MALAYSIAN SKETCHES

I could not close the Malaysian chapter without mentioning a few things in no chronological order:

A very important bog: THE VIP'S TOILET.
I have seen lots of crazy things in my life and in my journeys, and people might think that the craziest of them would be related to some exotic island in the middle of nowhere... sorry to disappoint you, most of them show up in the common places. What about this: the vip's toilet in one of the many mega shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur. What kind of involution to such a simple and sick mind has lead to this aberration? Now people not only piss away all their money and time wasting their life in the shopping malls, but their brain-washed heads tell them they need to go to the vip toilet in order to emerge from the mob of the commoners, and they pay for it, making big smiles. Eventually, the line is longer than a bank, and they possibly piss their paints. Am I too cynic? Maybe, or maybe is this the surrogate of adventure, the replacement of pleasure for those who cannot afford the luxury of understanding.


THERE'S SUCH A LOT OF WORLD TO SEE: Two drifters off to see the world.
Strolling around Penang, bouncing from a temple to a market, I bumped into a beautiful little cafe: “Tigun's bicycle cafe” an hand written banner lets you guess. Inside I quickly recognized the class touch of a wise hand: there is a big, wonderful, old fashion coffe grounder guarded by a chinese style theater hung up on the wall; the italian coffe machine has been placed on a huge shipping wood case, all stamped with the history of the different countries and borders crossed to get there.
I try the tiramisu, with an excellent espresso, and I start chatting with the owner. Tigun is a man in his fifty who barely looks forty: fit and smiling, his indonesian face talks about a life fully lived. The idea of this cafe became a reality as his wife gave birth to “his bodyguard” few months ago, and he finally decided to turn his retirement in a new adventure opening a new concept cafe, that is, the globe trotter way of settling down.

True it is that Tigun saw the World. For his 24 birthday he jumped on a bicycle and started his first big trip: from Perth to Melbourne - no kidding, no middle ways, just go and hit the road, the way I like it. From that point on he kept traveling across the World onto two wheels and just one big, strong, everlasting engine: an heart that never gives up.

After four years around the globe during which he payed his way playing ukulele, selling pictures of the remote and unspoiled places visited, working occasional jobs (and by the way learning how to prepare a real tiramisu in Lombardia) he finally landed in New York, where he built a successful career in the broadway showbiz.

Sipping a cup of coffe, between a joke and a traveling tale, we exchanged opinions about our traveling experiences so different (his on land, mine primary on water) and so close: why wander around the world by bicycle, why hitch-hike on the sea? Slow and independent. These seem to be the keywords of a journey that has to be not a vacation, but an increased sensitiveness for things.