12/28/14
At sea, M/V Corinthian, Beagle Channel
And we’re off! With my first
puff of the Davidoff Nic Toro, our voyage has Officially begun. That is always my first cigar for my first
long drive a trip, and it is the cigar I smoked en route from Zagreb to the
National Park a year ago. This trip, it
is the cigar I smoke as we navigate the Beagle Channel. Last night, there was this woman going around
introducing herself to anyone, “Hi, I’m Nancy Baxter.” I had no desire to make new friends. This trip was, for me, supposed to be about
smoking cigars and writing philosophy, well, that and setting foot on the Great
White Continent. I didn’t even bother to
dress or shower before I headed down for breakfast, deciding instead to save
that for afterwards. These were
strangers whom I intended to remain strangers.
When Nancy Baxter approached me last night, I shook her hand and said,
“Hi, I’m Mike.” It was then that I
realized that I could be anyone I wanted to be on this trip. These people didn’t know me, didn’t know my
personality, didn’t even know my name, and I would never have to see any of
them again. It was a very similar
realization as I had in Israel, but it was not until 12 hours later, when I saw
Nancy Baxter on the bus that I realized the potency of it. “Hi, Nancy, good to see you again.” Would she remember me? Would she remember the fake name I gave
her? Of course not. She asked me how I slept, and I
responded. It was at that point that I
decided that, for the next 9 days, I would be someone else. No, I would not be “Mike,” but I would not be
the shy, introverted person I typically am.
I got off the bus, lit up my Cohiba, and took some photos at the first
stop in Tierra del Fuego National Park. We
had 20 minutes, which was not enough time to finish my cigar, so I put it in
the cigar saver and got back on board.
Well, how far would I take this social experiment? I extended my hand to the woman sitting next
to me. “I’m Steven, by the way.” “Vanessa.”
We exchanged pleasantries for the next minute or so. Who was
I? This was not the same person that
flat out ignored the couple sitting across from him last night. We got to the second stop, got my brochure
stamped, got coffee that was no better than awful coffee from breakfast (just
like Israel), and smoked some more of the cigar.
The last stop was, literally, the End of the
Road. We could see Chile not 4 km
away. I finished my cigar by the time
the group finished their little hike, and we got back on the boss. Our next stop was lunch. It was served family style, and I left my
coat to take a U, my last Official U for quite some time, certainly not until
we set foot in Antarctica. When I got
back, the girl who was, by far, the most beautiful girl in our group was
sitting next to me with her family. This
was not about flirting. This was about
socializing, forcing myself to socialize in ways that I do not typically do, so
I started making small talk with her step-brother, who was sitting across from
me. I then took out the chopsticks to
use as a serving utensil. Someone on the
other side of me wondered out loud why she didn’t have chopsticks and then
realized that I brought my own. It did
not go well, and I splashed Elizabeth trying to take a piece of chicken
skin.
Yeah, I learned the names of, I
think a dozen people today (Nancy, Vanessa, Dom, Elizabeth, Andy, L---, Sam,
Dennis), okay, so eight new people.
Wait, that’s not me. What good
was coming out of this social experiment?
Would it really make my trip any more enjoyable than relegating myself
to my philosophy and writing? I could
hardly see that as being possible. The odds
of seeing any of these people again is slim to none, so why should I care? Anyway, I had no further interest in
talking with Elizabeth and her family and instead went outside to smoke my Padron 50th
Anniversary, one of the top ten rated cigars of the year.
Dom and Vanessa followed shortly with some
grand plan for her to take a picture of him scaring some birds with his
drone. I was not interested in
that. I just wanted to finish my cigar
and stare at the pretty mountains. That
was exactly what I did. When we got to
town, I realized I would need lighter gas, as it was already empty, and it was
only Day 2. I got eight butane lighters
and a tin of gas. I also picked up two
beers, a bottle of Malbec, and an opener.
They would not go to waste.
It
was then time for us to board. I checked
in and went to my tiny cabin, which did not have operable windows and had a
very sensitive smoke detector, along with numerous sprinkler heads. I knew that I would not be smoking in my
cabin. I realized I still didn’t have
access to the WiFi, so I went to the lobby.
There were two people about my age sitting down. Actually, they were exactly my age. It was a brother and sister (Dennis and
Sam). It turned out that Dennis was in
my same year at NYU, and he majored in Philosophy. Well, maybe I could use a new best friend for
the next 10 days…
Anyway, the three of
us formed a quick bond, and, when they brought me the code for my WiFi, I had
no desire to use, not until our conversation came to a natural close. This was not like Israel. No, in Israel, you could not get a word out
of me edgewise while I had my phone with me and connectivity. Well, one person was able to, but that’s
another story. Actually, a few people
were, but that’s not the point. I put
the password in, and I checked on my statuses and what not. I sent out a bunch of messages, posted some
updates, and then went back to my room. I
had to get a new code for my laptop, which I used to upload the last batch of
South America photos.
It is almost
dinner time, so I will wrap up. We had
an introductory briefing and a safety drill, and it was soon time to set sail. I was going to go the smoking area, read some
Locke, and smoke my Nic Toro. Once I heard
Sam’s voice call out, “Hi, Steven,” I knew that plan was out the window. I followed my new friends up to the top deck
whence we watched the harbor slowly fade away.
