Traveler's eye

Friends are curious about the town where I stay. In the meanwhile, the longer one stays in a place, the more difficult it is to find a postcard that can fully represent its spirit. I am in such a dillemma. First, Elbeuf is not a tourist spot, so its postcards are not widely available. Even those I came across in bookstores gave a general and even vague impression. There are always cows, fields, churches, bungalows. These images can equally represent the whole France or even Europe. One year has passed by, and friends still don't have any idea of Elbeuf.

I took a walking tour around part of the city yesterday. Among all the shots, I selected an ordinary or artistically ugly one as a postcard of Elbeuf for my friends. I was happily amazed by the remains of this stone building at first sight, but no one ever suggested taking a walk there together. I'd been thinking, "How can people be so indifferent to a historic site like this?" And I couldn't but feel honored to live so near a square with all the history behind it. One day I couldn't keep the question anymore, "This must be a tourist site right? Look at the stones and traces of the past." D answered lightly, "No, that used to be a factory. It was torn down years ago." Well, I did sound ignorant in not knowing the remains of a factory could be so artistic...

For foreigners, Elbeuf is an adorable French town because our eye is not used to the typical architecture in France. For locals, Elbeuf is not considered beautiful at all. At first I was surprised about everything I saw, but after being brainwashed, I started to tell people that there are millions of towns more pleasant to visit. I've lost my traveler's eye. When we take things for granted, we are harder to please and even annoying.

This postcard reminds me to live the daily life with the traveler's eye no matter where and for how long I've dwelled in certain place. And of course, it is for my friends who have traveled and who have not traveled yet this summer.