Pop Princess

So I sit here, poised on the edge not yet leaving but still caught in-between.  I packed up my room the best I could (that is to say I shoved everything into the closet), made a lunch for the train and now I sit… and wait.  This is it.  The moment of truth has come.  The last time I was leaving for Italy I didn’t actually get nerves until I saw the JFK terminal off in the distance with hundreds of planes taking off and landing.  When I told my mom and dad I was nervous they said the flight would take less time than the traffic to get home so I should just get on the plane.   So this is it.  I am just going to get on the train.  Nothing will get in the way of Crossing the first threshold………
…….

…………………I got on the train.  My mom, dad and grandfather dropped me off at the train and I said goodbye.  I managed not to cry but that was mostly because my seat mate looked like a floppy-hair Greek god (More on this misleading story later).  So I got on the train with three rolling suitcases a shoulder bag and my purse, each one of my parents and my grandfather put one on the train – but I was stuck in the car they dropped me in.  It happened to be the food car so I sat at a table with the very attractive guy, and got all settled in.   Around my table there was four tables with families.   Roughly a half an hour later I stood up and walked to the back of the car to take something out of my luggage and I heard a small girl ask her mother if I was a princess, so I winked and said I was a secret princess.  It made my smile especially when her mom said that that was the best kind.   

Now I don't know what this couples story - maybe they just got good news or renewed their vows last week, but all I know is that the very last thing I want to see while eating my sandwich is at least 70 year old man repeatedly sticking his tongue down his wife's throat over the course of three hours, and am pretty sure he was feeling her up as well.  Not a fan – I would not like a membership to Geriatric Porn Weekly - K thanks bye.  

Another girl came into my car, she was carrying a huge Louis Vuitton and Prada bags.  To be honest I didn't really pay any mind - other than noting that she had come in.  When we finally started approaching the station I caught a conductor on his way by and asked if he would assist me with my bags.  When it came time for me to make my way off the train I struggled with(I'll be it self-inflicted) juggling six bags while the floppy haired guy pushed past me, the other girl, and the frail elderly (and apparently still extremely sexual active if their PDA indicates anything) couple and left.  Again, I don't know this guy’s story and am not saying he was in way indebted to anyone to have to carry anyone else's bags.   Maybe he was late for something, maybe he had somewhere to be, but he still left seeing two very different sets of people struggling with bags.  The girl came up to me and offered to help me with my luggage while a porter assisted the elderly couple.  As it turns out,her name is Sarah  she just graduated from graduate school and is starting a new job in New York.  She had to come back to Washington to pick up her puppy from her parents and coincidentally had been on vacation with her roommates to Florence.  She was really nice and seemed like someone who would be an awesome friend. 

I had to take a car to the hotel, my driver’s name was Hamide.  He was a really cool guy who was working part time as a driver and getting his undergrad in DC after having a bit too much fun at his last school.  He was born in Jerusalem but lives in DC, he travels back and forth to visit family every couple of years.  I found all this out after offering him a piece of gum but currently Ramadan is going on so he was fasting.  I don’t know if I could fast all day long, it would take an extraordinary amount of self-control but he said that after the first three days its easy and you get used to it.  In addition it is easier when Ramadan falls during winter because the days are shorter and it’s not so hot out.  Ramadan falls ten days earlier each year so it rotates around the calendar.  We bonded over how our grandparents make traditional food, and how take-out never really cuts it when you’re really hungry. 

   

Right now I am back in my hotel watching Law and Order.  Interestingly enough, in-case anyone wanted anything from a Westin hotel room you can purchase: the mattress, the furniture, the bathroom accessories, the bedding, the lamps and anything you see in the room from Westin.com.  I felt a little nauseous so I started writing my blog for an hour before I figured I would stop downstairs and get a lite fare.  They had a bar menu which was preferable to eating alone as a table and so I chatted with the bartender about what I should get.  I was wearing my French barrette that covered my head and he thought I had dreadlocks after I told him it wasn’t he said I would look nice with dreadlocks.  I told him about how my friend Robin keeps trying to get me to dred my hair.  There you have it Robin, you are not the only one who thinks I have great hair for dreadlocks.  It was nice to have someone to talk to while I ate.  Now that I am back in my room, I feel kind of alone.  I won’t actually see anyone I know until Monday, until then I am in this hotel and traveling.  I need to remember that I need to push through nausea when traveling and eat anyway, I do this every time I travel.  I get nauseous, don’t eat or drink because I feel sick and then get even worse later. 

I had the continental breakfast and it was the most prenominal service I have ever received. The food was good, but the waitress was attentive, was talking with the guests and was just in general awesome.  There was a family with a very vocal four year old and a two  year old and she talked with the kids. When she brought me the check she brought me a to-go cup with coffee and soy milk, then asked if I wanted to take fruit with me AND brought me a small to-go container for fruit and a bag so I could take some apples as well.  So I left for the airport well fed and happy ready to take on the day.  Andiamo.