"Travelling is like flirting with life. It's like saying, 'I would stay and love you, but I have to go; this is my station".

I will always remember that winter in New York.

It was below freezing,
It was bitter,
It was the one trip that I will never forget.

It was the first time I took a flight all by myself, some 18 hours flight.
I felt like an adult, for the first time, at 19. And for the first time, I felt brave, though I thought I could throw up anytime, not from the motion sickness that I have gotten since young, but from all the loneliness of sitting all alone by the window seat.

And of course, me being me, the one with the mind within another mind...

I wrote in that old notebook till my fingers were sore,
I replayed & replayed that track so many times, till I swore I knew exactly which second Chris Martin was going to let out a sigh.

I started having second thoughts, second thoughts about boarding that plane on my own, seconds thoughts about meeting up with my cousins and their stranger friends, and second thoughts about the relationship that I had gotten out back then.

Yes, I had just gotten out from a relationship, a relationship in which I thought could last forever.

And two days later, I brought that air ticket, packed my luggage and boarded that plane, all alone.

Everyone knows, but nobody asks.

And for the first time in a long time, I could be me, just me.

Christmas was around the corner,
The streets were packed,
I had brushed shoulders with so many strangers, I lost count.
Not many smile, but I liked it, cus' there was no play pretend.

It was that night, in which the heater broke down that made it all memorable, wasn't it?

It was below negative, the four of us were snuggling in a bed only meant for three.

Everyone was tired. Tired from the hours of trying to fix that heater.

We were cold,
We were miserable,
We were actually happy in a way.

I could hear everybody's heart beat,
I could feel their warmth,
And then I cried, for the first time in 2 weeks.

I could tell they were relief.

I had the best sleep that night in years.

I miss that winter.

What was your favorite trip?

Love,
M