Visits in Beijing
The buildings are stacked for miles in rows along the wide main street
All new, erected in the last five or ten years. It must have been a frenzy
Under grey skies heavy with pollution or mist or fog we pass Tiananmen Square
And reach a cultural centre carpeted in red with dragon clocks and chandeliers
I acquire the gift of a rolled silk tapestry, a huge name tag in English and Mandarin, and then a guide and an interpreter to direct me to my place, to where
at every moment
The plan calls for me to be. I sit, my capped bone china cup of tea is filled
And as I sip, topped up again. My turn comes in the playlist, my microphone switched on for me
I deliver speech, then off we go for group photo, every seat pre-prepared with a name tag attached
Over coffee and sweet bean cakes I engage the student girls who guide and interpret, their real concern
Is for my viewing of historical sites, for advance of cooperation and the march of social harmony.
Apartment blocks emerging from the heavy haze
Ever more Ring Roads as migrants swell the city
Cars replace bicycles over the years
On the way to visit the Great Wall
At Bada Ling, snowfall around the feet.
I am freezing up high in the early morning!
We were the first, before the daily groups of students came.
Climbed down gingerly, got inside. Ordered cabbage, beancurd and noodle soup.
Five women gathered round to watch me eat. My local guide
Waited... until we found a KFC.
poem by Frank Bana
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Related quotes
So Heavy Was The Air That Day
So heavy was the air that day
So heavy was the air
So hot was everywhere that day
So hot was everywhere.
A breeze
Not yet a cooling breeze
But one straight
Fresh baked from nature’s oven.
Standing
Looking
‘Cross the bay
And high upon the hillsides
A haze
A hot heat haze
Flies slept
Palms paused
No goannas to be seen
And the birds
Dry of song.
The sea
Its siren call so still
The waves
So sluggish and slow moving.
The roads the house and all about
And all about the roads and house
Just hot
Just hot hot hot
Just hot hot hot
With heat.
Tarmacadam
WIith smell like creosote
Whipping up childhood memories
Of english garden fences
And dads working out the back
In cooler summer times.
So heavy was the air that day
So heavy was the air
So hot was everywhere that day
So hot was everywhere.
Would you like a drink my friend?
Some water? Or a beer?
For its not the day for coffee pots
It’s the hottest day for years.
Now look!
Just look!
Just look up high
The sky the sky the sky
No blueness to be seen
Its furnace grey and threatytening
What does this weather mean?
And
We talked
Slowly without passion
As if the heat
Had boiled out
Some part of us.
Our energies
And maybe loud ambition.
So heavy was the air that day
So heavy was the air
So hot was everywhere that day
So hot was everywhere.
Later
When as stars were slowly seen
We stood and asked the moon
Why we do not know the tune
That nature plays
Capriciously
So temptingly
For us
Yes, all of us
Entranced as if Pan’s playful pipes
Played just to gust the breeze
Yet still we seek
And wonder why
And try to understand
Our lands
And the skies
And the winds
And the weather
And yet such things
We can’t command
Not ever
Ever
Ever.
poem by David Keig
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Kolkata
A nice foggy weather
In this exciting winter morning
I am sitting in a bus
Waiting to reach my school
Thinking about some experiences in the past
When suddenly I notice my beautiful city
Through the only window open in the bus
I see the heavy traffic jam
New trams that have been renovated
The buildings that are on a verge of falling down
Men are walking barefooted
Birds are chirping
Students are studying in their vehicles.
Everybody is heading towards work
Cars are being filled with petroleum
Washer men are washing clothes
A group of women are gossiping
All the scenes will never end-
As they are of my amazing city
But now I have to end
As I have almost reached.
I know my city has been developing
And I will never let each individual's thought end
I will make a step forward
And work for my city
As I have been influenced enough
And I realize the worth of it
I know I love my city a lot
And I have learnt to value it.
poem by Minu Jaiswal
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Swallows
O LITTLE hearts, beat home, beat home,
Here is no place to rest.
Night darkens on the falling foam
And on the fading west.
O little wings, beat home, beat home.
Love may no longer roam.
O, Love has touched the fields of wheat
And Love has crowned the corn,
And we must follow Love's white feet
Through all the ways of morn.
