I'm in love.

With a lost city. Great.

but Carthage is annoyingly hard to find information on.
I can get a brief idea, yes. But for imagery.....hardly. The only thing I can ever find was either of Hannibal or Dido.
(and btw, I'm rather tired of people going straight to Hannibal Lector,  in that movie Silence of the lambs. I'm taking about Hannibal Barca, the Carthaginian general who marched his armies (elephants include) across the Alps to attack Rome and ended up didn't take Rome.)

So I've been really fond of this Mediterranean  power whom everyone always say "challenges Rome"
Well, Rome was the challenger in this matter as Carthage was there before him, even though only by 70 something years.

Just that he didn't survived Rome's wrath, if I may say. 

well, however that was, I NEEDED a character for Carthage.



My first attempt. Quite similar to Rome. Skin a shade darker, just a tiny bit taller. Although an expert in warfare, he is more of a merchant type and hired lots of mercenaries for his army. I also built his image on Hannibal, since, well...you speak of Carthage, you speak of Hannibal Barca.
(Hannibal's army is the most entertaining to study EVER. And most diverse, I'm sure, of that time. Infantry from Libya and Numidian cavalry. But Hannibal also got slingers from the Balearic island. Lots of warrior from Iberia (and you guess who's in these parts? CeltIberia, Hispania and Lusitania and maybe even others) He ever get the Gauls to join in after crossing the Alps. Then there were the elephants.)



This portrait was done in class spare time during life drawing class.

I don't even know how....but I was definitely thinking of Hannibal and Carthage.


And randomly, I think about their childhood years.

The almost like siblings rivalry. The kid next door who had everything he wish he had. An ox hide child made by a fled princess and a wolf raised kid from an origin of an escaped prince. (Legend of Dido's bargain with the local for the land. she only ask for a land as much as she can covered by an ox hide, she cut it in to fine strips and encircle an entire hill, then Carthage was made on that area. And about Rome, we know, Romulus and Aeneas whom the Roman traced their origin too.)

(I'm utterly upset that the story of Aeneas meeting Dido and had an affair with her was only Virgil's poem and not supported by history. It's just too perfect isn't it?

the queen killed herself for the prince leaving her for his mission. Resulting in their descendants never able to live in the same world. The Mediterranean does nothing to separate them. If Carthage has survive the 3rd Punic war. I suppose they both will never able to stand the knowledge of the other existence any where in this universe.)

This last one has nothing to do with anything. but I like it lots.



They fit the map way too perfectly....

and just to update on my life.

I got an internship in a really cool company in Toronto. and I'll be there just next door to China town for this summer. Then return to Thailand for the rest of summer.

And will be back in Canada in September. ALONG WITH MY SISTER.

HATE . GROUP . FILM.

okay that has nothing to do with anything.

this, does.



It's been a long long time since I've been this into a novel. And although I don't really want to use a novel as reference, this kind of give me a lot of impression of those time.
I can picture Carthage a tiny bit clearer (but not so much, since this first part of the story, we haven't seen Carthage itself, only New Carthage in Iberia.

I'm loving many characters in this book, especially the Barcas. Hannibal and his brothers. Not only they're so cool, they really feel human. This guy can actually write. Even if a character has only appear for a page, I can already feel his or her personality.

It's great.

and here.



As fun as it is to draw Portugal as a lady. It is even more fun to draw her as a child.

She's fierce, innocent but not naive. I am never going to get over Lusitania.

This one, though, is a little ironic. I'm pretty sure someone (probably Mila or Julia) told me about Portugal was quite into slave trade.

But this here is an image of a slave girl. For Carthage, for Rome, Vandals and Visigoth, then Umayyad before finally free and become today's Portugal.

Because of this, Iberia seems to be an odd place with an oddly mixed cultures from the past. I can't help but think that that is also why they set out for the world. Could it have been frustrating? Conquered over and over again. Growing up on flesh and blood and corpses of civilizations after civilizations.

I just like these kind of things.

Apparently, quite some people on youtube want this song translated with Thai lyrics.

so well, it's easier to post it here than comments on youtube.

But I don't have the karaoke lyric. I hope you guys don't mind.
So here goes.

รอยยิ้มนักสู้
A fighter's smile
by Sek Loso

หากเหนื่อยนัก
HAHK-NURAH-NUK 
If you're so tired

ขอจงหยุดพักเสียก่อน
KAU-JONG-YOOT-PUK-SIA-GAUN
please take a rest.

