Ex.ot.ic (eg.zat.ik) a.introduced from a foreign country; not indigenous; unusual or colourful.
For some, the exotic is India. Its Portugal for others. The rich Orient full of myths and stories for yet another.
The “exotic” has come to stand for the richly stimulating; it is associated with a sense of far away, hard to reach ideals. Ideals of beauty and culture and yearning for something more intuitively rich.
But exotic needn’t be a whole continent away. Or even a whole city away. The exotic is right where you are. Waiting to be discovered.
My exotic is in my every day. It is in the saffron in my food and the jasmine petals in my tea. It’s in the floating fragrance of blooming Gardenias from my lush garden. It’s in the tongues we speak- colourful and quick Newari, colloquial Nepali, queerly accented English. It’s in the rain that pours just outside my porous net door- nowhere else in the world- nowhere else in my house even- will the rain sound exactly like it does when it hits this particular section of my porch. My exotic is in the peculiar sound my water pump makes. It’s in the rich black of my hair, the fried onions in my omlette, the angled paisleys in my shirt.
My exotic is in the faces I see around me. The slant of the eyes. The shape of the smiles. The fullness of the lips. The rhythm of the speech. The vigorous nod of the head. It’s in the small meandering lanes and the picturesque mountains in view. It’s in the green of my grass and in the mess of my art studio. It’s in the smell of my coffee.
My everyday is rich in colours and texture; it’s rich in peculiar, photogenic, fascinating things.
Yours is too. The exotic is wherever you choose to see it. Choose to see a richness and potential for extreme wonder in your own country, your clothes, all your choices. Travel is good. But when you chose to BE the exotic, when the exotic is you, your place, your life, everyday is a journey.
It’s funny – being from another country makes me slightly exotic to people – I constantly feel like a tourist in my own life – it sometimes makes me very sad, but you have inspired me today to embrace it more this week – I am going to try to look at my life and my surroundings with fresh eyes and to remember the ‘exotic.’ And maybe I’ll play with being exotic a little – hmmm… yes…
YOU are absolutely inspiring! I read what you did with the camera – AMAZING!!
(p.s. I also just got your letter but I am up early to work on my book – I will write to you tonight!!)
megg:
your life IS exotic! take more time to explore it slowly. even the dusty corners where noone but keen tourists care to visit. take lots of photographs. live lusciously.:)
Stunning.
My own world and daily life seems suddenly alive with richness and the exotic.
Here’s to seeing with wide open eyes.
That is such a Sagittarian post, Mahima
We Sagges love the exotic and, if we can’t go very far to get it, we will live it right where we are, so you are perfectly right.
But I also associate “exotic” to rich colours and textures, like you said, so bland things can rarely be exotic. And there must be some novelty to the exotic, otherwise it’s simply usual.
It’s a great post!!
exotic post Mahima!
And you are so right – today the exotic is my
goji berrier – my emerald and fuscia silk
throw on my couch – the smell of nag champa in
my study – the new red-orange-saffron leaves
changing daily on the tree outside my window.
smiles!
Everything is exotic to me.. are the states exotic to others I wonder?
Going to a big city with more ethnic groups is exotic.
I love love the mahima in cappuccino picture
and my mail from nepal (:
Isabel: yes, here’s to seeing with wide open eyes.
DM: the portugal as exotic was for you- i’ve always wanted to visit because it always seemed exotic. partly i’ve wanted to visit also because we were meant to be in portugal for a week but met friends in Paris and stayed there instead. so that nagging “arrrrggg i should have”!
ah, maddie- thou art exotic!
Bluma: the US. My, it is exotic! ..and does that mean you got my mail?
very beautiful post! How often do I pass the exotic and forget that it is, in fact, exotic?
I especially like the imagery of the rain in that one particular spot on your porch. . .
I looked around and these are the exotic things around me:
The slant to Florian’s eyes tells a tale of the mongolian invasion of Germany.
My three wolves tumble over each other. The colours in their fur are grey, blue, cream, black and just a hint of orange.
A golden sun turns branches into a japanese kimono.
Today I gave a lady a lift. She was wearing a bright yellow traditional african dress and smelled of vanilla.
hi – I just stumbled on your website but I don’t know how I got here….was it fate that brought me to your words?….exotic – that’s what I am reading and delighting in here…..thank you for giving my day a lift and making me stop to see the beauty around me……a hearty hello from exotic Boston
Christine
exotic in my everyday life…I never thought of THAT…like the post…great post for a travel magazine…sometimes those that only dream of travel read them, no?….
that coffee picture is cool…the letters so clear.
TinyNoises:
i’m curious to know what exotic-ness exists in your everyday. i love to hear about exotic things!
Helena:
oh my! you weave words so beautifully!
your Florian in so beautiful. (saw the photos on your blog). He is exotic just himself!
Christine:
wow! Boston!
Thanks for dropping by.
Jen:
interesting point you made there: sometimes those that only dream of travel read them, no?….
I only buy old travel magazines for cut up and use in art. the maps. the drawings. the colours.
but if i’m really going to a place i never let a travel magazine narrow my expectation of a place by reading beforehand some glossy magazine’s idea of which hotels i shoudl stay in and what dishes i should eat.
Mahima!
Wah! Badiya hai!
hee hee,
this is going to be my favourite post for a long long time.
Very well written.
lotsa love,
chamki
xxx
My goodness.
You’re right.
I have heard a saying, “This could be any place on Earth.” Every place, every person, has it’s own unique exoticness. Being a perceptive person, you have told us exactly where to find it.
Thanks!
xo
Blue
i like how you put: every…has its own unique exoticness. i’m a lover of words that end with -ness. as you’ll discover.
maddie, you’ve been too kind! thank you.
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