My Journal: The Cicuta Trip

Chapter 7: Going to the Tekalkoin

[TEKALKOIN PLAT] I'm here at the Tekalkoin or Communal ArtSpace. The beautiful mural on the facade depicts many of Cicuta's most sacred myths. For a detailed explanation of the mural click here. Note the unusual door designed to accomodate variously shaped tourists.
   The ride over here in a LeaperCab was amazing! Looks like I'm barely in time. The top sign says they are closing at 34H "for packing and lowering." I'd better go in.

[EARLIER] I woke up to a bright morning--Kentro shining full on Akar. I was filled with excitement when I realized I was finally going to explore Cicuta.

    A quick wash at the communual fountain, a trip to the tourist loo (thankful that it was an up-to-date UVS), and I was ready for a breakfast of kymzest and psoom (hot sap and bread rolls with syrup). The food was quick, but finding a chair that fit me took a while.

    Watching the Cicutans in the gora, bustling about their daily activities, I wondered if they realized how rich and interesting their culture seemed to others.
     I wondered what it would feel like to have so much destroyed every cycle—so creation & brief enjoyment & memory become more important than accumulation & preservation. And the few items kept with great difficulty through many cycles become revered treasures.
     Now that it is easier to save art from cycle to cycle, will they fill their museum with old art, leaving no room for the new? And lose their sense that art, like life, is ephemeral and enjoyed in the moment?

    Weller and Nesh joined me for breakfast and we made plans. Weller would interview some of the explans, and Nesh, a bit bleary-eyed, would continue to pursue some music he'd discovered last night. I could cover the ArtSpace by myself.