Dream 57: Travelogue
I have travel dreams on a regular basis. I don't tend to write them up as they become so confused and often repetitive that it seems pointless. However this time I thought I'd include it as an example so to speak.
I'm working in an office and am told that my boss (there's is a feeling that it's a real person EC-T from the 90's, but I don't actually see her) is sending me on a trip. I'm quite excited. We have been moving offices and I'm not exactly sure where my room is and what my extension is. But I need to go home and pack and prepare for the trip. There is a constant feeling that I need to go to my office to sort things out there before I go and I need to leave a message on my 'phone to field the calls. It seems to be late at the office, I've been working late, but I'm also leaving early to go and pack. I think I can ring in from home later and leave a message on my work phone remotely, but then I still don't know my extension number.
Next I'm at the airport, I don't have my ticket. I get a flashback to the office where someone showed me the envelope in which are the tickets and itinerary, including my work duties. I think that if I go to the desk and explain they can re-issue the ticket, but I need extra time to do this. I have three carry-on bags, one has my new ukulele in it (this is from real life!) as I want to practise in the evenings. I realise I need to check in one of my pieces of luggage but I'm already passed the passport check. I still haven't sorted out the message at the office either, so there are all these things left undone. I start to think about the trip. I was excited about going but I'm not sure whether I'm going to Japan, Singapore or Korea. I realise I'm returning to the same hotel from the last trip. It wasn't very good, we'd had trouble with the food, service, rooms and language. I thought oh well maybe it will be better since I know some of the problems and it will only be for a few days. I actually don't know when I'm coming back, there's a suggestion that it is nearly a week, which means a weekend. I'm both pleased since I get extra time to explore and worried as it was pretty bleak last time, plus I might have work to do at the weekend as well. There is a general feeling of being confused and disorganised (which is mostly the opposite of how I travel in real life!). I'm in a waiting area and there's a group of tall young men around 18 to early twenties. They are mucking about around me. I'm about mid twenties now in the dream. They start throwing this thing around, it's hard white plasticky rubbery stuff and is multi sided like a three dimensional pentagon. They are almost teasing me by throwing this thing above and around me. I decide I can either be a sport and join in or pretend to ignore what's going on. I join in and at one point catch the thing. They are mostly accepting of me. Then we start to head for the gate. I am still worried that I haven't left a message at my office and also that I have too many bags to board the plane, I'm not even sure where I'm going. I follow one of the young men. They are still throwing this thing about. It keeps going over my head, but then it bounces in front of me. I grab it then I throw it back over my head knowing one of them will catch it. The young man in front of me arrives at an intersection. There are escalators going off to the right, centre and left. Above each one are signs with Chinese-style symbols and some numbers. I don't know the flight number, but the young man does and he leads the way towards the central stairs, saying the flight number. I realise I only have one of my bags with me now. I look back hoping that the men from the group are bringing them, but I can't see them in the crowd. I feel totally confused and unready to travel, I don't know where I'm going, I'm not prepared for whatever work I'm supposed to do and now I don't have all my bags. I'm trying to keep up appearances with the group as they will not help me if they think I'm lost and hopeless. We head off through the airport to what I anticipate as a disastrous trip.