Preface Of The CaliforniAdventure: No Miles, No Camera, No Girlfriend
Only some hours to go and it will finally be true: We, which is me (René), the most intelligent dog in the world (Leo) and our fat suitcase (whom we haven’t given a name yet) are taking off again, this time heading towards the american continent - to the California area to be more exact - where we are going to at least visit the cities of San diego, Long Beach (both in the United States) and Ensenada (in Mexico). The trip, which seems to have been booked kind of too spontaneously and which is, by now, everything but entirely planed, will probably cause lots of excitement, which - provided that we shall find internet access at all over there - I will write about daily on this blog.
I must admit though that I am actually not in travel mood at all right now. For one, it makes me sad that Rhiannon, my girlfriend won’t come to the USA with me, but has to stay in Switzerland. I miss her so much already and it feels as if my heart was going to break at any moment. Then there was this gruelling incident yesterday night about the digital camera: To be able to get pictures taken quickly and easily, I got myself one of these very spontaneously. But hardly had I owned my photo equipment for half an hours, when it got lost already: The fellow, who first helped me shopping for some Swiss presents took the liberty of suddenly running away with the device and without being thunderstruck. Well, and then the misery is being round up by Ebookers, which is the travel site where I booked my flight. contrary to the promise its agents gave me on the phone, they finally gave me an airfare which was not eligible for earning frequent flyer miles. This sucks, especially since if Miles would have been credited to my account for this flight, I would have gotten my first free round trip ticket; now, it seems as if not only I can keep waiting for this a little longer, but I’m also gonna miss about 13000 frequent flyer miles.
So this is how my California Adventure is going to start; Without miles, without a camera, without my girlfriend - isn’t it a misery?
I still remember my first flight to San diego, which I took nearly three years ago. Back then, before actually boarding I think I was everything but happy about my travel plans either. Some days ago, I had been robbed just like yesterday. Then, I always had to think of the lenght of this trip, which in the end separatd me from my old friends in Switzerland for about six months - this again was causing tears. And then, there was a strange skirmish going on about my U.S. Visa, so that in the end nobody could tell me for sure if I would be allowed to enter the States at all or not.
Well, somehow it seems as if my travel worries and temptations have not changed that significantly throughout those last three years, doesn’t it?
If I think this further, then I remember the moment of the total change. There was this time where it seemed as if my worries would just vanish. It was a moment of realizing that there was something extraordinarily great approaching and of noticing that it would just be extraordinarily great, no matter how much worrying I would bring with me from home. In one go I knew that though I would not see my friends for a while anymore, I neither would lose them; though I got robbed, I still had my whole live; and although the U.S. authorities might indeed just send me back home, I was still sitting in an airplane as for now; and in exactly this moment, this exact airplane finally took off - WITH ME!
Now also, that I am thinking about all this, I can feel my mood finally change back to the good. Of course, I am not yet sitting in an airplane yet, but still on my fantastic, blue office chair, while I am listening to the rain as it caresses my town’s ground. A few driving minutes away from me, Rhiannon, who is not coming with me, is probably sleeping; Far over my head, there are airplanes flying whose passengers, in contrast to myself, do earn frequent flyer miles; and at a place which is completely unknown to me, there is probably also this certain chap hanging around and taking dumb pictures of his sad environment - AND WITH MY CAMERA!
But in spite of all this, my airplane is going to be taking off soon anyway - And Again WITH ME! And even though Rhiannon can’t come with me, I still won’t be totally separated from her; and if I won’t be able to take pictures, I will collect sounds and texts instead; and concerning Ebookers - well, they actually still have about eight hours left to adjust my booking 
IN any case, the trip is going to be extraordinarily great again - and my misery won’t change a thing on that.
OK, and now I have to finish packing my suitcase!