In praise of disorder – the joy of Mediterranean messiness

 

[cluttered desk]

Some 40 years ago, I took the train to Rome after having spent a month in Germany. I vividly remember the feeling of chaos at the Rome train station, the confusion due to the lack of signs and my discomfort with the chaos of the city.  Still, I said to myself that I would love to have the German transportation in Italy and enjoy the best of two worlds. A few months ago, I flew to Nurenberg through Heraklion, Crete. This trip made me realized how much today I prefer the chaos of the Mediterranean to the orderliness of the northern Europe.

To paint a picture, Heraklion is similar to many other urban areas in the eastern Mediterranean in terms of aesthetics and manner of living. The sidewalks are often partial; the parking is improvised; trashcans, not to mention recycling bins, can be few and far between, with the results evident in the gutter sometime. The occasional rain turns some streets into Venetian canals. In terms of sounds, loud car honks and louder conversations are the norm, creating an interesting cacophony, exaggerated for those that do not speak Greek. As for signing, the panels at Knossos (for those that did not buy the video player) left much to the imagination. By the way, the Heraklion airport deserves its awful reputation. On the other hand, the food was rich and tasty, featuring fish, meat and vegetables. The desserts were tasty. The people were friendly and helpful, happy to share their culture even in non-tourist areas. In summary, Heraklion, like Cyprus and Israel, was loud and genuine, for better or worse.

By contrast, Germany, like Holland, was clean and orderly but socially structured. The streets were sterile, with not only trash cans but also recycling bins in all public squares. The signing was complete and without translation errors, not a given in the world. (FYI, translators love discovering amusing translation errors.) The buildings were impressive and well maintained. As for the food, in that part of Germany, it was primarily meat in various forms, with a few vegetables, primarily the potato in French fries (chips). The bread was as heavy, albeit tasty, as the meat. The beer was plentiful and justified its reputation. On the other hand, people spoke quietly and interacted with foreigners and, as it appeared in some restaurants, even among their family, formally, without great emotion. I understood that clear limits of public expression existed. Northern Europe is clearly an calmer place to visit.

As I boarded the plane for Israel on my way home, I remarked that if I could not live in Israel, I could imagine myself living in Crete. To quote Baloo, they have the bare necessities of life down pat, i.e., good food and real social relations. As for the administrative chaos, it can be amusing, even an advantage sometimes. By contrast, I could not see myself fitting in Germany, Holland or any other northern European country as, after 35 years, I do not want to play by strict rules set by others. As Jacques Prévert wrote, je suis comme je suis; je suis fait comme ça – I am what I am; I am made like that. I not only enjoy the food of the Mediterranean but also relish in the dramatics of its human interactions. Some 40 years ago, the disorder was too much for me. Now, at this stage of my life, I prefer my society to be like my desk, a bit messy.