The Great Journey: "Get a Spot, Take a Shot.”

“Get a spot, take a shot.” Can I just revise that sentence and say, “Get the perfect spot and take that memorable shot”?

As I was aiming for another capture, my old-but-handy iPhone 5 notified me that I had no phone and cloud memory left. “Digital age problems,” I told myself, as I struggled to save an Instagram-worthy photo.

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For a good 30 days of traveling from China to the UK and back, I had that “digital age problem” for ten days, at the very least. Prior to embarking on this journey, I deleted ALL songs and other unused apps in my 16 GB iPhone 5, freeing up a mere eight GB of space that I thought was just enough for my trip.

The first photo I took was that of the facade of Beijing South Station, at 09:22, according to the clock tower beside the big red sign. I was supposed to show how busy the station was when I arrived but took a quick shot instead since I was carrying this big black mountaineering bag and an orange grocery bag full of food. Those were heavy indeed, and by that I meant an approximate 40 kilograms of combined stuff.

Just after I arrived at the entrance, I showed the attendant a photo of the ticket for the Trans-Siberian Railway and my passport. She however did not honor the ticket as she needed the original copy — which was in the hands of my travel companion then. He was on the other side of the booth, fifty meters away from where I was. I phoned him to tell I was at booth 27. When he arrived, in five minutes’ time I remember, the attendant allowed us to enter the station.

If from the outside the crowds were hectic, inside, the passengers seemed to be relaxed. That atmosphere must have slowed down my excitement. At around 09:40, I settled down at the waiting area by our train platform and took another photos — that time, a selfie with my back pack, and then my boots.

When the guard opened the door to the platform, my adrenaline spiked up. Maybe palpitations? I was cursing and cursing because finally I would ride a train – not for a mere eight hours but for six frigging days.

And the rest of the journey… well, just wait for my other stories. 🙂