Solitude can be scary. So, many people choose not to go travelling on their own. Yet, solo travelling should be tried at least once in life, and I guarantee you’ll meet many awesome individuals. Here’s a post dedicated to them, along with a big hug, and some reflections on what it […]
Read moreCategory: Inner Journeys
There are journeys in the world, and there are inner journeys, here is where I keep track of my personal thoughts about life, society, and change, while traveling.
Cambodia: Paradise on a Highway to Hell
Uncontrolled over-development, plastic pollution, strong corruption, and a nonconstructive, sometimes violent attitude towards foreigners, makes Cambodia one of the worse places I have visited, despite the potential to be a real paradise. Here is my experience, and the reasons behind this assessment. When you travel long-term and you visit many […]
Read moreHorrors of the Khmer Rouge: S-21 and the Killing Fields
Visiting the genocide museums in Phnom Penh is absolutely necessary to fully understand what happened in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge regime. Here is how it went, what I have seen and felt, and the reflections about today’s world that this powerful and moving experience has caused to emerge in […]
Read moreThe Strength of Superstition: Taoism in Modern China
The materialistic vision of the new Chinese society might have won over religion, but not over the strength of superstition, and thousands of years of cultural heritage. Taoism has remained in this form, but is the original wisdom completely lost? One thing can be said for sure: many, many Chinese […]
Read moreTravel injury? Things to do to keep positive, expectations vs reality
So, I had this grand plan to go on some adventurous treks in the Ladhak, and doing some ecological volunteering in Spiti Valley, and spend months lost in nature around the Indian Himalayas. Instead, I snapped a tendon in my right bicep, doing some simple gardening work no less. Medical […]
Read moreMind and Body: the Sensorial Experience of Vipassana
The meditation technique taught by the Buddha himself can be learnt in 10 days, an intense retreat that will put your inner strength to the test, but can be highly rewarding and bring benefits for both spirit and mind. After years of mulling over it, what better place to finally […]
Read moreThoughts in front of Gandhi’s Memorial
The Raj Ghat, in the North-East part Delhi, is a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi, and is situated in a big green park, with long avenues and wide meadows. The black marble is settled where Gandhi cremation took place, while on the other side an eternal flame burns. Gandhi is a […]
Read moreKilling for the light: the White Tiger of Bangalore
One of my Indian hosts kindly gifted me with The White Tiger, a best selling novel by Indian writer Aravind Adiga. The book is about the journey of a boy born to be a sweet-maker – in a lower caste of Indian society – from a position of servitude to being […]
Read moreWhy I No Longer Comment on Politics on Social Media
One, I have been working for many years in the EU politics realm, and in communications. Two, I have discussed issues such as trade agreements, immigration, EU integration, Brexit, and whatnot millions of times, in and out the social networks. Three, I’m Italian. So? What about being Italian? So, right […]
Read moreGuruwa: Healers of Tharu People
Tharu is the name of the ethnic group of the Terai region, Nepal. This is to a larger extent still a rural society, and among their know-how and practices, still live on the role of the Guruwa, or healers. The Guruwa (pronounced Goo-roo-wah) are doctors, with lots of knowledge about […]
Read moreI Love Slow and Solo Traveling
The difference is all in the pace. I have always been a fast traveler, now I am a slow one, and I love it! I have been on the road for less than two months, and I have been only to Nepal so far. Yet, I have made experiences that […]
Read morePizzighettone, or the Revolution of Unchanging Worlds
Are local realities solutions to global problems? Sometimes a seemingly unchanging world hides the potential for a constant revolution: people acting on the territory, for the territory. I have been staying in my hometown for more than the usual two or three days in a long, long time. This gave […]
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