Saturday, June 26, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
Dazed and Confused
I am happy today is a travel day as I am completely worn out after a day of walking and a very short night's sleep. My excitement at embarking on the heart of my journey is palpable...Italy, a long held dream. The train ride is relaxing and enjoyable, unfortunately it is only half of the equation as the rest of the journey must continue by bus. Yuck! I am not dismayed however as the countryside is lovely and as each mile passes I am filled with an ever increasing amount of joy. It is at times like these that you can not but help to appreciate the wonders and abundance our lives have to offer. How incredibly fortunate I am to be right here, right now, at this exact moment in time......it is humbling and I am profoundly grateful. I am completely present and I am relishing each moment!
Once again however, I am vexed by my own lax attitude towards planning and preparation. My "let's wing it" attitude is fun, but it does have an ugly downside. We arrive to complete chaos at the bus terminal in Venice, which I believe is it's natural state of being. I put on my backpack....with only a hint of an address, and figure how hard can it be? Venice is small....I will figure it out! Hah!!! It is much hotter in Italy than it was in Eastern Europe, and I am wearing my travel clothes; jeans, sneakers, and a long sleeve shirt. I set out in search of the water bus and hope that along the way it all starts to make sense. Of course this would be a great plan if I a) had a map, b) knew where on San Marco I was heading, 3) had the phone number to my hotel, 4) could find a wifi hotspot, and 5) it wasn't so damn hot and my backpack wasn't so damn heavy. Now we are back to the backpack....I believe it holds the key to my evolution as a human and is there to teach me some very important concept that has so far escaped me. As I walk...and walk...and walk....I am becoming increasingly more frustrated at my inability to navigate the labyrinth that is Venice and the back breaking feeling of carrying around all of this stuff that at this point I feel might be better off thrown in to the canal!! At one point, I take off the backpack and lean it against a wall...glaring at it as though it were the enemy. It is the backpacks fault!! After a few deep cleansing breaths I begin to realize that I must be in some type of mini-hell....where the devil is forcing me to carry around all of my selfish accumulations through out eternity so that I may see the pointlessness of it all. Perhaps if we were to carry around what we thought we needed...we might not need so much??? I truly believe I could have jettisoned the whole thing, and considered it strongly in the heat of the evening sun, but thought again and made peace with the thing and we continued on our way. Several hours later, and after a string of SOS text messages to various people around the globe...I found my hotel. Only a few steps from the Rialto Bridge and after all of my walking....I had nearly walked the entire distance. It turns out the yellow signs I was following to "Per Rialto"...were to the actual bridge...not the water bus. I should have studied!
Once again however, I am vexed by my own lax attitude towards planning and preparation. My "let's wing it" attitude is fun, but it does have an ugly downside. We arrive to complete chaos at the bus terminal in Venice, which I believe is it's natural state of being. I put on my backpack....with only a hint of an address, and figure how hard can it be? Venice is small....I will figure it out! Hah!!! It is much hotter in Italy than it was in Eastern Europe, and I am wearing my travel clothes; jeans, sneakers, and a long sleeve shirt. I set out in search of the water bus and hope that along the way it all starts to make sense. Of course this would be a great plan if I a) had a map, b) knew where on San Marco I was heading, 3) had the phone number to my hotel, 4) could find a wifi hotspot, and 5) it wasn't so damn hot and my backpack wasn't so damn heavy. Now we are back to the backpack....I believe it holds the key to my evolution as a human and is there to teach me some very important concept that has so far escaped me. As I walk...and walk...and walk....I am becoming increasingly more frustrated at my inability to navigate the labyrinth that is Venice and the back breaking feeling of carrying around all of this stuff that at this point I feel might be better off thrown in to the canal!! At one point, I take off the backpack and lean it against a wall...glaring at it as though it were the enemy. It is the backpacks fault!! After a few deep cleansing breaths I begin to realize that I must be in some type of mini-hell....where the devil is forcing me to carry around all of my selfish accumulations through out eternity so that I may see the pointlessness of it all. Perhaps if we were to carry around what we thought we needed...we might not need so much??? I truly believe I could have jettisoned the whole thing, and considered it strongly in the heat of the evening sun, but thought again and made peace with the thing and we continued on our way. Several hours later, and after a string of SOS text messages to various people around the globe...I found my hotel. Only a few steps from the Rialto Bridge and after all of my walking....I had nearly walked the entire distance. It turns out the yellow signs I was following to "Per Rialto"...were to the actual bridge...not the water bus. I should have studied!
