Tiny Trips: Big Inspirations, ft Norrköping

You don’t need feet to appreciate good shoes. And that’s exactly how I bumped into Dominika when I said, ´I like your shoes! ´

It’s just another day and I am in Norrkoping for an errand but it has to be clubbed with some sightseeing. I always roam around museums looking for stories of inclusion and somehow I look for my space in history but at the Museum of work, the exhibition was all about the future and I guess we have a better shot at finding our space there. 😉

Dominika was the curator of one of the exhibitions and to my luck, she decided to walk me through it. I remember her telling me about our understanding of robots and what should their surface or skin feels like in order for us to understand their purpose better. What do surfaces mean to us and how it makes a difference in our experiences? I realized our kinaesthetic abilities include our sense of touch and it makes a huge difference in our daily lives. We often take our ability of touch for granted. It is all about the touch! I also remember saying, ´I don’t want to live among robots, it does scare me rather than excite me. However fallible, I still want to be around a person for any need´.

This conversation would definitely continue till the future and on the way, we all must voice our thoughts, and fears and find our space in present and in the future.

My next stop was the Museum of Art where I reached nearly drenched in rain and out of wheelchair battery. Roaming around the halls full of paintings and display kind of felt like a ride at Disney land. I moved from one wall to another trying to understand technique, texture and colours.

I also enjoy painting and to me techniques speak volumes about the state of the mind of the artist. I met Thomas from the museum who sat with me for a while to tell me the story of every artist. I listened intently and wondered if all of them knew the impact they were going to make one day?

Now it was time for food and I went to a nearby Indian restaurant by the name, Mughals. Interestingly it has a big statue of Charlie Chaplain at the entrance, does that mean? Anyways I met the owner who was from India but knew many Pakistanis and their palates. I asked for a specific prawn curry with enough spices to make me think of home and bad decisions at the same time. This was paired with a cheddar cheese naan.

Tanzila Khan at Mughals Indian Restaurant

I munched on this delicious meal and enjoyed my privacy as I overlook the town through droplets of rain. I also charged my wheelchair, my phone and offered Asr prayer.

Then it was time to go home and I boarded the train to head home feeling inspired, thoughtful and full of good food. I believe any trip should be measured by its depth of activities rather than its length. It’s the flavours, conversations and vibe of a town that makes it a memory worth remembering. I came home thinking about how amazing it is to exist in a world where you can see robots, lavender and prawn curry all in ´walking´ distances.