More nostalgia

I'm sitting here with memories flooding over me. The Met line was a massive part of my life when I lived in Hatch End. That's partly in terms of the sheer volume of journeys I made, but it's also about how those journeys opened the city up. The Metropolitan felt unique to me, a bridge from the suburbs to the centre of London. The carriages were different to other lines, as well. Because the journey time from places like Amersham or Rickmansworth could be over an hour (or more!), the seats were in transverse blocks. It gave the impression that you were embarking on an adventure, settling in to watch the countryside change from fields to houses to the cut-and-cover of the centre of town. It was in contrast to other lines, some of which you passed on your way to Baker Street. You would take the fast line from Wembley Park down to Finchley Road and pass Jubilee Line trains dawdling past Neasden or Dollis Hill. These looked and felt like city-centre tubes but out in the open. A series of stops in a constant, unbroken line. Whereas the Met line would be powering on, past it all. It felt like a way to unlock the city whilst maintaining your place far from it in a suburban Idyll. 
 

Sunrise in Sao Paulo.

Well, almost.

I'm awake, and getting ready for the day. Not a bad nights sleep, given the circumstances - I was really expecting it to be a lot tougher. I think the last crazy Jet Lag night was before the King's Arms, when we were in NZ. That was a truly impossible night - hardly any rest at all.
Last night, I passed out about 10, slept within minutes. Woke at about 1.45, then 3. Awake for about half an hour, then a couple of segments of sleep, again. So, overall, even though it was broken, I suspect I got five or six hours. Really, that's a victory, in my book. I'll need to re balance a bit - nap for an hour (no more!) this afternoon, and I might well be OK.
It's nearly six AM, so it's time to read for a while, have a shower, think about breakfast. There's a huge buffet in the hotel here, so that will set me up for the day, and will more than likely negate the need for any sort of lunch whatsoever.

Amazing.

Well, I'm here.
Back in Sao Paulo. I can't quite believe it, really. There were so many times that this entire thing felt like a pipe dream, so many times it threatened to collapse upon itself, and never get off the ground. But: we made it.

There's the view to prove it: fourteen floors up, from my hotel balcony. We're in a funky part of town, and every now and again, domestic jets absolutely SCREECH over the building, on a crazy turn from the airport. Absolute AVgeek heaven.
Anyway - what was the journey like? Well, it wasn't bad, at all. A cab ride to Heathrow (getting stuck behind a rolling roadblock on the M25 caused a momentary panic, but thankfully, it was over quickly) then, a beer with the boys, before removing myself to the lounge for some reading, food, and charging the devices. The Swiss Air flight to Zach was absolutely exemplary -it left on time, was spotlessly clean and efficient, comfortable and relaxing. We arrived for our layover on time, and it was only a brief walk to get to the train station, which took us to E gates, where the international flights depart. Then, a little light queueing, and we were on board our 777 to Sao Paulo. A good flight - and not that painful  considering it's eleven and a half hours in economy. A Thai vegetable curry (hugely spicy - bonus!) and then sleep (of sorts). A quick breakfast, and some reading, and we were heading into the airport before I knew it. Ridiculously, it then took ages to get through Immigration, and even longer to get through downtown traffic to our hotel, than it did to actually fly from London to Zurich.
Once in the hotel, we ate breakfast (devoured the buffet, basically) and then headed off to do radio interviews. Following that, I briefly danced with Jetlag (an insane half hour when it seemed like I would drop into a sleep that I couldn't rouse myself from) and have sorted the room, and unpacked thoroughly. The room is now meticulously organised, and I feel great.
Dinner in a couple of hours - then I'll attempt to get a decent night's sleep. I suspect it'll fall short, but that's life.

48 hours to go

Until I'm off to the airport. Still, after all this time, it seems faintly unreal.
I'm definitely getting excited, though. Should be a blast - if nothing else - to be able to kick back and relax, for a few days. As ever, I intend to try and soak up every last second of this time away, to imprint all of the sights, and sounds, and feelings, as firmly as I can, into my memory. I've learnt to love travel, doing it this way: journals, photos, diaries. Some tailored playlists, just the right book to read. Every last piece of clothing an essential. Nothing more, and nothing less than exactly what I need.
I'm still a bit disappointed I can't find this to put on a playlist - I need to just open the blog, in my Sao Paulo hotel room, and crank this nice and loud:

 Here's hoping for some rock solid wi-fi.

Can't quite make sense of the idea...

That's I'll be off to Brazil, in three weeks.

Seems so ludicrous. And let's face it, it's been a tortuous journey, to make this show happen - and the plane hasn't even lifted off the ground. One day, I'll tell it all. Anyway - it's on, and I must begin the process of preparation. One way that can be made a lot more enjoyable, is for me to start mentally packing that case, working out the dopp kit, musing on Spotify playlists, etc.
And if I'm doing THAT.....

