My Dear Friend, I Bid You Adieu

Graham — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:12:13 +0000

Last night I did not sleep all that much. I tossed and I turned, anticipating my 5 AM alarm that would force me to rise and start the day. I am never happy about getting up that early, on a holiday no less, but on days like these I am willing to make an exception. It was a torrential downpour outside, very uncommon for Xi’an this time of year and quite irksome to me, so I donned an extra shirt and my trusty jeans. No umbrella for me. It’s against my religion. Well, I don’t have a religion, but if I did, umbrellas would be a serious no-no.

I met up with my three companions and we headed off in search of a taxi. The first one we came across contained a man sleeping in the driver’s seat. I knocked on the window, he babbled something unintelligible (really my Chinese is still not that good) and immediately drove off. The next one we were able to hire, and off to the airport we went. This evening I am writing this from Nanjing, Jiangsu Province.

Nanjing was the capital of China under 6 (I think) different dynasties and the site of the Rape of Nanjing during World War 2 in which hundreds of thousands of people died in just a few short weeks. There is a lot of history and a lot of pain in this city. But today seemed like a bright, happy day with a lot of promise. Coming from being drenched in Xi’an to sunny and warm in Nanjing, I felt like things were looking up. I even managed to walk into a hostel and secure a dorm room; convincing them that my expired International Student ID card was still good (yay student discount).

My friends and I dropped our stuff in our respective rooms and headed out. We wandered for maybe 20 or 30 minutes then decided to eat some lunch. By the end of lunch, I realized something terrible had happened. Which leaves me to the title of this entry. So who is my dear friend? And why am I bidding him adieu?

My friend is my camera. My dear, dear friend. My only friend on my various solo journeys around the world. Granted, I only had this camera since April of last year when my other one got stolen, but I really loved it. An Olympus Stylus 770SW, it was the perfect point-and-shoot camera for the guy looking to travel light. It was perfect for everything I wanted to do. I could drop it, submerge it in water, freeze it, you name it. It was tough and it was light (traveling light is always a priority for me). And now it’s gone. 20 minutes into my friggin’ 3 day trip in Nanjing and I’ve already had my camera lifted. What kind of crap luck is that?

On the bright side, I only had the opportunity to take 3 photos. So it’s not like I lost much. It’s the emotional damage that is the issue. Besides the fact that getting anything stolen from you (especially in a country where it’s basically guaranteed the police will never find it) really sucks, I just loved that camera. Plain and simple. I will be meeting another CouchSurfer tonight (have I mentioned how awesome CouchSurfing is?) for drinks who will direct me to a Carrefour where I will be able to, hopefully, replace my camera. Settling for a lesser device will suck a lot, but will be a necessary sacrifice.

I’m going to go finish drowning my sorrows. Here’s to all of you.

An American in the Far East » Crime

My Dear Friend, I Bid You Adieu