It has been a hot minute since I’ve written a personal blog! And for some reason I’ve found the blank page more daunting here than for any of my writing gigs over the last few weeks. Oh, writing gigs you say? Why, yes, in fact I have been pursuing writing as a career. Look at…
Bella Italia
Working and living in Italy has been an intense undulation of highs and lows brought on by a surplus of cappuccini, glasses of vino rosso, soul-crushingly delicious pizze and the never-ending plight of a teacher: lesson planning. Not to mention, marking homework and exams, and researching activities that the kids won’t spit back in your face in…
The Ebb and Flow
I’ve always been equally fascinated, in love with, and terrified by the ocean. It holds a deep power that operates regardless of whether you are in or around it, what you think of it, or whatever you want to happen. It’s cavernous darkness really freaks me out – there’s so much mysterious crap under the…
One rant, two festivals, three countries.
People have asked me how the transition was coming to Europe after my 6 month stint in Southeast Asia: is it a big adjustment? How’s the jet lag? Are you culture shocked? And honestly even though the two regions are wildly different, flying into Germany just felt like I was coming home. Stepping out of…
Syllabic Sets (Haikus)
Eggs and toast I like, piggy bacon makes me cry. Mornings: a hard time. Princess high on her throne does not want to know the truth: love, pain, death, and the rest. She with eyes of gold, twenty-four karats betrothed glows when you hold her. She wears a smile, so her eyes must tell lies,…
Testing Mortality in the Name of Tattoos
I’ve been thinking a lot about privilege in the last weeks (who am I kidding, for the last years), and how easy it is for me to roam around the world and “find myself” while other people from places like the Philippines are not as free to travel. They have families to provide for and…
The Curse and Sigh
Fuck it. What to say I’ll just curse at the page. Its blank canvas glaring back at me with that pale complexion. Dark lines and creases etched by empty words and tight smiles. What is there to communicate, consider or reiterate. All I think about is the dark cloud that hangs above my mother’s house….
Authentically Inauthentic: Trials and Tribulations of Being a Tourist
Old Vietnamese women are genuinely bad ass. As I sit on a tiny stool with my knees up to my ears, enjoying my newly hydrated life, a minuscule old woman is hacking my coconut to pieces so I can enjoy the delicious insides. I’m constantly impressed by their strength, despite being some of the most…
Cultural, or just weird?
The Vietnamese are probably some of the loveliest humans I’ve met in my years of travelling. I mentioned in my previous post how kind and helpful the Vietnamese can be, but I didn’t really understand how deep that kindness is rooted. I think I am really fortunate to experience a community in Hanoi that is…
K A Y A M A N I K O 