An "un-European" experience...

Recently got back from my trip to Italy... surely I can go blah blah blah over the beautiful places and things I saw, but most striking thing during the whole of trip was , what I call, an "un-European" feel of Italy... From whatever small number of countries I had seen in Europe, I had formed an image of typical European city and people. And to my surprise, Italy was far too different in many respects from this image I had, of Europe, in general...

People in Italy look much different from other parts... In fact, they themselves have their typical appearance. Most of the girls are way too tanned, hardly any blonds (mostly black hair),men with their broad forehead, with a characteristic frame of specs (which almost every Italian seems to wear). By the way, Italians seemed to me far less innocent or peaceful looking (or may be I was trying to search Don Corleone in everyone :P). Actually, the sound of Italian language is also one of the main reasons for this. Italian seems way too rough with strong accents (similar to Spanish), and I didn't like the sound of it... On the other hand, French, Dutch and German seem much softer to hear.

All over Europe (well, the Europe I have seen), people respect the traffic rules heartily and pedestrians are given top priority on the road, with people in cars being extremely polite to pedestrians. But this was not the case in Italy, where I got a kind of "Indian-ish" feel with regard to traffic ! :D . All throughout Europe I had seen far too less number of two-wheelers (well, except you count bicycles in two-wheelers) on road than that in India. In Italy, however, I saw much more two-wheelers than those, say, in Paris or in my city, Lille.

And , in a great coincidence, just when I was thinking about it, a friend showed me this video on Youtube, which quite supports what I saw... Well, not as exaggerated as shown here, but to a certain degree, yes, sure ! And it is made by an Italian... :P. Here it is :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1kjKtCnD6g

Amsterdam - An eye-opener...

When I visited Amsterdam, sure, I loved the place with it's scenic beauty of canals everywhere, old buildings and an old-ward charm of it's own, but more importantly, it was an eye-opener for me in many respects.

Some "standard tourist places" ( I hate this tag, but the places I assign this tag here to, are great, nevertheless..) I visited were the canals, dutch countryside (with classic dutch windmills etc.), Anne Frank's house (too good a place), and other such places...

But the more unconventional and not a commonplace experience (in fact, it's as far from commonplace that you can get), were the Red Light Area and the so-called "coffee-shops" (which sell drugs). For the ones who don't know, drugs and prostitution is legal in Amsterdam... About the drugs, I really don't want to comment whether making drugs legal is right or not. It's a clash between individual freedom and the responsibility of the Government.

Red Light District was a bit of a cultural shock for me, where the whole concept is as simple as window shopping.You see it, you chose, you make a deal, and that's that. It takes a very different kind of mindset to fathom this. But, in a way, it makes sense. Well, prostitution has been the oldest profession in the world. So it's actually hypocritical to ban it, when, in reality, it exists in EVERY corner of the world, whether you ban it or not. It's like running away from the reality... There is a saying - " We can wake up the one who is sleeping... But who is to wake up the one who acts to be sleeping ?"

An eye-opener indeed...

Amazing Paris...

Sometimes, out of numerous things of a category, you seem to like something purely out of instinct... There is no reasoning,no facts to support that... But still, you like that... I say 'you have a "thing" for that choice...

Ever since I have been thinking about traveling to hundreds of places around the world, I had that "thing" for two cities in the world, New York and Paris... Well, really speaking, there are at least 5-6 more cities , which are, if not more, equally glamorous, in terms of tourist attraction in the world... But again, instinctively, I like these two the most and was really craving to see these. I got the opportunity to visit at least one of these some days back...Paris...

I won't go into the details of the places I went to and the things I saw, because that's not something that lasts in our mind. Instead, it is the "impression" that the city leaves in your mind, which is something you remember even after 10 years later...

The most important thing that amazed me while in Paris, is the architecture. There are hardly any buildings without any intricate artwork, sculptures, beautiful designs... Most of them are classic cream-colored, grand, mostly with huge pillars, huge windows, with an aristocratic touch...Well, many cities have at least some such buildings, but the amazing thing about Paris is that the city is full of such buildings. "Majestic is one word, which can describe them the best...

I visited many glamorous places - Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Notre Dame, river Seine, Arc de Triomphe. Each time, I recollected the image I had of these places (from the information I had about them), and was thrilled to actually see these places...- especially ,the Eiffel, with the awesome panoramic view of the city that you get atop Eiffel...and off course, the majestic view of Eiffel itself at night, when they have hourly light-shows at Eiffel. The night spent below Eiffel is surely one of the most memorable ones... But the moment to top it all was when atop Eiffel tower, when I was already in high spirits with the awesome view that was in front of my eyes, I saw there, a guy proposing to his girlfriend with a ring, and the girl, half-crying , choking with emotions, said "yes" to him... It was the most romantic moment I have ever witnessed (in real or in films)... Simply unbeatable !!

I had written earlier, that I won't go into the details of the places I saw, but this is something which I will remember for years...We were in Montmartre near the Basilica of the Sacré-Coeur... It's high up on an hill... gives a great view of the city... on the steps of the church there.. with people sitting, 3-4 guys playing some calm English numbers with a guitar and an Amp.With the serene atmosphere, enjoying the calmness, enjoying the moment... really hypnotizing...

I couldn't see much of Paris in 2 packed days... But even with whatever part of the city I saw, (and may be because I have not seen many cities around the world, but whatever..) , it easily qualifies as the Best City I have ever visited....

Updates

Wanted to post some updates about my stay here.. Work-wise, it's going fine.. I am working on topological analysis of chaotic systems in a Theoretical Physics research group. Working again in a research group again gave me a good feel of what my life would be as a graduate student... (for an AWESOME comical view at this, see : www.phdcomics.com ).
Have been getting to know a lot about France - it's educational system, the universities here, their love for their language (and hate for anything English :P), the customs here, lifestyles here, general set-up, their mind-set, wines and champagnes here.. also, not to forget, the French language... - I am loving it the more I study it..
Have been meeting a lot of Indians as well as Europeans/ Chinese/ Canadians/ Africans here.. Lately, I am so charmed by an obsessive passion these travelers have... Some are back-packers.. I have always been intrigued by back-packers... but just that when you meet so many of them, so frequently you get to know more and more about it..In all it's a life-style --> ' earn for your travels.. and you need not lavishly spend (as we generally see when (most )people from India go on "world tours" organized by travel agents) for your travels... You need to know how to manage your costs even while traveling to hundreds of places.. See as much places as you can - that means not just the ones with the glamor- Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, New-York, LA, California,London , but also to exotic locations like Mexico,Venezuela, Peru,Brazil, China, Argentina, Turkey, ,many countries in Africa... The aim is not just to see the buildings, monuments, museums,and natural scenery, but to go see people, their culture, their traditions, religions, interacting with them, possibly living with them for a day or two.. seeing how they spend their daily life, understanding different cultures and lifestyles, sharing your experiences with them, making friends all over the world...."
Well much more to say... but will soon pen it down properly...