Serendipity

All right, that last post was a little rough on the nerves, so let's head into something a little more light-hearted, eh?

One nice thing about travel, of course, is discovering new things. Discovery, however, falls into many categories, and serendipitous surprises can add a little something special to a trip.

One example of this occured during my third trip to London. I don't remember when I became a fan of Red Dwarf, or even where, but it's one of the funniest television shows that I have ever seen, and very creative. Anyways, I was about to say, "let's go to my travel journal for the story", and... honest to goodness, no lie... the story continues on the very next page from my earlier journal entry about Cardiff! Talk about a serendipitous moment!

For you, it's like continuing where we left off, so let's do it.

"A short while ago I finished the new Red Dwarf book: The Last Human, by Doug Naylor.
"Oh", I hear you say. "You DID find it, then?" Well, yes, and as is usually the case with me, there's a story.
So, as promised, we got up Saturday morning with the plan of me showing Marty around town for the day, and getting some shopping done. I wasn't yet sure how I was feeling, so I could not commit to anything yet. So, first thing we went for our complimentary breakfast which consisted of one sip of orange juice, a fresh roll, and coffee powder to take back to our room, so we could make our own coffee. We then exchanged some traveller's checks and headed for Oxford Street.
Sure enough, at Forbidden Planet, they had lots of the new Red Dwarf book - Right next to the sign announcing the book signing at 3:00! Wow!
So not only could I get the book I came for, but I could get it autographed too!"

All right, from that entry, you can probably tell that we were staying in a very 'affordable' little place... almost a hostel. The place had it's charm, though, although wait until I tell you about the morning I stayed there, and had to get up early for a flight to Switzerland.. Yikes!

I was also younger then, and a bit more excitable. Still, going all the way to London to get a book, and getting to meet the Author on the one day you're there is pretty lucky. It's also amazing that this random story follows on the very next journal page after the last page I shared with you - quite accidently.

So, you can find serendipity anywhere, when you're not even looking for it, which I suppose is part of the definition, huh?

Thanks for visiting, JOHN :0)

Starting out...

Before we actually 'travel', let me share an important tip with you: Keep a journal.

Okay, a journal isn't for everyone, and trust me, you'll never ever have enough time to write everything that you want to write. However, you'll also never ever remember everything that you want to remember, and looking back at a journal will not only help you relieve some great travel memories, but you'll also get a glimpse into how you've grown as you travel.

Also, a travel journal can be like a scrapbook... I'm always picking up matchbooks, and ticket stubs and anything else that colorfully tells where I've been, and I stick them in the journal, and tape them in when I get home. Now I have several scrapbooks full of memories, and also a handy reference to places, like "what kind of train ticket did I buy when I went to York", and stuff like that.

A travel journal covers mostly highlights, and is written on buses, trains, and aeroplanes... anytime you're sitting down, really, with nothing to do but sleep. There's an excitement in them, though, that comes from rushing to get down as much as you can in the time alloted. There's also an immediacy to it, that comes from looking around as you write, and puttin down exactly what is happening around you at that moment. I tried to capture that feeling in my first travel book, my graphic novel 3 Knights in India. The book doesn't tell you nearly enough about India, but you do get the flavor for travelling there, and hopefully enough of a taste as to want more.



Sure, there's always more that you wished you had written, but that's not the point of a travel journal. Besides, you should also have some photographs to tell some of the story as well.

At this point, I'll give you a peek into one of my own private travel journals... nothing too personal, but a bit of fun. And don't worry about reading it: I'll include an excerpt after the photo.



7:15 PM Cardiff to London 5 Nov, 1995
{A nearby full moon is all I can see through the train window, and the occasional lights in the distance. It's very dark out. Inside, the train is packed, mostly with} obnoxious teenagers on their way to London. Where they come from or why they're going, I don't know. One of them, obviously drunk, is bellowing out a ballad of sorts. I don't know what she's singing, but lots of people have their hands over their mouths in apparent astonishment.

All right, so I didn't promise you War and Peace. :0)

Today, those of you brave enough to travel with laptops can blog from the road, and even further capture the moment. However, I'll leave you with another tip: Leave the iPods and computers at home, unless you're travelling for a month, and keep a cell phone only for emergencies. This is a must when visiting a foreign country, or some place for the first time. This way you can soak up the sights and sounds around you. Heck, I prefer to leave the video camera at home, as well. The fewer distractions, the better.

Thanks for visiting, JOHN :0)