{"id":2002,"date":"2020-05-30T05:35:27","date_gmt":"2020-05-29T20:35:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kota-yoshida.com\/?p=2002"},"modified":"2026-03-11T00:40:28","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T15:40:28","slug":"trip-notes-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kota-yoshida.com\/en\/trip-notes-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Caribbean sunset | Trip Notes | Kota | Oneness Artist"},"content":{"rendered":"

Caribbean sunset<\/h3>\n
\n\t

 <\/p>\n

The sun, which had been so intense during the day,<\/span><\/p>\n

finally began to fade,<\/span><\/p>\n

and by the time the evening quietly approached,<\/span><\/p>\n

I had walked away from the town to the beach.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As the sunlight weakened,<\/span><\/p>\n

more people started to appear outside.<\/span><\/p>\n

The vibrant and beautiful gradient of the sunset sky<\/span><\/p>\n

reflected in the Caribbean Sea.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I took a slow, deep breath.<\/span><\/p>\n

Without doing anything,<\/span><\/p>\n

I just gazed at the scenery.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Beyond this sea.<\/p>\n

Far beyond that horizon,<\/p>\n

lies the country and home where I was born and raised.<\/p>\n

My family and loved ones live there too.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Here it is evening,<\/p>\n

but over there, it must be nearing morning.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Despite being so far away,<\/p>\n

with the Caribbean Sea sunset right in front of me, which many people envy,<\/p>\n

my mind was filled with thoughts of home.<\/p>\n

It was a strange feeling.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It might be a habit I\u2019ve developed during my long travels.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When you're away from home for so long,<\/p>\n

the extraordinary life of traveling<\/p>\n

slowly becomes your new normal.<\/p>\n

The excitement from the early days of travel starts to fade.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just about fun, but there are also many hard times.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

During the most difficult times,<\/p>\n

when I felt homesick,<\/p>\n

remembering \"home\" strangely brought peace to my heart.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Home is a \"place to return to.\"<\/p>\n

A physical place that\u2019s familiar,<\/p>\n

and the people and community I\u2019m used to.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"I have a place to return to.\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How strongly this fact helped me during my harsh travels,<\/p>\n

how much it became the strength to keep moving forward.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Maybe it was the exhaustion from the journey.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the Caribbean sunset made my heart honest.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Yes, I have<\/p>\n

a place to return to.<\/p>\n

So, everything will be fine.<\/p>\n

One day, I\u2019ll go back.<\/p>\n

So, let me cherish this moment now.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

...<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But what am I doing here, so far away, alone?<\/p>\n

Where am I now,<\/p>\n

and where am I heading?<\/p>\n

Did I find something today?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Maybe because I've spent so much time alone,<\/p>\n

I naturally find myself talking with myself more.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

...When the Cubans are daydreaming,<\/p>\n

are they having conversations with themselves?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Before the Westerners forcibly brought them to this island,<\/p>\n

were they thinking about their homeland in Africa, a place they never set foot in?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What kind of world is in their minds?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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 <\/p>\n

The people of Cuba are strangely cheerful,<\/span><\/p>\n

friendly, and tough.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps it\u2019s because they are constantly buffeted by the waves of change.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Looking back, many of them originally lived in places like Africa,<\/span><\/p>\n

but at some point, they were forcibly brought to this island by Westerners.<\/span><\/p>\n

And for a long time,<\/span><\/p>\n

they were forced into harsh labor and conditions as slaves.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Eventually, this small island grew into a country,<\/span><\/p>\n

and revolutions occurred,<\/span><\/p>\n

even fighting against the mighty nation of America.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And they didn\u2019t lose.<\/span><\/p>\n

The faces of the heroes from that time can still be seen on posters and photographs<\/span><\/p>\n

around the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In this way, they were swept away by the waves of major changes time and time again,<\/span><\/p>\n

buffeted, nearly drowning,<\/span><\/p>\n

yet still desperately struggling or managing to ride the waves.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now,<\/span><\/p>\n

another wave of change is approaching.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

They have begun to engage in diplomacy with their former enemy, America.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Amidst the Latin music,<\/span><\/p>\n

numerous English songs have started to be heard.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Next to the old, rundown grocery store,<\/span><\/p>\n

there\u2019s a brand new Western-style shop.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The ripples of capitalism are slowly spreading.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Many of the old classic cars still running in this country<\/span><\/p>\n

may eventually be replaced by new models.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Both the country<\/span> and its people<\/span> can live on by changing.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Cuba I saw is likely disappearing.<\/p>\n

No, if I think bigger,<\/p>\n

it\u2019s not just Cuba...<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The things I\u2019ve seen,<\/p>\n

the places I\u2019ve lived are changing.<\/p>\n

The human relationships I\u2019ve become familiar with are changing.<\/p>\n

I, too, am changing.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The fact that the familiar things will no longer exist from now on,<\/p>\n

even if it\u2019s a change for the better,<\/p>\n

there\u2019s inevitably a certain sadness associated with it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And when I start getting used to the new things,<\/p>\n

they will change again...<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As long as I live, I will continue to change.<\/p>\n

Even this \u201cnow\u201d we are in,<\/p>\n

is continuing to change.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The scenery, my friends, the smells, the tastes,<\/p>\n

the sounds, all change. Everything,<\/p>\n

exists only in this moment.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When I think about that, how precious the \u201cnow\u201d is,<\/p>\n

it feels incredibly valuable.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And since we can continue living by changing,<\/p>\n

perhaps changing itself is a precious thing.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n

Took a big, slow breath.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It\u2019s okay,<\/p>\n

I have a place to return to.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The sun is about to set, and night is coming.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tonight\u2019s dinner will be something warm,<\/p>\n

and something delicious to eat.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Previous <\/h3>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\r\n\t\t\t\t\tREAD<\/a>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\t<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Home is a “place to return to.” A physical place that\u2019s familiar, and the people and community I\u2019m used to. “I have a place to return to.” How strongly this fact helped me during my harsh travels, how much it became the strength to keep moving forward.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1319,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"post-templates\/post_nosidebar.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_locale":"en_US","_original_post":"https:\/\/kota-yoshida.com\/?p=1555","footnotes":""},"categories":[38,39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2002","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trip-notes","category-works","en-US"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t