During the backwaters trip from Kollam to
Alleppy, I met a backpacker from mainland China for the first time, his name
was Ocean.
Ocean was 28 years old, graduated from a
famous University in China. He worked in a bank in Tanzania for half a year in
2008, which considered to be his Gap Year in his uni. life. It was all because
he was feeling a bit lost in his third year of studying, and suddenly he heard
from his dorm mate how wonderful his life was while living and studying in the
South America, Ocean decided to take a year off and try it out himself.
Ocean went back to China to finish his
graduation thesis in 2009, then he went to Singapore to work for a bank for a
year in 2010. After resignation, he spent 3 years traveling in Indonesia, Tibet,
Nepal and Xinjiang.
He started this current trip after 2013
Chinese New Year, from Yunnan, Laos, Thailand, Burma, and then India. He has already
been in India for 5 months.
He started his trip with a big backpack and
a small backpack. However, he lost his big backpack in the Thailand airport due
to carelessness. The experience taught him that the items he brought with him
previously were actually extras. He was also invited to stay overnight at a
temple in Burma afterwards and he could really feel the passion and hospitality
of the Burmese.
During his stay at the Africa, Ocean
realized a very important truth, which is living can be very simple. There is
really no need to spend too much time on working in one’s lives. All together
he spent 1 and half year to work in banks in Africa and Singapore, he very soon
realized he didn’t like business at all, nor working in an office. In the past,
he always made year plan, but then he realized he could hardly follow his plan
even within one year, as lives are full of uncertainties.
Ocean was a playful kid in his school days,
and he remained the same in his journey. In India he tried to sleep overnight
at the railway station. In Burma he couldn’t find accommodation so he slept on
somebody’s wooden boat, but was waken up in midnight cos those owners were also
supposed to sleep on the boat. In Tibet he and his friends put an inflatable
mattress on the Lhasa River and tried whitewater rafting, but were asked to
come back up by the Police. However, they couldn’t get back to the shore as the
current was too fast and the Police had to give in and asked them to go onshore
after they reached the lower course.
Ocean shared he finished all his savings
already. He would hitchhike and walk in his journey in order to save up his
expenses. He also looked for freelance jobs here and there. He once worked in a
small guesthouse café in Lhasa, helped to do simple jobs like cleaning,
cooking, and making fire. He met all kinds of interesting people, some had
similar thoughts as he did and they would all hang out together in the tea
café. He also did job like carrying bricks. However, he had very bad altitude
sickness and was asked to rest by the other workers most of the time. When the
big boss came back and found out he was actually a University graduate, thought
it was such a waste to ask him to carry bricks, told him to pick up measurement
jobs instead.
Ocean loves the freedom on the road during
his travels. He could go anywhere he wanted. He met all kinds of people on the
road, for those he liked he would stay longer and hang out, for those he didn’t
like he would move on. He didn’t like to waste time on things he didn’t like.
He felt everyone should have their own life journey. His own life journey
allowed him to travel everywhere, understanding all kinds of cultures, he also
had no idea when he was going to stop.
Ocean’s siblings all have very stable jobs
at home. His family had no objections towards his living style, thought it was
more important he did whatever he liked. Ocean never thought of traveling
around the world when he was young, he just liked to play, going for short
trips, went for a drink with his friends, he only wanted to extend this kind of
living style.
He planned to fly to Iran after his trip in
India, then to the North Africa, Egypt, North America and the South America.
Ocean shared two of his favorite quotes,
from a famous novel Lolita, written by a Russian writer Nabokov,
“Always love unconditionally, the rest
leaves to the destiny.”
“Many things can make people happy, but
only writing can make people feel blessed“
Ocean felt that the word “love” is always
suitable to use in any circumstances. He also liked writing so much that he
would get up at 5am and wrote for 2 hours. He found the feeling was wonderful
everytime he wrote.
Ocean gave out a piece of Thanaka wood he
bought in Burma as the gift of exchange. No matters young or old, male or
female, used the wood to grind into paste to put on faces and arms for
moisturizer and sunscreen. Ocean wish the next dream pursuer to live happily
ever after.
