You Don't Choose Your Life

Yesterday, I woke up a bit earlier in order. I slipped on some jeans and a jacket, grabbed a cup of coffee, and headed out. I just wanted to go for a walk before beginning the day. The tide was out as I meandered along the South Sea Wall. People were thigh deep in mud, as per normal, collecting clams. I finally found a rock that was next to the deep mud. I hummed along with songs as I watched the sun clear away the clouds in the sky. Another gorgeous day coming our way. I only saw one other person on the walkway. So I took full opportunity to enjoy the solitary state before heading back to the apartment. 

Back at the apartment, Johann's fever still hadn't broken. He also was feeling much more congested in his chest. We all were starting to worry.  So he spent the day in bed again. He spent his time beetween steam baths, tea, naps, and soup.

I got his permission to put that in the blog. Don't worry. 

I was beginning to go stir crazy in the apartment. Ellen and I took bikes to Liaou. Brian needed some parts for his new lamps. That was our excuse. But frankly, I think both her and I just needed some exercise and to get out of the apartment. So we took off. The sun was beating down and the sky was blue. Mid-morning was the time to go. It wasn't windy on the North Sea Wall, but it was still warm from the sun. So off we went. 

I promised Johann I would take pictures for him. I failed terribly. Ellen finally stopped me at one point and reminded me. As we biked along, in the mud and grass groups of farmers dug out lines for their fields. The sun, the wind, the mud all were unimportant in their mission. They worked diligently. I watched for a while before heading onwards. 

 

Ellen and I, once in Liaou, went from store to store showing the people pictures of what Brian was looking for. The scene you need to imagine is as follows: Ellen and I walk into a store. Now, this store. You know the iconic "unorganzed garage" look? Parts are truly everywhere but the owner knows exactly where everything is? That is this. We would find the person in the clutter of the store, wordlessly hand them our phones with the pictures and name. They would shake their head and we would leave. Finally, one lady handed us what we needed. We celebrated by getting some fruit from the market. 

Back at the apartment I made Johann a smoothie from this fresh fruit. No one can accuse me of not trying for him, right? We all hung out the rest of the day. The four of us watched "Wolverine." We had dinner. And generally just relaxed. I don't know what had come over me, but for the last couple of days I just had abundant energy. I was in no way shape or form prepared to go to bed, despite the 5AM wakeup call for the next day. So I went to Brian's. Again, using the lamp pieces as the excuse. In the end, I wonder if they were more useful as that than anything else. 

We talked for a bit, but then put on a TV show named, "West Wing." Dave was unbelievably excited that I fell in love with this show. I see some future marathon Netflix days happening with this show. But Brian had bigger plans. We watched a movie called, "The Way." It's about a man walking Camino de Santiago through Spain. It is brilliant.  Possibly one of my favorite all time movies. And perfect for any traveler. (However, my parents? You are not allowed to watch it.) One of my favorite quotes from it was, "You don't choose your life. You have to live your life." Perfection.

Since Brian had lived in Spain for several years, he understood my heart's attachment to Spain. We both would mumble out our heart's voice of yearning for Spain. It truly is a fantastic movie though. Recommended. Brian likes the movie too. I promise. You just may not tell it from this picture. I ended up sneaking out of the apartment because he ended up looking like this... 

I walked the long route back to the apartment. The stars were shining in full glory. I sat on a bench under the silent night. For obvious reasons, I thought about laying under the Spanish sky and staring at the same stars. I then thought of how often I've done this everywhere. I can't believe how under these same stars I've seen and done so much. The people I've met. Who would have ever thought I'd end up in China, missing Spain with an amazing American guy? What a world. Finally, I remembered the 5AM wake up call in the morning and snuck back into the apartment to catch some sleep. 

5AM. We were up and chugging coffee. It was the typical morning before a big trip. Where is my toothbrush? Did I pack this? Yes, I did. Wait, what about this? Do we eat or wait? Is everyone ready? Good. Go go go! This is not a drill. Actually, it was about ten times more relaxed than that. But you know what I mean. 

The 5AM wake up call was because Ellen, Dave, Johann, and I are on our way to Beijing currently. The train, generally moving at 303 km/hour, has been moving for approximately 25,200 seconds, for 950 miles. How's that for impressive! I slept for a large majority of it. I read. I listened to music. I watched some TV. We played some cards. We stopped for a bit in Shanghai before getting back on the train. And no, I'm not counting that stop in my 25,200 seconds approximation. That is moving train time. But! We are almost there, I am told. And the adventure continues in Beijing!