Saying Yes. To Me.

Thanks to opportunity and me spacing out (which in this case worked out well for me) I find myself on an Italian train, bound for Domodossola, with a stop for me in Brig…

It’s 6:34 am and I’m on traveling on TrenItalia headed for Brig, which I shouldn’t be because I have to teach class this morning and I spaced that out and then had to figure out what to do and it all worked out in the end. Well, getting on the train did anyway. And I have high hopes for the class I’ll teach from afar. I’m awake and it was easy to get up. No alarm required, which is something I like to play with. More on that later.  (Part 2)

Brig has always held a special spot in my heart, although I never really understood why. When we first traveled in Switzerland as a family, long before we moved here, I remember changing trains in Brig. We stepped out of the station and I was almost assaulted with the view. There, directly in front of me was a mountain, towering over me, sharp blue sky above. At the street level was a victorian hotel, complete with pointy rooftops. I was so surprised and delighted, and that experience has stayed with me ever since.

I’ve passed through Brig again several times since and that dramatic view never disappoints. I’ve never had reason to go there, but especially since I’ve been doing the solo soul travel and writing, I’ve felt it calling. Then last week, David and I traveled for the week to celebrate our 25 years married. Part of that included a hike in the mountains in Austria; I reconnected with the allure of mountains in winter.

We got back home and resumed our schedule, which for me often includes an open day available for travel, meetings, catch up on whatever, but the priority is travel. To support my travel addiction, which by the way keeps me inspired and writing and many more wonderful things, I have purchased a train pass this year called the Leisure Card. Through this offer I have 30 day passes that can be used anytime within one year. The passes cover not only trains, but almost all buses, boats, and some other forms of transportation within Switzerland for the entire day. Makes it very easy for me to decide to travel last minute.

As I looked at the week and realized that one of my clients I usually see for private yoga was out of town, it occurred to me that I could travel overnight this week. Brig! I still wasn’t sure why it was calling, but I’ve learned not to worry about the why and go with, open-mindedly, expecting nothing, ready for anything.

I got online and began looking for a place to stay overnight. I was pleasantly surprised to find several good options at decent prices, which isn’t always the case in Switzerland. As I looked around for something with character, an interesting place to stay, I found the Gästehaus St. Ursula. The price was low, included breakfast, and had terrific ratings. For a few CHF more than the economy room I could have a balcony. I booked it.

And then I remembered. Hey wait. No client tomorrow, but it’s Tuesday. You have a regular class you teach! You can’t be on a train and teach yoga! Before panic set in, I said, ok, now you get to figure some things out (I love a challenge). Luckily, this yoga class is completely online. Ok, some options:

Option 1) Stay home to teach and then travel in the afternoon.That would be ok, but less than ideal, as when I travel on these day passes I like to take the whole day.

Option 2) I could see if I could get to Brig early and find a place to teach from. Oh that sounds lovely!

So I pursued option 2. I called the Guesthouse to see if they might know of a space from which I could teach an online class. “We have two rooms available just for that, and the smaller one is available. You are welcome to use it. And although check in is usually at 2pm, it’s no problem for you to check in tomorrow anytime after 8am.”

Uhm, thank you Universe? Thank you God?(the Guesthouse is connected to a convent) Thank you indeed.

So now you know why I’m on an Italian train heading to Brig at 6:34 in the morning. シ

Part 2 to follow. シ