End of the Journey
Trip Start
Nov 14, 2008
1
102
Trip End
Feb 26, 2009
Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel
Monday, February 23, 2009
I'd been told by many people that the blind museum is a real must-see! Excuse the pun. I rushed in the morning to Holon on the outskirts of Tel Aviv for these two hour-long exhibits, which have been copied in several other countries too.
In the first one, "Dialogue in the Dark", we were led by a guide who is 80% blind, and we got to experience what everyday activities are like for a blind person. We were each given a walking stick, taught how to use it, and were led through rooms that got gradually darker, until we could see nothing at all. I found it quite frightening, and even claustrophobic, only being able to determine where I was going by touching the walls with my hands and walking stick. Blind people tend to develop amazing spatial awareness, I know Andrea Bocelli has appeared in operas and moved freely around the stage despite not having sight.
Very cleverly, all the “places” we visited emphasised other senses, like visiting a rainforest with bird sounds, touching and smelling fruit in a market, and going on a boat with simulated water and breeze. One of the exhibition’s aims is to change people’s perceptions of those with impairments, and here the typical roles were reversed – we sighted people were reliant on a vision-impaired person to assist us. Towards the end of the exhibition we reached a café, still in the dark, where we were served by blind waiters – I have no idea if they were giving me the right change! Afterwards we sat down with our guide and chatted to him about his experience as a blind person, he was very open and claimed that when he was walking with us, and always knew who he was next to, it was because he could recognise the smell of each person alongside him!
The “Invitation to Silence” (deaf) exhibit wasn’t quite as eye-opening as the first, as it didn’t feel as much like we were experiencing a world outside our own. It was more role-playing, trying to convey emotion and messages in charades-like games. We wore big headphones to block out all sounds, and went without speaking for the entire hour. Our guide was very animated, which made it a lot of fun, and I was amazed how easily she could get a message across to us without using words. At the end, we asked her questions, with the help of a sign-language translator at times, and although she was fully deaf she could still speak reasonably clearly. I asked if she could communicate with the blind people in the museum, and amazingly she could! She would lip read what they were saying, and they could understand her when she spoke to them. I’m very glad I was able to visit, despite struggling to book tickets for about 2 weeks.
The Carnival is Over
Annick drove me to the airport for my flight home, my 3rd flight out of (and 6th time at) Ben Gurion Airport this trip. Finally, 3 months and 18 countries later, my trip was at its completion. Jason Manne and Gabe Baker were on the same flight as me to Bangkok, and we were joined at the airport by a few of their mates that I know. Unfortunately, our flight was delayed by about 2 hours, and because my connecting flight was only minutes away from final boarding, I was given VIP status and got driven around Bangkok’s airport in an electric buggy. The last time that happened to me in Thailand, Daniel Solomon and I just missed our connecting flight home, and we were “forced” to skip uni and spend an extra 3 days in Phuket! But this time I felt more homesick, and there was no way I was spending extra time in Smog City – I got on the plane with literally minutes to spare.
The flight home was nice, with plenty of in-flight entertainment to conflict with my need for sleep. As we approached Sydney, I knew it was time to farewell the towers and temples, ruins and rock houses, stadiums and statues, camps and cathedrals, museums and mountains, palaces and pyramids. Looking at the magnificent view of Sydney Harbour from the air, I took a moment to shut my eyes, seek out some evocative music, and reminisce about the great times I had:
Now the harbour light is calling
This will be our last goodbye
The carnival is over
