WORLD EXPLORER TRAVEL LOG
ALL TEXT AND IMAGES ARE COPYRIGHTED 2008 |
| THE
FORBIDDEN ACT
In the Forbidden City Location: The Palace Museum. Forbidden City. Beijing, ChinaThe alarm went off at 4:15 am August 26, 2002 to begin our much anticipated Taste of Asia tour. A taxi picked us up at 6:45 am for the short ride to the Kapalua/West Maui commuter airport to catch the 8:00am flight to Honolulu. Northwest Airlines Flight # 9 from Honolulu to Narita, Japan departed at 11:30 am. We arrived seven hours 15 minutes, two movies, two meals and a day later (remember international date line). Five more hours passed at Norita airport until we departed on Northwest flight #11 to Shanghai. Another two and a half hours and a meal later we finally arrived in Shanghai. Once going through Chinese immigration and customs we met our escort for the hour drive to The Crowne Plaza Hotel, finally getting to bed at 10:30 pm after traveling 24 hours. First thing the next morning, August 29th , we met the other eight people on our tour and off we went for our initial day of sight seeing. First stop, the Bund. The day was packed with activity till late that night. We left Shanghai the very next morning. Boarded a boat to Suzhou and continued touring there till dusk. Spent the night there then bussed back to Shanghai the next day to catch a plane to Beijing. Looking out our Palace Hotel window at 5:00am Aug. 31st, Beijing was shrouded in a dense haze. After a nice American style breakfast at the hotel we met our guide and the rest of our group in the lobby at 9:00am for our day of touring. First stop, Tiananmen Square, the Square of Heavenly Peace. We were dropped off at the farthest end of this, the worlds largest square, so we could enjoy a leisurely walk to the Forbidden City. As we strolled we first passed the Chairman Mao Mausoleum. In the background, through the densely foggy air we heard an eerie broadcast being made from the many load speakers positioned high atop tall poles throughout the square. We couldn’t understand what was being said but since non of the other thousands of people around us reacted we just enjoyed the haunting audio experience. Next came the Monument to the Heroes of the Revolution. We finally approached the end of the square, near the Forbidden City Peoples Republic of China National Flag stand. Here we lingered for a while trying to absorb everything we were feeling, seeing, hearing and smelling. We watched the Tiananmen Square Guards march back and forth near the flag pole. Kites flew overhead , disappearing from sight into the thick brown haze. You could see the Gate of Heavenly Peace, with it’s immense picture of Chairman Mao Tse Tung overhead, in the distance. At this point let me digress. We last visited this area in 2000. As we approached the Gate of Heavenly Peace, as we were now, our guide recommended we make a comfort stop just outside the Forbidden City knowing it was quite a distance before the next rest rooms. What made this memorable was the music playing over the restrooms loud speakers, Michael Jackson’s “Beat It“. Back to 2002...We continued on, passing under Mao Tse Tung’s picture and through the first massive gate, slowly shuffling along the lengthy dark corridor within the thick protective wall sharing the experience with hundreds of other Chinese visitors anxious to get inside. We were entering a world that began in 1406 during the Ming dynasty. The largest and most complete ancient imperial palace in the world. Home to 24 emperors. There are more than 800 buildings, 9000 rooms on 250 acres‘. As we emerged from the tunnel the cobblestones were damp from a rain shower that mystically happened just as we passed through the tunnel adding additional humidity to the warm day. We do our best to follow our group leader carrying his green flag hoisted high above his head. It wasn’t easy within the hectic crowds all trying to make their way across this first large courtyard following their group leader all carrying flags. Nearing the next immense gate we spotted a small souvenir store. Maureen suggested getting a bottle of drinking water since it‘s been a hot morning and we have a lot more to go. I myself was leery of taking a drink knowing that sometimes if I eat or drink anything under these circumstances it could trigger dire reactions. But drink I did. It was only a moment later that I felt a frightening rumble from within. I tried calming myself but I quickly became acutely aware of my isolated location. Adding up all the travel, odd hours and unfamiliar food I’d been experiencing and it quickly became apparent that what I feared was becoming reality. I knew I had to take immediate action!Maureen already knew the situation just by looking at me. She handed over a small packet of tissue and wished me luck as I took off into the unknown. I had no idea where or how far I would go or how I would find her again. I just had to go. Every step I took the pain increased. I was doubling over in pain and near panic. I new I would never make a WC so I desperately scanned the huge area for a place I may run to. There was nothing to hide behind, not a tree, a trash can, a wall, nothing but open space, cobblestones and the distant confining wall. Walking as fast as I could, bent over in the Japanese bow position, I realized only distance was going to separate myself and what I was about to do from the others.
