In Iyer’s writing, he’s always the first-person narrator, finding his way around the world he’s exploring, rather than an omniscient third person. Pico Iyer’s career in travel began unofficially when he was seven years old and his parents moved to America (Getty Images) What emerges is a travelogue that acknowledges all the superficial attractions that would draw a tourist in, but also digs deeper into the experience of being present in this chosen location. While most of us would ask locals for a recommendation for a restaurant or a swim-friendly beach, Iyer – the tourist – tilts his head and wonders about the impact of American pop-cultural imperialism in Asia, or how remoteness is less about geographical location and more a psychological state or an economic condition. “I have no employable skills! i stick with writing because it keeps me sane” Books like Video Night in Kathmandu, The Global Soul, The Lady and the Monk and Falling off the Map have helped to broaden the scope of travel writing. Iyer is one of the writers we can thank for that shift. The reputation that travel writing enjoys today for inspiring epiphanies has much to do with how the genre has transformed from being utilitarian to philosophical over the past few decades. And the more difficult life becomes, the more I cherish walking into that cabin in the woods that is my writing and sitting still, processing everything around me, trying to make order out of a tangle of thoughts and impressions, striving to understand everything around me,” he says. “I stick with writing because it’s what keeps me sane. Over the years, writing as a profession has become difficult for many to hold down, but not for Iyer. “I had no employable skills whatsoever,” Iyer says, laughing. More formally, Iyer came to writing after a distinguished stint in academia, studying literature for eight years. Iyer’s career in travel began unofficially when he was seven years old and his parents moved to America for work while he continued to attend boarding school in England.
#Piko air the art of stillness how to#
“I’m the outsider stumbling into a professional orchestra without a score, and without a sense of how to play a single note of music!”
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