We watched fireworks exploding in the skies far away. There is something special about standing on a beach in the dark and watching light come in unexpected bursts from far away. Is that how the creatures of the deep dark pockets of the ocean feel when their own or those of other organisms around them lights up their world with their bioluminescence? I wonder.
Nevertheless, that night felt more surreal than usual. For it was replaced with tiny pulsing lights of drones. Hundreds of them forming and reforming into beautiful shapes – there a jellyfish, then a statue of liberty, and a whale. In spite of the beautiful shapes, I did miss the crackling sparkling sounds of the fireworks. The drones (far away as they were) were entirely silent, and lacked a certain ‘oooh—aaah’ factor as a result. (I could’ve stooped to pick up something and missed a jug or something. ) But the drones were more environmentally friendly, so …
The next day, we felt a slow start was essential – and so we meandered around an island neighborhood.
“What do you want to do?”
“Nothing much – just catch the vibes of the place, maybe?” said the immensely-cooler teenage daughter to her younger cousins and brother, who agreed fervently. I did not know what catch-the-vibes meant exactly, but nodded along. Vibes would reveal themselves. Vibes are like waves – you just have to experience them, I told myself.
It turned out that stopping to admire art galleries, meandering through neighborhoods with picket fences overlooking the ocean, admiring gardens bursting with flowers, watching young adults laugh and make loud jokes, slurping ice creams before they melted – everything belonged to the category of “catching-the-vibes.”
Catching the vibes, I realized, is a fun activity that can include book shopping, picking up curious art from local art galleries, gasping at the prices of some art pieces, admiring gardens, and 4th of July decorations.
Why am I not surprised that the Japanese word for vibes contains fun?
雰囲気 Fun’iki
Fun’iki sounds like something we do all the time on trips, without the cool name of course. We resolved to add Fun’iki to our vocabulary and trips henceforth and meandered back home.
What are some of your favorite 4th of July week-end activities on trips?
Nourish-n-Cherish 