When I recently yearned for an escape from the city, I chose to visit Ban Me, an enticing land of green meadows, golden tree marigolds, the fierce Draynur waterfall, perennial inactive volcanoes that produced red basalt soil, and particularly the mystery of nature that endowed us with the choicest coffee beans. A trip to Ban Me also filled me with desire to place this capital of coffee on the tourist map.
On the very first day I set foot in the vast wilderness with my traveling companion, I was overcome with strong emotions. Having lived in urban areas, I found myself on deserted basalt roads pondering the sky above bright red maize fields, the wooden stilt houses dwarfed in the boundless green of mountains, the idle clouds roaming day and night. These natural vistas seemed more fascinating to me than the busy streets of the city.
In the afternoon when the sun still shone, we embarked on our journey to the sacred land of Madrak. The waterfall was humming and wild leaves were murmuring then suddenly grew silent. Look! Purple rose myrtles, a petrified tree and wild flowers hiding themselves under dried leaves on the precipitous cliffs-they all greeted us. What a picture of contrasting colors, of life and death and the majesty of nature.
Heavy clouds suddenly gathered to darken the sky. Under a veil of rain, we left the forest. Despite the slippery ground, we managed to make it through the downpour thanks to a local Ede boy's instructions to skew our soles and lean on sticks.
Reaching the fountain at the forest edge, we continued to pass through spiky cliffs. As the rain ended, there cliffs were still warm in contrast with the cold fountain. The roots of some white-trunked plants poked through the fountain and cliffs, showing their insatiable vitality.
After our journey to the highlands, we picked up brown printed pebbles and put them on an ostrich eggshell to make a work we called "Position and Power;' inspired by our interesting journey in search of a balance and referencing the Vietnamese idiom "throwing the egg against the rock."
Night fell and the moon peeked out behind a dark cloud. We had a late dinner at a rustic house in the for est. We were all tipsy, by the forest or the wine? Our midnight stories filled my mind with novel ideas. The silence of the forest fell hard, soothing our weary senses. The heaven and the earth seemed to converge on this night. The moon reflected itself in the lake, while the bellows of geese and the chirps of crickets would have stirred any wanderer.
Dawn broke and the sun presided over mountains. By a stone table under a red Barringtonia tree, we were both comforted with calm and warm feelings. I rose up, took a deep breath and stared at the clouds, which looked like a soaring dragon on the horizon. The day grew brighter and I felt incredible gratitude for the new day that arrived!
No comments:
Post a Comment