Happy to be back
after a restful holiday!
Long time no speak! It’s been a long, wonderful month of holiday for me, and while I was initially worried about taking such a long break, putting aside work and getting into vacation mode was as easy as you can imagine!
One of the best things about travel is seeing the way other people go about life. While I was only in Berlin and San Diego for a short time and certainly only got a limited view of each place, they both left big impressions of me.
In Berlin, I was struck by how infrequently I saw people on their phones. In restaurants and cafes, most people seemed more interested in talking with their friends than checking social media or photographing their meals. I even went to a few places where they required you to put stickers over your phone cameras and signs were hung saying, “No phones. YOU are here. Live in the present.” I saw this same attitude mirrored in the way people moved about on the streets as if they felt comfortable in their skin, unbothered by comparing themselves to others.
In San Diego, the sunny weather was reflected in the people I saw there. Just one trip to the grocery store could spark multiple conversations with strangers asking how I was, what plans I had for the day, or recommendations for some of their favorite items. I was really amazed by the friendliness and chattiness of people, the way the good weather energized everyone and seemed to lend itself to an attitude of health and calm.
Without a doubt, most places will seem idyllic when viewed through the lens of a holiday. And while vacation is great, coming back to my “real life” in Taipei is something I always look forward. This vacation period has given me many things to appreciate about my life here. It has also given me some ideas about adding more joy into each day by taking more time to unplug and look for ways to make small meaningful interactions in a busy world.
The best part about being back is definitely being able to dance again with you! Looking forward to hearing about your summer holidays,
Keep moving!
xx,
Katie
充飽了電，再出發！
好久沒和你們說說話了。 上個月給自己放了一個美好的長假，我原本面對要放這麼長的假、離開工作很是擔心，但是進入假期模式就如同你想的一樣，非常簡單！
旅行的一個很大的優點，就是能夠看到別人如何過生活。雖然我只有在柏林與聖地牙哥短暫的停留，沒有時間走遍當地的各個角落，但它們都在我心中留下很深刻的印象。
在柏林，不論是在餐廳或是咖啡廳，我非常驚訝地發現，幾乎沒有人在使用他們的手機。為他們的餐點拍照或是在手機上瀏覽社交網站，對於大部分的人而言，與眼前的朋友互動交流顯得更重要。我還去了一些活動，入場時他們要求每個人把貼紙貼在手機的鏡頭上， 牆上的標語寫著：「 別用手機。『你』在這裡。活在當下！」我甚至可以看到這樣的精神在他們走路的姿態中散發出來， 可以感受到他們對於自己的外表感到非常地自在，不會總拿是別人和自己比較。
在聖地牙哥，晴朗的天氣 反映在我所遇到的當地居民身上。只是去趟雜貨店買個菜．也可以和很多的 路人閒聊對話，他們會問我好嗎？今天有什麼計畫？或是建議我一些他們最喜歡的當地食材。 我真的很驚訝他們如此地友善與健談。我想好天氣真的能為人帶來更多的活力，它似乎也為人們帶來健康的態度與一絲平靜。
當然毫無疑問的，在放假時很多的地方看起來都分外地愉悅，但回到台北的日常生活也是我非常期待的。這次的假期讓我領悟到日常生活中許多值得感謝的人事物。它，也帶給我面對生活一些不同的想法，像是在這個忙碌的世界，透過花更多的時間來放空或是用不同的方式來創造一些微小但有意義的互動，來為每一天加入更多喜樂的調味。
回到現實生活最棒的一個部分就是能夠再次和你們一起跳舞！很期待聽到你的暑期假期
繼續前進！
愛你的 Katie
( Anna Liang 譯 )