The sailboat has moored at Gran Canaria. This is the last chance for me to be part of this sailing trip. Now the time has come. The last country before another continent appears on the horizon. The last time sitting comfortably in the café without swings. With plenty of provisions, you can start. The captain heads for the Latin American continent. Here we go. Across the Atlantic. Without me.
I had it in my mind. The plan. The world trip route was ready. More or less. First, cross the Atlantic with a sailboat. Then meet a friend in Latin America. Take a Spanish language course and then travel the continent together. After a long back and forth I decided not to join the Atlantic crossing.
Now I’m in this friend’s apartment. An empty apartment. All for me alone. In Giza. A city that borders on Cairo. The two cities merge. If it weren’t for the Nile in between. The apartment is in a neighborhood where I’m probably the only European. It stands out because of people’s reaction. It stands out because there is a loud call for prayer directly under my window. And it stands out because of my behavior. But I’ll come back to that another time.
A huge apartment of an Egyptian family. Everyone lives abroad. Now I live here. Of course for the friend’s mother that I can live here. After all, I’m also her daughter in spirit. Another home for me. Here. In the big wide world. I feel good.
A huge apartment of an Egyptian family. Everyone lives abroad. Now I live here. Of course for the friend’s mother that I can live here. After all, I’m also her daughter in spirit. Another home for me. Here. In the big wide world. I feel good.
An “own” apartment in Egypt. Another case that amazes me. Like so much that comes with the trip. What is possible. Although none of this is planned. A John Lennon quote comes to mind: “Life is what happens while you are making other plans”. It is exactly these wonderful events, completely haphazard, that happen. Amazing circumstances that take place because nothing is well planned. Nice friendships that develop because there is space for them. A friend with whom I was allowed to spend six days in Egypt because it happened spontaneously. That’s it! A flash of inspiration. You are becoming part of my moment. ‘Live’. Here. And now. THIS IS LIFE! Without a plan. That is pure life. And traveling as a special kind of life. A nomadic life. A life on a journey. That may sound strange to some of you. Believe me, it still does for me.
Still it is my mind that is having a hard time saying goodbye to such plans.
Still my mind is trying to set deadlines and impose commitments.
Still my mind is reluctant to travel so haphazardly. It was the last structure of my civilized life. Metropolitan Pocahontas. ‘Nomen est omen’. The wild one in the metropolis. Wild in the sense of self-determined, free and close to nature. Metropolis in the sense of Giza. A city of 8.8 million people. And Cairo right next door (19.5 million inhabitants). I don’t need to add anything to that.
The wild is haphazardly. But it follows a certain rhythm. Your own. The one which is familiar with nature.
– Metropolitan Pocahontas
The journey into the unknown. It’s the spontaneous moments that are the most beautiful. That are full of surprises. And bring the greatest joy. Enjoy life without any plans. So it is also indefinite how long I will stay in Egypt. I had to buy a visa upon entry. 25 dollars for three months. Egypt gives me a time limit. Let’s see if I use every 90 days. Today on February 22nd, 2020 is also my 22nd day in Egypt. I am haphazardly happy about what is. And what’s coming. It is pure life that wants to be lived.
P. S. The only thing that is still planned: This article goes online on February 22nd, 2020 at 10pm. For the pure fun of the joy that all two bring with them. The finished article is automatically uploaded by WordPress, by my setting, at ten o’clock. It is available in the ‘Planned’ folder. What an irony of fate.
