03 South America – Argentina
Searching for Borges’ footprints in Buenos Aires
Walking on the streets of Borges, I remembered Miller’s words in “Tropic of Cancer”, which clearly touched Borges’ state of mind: “… my human world has disappeared, there is only myself in this world, and the road has become my friend.” Borges created another Buenos Aires with subjective imagination. He had too little to see in his life, so he could only rely on imaginative meditation, letting his lonely heart and imperfect vision serve as the eyes of the Muse, using the lights on the street to scrutinize the chapters of life and death. The poet exclaimed, “The wide and submissive streets, you are the only music I have ever known in my life.” It can be said that every street in the Palermo district has accompanied the writer and played his only friend. The sky in Buenos Aires is cut into various shapes by countless high-rise buildings. In 1939, Borges moved with his family to Anjorena Street in Palermo. The backyard of this Andalusian style residence is winding and secluded, inspiring the author to create the Chinese style novel “The Garden of Forked Paths”. Today, this place, along with the Borges International Foundation located next to the former residence at 1660 Anjolena Street, has been transformed into the Borges Museum. The Borges Museum on Anjolena Street houses the author’s manuscripts, letters, and photos. The second floor also recreates the author’s past life scenes – a simple single bed, snow-white sheets, a desk, and a four story connected bookshelf. The wall is adorned with the author’s paintings, including a tiger he drew with a red pencil when he was four years old. Photography is prohibited in the exhibition area, and I repeatedly expressed my admiration for Borges to the administrator. Only then did the female administrator allow me to press the shutter button once under her supervision, so I took a picture of the wooden staircase in the center of the lobby. One day in 1957, Borges fell down this staircase and broke his head. After taking a large amount of painkillers, he had hallucinations and recorded these feelings in detail, thus giving birth to “Imaginary Animals”.
04 North America – United States
In New York, viewing architecture from a perspective
What kind of buildings can be built on the ruins of the World Trade Center to better convey people’s emotions after the 9/11 attacks? This is an important issue faced by all designers involved in reconstruction. The answer submitted by architect Santiago Calateva is a pure white building symbolizing peace doves – the World Trade Center transportation hub. The ceiling of this huge oval shaped building consists of two sets of rib shaped steel structures painted white, resembling the massive remains of prehistoric animals, but also resembling open bird wings when viewed from the side, light and pure, cleverly linking death and rebirth at the same time. This commemorative white color is also used throughout the interior of the building. The vitality of the World Trade Center building lies in its function as a hub for ground and underground public transportation in the area, connecting the subway system and the rapid transit to suburban New Jersey, serving thousands of commuters and tourists.
05 Africa – Morocco
In Morocco, witnessing the color palette of the gods
The ancient city of Fez is like a fairy tale world in “One Thousand and One Nights”: donkeys carrying goods occasionally pass by, and lamps with Arabic style hollow patterns emit beautiful light spots on the ground Walking along the colorful path, I eagerly watched the various carpets, ceramics, and dyed handmade crops. At the coppersmith shop, the scene of craftsmen focusing on tapping copper plates made me unable to move my eyes. Carefully caressing the intricate patterns on the handmade plate, I am also amazed by the detailed and complex patterns. Each piece is unique and one-of-a-kind, and it is the work of the craftsmen at Feisi. It has a unique charm that industrial assembly line products cannot compare to.
06 Oceania – Australia
Strolling around the aquarium with Haruki Murakami in Sydney
I took a walk alone to Darling Harbour and went to the famous Sydney Aquarium. The aquarium is very large, and it took nearly two hours to see it according to the tour route, but it was very, very interesting. If there is a Michelin Guide to Aquariums or something like that, there is no doubt that you will get a perfect score. I have been to aquariums in many countries, and this place mainly showcases Australia’s unique fish and marine life, with very special exhibition content. At the beginning, Darling Harbour in Sydney was a platypus. Like other mammals in Australia, it always appears somewhat dull and listless. It’s like a person who is forcibly awakened despite still feeling drowsy, or someone who is forced to put on unappealing clothes and dragged out the door. There are also huge crocodiles. Australia has two types of crocodiles: saltwater crocodiles that inhabit seawater and freshwater crocodiles that inhabit freshwater. Australians who love simplicity in everything refer to the former as “small saltwater” and the latter as “small freshwater”. This way of calling them makes people mistakenly think they are cute, but in fact, there is nothing cute about them. Xiaoxian often acts alone, while Xiaodan likes to form teams and groups. Xiao Dan only raised his eyes to the surface of the water and bit them in one bite when the animal came to drink water at night. Kangaroos and other animals are often devoured, but most of them do not attack humans. The transparent cylindrical corridor of the Sydney Aquarium leads directly to the seabed of Darling Harbour. The sea outside is genuine and not artificially imitated (of course, it is separated), so it is quite real and shocking. Although it will not be swallowed by jellyfish, it is still intimidating. Although there is no physical object, the example of it leaving scars on people’s skin in the form of photos is truly shocking. I have also been stung by jellyfish while swimming on the hot sea surface, and the pain was unbearable. And the astonishing extent of the scars in these photos is far beyond that of Japanese jellyfish. My skin is so deformed! There are four types of jellyfish in Australia that can cause serious harm to humans: 1. Box jellyfish, 2. Ocean jellyfish, 3. Hair jellyfish, and 4. Monk hat jellyfish. If you just listen to the pronunciation of their names, it may feel good, but none of them are cute or approachable. Once stung by these guys and attacked by Xiaoxian Jun, it would be unbearable to witness. In summary, the aquarium is very large, and walking alone can be exhausting. It should be divided into two days to see.
Spring is a great season for travel. Dangdang has launched the “One Book, One City” series of columns in collaboration with Ctrip, covering 15 cities across 6 continents. Each destination will recommend a good book for you, hoping to add a special meaning and emotion to your journey. Due to limited space, more popular cities can be viewed by clicking on the images below. We hope that we can all find inner peace and strength, and feel the collision and resonance between human cultures in such a journey. Let’s follow the book together and embark on this wonderful journey!
