Field notes from the old quarter
A modest backpack helps, but it is not the point. Every spring I revisit the same questions about old maps. I would rather do one thing with care than five things fast.
Lessons
Every autumn I revisit the same questions about old maps. I keep coming back to markets, mainly because it rewards time. There is no single right way to approach keeping a journal, but some ways are kinder than others.
I am still not sure I have it right, but it is closer. Between keeping a journal and learning a few words, the second one taught me more. Good markets is mainly a series of modest, unglamorous decisions.
The best advice I got was simply to slow down. The result is not perfect, but it is honest. I packed too much, as usual, and wore the same jacket every day.
- Compare against last spring
- Ask someone at a mountain pass
- Do less keeping a journal, more learning a few words
- Keep a phrasebook within reach
- Stop before you are tired
Where it started
The ferry crossing took four hours and felt like ten minutes. A paper map invites conversations that a phone never does. Off-season towns are quieter, cheaper and far more honest.
A few details
If you only take one thing from this, make it the part about border towns. Nothing here requires a rail pass, though it does make things easier. Between packing light and keeping a journal, the second one taught me more. The train was late, which turned out to be the best part of the day. Most problems with markets turn out to be problems with time.
Nobody spoke much English, and somehow that made it easier. Nothing here requires a rain jacket, though it does make things easier. Good ferries is mainly a series of modest, unglamorous decisions. The details matter less than the routine of paying attention. Good rainy cities is mainly a series of modest, unglamorous decisions.
- Stop before you are tired
- Start with ferries and nothing else
- Do less keeping a journal, more getting lost
- Ask someone at the old quarter
I wrote most of this on a calm Sunday morning. If you only take one thing from this, make it the part about mountain villages. Every spring I revisit the same questions about modest islands.