going down

owh... so this is the day. the thirtieth of june. 

the day when all my bags are packed, and when i am ready to go again. 

it is interesting to notice, while i wait here for a friend to come and travel together, that the sum of nine months of living here can fit into two suitcases, and one backpack. hoho!

my shoes are still the same. my haircut doesn't change that much, except from that which is shaped by the hat i like to wear recently. 

i'll be going down soon. well, someone once said that a journey back is better than the outward one. going nowhere or somewhere cannot compare with the joy of travelling down a familiar path that has no need of a signpost. the joy of going home. i think that's true.

but my trip this time is not exactly homeward bound as yet. true that i will not comeback here and occupy the same place in the wellington square. not anymore. i have come to the conclusion of my days in oxford. they keys will be returned. but i am not leaving for jakarta. my next host will be the streets of london. cikini street will certainly have to wait a little longer before we can hug each other again.

in this house, almost everyone is already leaving. only some remain to finish their business.

i know that i am going to miss a lot of things from this place and absolutely from the experience we've got from these extraordinary days. maxim, gillian, john, helen, smitha, nicola, cassy, sandra, see you guys! all the best with your future plans!

fourty five parallel

ah, it's home, home again.

the room is not tidy, but it's my own room now, not a hotel room or someone else's room. it's warm in a special way even when the heater is off. and even if all you have is a bag full of dirty laundries and a fridge without food left. you are back, so it's okay.

well, this is my first full day here. i came back from the eurpean continent yesterday morning. i took a bus from the lowland through belgium and france and a ferry that departed from calais port at two in the morning. cold and rainy it was. plus one hour across the strait, and landed again in dover harbour...

and then victoria station bid me a sleepy welcome as i made it to london at five thirty in the morning. the streets were yet empty. but the coffee shop was fortunately open.

it was a mixed emotion that i felt when i see england again. already i missed the people i met in the continent. something in me feels that the entire trip seems surreal, if you know what i mean. the towns i visited, the transportation methods i chose, the timing of my travel, the fantastic people i met, the activities i did, the stories shared between us... it was all just right.

and today, i feel restored. i am ready to resume my dissertation work although my laptop still has not worked yet. it has been angry at me since we were in paris... makes me "oi oi oi".

well, at least now i am back in the fourty five parallel. oxford.

"welcome back vahd," said john;

"vahd, i used your rice cooker when you were away, it's a good machine," confessed smitha;

"about your laptop problem, don't worry, i can transfer your files from the hard disc to your external one for free," daqi assured me;

"oh, it's very nice to see you again vahd... by the way do you know, i have to see a dentist today," said sandra...

ho ho ho... wonderful friends they are.

after a day of resting, now i think it's time to read, think, and write again, and continue my days as a student.

but before anything else, i sincerely want to thank all my friends and relatives who have been very kind and hospitable during my journey. you made it such a meaningful and unforgetable trip to me... so thank you, thank you very much indeed.

five-word message

this is a poster in my dining room. the original ones were used during the world war two to influence public opinion. there were no television and internet back then. poster was a highly effective medium to steady public's resolve and maintain morale. and the five-word message sums it all. in today's context the words are still relevant somehow. keep calm and carry on. nothing ideological. just simply british.

nightingales

midnight birds, what are you doing out there. i can hear your conversations from my room. after everyone in this house is asleep, except me, you and your friends are still singing in the park. why?

do you discuss something out there? i believe you don't have essays to submit this week, do you? so what do you discuss, tell me please. in english if possible.

are you cold, or scared? are you a bit drunk tonight? or are you just having a late night picnic at the wellington square? is it a bit hungry that you feel? would you like to have some bread? or are you just being touched by loneliness? it must be dark out there, isn't it. i hope you are not lost.

i'm sure you're not afraid of darkness. i hear your's is a lovely song. it seems as if nature speaks through you in this midnight hour. even though to me it's a bit odd to hear birds singing at this time, i admit your cheerful music bring a sense of spring into my mind. so please carry on singing. tell your stories to the stars, or to the wind if it's a cloudy night... and i will sit silently right here, in my room at the basement of this old house, guessing what is the meaning of your sweet song. if you wouldn't mind.

---

"...i built my house beside the wood
so i could hear you singing,
and it was sweet and it was good
and love was all beginning..."

- nightingale, l.c.-

another kind of rain has just poured down

heavy wind has caused this.
the blanket of green is now half yellowed.
by the falling leaves.

and here is another perspective of the park
right in front of the house where i reside:











"ah, look at that bench over there, what a perfect spot to have a picnic lunch isn't it?"