I made it to Budapest for the second time in three weeks (really?!?!?....has it only been three weeks?!?!?), and I'm happily ensconced in a homey AirBnb not far from where I'll be dog-sitting over Christmas on the Buda side of the city! I still wasn't sure when I left Wrocław if I would come straight to Budapest after Prague, or maybe visit Vienna, Brno and Bratislava this week (as I had originally planned), but after all that overnight-bus/up-and-down-stairs exhausting travel (and talking nonstop for almost two weeks straight - which can wear down an introvert!!!), I was leaning towards a few days of "settling into Budapest" before having to take the dog up and down MORE flights of stairs for 3-times-daily walks!!
But....as I sat on the bus from Wrocław to Prague last Sunday morning, I couldn't help but think, "If I could guarantee my travel days would run as smoothly as my trip to Prague has gone thus far, I’d probably visit ALL those Christmas Markets between here and Budapest!!" My morning trip to the bus station went off without a hitch.... I practically slid down the 10 flights of stairs at the AirBnb (another 5th floor room with NO elevator!!) because there was a nice lady heading down who offered to carry my heaviest bag!! I used Uber to get to the bus station so I didn’t have to wrangle luggage on the bus (HOW have I not gotten on board...no pun intended... with this quick, cheap, easy form of transportation before?!?!), and I even had time for coffee, pastries AND the bathroom before leisurely arriving just in time to load my bag and slip into a comfy seat (alone)!! I even had a nice lady sitting in front of me who spoke Polish, Czech AND English in case of emergencies!!
"Wow," I thought to myself, "some days everything just comes together like clockwork and makes travel seem effortless!! More days like this, and I would travel the world nonstop!!" I remember thinking to myself how much easier my travels were thanks to technology (Smart Phone with unlimited data so I don't get lost, Uber, AirBnb - all the things that have made my travel so much easier on this trip)!! And YET.... there was a little voice in the back of my head that was "niggling" me with the thought that maybe it was making my traveling TOO easy!! Maybe I would miss out on some of the growth opportunities and "magic" I often experience during my travels because of all those unexpected challenges when I have to depend on my interaction with strangers and use my own wits to figure things out!!
Well, I'm here to say....be careful what you wish for (or ponder on) - because no sooner was I feeling confident about my technology than it failed me at the most inopportune time!! I had confidently (and without any kerfuffles) reached the Prague bus station and summoned my Uber (across town for for only $5.00!!) when my phone unceremoniously DIED!!! It had 20% battery left, so it should have been fine, but I figured out later it was because it was FREEZING COLD - and apparently it wouldn't work until it warmed up! I thought about putting it next to my body to warm it up, but after wandering up and down the block for what felt like hours (but was probably less than 10 minutes!!) where I THOUGHT I was meant to meet the Uber driver (but wasn't sure because my phone died before I got that essential bit of information!!), I'm not sure my body would've been warm enough!! At that point, I wasn't really sure WHAT to do because no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get the phone to come on for more than 30 seconds at a time....ugh!!!
I was just about to go inside a building to see if I could find a place to plug in my phone (and warm up!!) when I passed a driver sitting in a car further up the sidewalk than I'd been pacing up to that point. I hoped that MAYBE this was the guy whose face had flashed on the screen for a second before my phone died, but I wasn't sure?!?!? So I paused by his car window (not wanting to freak him out if he was just some stranger waiting for a friend), mouthed the word "Uber" (raised my eyebrows and smiled my most friendly/least creepy smile).... and sure enough - miracle of miracles - I found the driver.... whew!!
Fortunately, he already had the AirBnb address programmed into his phone (the miracle of Uber!!), so we took off across the city in his warm, toasty car!! My phone STILL wasn't working and I was getting a little worried about what I would do when I arrived, but by the time we got there it had finally warmed up enough to start working again (which was a relief because I needed to look up the instructions on how to get into my AirBnb)!!
So the moral to my story is this....don't let your phone get too cold!!!....don't assume technology will be your savior....and be ready for exciting challenges if you ponder about whether life would be better without technology (because you might get to experience a moment of panic without it and have to figure out what's next)!!
Following all that chaos, I had a lovely couple of days wandering the streets of Prague (with the Christmas Market just down the cobblestone streets a few blocks away), and a pleasant, fairly uneventful train ride to Budapest (the first couple of hours of which were filled with the chatter of this amazing little 5-year-old boy who spoke incredible English that he "just picked up" - his phrase, not mine - watching English-speaking videos and shows)!! He was quite entertaining and informative....he filled me in on all the Superheroes and scary "bad men" and ghosts to watch out for as I traveled, and I was reminded once again how much fun travel can be when I open up and let things flow!!
Needless to say, I decided after the "dead phone/Uber incident" that I was DONE navigating the perils of traveling from city-to-city for awhile! I decided to head straight to Budapest after my time in Prague, and I'm now snuggled in watching the snow fall outside on the streets of Budapest!! Wishing you all a "pre-Merry Christmas" and Happiest of Holidays!! I may have more to say later as I ponder life quietly here in my cozy AirBnb, but I'll stop for now since I know lots of you are busy, busy with Holiday preparations!! XOXOXO
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