Through all the silver roads of air
We pass and have no care.
The silver roads of Love are wide,
O winds that turn, O stars that guide.
Sweet are the ways that Love has trod
Through the clear skies that reach to God.
But in the cliff-grass Love builds deep
A place where wandering wings may sleep.
poem by Marjorie Lowry Christie Pickthall
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People should have freedom in their pilgrimages and tours. They should come and visit historical monuments and sites - let's say the sites around Iran - where they can easily engage in wide- scale contacts with others.
quote by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Sun In My Morning
When all my troubles just surround me
And all my problems seem to ground me
There is a thing Im thinkin of
Sun in my morning and my sky above
Sun in my morning and my sky above
Im not like you , Im not a rich man
I work and do the best that I can
There is a place Im thinkin of
Sun in my morning and my sky above
Sun in my morning and my sky above
Ive got my women there to guide me
In all my darkness , she will guide me
She is the think Im talkin of
Shes my sun in the morning and my sky above
Sun in my morning and my sky above
song performed by by Bee Gees
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Sunlight
I watch the world go by in silence
Deep in the night in silence
Time going by so slow
I think about the morning
And it warns my heart
Because tonight I'm going back to the one I love
And by tomorrow with the dawn I'll be there
And he'll be beside me
Sunlight, oh, sunlight
Bring me the love I'll need to guide me
Shining deep inside of me
Sunlight, oh, sunlight
Show me the way
I look at the stars and I pray for morning
Counting the hours till morning
Thinking about his smile
His sweet smile
I'm standing on the promise of a brand new day
I couldn't face another night staying all alone
I know he needs me just as much as I need him
So, baby, I'm coming home
Sunlight, oh, sunlight
Bring me the love I'll need to guide me
Shining deep inside of me
Sunlight, oh, sunlight
Show me the way
Ooh ohhhhh, yeah
And when I hold him
I won't let him let me go, no no no
No more running far and wide
I'm gonna stay right by his side
He's my laughter, my lover, my life
He's my sunlight
Sunlight, oh, sunlight
Show me the way to a brighter day
Oh, sunlight, oh, sunlight
Bring me the love I'll need to guide me
Shining deep inside of me
Sunlight, oh, sunlight
Show me the way to a brighter day
Oh, sunlight, oh, sunlight
Bring me the love I'll need to guide me
Shining deep inside of me
Sunlight, oh, sunlight
Show me the way...
To a brighter day
Ooohhhhh
song performed by by Lea Salonga
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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On & On (Mersey Song)
Out through the foggy window there just to see the eyes of my future children
looking back at me back through the foggy window
on and on miles pass years turn over
on and on there from that rolled down window ponies run free
cradled protectively there in the greenery somewhere I keep this picture
on and on miles pass years turn over
on and on for all the roads we've travelled
and all the bridges burned I was thinking out loud the ways
of the world that all seem so constant how few
of the lessons we really have learned.
out through the foggy window frozen in frame capturing passing pictures
life's last refrain, memories ashes scatter
on and on miles pass years turn over
on and on
song performed by by 10000 Maniacs
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Six o’clock on a Friday morning
It’s six o’clock on a Friday morning
and I wait for my bus
and across the street,
the lights are burning cheerful and yellow
in the square and dome shaped windows
of the state library
and I wonder what documents are kept there
Street hawkers sell newspapers and sweets
in front of the Pretoria News,
while passengers are already
catching busses in rows.
There’s an icy chill
that hangs in the morning dawn light
and there’s a skew pointed obelisk
that is in front of the high court chambers
and a newspaper heading
talks about the recession
that is blowing hot and cold,
but it’s freezing
and the cold even eats
right through my leader jacket.
On the east side of Vermeulen Street
the sky becomes a light yellow,
while the blue of the heaven
folds open all over the rest
and streetlights stand in a long row
up the street past traffic lights.
Schoolgirls dressed in blue
are watching school boys with red jerseys
and young women
stand and shake
from the cold and I wonder,
how the old red delivery bicycle
behind the pillar
are not getting stolen
where it stands every morning on its place.
There’s a street sign that points to the Pierneef museum
into the L te Groen Eureka factory building,
but it’s still too early
to go and look at paintings
and I wonder how
the Pierneef paintings inside looks.
