Let's Put This Blog Out Of Its Misery

---

Geo: 51.0451, -114.063

The in-room heaters were positively luxurious last night - it's been a while since we've truly had a warm, cozy sleep. Unfortunately, none of the heat made it into the bathroom, which was absolutely frigid! It was a bit dangerous stepping out of the shower this morning (which had tons of hot water, thankfully), as icicles almost immediately started forming on various parts of the body (you don't want to know exactly where ...)

We dragged ourselves to the bus stop for Victoria Station - last night, Katsiaryna commented on our choice of accommodations, saying it wasn't exactly a particularly nice or popular neighbourhood. This was especially obvious during this very early hour, with the streets dark and empty - the hostel is located right along the Thames and just down from the Battersea Power Station, and we realized it was the type of area that would be perfect for disposing of a body.

Silly us - fearful of London's notorious traffic, we woke up extra early today to give us plenty of time to get to Victoria Station, and to get from there to Gatwick airport. Only when we stood waiting for the bus did we realize that it was a Saturday, so we could have slept in some more. We've gone from Morons in Morocco to Morons in the UK!!!

Arriving so early at Victoria allowed us to grab some breakfast, and also some food to later snack on. This turned out to be a great idea because surprise, surprise - another one of our flights was delayed. I think this is a record - not a single flight on this trip has been on time! But why can't there ever be a flight departing Spain that is delayed to the point where I can never leave, forever stranded in paradise? Oh, to live such a beautiful dream ...

Our time at the airport consisted of shopping, walking, eating, and bawling our eyes out at the prospect of returning home. OK, so Mary didn't bawl, only me. Is it that wrong for a man to show some emotion? To sob like a little baby who's had his candy taken away? To throw a temper tantrum in the middle of one of the world's busiest airports, bellowing at the top of his lungs "I don't wanna go home!!!!"

After airport security tranquilized me, it was a very uneventful flight back home. Some crappy food and some crappy movies, and the next you thing you know, we were back in Calgary. All in all, this was one of the strangest trips I've had the pleasure of taking, in quite some time. It was atypical in that it was nearly devoid of any introspective moments or epiphanies, those experiences that usually make travel such a deep and life-changing experience.

As much as meeting and interacting with people from different walks of life is one of the highlights of any trip, many times it is the moments of solitude that bring forth deep thought, conjuring up the most profound experiences. Moments where a certain path forward in life materializes, or where the seeds of resolution are planted and begin to grow, giving meaning to incomplete or ill-defined thoughts. Those moments offer the sensation of embarking upon a journey, and a sense of belonging, of being part of something greater, something not yet understood.

As a result, this trip was oddly unfulfilling ... my inability to cope with Morocco's assault on the senses didn't help, either. After long days in the medinas with nary a second of peace, my brain was routinely battered into a pulp. It felt like my head was going to explode, bursting at the seams with cacophonous echoes and disjointed images, vestiges of the day's earlier experiences. Many times, I wanted nothing more than a moment to myself, where a single coherent thought could be formed before it was shattered by the grating shouts of a tout or a hustler. It's surprising how much you can long for the ability to go fifteen minutes without having to see, or speak to another person. Even more surprising is how difficult it was to find those precious few moments while on this trip.

That's not to say there weren't some memorable experiences during this trip - Essaouira and Chefchaouen were definitely the highlights of Morocco, funky and charming little places perfect for respite from the madness of Moroccan medinas. Getting lost in Casablanca and getting assistance from Malika was also uber-cool, and one of those encounters that you'll always look fondly back upon, because it gave you a profound glimpse into a different culture, and some understanding of the boundaries between cultures, both real and perceived.

All travel is good, but sometimes it's a question of how much personal growth is experienced during the journey ... there wasn't as much this time, as compared to other trips. Even finishing off these blogs was a bit strange - I'm finishing this final entry over two months after we returned, despite having completed probably 70%!o(MISSING)f the work before getting back to Calgary. I just didn't feel like doing them. To be blunt, the blogs I've written for this trip have been shit, largely because there wasn't sufficient inspiration. Usually, writing these blogs are almost as enjoyable as traveling itself, but not this time. Some friends who typically follow them have even commented as such, saying that it didn't seem like I enjoyed writing them, and that it showed. I'm not arguing!

There is always a song that neatly encapsulates the essence of each trip but this time, not really. In the past, I had specific reasons for certain trips, and sometimes the song of the trip is already defined before even leaving. Usually the song of the trip announces itself during some sort of epiphany during the travels, but occasionally it has happened at the end of the trip, after having time to digest all the things I saw, and all the things I learned. But this time ... I'm still waiting for that to happen!!! How could there be a song for the trip if I could never hear my own thoughts???

So, not wanting to break with tradition, I'll just pick one that really has no meaning in relation to the trip, only that it was a song we heard in Spain, and that I liked. "Llueve por Dentro" by Luis Fonsi, a kick-ass cheesy love song, written and sung in the language seemingly created solely for the purpose of singing cheesy love songs - Spanish! And as usual ... it sounds kinda crappy when translated into English! Of course, that could just be due to my questionable translating ...

So finally ... this blog is done, and put out of its misery! Woo hoo! I'd hold a wake for the pathetic dead bastard, but would anybody even give a shit?

Llueve por Dentro

by Luis Fonsi

Que puedo hacer (What can I do)
Llueve por dentro (It rains inside)
Y el corazon me duele y se deshace (And my heart hurts and falls apart)
Pienso en ti (I think of you)
Quiero volar y remontar esta tristeza para escaparme (I want to fly and overcome this sadness, to escape)
Quiero vivir (I want to live)
Por siempre junto a ti, no importa nada (Forever with you, nothing matters)
Y huir este silencio que se roba mis mañanas, libera y acorrala (And escape this silence that steals my tomorrows)

Hoy llueve por dentro de mi,en mi (Today it rains inside of me, in me)
Atravieso el cielo por ti (I cross the heavens for you)
Se inunda el corazon mientras te pienso (My heart floods while I think of you)
Cuando tu no estas llueve por dentro (When you are not it rains inside)

Que puedo hacer (What can I do)
Si tu mirada se clava en mi (If your gaze remains with me)
Luego me arranca el alma no hay adios (Later my soul is ripped out, there is no goodbye)
Solo hay entre tu y yo una distancia (There is only a distance between you and I)
Que nos separa (That separates us)
Quiero reir (I want to laugh)
Como lo hicimos esa madrugada (Like we smiled that dawn)
Y poco a poco rescatar el sol de tus mañanas (And little by little rescue the sun in your tomorrows)
Y el viento entre tus alas (And the wind between your wings)

Hoy llueve por dentro de mi,en mi (Today it rains inside of me, in me)
Atravieso el cielo por ti (I cross the heavens for you)
Se inunda el corazon mientras te pienso (My heart floods while I think of you)
Cuando tu no estas llueve por dentro (When you are not it rains inside)

No es imposible amar de lejos, de lejos (It's not impossible to love from a distance, from a distance)
Pero siento que muero si no te tengo (But I feel like I'm dying if I don't have you)

Hoy llueve por dentro (Today it rains inside)
Atravieso el cielo por ti (I cross the heavens for you)
Se inunda el corazon mientras te pienso (My heart floods while I think of you)
Cuando tu no estas llueve por dentro (When you are not it rains inside)

---

Photos

a
Sausage roll at the train station - good shit!

b
Traditional pasty at the train station - potato, veggies, and big beef chunks. Good shit again! But the sausage roll was still better.

c
Bad chicken leek pie. Flaky, but really no meat inside.

d
Drug store chicken sandwich and apple juice at the airport.