Monkeyrockworld

La Travel for Aid ha presentato la relazione dei 300 giorni di viaggio del progetto sportivo-umanitario “Dal Vietnam all’Italia in bicicletta per i  diversabili”, che sta portando Matteo Tricarico a percorrere in bicicletta in solitaria la distanza di 30.000 chilometri dal Vietnam all’Italia. La finalità umanitaria dell’iniziativa consta nel sensibilizzare ed informare l’opinione pubblica sulle condizioni dell’infanzia disabile, andando ad incontrare i bambini in istituti per diversabili nei paesi attraversati.

In questi primi dieci mesi di viaggio sono stati percorsi oltre 10.000 chilometri, da Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, proseguendo per la capitale cambogiana, Phnom Penh (ottobre 2009) e poi per quella thailandese, Bangkok (ottobre 2009). Di seguito, l’itinerario si è snodato nuovamente attraverso la Cambogia (novembre 2009) e a nord sino alla capitale del Laos, Vientiane (dicembre 2009) ed è continuato per il nord della Thailandia (gennaio 2010). Sono seguiti il Myanmar (febbraio 2010) e tre mesi in India (febbraio-aprile 2010) per raggiungere l’estremo sud del Subcontinente e ritornare a Calcutta, prima di entrare in Bangladesh dalla frontiera est. Due mesi (maggio-giugno 2010) in Bangladesh e indi il viaggio è proseguito verso nord al confine sud-est del Nepal e successivamente per la sua capitale Kathmandu, per un soggiorno di altri due mesi (luglio-agosto 2010). (more…)

Following to Dan Eldon’s introduction, I decided to have a little cross interview with Antonio Graceffo and Sam Stavros, relative of Dan and author of the song dedicated to him, “Neverland”. I think the following interview contains some very thoughtful and witty insights which made me reflect on my situation, and soon I will follow up with my own article and vision on this whole matter. But let them speak for the moment being….

M- Dan’s life was indeed incredible. How do you relate your life experiences to Dan’s? As an adventure writer and martial artists, and as a musician, which is the meaning of your particular stance to life, if you have any?

ANTONIO-Sadly, I am not a musician.  I think Dan’s story touched me so much because I could draw some parallels. I have been in Asia nearly ten years adventuring. Dan spent nearly his entire life outside the US and most of it in Africa. I guess I am tied to Asia now. Dan was a writer, I am a writer. Dan did photography, I take pictures, dan made videos, I make videos, dan worked as a journalist, but he took an active role in helping people when he saw the need. And I have done the same.  We are similar in many ways, but he was greater, because his reach was greater. What is important is the number of people who you can reach. The greater your reach, the greater your capacity to help. Dan’s reach, after the end of his life is much greater than mine, and I am alive. Perhaps that is why he died so young. He had already fulfilled his mission, risen to the heights he needed to, and the rest of us are still struggling to get there. (more…)

Riprende il resoconto dell’avventura in bicicletta attraverso l’India, impresa titanica che Matteo Tricarico sta portando a termine in questo momento…

Il 27 febbraio, dopo una settimana passata a Calcutta, acclimatandomi non tanto alla temperatura quanto agli indiani, con mio grande piacere, ho lasciato di buon ora la metropoli, anche se non ho raggiunto la periferia che alla mezza e sono arrivato in vista delle prime risaie un’ora dopo pranzo. Oramai sono così abituato a trovarmi in aree rurali che la vista dei campi mi rassicura e mi fa sentire a mio agio al contrario delle città che un po’ mi spaventano. Percorsi 130 chilometri sono giunto alla cittadina di Joyrambati dove ho visto un magnifico palmeto appena oltre le ultime case dell’abitato. (more…)

Era da un po’ di tempo che non ricevevo notizie da Matteo Tricarico, sperduto com’e’ nel suo viaggio solitario in bicicletta da Saigon all’Italia. Matteo ha recentemente completato il suo giro indiano e dato che di India si parla ora su Monkeyrockworld, questa notizia capita a fagiolo per tutti. Matteo mi ha inviato brani tratti dal suo diario, in Italiano, ed e’ per questo che pubblico nella nostra lingua. Mi sembrava giusto mettere online qualche estratto per aggiornarvi sulle sue avventure e cambiare un po’ il tono delle mie. Mi rimane solo da dire “GRANDE MATTEO” e invidiare le sue avventure, sperando che presto tornino anche le mie… avventure piu’ mobili che lottare per mettere due pensieri su carta. Alla fine Matteo il solito aereo per uscire dal Myanmar l’ha dovuto prendere anche lui…  ma questo non toglie nulla ai dettagli di una incredibile avventura. (more…)

MM- Your master studies terminated with a thesis on Tibet. I think most of the times people care about this region of China just because Mr. clown Richard Gere has been there and Brad Pitt acted in the movie “Seven Years in Tibet”. Can you give us your honest opinion on the current matters, and maybe some insights from the Beijing perspective?

I recently published an article connected to my master thesis on the Italian review “Quaderni Asiatici” (“Asian Notebooks”). In particular the topic of my thesis was the social and economic development of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) during the last thirty years (1976-2006). A few days ago two authors of China Files published a book in Italy titled “Brand Tibet”.

Even if to talk about Tibet is not easy at all (for historical and political reasons) I think that nowadays in many Western countries the Tibetan culture and people is more than “idealized”, in the sense that it does not really fit with the reality. First of all, this image of a peaceful people victim of Chinese imperialism and violent army is an old idea. (more…)

MM- What about the agricultural project you have in mind?

As I said before, at the moment I am trying to study, travelling and learning as much as I can. This is not for a professional career or with the goal of finding a “good job” for the future, but simply to realize some kind of social project with other people (no matter where in the world) who share with me the same ideas and passions. One of the project is to “go back to the countryside”. In Italy, as in China and in many other parts of the world, our grandparents were farmers and were living in the countryside. In the last half of the century, a great part of the globe population left the countryside seeking better life conditions in cities, creating the phenomenon we call “urbanization”. (more…)

My connection with Daniele started randomly over the internet when a few weeks before embarking on my Chinese teaching adventure, I was googling and researching about Punk in China. His blog “Secondo Me” was the first search result, and he was the first to tell me a few random things about life in Beijing and North east China.

Almost three years passed, me and Daniele had the chance to meet several times over different kinds of mouthwatering bei cang, discuss several topics, and sample several kinds of lung melting Chinese alcohol. Since the first time, I was really captured by the mental intensity of this out of the ordinary character, currently a Phd researcher in the prestigious People’s University in Beijing, writer and academic publisher disguised for a cheap ass punk with holes in his shirt and shoes and a taste for cheap, oily street food. In three words, my kind of guy.

Since then I’ve been an avid consumer of his excellent blogs and have tried to keep in touch as much as I could over the years… and finally decided to show you how much you can learn from this man sending him a few intense questions. For the sake of internet communication brevity, we didn’t engage in writing an encyclopedia, but what follows deserves to be tattooed on your brains with psychedelic ink. Enjoy. (more…)