Pedro’s House In The World

As a young man, his first venture in tourism was a travel club called Lonely Korea. He gave tours to travellers passing through the beautiful port city of Gwangju. Growing up here, he had had the chance to memorise the nooks and crannies of this town where stories slept. Beyond the 18 May Uprising of 1980 where a peaceful protest was gunned down by the military government, the city holds many secrets that Pedro is privy to. He takes his customers to local events where he is a familiar face. It’s a two way street according to Pedro. Not only does it let foreigners  immerse themselves in Gwangju’s culture but it also gives the locals an opportunity to mingle with people from unfamiliar nations. While it’s true that big-city-bustle of Seoul or the volcanic island of Jeju claim to be South Korea’s biggest tourist attraction, Pedro believes that Gwangju has the best cuisine, countless hidden treasures and exciting short getaways to explore. And he is on a mission to popularise his city.

In the morning, we go down to the cafe for breakfast. And what we walk into is literally the world in a room. Voyager’s Cafe is bursting with trinkets from far corners of the world. The space is put together eclectically with mismatched pieces of furniture. On the couch a couple of foreigners in many stages of wakefulness are attempting a conversation with Pedro’s intern who is serving coffee. To the right, behind the bar, Pedro in his beret is busy making breakfast. Breakfast is simple–bread, fruit, an Indian-inspired curry with assorted vegetables and coffee. What blows our mind is the paraphernalia, on the walls and in intentionally chaotic piles around the room. Currencies from different countries hang by the entrance. Beer from the world over line the bar. Football scarves, jerseys, flags, colourful masks, Buddhist drawings, a thin wooden sculpture of a naked woman, mugs, souvenirs, travel books and much much more make up this space.

As we eat our breakfast, Pedro brings us his giant visitor’s book. He wants us to write in his visitor’s book in our local language by which he means Hindi. He demonstrates that he knows how to say thank you in Hindi and we smile back politely. What he doesn’t realise is that the last time any of us wrote in Hindi was in school, a good 15 years back. Also, between the three of us we have as many local languages. Semantics aside, we write down a basic Hindi comment with much difficulty and then witty ones in our own languages.

Pedro was in India a couple of years back and had stayed for six months. His trip had covered Pune, Bangalore, Trivandrum, Mumbai, Leh and Delhi. Last year, his travels took him to Portugal, Spain and Turkey. He travels for a month every year using returns from his enterprises — the guesthouse and the travel-themed cafe that he manages while not moonlighting as a tour guide. Next up on his itinerary is Cuba, Mexico and New York City. While travelling, he is consciously making mental notes on how tourists behave and what they expect. He pays close attention to how hotels, hostels, motels, BnBs and other accommodations cater to their customers. He puts some of those practices to use back home.