Got my ticket, got my suitcase, got my leaving-smile, ...

Yes, it's Phil Collins (the title, not the picture). Sitting on the bed under a gigantic heap of clothes, books, and other irrelevant stuff, I begin to wonder why I wanted to go travel the world in the first place. But I figure even Ibn Battuta had packing-dilemmas before setting out on his expeditions on the Silk Road. I can just imagine Sir Hillary getting all worked up over the question which type of underwear would be the most appropriate for climbing mount Everest. Even Marco Polo (see picture, not title) probably spent a few nights jumping up and down on his pack, trying to get that damned thing to close...This type of thoughts are some comfort in these last days of travel preparation.

Every time I look at my backpack, it seems to get smaller and smaller. I have hidden it under the bed for now, otherwise it might just disappear altogether by Tuesday. I don't think everything I need can ever fit in there. But that is not what worries me most. It's everything I don't need that bugs me: high heeled shoes, little black dresses, black lace-things, my hipflask, piles of books, the senseo coffee machine,... One does not take these things to India... But I might have a severe mental breakdown if I have to go without them for a month. I'm just gonna have to cope... somehow...

Paper-wise, everything is more or less in order. I've got my passport, tickets, hotel confirmations, ... I'm going for my follow-up-shot against hepatitis tomorrow. Billy the Bank-Boy (his name is probably not really Billy, though) promised me he'd have my new card sorted out by Monday. As I walked out of the bank, I granted him a broad radiant smile and an 'I-am-going-to-eat-your-liver-on-toast-with-onion-confit-if-you-fail- to-fix-this'-look over my shoulder. Since he promptly fell off his chair and hid under his desk, I think he got the general idea. So that shouldn't pose too many problems. There is, however, still a gaping hole in my travelplans. I am still accomodationless for 4 nights, in the beginning of March... It appears the South-Indian hotel-people are plotting against me, and made collective arrangements not to return my emails. I'll get them for that. It won't seem so funny when they're halfway down a tiger. Not to them anyway. But I guess I better pack a large cardboard box (see picture), just in case...

So, that's about it for the travelplan-update. I'm going to spent the remainder of my pre-india time in Belgium enjoying the cockroachfreeness of my bedroom, the availability of alcohol, the relative efficiency of everything, and the generally low degree of Indians per square meter. Next post will be from India, unless I get really really nervous or bored or both before Tuesday, of course. So I'll see you then.