Trip 13

 May 13, 2023

 

Wishing I wasn’t

such a nervous Nellie.

After a week in France,

boarding the train went fine.

 

Wrote while advancing backwards

through green fields and quaint villages

under the English Channel via Chunnel.

Felt relief at sunshine.

 

Then after England and Wales,

both I’ve never been to,

we’ll return to Ireland,

and this time make it north.

 

In 2018, we toured the Republic.

I felt at home there,

especially when I walked

along the Shannon River.

 

Shannon is my maiden name

and I always wonder

about our Irish ancestors.

What were their lives like?

 

It’s like having an invisible

storybook inside

my head and heart

longing to be read.

 

Across from the London station,

a gourmet restaurant, Burger King.

It was nice to hear English again,

though no cash, or chip, just tap cards.

 

Entered our beautiful Airbnb,

via complicated set of gates and locks.

Elevator broken, hostess helped

get our luggage up three flights.

 

Sis and I stayed inside and had PB & J,

afraid, like being in an escape room,

that we wouldn’t be able

to master the gates and locks before dark.