Neck pillows, claustrophobic tunnels and other tour essentials

Neck pillows
In the San Francisco airport, several of us bought neck pillows (I bought this one; because it was inflatable, it took up virtually no space in my bookbag). This may have been the best purchase I made on the entire tour. Rather than straining my neck and falling out into aisles, I slept calmly and quietly on our many, many flights.

Claustrophobia
On tour, I discovered that I suffer from a mild case of claustrophobia. In New Zealand, we took a glowworm tour in underground caves out in the middle of nowhere. About halfway through the tour, our guide led us through a narrow and long passageway that we had to crawl and squeeze through. With a person crawling in front of me and behind me, I was overcome by the fact that I could be stuck in a rock formation. I made it out, but the experience terrified me.

In Israel, I had a milder fright when several of us visited Hezekiah's Tunnel. While the above-mentioned passageway took about a minute to go through, this tunnel took about forty-five minutes to walk through. After about ten minutes, I realized how long the walk would be. Rather than freaking out, I just kept telling myself out-loud that it wasn't that bad. Plus, I started singing my part to "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" (I'm still not sure why that was my go-to song). Again, I made it out alive. Now I know that I should avoid those situations altogether.

Upon further review
Exclusivity aside, I think Bohemian Grove is just a summer camp for grown men.

iPod
I definitely used my iPod as an escape during tour. It's incredible how closing your eyes and listening to one or two songs can mentally transport you. For me, I listened to southern hip-hop (e.g., Jeezy) to bring me back to the Atlanta area. I also used music to help me sleep on flights, in hotels, etc.

Running
Casey, Jesse and I ran in almost every country we visited. After a few years of going to the gym on my own, I had forgotten how wonderful it can be to exercise with others.

I also had some magical times running by myself. In Tokyo, I ran several times in a park a few blocks from my host family's home. There, I watched as eighty year olds slowly made their way around the path and as tiny Japanese children waddled along with their teachers leading the way and bringing up the rear.

In addition to the obvious benefits, running also served as a mental and physical escape.

Reading
Though I did enjoy reading, I mostly enjoyed watching almost half the group read my copy of The Color Purple. I bought it in a San Francisco bookstore a day or two before we left for New Zealand. By the time we reached Europe, I think Brian, Casey, Jay, Jesse, Julian and I had all read it. You should read it, too. ( :


Thanks for reading my blog this summer. As always, if you want to reach me, shoot me an email at elliotjwatts[at]gmail[dot]com.