My blog has been incomplete for a long time. The last part of my journey was missing. The return “HOME“.
It wasn’t an oversight … I really didn’t want to write this last post, because symbolically it represented the closure of an incredible experience of which I didn’t want an end.
I had crossed the border into Basel. Seeing the familiar number plates, the road signs, hearing Swissgerman …. pffffff I was really home. A lump in my throat. In a certain way I felt proud. Proud of myself. I had succeeded. I had undertaken what 14 months earlier I was not sure I could do: cycling alone, me, a woman alone.
I admired the beautiful Swiss landscapes from the saddle of my bicycle. At the top of my lungs I appreciated the smells of the mountains that have accompanied me since childhood; the smell of the grass, the sound of cowbells, the church bells… home is a lovely place and as I have always said in my posts I am a lucky and privileged person.
At home there are many rules and that thin thread of a sense of freedom that I still felt was completely broken. Wild camping is forbidden and campsites are not exactly cheap. Swiss people are very respectful and reserved. I never received an invitation from anyone; no greetings; no interest; no questions. What a pity. Only once did a curious couple approach me after seeing that Dimitri was with me.
Nature is wonderful and as it should be, everyone wants to enjoy it: many tourists everywhere and you rarely find untouched, wild nature. The country is small and the topography forces us Swiss to live ‘piled on top of each other’.
Reuniting with friends and family was very emotional. I was happy to be home, but at the same time I felt a kind of melancholy. I was/am the same Stefi as always, but in fact many things had changed deep inside me.
For a while I felt like I was inside a glass bubble. I could see what was happening around me but I was distant from it. I felt far from people and situations. I actually felt more connected than ever, but not with that (this) reality.
I knew it was going to be hard to be back in the daily routine and I certainly didn’t expect people around me to understand: such an experience is hard to explain, you really have to live it. A difficult period. The salvation came when I a got a job. A contract of only six months but the team was sooooo good. The subsequent work was equally rewarding with kind and extremely understanding people … a real blessing! Sooo thankful.
You may be wondering: “OK thanks, but why write in your blog now??”
… well … because … SHE IS AROUND again!