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Racing across hundreds of yards I reached the furthest point I could, the wall. In panic stricken pain I tore off my shorts and briefs, not easy over my Teva sandals, tossing them out of harms way. Blinded by pain and embarrassment I leaned against the cool stone wall, crouched the best I could just as all hell brake loose. Sweating like a pig the painful cramping and physical terror began subsiding. I was able to look around hoping no one was watching and found myself clear for a few more moments. Time to regroup. Taking the few precious pieces of tissue from the travel size packet of tissue, I cleaned myself as best I could. I then reached for my discarded clothing as I accidentally did what I knew I couldn’t do, step, in it. Too late. Can’t undo that. I had to be careful now, first came the tighty whities. Slipping them over the soiled Tevas wasn’t easy but I did it cleanly. As the cotton reached its intended place I realized I hadn’t been able to clean myself completely. The feeling of the clean white cotton contacting the moist brown matter was too much! Next, the shorts. As I was doing this I could see people coming ever closer now, close enough to see what I was doing yet appeared not to be looking, yet. This time I didn’t quite get the shorts past my Tevas, transferring some of the processed Chinese food from my sandals to my light tan shorts. Fully clothed I slowly began walking away from my spot of shame fully aware that I stunk to high heaven, forgive the pun, and you could see brown moist parts on my shorts. Silently crying I set out to rejoin my wife and group. As I walked I began noticing other piles of tissue, diapers and human waste scattered openly around the grounds. It made me feel a little better knowing a lot of other people had similar challenges. Saturated with sweat and smelling like a soiled baby, I saw my wife in the distance. As I approached she could see the state I was in and did her best to console me and deal with it. I felt I had to stay as far away as I could from everyone as not to let them see or catch a whiff of what happened. It took another half hour before reaching a bathroom during which time I began to calm down and dry out. The plaque on the outside of the WC proudly proclaimed it a 4 star-rated toilet, issued by the Beijing Tourism Administration. That being of little comfort I went in and was pleasantly surprised to find a rather modern bathroom. Entering into one of the stalls of course I was greeted by a common Chinese hole in the ground toilet. It was a modern porcelain style yet it was still, in the ground. I undressed and cleaned as thoroughly as I could. The underwear was too far gone so I tossed them in a trash can, put back on my shorts and off I went. The remaining time spent in the gardens just outside the Forbidden City gave me additional time to psychologically recover, dry and let the smell dissipate before climbing back on the bus. As we boarded to leave I isolated myself from everyone else as best I could. No one seemed to notice and no one ever said a word. It took me years to tell anyone of this. I’ve now only told my brother and his wife who found it very funny but certainly sympathized and could relate. Now you know. Due to this event I still have great psychological and physical trouble when put in similar situations which I do a lot because we love to travel. One thing I wish is that all the places I visit would provide adequate relief stations. I know mother nature provides cover and believe me, I taken advantage of her generosity but I think it’s something we all have in common yet most of the world pretends we don’t need this.
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OUR SADDEST TRAVEL EVER! Here are three links to sights that contain information on two of the most important men in our life.
The text below is an excerpt from a letter I wrote to United Airlines concerning our SADDEST TRAVEL EVER! ".....I, Patrick L. Roherty and my wife, Maureen O. Fiedler, who reside in Kaanapali, Maui, Hawaii received a phone call at approximately 9:15 pm February 22, 2008 from my sister in Janesville, Wisconsin, informing us that my Father, Charles B. Roherty, of Janesville, had just passed away shortly after midnight (Wisconsin time), February 23. After a fitful night of sleep we arose and began preparing for our trip back to Wisconsin for the funeral.We departed Maui February 24, 2008 at 11:20 pm on United flight 1054. After a stop over in Denver we arrived in Chicago, (ORD) February 25 at 1:51 pm. We then boarded a bus at 4:00pm and rode two more hours north via I90 to my home town, site of my Fathers funeral, Janesville, Wisconsin arriving at 6:00 pm. After visiting with my grieving family we went to bed at approximately 11:00pm. Shortly after falling asleep we were awaken by a knock at our door. It was my grimed faced Mother holding a phone saying Maureen had a phone call. Within seconds we learned Maureen’s Father, Fred S. Fiedler of Glendale California had just died, February 25! After another fitful night of sleep, on the day my Fathers funeral was to begin, I had the task of rearranging our departure day and flights to make it to my father-in-laws funeral in the Las Angeles area beginning within days......" |
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