อย่าใจร้อนรีบไป

YAH-JAI-RAUN  
Don't be in such rush

เดี๋ยวมันไม่เข้าที
REEP-PAI-DIOW-MAI-KOW-TEE
it won't turn out nice.

หยุดเรื่องรักที่ทรมาน
YOOT-RUANG-RUK-TEE-TAU-RA-MARN 
Stop all the drama

เรื่องงานเรื่องเงินก็ดี
RUANG-NGARN-RUANG-NGURN-GAW-DEE
be it work or money.

พักซักทีเดี๋ยวค่อยไป

PUK-SUK-TEE-DIOW-KAUY-PAI

Rest just a little before you go.


อย่าไปคิด
YAH-PAI-KID
Do not think

เรื่องเดิมให้มันปวดใจ

RUANG-DERM-HAI-MUN-PUAD-JAI
about the same thing that torture you

ซ่อนเอาไว้

SAUN-OW-WAI
Hide it

ไม่ให้ใครเห็นความพ่ายแพ้

MAI-HAI-KRAI-HEN-KWARM-PAI-PAE
don't let anyone see your loss.

 

เก็บให้ลึกลงข้างใน

GEP-HAI-LEUK-LONG-KARNG-NAI
Push it deep inside

หัวใจที่อ่อนแอ

HUA-JAI-TEE-AUN-AE
the weakening heart

เหลือเพียงแค่

LURAH-PIANG-KAE
Left only

รอยยิ้มของนักสู้

ROY-YIM-KAUNG-NUK-SOO
the fighter's smile

 
ฉันก็เคย

CHUN-GAW-KOEY
I have

เสียใจไม่น้อยกว่าเธอ

SIA-JAI-MAI-NOY-GWAH-TUR
grieved no less than you

ฉันก็เจอ

CHUN-GAW-JUR
I have faced

เรื่องราวร้ายๆเข้ามา

RUANG-ROW-RAI-RAI-KOW-MAH
all the hard times
 

 
แต่ทุกๆทีฉันก็ทำ

TAE-TOOK-TOOK-TEE-CHUN-GAW-TUM
But every time I pretend

ให้เป็นเหมือนดังว่า

HAI-PEN-MEUAN-DUNG-WAH
as if

แข็งแรงกว่า

KAENG-RANG-GWAH
I was stronger

ไม่ยอมพ่ายแพ้มัน

MAI-YAUM-PAI-PAE-MUN
never give in to it

 
กว่าจะถึง

GWAH-JA-TEUNG
To arrive

ฝั่งฝันนั้นมันยากเย็น

FUNG-FUN-NUN-MUN-YARG-YEN
at your dream is difficult

อย่าพึ่งเห็น

YAH-PUNG-HEN
Don't just see

ฉันเดินเข้ามาง่ายๆ

CHUN-DERN-KOW-MAH-NGAI-NGAI
me walk in so easy

 
กว่าจะถึงที่ฉันยืน

GWAH-JA-TEUNG-TEE-CHUN-YEUN
To arrive where I stand

กล้ำกลืนฝืนทนเกือบตาย

GLUM-GLEUN-FEUN-TON-GURB-TAI
struggled almost to death

น้ำตาผู้ชาย

NUM-TAH-POO-CHAI
A man's tears

เคยไหลไม่ใช่เรื่องแปลก

KOEY-LAI-MAI-CHAI-RUANG-PLAK
have flown, there's nothing wrong with it.


*
ฉันก็เคย

CHUN-GAW-KOEY
I have

เสียใจไม่น้อยกว่าเธอ

SIA-JAI-MAI-NOY-GWAH-TUR
grieved no less than you

ฉันก็เจอ

CHUN-GAW-JUR
I have faced

เรื่องราวร้ายๆเข้ามา

RUANG-ROW-RAI-RAI-KOW-MAH
all the hard times
 

 
แต่ทุกๆทีฉันก็ทำ

TAE-TOOK-TOOK-TEE-CHUN-GAW-TUM
But every time I pretend

ให้เป็นเหมือนดังว่า

HAI-PEN-MEUAN-DUNG-WAH
as if

แข็งแรงกว่า

KAENG-RANG-GWAH
I was stronger

ไม่ยอมพ่ายแพ้มัน

MAI-YAUM-PAI-PAE-MUN
never give in to it

x4
 

For those who don't know. (my usual folks on here XD)
Sek Loso (actually Loso is the band name, but I think they separated now)

He's one of the best in Thailand. (my favourite is usually Bird Thongchai. But they also do album together. Makes me happy as hell XDDD)

That's it for to day. wish me luck, I'm gonna go interview for my internship!!