Tony Hawks

Tony Hawks
(source: The Telegraph)
no copyright infringement intended

Tony Hawks is a British comedian and author who sometimes dreams changing his life and moving to Réunion, the French island in the Indian Ocean: the climate there looks ideal and he can speak French (so he would survive). That reminds me of a time when I was dreaming to spend my retirement years in some country south of Rio Grande. I don't know Spanish but I would love to learn it. My problem is rather with their cuisine: I tried several Latino restaurants and it was tough every time (so I wouldn't survive).

Well, Tony Hawks didn't move to Réunion, I wasn't south of Rio Grande either, life doesn't rewards dreamers. At least he traveled around Ireland (with a fridge in his backpack - it was a bet made at drunkenness with a friend), and to Moldova (to find all players from their soccer national team and challenge each one to a tennis game; another bet, perfected over four beers and a glass of whisky, while watching a match on TV). Sounds crazy? Maybe, but two books came out from these trips: Round Ireland with a Fridge, and Playing the Moldovans at Tennis. Both of them were later made into movies, too. Two books, two movies, and a special sensibility for the hard problems of Moldovan society. The guy decided to split the profits from his book on Moldova: half of it goes for philanthropic works in that country.

These are not his two only books. There is also A Piano in the Pyrénées, an account of his hazards and occurrences to find a dwelling in the French mountains. And there are other books, too.

All in all, Tony Hawks seems to be a great guy and I ordered today his two books on Ireland and Moldova; they should come to me sometime in July. I'm reading right now on the web an excerpt from Playing the Moldovans at Tennis. Mircea Barbu took him a video interview that was published in today's Adevărul. The video has Romanian subtitles and it's very interesting to watch.


(Mircea Barbu)

(A Life in Books)