Then it's odds-on that the new Hania Rani album will be somewhere near the top of the pile. Jeez, it's amazing. Like so much of the other output on the Gondwana label - it's this beautifully downbeat, contemplative Jazz-ambient melange of influences. It's just terrific. There's a Spotify curated playlist of Label tracks, that Hania has done too - I highly recommend it.

Edinburgh.

Well, I'm back from Edinburgh. Had a fantastic time - managed to pack a lot in, over the course of just one day. Left early Saturday, got back home about 6pm on Sunday. Relatively pain-free flights, which is always a bonus; though the take-off from Heathrow was a little hairy. I think it was the remnants of storm Gareth, but we were fishtailing down the runway on take-off, as the winds were so strong, and there was plenty of low-level turbulence too. One we were above the clouds, all was nice and serene. Great to see Jason (Narducey - bass player for Bob Mould), he's been a mate for 30 years.

 Having a drink, post-show. Hotel bar, the Radisson Collection, Edinburgh

 Flights there and back were on BA Airbuses. 321's, and 320's.

Always forget how different the weather can be - there was snow on the Pentland Hills.

Overall, it was a great trip. Best thing, for me, about solo travelling, is the chance to decompress: to organise mind, body, thoughts. To lose yourself in the process. that was my objective, and I think I got there. 

Flying tomorrow

I'm off to Edinburgh in the morning - and I'm unfeasibly excited about it all. I just love solo travelling, the calm, and the focus that it brings me. I love everything about it - the airports, the queueing, the hanging around. Watching the world go by, out of the window of a plane.
Can't wait.
Today has been a little fragmented - went looking at new cars, which is always a bit of a buzz. Milo's got a play date, so I've finished cooking for kids, and we're next.

Dopp Kit

Well, seeing as I mentioned it in the last post - here's the Dopp Kit, all ready to go at the weekend.
I do see a lot of posts on all those "lifestyle and travel blogs", where people blog about their perfect travel experiences, and everything seems so shiny, and new. My Dopp kit is slightly more real, I guess.
It's a L'Occitane washbag (a bit tatty now). Bought in Portland, on a family holiday, back in 2015. Transparent, so good for TSA/Security, etc. There's an eye mask (from my last Air Canada flight, home from Calgary) and a spare cloth for cleaning my glasses. A travel toothbrush, and toothpaste. I'd like to use bamboo toothbrushes in the future (as I do at home) but that brush hasn't worn out, as yet. When it does, I'll replace it for something more sustainable. Tins have deodorant (Body Shop Aromoco) and solid shampoo and conditioner. I break fragments off larger blocks, for short journeys. The silver tin at the front has some BLack & White hair wax (lasts forever) and the small atomiser contains my Cologne. Somehwat pretentiously, but also rather sustainably - it's a discontinued fragrance, I have to get from eBay - Crabtree & Evelyn Cologne. The pot of vitamins is actually Centrum Mens 50+ (oh, the glamour - but they work, for me). there's only a few in there, which means there's room for some Melatonin, and a couple of sets of earplugs. Plus, the mini cologne bottle sits in there too, nice and safe.
So, overall, I'm happy with it. It's beaten up, it's not flashy, and it doesn't show that well, but it just WORKS, and that's the main thing, for me.

Quiet morning.

Just sat and read a dozen pages of Murakami, which really calmed me down. I feel much more contemplative, when I've been reading,  no matter what specific subject. And I'm looking out of the office window at a post-storm sky: bright, deep blue, solid and reassuring.
I'm also starting to look forward to my Edinburgh trip on Saturday. I get to fly, ac couple of times, I can stay in a nice hotel, meet friends, and think. I have a bag ready to go, with as little as I can take. A bare minimum of clothes, a book, and a dopp kit I've had sitting in the wardrobe for a while. I'm fascinated by effective dopp kits - keeping things tidy, efficient. I've got little slivers of soaps and deodorant in tins, hair wax in a small container, tiny pots with ear plugs and melatonin. there's a single razor, and shave oil, so as not to take up too much room. the entire thing is a finely honed machine.

Life in Tokyo

God, I miss Shinjuku. just looking at the view makes me want to go back, as soon as possible. It's an odd feeling, I feel almost....homesick. Very odd, when it's not home.
I learned a lot about Tokyo on my visit earlier this year, but more than that - I learned a lot about myself. I learned how to be myself, to feel comfortable, to be self-contained. To stride out into the world, without fear or hesitation, without guile or invention. It's part of the reason I came back energised, wanting to change myself. not forever, but in the small, subtle ways which would result in a fresh way of thinking.
I'm getting there.
But I still need to get back to Tokyo.