I'm not anymore interested in what "my" culture or any other culture is telling me about what is important or what is not. In regards to travelling that means that I'm not doing the sights, I simply expose myself to where I find myself. Very much like a child whose experience of what surrounds it is not yet constrained by knowledge.
However, to try to free myself from lifelong conditionings is far from easy. For instance, to stay indoors when it is sunny outside is difficult to do for the imperative that one should go out in such weather and enjoy it is incredibly strong.
I'm not making myself knowledgeable for my trips. Before I arrived in Osaka, I had, for instance, not heard of Himeji and its castle, contrary to the many tourists who came specifically to visit the castle.
I prefer to venture into side streets that radiate a calm that is magical. I walk around and take pictures, mostly of flowers. Why I'm registering what I register I do not know. And, as far as I'm concerned, there is no need to know it.
Nevertheless, I'm quite automatically drawing comparisons. When walking through the side streets of Osaka and Himeji I'm often reminded of Bangkok. Needless to say my mind has its own ways.
The emotions and feelings that I'm aware of are the usual mix of joy, sadness and indifference. Although I've largely given up to try to make sense of it, I'm not as successful in this endeavour as I would like to be.
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