . So I thought I should just give it up too...

Boredom Factor or Commitment Issues ? Maybe I fear that if I were to fully commit, I might just get sucked in & miss out on something else.

[ Excerpt From "Within You" ]

120 Ladybugs

" We don't have to do stuff like that anymore .... For guys like us that never stick with anything, it won't get finished anyway."

- " Hey, don't say 'US' ! "

" The graduation project was good b'coz we had to do it to graduate."

- " I guess so."

" That was a good time. Working on a movie we liked, Hangin'out till morning, Going to class, Working on the movie some more... that life was like a dream. And now, my life revolves around 120 ladybugs."

Pieces Of Me

It was like there are all these pieces of my life that had fit together before this graduation year. A puzzle with an exact number of pieces and a perfect fit. Somehow, some way, the puzzle had broken apart. And I'm trying to put it back together again, but the pieces had changed their shape & don't fit anymore... There seems to be new pieces to fit in. What are they..? Or is it wasn't even them in the first place...

Thoughts for Year 2006

The Greatest Handicap : Fear
The Best Day : Today
Easiest Thing To Do : Find A Fault
Most Useless Asset : Pride
The Greatest Mistake : Giving Up
Greatest Stumbling Block : Egotism
Greatest Comfort : Work Well Done
Most Disagreeable Person : The Complainer
Worst Bankruptcy : Loss of Enthusiasm
Greatest Need : Common Sense
Meanest Feeling : Regret At Another's Success
Best Gift : Forgiveness
Greatest Moment : Death
Greatest Knowledge : God
Greatest Thing In The World : Love
Healthiest Diet : Self- Acceptance

Dead Poet Society

Neil Perry : I hereby reconvene the Welton Chapter of the Dead Poets Society. These meetings will be conducted by myself and by the rest of the new initiates now present. Todd Anderson, because he prefers not to read, will keep minutes of the meetings. I will now read the traditional opening message from society member Henry David Thoreau.

I went into the woods because I wanted to live deliberately. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life... to put to rout all that was not life; and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. - Quoting Henry David Thoreau. Pledge Overstreet.

Two roads diverged in the wood and I, I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference - Robert Frost

They're not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they're destined for great things, just like many of you, their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because, you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen, you hear it? - - Carpe - - hear it? - - Carpe, Carpe Diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary. - John Keating

[ Dead Poets Honor ]

Wandering Aimlessly

Someone Said : -
Some people had a dream ever since they can remember.. To be a successful actor/writer and do good work in that field and such. And it really done nothing but make them miserable. Not to say that they don't love it and have the passion, but the sacrifices they have to make are exorbitant. And even if they love it at first, can become just another job and chore. They want to give it up, but they know they would get restless and need to continue on this path they feel they are choosen to do...
For those who got no sense of direction in your life, Enjoy the aimlessness ! Maximize your enjoyment of life and explore the meaning of existence. - Why don't i feel better ?

University Years... Part II

Uni life is not just about cramping up for a midterm, staying up studying for this class that you only been to maybe twice, or your way of avoiding working fulltime. Its there where you not only have to figure out your own life, you have to deal with building relationship with someone else whose just as confuse about the future as you are. Some say 3 years such a long time, but it will be gone before you.

University Years... Part I

Anyone whose been to Uni knows that life there is an alternate reality. The campus contingent just isn't part of the real world, with real rules and consequences. You have 3 years to be irresponsible. Its a time where you can sleep through your alarm 5 days a week & still pass all your classes; a time where you dont remember class time but time 'wasted' hanging out with friends; a time where you can be dead beat Saturday morning and still be ready to rage 8 hrs later. So stay out late. Go out on a Tuesday when you have a paper due on Wednesday. Spend money you dont have. Work never ends, but Uni does.