Apologies for the delay! The day after I arrived back to Toronto my computer fried and died, so I haven't been able to write a conclusion about my adventure, and I know some of you are waiting for one.
The trip back home was pretty intense. Thanks to a lack of funds, I wasn't able to spend time in Paris, but I had to go back there just to catch my flight. I took the 9hour overnight bus from London to Paris, got there at about 6:30 in the morning, had a few hours to kill and so decided to go to Montmartre one last time.
It was cold and raining, but still romantic and charming...there was barely a soul around, but when I got to the top of the steps of the Sacre Coeur, there in the rain, was someone playing a beautifully haunting tune on a piano that had been painted silver...only in Paris! It was a nice last memory before making the loooooong journey home.
After killing some time in a café, and sipping on a very expensive coffee, (5.50 Euros!) I caught a train to the airport, stood in the check -in line for about 3 hours, and then, believe it or not, had to go back to London via plane, wait a few more hours at Heathrow airport and then take another flight to Toronto. God knows how once upon a time I survived the flight from Perth to Montreal, this last trip felt like forever - I couldn't wait to get off the plane.
Flying into Toronto was the strangest feeling. I wasn't sure if it felt like home. And arriving at my house and entering my bedroom was just so surreal. I'm not going to lie, I cried like a baby...a little bit from sadness, because my traveling adventure had come to an end, but mostly because it really hit me what an amazing time I had and how lucky I had been. When I left my room 2 months earlier, I was so frightened, I had no idea what the journey ahead would be and didn't know what to expect...what I experienced was better than anything I could have imagined, more beautiful than a dream. The amazing places that I saw, all of the kind and generous people that I crossed paths with, I felt so grateful it brought me to tears.
For the first week back I kept a pretty low profile. I wanted to be alone and try to process what I had experienced with the help of my guitar and keyboard. The plan was to capture all of my feelings in song before I got back to reality and the experience started to fade away ( its so crazy how it fast it does fade away and starts to feel like a vague dream! ) So far I have about 7 different songs in the making, the hardest part is committing to them until they are completed, but I'm going to try.
I've caught up with quite a few friends now and have started handing out resumes, in a reluctant attempt to find a part time job in a bar or a restaurant. I realise that Toronto is not such a bad place to be, there's still a lot for me to discover in this city.
But the truth is I don't want my adventure to end! I want my life to be one ongoing adventure, and so I'm going to be trying my best to maintain my traveller spirit and be open to anything, especially when it comes to music and performing.
I feel I learnt so much from this experience. Facing my fear to travel alone with out any real plan, I believe, has made me a much stronger person. I feel more courageous. My mind has been opened to a whole new world of possibilities.
Something I've learnt along the way, is that there seems to be a beautiful law of nature that exists whereby, if you find the courage to face your fears, somehow life will reward you in an astounding way...my whole journey was proof of that...
So my friends, it's not over yet. My adventure in Europe may have come to an end, but really this is just the start of a new adventure... the legacy of "Next Plane to Paris" lives on...
I am going to keep using this blog to keep you posted with any developments that I have with my music. So if you're interested to hear the latest, check in from time to time :)
Much Love to you all.
Natasha xx
