I bought a few more European classics today. Perhaps I do this deliberately wanting to think about my books while I am away...wanting almost to miss them or command their hidden tales to lovingly hound me and to recall the titles and accompanying memories that came with each thoughtful purchase. Perhaps I could catch my library's spirit while I am on distant shores with some yearning and a hopeful nostalgia that may bring me the more quicker to Dublin...amongst other things.
At present, I have exhausted my bookshelves and my books are scattered in untidy stacks all over the place.

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I have just read two interesting articles that outline the flourishing of secondhand bookshops in an old quarter of Amman. Having already been to Jordan, I still recall with fondness, a Jewish bookshop - yes, in Jordan - with ancient prized texts that the owner was proud of. They were welcoming at my approach. And now it appears that there are new stretches of all kinds of displayed literature. This is why I am weighing my options carefully. To see if I can squeeze in a Middle-Eastern country besides East Africa. The passionate pursuit of an erratic travel timetable is I suppose for me, as addictive as a coffee fix.

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I have started to learn Arabic. An episode took place on a books blog a little while ago where I would have understood a poem much better, had I been able to read Arabic. As it was, I felt helpless. I remember even while studying in a Convent under Irish nuns no less, that my parents had wanted me to pursue this as an optional subject. I did study it briefly. Now, I find I still recall the basic alphabets and tenses with miraculous ease. Indeed, there's no denying the monumental power of the subconscious mind. I want to read more Middle-Eastern literature in its original version. But I would love to learn other languages as well.

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Speaking of which, my dvd player had been spoilt for awhile so I wasn't able to watch world films - another cheerful hobby. But it's fixed now and I am determined to resurrect my collection of world films when I return to Dublin. I bought a film today called Since Otar Left a poignant East European story that traces three women's difficult lives and which saw it win the Grand Prize at Cannes.