Stepping Foot on the 7 Continents of the World A Step at a Time

I left Amsteram early, catching the train back to Paris where I will ride my next train to Barcelona. I knew it would be a long day of travelling so I mentally prepared myself for the worst. I finally arrived in Paris. I had to get to Gare du Austerlitz, with just a hunch on how to get there. Today would be the day when my public transportation navigation skills, made worse by the language barrier, would be tested. And I made it to Austerlitz. It wasn't bad after all. In fact, the Paris metro felt safer than the New York subway. It also felt more chic with the French language filling the cold subway air. But just when I thought I had the hang of it, I experienced my first French snobbery. Asking for directions to get to the platform of my train to Barcelona proved to be challenging as everyone I asked, to my mind, pretended to not speak a word of English. Trusting my common sense and my gut, I managed to find it. With just a little over 5 hours to kill, I had to go somewhere or else I'd go totally insane in the station. But first, I needed to deposit my luggage somewhere. Trust TimeOut to provide you with the kind of information you need. There was one in the station. The problem was how to use it when I found it. No thanks to the staff, I again delighted myself with my DIY skill. Then I was off to explore a little bit of Paris. Taking my first steps out into Paris was breathtaking. It was postcard perfect. Every tree in place. Every light post art directed. Truly an art director's paradise. Because the station was an easy 10 minute walk to the Notre Dame, that's where I went. I was like a kid in awe at the sights before me, including the Notre Dame. After a few hours, I got bored. With a lot of time to kill still, I went to people watch by the river Seine. French sunbathers, lovers cuddling, art students doodling something artsy, and little Asian me staring at what fancied me at that time were the cast members of this lazy afternoon by the Seine. It was nice and relaxing. Just what I needed after that harassing moment at the train station. 2 hours to go and I was walking back to Austerlitz. It was cold, but not as cold as Amsterdam. I sat long enough on my steel chair my butt warmed it up for the next person. Then, boarding time. My 7 hours in Paris ended the minute the train attendant spoke to me in Spanish. And my 13 hours to Barcelona began when I patiently waited inside my cabin, fervently praying that I didn't have any cabin mates. It just took a quick visit to the toilet to surprise me with 3 other companions. One really tall old African man and 2 equally tall but younger ones. They were actually very nice, though only one of the younger ones spoke English. It turned out that the younger ones were just bringing their grandfather to the station. They left the train once the old man was settled, to my relief. Having 3 tall men, who seriously stank big time, was way too much for me. And then came in a stocky French guy, who also didn't speak a word of English. From that moment on, I knew it won't be a pleasant 13 hour ride. We tried to talk to each other, managing to do so with a lot of effort and hand gestures. There was a lot of silence. As in lots. I was definitely not in a social mood. Tired and wanting to get some sleep, I just wanted the bunk beds to come down. We needed staff assistance to do it, who was busy collecting all our passports for some verification. As soon as the bunk beds were down, I popped a Stilnox and tried to doze off. The swaying of the train and the body odor brought me back to consciousness. I tossed and turned until the old African man went down at the first and only stop, Gerona. After, I didn't try to sleep anymore. One Stilnox wasted I said to myself. I was just lying on my back wishing that this horrible experience would end, while hearing 2 snoring men. There was a new guy in the cabin who must have joined us when I was knocked down. In what could be considered the longest miserable experience in my life, it finally came to an end the minute the train slowed down to stop. My cabinmates took no time to get up and leave, leaving me inside the cabin slowly collecting myself, but finally happy the worst was over.