The Party’s Over
Last safari of the trip. Elephants from the Barefoot Art Gallery & Shop in Colombo.
The way home was hard. Thirty-one hours. Too long. It was the last hassle—with “US Airways 3583 operated by SKYWEST AIRLINES AS AMERICAN EAGLE” where instead of checking in at US Airways in Terminal 3 you must actually walk back to Terminal 4 and check in at American Airlines—that was the final icing on the cake of exhaustion. And of course every single person you must interact with is borderline rude because they’ve had a long day too and their lives suck and they hate their jobs…whatever. First airline problems of the whole Big Trip. Well, except for when I booked us into the wrong Johannesburg airport but that’s another story.
But hey, here I am…on my couch…getting ready to watch the last three episodes of “Orange is the New Black” (which I am now so over) and eat a baked potato that for some reason seems like the most delicious meal I can imagine.
I came down with a sore throat literally at the first airport on the way home, finally getting to use some of the emergency meds I had carted around with me for the whole trip. Had to kill any inkling of illness in the bud because if you indicate you are not feeling well and that you’ve been to Africa people will run screaming from you in terror. When, as Scott just pointed out, we are closer to the Ebola-infected areas here in New Mexico (Dallas, Texas hospital!) than we ever were in our African travels. But as far as most Americans are concerned Africa is one country, all alike, and all scary. Our lack of geographic knowledge would just be pitiful if it didn’t have the potential to get us in so much trouble.
In any case.
I am very happy to be home.
This trip was the “coming of age” experience as I projected which will be the topic of a future post.
It was a privilege to spend five whole weeks with my terrifically interesting and sweet grandson, more about him later as well.
AND, I am happy to say my travel obsession is not at all over but it is in the process of being beaten into submission…from which it will emerge in a slightly more realistic form than ‘every country in the world.’
Nice to hear you are back safe and richer with all these new fascinating travel experiences! Myself, got the travel bug again ..this time with el camino por Santiago de Compostella/Galicia where I am invited to participate at the annual WOMEX world music conference: be reassured not by foot but with Iberia Airlines !
Glad to see you are back in the land of enchiladas, safe and sound. How about visiting countries you just want to visit because you know they will be interesting, instead of every one?
Glad you made it back in one piece. I was watching and hoping you and your co-conspirators would be fine and still have your heads. What’s the country score total at now?
95. But I think of giving up on the-every-country-in-the-world idea. Too old and too poor! Although I do want to keep traveling but not always to new places. Now I just want to beat Hillary Clinton who’s at 120 I think.