Airport Blues

Have you ever heard or read or watched anything by Dr. Seuss? The man is silly and wildly creative, yet through all of his abstract characters and rhyming lines, he makes very sound points about life and how to live it. As a kid, I read everything from "Red Fish Blue Fish" to "Green Eggs and Ham", but as an adult, I don't remember too much of what the good doctor had to say. Last night, I came across something I think is a real gem. It is a reading of "Oh the Places You'll Go" done in a musical fashion by a man named Tim Moore.

If you've ever thought about traveling or are thinking about going on any kind of adventure, listen to this with an open heart. I think it is really powerful.

"Oh the Places You'll Go"

Airport Blues

Note: I've uploaded more pictures (08/08)

Weight Changes:

Me: 162lbs -> 149lbs

My Bag: 24lbs -> 31lbs (somehow...)

Dublin, Ireland was great. We ended our trip by taking a twenty-minute train ride to a peninsula northeast of Dublin called Howth. It's rather small and it has several trails that you can follow to walk all over the island. Because we arrived at Howth late in the day, the sun began to set as we began to hike. It was, I think, one of the perfect last memories to have of Ireland- the cliffs, the green hills, and the orange sun beating down on the ocean.

Currently, I'm living out of the Oslo (Rygge) airport. I feel a little bit like Tom Hanks in the movie, The Terminal, but with just a bit less drama in my life. Did you know there is a blog dedicated to reviewing airports for how easy it is to sleep in them? There is: Link.

Today will be my third and final night here. It's been an interesting experience, but luckily Oslo (Rygge) airport is one of the better rated airports for sleeping and staying. It has free WiFi, fast WiFi at that, and access to wall outlets. At night, people pull out floor mats and sleeping bags and basically make camp on the first floor. I was pretty surprised when I saw this- I thought I would have to sleep in the shadows. I've managed to sleep on the second floor these past two nights and I pull a giant advertisement near the corner in which I sleep to block out the light. Luckily, I am able to sleep up here until around 06:30 to 07:00, whereas downstairs, I would have to deal with more traffic and people coming in and out of the airport.

What do I do to kill time?

I've realized that when you're on your own and without a home, this can be very difficult. Having a laptop and the ability to charge it is a big deal. I've listened to a lot of music, done a bit of writing, browsed reddit a bit too much, and taken trips down nostalgia lane to watch my fair share of Johnny Bravo episodes (Whoa, mama!). A lot of my time at the airport has been spent researching future plans and organizing my schedule and how I am going to handle school next semester. It's been a nice break  as well, and I even spent some time learning French and trying to meditate in the lobby of the parking garage.

Don't people ask you to leave?

Surprisingly, no. I haven't been bothered once or told to move, or even really been talked to. But, when you think about it, it kind of makes sense. I don't think I've seen the same person two days in a row (granted I've only been here for three days). Everyone coming in and out of the airport is a fresh face. People fly in, they leave. People wait for a friend's plane to land or drop a family member off so they can make their flight. No one stays, no one comes back for the shopping mall or the restaurant (there aren't any, but just for example's sake). To them, I'm just another dude in the terminal waiting to catch his flight.

What do I eat?
On our last day in Ireland, I bought two loaves of bread for a total of 1600g of food. This cost me 1.5 Euro. I haven't spent any money in Norway, instead, I've only eaten this bread. I refill my water bottle using the bathroom sink, and when we arrived in the airport, they gave us some free chocolate. I eat that, too. Oh, and blueberries from the nearby bushes.

You must get sick of the airport, right?

Heck yes I do. I don't just sit here next to the outlet on my computer. The first day I spent most of my time exploring what was in a three kilometer radius around the airport. I debated about jumping a fence that said "No Access Allowed" for a little too long, found some wild blueberries and chowed down, and made a valiant effort to help a lady call her family using my computer (I failed, sadly!). I felt that it was very important to get a strong feel and understanding of the area so I could be extra safe.

The second day, I woke up to the sound of people moving through security and curled out from my spare sheet like a grizzly bear waking from hibernation. I had a crook in my back from the way I slept, but I shouldered my backpack, ate a two-slice-of-bread breakfast, and did some final research before heading out of the airport on foot toward the city of Moss. It took me about three hours to walk there. I chose not to hitchhike because I needed the exercise and I stopped off every now and then to try and take the perfect photo. I eventually came to this wonderful bench at the edge of a lake. I was pretty beat. I put my backpack on one side, curled up against it, and took a nice snooze in the sun.

I hitchhiked home, though. This was my first time hitchhiking and it went smoothly! It took me about thirty minutes to get picked up and when I did, it was by this funny Norwegian dude in his early-thirties. He was already retired, had really rusty English, and spoke more in grunts than words. He was very nice though, and when he dropped me off at the airport he offered his blessings and the best of luck to me. I couldn't be happier with how it went.

What is next?

I'll meet up with Chris and Laura again later today. They took a bus into Oslo and explored the city while I chose to make base-camp here. We'll all sleep this final night in the airport. Tomorrow, at 07:00 Norway time, we will fly to Poznan, Poland. Here, the Homeless World Cup will begin on August 11th. Hopefully we can help with any remaining set-up they have to do and get a strong idea of how things are going to work in the next day or two before it all starts.

I'm really looking forward to it, but at the same time, I'm sad I won't be able to experience the entire week of the HWC event. However, I'm going to get to see many friends that Chris and I made previously in the trip, so it is going to be so wonderful from that alone.

Guess what? 

We fly home in 9 days! That's countable on your fingers, folks! Thanks to all y'all that I've talked to, even just a little bit these past few days! It's nice to chat with someone when boredom starts to creep in at the airport!

Best wishes,

-Sam