[Lisbon — KL] connection — how relevant getting there can it be?
In my last post I wrote about how going from one place to another can become the highlight of a particular trip. In this post I would like to talk and reflect about how I think the whole trip should be embraced, besides a particularly beautiful boat ride or hotspot that you were eager to visit.
About 3 years ago I went to Kuala Lumpur (KL) for a couple of months stay for working reasons. I started my adventure nervous as hell, getting on an Emirates plane in Lisbon on a Friday morning. I was sitting on the far back of the air crew station post and mentally preparing for two eight hour flights, with a 2 hour pit stop for switching planes in Dubai.
This small gesture made quite a difference in that trip.
Shortly after the plane took off, I started talking with two Portuguese girls sitting behind me that were going to be Emirates hostesses and heading to Dubai to start their training. They were a bit the same as me; expectant, reflective, with a mix of enthusiasm and nervousness. A good vibe formed instantly. A bit after, the aircrew stops near us and introduced themselves to their new colleagues, making them fell welcome and giving tips — I must say I was positively surprised by such warm and seemingly genuine gesture. At the beginning they though I was also going for the initiation program, and even after I dismissed that argument I was treated as if along the flight. This small gesture made quite a difference in that trip.
“what a long trip, here I am, this is so different from what I used to and…it might just be great”.
Landing in Dubai was a great felling I still remember: to see the desert with all those city lights on a long strip along the shore, and then fading away towards the desert in the form of orange fluorescent lights, carving the roads from the city to the sandy overwhelming desert. I said goodbye to my new acquittances after exchanging contacts and went for another terminal for what I was told by a crew member to be “the best burger in Dubai” — good enough for me!
The second flight must have been pretty straightforward since I basically don’t remember it. I landed in KL at night, and the memory comes back. I took a shuttle-train to the city main station, watching what I could of the landscape and then took a cab to my apartment. After putting my luggage in my room and realising I was quite hungry, with nothing in the kitchen and no idea what or where to eat, I went the easy way and just crossed the street to a gas station for some bottled water and typical 7–11 plastic sandwich. Going back to my place, I was waiting for the flow of cars and bikes to ease up to cross the street, looked around and realised: “what a long trip, here I am, this is so different from what I used to and…it might just be great”.
This all happened because the trip made it possible
Besides sharing the beginning of what fortunately went to be two great months, my point here is to highlight how going from Lisbon to KL was so relevant for me — just going on a plane. Quite more than for instance, catching up on my reading (which by the way is a great way to use the time spent flying). It was important to change my mindset from anxiety to looking forward the adventure, to get in the mood of talking to new people if the emphaty arises (very important when going to work in a distant place where you know no one) and to accept the challenges that going to a different place bring with.
This all happened because the trip made it possible, and looking back it was one of the most memorable parts of my KL journey! Things can happen when least expected either way, but keeping your mind open and heads up about the details surrounding you helps to attract positive opportunities.
