Arrival

Laying on this guest bed now, typing and listening to my iPod, I can barely conceive of the fact that I was laying on my own bed at home doing the very same thing just over 48 hours ago. It’s equally inconceivable that during half that span, I was en route, in Chicago for a few hours, then on an Air India flight to Heathrow (a strange experience, by the way – I was one of the approximately 1% of passengers that wasn’t Indian; combine that with the Hindi writing & announcements, the Bollywood in-flight entertainment, the predominantly yellow/white/red décor, the Indian food, and the sari-wearing flight attendants, and I half-believed my destination was actually India; adding to the feeling, I watched The Darjeeling Limited). It’s like being in an entirely separate reality, spaced only by a few lapses of regular consciousness from resting my eyes but never fully sleeping. Altogether the distance I’ve crossed, the places I’ve been and the people I’ve now met – the combined experience of two days bleeding one moment into the next makes for a pretty surreal impression of time.

It’s amazing I’ve still got the energy to write this. Getting to London was only half the battle. After that, I had to navigate the London transport system with a combined 100 lbs of luggage (two check-ins, one backpack), up and down stairs repeatedly. Fortunately, some people took pity on me and assisted me each time. And so promptly! I must have been quite a sight.

Some time after 4 PM, I finally made it to St. Albans’ station, where Gill and her daughter Abby picked me up. The rest of the evening has been a nice one, of getting to know the whole family. The youngest daughter, Poppy (going on five), has taken to me so well – she likes to tell me about all kinds of things, and sometimes she gives me presents (little things – pennies, an orange feather, & a gold star – for various reasons). Abby (fourteen) is enamored by California, and she plans on going there with friends in a couple years’ time. She’d visited with her parents before (my dad flew them around the area), but there’s much I’d like to suggest she visit. The former Camarillo State Mental Hospital (now CSU Channel Islands) was one I mentioned; she’d like to tour the spooky parts, I’d imagine. Kevin is more reserved, but we have a few favorite TV shows in common – like Doctor Who, Torchwood, & Top Gear. Anyway, we’d all been talking in the kitchen (Gill made a delicious beef stew with horseradish crème fraîche sauce, and baked potato & steamed carrots on the side) and the living room for much longer than originally intended – till it was already after 11 P.M. I’ve been settling in very comfortably. I’ve already had a bath (felt sooo nice after traveling!) and a few cups of tea with milk (chocolate biscuits, too). I’ve got my third cup of tea to enjoy in bed.

Tomorrow’s plans are thus: 1) wake at 9 A.M., 2) be dropped off at St. Albans by Gill at 11:15 A.M., 3) go to Bowling Green Lane (BUNAC) to take care of my banking stuff, and 4) get a UK mobile phone (or, as Kevin suggests, get a UK SIM card with some minutes, so that I can use my existing phone). And imagine if I could have some free time after that! Maybe I could stop by a museum or something. Fancy that! Jeeze, I can still hardly believe I’m just outside London right now – in a cozy English country village, and tomorrow I’ll be navigating London again… “There’s no place like London…” (She cheesily hums.)

Right. So… tea, iPod, and some more Bryson. G’night.