My trip back to Europe in ONE word (Part 1/2) - Coronavirus

It was a normal working day on a hot and usually dusty afternoon in Yaounde when I got the call to come and collect my Visa for my upcoming trip to Italy. I was elated. It had been 17 years since I had last seen my foster aunts and cousins. I was beside myself. 

I distinctly remember my trip back to wish my father goodbye and how emotional I was because I knew that somehow I will not see him for a long while. I remember the bus trip back to Yaounde and how surreal it all felt (especially since there was a job interview lined up in Munich).

 

Me on the bus (in the middle of nowhere) on my way back to Yaounde. Clearly I was too excited to sleep (like someone next to me). I was already missing my lovely Cameroon.

On the news, the coronavirus (covid-19) was beginning to show its ugly head in Italy and various other neighbouring countries. My aunt even told me to postpone my trip, but it was too late. I was already packed. Don't mess with a black man and his luggage!

Me, myself and I in Nsimaleng Airport, Yaounde, Cameroon. I remember having a sense of calm and surrender while going through the various checkpoints. It was as if this trip was going to be life-changing. And how much it was! 

 A few days later I was hitting the road (at midnight no less) and heading to the Nsimaleng airport.  Arriving on the 28th of Feb at my stop-over destination Istanbul, I quickly realised that there was something really wrong. There was a sombre feel about the place. Some people were wearing masks, others wished they had some (including yours truly). 

I was (and most passengers) still very oblivious to the notion that this would become a global pandemic. On a side note, I was really impressed with the Istanbul airport. It made OR Tambo airport look like a "weekend special". It was completely dominated by Turkish Airlines aeroplanes which made you wonder why more countries don't adopt a similar model (but the answer to that question is always more complex than it seems). 

Arriving at Istanbul Airport. I was so excited about being on the move once again. My time in Cameroon felt like my world was standing still or going around in circles. Although this part of the airport was empty, I was in for a surprise when I went to the duty-free area to board my next plane...


I was amazed at what I saw. I've never seen an airport duty-free zone so full of branded luxury items. It literally glittered in gold and sparkles. You almost felt bad about why you didn't have your own shopping bag of famous shoes or gold bracelet. Since I didn't have any Euros, I was saved from unplanned spending.


Arriving in Milan was underwhelming. From the bus ride to the city centre, the metro and even the people I saw at the main train station (pictured here) it was not what I had remembered.

But the weather in Milan was also extremely cold and I had messed up my accommodation plan so I had a decision to make: do I stay here, try and find accommodation or do I do proceed to my next destination: Munich. The problem was, there were no flights left. So it was time for my journey to take on the bus. This is where my journey got really tough. I had to find a bus company that will take me to Munich in the middle of the night (it was around 10pm). 

My love journey between Flixbus and my next destination. This was going to be a relationship for over 3000 km. There's nothing much to complain about a bus trip. You get what you pay for.

I remember being crowded in a small waiting area, full of people trying to stay away from each other in fear of getting sick. One was not sure whether to stay inside a poorly ventilated room or brave the cold outdoors. 

I remember not having a place to sit for almost 2-3 hours as I was waiting for the midnight bus that only came at 1am. I remember feeling cold and also grateful that my father's jacket that I reluctantly took from him in the village saved me from freezing over when we were travelling across the Austrian countryside. 

So arriving in Munich early in the morning (around 8am), a huge sigh of relief came over me. I was starving, cold and needing a shower but at the same time, I was grateful for God's protection up to this point. I still couldn't believe it. With all that going on around me, here I was exploring the continent of my birth once again. 

The main bus station in Munich. It might not look cold but the high winds made it impossible to bear (at least for me).

The Deutsch Sprache (German language) hit me like a ton of bricks. But it was great to see that English was well-spoken here by most people or at least most people tried to help me. I remember going into a shop to buy toiletries and the lady very calmly helped me in English. 

Now it was time to find the accommodation that I will use for the next week, a place that I will call home away from home. In the midst of that chaos, I also remember feeling at peace and acting like a tourist once again...

Nymphenburg Castle in Munich Germany. This picture is very deceiving as it was a freezing day. Still very beautiful to be outside and walk around. Even though I was alone, It felt good acting like a tourist again.

Visiting the nearby Nymphenburg gardens and palace. It's weird to think that the nobles here benefitted from raids to poor villages and other neighbouring cities. 

Visiting the church in Munich Germany. Some of the brothers I met. It was such an exciting time being there even though I didn't speak a word of Deutsch. Looking back, I wonder how I survived the cold winter with a suitcase with a few items of clothes.

Even though the company (I'm not sure why the mystery at this point - oh well) said they will reimburse me for the duration of my stay in Munich, I knew that I was under a shoe-string budget given this trip was not really planned. Moreover, the uncertainties with my job (Denel) back in South Africa, made me decide to stay in hostel-type accommodation. This was a really tough decision: I knew I will have to rough it out by eating cup-a-soup from a hot water tap in the bathroom and use plastic knives to cut cheese and bread rolls. Nonetheless, I was in it to win it (or fake it until you make it)! 

Next post: I decided to make a 40-hour bus trip (crazy right?) through several countries from Munich to Lisbon, using the ever-faithful Flixbus service, while European covid cases were exploding all over the place. However, I was determined to see my sister before I went back to Cameroon to await my job interview outcome... Stay tuned!