I embarked on my journey at 3:10 p.m. at the International airport in Cleveland. I won't bore you with many of the details because, quite frankly, it was not that exciting. The most exciting parts of my trip were the hallucinations I went through while trying to force myself to stay awake for dinner after popping an entire Ambien (sleeping pill). It was actually pretty scary - I hallucinated that people around my were ghost-like demons. Apparently I had my eyes open because the girl sitting next to me kept asking me if I was ok. I didn't snap out of it until 8 hours later. I will be sticking to 1/2 pill from now on. I'm just really glad I didn't try to hijack the plane or something else in my sleep. Fortunately, I found myself conscious again in the Heathrow airport in London, where I had a connecting flight from British Airways to my final destination - Geneva, Switzerland.
A few comments here: the Heathrow airport is amazing, but apparently it is known to be a black hole for luggage?! Never. Fly. There. Also, since when did airplanes take on spaceship-like pods for special people in first class? Those things are wild! I wasn't in one of those, but I was stuck in the middle of two very nice women in coach... I was quite content with my airplane pillow, Ambien, ear plugs, and drool (besides the nightmarish hallucinations of course).
Yesterday, to keep myself awake, I dropped off my carry-ons (note: checked bags were lost) in my room and set out to explore the city. I walked around for about 5 hours...I first happened upon some really ancient museum that had nothing written in English in the old part of town, and found myself in a room with famous paintings by Van Gough, Monet, Hodler, Renoir, etc. I was struck by the paintings of Lake Geneva by Ferdinand Hodler and immediately fell in love. It inspired me to spend over an hour reflecting aside the lake today...more on this later. I couldn't find a bathroom in the museum, so I continued to walk around the city for a few more hours. I am embarrassed to admit that even after all of my travel adventures, I was afraid to go in somewhere to pee because I hardly speak any French. I finally gained enough courage and urinary urge to enter a Boulangerie (bakery) for some chocolat chaud (it is one of the only things I can say, meaning hot chocolate) and some delicious pastry custard thing that I pointed at. The owner was very kind and we communicated mainly with gestures, my broken french, and spanish.
For those of you who travel alone, I respect you. I had no idea what a difference friends or family make during travels until yesterday. Granted I was jet-lagged, PMSing, and in a totally different country where I didn't know the language, customs or culture, but still...It is nice to share these experiences with another human. I will definitely learn to be comfortable with solitude over the next four months. I was so excited to talk to my waiter and Americans at the table next to me last night at dinner, since I was sick of myself!
Apparently I shouldn't have smiled so much and been so friendly to my 65+ year old waiter, because after I left my tip billed to my room number, he showed up at my room without a peep-holed door a half hour later with a free glass of wine in hand. I burst into tears due to all the factors in play (reference: paragraph above). He took that opportunity to step into my room, hug me, rub my back and lunge in for a kiss. I promptly pushed him away and said "No" multiple times, which is one of the few words that translates directly from French - thank god. He quickly scampered off. That was unnecessary and an incredibly unfortunate event on my first night, but I'm over it. I really didn't expect that in Switzerland, so it was a good lesson. That doesn't really stop the vomit sensation I have as I write about this.
This morning I spent several hours trying to retrieve one bag, then another. Then, around 2, I left my depressing hotel room to hit the streets. Today was a much brighter day! It probably helped that I had such a low baseline to benchmark against from yesterday, but nevertheless, today was a beautiful day during which I had a bit of a spiritual awakening on the shores of Lake Geneva. I walked first to the train station to find a new adapter and figure out how to get to work in Morges tomorrow morning. I am amazed at how easy this will be. I love public transit. In my weakened state due to only having ingested a Snickers Marathon bar and my hotel room's instant coffee, I hit Starbucks. I refused it yesterday, but today I needed it. I ordered in French, so I don't feel bad about bypassing the local option. Plus, I needed something I could rely on since it is important to keep awake to avoid jet lag. Excuses aside, the Grande Cappuccino was perfect.
The weather was grand...It was sunny and probably about 45, which is a wonderful switch from the 33 degrees with rainy snow/sleet that was Cleveland the last three weeks. I meandered through the alleys and small streets near my hotel and found all the watch shops and probably came across just as many Kebab places. Why don't we have this much Doner in America? It is amazing.
I found an oasis on a bench overlooking Lake Geneva with the snow-capped mountains behind it. I sat back and relaxed, and looked at everything through an artist's eye. I imagined what I would focus on as a painter, as a photographer, as a writer. It was probably one of the most profound moments of my life. I closed my eyes to shut out the beauty of the landscape and absorb all the sounds. I was amazed by the diverse set of life that was represented in the course of only a minute or two --
An airplane's jet engine buzzing high in the sky. A helicopter's propeller vibrations. Cars whizzing past. A street car rocking on its tracks. People's footsteps between conversation in german, french, english, vietnamese, italian. Waves gently sloshing rhythmically against the shore. A ship's horn. A boat's engine. Seagulls squaking with wings flapping. Ducks quacking. Running pants swooshing.
Then the smells --
The fresh water vapor in the air from the lake. Pigeon and seagull feces. Diesel exhaust. Clear blue air. The smell of raindrops mixed with sunshine. Spring flowers and grass peeking out of the dirt dampened by yesterday's rain.
How beautiful is it that all of this is happening here at this location because of water?
I remembered today why I love my life. I remembered today why I love to travel. Traveling helps me focus on the essence and purity in life: the details gathered by the senses.
Ok - enough sap and journal writing for today. Kebab rocks and I love Switzerland!
Short-term itinerary:
Morges, Switzerland: March 1st - March 5th
????, Switzerland or France: March 5th - March 8th
Casablanca, Morocco: March 8th - March 10th
????: March 10th - March 29th
March 29th + One month or more: Pune, India
1 comments:
Yes... totally missing doner kebab in the US...even got it in Japan..
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