Novel Routines
We are two weeks into the European leg of our adventure, and have begun to piece together a kind of routine; interspersed, here and there, with pockets of exploration. Soon, we will be making the four hour journey to inspect what will likely be our European Pumbaa, and then the proper adventure truly begins. For now, however, there is adventure enough to keep us well occupied.
Our mornings go something like this: there is a light knock at the door, tentative and hopeful. Alessandra pulls herself out of bed and traverses the cold room, greeting Mateo at the door. They spend time together as I sleep on, often unable to rouse myself amidst the embracing warmth of the covers. Eventually, however, I realise that I really must get up, and groggily go through the process: opening the blinds, making the bed, throwing on a comfortable hoodie to fend off the chill in the air. I join Alessandra and Mateo in the living room with a hot cup of coffee and, when the coffee is gone, work on a chapter of my book, reclined on a couch with a blanket tossed over my legs. When Mateo says his goodbyes and Leonie shuffles him off to kindergarten, the morning becomes more fluid. Some mornings, I will put on an audiobook and go for a run; others, we will get stuck into a few of the jobs that simply won’t go away on their own. After Alessandra’s morning workout, she and I might layer up and walk along the river, enjoying the rich colours of autumn as we trace a path through the fallen leaves.
There’s magic here.
Our evenings have become patterned, too. More often than not, Alessandra has something delicious sizzling away as I complete my journal for the day and entertain Mateo, who is always seeking out the next opportunity to play. He particularly likes physical play, so there’s been plenty of wrestling, tickling and chasing to exhaust us before dinner. Afterward, I wash up and pack away, while Alessandra spends some time with the others in the living room, a movie or series playing on the T.V in the background. Once Mateo has been put to bed, we play a few rounds of Uno Flip (a version with two sides to the cards) or Mario Kart, then stagger off to bed and dive back into the covers.
It’s the middle of the day that changes the most. Mateo has joined us for a late afternoon walk by the river on his little balance bike, playing on the pirate ship playground near the water’s edge. We have gone shopping a few more times, seeking out the last of the winter essentials and stocking up on groceries. We spent a day at a thermal pool, which boasted a cluster of pools at different temperatures, ranging from icy cold to simmering. One of the pools even flowed into an outside section, where we swam with cold faces and warm bodies against a backdrop of wooded hills.
A Proud Auntie
Toward the end of the week, I worked with Gritt to arrange a belated birthday surprise for Alessandra. We had anticipated that we would be in Europe by her birthday in late September, and could therefore celebrate with her family. However, life had other plans, and so I had promised that I would give her a second birthday after we made it over. I told Alessandra that Gritt had found a flea market for us to go to, and the whole family set off together. Then - surprise! We arrived at a 4-D minigolf experience. We all sung happy birthday, and Alessandra was delightfully embarrassed. The minigolf was a blacklit neon fantasy world, with sculptures and murals of pirates fighting a huge octopus in one section; ancient aztec temples from the deep jungle in the other.
It is a strange thing, to have so much down time and routine in such a foreign place. Usually, travel of the kind we have embarked upon involves hectic days stuffed full of experiences and events - at least, that’s what it’s been like for me. I suspect we simply needed to establish a foundation - something solid to build our plans for the future upon. We needed some stability, so that we might better prepare for the adventure ahead. One more week of preparation and we expect to be taking our first steps out into the wilderness proper, where anything can happen. It may be scary and stressful, but I wouldn’t want to miss it.
After such a strange week, what learning might be gleaned? Well, let’s see:
When things are getting stressful, tend to the routines. They underpin everything else.
Getting outside regularly is a powerful medicine.
Little boys need rough and tumble play.
People who like to surprise others are often the most delighted when surprised themselves
Create a solid platform for yourself, then jump. Remember that we built the platform in order to jump - not for the sake of having something to stand on.