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Crazy Night Out
My first order of business today was to arrange for concert tickets for this evening. After all the wonderful music I experienced in Prague, I knew that it would be criminal to not continue the trend here so I booked for a night of Strauss Waltzes and Mozart Arias at the Imperial Palace, The Hofburg. Now this was a special event as this is where Mozart actually performed many of his works for the king at this very place...so I believe in shakti and wanted to feel it for my self. My next order of business was some personal maintenance, I needed a haircut something bad! I can no longer tolerate my limp unruly mass of a hair experiment and need a little boost. So, back on the underground to the city center in search of some style. I did not have to look very far, and found a lovely little salon that managed the job quite cheaply and efficiently....job done! The next 5 hours I spent on foot following the ring around the city snapping photos and enjoying the wonderful summer weather. I decide to do a little reconnasence for tonights show so that I am not flustered and late. I am glad I did. The Hofburg is enormous with so many concert halls and buildings I would have never found it. My particular venue was right near the Spanish Riding School, home of the world famous Lipzinner Stallions. Who knew? I would have if I had done my research and I am wishing I had!
I take a small respite at the hotel before dressing (a first on this trip!) for the concert this evening. Unlike Prague, this concert was packed! I could tell it was primarily, if not all tourists, and a great deal of them on tours. Not exactly the evening of high culture I had envisioned, but they did put on a delightful show and I enjoyed myself. I must admit I am not a huge Strauss fan, but it was a fun evening none the less. The evening took a weird twist on the walk home. Not wanting to spend another evening eating alone at a restaurant, I decide to park myself at a sausage vendor's stand and enjoy a Viennese sausage and a beer. Soon a conversation begins with two gentlemen...one Austrian, a lovely bear of a man and a generous and lovely soul....the other, an American who is on business with the Pentagon. It turns out this guys is on the Joint Chiefs of Staff and is a full bird Colonel. Well, my newsy background is intrigued, especially with all the current buzz in Afghanistan, that I want to engaged in a full fledged discussion on current US policy, etc... I know...I should have given it a rest!!! Anyway, it is weird how little bits of your past life still linger on the edges and spring into full gear with a little spark. Suffice it to say, this guy could have cared less about my understanding of US politics and had other ideas....talk about your ugly American. I made it home, after again getting lost and staying out past the Underground's operating hours. I get home at 1:30...and have a wake up call for 5:30 as it is an all day journey to Venice. Note to self....don't be such a smarty pants!
I take a small respite at the hotel before dressing (a first on this trip!) for the concert this evening. Unlike Prague, this concert was packed! I could tell it was primarily, if not all tourists, and a great deal of them on tours. Not exactly the evening of high culture I had envisioned, but they did put on a delightful show and I enjoyed myself. I must admit I am not a huge Strauss fan, but it was a fun evening none the less. The evening took a weird twist on the walk home. Not wanting to spend another evening eating alone at a restaurant, I decide to park myself at a sausage vendor's stand and enjoy a Viennese sausage and a beer. Soon a conversation begins with two gentlemen...one Austrian, a lovely bear of a man and a generous and lovely soul....the other, an American who is on business with the Pentagon. It turns out this guys is on the Joint Chiefs of Staff and is a full bird Colonel. Well, my newsy background is intrigued, especially with all the current buzz in Afghanistan, that I want to engaged in a full fledged discussion on current US policy, etc... I know...I should have given it a rest!!! Anyway, it is weird how little bits of your past life still linger on the edges and spring into full gear with a little spark. Suffice it to say, this guy could have cared less about my understanding of US politics and had other ideas....talk about your ugly American. I made it home, after again getting lost and staying out past the Underground's operating hours. I get home at 1:30...and have a wake up call for 5:30 as it is an all day journey to Venice. Note to self....don't be such a smarty pants!
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