Carrying 13 kg worth of backpack, which felt more like 45 kg, on my back, my travel buddy, Giles, and I left Utrecht by train to Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam on the 25th of June 2015.
I don’t think I had ever been more filled with such an unhealthy amount of anxiety than I did the day I left. A dose so unhealthy that it made me want to vomit. Right then. Right there.
Within a week, I went from being under the torturous pressure provided to me by a couple of lovely university finals to being under both a physical and a mental strain about something that was supposed to fill me with happiness and excitement.
I never expected traveling to the other side of the world for the first time would be this nauseating. This feeling of utter revulsion slipped away as soon as I stepped out of the door and actually embarked on the adventure I had been planning, dreaming and fantasizing about for almost half a year. In that same second, the only desire you have is to go forward and experience what has now become tangible.
We flew from Amsterdam to Dubai and from Dubai to Jakarta. In those 19 hours of traveling we spoiled ourselves with an abundance of films and gorged on fresh fruit supplied to us by Emirates.
Despite all the good care, coming out of the airport completely sleep-deprived, feeling and looking like The Walking Dead, and then being hit by a wave of scorching heat and an impenetrable wall of humidity really did not boost my temper.
The drive to Jakarta was beautiful and we were astonished by the busy traffic. Take a moment to imagine entire families of about five people driving on one. single. scooter. Or imagine vans with people on top of the roofs. Or trucks with around fifty people in the back: all having a cigarette in their mouths; all wearing winter clothes in 35°C; all smiling and waving and welcoming you to their fascinating country.
The landscape, especially the huge palm trees, was so different to what I’m used to in Europe and kept me astonished, entertained and amazed for the hour-long journey. I was culture shocked. In a very good way.
Tip: always ask all the taxi drivers their individual price because they will all say a different thing.
Our dinner that night was divine. That is all I have to say about it. Ginger tea, watermelon juice, the juiciest chicken satay, nasi and all sorts of other goodness – you name it.
After that, we got our well-deserved sleep and prepared to venture into the unknown.
The amount of times I have decided to start blogging and fully commit to it are uncountable. Around 5 blogs of mine are still roaming around the Internet with a similar post such as this one. Never did I manage to post more than three things. However, this time I am planning to surprise myself and keep going. Tag along if you like!
Life Fractions 