April 14, 2004

Paris to Bangkok

Transition. Transit. The most exhilirating part of travelling for me. I love seeing and exploring and learning, but the physical act of going somewhere; getting on the plane/bus/train/boat/tuk-tuk/harley/etcetcetc....that's the fuel for me. But sometimes it just sucks.

I left Paris at 5:20 am, heading off to the Charles de Gaulle airport for an early flight to Zurich, connecting to Bangkok later on. By far the most annoying airport yet was CDG. Not being allowed into the gate waiting area, I leaned up against the bar and chained smoked cigarettes for about 3 hours, along with the other travellers. I guess everyone else was as tired as I was, cause no-one would even make eye contact with me, let alone talk to me. That was an extremely long 3 hours of watching grumpy french folks fighting for space at the bar.
Finally it was time to go wait in the gate waiting area, where I smoked a few more cigarettes (about an hours worth) and eventually got on the plane.
This is the part I love. I'm moving now. Going somewhere I've never been. I have no idea what's coming. As it turned out, it was Zurich, and a lovely day of discovering.
So, when you're in the airport, and it's a long layover (mine was 8 hours in Zurich), but you can't afford to head all the way into town (as I couldn't), and you're not sure where or what or when or how.....just talk a friggin walk. That's what I learned that day. I left the airport after a quick snack of butter bread, and wound my way out of the airport grounds much easier and more quickly than I thought I could, and soon found myself in a nice little park. Possibly built for tourists like myself who have long layovers, this well kept park provided about 5 hours of entertainment for me. I jogged (seriously), walked, sat, stood and found a really nice head space to relax in for a bit.
A few hours later, back in the airport, back on a plane (Swiss Air was and is, by far, the best airline experience to date) and on my way to my next actual destination: Bangkok. Holy Friggin Heck. I never slept more than a minute or so I was so excited. Thailand. I was imagining a tropical paradise, a crazy train ride, an adventure I would never forget, or maybe never survive. I was daydreaming non-stop about the things I would see and do and be. God I love the anticipation of a place.
Next time it's more of Paris Con't. and eventually, whenever I'm in one place long enough I'll write about Thailand. I promise future stuff'll be more exciting, with more content, but for now this is all i got.
Peace blessings and love to all,
Colin

Posted by Colin at 07:05 PM | Comments (0)