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Published: January 2nd 2009
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Narrow Country Road
Bus Ride From Saint Saen to Rouen, France The next few blog entries reflect a time when Becky and I had very little, if any opportunity, to post our entries yet this is a crucial "crucible" time for us and we are representing, to the best of our abilities what occured, or just occured, though we have a little hindsight now. Remaining true to our experience is upper most in our minds. The following posts represents parts and pieces from my travel journals and Becky's comments on her experiences. Our hope is that by sharing them we will invite you, not only to share in ours, but to similarly enter into experiences of your own that involve self-reflection as well as exploration into perspective which are about perceiving the world beyond the linear concepts and constructs we have been inundated with throughout our lives. I am concerned some about self exposure but feel the possible outcomes outweigh the risk of doubt and ridicule I might recieve. In this vein then I continue to export and introduce my experiences for your consideration.
10-29 Morning: Saint Saens to Rouen, France
As I ride the bus and rails this morning I think about why I don't just call the
whole thing off. No one is saying I have to do this. Turn it into a vacation, have some fun. What sustains me, at least for now, is something inside me that is more detached and observes more than it experiences. This part of me seems to know something the rest of me doesn't. It keeps going when, in my mind, I don't think going another step is possible. This part is directly connected to the realm of the spiritual. It always holds strength and a sense of promise for me; in this I am most easily seduced as I am curious by nature. If my interest is piqued I'll drag myself up a mountain. Oh, wait...I am already doing that. Well, stairs anyway.
10-29 Afternoon: Rouen to Paris Rail Hell
I can't find words adequate enough to express my misery here in Paris. I wanted to avoid Paris as it is a hub for all rail in France. But because it is we could find no way around going there. We arrive in evening rush hour and I am already exhausted. Commuters sweep past us, the rail cars are packed and we struggle with the luggage
Village Chaple
Views by Bus from Saint Saen to Rouen, France in the tight quarters. I am presented immediately with several sets of stairs and a sinking feeling of doom. We need information and that means more stairs, waiting in ques, and then overcoming the language barrier to get tickets and platform numbers. At last we pulled our luggage and ourselves down several more flights of stairs to cross the rail track and up the other side to get to our platform. I was feeling weak and having difficulty pulling my luggage.
Finally we are aboard our train but after departing discover we are going the wrong direction because they do it is different here in France than England. We had to wait until we arrived at the next station, get off, take the stairs back down, cross the track underground and up the other side to the platform, and take the rail back two stops, and then do it all over again to get on the right side going in the right direction.
I am numb from exhaustion at this point and desperate to get to our destination where I can stop for the night. We need to make our next connections in order to do that. After
Chateau Marie'
Small Country Chateau on the way to Rouen, France about 8 sets of stairs and over a mile of walking I trudged down the long platform putting one foot in front of the other, but my mind kept saying "You are just going to keel over and die in your tracks, just like an old work horse who drops dead in his traces." I still don't know why I didn't. It was very bad for me. I was doing what I felt clearly guided and drawn to do yet all was a nightmare. I am quite despairing and beginning to think I can't figure this out after all. And, there is more rail tomorrow...
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