What a week! I spent an extra five days in Malaysia to figure out a viable contingency plan for Japan. Thankfully, I was able to sort out Melbourne with the help of my friend Jessi, who was kind enough to help map out train routes and activities for my arrival.
When I sat down at Cafe Court in Melbourne to write this post, I experienced some culture shock. The first thing that I noticed was how clean Melbourne is. Clean, despite the muddy winter weather. My partner asked me over the phone, “What do you mean by clean?” I mean that there is a distinction between grimy (select American cities, for example) and unsanitary (underprivelaged parts of the world).
I spent over a year planning to visit Onomichi City in Hiroshima, Japan. My contacts there were settled, as were my bullet train tickets from the airport. Yet, here I am in Melbourne, Australia, a week and change before the end to this circumnavigation. (Life, as I learned on this trip, is itself circumnavigation; it is a constant negotiation between countries and people and languages.)
The shift is jarring. And: I know I will do great work here for my project. I know that my great adventure is not yet at an end. In a week, my contacts were settled, as were my AirBus tickets from the airport. Here I am in Melbourne, Australia.
Cheers,
MEG