Chapter 3 III

The meeting point, according to the information, would be a cafe shop in Brussels, Belgium. Arrival through Brussels airport and first meeting point would be a small park close to the central station.

 T4, Madrid

While waiting at the T4 in Madrid's airport, I realized that my train of thoughts had changed a little, from what is all this about to how do we do this. Therefore, it seemed that my decision was made, apparently without big philosophical questions. In a way it was pretty simple. Future was going to be a pretty fucked up place to live, and here you have a way out or, more precisely, a way where you can do something about it. On the other hand, sure it would mean a radical change in life... or at least it was supposed to mean a new life, for what I understood from all those notes I took.

Boone had warned me from taking any notes with me and I just had my small computer. I had to turn it on the day before leaving... My password was still valid, but now the only information to be found was a bunch of articles regarding aluminum alloys and some tensile strength tests. I had to, therefore, trust my memory. And this is why I was going through all the important points. 

As the flight was not too long, I was still able to walk normally when we deplaned. It was already night and colder than in Madrid. The best was that my hotel was supposed to be right opposite to the terminal building, just across the street.

Belgium always seems to me a little odd. On its communication infrastructures, like stations and airports, you could film a terror movie, without needing to hire any extras. The uneasy feeling was there, yet everything was working fine and everything was modern. Nothing was specifically designed to scare you, but the whole thing did not work somehow. I took a tunnel-shaped hall throw some rolling corridors. While whizzing away I tried to look around me and keep situational awareness. The ceiling was high, but tunnel shaped. The only available light was from some tubes almost at ground level, on both sides of the rolling corridor. These lights, some blueish colored and other blinking, threw strange and impossible shadows around, on the curved ceiling, making it look like the terminal was full of giant insects. Due to the strong contrast it was impossible to make out any faces. Every person was just a blur of suitcases, coats and bodies. So much that I was about to kick a small girl that suddenly appeared next to me, holding her hand her mother. The thick winter clothing and odd gaze on the moving platform with the light conditions made them an appearance of the worst of your nightmares, like a zombie recce team. There where the rolling platforms ended, until the next one, there was no light, so the transition was complicated, more so when you got the blueish light on your face. On the longer view, the light tubes confabulated to show an escape point and there blind you.

The rolling platform ended very close to the outside door, so we where almost thrown at it... which was closed and heavy. The mother had only time to charge against it holding her other hand out, avoiding that the kid smashed her face against the glass door. I was not sure they were not going to bite me or go after my brain, but  I had better leverage and opened the door for them. The mother smiled and said something, probably in French, herself not very sure what was I. I could see her pupils very contracted... she had been focused on the kid, and those bloody light tubes had done nothing good for her night vision.

The space between the airport and the hotel was the usual taxi bay. The hole  width, perhaps 100 m, was painted as a gigantic pedestrian cross, which usually everybody ignores. This time it was empty though, empty from passenger vehicles or taxis that is. There was two vehicles though. A firefighting truck, which added to the street lamps yellow light with the stroboscopic blues. One of the crew, in full suit, was shouting at the driver of the second vehicle a small city car driven by a small woman and with three small terrorized blond kids in the back. Another of the crew was trying to chat a blonde female passenger up , on the other side of the truck. The woman driving the small car was making gestures pointing frontwards, which was blocked by the truck and shouting back at the fireman without letting the steering wheel go.

I just carefully boxed whatever was going up there and pushed the button for a promising looking lift. When it arrived, four firemen came out in full kit and totally relaxed, ignoring me, the shouting car and the blonde and climbed into the truck. Once in the lift cabin I checked which floor was the Sheraton supposed to be. In the meantime the doors closed and up we went. I found out that the Sheraton was in none of them. Good. wrong lift. When the doors opened another fireman climbed on board. Also full kit. I pressed for the ground floor, and he followed suit and pressed again. I went back to square one and he beelined for the truck and I then saw the conveniently hidden sign for the hotel. You could only see it if you came out of the lift. Very good.


