WOUTER OVERBEEK

The last view before we left the country

Stausee Mooserboden

Sunrise from the chalet in Walchen

A day on the Stübnerkogel

A calm walk through Rauris

People working and skiing on the Kitzsteinhorn in Kaprun

Hiking above the clouds

We woke up at 04:00 AM on Tuesday, the 6th of October. A friend of mine has suggested us to hike up to the top of the Schalbenwand, a mountain in Zell am See, Austria. He described it as a ‘beginners hike’ and it took him 55 minutes to get to the top, this gave us the confidence to start this (long) walk. 

Although the walk was amazing and I would definitely suggest anyone to do it, it is not 55 minutes. It took us 2 hours, 27 minutes and 35 seconds to get to the top. Altogether (up and down) it was 4 hours, 36 minutes and 33 seconds. The elevation was roughly 800 meters and the total distance was 13,46 kilometres. We peaked at a hight of 2.011 meters.

The view proved to be amazing and we had a lot of fun. It was both a mental and physical challenge, but the satisfaction of conquering this difficult challenge was well worth the struggle. 

Europe’s largest waterfall from three different angles 

Krimmler Wasserfälle

Hiking down from Ellmau

Großglockner-view

Hiking up Gunung Batur in the middle of the night without preparation. Difficult, yet rewarding.

There rests a gratitude with these hard-working people, enjoying their demanding tasks and dancing to life.

Occasional Moments

Very occasionally, you are in the exact right position at the right time. This was one of those cases. Shot from the back of a Didi, the top of the Shanghai Tower and the Shanghai World Finance Center arose from the fog which had covered them earlier so thoroughly. Not even a minute later, the tops were not visible anymore. 

Even though I really do appreciate this photo, I do not dare to take credit for any of it. It is true I took this photo, but it was mere luck that gave me the photo, not skill. 

Nonetheless, it will look good printed on the wall at home.

Shanghai as seen from the Shanghai Tower

A Lone Man

After being inspired by the Xinyali Area in Suzhou, I decided to head out once more to discover what the southern part of my student complex had to offer. Accompanied by what has been named many times, by me as the mechanical contraption (essentially an electric trolly going 35 kilometres per hour), I set out to meet new people.

Yet, with the mentality of meeting new people, it becomes a contra-productive action, leading to nothing. At least, that is what it looked like for the larger part of the journey, right until the very last moment.

After crossing this man one time heading towards what looked like an intriguing factory, which ended up being nothing but a static grey building, and then the second time leaving the perimeter of the factories, it became evident he had some attractive energy evolving around him. Even in China, where living space is scarce, it is not very obvious for a man to set up his life next to a ruin of a deserted factory. Nonetheless, this is exactly what he had done.

He posed happily for a photo. Which I gratefully took.

Humans of Xinyali Area

The Book of Joy, written by the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu, generally focuses around the misconception of joy amongst the majority of humanity. Too often, happiness and joy is perceived to be gotten via materialistic obsessions, whilst this primarily leads to the contrary. Both the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu plea that the most important emotions and feelings, namely happiness and joy, is cultivated via connections with our fellow humans. 

The Chinese culture, and specifically the way the Chinese culture would like to be perceived, is extremely polar. I am living in a rather sophisticated and brand new part of Suzhou, which is state-of-art. Only a 5 minute drive towards the south of my apartment, true Chinese life can be found. Whereas many would consider the area where I live superior (guarded, new, clean) to where these people live, but I’d like to beg the differ. The people I have met, today, in this sincere Chinese part of Suzhou, have been the nicest to me since I have arrived in China.

Strangely enough, it is like these people understand the most important fundaments of life. They understand their part in their society, and their whole life is dedicated around those activities. Their goal is not to achieve wealth, not in the sense as we know it, but rather to make sure they can take care of their peers, which they do everyday, until the very end of their lives. Acknowledging their self is incrementally less important than their peers, their philosophy towards everything is completely new to me. One which truly felt heartwarming.

As we were strolling through the streets, eventually almost in those humans’ backyards, we were warmly welcomed. Everyone was intrigued by the fact foreigners were visiting their community, and kindly said hello (你好). At a certain point, one kind woman offered us 黃瓜 (cucumbers), which looked more like eggplants than cucumbers, but sure tasted good. We tried offering money in return, but she insisted on giving it to us, not even considering taking money in return.

It is an odd experience to feel how different life can be compared to what I live at home. Here in Xinyali, it feels like superb clockwork that has been perfected year after year. Even though living space is scarce, they make sure to make the absolute best of what they have, and enjoy it thoroughly. Something I can learn from deeply.

Thank you Xinyali, I have not felt so warmly welcomed and loved in China. 謝謝.

Part 1 of 2.

Humans of Xinyali Area

Part 2 of 2.