Sunday, February 18, 2007

Episode 414

(Continued from Episode 413)

Dawn breaks in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.

One week before I left Toronto, I had the idea of renting a car and driving to some place I've never been to. It is going to be my last road trip before I leave Canada for good. But no Montreal --- too cold. No Quebec City, je ne parle pas francais. So I've recruited two of my friends and we decided to drive out of town on a Friday morning. We had no idea where we were heading. We were just driving.

A little background about my two friends. Her name is Khulan, and she's from Mongolia who stayed in Canada for more than five years. She takes up a few part-time jobs on campus and works an average of 60 hours per week --- something that puts many of us to shame. Nevertheless, she is an incredibly smart girl who manages to score As in most of her subjects, despite her long hours at work at Campus Cove, the gaming centre.

The second was Don. He was the kind of guy you wanted to beat up. That's because he could skip classes throughout the semester, mug just two days before the exam and still score a distinction. He had a very good memory and probably had an IQ of 160. I have no idea why the hell he chose our university. But you couldn't bear to beat him up because he was one of the nicest people I've ever met. And besides, he's bigger sized.

Khulan and Don didn't know each other but they became fast friends during this road trip. I heaved a huge sigh of relief, because I was initially skeptical about going on a trip with two persons who hardly knew each other.

So we, or rather I, just drove. North. There were hardly any other cars as it was 1:15 in the morning on a weeknight. My speedometer was slightly above 130, but I guess even the cops were to tired to be out tonight. We initally wanted to drive to Timmins, a place where Khulan used to live, but it was a good six hours and close to 700km away. So we chose a random place and decided on Sudbury, which was four hours away. The trip didn't seem long because we were talking, playing games and listening to music during the drive. Khulan popped one of her CDs containing really old songs into the player, and very soon we were belting out Kylie and Jason Donavon's "Especially For You" in our loudest voice. Even the ultimate cheesy songs could bring back the warmest memories many moons back in the 1980s.

Sudbury was dead by the time we arrived at 5:30 in the morning. We were extremely tired by then and needed a good place to get some sleep. The surprise came when we discovered that some schools were in town for a summer hockey tournament, and most hotels were fully-booked. Oh God, don't make me drive back to Toronto now. I promise you I will fall asleep while at the wheel and somehow, the perfect ditch will be dugged next to the highway, and it will be ready for three bodies.

I shuddered when Don beckoned me. "Okay, the folks at this hotel gave us some other places we could try." I wanted to tell him about the ditch but I kept quiet.

We were navigating our directions around town, and suddenly, this hotel came into sight. "Turn in here!" Khulan said. I stopped in front of the lobby. Oh God, let this be the place. I need a good shower and sleep.

Khulan and I went in while Don waited by the car. The moment we walked in, the receptionist gave us an extremely weird look. Her eyes widened and she put her hand across her mouth.

And then she screamed. Khulan screamed too. I thought of the ditch.

"Oh my God. Khulan!" yelled the receptionist as she ran from the counter. Khulan was in a frenzy. The two met and hugged each other tightly, and tears rolled down their cheeks. They were smiling from ear to ear. I gave the rest of the surprised guests a "don't-ask-me" look.

"Dana!" yelled Khulan. "Oh my God, it's you!! Has it been 3 years?!"

Mystery solved --- Dana and Khulan were close friends during college in Timmins and they have lost contact after Khulan moved to Toronto. Dana and her family moved to Sudbury subsequently. Then I realized something --- if we have missed the turn, these two friends might have missed each other completely. Not to mention if we have decided to go to another town instead. Coincidence, fate or cliche? I can't tell. Something told me that we were right in taking this trip.

The road trip turned out to be perfect after all. Dana became our tour guide and showed us the places in Sudbury we never thought we'd visit. We visited the lake, went go-carting, drove to the mountain top and awed at the skies blooming with stars. I looked at the skies and thought about leaving Canada. Then I told everyone, "Maybe we should do something like this again." So we fixed a date --- with neither of us knowing whether this will take place again. September 24, 2009 will be the day.

I left Canada on September 30, 2004 on a chilly morning. Summer was ending, and so was my journey in Canada. YJ, the first friend I had in Canada, picked me up and we made our way to Pearson International Airport. Suddenly everything came to a standstill in my life. I pondered about the people who were in and out of my life, and the promise to meet up Khulan, Don and Dana again.

One year went by and it has been a long time since I've talked to them. I called Don for a good chat the other day and was saddened to know that the person who once detested all smokers was doing drugs. It's just occasional, so it's ok, was all he said. I wanted to give him a good smack on his head but realized that my hand couldn't stretch that far.