2013-09-09 Light subterfuges5
Surprisingly, Ryanair has arrived 35 minutes early. Madrid-Charleroi, (1,500 km.) From 6.30 to 8.30. Low-Cost begins its economization with our most vital and valuable resource. There are no limits to savings. If the delays are cumulative, the advances as well. Dozens of passengers may have missed the flight today because the plane was taking off too soon. In sports competitions, it’s advisable to keep the advantage. At 18:00 a plane with more than 9,000 kilometers in less than 12 hours begins to arrive late. The rush produces stumbles. Passengers, queues and impatience. Every river returns to its channel.
The cheapest way to get to Brussels from Charleroi (let no one fool you) is to take the buses from the Walloon area of Belgium, the TEC company to Charleroi Sud Gare. The buses are at the end of the terminal, you should not leave the terminal directly, but walk towards the end and there we find the vending machines. 5€ per person [CHARLEROI Brussel South Charleroi Airport GOSSELIES (HAINAUT) - CHARLEROI Sud Gare SNCB CHARLEROI (HAINAUT)]. Later, at the South Station, if we are students under 26, we will buy a GoPass (50€ for 10 trips) and if we are over 26 a RailPass (a bit more than 70€ for 10 trips) This way we will get to Brussels for 10€ or 12€ depending on our age. Exquisite punctuality. At the airport we will find taxi drivers who offer the Charleroi-Brussels trip for 13€. A small price difference saves time. To the taste of the consumer.
The customer service of the Belgian train service officials is excellent. Many speak Spanish, in addition to English, French and Dutch (depending on the area); and they have no problem in providing you with a sheet of paper with the itinerary you have to follow to reach your destination. In our case, Leuven.
Once in Leuven, we have been surprised by blocked streets and a slight buzz of partying. Arriving at Grote Markt from the train station, along the Bondgenotenlaan (Avenue of the Allies), we find a picturesque scene. A bunch of Belgians, some of them independentists and a kind of parade starting at the town hall (Grote Markt). After having toured the city, a group of international students have come to Sint-Donatuspark to see a firework show. Just something to talk about. Forced introductions that will end in eternal farewells. I do not know the reasons for both, the congregation in Grote Markt and the fires in the park. I should continue investigating. I will not comment on the quality of the show, my Valencian friends would get angry.
I prefer symbolism.
The sky, black, burning and bleeding. No recoils are conceived; now they are tears. Artificial light that forcing the frowning. My face hurts. Squeaking in the calm of nature. That dark peace. Loud applause after twenty minutes of firecrackers. As a way of inauguration of my new life in this country, Belgium. Of my new life in this city, Leuven.
Now a real poem.
Light subterfuges, lizards, list
on top of the palm that creates it,
invention of colors in sight,
if transitory, blue, piraeus.
To the greater glory of the powdermaker,
straight the cane, circles plans:
a whole fleeting course of geometry,
beginning of its end, closed to the day.
Original
Subterfugios de luz, lagartos, lista
encima de la palma que la crea,
invención de colores a la vista,
si transitoria, de azul, pirea.
A la gloria mayor del polvorista,
rectas la caña, círculos planea:
todo un curso fugaz de geometría,
principio de su fin, vedado al día.
Hernández and Hernández (1976)
References
Hernández, Miguel, and Miguel Hernández. 1976. Perito En Lunas; El Rayo Que No Cesa. Vol. 1. Alhambra.
First entry of Excusas para no volver, my first travelling blog.↩