Lisbon
“Suddenly,
my mind slips away.
From yesterday: a stair
in the maze of Alfama.
The curve of the hill
rounds me..”
Sample of the poem Lisbon by Sophie Roumeas
Photography by Olga Gavrilova
Love Alchemy, Act 3
An upheaval of the senses when entering the universe of Lisbon... We cannot remain neutral, the vibrant colors, the diversity of smells, the presence of history, the celebration of art... and the people of here and elsewhere, who also make up the city. Ode to Lisbon is another title for the metaphysical experience the city offered me.
Lisbon
By Sophie Rouméas
Marcos: the poet
in his parvis.
He distributes odes
to the population.
He is from Germany.
Heroic choice
to be a poet of the streets.
The cathedral, Our Lady of the Martyrs,
surrounds him with her fervor.
Marjoleine: the entrepreneur
on the go,
about to open her new restaurant
in Holland.
She is traveling with her mother,
savoring the spicy delights,
Time Out Market,
before the non-stop
of her new life.
This city rocks her.
All these people from here and elsewhere,
breathing the multiple colors,
the organized chaos
of Lisbon,
its feast of life,
its misery too.
It is morning.
You look at me.
We start to bond,
body and soul,
once more.
Suddenly,
my mind slips away.
From yesterday: a stair
in the maze of Alfama.
The curve of the hill
rounds me.
Desire fills me—
languor.
You enter me.
The city follows you
in your movement.
She fills me with her perfumes.
Her moist immodesty
pours out surges of her mystery.
I see her lovers from every street.
I feel the tide of her bodies.
In your arms, I become the city.