Freckles Abroad

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.” - Saint Augustine

Those of you who know me, know I'll be spending a year in London and that I intend to spend my time wisely in the UK, studying and traveling. Adventuring, if you will. In fact, my adventures have already begun.

On my journey to London, I had a ten-and-a-half hour layover in Dublin, Ireland. Due to quarantine restrictions, I wasn't able to leave the airport. The most tedious part of waiting was that only one of three bathrooms near my gate were open. My carry-ons were rather heavy and lugging them back and forth through the terminal was not my greatest joy.

“Travel is glamorous only in retrospect.” - Paul Theroux

The Dublin Airport has equipped each gate with a section for laptop use – a high counter, chairs, and outlets. I spent a good portion of the morning checking emails. I was delighted to discover that while in America the television show Friends is exclusively available for viewing on the new NBC streaming service, it is still available for viewing through Netflix in Dublin. The first time I studied abroad it was the opposite case.

About midday I noticed that I had become extremely thirsty. I saw a vending machine in the gate across from mine, so I left my bags for a minute to see what options were available. Of course I kept sight of my belongings in periphery, as I scanned the vending machine. Once I'd chosen a snack and a bottle of water, I dialed in the numbers and pulled out my Visa debit card. The machine had the Visa sticker to show that it accepted that form of payment. However, when I searched for the location to insert the chip side of my card, I found that the machine only accepted the new “tap” style of payment. Temporarily defeated, I returned to my seat.

“A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.” - Lao Tzu

I knew there must be a way to purchase refreshments somewhere in the terminal, so when an airport worker passed by, I asked him where to find a shop. He pointed up the escalators and gave me directions. When I arrived, I found several shops in one section and some closed restaurants. Luckily, a convenience store was open and I was able to buy three bottles of water, which I then drank from and packed the remainders in my bags. I was expecting the cost of items in the store to be somewhat higher than I'd expect in an American convenience store – at least the ones near me, such as Circle K (Irving) and Cumberland Farms. As it was, the cost was just about the same as it would have been at home, if not less.

On the way back downstairs, I chose to take the elevator since I was wary that my cumbersome bags might make the escalator trip too dangerous. The elevator was large enough that I was able to safely share it with a small family. All of us except for the baby were wearing face masks, of course, as well. Their baby was not too happy with the trip down, but seemed to enjoy my small hand waves and odd eyebrow movements, because she was smiling by the time the elevator opened. Finally, I returned back to my gate to await my flight, still several hours away.

“We travel, some of us forever, to seek other states, other lives, other souls.” - Anais Nin