Share a story about the furthest you’ve ever traveled from home.
In the middle of November 2019, I jumped on a plane heading to Zurich, Switzerland from Chicago, IL.
I was excited to see a longtime friend who not too long before that, made the move there for a new job with her husband.
It was the furthest I had traveled from home, alone. I wasn’t scared but I was nervous because I wasn’t sure what to expect. It was my first international flight. I wasn’t used to navigating on my own but I love a challenge so…
Upon arrival in Switzerland I was in awe thinking about being 4,000 miles+ away from home and utterly confused all at the same time. I hesitantly aimed for customs because all of a sudden the people started to not look much like me and I’ve never been one to like the attention. I stood there with my very BLACK features with my very BLACK attire and just as I was next in line to be welcomed into the country.
Whomp whomp…
I wasn’t. Well, at first at least.
I was interrogated fiercely about my reasons for visiting, how much money I had, and my plans of returning to the USA. It was odd but I did my best to understand their reasons for singling me out.
They patted through my Afro and they wondered if I was there to meet a man and I sarcastically asked if they knew anyone but they didn’t like that. I digressed.
After what felt like at least an hour of interrogation I was asked to identify the person I was there to meet. According to them there was only two people in the country with the name I gave them so I again I sarcastically told them it was likely the person closest in age to me. They laughed and eventually handed me off to my friend. We giddily greeted each other, hugged for at least a minute and we caught up as I followed her home.
It was a great time (minus the subtle violation of my body) as I got to visit not only Switzerland on that trip but also Germany and Italy.
All of which places I hope to visit again.
In Quest of Her 