On the side of a building
I am amazed at the Tswane sign,
but this big city
will always stay Pretoria for me
and I wonder how people
can build buildings so pressed into each other
and look at old and new buildings
standing rowed in onto each other
and the bus stays away,
while others come and go
and I wait
a while longer in the cold.
poem by Gert Strydom
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Worship Your Feet
You want a diamond and gold shaped locket
And a fat share of my dollar sized pocket
I beg, I beg
Watch those legs
The soles of your feet
Need a comfortable seat
Uncomfortable shoes will make you retreat
And you will walk the path of shameless defeat
For the city of Paris has no definition
Once I would have merely given it a distinction
I beg, I beg
Give those legs meaning
Walk as if you are winning
Foisting of competition
Searching for my name
For the game is walk with no shame
You want to be superstar
And get the chance to drive super-fast cars
I beg, I beg
Watch those legs
For the city of London has no obvious ignition
Blocks of high-rise buildings are its recognition
If my feet walk off the ground
Will my soul stay quietly spell bound?
For there is a certain silence without sound
When that ever-lasting peace is well-found
You want a cold beer
And live your life as if you don't care
Worship your feet
When you walk on the street!
Worship your feet
In the rough cold and the heat!
On your marks - Take off!
Worship your feet as you worship your tits!
poem by Sylvia Chidi
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On & On
Music by 10,000 maniacs - lyrics by mary ramsey
Out through the foggy window there
Just to see the eyes of my future children
Looking back at me
Back through the foggy window
On and on
Miles pass years turn over
On and on
There from that rolled down window
Ponies run free cradled protectively
There in the greenery somewhere
I keep this picture
On and on
Miles pass years turn over
On and on
For all the roads we've travelled
And all the bridges burned
I was thinking out loud the ways of the world
That all seem so constant
How few of the lessons we really have learned.
Out through the foggy window frozen in frame
Capturing passing pictures life's lastrefrain,
Memories ashes scatter
On and on
Miles pass years turn over
On and on.
song performed by by 10000 Maniacs
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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On On
Music by 10,000 maniacs - lyrics by mary ramsey
Out through the foggy window there
Just to see the eyes of my future children
Looking back at me
Back through the foggy window
On and on
Miles pass years turn over
On and on
There from that rolled down window
Ponies run free cradled protectively
There in the greenery somewhere
I keep this picture
On and on
Miles pass years turn over
On and on
For all the roads weve travelled
And all the bridges burned
I was thinking out loud the ways of the world
That all seem so constant
How few of the lessons we really have learned.
Out through the foggy window frozen in frame
Capturing passing pictures lifes lastrefrain,
Memories ashes scatter
On and on
Miles pass years turn over
On and on.
song performed by by 10000 Maniacs
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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October Silk
I liked the rice candy
at the Chinese market
at University Heights
where the Chinese lady
with the blue-black bangs
wrapped Almond cookies
in cellophane packets
where Pork Fried Rice
came in square containers
with no.3 choice of chow mein,
as people lined up out the door
and into the street
Four lanes of heavy bags
of Jasmine rice and Plum paste
of Green tea and rice cakes
and I stumble into the aisle
You like cookies? the Chinese man
asks holding up the small bag,
leaning over the rows of Bok Choy
and loose-packed Snow-peas
The Chinese lady
moves in October silk
she gives me my Rice candy
and a sample of dried Plums,
the fragrant smell of Jasmine
and Vanilla Bean heavy in the air.
poem by Louise Marie DelSanto
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Future Years
A morbid beauty
Glows in resonation
Mercurial signs they read
Make real our minds
True fascinations
For now we're rolling
And kinda golden
As time keeps folding
We're old when our poor souls depart
Whereas cold cruel jokes now make you cry
One day you'll take them in your stride
All of the time we've resided here
You'll see our chalices rise
With ever endless tears
And illusions they fly
But someday soon will clear
Just sit back and recline
I'll guide you through the years
Through the future years
As they'll soon appear
Someday all too near
Now the distance clears
Bad ways which rule all the ways we go
Through black and the gloom
Consecutive days and plain afternoons
The things in life
They pass the time
While those all around are bored
Though we come down in real demise
Trek through all of the feelings with no tears in eyes
Kept fear veiled so it hides
Life's never forced or dry
So theres nothing inside me
I just seem alive
To the future years
As they'll soon appear
Dressed in slacks as we will
So its stars they steer
Just tie a silk sheet round your neck
And twist it till your face turns cherry red
All of the time we've resided here
You'll see our chalices rise
With ever endless tears
And illusions they fly
But someday soon will clear
Just sit back and recline
I'll guide you through the years
song performed by by Deady from Commencement
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Beautiful Edinburgh
Beautiful city of Edinburgh, most wonderful to be seen,
With your ancient palace of Holyrood and Queen's Park Green,
And your big, magnificent, elegant New College,
Where people from all nations can be taught knowledge.
