Jeroen van Bergeijk Quotes

7 Sourced Quotes

Saint-Exupéry is a master at describing not so much the beauty of the desert as the state of mind evoked by its desolation. You feel connected to the earth in the Sahara. [...] [His] evocative descriptions leave you wanting but one thing before you die: to spend one night beneath the starry Saharan sky.

Jeroen van Bergeijk
Saharan nights last forever, rekindling fond memories of youth.

Jeroen van Bergeijk
Tarfaya is an insignificant little town where the sand blows through unpaved streets. There is one restaurant and no hotel. Although Saint-Exupéry is by far the most famous resident the town has ever known, his name doesn't mean anything to anyone here.

Jeroen van Bergeijk
Saint-Exupéry's work romanticizes not only nature but also people; he seems to have wholeheartedly endorsed the idea of the noble savage, man not yet corrupted by civilization.

Jeroen van Bergeijk
Life is much more simple and straightforward here [in Mauritania]. I don't feel at home in Europe anymore. Too many rules. You need a diploma for everything. It's too much for me. [...] For me, life is very simple. I'm easily satisfied. Work, make a little money, eat, drink, sleep. That's it.
Quoting Alexander Dewilde, a Belgian man that moved to Mauritania in 2000

Jeroen van Bergeijk
Our entire Western way of life is permeated by the idea that time and money are interwoven. Not only in business but even in our free time as well, on vacation. You have vacation only a couple weeks a year, you've paid good money for that trip, and you have a right to something nice. You can't afford to sit and wait two whole days for a ferry; that would be a waste.

Jeroen van Bergeijk
For us Westerners, time has an economic value: it's scarce. We want so much but have so little time for everything. We're supposed to have a career by the time we're thirty. A full agenda is a prerequisite for a successful life. Every minute of our life must have a meaningful purpose. Wasting time, or waiting, is the equivalent of flushing money down the toilet.

Jeroen van Bergeijk