In the first of their upcoming installments on Japan, PRI's Studio360 has posted this wonderful video interview of renowned travel writer Pico Iyer with Kurt Anderson. Iyer went to Japan 20 years ago on a soul-searching mission, checking himself into a Buddhist meditation retreat. But he found that it was easier to find wa on the city streets than in the confines of a temple. He has some awesome quotes. My faves:
"Japan is like a 2000-year-old person wearing a micro-skirt, with an artificial tan and carrying a surfboard."I went to Tokyo with the Studio360 crew in December as a reporter/consultant. I'll be posting segments from the rest of the program, including my own, over the next week or two."Being in Japan is like being in the company of a wise, fairly tolerant gentle older human being...who has made peace with seasons and nature and the larger scheme of things."
I quite agree with his realization. It's not living in some temple that's going to bring you understanding, it's living with the people and doing the day-to-day things that may seem quite mundane to some. As the saying goes, to know the people, is to know the country. Unfortunately, it is a process that takes time. A lot of time.
I can see why those quotes are favorites. They are as interesting as they are accurate. An acute insight.
Posted by: vagrant | January 30, 2009 at 01:37 PM