So I think in general we can agree, I sucked as a blogger during my travels. While I could make numerous excuses for this, the difficulty of typing on a phone, the expense of internet abroad, the impossibility of uploading photos, I think it can really all be boiled down to one thing. I didn’t want to sit still long enough to do anything near work when there was adventure to be had.
Now home, and about to start working life, I would like to catch you all up. This is beneficial for us both! I get to relive all my favorite moments and you get the advantage of my time and reflection…Yeah, I know its a cop out, but I’m going to run with it.
So here is the beginning of the story, a week and some change after the end. Perhaps, if I work hard, I will finish by Christmas. I loved my trip, took a ton of photos (literally, there are about 2,000 of them), and met a few dozen incredible people from all over the world. I hope you enjoy reading about it all even a tenth as much as I enjoyed doing it. First thing first, I would like to introduce the players…
Dramatis Personae
Megan Pratt-Portrayed by Megan Pratt
Twenty-Two year old college graduate looking to stave off adulthood a little longer. Initially conceived of The Trip during Freshman year while eating alone at Bruin Café, she worked hard that summer to raise the money and then equally hard not to spend it for the next three years.
Phone-Portrayed by Neil
A Driod-X cellular phone rendered useless as a phone by international zoning. Never the less proves effective at wireless connections, taking photos and playing Angry Birds.
Camera-Portrayed by Eddie
A Cannon T2I with a kit lens. Besides taking photos, it also serves as the main indication to pickpockets and muggers that Megan is a “tourist”. Usually banged once a day to swearing and silent promises of increased care.
Timbuk2-Portayed by Buk
An aging messenger bag that served as Megan’s PA kit and faithful companion on many a film sets. Dirty and still vaguely smelling of White Russians from a movie night with Kate years before, its zippered pockets proves insurmountable to the local pickpockets alerted to Megan’s presence by Camera.
Bag-Portrayed by Bag
A loyal and hard working backpack in beautiful Bruin blue and gold that is forced to suffer the indignity of having a sleeping bag strapped to the outside and being carried by a relative idiot.
Act I, Scene I-Preparation
The last few days before I left were spent running the errands required for stepping out of my life for nearly six weeks. This is in an interesting proposition because objectives you think will be difficult, cheaply collecting gear, accommodations, and transportation all work out smoothly, even in foriegn languages, while dealing with American, English speaking companies proved nearly impossible. Suddenly, Wells Fargo was suddenly my enemy. This was a shock to me, as I often had considered myself very lucky with my banking after hearing many of my friend’s horror stories. No longer.
After canceling my card three times after attempts to use it internationally online and four conversations with the folks over at customer service, I went into the branch to try to figure it out in person. For some reason that has yet to be adequately explained to me, my travel alerts kept disappearing off of my account. Well twice the disappeared, once they moved to a week in October. Helpful guys, thanks. Nightmares of being stranded in a small Croatian town with one bus a week and a circle of ex-liberation fighters slowly closing in where beginning to fill my head. After setting up a separate emergency account and an hour of staring sternly into the eyes of the bank manager, they finally got what I was trying to do.
A second issue that arouse a few days before my departure was that my parents were not going to be home the day I was scheduled to return, September 23. They were going to be in Disneyland. While I didn’t expect them to cancel their trip, a little more remorse or at least a reaction stronger then “huh” would have been nice. So that someone was there to pick me up from the airport, I called up Continental and had them move my return a to the 26th. Ironically it saved $5 by doing it, plus it allowed me to spend more time with Kate in Ye Olde England.
(As a side note, did you know that Ye merely means “the” in Old English or Norse? Therefore, stores named The Ye Old Shoppe are grammatically redundant. The things you learn in UCLA General Ed classes!)
Next up was packing. I would love to say I was a responsible adult and had everything packed days in advanced. In truth I didn’t even start until we got back from diner at seven. However, by not caring if I wore the same thing everyday and a mother who questions every item we bring anywhere, I was able to be a lean, mean 30 pounds with another 6 in the Timbuck2. I felt myself accomplished for someone who was going from the summer heat of Croatia to the autumn fog of London.
Thus, I was packed. After a final glass of wine with Mom, I tried to sleep. Adventure at sunrise!
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