SI NEWS 2006 eng Travel Report Pacific
From SI Exco News
AUSTRALIA
SYDNEY,
Before I arrived in Sydney, I had already exchanged e-mails with two Australian Servas members. Felicity could not host me because she was getting ready to share her apartment with a new roommate. But she invited me to dinner with her on one of the nights of my stay in the city. Adam was in Jamaica, but he suggested I get in touch with his friend Peter, a new Servas host. So I did, and Peter agreed to host me. I stayed three nights in a hotel (I only managed to reach Peter on the second day I was in the city) and then I went to his house where I stayed for three more nights. It was also an exceptional experience, but different from the previous one. But that’s an interesting fact about travelling with Servas: the modus operandi may be the same but the experiences are always different, nothing is repeated. So, we had so much in common that Peter and I became good friends. Trips to the Opera Quay and fish & chips shops in Palm Beach were memorable. Dinner at Felicity’s house also was delicious! Again, it was difficult to pack and leave for the next destination.
MELBOURNE
Susan was the only host I stayed with in Melbourne. She was on vacation but returned the day I arrived in the city. Since I had reserved a bed in a youth hostel for two nights, we agreed that she would put me up in her house after that. It was sensational. Susan is a really nice person, very animated. We took walks together, we went to the Fringe Festival, we had lots of conversations along with glasses of wine, not to mention the classes in twist. The trip continued (Tasmania and Cairns), but without Servas. When I returned to Sydney, I stayed two more nights at Peter’s. But then we were no longer host and traveller but two friends who met again after a long time (18 days).
It was one of the most “human” trips I have ever taken. More than visiting pretty places, it was an experience of solidarity, friendship, and believing in people. I was delighted with the generosity and trust of the hosts that I met along the way, and with the joy of their sharing time with me. I felt totally gratified. What special people there are in the world! For this reason, living is worthwhile. I went home with my hope renewed, feeling sure that sensitivity and love for others still exists, and this will only die if we let it.
Maria Fernanda Vomero, Brazil
SERVAS JAPAN IN SPRING
After three years of Japanese studies, I decided to
follow the wave of sakura cherry blossom which
sweeps the main island in the spring and stay with
Servas hosts. What a choice in the Servas book!
There was a traditional sock-maker and a sushi-bar
owner, a sunflower farmer who loves fire-flies.....
Should I go to Kyoto just to meet the etiquette
teacher? In the end, the regional coordinator chose
seven hosts along the sakura front.
At first, I was a guest in my teacher’s family in Nagoya. It was fantastic but I was relentlessly entertained at great cost. Although her mother had just recovered from cancer, she would not let me help at all and would fall asleep on the floor exhausted as I watched her, guilt ridden. Servas was a relaxing contrast.
My Japanese experience was full of surprises. I am now convinced there really are Shinto Gods inside every craggy stone and gnarled tree. In the spring, the world turns a magical pink, awash with petals. I had to abandon many received ideas: no overcrowding or minimalism in the countryside, houses were huge, kitchens indescribably cluttered and home-cooked food was fantastic. I visited a centre for stroke victims, fed cows and moved boxes of rice-shoots into a poly-tunnel. I stayed in a Tenri monastery in a stunning fishing village. It was election time and a famous wrestler was running for MP, claiming he’d sit in Parliament with his facepaint on.
I had plenty of time to cycle around temples and walk in the mountains. My hosts spoke enough English and the occasional ‘tourist schedule’ was welcome because I could at last pay my share. I saw magnificent temples and castles but Japanese history is cruel. So, lovelier than any gilded shrine built with money stolen from the starving are memories of fun times with families around a low heated quiltcovered table or sitting in a steamy rock pool with three generations of women, under the rain. Travelling with Servas is a privilege. It is also the only way to discover Japan.
Michèle O’Connel, England
New Zealand - memories
......are they still there?
Maybe 20 years ago we visited a Servas family in, I think, Christchurch, definitely South Island. They had a friendly pet sheep. I remember the evening meal but cannot find the photo. We were gathered informally in the sitting room. I was on the floor with a bowl of food, chatting with someone. The sheep was sitting on the settee watching the TV!
Question:
Do they still have a sheep who watches TV?