The New College of Edinburgh is certainly very grand
Which I consider to be an honour to fair Scotland,
Because it's the biggest in the world, without any doubt,
And is most beautiful in the inside as well as out.
And the Castle is wonderful to look upon,
Which has withstood many angry tempests in years bygone;
And the rock it's built upon is rugged and lovely to be seen
When the shrubberies surrounding it are blown full green.
Morningside is lovely and charming to be seen;
The gardens there are rich with flowers and shrubberies green
And sweet scented perfumes fill the air,
Emanating from the sweet flowers and beautiful plants there.
And as for Braidhill, it's a very romantic spot,
But a fine place to visit when the weather is hot;
There the air is nice and cool, which will help to drive away sorrow
When ye view from its summit the beautiful city of Edinburgh.
And as for the statues, they are very grand-
They cannot be surpassed in any foreign land;
And the scenery is attractive and fascinating to the eye,
And arrests the attention of tourists as they pass by.
Lord Melville's Monument is most elegant to be seen,
Which is situated in St. Andrew's Square, amongst shrubberies green,
Which seems most gorgeous to the eye,
Because it is towering so very high.
The Prince Albert Consort Statue looks very grand,
Especially the granite blocks whereon it doth stand,
Which is admired by all tourists as they pass by,
Because the big granite blocks seem magnificent to the eye.
Princes Street West End Garden Is fascinating to be seen,
With its beautiful big trees and shrubberies green,
And its magnificent water fountain in the valley below
Helps to drive away from the tourist all care and woe.
The Castle Hotel is elegant and grand,
And students visit it from every foreign land,
And the students of Edinburgh often call there
To rest and have luncheon, at a very cheap fare.
Queen Street Garden seems charming to the eye,
And a great boon it is to the tenantry near by,
As they walk along the grand gravel walks near there,
Amongst the big trees and shrubberies, and inhale pure air.
Then, all ye tourists, be advised by me,
Beautiful Edinburgh ye ought to go and see.
It's the only city I know of where ye can wile away the time
By viewing its lovely scenery and statues fine.
Magnificent city of Edinburgh, I must conclude my muse,
But to write in praise of thee I cannot refuse.
I will tell the world boldly without dismay
You have the biggest college in the world at the present day.
Of all the cities in the world, Edinburgh for me;
For no matter where I look, some lovely spot I see;
And for picturesque scenery unrivalled you do stand.
Therefore I pronounce you to be the Pride of Fair Scotland.
poem by William Topaz McGonagall
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14 Angels
When at night I go to sleep
14 angels watch do keep
Two my head are guarding
Two my feet are guiding
Two to whom tis given
To guide my steps
To heaven
To guide me
When at dawn my eyes do wake
14 angels my peace do take
Two there are who need me
Two there are who feed me
Two who sway before me show me
All Ive known
Is wrong, that I am
Not me
Two there are to take my soul
Away from here
To guide my steps
song performed by by Information Society
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Let Your Soul Be Your Pilot
Let your soul be your pilot
Let your soul guide you
Hell guide you well
When youre down and theyre counting
When your secrets all found out
When your troubles take to mounting
When the map you have leads you to doubt
When theres no information
And the compass turns to nowhere that you know well
Let your soul be your pilot
Let your soul guide you
Hell guide you well
When the doctors failed to heal you
When no medicine chest can make you well
When no counsel leads to comfort
When there are no more lies they can tell
No more useless information
And the compass spins
The compass spins between heaven and hell
Let your soul be your pilot
Let your soul guide you
Hell guide you well
And your eyes turn towards the window pane
To the lights upon the hill
The distance seems so strange to you now
And the dark room seems so still
Let your pain be my sorrow
Let your tears be my tears too
Let your courage be my model
That the north you find will be true
When theres no information
And the compass turns to nowhere that you know well
Let your soul be your pilot
Let your soul guide you
Let your soul guide you
Let your soul guide you upon your way...