10/03/2014
Written in a small café in Kochi
夢想專訪3 – 珠海旅人的自由夢
「Ocean很喜歡在路上自由自在的生活方式，無拘無束，喜歡到那裏就那裏。在路上的時候會遇見不同的人，遇到喜歡的就可以停下來一起玩樂，遇到不喜歡的就可以立即離開，他不想把時間浪費在不喜歡的事情上面，每個人的生活的軌跡都不需要一模一樣。」
從南印Kerala Kollam到Alleppy的潟湖之旅的船程上，第一次碰到來自中國大陸的背包客，他是來自珠海的男生歐尚(Ocean)。
讀萬卷書 行萬里路
Ocean今年28歲，浙江大學商科畢業。2008年的他在非洲坦桑尼亞工作的銀行工作了半年，那是他大學時期的Gap Year，全因大學生涯第三年的他發覺自己讀書的方向有點不明朗，聽過室友到了南美留學的生活，於是他也想試試休學一年，跑到非洲試試外國生活的滋味。
2009年回國完成畢業論文後，2010年他又跑到新加坡的銀行工作了一個年頭，
辭職後用了三年時間流浪，去了印尼、西藏、尼泊爾和新疆。
今趟旅程他在2013年的農曆年開始，這一年他從雲南出發，到寮國，泰國，緬甸，再來到印度，他已經在印度逗留了五個月了
失竊的體會
今次的旅程，他本來帶了一個大背包和一個小背包，大背包卻因為自己的粗心大意在泰國機場給人偷了。不過，這次經驗卻讓他知道之前攜帶的物資很多都是多餘的，還令他之後在緬甸的旅程有機會被邀請到寺廟投宿，體驗當地人的熱情和好客。
在非洲生活期間他悟出了一個道理，就是謀生其實可以很簡單，一生中不需要花那麼多的時間去工作。他在非洲和新加坡的銀行總共工作了一年半，發覺自己根本不喜歡商科，不喜歡在辦公室工作。以前他的習慣是作一年的計劃，但發覺自己連一年的計劃都跟從不到，因為生活充滿太多變數了。
三歲定八十
從前在學校Ocean已經是個好玩樂的人，在旅途中他也很大膽甚麼也願意嘗試。之前試過在印度火車站的候車室過夜；在緬甸因為找不到住宿走到人家的小木船上睡覺，結果半夜三更人家回來把他趕走，原來人家也是在船上過夜睡覺的；在西藏跟朋友一塊兒把充氣睡墊放到拉薩河上玩飄流，結果給警察發現叫他們快點上岸，他們卻因為水流太急回不了岸邊，最後警察也只好叫他們到下遊才上岸。
由於把工作時的積蓄都花光了，於是在路上他截順風車，也會徒步，就是為了省錢。在路上的時候他會到不同地方找短期工作，他試過在拉薩的旅館幫忙做打掃、煮食、生火等工作，然後遇到各式各樣的人，有些也是跟自己思想近似的，有空就跟他們在茶館喝茶聊天；他試過做搬磚工作，但因為高山反應還沒有適應過來，結果其他工友主動叫他休息；後來大老闆回來，知道他是大學畢業生，覺得叫他搬磚太浪費了，於是叫他學做測量的工作。
自由自在的人生
Ocean很喜歡在路上自由自在的生活方式，無拘無束，喜歡到那裏就那裏。在路上的時候會遇見不同的人，遇到喜歡的就可以停下來一起玩樂，遇到不喜歡的就可以立即離開，他不想把時間浪費在不喜歡的事情上面，每個人的生活的軌跡都不需要一模一樣。這種生活模式讓他有機會到處旅遊，接觸不同的風土人情，他也不知道甚麼時候才會停下來。
雖然家裏的哥哥姐姐都有穩定的工作，家裏的人對於他的生活方式卻沒有反對，認為他喜歡就可以。小時候的他也沒有特別想過要環遊世界，他只是喜歡玩，去短途旅行，跟朋友飲酒聊天，他只想繼續延長這種生活方式。暫時的計劃是離開印度後會飛到伊朗、北非、埃及，明年再到北美和南美。
Ocean跟我分享了其中兩句他最愛的座佑銘，是出自俄羅斯作家Nabokov的小說Lolita：
「全心全意去愛，其他的交給命運」
「很多事情可以讓人愉快，唯有寫作可以讓人幸福」
對於第一句「愛」字的定義，他覺得這是一個適用於任何場合的文字。他是一個十分喜歡寫作的人，會在早上5時起床然後寫作兩小時，他覺得寫作的感覺很美妙。
最後，Ocean給我送了一塊在緬甸購買的Thanaka小木頭，在緬甸，不分男女老幼都用它磨成粉漿塗在臉上和手臂當防哂霜用，他祝願下一位追夢者要活得快樂。
Ocean的微博
游人歐尚
10/03/2014
寫於Kochi的小餐館內