 
So, the Sheraton is next to a multistory parking, which has impressive looking lifts. Still it is the Sheraton so it looked a it impressive and the wrong mix between decadent luxury and cheap franchise. It had a small yard above the ground floor, with a glass ceiling/floor so you could see into the shaft from below into the dark snow (at least I hoped it was snow).
The counter was minuscule compared to the rest of the furniture and the attendant was new. She looked uncomfortable in a suit that was clearly too small for her. it made obvious that she had a great figure to go with a nice face framed by thin light read hair.

She had obviously a speech prepared and a check list to follow. After a few sentences she would stop and her eyes get lost in the void, as if replaying everything. Since I had done the same in the airplane a few minutes ago, I could understand it. I tried to be kind and nice, not only because she was good looking but because of her being uncomfortable and not very confident with her English. It seemed to work a little, but once she went back to the screen it was gone and she went back to robotic mode. It did not last long though. The computer seemed to fail or crash so she was left without guidelines. She apologized for me having to wait, at what I said that I had nothing better to do and all was good. This did not help with her confusion. She clearly did not want to go anywhere, either liked being with be or had been told not to leave clients alone. However she needed help and was trying to call the attention of her colleagues milling around in the lobby/cafeteria. I tried a bit of chatting, but I guess it was not the best moment and finally she got the attention of somebody on my back and told her, in french, to bring up the cavalry. Her English had a strong accent, french and American somehow and my reassurance that I was not in a hurry seemed to make her just more nervous.

20 min afterwards I was crossing the entrance to my room, trying to remember the name on the tag of my new friend at the reception desk. Maybe next time. I inserted the card in the slot and.. BANG. Warm light was everywhere, framed in dark wood and nuclear white wallpaper. I closed the door with my foot, locked the door and turned around to see where the fire escape would be. Apparently it would take you through reception, but I had no emergency so I had no probable cause to pay a visit to reception again. Therefore I went on to check the bathroom, check, room check. I turned the TV to have some company and looked through the window, down to that odd glass bottom. Crisscrossed by pipes and that black snow. Now in stark contrast due to the light coming from below. Still I could make out chairs and tables. I let the curtains go back to cover the window and I went to take a shower

The following morning, my favorite attendant was not there, which was hardly a surprise. Breakfast was served in that room I had seen from above. I kept my eyes leveled. I did not want to see the shadows closer and find out what that really was.



I often get confused at the continental breakfast. For one I am not a morning person and for another, the distribution and offer is always new. People is skirting other people while keeping pointed on what ther are looking for. In some cases there is also quite an offer, and you have to decide what to eat. You also have to do contact with the waiter in order to get the much needed coffee.

Finally  I fond myself seated with a mixed plate, some muesli and a glass of juice, trying to get the attention of the waiter. He was efficient and fast, not very talkative, which  was fine with me. I just took a look at my loot, trying to figure out was was missing, because you always leave something out, a spoon a napkin... I did not feel like stepping into the bated zone again, but I was high on bread and low on toppings so I sneaked out to bring some marmalade. It was 0700 and I had time. Meeting time was 0900 so I could eat calmly and went up to pack and get ready. I would not be coming back to the hotel but flying back to Madrid, so I would take everything with me. Everything was a Patagonia messenger bag which you could turn into a backpack and its contents where just the clothes for the weekend.  The room was paid and nobody seemed to have any problems with that, on who paid or why, which is normal, but I was... a little sensitive.

I took the bus 12 headed to the center of tow. It was silver and plastic orange, with the heating at 11 and a mixed bag of commuters. Airport workers, some early travelers with their coffee to go and others, a mix that was diluted stop by stop on our crawl to the city center. I stepped out before the headquarters of Sony Entertainment Belgium, at least according to my map. Nobody seemed to have thought a good idea to write it somewhere visible... shame?

Bruselas central

I went back along the bus route and crossed over the train tracks. The modern office area dissapeared to leave room for what I assumed was the typical Brussels. After a couple of turns I arrived at the park and checked my watch. 08:45. Instructions where that the meeting would be between 0900 and 0915 in the park, else in a souvenir shop in the station at 1000 -1015.

Albert park was rather small, because most of the area was taken by an athletics track, so I got myself in motion. I planned 15 minutes to go around the block, but because of the temperature I found I had done my first round in 10 min sharp.