Journey on a Bus - Midwives of Thought

New Zealand 2010

Date: 28th August 2010

Activity: Bus trip from Queenstown to Christchurch

After 15 days, my short-lived romance in New Zealand was coming to an end. I had actually booked a flight from Queenstown to Christchurch, where I would catch my flight back to Singapore and catch up on the lessons I have missed. What a boring way to pull down the curtains on what has been a great life adventure, I thought. So, I did the unthinkable. I called Jetstar to cancel my flight and then I booked a budget bus to take me to Christchurch instead.

"How long is the trip?" I asked.

"11 hours and 30 minutes" was the reply on the phone.

To me, that means 11 hours and 30 mins of exploration. YES!

And so...I departed Queenstown the following morning, and travelled through the picturesque and rugged beauty of Otago on a bus. It was a really long ride, with occasional stops, but it felt like all the hours were magically condensed into a few minutes of visual delight. The scenes were unreal, and I was lucky enough to have 2 seats to myself at the back of the bus!

There is really something about the atmosphere in the bus making its way across such a beautiful landscape: the silence that reigns inside while its wheels carry it with the roar of the engine outside... the dreaminess fostered by the hum of the engine and the view from the windows...the moments when you eased in and out of light sleep...only to open your eyes to a view like no other.

The combination of Sigur Ros music on my iPod and the vast expanse of greenery and snow-capped mountains led me to slip into a state of wonderment.

I thought about where I see myself in 5 years time etc etc. Usually, this self-interrogative activity would easily unsettle me, crippling me with too many questions and what-ifs. But it was different on the bus. Few places are more conducive to internal conversations than a moving bus speeding across a vast landscape.

life*

There is an almost subtle correlation between what is infront of our eyes and the thoughts running in your head: large thoughts at times requiring large views; new thoughts new places. Introspective reflections which are liable to come to a grinding halt amidst the daily cacophony of life ...are spurred, and helped along by the flow of the landscape.

//end of New Zealand 2010.