The obstacle is the path [478]
Greetings from the Switzerland...
Hello you. Hope all is good in your part of the world.
If you are new here then it might be worth reading the last post as I’m retracing my steps from 25 years ago. I’m attempting to find the cabin where I used to live and work as a cowherd (Pastore).
It’s gonna be interesting to see how this works. I wish I brought a keyboard or even a cheap lightweight laptop. I’m mostly dictating this into my phone so there may be more errors than normal.
As I said in the last email, the bulk of my posts from this trip will have to be behind a paywall as the words will be edited at some point for a travel feature. If they still want it.
#TheAction
I was a little anxious in the run up to this trip and I struggled to put my finger on exactly why. Of course if I focused on my internal mental buzz I could come up with a list.
What if I’ve not given myself enough time to recover from covid? What if I’ve packed too little, or too much? What if the twinge in my right knee flares up again? Can I still just rock up to a ticket office and buy a train ticket over the counter? What if there’s nothing on the mountain when I get there? Or if there’s an angry pastore in the hut who hates people? Am I going to be able to post anything from my phone?
Thankfully after two days of these thoughts flying around I remembered the comforting words of Dr. Seuss.
You have brains in your head
You have feet in your shoes
You can steer yourself
Any direction you choose
You’re on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.
It’s the unknown that makes things fun. And as a last resort, I have packed to be able to sleep under the stars.
Day One
I rarely sleep well before a trip. So a rough night oozed into a wet morning. Up at 06:15 showering and wondering when the next one might happen. Then as I put my underwear on also wondering the next time I would get to change or wash them.
Some of the house were tired and grumpy and I didn’t get the goodbye hugs I’d hoped for. But a much needed lift to St Neots station helped get me moving and even on a slightly earlier train. I sat with my 48L pack between my legs. Nervecited and checking out what the other passengers had planned. Everyone was on their phones apart from a woman doing her makeup. So I took my phone out, wishing I’d packed a paper map.
The sun came out after Stevenage and I realised that instead of scribbling in my notebook I was thumb tapping on my phone screen. 30 minutes in and my right thumb had already had enough.
I was the only one disembarking the train looking like they were going someplace other than work.
Eurostar bagcheck was far more interesting. There were two issues with my luggage. One was that after being advised by both Go Outdoors and the internet telling me I could take a small gas canister in my luggage, I was told by security that I most certainly could not. I mean in hindsight, it makes sense.
I’d been in two minds whether to take my gas stove or a little titanium stove that runs on sticks and twigs. I should’ve gone for the sticks and twigs option.
After they had taken my bag apart in order to get to the canister embedded within the cooker at the very bottom, they then decided to swipe the contents with a swab.
Despite being very careful to not pack any explosives or drugs (remind me to recount the time I traveled where both of these things had been ‘accidentally’ packed) I still looked nervous. I did that thing where you (or at least I) engage in small to lighten the mood while we both stare at the shared screen. It flashed a vibrant red alert and I stopped talking.
The security officer looked at me and then back at the screen, and then back at me. Either because he doesn’t see this very often, or because he was surprised as he had stereotyped me as somebody harmless. Then he told me he’d identified the presence of something that shouldn’t be there and needed to get the supervisor.
The supervisor looked at me suspiciously and repeated the operation with a fresh swab. He was carful to wipe different items. He got the same result and told me to not move. Which considering he had my passport and the contents of my bag, it seemed pointless request.
The supervisor asked the other guy if he’d cleaned the machine first thing. There was a face palm, an apology and another swab taken to then test on different machine. That one gave me the green light and I could breath again. It was just a dirty scanner.
While packing my bag. I asked if they’d found something serious the previous day and he looked me straight in the eye and said a serious ’oh yes’.
They politely reiterated the confiscation of my gas canister and I headed off in search of coffee and electricity.
Which was found.
On the train I sat next to a young Indian student on holiday with is family and on a table across the isle a family tucked into the largest Tupperware tub of chicken parts.
He asked me where I was going and I could only show them a red dot halfway up the side of a mountain.
“You’re mad.” He said, smiling.
Here is the obligatory selfie from the train toilet.
The sun was out in Paris but I couldn’t stop and had to keep moving. I spoke to two friendly French commuters for directions to the ticket office. This turned out to be a machine and the equally friendly person attending it helped me pick a route from Paris Est to Strasbourg where I needed to change for Basel.
The train ride was clean and smooth and I sat looking at wide open spaces, the occasional wind farm and tractors doing their thing.
I started reading the diaries I kept 25 years ago. I had bounced them from Scrivener onto the kindle. I should’ve read through it prior to this because the multiple spelling mistakes were annoying. But the reminiscing was joyous.
Last time I did this journey I’d packed a canvass 25-30 litre rucksack with space for bread wine and cheese. This trip has me with a 48 litre state of the art pack. Very different contents but the same space for snacks.
Strasbourg was fine apart from a vending machine charging me twice for an already overpriced bottle of water at €2.50
And then I was onto Basel on a much more local train that emitted the acrid smell of burnt clutch at every station. I was umming and aaring as to if I should push to Biasca. Not far from my final destination. But I’d not get there till close to midnight and although I’d had an hour googling my options either nothing was coming up or a basic room was £175 a night.
