The following piece is a writing exercise from the Plate2Page Workshop on food writing and photography in Somerset from May 18 – 21.
Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch’entrate.
All hope abandon, ye who enter in.
(Dante Alighieri: Divine Comedy, canto III, line 9)
Why does it always remind me of a cattle drive?
People voluntarily surge forward through gates miraculously opening with a loud metallic clang. Propelled by unseen forces they continue on an endless trip down down down, oblivious of surroundings or pretending not to be seen or see. The escalator to hell? To the slaughterhouse?
The nose meets an odyssey of offending smells: stale air devoid of oxygen, body parts lacking proper olfactory protection, burnt machine oil. And gushes of wind sweep through narrow tunnels multiplying the malodorous onslaught and carrying forebodings of possible catastrophes. A soft rumbling turns into a tumultuous roar and then it is upon us.
Mind the gap!
Comments 36
Stand clear of the doors!
@kittiewalker and do not obstruct the doors with any objects … this caused an enjoyable tunnel stay on one of my rides!
@Late_Bloomers 😀
@kittiewalker Yeahhhhh :D:D
Love it – this was one of the most surprising and enjoyable pieces of writing produced during the Plate to Page weekend workshop! It was such a pleasure having you there and getting to know you.
@Cooksister Hi, Jeanne, welcome and thanks for stopping by and leaving such a lovely comment!
Time flew by during that memorable workshop but beautiful memories linger and social networks beckon!
Yeah… this is why I don’t take the subway… :o)
@DeliberateBlog Hola, guapa, what a pleasure to see you here!
But you know there is no alternative, did you ever take a bus in the middle of the day? Takes an eternity to get from A to B!
@Late_Bloomers Ha, ha. I do get that. When I’m in London, I have to take the tube, too. Bummer. But I live in a city where I can usually walk or take a very cheap taxi, and I’m super grateful for that. It’s these little details that really shape our lives.
Oh, and I did take a bus once in London. I made the mistake (as I later was chastised for by my London friends) of making eye contact. Before I knew it I had what I can only assume to be an escaped mental patient, telling me her life story. It was a bit creepy, but also really funny. Ah, public transportation! So full of adventure. And the smell of urine…
Smooches!
M
@DeliberateBlog Hehe, double love to this! When I came back late on Sunday night I had a Sicilian taxi driver who told me all about Sicilian oranges, vegetables, their freshness, their low prices as compared to the old withered quality you get here in Switzerland. He insisted on escorting me to my house door through the rain, kissed me on both cheeks, solemnly shook hands with my mom who mistook him for a friend (she knew I had no Swiss money on me and her eyesight is failing her badly) and fortunately had to scoot of to some emergency call …
Big hugs,
Barbara
Very vivid description, creative use of words!…And the use of Alighieri truly added to the mood. 🙂
@jpage.manuel Thank you so much, Joy, quite proud of myself (if I may say so!), that quote has followed me for a very long time: in our last year of Gymnasium (High School) we put it up on our classroom door! And my mother-in-law was a real Tuscan and knew the Divina Commedia by heart, quoting from it incessantly.
I normally do not do writing exercises but it might be a good idea to keep your brain cells fit and innovative! We could build an online workshop with a monthly subject (I would not have time for more!), would you care to join the club? What do you think about it?
Cattle drive? Stinking body parts? Oh my…………
@bdorman264 Reminds you of the good old cowboy days, does it not?
Mind the closing door, please mind the closing doors. I wouldn’t worry. If you managed to enter, surely you can exit?
@JSJ2020 LOL, Muriel, except for being squashed (by the doors) and no helping knight in shining armour in sight?
@Late_Bloomers At my age I am not waiting for a knight any more…Life is too short to wait anyway! I am sort of taking matters into my own hands now…
@JSJ2020 Muriel, what do you want me to say to that? Young girl, but please tell me more ….
