adf_pisa

The essence of what is thought to be secret of life. What is life and what is the meaning of our existences?

I have no idea whatsoever.

Indeed, if someone asks me what is the meaning of my life... I find it extremely difficult to answer. Not work, work is a part of me, but I am not my work. My work however helps me having a relationship with what I like and with other people.

Is it my daughter? Well, maybe. I mean, I definitely want my daughter to grow up with good values, and I will try my best to give her love and an healthy forma mentis.

However, even so I may know what I want to do with my daughter's life---at least in her youngest years, but what do I wanna do with my own life? Does anybody have an answer about her/his own experience?

Every time, I feel I am not satisfied. I mean, I am quite satisfied but not completely, and that little part of dissatisfaction which leads me anywhere and everywhere in this world and in my mind... to think more, to look further for an answer.

Somebody told me, it is already enough to formulate the question and not to answer to it.

Yes, but isn't it the most beautiful thing to try to explain the mysteries of our universe?

Do we need to get very old to try to formulate an answer? And even at that age, is there an answer at all?

I know it has been a long time since my last post. But I had to do many things. In fact, I have just finished moving to Japan.

I left Belgium and now I am in Japan. Every time we move to a new place, we miss the previous place, at least the things we liked of it---among these my previous department and of course beer and chocolate. But we are also curious to understand the new place we are going to live in.

And here we go in Japan... for some Europeans Japan is like another planet, a country with such a different culture, that we wonder if we do belong to the same species.

I will try in this blog to show you my point of view of Japan, and you will discover it is not too far, closer than what we may think actually.

One thing I love of Japan is food... I know I am Italian, and I am supposed to eat pasta everyday. By the way I love Italian food, it is the one I know the best, and the one I can judge the best as well. For me pasta is part of my character, of my life.

Having said so, I must admit that the quality of the food you can find in Japan is overwhelming and makes of this country a gourmet-paradise. Besides you can have a great lunch---great---for only 1000 yen or a bit less.

Remember: what you tried in Italy, US, UK and elsewhere in the Japanese restaurants is not real Japanese food, and way more expensive than it... But I cannot say everything right now... Every little while I'll keep you updated about food/restaurants around here...

By the way, my university is just in the middle of a food-oasis in the food-paradise of Japan. Can you believe it?

During my last visit to Japan, I went for a couple of days to Kyoto. I went to give a seminar in the prestigious Yukawa Institute, where I met profs. Tanaka and Sasaki.

I took the chance to visit Kyoto with Akiko, and I was astonished by the city. To my eyes, it is completely different from Tokyo, where eveything is fast and nobody seems to stop. Kyoto, no. In Kyoto, it looks like people behave differently. It look much more relaxing.

It was about 6pm, just after my visit to the Yasaka jinja (which is a shinto temple), that we went to walk to the Gyon area to look for geishas, and we found none.

When we decided to go back to the ryokan (Japanese-style hotel), I saw her. She was young and beautiful: she was a maiko. She was walking together with another older woman, the teacher?

Anyhow she had the hair dressed in the typical way, and walking such that her left arm part of the kimono was covering are face up to the eyes. I stopped, looking at her to understand the secret of maiko and more in general to the infinite mistery of women and men-women relationship. It was a moment, the teacher told her something (no idea what). And then she removed her left arm from her face and she smiled at me.

Ok, I know, maybe it was a completely different movement with a completely different aim, but I took it as a way to say: "Thanks for looking at me..." and I may add "to try to understand the feminine archetype, but I have no answer for you."

I felt time was slowing down with no need of a black hole around me... but then my wife was shaking me partly surprised by my reaction, partly happy we met a maiko. I looked at her and I can say you don't need a geisha to search for the answer to this mistery.

I recently read a book regarding the lives of two women during the taliban regime. The novel is by the same author of the kite runner. The book, from a literature point of view, is good, but nothing special at least in my humble opinion.

However, it is interesting as it describes the despotic regime of the talibans. Their hate towards women, culture, books, and, of course other religions.

The two buddhas that were destroyed have been perhaps the image of this despotic regime.

