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This Battered Suitcase

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StoriesTravel

The Wind

written by Brenna Holeman February 21, 2012
in-greece
 
Oia, Greece

Like every morning, I brace myself before opening the door. I only recently moved back to this city, and the -40 degree winter weather is something I will never (and can never) get fully used to. A quick inventory of my purse assures me I have everything I need for the day: keys, wallet, phone, lunch. I wrap my wool scarf up high over my face, pull on my mittens, and set out.

Like every morning, I am thankful that I work only a few blocks away, as within minutes, the frigid air and harsh wind have caused my eyes to water. Despite my layering, a chill is already creeping in under my coat, inciting me to walk just a little bit faster. I look like all the other faceless, genderless people on the sidewalks today: big boots, thick jacket, head down, body hunched forward against the wind.

Like every morning, I allow myself to dream of faraway lands I once knew, of Thai beaches and Bornean jungles, of hot summer days in Barcelona or muggy nights in the Caribbean. I remember a day I spent in Greece nearly six years ago, with a man who would eventually break my heart. We had spent the week on the island of Crete, eating olives by the sea, chatting with fishermen, and walking up and down the walled harbour of Chania. From there, we had sailed to Santorini, lured by the glossy photos of white villages and red beaches. Unfortunately, we were a few months too late for the supposed Mediterranean paradise, and were met with stormy skies and closed shops. Refusing to let this hinder our romantic plans, we forged ahead anyway, shivering at the tables of seaside tavernas, running and screaming into freezing ocean waves, and hitchhiking to even smaller and even more deserted towns than the famed Fira where we stayed.

One day, after a greasy breakfast in our little guesthouse, we decided to head to Oia, which was further along the cliffs but just as picturesque. We took a small bus that rattled along the winding roads; we were the only tourists on board. Just as empty as Fira, we climbed down the cliffs to the ocean, eating a picnic and throwing rocks into the ominous waves. Dark clouds hung frighteningly low in the sky. “Should we think about heading back?” my companion asked me. I could hear the worry in his voice. Stupidly, we hadn’t even checked to see when a bus might be able to take us back to Fira, so we quickly scrambled up the rocks, heading straight for the tiny parking lot where we had been dropped off. We tried to ignore the fact that the sky was now nearly black despite it being only four in the afternoon.

Once in the parking lot, we were met by a raucous group of donkeys and not much else. Images of riding one of these braying animals all the way back to Fira filled my head, and I alternated between seeing the image as hilarious and horrible; either way, I thought, it would make for a good story. Finally, an old man with very limited English informed us that there was no bus for another hour, but with no terminal or even a bench to sit on, we ventured back into town to kill the time.

Two cappuccinos later, and with 15 minutes still to spare, we took one last walk along the main path in town, stopping to take photos of sleeping dogs and fuchsia-coloured flowers against whitewashed stone. The dark clouds were still rolling in, and though the rain hadn’t started, the winds had now picked up so much that we could barely hear each other over the noise. We stood overlooking the ocean, laughing at how crazy we looked, jackets blown open and hair standing on end and backpack straps whipping around our bodies. We yelled into the wind, and the wind yelled back. We shouted obscenities just because we could. We hooted and hollered and the wind echoed us, howled louder and louder until I could no longer hear my own voice. Overcome by the moment, emboldened by the wind, I professed my love for my companion, not knowing if he could hear me at all. He was smiling at me, and speaking to me, and I’ll never know if he understood me, I’ll never know what he said; the wind carried his response away, over the Mediterranean and into the churning waves.

A gust of wintry wind takes me back to the present, and I tense with cold. But no matter; I’m almost at work, I’m almost out of reach of the wind and all its secrets.

EuropeGreeceHome Sweet Home
13 comments
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Brenna Holeman

Brenna Holeman has travelled to over 100 countries in the past 15 years, many of them solo. She's a big fan of whisky and window seats.

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13 comments

Katie @ Domestiphobia.net February 21, 2012 - 12:54 pm

Goosebumps. 🙂

Reply
haley February 21, 2012 - 1:24 pm

So dreamy, and i feel you on those cold canadian winter mornings. they are ROUGH.

Reply
Andi of My Beautiful Adventures February 21, 2012 - 2:17 pm

This is one hell of a travel narrative, I loved it!!! No pictures necessary.

Reply
Christine loves to Travel February 21, 2012 - 7:03 pm

I love this post!!!

Move to Toronto. The winter here this year is very mild. We don’t even have snow!

Reply
Renee February 22, 2012 - 2:21 am

This is lovely Brenna. Simply Lovely

Reply
This Battered Suitcase February 22, 2012 - 2:40 am

Thank you so much, everyone! I really appreciate your comments.

Christine – I spent a winter in Toronto once and it was brutal! I haven’t had a Winnipeg winter in ten years so it sometimes feels extreme, but luckily it has been very mild the past few days…

Reply
Tightintheknees February 22, 2012 - 3:14 am

You are just the very best thing. More stories please. Never enough.

Reply
This Battered Suitcase February 22, 2012 - 3:45 am

Thank you, Meaghan. xoxo

Reply
kls February 22, 2012 - 2:50 pm

BRENNA i got tingles at that last sentence.

Reply
This Battered Suitcase February 23, 2012 - 2:13 am

xoxoxo

Reply
The Ls February 23, 2012 - 9:16 am

Loved this!! You rock. 🙂 x

Can’t wait for more like this.

Reply
This Battered Suitcase February 23, 2012 - 1:16 pm

Thank you so much!

Reply
The Last Time I Saw You (Part Four) - This Battered Suitcase August 10, 2015 - 12:54 pm

[…] no stranger to travel romances. I had one major one in Europe when I was twenty-two; another travel fling had turned into a full-blown relationship that lasted for a year at […]

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About Me

About Me

Hi, I'm Brenna

My name is Brenna Holeman and I drink a lot of whisky. No, wait. That’s not how I want to start. After travelling to more than 100 countries over the past 15 years, many of them solo, I tend to write about travel a lot, but I write about other things, too: getting dumped, buying way too much jewellery, and yeah, OK, whisky (none of those things are related, I swear). You’ll find a mix of advice, opinion pieces, and stories on this blog, but either way, I hope to make you want to read more. And up next? I'm about to become a single mom to a beautiful baby boy, the biggest solo adventure I've ever been on. For more about me and what you'll find on This Battered Suitcase, click here .

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INSPIRATION

Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life." - Jack Kerouac

About Brenna

This Battered Suitcase is not only about the where and the how of travel, it's about the who and the why.

Originally from Canada, all I've ever wanted to do is travel. After eleven years of solo travel and over 90 countries, I'm currently living in London and fulfilling my other dream of becoming a writer. If I'm not travelling, I'm writing about it, either for my blog, my job, or my book. I firmly believe there is adventure everywhere, so long as you keep your eyes (and your mind, and your heart) open. Join me as I continue to look for these adventures. Hopefully you'll find your own, too.

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Last stops: Manitoba, Canada

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"Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life." - Jack Kerouac

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