lonely tourist

so my trip in seattle wasn't all too successful. i didn't pass the job interview for obvious reasons. well, i dont want to detail much on those. for aside from that, i managed well in the trip. i guess... i realized i was more prepared for the drive than for the interview itself. but then that could just be an excuse. hehehe.

well, what mattered more was that i made it through the interstate road and drove myself safely back to the airport. i still managed to pass through one of my life's challenges - driving, that is. :)

the day before i would leave for the philippines, i managed to visit a seattle landmark - the space needle. there wasn't much too see on top of it though since seattle isn't a big city compared to new york or even osaka in japan.

however, it's always nice to see the top view of the city around you. it gives you a different perspective of your surroundings. and at least i got to do one "tourist-y" thing during my short stay.

one thing i realized, travelling to a place for the first time is always fun and exciting. but travelling alone just makes things different and difficult. i used to think that travelling by yourself would make the trip more interesting. probably if you get to meet interesting people along the way, then that would be interesting. but if that doesn't happen, it is going to be one lonely trip.

here are some things that i realized when making that trip alone.

* there would be no one to guide you on the unfamiliar roads ahead. the tendency there is to be lost along the way, miss a lot of turns, and have a difficulty making your u-turns to get back on the road.

* when mishaps arise, or when you think you couldn't really handle all the pressure that comes your way, there would be no one you could just share your angsts with. i couldn't just come up to any stranger and start my conversation with "you know what, i really feel like crying...can you hug me? "

* when you feel like jumping with joy since you finally found a restaurant after hours of driving around looking for one, there's no one to share that happiness with, except for the guy on the counter after you've told your order.. you tell him your story. but you never could get the same reaction when you tell it to someone who actually feels what you've been through just looking for that restaurant. the most decent thing the guy on the counter could say is "Okay.. enjoy your lunch! would you like to add some drink for your meal?".

* it's always awkward to take pictures of you and the place you are visiting. well, i've seen other tourists stretching their arms as far as they could as they take pictures of themselves. i didn't want to look the way i've seen them. it would be better to just actually smile comfortably as your friend take a picture of you. well, i was just too shy to ask a stranger to take a picture of me. :) so how did i ever manage to take that one shot of me with the space needle? well.. thank God for camera timers as i sneaked to take that shot in the almost empty parking lot :)

* you wouldn't be as brave to venture more unfamiliar grounds, afraid of still getting lost along the way.

these are just a few of the cons i've learned when travelling alone. so if i get a chance again to travel to a new place, i'd do my bes to drag a friend with me or else i'd have to make a point to meet really interesting strangers (~_~).