Eat Pray Love

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from traveling, especially overseas, it’s to never eat or drink prior to a long bus ride. I learned the hard way on a ten hour journey from Guatemala City to the northern mountains. There was no bathroom on board and only one promised stop. No promise, however, as to when that might occur.

The bus to Seville was of the coach type, operated by Rede Expressos, and scheduled to depart at 10AM. That meant nothing after 6:00 the evening before, with the exception of pill taking and teeth brushing. Although I travel with an emergency device, there would be no opportunity for its use as every seat was taken.

Seated to my right was an American woman. Distrustful, perhaps rightfully so, she chose not to store her two large bags in the hold below. Instead, placing one at her feet and the second on her lap, depriving me of a good share of my allotted space. Without a word, we were off to a rough start.

Fortunately, there was good conversation coming from the seats directly behind me. A woman hailing from Queensland, about my age, was exchanging travel stories with a Hamburg native. They could have been mother and daughter. The older of the two has traveled widely over the past forty years, outlasting her husband by a decade. She could have been the Rick Steves from Down Under.

I particularly enjoyed listening to the young woman. Married shortly after Obama took office, she travels on her own every year for a month. “I need a regular dose of solitude,” she said. “Plus, it keeps our marriage alive.” Her husband tends to things in her absence, traveling on his own six months later. She told her companion that ten months together and two months apart is about the right balance, though she has dreams of an around the world backpack trip some day.

The Aussie encouraged her without hesitation. “You must do it dear. Life is so short.”

Just as we crossed the Guadiana River separating Portugal from Spain,

I heard snoring to my right. My American seat mate was lost in dreams of her own, a well worn copy of Eat Pray Love resting precariously on her belongings.