I travel to create connections with people who live lives different from my own. However, there is one obstacle: the language barrier. Because how do you meet each other if you don’t speak the same language? The answer can be found with a piece of paper and a pencil.
Today I sat down in a large square in front of a 7-Eleven in the middle of the big city of Chongqing to draw. It felt like stepping outside my comfort zone. I was the only one among all the people who slowed down the pace just to draw. The long looks from passersby emphasized the feeling. But some people also dared to come a little closer after spending some time assessing the strange situation.
A little girl and her grandmother had been sitting at a table outside the 7-Eleven, watching what I was doing. I waved them over and invited the girl to help me color the drawing of the kiosk. Hesitantly, she took the colored pencil, and then the pace suddenly changed. Before long the girl was sitting on my lap as if we were family, and we helped each other with the drawing until the very last line was drawn.
Dinner on the 29th Floor
Less than an hour later, I found myself peeling an orange and cracking a walnut in their living room. Yes, they had invited me to their home. They lived in a small apartment on the 20th floor, not far from the 7-Eleven. It also turned out that the grandmother had another grandchild at home, a 10-year-old whom she looked after while the parents were at work. She could sing, play the piano, and speak a little English.
While she was showing me her many talents, dinner suddenly appeared on the living room table. A pair of chopsticks was placed in my hand, a stool was pushed under me, and a scoop of rice was dropped into my bowl. And there we sat, while the TV played one cartoon after another. Grandmother, the grandchildren, and me — as if it were a day just like the day before and the day before that.
Watch the video below to see how a drawing ended up leading to dinner on the 29th floor:
Drawing Is a Universal Language
But how did I end up here? Sitting in the middle of a local family’s living room, which was far from being prepared for guests (at least by Danish standards). The answer is quite simple. Instead of chasing one sight after another, I sat down on my little stool and showed the people around me that we share a common language. A language that can be spoken with pencil and paper — and one that the four-year-old girl immediately understood.
Most likely, I’m not the only one who has made this discovery. But if you want to connect with people, drawing is the perfect language to bring with you when you travel. Everyone understands a drawing, no matter who you are or where you come from — regardless of whether the drawing is good or not so good. It is a nonverbal language that crosses national borders, and one that we have all learned to some extent since childhood. It is therefore a form of communication capable of creating connections with both young and old.
I could go on talking about drawing, but that is exactly what I should not do. It should be seen, not heard. It should be drawn, not talked about. So instead, I think you should try drawing the next time you travel, and in that way understand what I mean when I talk about drawing.
…or watch the two videos below, where I draw in the streets of China.