song performed by by Sting
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Paradox...
so many and yet so really few
in fact, there is only one among the many
so long and provoking and yet in reality
it is so short and surrendering
the active is actually the most passive
and the front is (from another perspective) is actually the back of this great wall.
welcome to the great divide.
have a seat, relax, and wait for your guide.
for what you had for years
is actually just a moment ago
in a second, just a wink in the eye
ah, your name your great wisdom
is nothing here
but just a speck and a folly
it is funny and yet it is so true.
come, undress yourself, your clothes and
jewelry and watch, and contraptions
your buttons and zippers
your socks and shoes
are of no use here... your body does
not serve you here anymore
no touch nothing about a kiss or
a hug
you do not make love here
you shed off
you are yourself now, feel what air is.
welcome. The transition will be short.
Eternity is your teacher.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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Pretoria
I look at a city,
a city once modern, new
and progressive, the cultural centre
of a nation
but now poverty
and mismanagement
is taking its toll.
Where ten years back
people could live in its apartments
now is a ghetto,
with prostitutes on the street,
primitive men urinating against buildings
and teenagers walking with ghetto-blasters
playing music at full volume.
Where at traffic lights
windows are smashed with bricks
and valuables are stolen,
parked cars are taken,
where cars are hijacked
with the barrel of a gun
and cars are even stripped
at the police grounds.
A capital city in a country
that has thrown its borders
wide open to the rest of Africa
and every criminal
has headed there
and gangsters live in paradise
but in the suburbs
people still are making a living
in fortresses guarded by dogs
and security devices,
with panic buttons
for the nearest rent a cop
and people still pray
and go to work and play
as if crime is the norm
and the inadequacy
of the new government
doesn’t really matter.
poem by Gert Strydom
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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In God’s Plan
I need God’s guidance day by day, to help me walk life’s narrow way,
He guides me daily with His Light, as I pass through the dark of night,
God does not leave us comfortless, but fills us with Christ’s joyful bliss,
He gives us His abundant Grace, to help us through the darkest place,
Friend we receive encouragement, from the One who Christ had sent,
The Holy Spirit who lives inside, who also helps us in this life to abide,
To abide in our Lord Jesus Christ, who came and died to give men life.
I simply need to trust and obey, The Spirit’s guiding throughout the day,
God Grants us His sustaining Power, to guide us through the final hour.
On each and every path that I turn, The Lord is there to help me learn,
Friend even in the midst of strife, there’s something to learn in this life,
While learning each and every day, to live for God in an abundant way,
God is the only guide you’ll find, who knows both your heart and mind,
God knows all you’ve been through, and knows where you are going to.
I know the plan that God has for me, a plan which extends into Eternity,
His plan for me began in this life, when I received His Son Jesus Christ.
His plan is to care and prosper me, and all God’s plans will come to be.
God’s plan cannot be thwarted friend, so whatever He starts he will end.
So as each and every day begins, I can in confidence look towards Him,
And when all in this life is said and done, I shall live forever with His Son.
(Copyright ©09/2006)
Round Room
My room is round when I lay down, when I wake up it's square
When I go outside it's on a spiral set of stairs
The people that surround me are waiting out there
In a round room they can't find me anywhere
Right angle rooms drive me crazier each day
Put me in a box I know I'm never going to play
Put me in a square room and I won't know what to say
I want a round room at the end of the day
I had an apartment, four corners on the walls
Couldn't eat, couldn't sleep there at all
I want a curve to the place where I stay
I want a round room at the end of the day
If I pass out take me to the round church
Where echoes resound
And my spirit is found
And when I float high
Take my arm and I'll fly you by
The outskirts of town, to a garden that's round
I went to the lighthouse and I liked the view
I looked out the window and I could see you
Put me in a square house and I won't have a clue
I want a round room just to be with you
song performed by by Phish
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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