Abduction Theme - Part 1
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The theme of abduction runs throughout the story of JUMP. Reflecting on why this theme is so central to the story, I thought back a couple of decades to a time when I visited the Forbidden City in Beijing, China.
In the 1990s, when I was working for an aerospace company, I travelled the world for business. I had been all over North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, but never had time to really explore and enjoy the places that I was visiting. One time, I had to leave my family during a Christmas holiday in Florida to travel to China to attend the opening of an aviation training facility in the heart of Beijing. I left North America on a Wednesday night and arrived back in Florida on Saturday. That trip took me around the world, from Miami to Atlanta, Zurich, Beijing, Japan and back to Miami; I barely knew what continent that I was flying over. After that trip, I vowed that whenever I travelled again, I would try to take the time to experience the places that I had the fortune to visit.
On my next trip to China, I went to Tiananmen Square, the Great Wall of China and the Forbidden City. I remember walking around Tiananmen Square in the early evening. It was very hot, well over 100 degrees and the thick humid air made it difficult to breathe. The square was lit up by orange sodium lights that created a misty scene due to the water vapor hanging in the air. As I looked around, I saw thousands of people sitting on blankets in groups of four or five; families, eating, drinking and taking in the evening. It was explained to me that these people lived in apartments in the area that did not have air conditioning and this was their way to stay cool. Imagine, trying to get cool in thick motionless air that you could cut with a knife.
The next day was another scorcher with the sun beating down on my head. I found myself in the middle of thousands of people, being funneled into a narrow passageway to gain admission to the Forbidden City, a “World Heritage Site” which I was told, I couldn’t miss. The air was barely breathable and at times, I debated running from the crowd. I persevered, paid my admission fee and rented a pair of headphones, which would narrate the story of The Forbidden City, in English, as I walked the tour.
The history, as told to me through the headphones, was that the Forbidden City was the location of the Chinese Imperial palace and was home to various Chinese emperors for hundreds of years. The architecture was breathtaking as was the scale of this place. There were hundreds of buildings...
...To be continued next week!
JUMP
The theme of abduction runs throughout the story of JUMP. Reflecting on why this theme is so central to the story, I thought back a couple of decades to a time when I visited the Forbidden City in Beijing, China.
In the 1990s, when I was working for an aerospace company, I travelled the world for business. I had been all over North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, but never had time to really explore and enjoy the places that I was visiting. One time, I had to leave my family during a Christmas holiday in Florida to travel to China to attend the opening of an aviation training facility in the heart of Beijing. I left North America on a Wednesday night and arrived back in Florida on Saturday. That trip took me around the world, from Miami to Atlanta, Zurich, Beijing, Japan and back to Miami; I barely knew what continent that I was flying over. After that trip, I vowed that whenever I travelled again, I would try to take the time to experience the places that I had the fortune to visit.
On my next trip to China, I went to Tiananmen Square, the Great Wall of China and the Forbidden City. I remember walking around Tiananmen Square in the early evening. It was very hot, well over 100 degrees and the thick humid air made it difficult to breathe. The square was lit up by orange sodium lights that created a misty scene due to the water vapor hanging in the air. As I looked around, I saw thousands of people sitting on blankets in groups of four or five; families, eating, drinking and taking in the evening. It was explained to me that these people lived in apartments in the area that did not have air conditioning and this was their way to stay cool. Imagine, trying to get cool in thick motionless air that you could cut with a knife.
The next day was another scorcher with the sun beating down on my head. I found myself in the middle of thousands of people, being funneled into a narrow passageway to gain admission to the Forbidden City, a “World Heritage Site” which I was told, I couldn’t miss. The air was barely breathable and at times, I debated running from the crowd. I persevered, paid my admission fee and rented a pair of headphones, which would narrate the story of The Forbidden City, in English, as I walked the tour.
The history, as told to me through the headphones, was that the Forbidden City was the location of the Chinese Imperial palace and was home to various Chinese emperors for hundreds of years. The architecture was breathtaking as was the scale of this place. There were hundreds of buildings...
...To be continued next week!
JUMP
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