In Italy as well, during fascism, culture was seen only as culture of the fascist party. There were some authors, whose names nowadays have been completely forgotten, who during the fascist time were celebrated as THE best authors in Ital at that time. Whereas, authors such as Montale were censured and not sold in Italy. Many books were destroyed, as thought against the fascist party.

In some sense the destruction of the buddhas and censorships are very similiar acts: to hide, to destroy everything which is against you.

Many other examples could be given in support of this... but I let the reader decide about them.

It is interesting to see how despotism arises, in many different forms, all over the world, at all times. Today's situation in Italy may lead to a despotic regime: this is sad to say, but true.

Here we go! My little daughter Anna --- she is a bit less than 9 months old --- has started saying a few words.

The first word she ever said clearly, was "Mamma," which is not surprise for me, as evidently that comes from the Italian DNA she has got.

Having said this, I am very envious at this. She says "mamma" very clearly, whereas babbo (which means daddy, in italian) gets transformed into "baba" or "babba."

Everybody says things will change with time... I don't know, plus I don't like I am behaving like this... becoming a slave of the kid waiting for her to tell my name.

Here we go, I am feeling on my skin, the process of transformation from hhuman beings into slaves... It's not nice... I need to improve, to be more Anna-independent...

ANNAAA: WHERE ARE YOU?????

In Italian school, during the last year of high-school, we study, more or less seriously, the literature of '900.

The authors we study the most are d'Annunzio e Pascoli. It is not completely clear to me the reason why we study a lot these authors, whereas we don't study too much in detail neither Montale and especially Gadda.

d'Annunzio a fascist, whose poems were fascinating but nothing more than that. Pascoli, another guy, who thought the occupation in Africa was due to the fact we had to export democracy (pre-Bush politics).

The real two authors which I believe reach international level, Gadda and Montale, are marginally studied. Some don't even know who Gadda is.

So sad, so true.

By the way, about Montale, the fascist regime did not publish some of work of his. This, among many many others, is one terribly bad crime: to manage not only the media, but also the art is just unbelievable.

Hi people, long time no see eh?

People? I guess not many people... as my blogging time has been devoted to other things.

Anyhow, great news today: Obama president. Will it change anything? I hope so. A good change for the USA is a good change for the rest of the world as well.

One more thing. When will Italian change their politicians for better ones?

Much time has passed since last time I wrote a post.

Why? I guess my daughter has played a role in that. I have been busy with work/family. Both fields, are giving me a very good time!

In a week I'll go to the US for a conference, in Madison, Wisconsin.

In the meantime, many things changed in Italy: it's going bad there. Interesting and sad process the one where a country gets ruled by a more and more despotic government.

I have been reading a few books, especially when I go to the office. I have been reading Gadda (La cognizione del dolore), and Umberto Eco (Baudolino).

Gadda and his philosophy and way of writing had changed deeply my ideas of last century literature.

At school, we are taught mostly Pascoli, D'Annunzio which I dislike quite a lot. After that we should learn other authors (mostly Montale and Gadda), but we do little of the first and nothing of the second. It's just a pity.

I am looking for a contact of my high school teacher, who introduced me to the world of Gadda. Her last name is Boldrini. She was a great teacher. Great. She retired before my last year of high school, and I do not have any idea what she is doing now.

I'll look for her and let you know!

The title is English sounds like: "Many friends, old and new friends..."

Well what to say? Today I got an email from an old old friend of mine. I was doing middle school with him. His name is Folco Biagi. I cannot believe he grew up as me. I mean Folco for me was Folco in the middle schools... and now that he grew up...

Well, the pleasure I have to meet old friends on internet is fantastic, something which makes me love this object with which I work everday, the computer.

Another old friend I met through internet, because of this blog, is Elena Ambrogini, whom I still remember with affection. Actually,Elena, Folco and I were classmates.

Anyhow, old friends of mine, come up and write me something so that we can keep in touch once more. I just want to know something more about your lives. It's like an experiment: we knew each other when we were kids, and we have the chance to understand how our particular talents drove us in the path of our lives.

I remember you all, in a sense you're part of me.