@Late_Bloomers Just saying “on nest jamais si bien servi que par soi-meme!” That’s all…
@JSJ2020 Where you are right, you are right! Entièrement d’accord but it took me a long time …
Very interesting. I am very sensitive to smells lately, and you certainly stirred up sense memories!
@sallykwitt Welcome, Sally, and thanks for stopping by. It makes me happy that my writing exercise stirs up olfactory memories!
@Late_Bloomers maybe next time you can write about good smelling things like flowers or good food! LOL
@sallykwitt LOL, Sally, I will bear that in mind! Have a beautiful long weekend!
I reminded me of Walmart during Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving! Crazy stampede. Beautifully written, Barbara!
@dorienmorin Dorien, argh, I can relate to that, I am glad we do not have Black Friday here in Switzerland, using public transport is enough! Thanks for stopping by, I will visit your place right now!
Love your writing. Tons of memory in my mind. Of large cities backyards or areas near train stations or underground metro; of my school years (Dante it’s mandatory for three years in Italian schools) nightmare; of Dorè illustrations of Divina Commedia. Emotionally inspiring writing! I adore it! thanks
@ffab Fabrizio, thank you so much for your lovely comment. It is all about finding a voice and adding more facettes to it, is it not?
And yes: the memories come flowing back, of lovely times spent in London, Italian lessons taking Dante apart and thinking of other things, and of course, I remember the Doré illustrations!
Thanks again, my friend, I feel very honoured by your words.
Barbara, first time on your blog via KIWK. Great passage. I am more interested in learning about the exercise you did than the actually phrase used ;)I love writing and I am intrigued with this.Great to meet you here!
@CompanyFounder Hi, Paul, welcome and thanks for stopping by.
It is a 10 minutes writing exercise about using all 5 senses (well, I left out some but you might agree with me: it is not advised to touch anything when travelling underground), you are free to pick any subject. I spent about half of the time letting my mind wander and all of a sudden the smell was here. Amazing what you can do when conjuring up smells: e.g. think about a smell you love and describe it.
Want to start a writing club with me?
Great to see you here and have a lovely long weekend, say hello to Dorien, Barbara
I am fascinated! I had to put the phrase in Google. I read all of the Wiki description.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inferno_(Dante)From one fellow writer to another: Did you have fun? What did you get out of this exercise? has it improved your writing? Will do do it again?
@DiggerCartwright HI, Digger, thanks for stopping by and welcome!
Did I have fun? Yes, very much so, thinking outside the box is great, writing outside the box even more so. It was a food writing and photography workshop, I felt heavily challenged by the photography. The writing exercises (this was but one of many) helped me on many levels: my daughter always says to me: “write the way you talk, you are far funnier, your writing is more stilted (or something to that sort!).” Has it improved my writing? I do not know yet, up to you to judge this.
As I wrote to Paul and to Joy: I would love to start an online writing club, doing 10 minute exercises (e.g. using all your senses, writing from a different perspective like a report for a journal, on a given subject) and discuss them maybe in a google+ hangout or on Skype, would you be interested? What do you think about it?
Wow, you got me going, glorious sunshine here and I am out for a walk with my dog. It was good talking to you, thanks
Barbara
‘Stand clear of the closing doors please.’ I am pleased you missed the sense of ‘touch’ as there in itself is the worst sensory receptor to use on the underground! So pleased you have fun on your course and can’t wait to see the blog develop because of it.
@Lucylastica2 Hi, Lucy, thanks so much and I hope everything is ok on the other side of the Channel! I still feel terribly sorry we could not make it in London and I hope your friend is feeling better or in less pain.
Haha for the touch! Next time I will bring gloves!
As for the workshop I spent it half asleep due to heavy medication and the flight back home last week did not help, I think it went straight up into my brain cells and is having a rotten good time there! Shucks or whatever it is called.
I just finished my post on the workshop and I feel kind of elated and exhausted at the same time. Now on to the next project: the webshop will go online – as you know – June 1. So much to do, so little time.
Thanks for stopping by and next time – hey, for sure!
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