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That touch brought down a fake wall built over almost thirty years of pure inexperience. From inside the bus, I saw her adjusts the scarf that covered her hair and almost her entire face. Very beautiful, by the way. I was unaware of this independence that beauty practices in the Middle East. I took note: beauty and relativity hand in hand from now on. From where I was, a small amount of cheeks and forehead were exposed. Her car next to my bus waiting the the traffic lights. She was not seen or made a scene for the eyes of a Western and accidental stalker. She closed the car mirror, took her husband's right hand and placed it gently on her leg. She touched him. Intentionally. Only me and my weak perception of the world have stolen this intimate moment. And then I realized: a trip destroys the worst in you to make way for a seed that grows with each new stamp in your passport. Or bus ticket. Boarding pass. Ride. Any minimal change from its original coordinates makes a difference. Did I romanticize a banal scene? It’s quite possible. However, romance, for me, was not an option in that place. A country that would pass away from any tourist itinerary of my dreams, but thanks to the gods I received that TED scholarship to spend one week in Doha, Qatar, for workshops and unscripted experiences like this. And the sexism? All the social repression? All that bad stuff preached in there? They are there, as they are here too. But here they are camouflaged in the most different corners. I don't want to deny them or discuss them with Pollyanna's glasses. Now the issue is not political. It is not about what is outside. It's the inside. Of me. And you too. Traveling inside ourselves is only possible with the permission of chance. I believe that this may, one day, change the outside. The whole. I intentionally started to train my gaze inward. A gesture of sincere affection towards myself. No one, other than an outdated version of me, to watch me and let me grow a new one. Because you must know, life in the desert is not easy. Unless someone offers you seeds like that affectionate woman wearing a scarf in the car next to you.