The trip begins

I wanted to write an entry in this blog before leaving Helsinki, but this turned out impossible because I only slept just over an hour before the trip as it was. Last week seems to me like a blur of things I took care of because I had to (last formalities at university before the end of the term) and things I wanted to do (restoring my apartment to absolutely perfect shape).

Two evenings do, however, stand out from the blur - one is Dominante's concert in Leppävaara last Tuesday, a performance where the air seemed to be filled with a magic that doesn't always create itself at concerts, and CM Swing's show on Sunday (less than 24 hours before leaving) in Gloria, which was simply one huge piece of fun to last for the next weeks. Picture below.



Yesterday, I could still taste the campari on my tongue when my two synchronised alarm clocks rang at 5:15. Dragging my 27 kg suitcase (only 6kg lighter than it was when we returned from Hong Kong less than two weeks ago) and myself outside to wait for the taxi was a struggle, but the sky was so clear and the street so blissfully silent I felt revived and took some pictures.

Once we had checked in at the airport and passed through security, I finally got some juice at Robert's Coffee and felt that life was, after all, manageable, even though replulsion wasn't far either when I saw how many people were having alcohol at seven in the morning. We flew to Vienna on a small plane with the Turkish volleyball team, which consisted of men so tall they made everyone look like dwarfs - one of them was wearing a dazzling silver pin-stripe suite which made him look like he just stepped out from the set of Moulin Rouge and provided the first good laugh of the day.

Once in Vienna, where we are living at the house of my father's aunt and her son, all I managed to do was sleep and sleep,which really was a good idea because of the short nights of last week. Today we spent the day downtown, cruising through the classical music stores, having Wienerschnitzel and some spectacular cake, and browsing what was on offer at the Naschmarkt, where I got some trousers very similar to the ones I bought in Otavalo (Ecuador) but which already have a huge hole in a most uncomfortable spot. They are from Nepal.

It's already past nine and I think I'll get ready for bed now bit by bit, tomorrow we'll leave for the airport at 7:30 and land at DAM international airport at three o'clock. Let's see if I'll have the inspiration to keep this blog running during the one month-trip, I hope someone is reading this - feel free to drop me a line or ask any question and I'll be happy to answer!