World Poetry Day - Travel Edition

Brightsun would like to celebrate World Poetry Day with some poems written especially for us, by authors inspired by their travels around the world.

Poetry and travel are two of our favourite things at Brightsun. They go hand in hand with the emotions they evoke: fulfillment, joy, and the escapism of letting go and getting lost in a new place, whether in your mind’s imagination or an exotic land….

Hello, Culture Vulture

Amsterdam by N. Vania

I used to spend my holidays lounging on the beach
With everything I needed within all-inclusive reach
Then a friend said 'Amsterdam mini-break?' and that became the past
She'd hit upon a destination to get me off my ass

We stayed at the funky Teleport Hotel with art on every wall
And went out in the evening to explore the urban sprawl
Then wandered into the neighbourhood famed for its red light
Quickly made a u-turn and decided to call it a night

The next day was a trip to Keukenhof to see tulips on the wane
And after that, a canal boat tour to view the city from watery lanes
Then we accidentally fare-dodged when getting on the train
After spending the day with Banksy and Van Gogh on Museumplein

The only thing I'd say of the trip that gave me any grief
Was trying to find a souvenir fridge magnet sans marijuana leaf
And the follow up from something dodgy I must have eaten on the square
(The details of that particular moment, for you, I will spare)

Apart from that, my four days there were an absolute pleasure
The memories made on the holiday I will always treasure
And thanks to the 'Dam, a proper traveller I have become
And can finally say, 'Hello, culture vulture. Farewell, beach bum.'

Cairo is Calling

Egypt by S. Ansari

Cairo is chaotic and crazy
Nasr city is cheap
Oh. I don’t know about Cairo
Dogs bark in my sleep

Dusty, bumpy footpaths
Dangerous, scary roads
Oh, I don’t know about Cairo
Caring for my children here is a heavy load

Looking for somewhere to eat
Where is the spice and chilli please?
At least the food is plentiful
The life here full of ease

Poor people surround me for money
They argue and fight, I take off
Oh, I still don’t know about Cairo
-It’s winter; I have a cold and a cough.

The mosques are ancient and echoey
Minarets and sunsets galore
Our trips to Giza a whole other world
Pyramids, camels, horses and more!

Quran plays everywhere,
Recitation soothes and calms
My children are happy and free here
The friendly people a balm.

Expensive malls are plenty
Women-only gyms everywhere,
Should I go to the salon today?
Should I ask them to cut my hair?

Here, the opportunities are endless
Here, we know just how blessed we are
Here I am not that old lady
Cleaning, with an old rag, that old car

Here, I don’t sell tea from my car boot
Here, I don’t beg on the street
Here, I don’t worry where my next meal will come
Or recite Quran in the subway for treats

Here each mosque is stunning
Each stone brick laid with care
Each calligraphic artwork
Embodies, an entire lifetime of prayer

Because, yes, I am falling for Cairo,
I am falling for it hard and fast
Its noise, its chaos,
Its sunsets, its mosques
All live in my heart at last

Yes, Cairo has won me over
It is seeping into my bones,
Brimming with prayer, and peace, and love, and hope
I am beginning to forget about home…

Morning Walk around Boudha Stupa

Nepal by S. Upadhyay

I wade through a sea of red robes,
bathe in its chants. It reminds me
how local women gathered around

a communal dhunge dhara here once.
A few meters away bustles another world.
Young mothers spread lapsi, khapse

and bowls of makai under Buddha’s
all-seeing eyes. Feed the pigeons, they coax,
they’ll carry away your strife.

I bite my tongue at the price,
watch pigeons take flight at their
sudden collective chortle.

My hands no longer reach for the
prayer wheels, they ignore the butter lamps.
Through an open window, I spy a woman

steady the day ahead,
her family, like the morning sun,
still warm under thick cotton odhane.

The gallis that raised me barely recognise
me anymore. I pretend not to care,
look the other way

just as a group of young monks
drift away in a wave of red robes.

My Homeland

Kashmir by N. Ahmed

Sometimes I wonder
What does my restless heart want?
If I close my eyes I can see
I crave pitch black nights
Then a sky full of stars
The moon is a must, but it has to be the fourteenth too
Need to see the rabbits and the foxes
on the hills opposite as well
I want to hear my grandma's voice waking us up with the morning star
I need my sisters there to help find
all the shapes amongst the stars
I want barley and yoghurt in Ramzan
In the rainy season I miss my Nan's corn fried chapatti
For the firework competitions at Shab-e-barat
I need each one of the same cousins
On Eid I require sweets, juice and a swing
from my eldest uncle
I need wheat, lentils and sesame from
our own fields
A dollop of butter on each chapatti with fresh milk
Ice cold water from the well
I'm the blood of farmers
I need land
I'm Kashmiri
I need Kashmir!    

Sawadee Ka

Thailand by M. Schneider

Purple-tinged garlands
Of orchids in bloom
Welcome you in Thailand
With their intoxicating perfume

The warm greeting bestowed
Sets your soul at peace
Like the ancient Buddhist temples
An aura of calm and serenity

Juxtapose this with the throngs
Of people strolling down Khao San Road
Bustling streets and food stall scents
Which make your senses explode

Along with underground boxing rings
And shady ladies that entertain
Shooting ping pong balls from
Places that you cannot name

And there so much more to discover
Under the aquamarine sea
With colourful sea life and sharks
Swimming amidst stunning reefs

Rickety wooden fishing boats against
The backdrop of an eternal blue horizon
Idyllic, sandy, tropical islands
Is anyone’s idea of heaven

My home away from home
Your memories will fill my heart
Until I can come back for more and say:
“Sawadee Ka”.

The Bodies We Climb On

S. Upadhyay – the Great Indian Desert

I learn its name, carefully shift my weight onto my right toes,
swing my left leg over its hump and mount it perfectly.
I do not recall when or how I learnt to do this.

My legs dangle mid-air, feet unclamped.
I’m unnerved. It comes as a surprise to me,
this new desire to be held.

Somewhere in the Thar Desert he twists his
head around, leans in for a private hiss. His long eyelashes
conceals little of his displeasure. It feels personal.

It is personal. Years later, the double humpbacked ones
ignore me. I take a few pictures, make my own legs carry me.
My sisters are curious, asking me what creatures they are.

It was a choice based on many factors
but how did I ever think it was a thing to do, to climb
on beasts so much more resourceful than any of us can wish to be?

We hope you enjoyed this mental escape on World Poetry Day and we can certainly arrange an actual physical holiday escape, so get in touch anytime!

If you have a travel poem you would like us to feature in a future travel poetry promotion, please send it to marketing@brightsun.co.uk