Back in the day, I would normally Inter-Rail and you mostly slept on the trains. The last time I did this journey I’d slept sitting on an overnight coach. I was struggling to find accommodation and was thankful for international roaming and the ability to get both my wife back home and an old Swiss friend Richard to google options. Between them both, I found a slightly cheaper option in Basca with a shared bathroom for Fr.100 a night. About £87.
So I pushed on to Basca on a fancy train hoping to stay awake in order to make a couple of changes. This was much further than I expected to get.
The hotel reception emailed me saying they be closed and were trying to find someone to let me in.
The hours stretched on and over one leg of the trip I chatted to an oncology nurse called Erringer who dispute being big in to health popped off the train at Lucerne to have a joint. This was her commute and she knew the timings where she could get off and smoke. Cannabis has been decriminalised in Switzerland and in a few places I could smell that people were making the most of it.
She told tell me it’s a weird time to go to the mountains due to the crazy weather they’ve had. Incredible rain causing floods and deaths with paths washed away and roads closed.
At 10:30 pm I changed trains again and appeared to be the only passenger. It’s a shame it was dark outside as I imagined the vistas on this particular route would have been stunning.
Something felt like it had gone right as my new reviewed arrival time in Basca was 22:44 and then I had a 15 minute walk to the hotel.
Arriving almost an hour earlier than expected and incredibly tired after a full day of moving.
As I navigated the dark streets, a few people sat outside under dim lights drinking coffee and beer. The air felt clean and fresh and I could tell I was at altitude. It felt warm enough to sleep out if I had to but I felt hopeful that I’d have a bed for the night.
The restaurant staff at the hotel didn’t speak a word of English. And why should they? But they rummaged around for a key and after paying the additional Fr.3.4 tourist tax, I was very pleased to get into my room.
Fifteen hours non stop door to door, if you allow for the time change. I found it hard to believe I was only a 10 minute bus ride to the cable car that would get me partway up the mountain. I grabbed a much needed shower and washed my clothes at the same time.
Then I returned to the room and dehydrated, drank two large glasses of water before brushing my teeth, and falling into bed.
To be continued…
#ThePictures
(Via Uchujin)
#TheWords
Finally finished Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. I was recommended this book by someone telling me it was an autobiography/transformational travel memoir. So I read it as such. At least for the first half.
Having traveled to these places and even having my own experiences as a bit-part actor in Bollywood, I was truly captivated. Then things started to get crazy. Fine I thought. This is the life of a traveller. Anything can and does happen.
But it was the level of detail and character development that finally brought me out of narrative and had me wonder why the author was fictionalising an already great yarn. As it morphed into a larger than life Hollywood blockbuster I felt my preconceptions had ruined it for me. I questioned everything and cringed at the hyperbole.
There is so much going on. Too much, as I felt I wanted it to end at around the halfway mark. I totally understand why this book is marmite to many. And I also know it's my own fault for feeling duped.
My three stars are for all the bits that had me smile and feel like I was being taken on this rollercoaster adventure. The two missing stars are for those highest points when I suddenly remembered I was in a theme park.
#TheSound
I share Susan Orlean’s take on travel. I had to book a ticket somewhere for this trip as I need a deadline. Some definitive moment to work to. But as she explained in this Atlas Obscura podcast planning often get’s in the way of adventure. I’ll plan what to take but but not much beyond that. This trip is easy in one regard. Get to a point on a map, see what’s there and write about it. No need to think about what to do and when. That will always unfold of it’s own accord.
Obviously leaving the comfort and predictability of home is jarring, but that step unto the unknown is as exciting as it is nerve-racking. When you don’t know what to expect, there’s more chance of being surprised. It’s also easier to be present when your not heading towards an expectation.
If I did this back in the day without a mobile device, I’m pretty sure I can manage it today with one.
This Nick Cage interview with Louis Theroux is pretty special.
#TheConsumed
Plenty to come in the following episodes.
#TheThings
Back in the day, (1999) nothing I packed needed charging. My camera and walkman took AA batteries and I probably had a few spares with me but not much. I’m not sure I can list all the things I’m carrying that need charging. It’s embarrassing.
My watch is the biggest pain in the ass. Not so much in built up environments, but when out in the wilds. I’m not only most active, I also have less chances for charging. This does not bode well for my obsession for completing exercise streaks. Something I should probably break on purpose.
Due to its unique mini wireless charging needs it’s the only thing I struggle to charge on the move.
I will see if this little doodad makes it easier. Here is the obligatory AMZN link.
It looks the biz and so far has worked pretty well.
#TheThanks
Thank you to Elliot Jay Stocks for taking out a supporting subscription. Please check out his excellent newsletter here.
And thank you to the other paying subscribers who are joining me on this
It’s only $5/month to get all the content I share into this feed. In the next issue, I’ll show you how little that gets you in Switzerland.
#TheWeb
Ever done an Enneagram test? Here is another one.
Have you added yourself to the Documentally community map?
Imagination vs creativity
Some of my other places include Letterboxd, Flickr, Strava, Untappd, my audio RSS feed, LinkedIn, YouTube, Mastodon, a ham radio newsletter or search ‘Documentally’ on Wire, Birdsite, or Bluesky
#TheEnd
Thank you for reading, sharing and liking. If you are in Switzerland and want to hang out let me know. I’ll get the next post out as soon as possible.
Apologies for it only going to supporting subscribers, but at half the price of a Swiss coffee per month I’m sure the more curious of you will take a punt.
“Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty in every age of life really never grows old.”
- Franz Kafka
Keep moving.
See you out there.
Over…
