Afternoon by the Bay

I saw this bookshop, stood right across Columbus Avenue. The light turned green, and I crossed the road. They said it carries a baggage, full of history, of pain and victory. I stepped into it, and felt a rush of freedom, breezing through.

There were some words, written by Shakespeare and Co., hanging on the wall of this bookstore. Shakespeare and Co. has fed the Lost Generation, and the Beats generation was fed by City Lights. Two bookstores, carried the same duty on their shoulders, during different times. And now, I am browsing the history of major literature movements like never before.

That afternoon, I was reading Howl, by Allen Ginsberg. And, as I was trying to hide away from the sunlight, I saw a lovely, young couple, sitting at the rocking chairs, right at the opposite corner of the 3-storey bookstore.The boy was reading a poem to the girl. The girl smiled occasionally, while the boy was looking at her constantly.  A soft, yet passionate recitation,  together with the warm Californian wind, gave you a perfect afternoon that you could never have in London, at this very same moment.

I almost dozed off, with a beautiful dream began to set up its own stage in my mind.