The Curse of the Traveling Cell Phone....

I was going to write something last week about my time in Torrevieja, but I think I used up all my words participating in the English Immersion program (so I didn't feel much like writing during our siesta break each day)!! So now I have a day to catch you up on all that's happened in the last couple weeks (before my sister, Sheryl, arrives in Malaga and we enjoy some sunshine and oranges together....wooohooo)!!

I wasn't really sure if I'd have much to share from my week alone in Torrevieja because all I did was enjoy the sunshine, the view, and a few of the fun beach restaurants (because NOTHIN'S better than coffee, a sea view and sunshine!!)!! It was an incredibly peaceful week (other than the 10 hours a day - off and on, depending on siesta time - of jack hammers chipping away at the building I was in!! I just kept asking them if it was "seguro??!?" - safe - meaning was the building going to fall, and of course they just nodded reassuringly and said, "si...si...no hay problema" - and invited me to enter the building. It didn't necessarily LOOK safe with the rebar holding up one of the corner balconies, but I just hoped for the best (and reminded myself that sometimes if something's really cheap, there's a reason)!! Fortunately the building didn't fall down, so all-in-all it was a pretty quiet, relaxing week with not much to share!!

But....never fear.... there's always an adventure to be had when I travel!! On my last day (on my way to Alicante to participate in the English Immersion program) I had a bit of trauma/ adventure when my phone disappeared (yikes)!!! All that good unlimited data wasn't going to do me any good without a phone, and I must say that even though I was trying to remain calm, I was freaking out a bit!! In spite of my internal "freak out session" I was aware of (and appreciated) how kind the people on the bus were.... helping me with suggestions (in Spanish of course.... most of which I didn't understand), offering to let me use their phone to try and call myself because they assumed it was just lost somewhere in my bag (not helpful, by the way, if it's on silent mode...ugh!!!), and being very sympathetic in general! I had no idea if it was lost or had been stolen because I knew it was in my pocket when a mass of people had gotten on the bus and then it was gone.... so who knows?!?! (I'd had my wallet stolen from my pocket the first time I went to Guatemala - on a bus - so I probably had a little PTSD from that!! Mostly, I was chastising myself for being careless.... "I should know better because I travel enough to know which situations I should be cautious in".... thoughts like that)!!

After allowing myself a bit of time for chastising and worrying about HOW my phone had disappeared, I finally decided all that fretting was keeping me from enjoying myself. There was nothing I could do in the moment, so why keep fretting?!?! And, there was a sweet older lady who was trying to communicate with me (although I have to say that most of the time, I only understood about one or two words because she had a completely different accent than I'm used to, and a different vocabulary than the words I DID remember!!), but we muddled on through and I felt myself relaxing a bit and not worrying as much about how I would handle not having a phone. I loved that even though I kept saying I didn't understand (in Spanish), she was tenacious and kept trying!! She had a caregiver with her who was from Honduras and eventually the caregiver would try to explain to me what the lady was saying, and I could usually understand the "gist" of it! It's so interesting to me that I can understand Spanish speakers from Latin America, but not as easily those from Spain! (To be honest... I don't really understand a LOT of either, but comparatively it's easier if they're from Latin America! Probably like the non-English speakers either find British or American accents easier.... depending on where they learned it!!)

So....back on the bus.... I decided to just be at peace with not having a phone and tried to open myself up to the possibility that there might be a learning opportunity (like maybe being more Present and not always taking pictures or looking things up - just because I could)!!! I alternated my thoughts between coming up with a plan for how I would navigate booking/ connecting with my transportation and accommodation needs without a phone - and trying to convince myself that maybe it was happening to help me appreciate the Journey in a more Present way. Just like in Prague when my phone died at a crucial moment, I wondered if this might be a reminder to be more Present in my travels?!?! (But then I would think to myself, "But I WANT MY PHONE!!!")

Finally..... when all was lost and I was sure I'd have to navigate the last month of my travels without a phone, we arrived at the bus terminal in Alicante and I checked the seat I had been sitting in when I first got on the bus (sure that those ladies were sitting on it and just didn't know it)....but nope!! It wasn't there, and my heart sank!! I turned around to get my bag from under my seat and there it was.... on the floor of the bus, under my bag!! I had looked and looked all around my seat, but it seemed like what once wasn't there seemed to magically appear!! Whew!!!! I had come to a place of acceptance that I would survive my travels without it, but I was SO HAPPY to see it laying there on the floor!! It had probably fallen out when I moved from one seat to another on the bus to let another (older) lady sit there, but who knows?!?

Soooo...my quiet, relaxing week by the sea ended with a BANG!!! And I was (once again) reminded how important it is to be Present in the Moment - perhaps a reminder to find more balance when I travel.... putting my phone down and really EXPERIENCING the beautiful scenery and not being distracted by thoughts of "what a great picture that would be to share!!" (although don't worry.... I still have plenty of pictures to share of the beauty of the sun and sea)!!

I have lots to say about my participation this last week in the English Immersion program, so I'll finish this post for now (with massive pictures, I'm sure)!! Part two of this week's story will continue in the next post!! XOXO