She is extremely well traveled, this being her seventh continent. Actually, I will probably never see so many
members of the Seven Club assembled in one place ever again in my life. This was making seven for Vanessa, as well,
six for Dom. We were talking with three
high schoolers, for all of whom this would make seven as well. I felt poorly traveled this trip only taking
me to four and five. I really need to do
that weekend in Casablanca as soon as possible.
Anyway, we chatted some more, joked around, and admired the views. After the conversation started to falter, I
excused myself and headed down to the third level, where I proceeded to write
this entry, which I will now close so that I can finish my cigar and get
dinner.
After the adventurous drives that brought me to Ottawa and Budapest,
this boat ride through the Beagle Channel seems almost a let down, but, as I
light up my 2007 Christmas Pipe, just as I did in Ottawa and Budapest, this
view puts to shame the view of Parliament and the streets of Budapest. It is close to midnight, and, off to my left
is a sunset as beautiful as any I have ever seen. Straight ahead a half moon rises (or maybe
sets) over a dark sky. The weather is
pleasant enough for me to be sitting outside in my pajamas, flip flops and
overcoat as I write this entry.
I
suppose I shall start with dinner. If my
reader will allow me a bit and immodesty, I will call upon my favorite quote of
Kennedy, “I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human
knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the
possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone.” It was the greatest and most stimulating
intellectual conversation have ever experienced at a meal since my summers at MathCamp. There was not a single person at that table
that could not hold their own in the conversation, no matter where the conversation
veered. All eight of us were up to the
task and engaged in this fruitful and profitable debate and discussion.
When I entered the dining room, I sought out
my new friends, Danny (not Dennis as I had previously written) and Sam welcoming me to the empty seat at
their table. I had missed the salad
course, purposely, and ordered the John Dory.
I asked who John Dory was when they brought my fish. Catching my jest, the person who was sitting
next to me, John, pointed to my plate and said, “Him,” and made some joke about
John Dory not being quick enough on his feet or something. The conversation ranged from the ethical
implications of Dom’s drone to what cameras will be like in 20 years to what
public transporation and cars will be like in 20 years to the past and future
of video games to people who like to use retro technology to the first
computers and programming language.
When
I took out my chopsticks, Danny and Sam’s father asked where I got
them. I acted all confused, but John had
to spoil me fun, saying I had them in my pocket. Danny and Sam got a kick out of the
idea. If I take all of my meals with
them, one of two things will happen.
Either they will get bored of it, or they will want to get in on
it. In either case, it means I will have
to start using a fork by the end of the trip.
After the meal, we excused ourselves and went our separate ways. Sam went outside to see the penguins, and
Danny went up to the 4th Deck.
I checked my social media updates and then went to catch up with them,
but they were nowhere to be found.
Instead, I went back to the smoking area to smoke my Partagas. After it was done, I looked around again for
them and was about to head back to my cabin when I heard a familiar voice call
out, “Hey, Steven.” She was bundled up,
only her eyes and nose visible. If it
were not for her trademark nosering, I would not have recognized her. We headed up together to the bar area where
they had free coffee and where Danny was waiting.
This was not me. Why wasn’t I smoking cigars and writing my
philosophy? I think Sokol summed it up
best. He asked how dinner was, and I
said that the food was okay but the conversation excellent. His response, “You actually spoke to people
and made friends?” was spot on, so I referred him to my forthcoming entry. L--- was there chatting with Danny, and
when Nancy Baxter came over to ask where her grandmother was (Nancy, L---,
and L---’s grandmother all being part of the same group), L--- said that
her grandmother went to the room to read her book and insisted that her
granddaughter go find “the young people.”
I realized that I was doing exactly the same thing. The young people in their 20s had found each
other and chatted with each other.
Why
was I here? This was no longer a challenge
or a social experiment. I was there
because I was enjoying it, because I’d rather be up there with them than down
in the smoking area with philosophers who have been dead for centuries. What could the texts of Locke hold against
Dom’s realization that maybe using the drone was not the best idea on this
trip? Did I want to read an Essay Concerning Human Understanding or
did I want to interact with actual humans.
I made my choice. It was the
latter. We talked and chatted for hours. At one point, Sam said she was going to bed,
then she looked at some pictures of penguins.
A new friend had joined us, Davie, possibly the youngest of the
group. An hour later, we had all rearranged
ourselves around the table where the tablet that pictures of penguins was.
Eventually, we all decided to go to bed, but
I knew I would find no sleep, certainly not until I wrote this entry and smoked
my 2007 Christmas Pipe. I changed into
my pajamas and went to the smoking area to test the weather. Davie was there and was shocked to see me
outside in a t-shirt. It was perfectly
bearable, but I got my coat just in case and rubbed out my tobacco. We are now turning out of the Beagle Channel,
so I should wrap this up. Anyway, I sat
down out here, lit up my pipe, and proceeded to write this entry, which I will
now close so that I can publish it, finish my pipe, maybe have a beer, and get
some sleep.
No comments:
Post a Comment