Wayfinding
The final session of our “Life Journeys” sub-project was attended by the groups of our Kaposvár Community House – together with curious parents and siblings. Our invited guest was Viktor Zichó, who we knew was committed to sustainable development as an energy engineer, and cycled across from west to east; south to north on two wheels. In the first part of the morning, we listened with open-mouthed amazement to Csoma’s account of his adventurous 13,000-kilometre journey on a recumbent bike. Then, in the workshop that lasted into the afternoon, we talked about sustainability, trying to find meaningful and useful guidance for ourselves, defining our tasks and responsibilities for the future, what we can and should do. And as a guide, we were all given examples of perseverance, commitment, loyalty, realising dreams, courage, awareness, and rethinking prejudices. Below is a summary of the morning by Jázmin Pertz, the experiences of parent Judit Belovitz, and the speaker’s reflections:
“Today we witnessed an amazing life story. Viktor Zichó visited us and told us his unique story. Sándor Kőrösi Csoma, our Hungarian linguist, set out centuries ago to discover the Hungarian homeland on foot. He finally found it in Bengal, after writing the Tibetan-English dictionary or hiding in disguise on the borders of Afghanistan. Viktor Csoma’s diary gave him a new purpose in life. The energy engineer combined this with his passion for cycling, and set off on his long journey on his own from Hungary to the tomb of Csoma, just inside the borders of West Bengal. His journey has taken him through closed Islamic countries with different cultures, full of surprises and hardships. As Europeans, we have no idea what it is like to really travel and live in these countries. Viktor has experienced first-hand the hospitality of Turks, Persians and Tajiks, as well as the rejection in other countries. He has seen majestic landscapes with his own eyes and met completely unknown, but warm-hearted people.
Of course, life is not all pleasure. Viktor was also hampered by many natural and social factors. It was up to his perseverance to see his goal through. What he has brought to the table is exemplary. We have heard the words of a man I would most like to choose as my role model any day…
In addition to his adventures in the East, Viktor is very concerned about sustainable environment and environmental protection. He saw thousands of beautiful, unspoilt and precious landscapes during his 11-month journey. He knows what man destroys. Our modern consumer world is already cutting down the trees under its own feet. We notice, but we do nothing, because when you think about it, it is too hard to give up comfort and unnecessary luxury. Society thinks that the luxury we live in is perfectly normal, so we take it for granted, whether it’s in food, clothing or transport. All this was discussed interactively in a valuable workshop after the lecture. Although we argued now and then, the numbers are irrefutable facts for all doubters! Our unlimited lives are slowly destroying everything around us, depriving our children and grandchildren of the opportunity to live healthy and fulfilling lives. Viktor made us do the math, we looked in detail at CO2 emissions, for example. The numbers were staggering, how much an SUV or a more fuel-efficient car pollutes the environment. For example, Viktor’s example of travelling only by train or bus because of carbon emissions made me think hard and agree with him. We don’t even think about it when we get in the car every day and use the car as an umbrella some days.
I have to agree with the adventurer that if one person makes a change, perhaps it can motivate others to keep an open mind in our consumer world. The finish line in Darjeeling and the numbers have given me another push to take care of all we have left on this planet. If we change, we change. There’s no miracle in it, just determination, like Viktor did.” Jázmin Pretz, Kaposvár 2 Group
“I met Viktor Zichó in a travel podcast. He was an invited guest on one occasion to talk about his trip to Africa and on another about his adventures in Asia. That’s how I found out that his next venture will be a long-distance crossing of the Himalayas. When I saw that we had the opportunity to hear him live as part of the Roads/Travels project, I was delighted. The presentation was beautifully structured, with more wonderful photos than ever. I ended up buying books that chronicled his adventures (so I got my parents and brother a Christmas present) and turned the pages after we got home. I hadn’t had one of those in a while, I couldn’t put it down. A readable, fastidiously edited, aesthetically pleasing book on Csoma’s path on two wheels. Even though it was the third time I had heard it, it still struck me as a novelty. Many thanks to the Foundation for allowing us to participate in such a high-quality and special programme.” Judit Belovitz, parent
“I saw an unprecedented level of activity during my sustainability workshop at the Csányi Foundation. The children were really interested in the topic, including climate protection, in such depth that we spent almost double the planned time together due to the many questions and comments. I think I really gave the participants a useful tool that will not only make a difference, but will inspire many of their fellow human beings. Thank you for having me” Viktor Zichó
He said goodbye to all young and old, old and young, saying that we look forward to the continuation of our Tour Club!
