PHOTO DIARY VOL. 3: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

We're often allured by the glamor of traveling - enjoying new sights, people and places away from the reality of everyday routine. But there's also the equally painful downsides of traveling that has you longing for the sweetness of home - the comfort, rest and familiarity that is stripped away when you find yourself in foreign places.

Just five days into my trip, I arrived in Geneva, Switzerland - and I was tired. Physically and mentally exhausted. The initial jet-lag, nonstop walking around to sightsee, hiking in Sintra (awe-inspiring but exhausting nonetheless), and hauling of my suitcase in the hilly streets of Lisbon had taken a toll on my body. Traveling solo also had my mind constantly alert and hyper vigilant. Fatigue had begun to take over, and the heartfelt appreciation of everything and everyone about home - one of the most simple and obvious yet easily forgotten lessons that this entire trip gave me - came to me way earlier than I had imagined.

Switzerland was a breath of fresh air, quite literally. The crisp January air of clean, very well-kept city of Geneva awakened my tired senses again. Everything is easy and intuitive, but also expensive in Switzerland. I was only staying in Geneva for a day so I chose two main things I wanted to see: Lake Geneva and everything John Calvin, the founder of Calvinism and one of the most influential theologians during the peak of Protestant Reformation.

The first night, I got settled into my hostel, and wandered around the vicinity. I was staying close to the city center and the lake, which was all brightly lit, lively and clean. And then I got hungry. So I walked into the first decent looking restaurant near Lake Geneva for my very first solo sit-down meal of my life.

I had always been strongly against dining alone. Eating a meal is a social exercise - you share a meal, have a conversation over a meal and enjoy the meal in the presence of a company. I hated eating alone so much that sometimes, I would not eat at all if I were in situations where I had to eat alone. I used to hate it when a loved one eats alone or when I see someone else eat alone. You get the point. I've had many opportunities to dine out alone while traveling for work, but I'd always eat with at least one other person or opt for horrible room service food with the company of a loud TV in my hotel room.

And then there I was, in Geneva of all places, ready to give this dining alone thing a try. I walked into a pretty nice sit-down restaurant and asked for a table for one, in English, raising my index finger to double ensure my message went across. I got seated by the window by a kind waiter, who, recognizing that I was a solo foreign traveler, seemed to be extra bubbly and friendly to me. Thumbs up.

I had my iPhone and Kindle in my purse but I let myself be free of these distractions and be fully present during my meal. I felt uncomfortable, awkward and as if everyone in the restaurant was looking at me (no one probably was). I ordered my dish and a glass of wine. I think I simply chose the cheapest options. Switzerland is absurdly pricey. The above meal was about $50 USD.

I felt more at ease as the dinner date with myself progressed. I let my mind wander, without disappearing into a book or Instagram. I felt the wine creep in, watched people around me - families, dates, friends - and listened to my own thoughts about how mediocre and expensive the food was, about how surreal it was to be in Switzerland and about how I much I was enjoying the solitude of dining alone. The opportunity to just absorb everything and enjoy a rare moment of silence made it a full dining experience.

The next morning, I set out to check off the two things I wanted to do in Geneva before catching my flight to Zurich.

THE JET d'EAU!!!!!!!!!! I loved this thing so much. Water shoots up and out from the center of the lake with the snowcapped Swiss Alps as a backdrop. You look at it from afar and it's pretty cool. And then you get closer and closer, and you're just in AWE of this grandiose fountain. Just watching it and even feeling the mist on your face once you get as close to it as you possibly can, is completely invigorating. It's a heart opener.

After my lakeside walk to see the Jet d'Eau, I headed over to Old Town Geneva -Vieille Ville, in French. Old Town is an elevated district near the lake and a historical part of the international hub that is present-day Geneva. There are a lot of sights to enjoy here - Bourg de Four Square, the oldest place in Geneva, Rue du Marche, a charming streets lined with boutiques and shops, Maison Tavel, a museum of history of Geneva, and Parc des Bastions, a park with a view and where the Reformation Wall is located.

My favorite was Cathedrale de St. Pierre, a cathedral built almost a thousand years ago. ONE THOUSAND. It is a gorgeous architectural marvel with Gothic, Romanesque and Neoclassical influences. I actually still remember my AP Art History. I sat and walked around inside a stunning cathedral where John Calvin used to preach. You can also pay a fee to get to the top for a view of the entire city. 

 

Swooooon. Can't you just feel the passage of time infused in these old, leather-bound books?

Then I caught a short flight to Zurich and met my brother at the airport who had flown in from Los Angeles to join me for a portion of my trip around the world! 

PHOTO DIARY VOL. 2: SINTRA

"Where was the favorite place that you visited?" 

This was naturally the most common question I got asked when I came back from my trip. I gave a different answer to this question almost every single time. Because in that moment, it felt true. Ruin bars and thermal baths in Budapest? Of course that was my favorite. The immensity of snow-covered Swiss Alps? Of course that was my favorite. The gastronomic experience in Hong Kong? Of course that was my favorite. And a full year later, I still can't choose a single location. Every place that I visited had its own unique character and story that take a special place in my heart.

But I can answer this question unequivocally: "What was your favorite moment?"

My favorite moment in my trip was the moment I finally climbed to the top of Castle of the Moors in Sintra and saw what was in front of me. No pictures or words can do this moment justice, but here's my best attempt.

Sintra is about an hour train ride away from Lisbon. Friends and several travel sites recommended that I take a day trip out to Sintra during my stay in Lisbon. Sintra is one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, places in the world chosen by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as having cultural significance. The remnants in this area date back to the Stone Age, and you can just sense an aura of antiquity and purity as soon as you step out of the train station. I felt like I had traveled back in time to the Middle Ages as I walked through the village outlined by hole-in-the-wall shops and surrounded by mountains beyond mountains.

I walked around the village, popping in and out of shops and reading through tourist booklets. I kept walking and walking... and realized that I was actually hiking up a mountain. There were tour buses going up and down a bigger road but I was delighted to find a clear walking trail that seemed to lead to some of the landmarks. So I filled up my water bottle and started to hike up. 

All the tourists were taking the buses up, and I could not travel both so I took the road less traveled and that has made all the difference... or something like that :P Amidst the greens and blues, past exotic gardens and soaring trees, all I could hear was my own footsteps, breathing and sounds of mother nature - birds chirping, winds blowing and rivers flowing. The air was perfectly crisp and clean. It was a damn long hike but worth every minute, sweat and hunger pangs. I sang to myself, took a lot of horrible photos and thought about life a lot.

 

Saw a few palaces on the way up to Castle of the Moors - the sign I followed. I don't remember their significance but they were beautiful. It felt like I was living a Lord of the Rings fantasy. 

And then after what felt like forever (by this time the sun was starting to set), I finally reached Castle of the Moors. And this is where an epic Lord of the Rings soundtrack started to play in my head. Really though, there are moments in your life that warrant background music, and this was one of them.

 

I was standing inside an ancient military fortress that dates back to the 8th century with visible battle ruins that penetrated its stone walls and natural tear down caused by centuries of time. It is perched atop a mountain, looking out to all of Sintra and beyond to the Atlantic ocean to the rest of the world. It is literally where land ends and ocean begins. 

I watched the sun slowly sink deeper into the ocean from the top of the castle. As I looked out, savoring every second of the view illuminated by the sunshine, I was dwarfed by such vastness that swallowed me - I was overcome by my smallness, my insignificance in time and in space. It's a soothing, childlike feeling. 

A moment of unforgettable, pure and captivating beauty and perspective. That was my favorite moment.