Further Thoughts On Jet Lag

The thing about air travel is that it gets you to your destination fast. I went from summer to winter, from northern hemisphere to southern hemisphere, from driving on the right side of the road to driving on the left, and from using Dollars to Rand in less than two days.

The downside to air travel is that while it gets your body to your destination rather quickly, it doesn't give your mind enough time to make a smooth transition.

I've been wandering around aimlessly the past four days and making all sorts of mistakes. I looked for 1-cent coins because I forgot to round down to the nearest 5 cents. I thanked someone in Spanish. I *did* remember to drive on the left side of the road, but I forgot that it's illegal to pump your own petrol here. And I'm grieving the distance between friends and family.

I have this romantic notion that, had I traveled by ship, I would have a few weeks for my mind to wrap itself around all of the changes. I could lean over the ship's railing and add a little salt water into the ocean as I grieve the losses. I could write poetry in my tiny cabin to process my feelings. And I would have time to become excited as the coast of Africa came into view.

Somehow mankind got this idea that faster is better, and maybe it is, but not for everything.

Definitely not for everything.