ロンドンから中国、中国から福岡までの帰路にて

中国での思い出をお話ししましょう
Let me tell you about my memories in China.

ヨーロッパ旅行の経由地点として降り立った場所ではありますが、とても濃ゆい体験をしました
It was a stopover on my Europe trip, but I had a very intense experience there.

そのお話しをできればと思います
I would like to share that story with you.

ロンドン

ヨーロッパ旅行を終え、クタクタな体と冷めない興奮を一緒に引き摺りながらマンチェスターからロンドンへと向かいました
After finishing my Europe trip, with my exhausted body and the excitement still lingering, I headed from Manchester to London.

着いたロンドンの駅ではパレートがたまたま開催されていて、僕の旅行を祝福しているようでした
When I arrived at the station in London, a parade was unexpectedly taking place, as if celebrating my trip.

見れると思ってなかった
I didn't think I would get to see it.

ロンドンのビックベンとロンドンアイをチラッとみて駅に乗り込んでヒースロー空港へと向かうのでした
I briefly saw Big Ben and the London Eye, then boarded the train to Heathrow Airport.

ヒースローから上海行きの飛行機は何も問題なく進み、精神と時の部屋と言っても過言はないであろう何も景色が変わらない場所で10時間のフライトをするのでした
The flight from Heathrow to Shanghai went smoothly, and for about 10 hours, it felt like I was in the "Room of Spirit and Time"—a place where the scenery never changed.

人間慣れますね…
Humans get used to it, don't they...

そして無事に上海の上空まで
And finally, we safely reached the skies above Shanghai.

着陸するために高度を下げる機体
The plane lowered its altitude to land.

外の景色が地面に近づいてきたところで高度を上げる機体
Just as the scenery outside got closer to the ground, the plane started to climb again.

その時に台風が上海付近に近づいており、このままの着陸は危険と機長が判断したそうです
At that moment, a typhoon was approaching near Shanghai, and the captain decided that landing as planned was dangerous.

もう一度挑戦してみるらしいとのアナウンスが
There was an announcement that they would try landing again.

機内では緊張が走ります
Tension filled the cabin.

また高度を下げた時にかなりの揺れを感じました
When the altitude was lowered again, there was a lot of turbulence.

ですが無事に着陸
However, we landed safely.

機内では機長を称える拍手がなりだします
The passengers started clapping, applauding the captain.

その緊張から解き放たれた瞬間に気が抜けていたのかもしれません
In the moment of being released from that tension, perhaps I let my guard down.

あんなことになるなんて...
I never imagined it would turn out like that...

上海浦東空港

無事上海へと上陸して手続きを済ませた後、次の飛行機まで3時間もある状況でした
After landing safely in Shanghai and finishing the necessary procedures, I had three hours until my next flight.

皆さんご存知かと思いますが、上海ではスマホの中に詰まっている、普段使用している娯楽という娯楽が全て制限されています
As you may know, in Shanghai, all the entertainment stored in your phone, the things you usually enjoy, are all restricted.

また通信手段もほとんど制限されており、デジタルデトックス状態
Also, communication means are mostly restricted, putting me in a digital detox state.

ですがスマホ依存症としてはそんなことは織り込み済みなわけでアマプラにしっかりエヴァンゲリオンをダウンロードしてました
However, as a smartphone addict, I had already planned for this and had downloaded Evangelion on Amazon Prime Video.

エヴァンゲリオン鑑賞に夢中になっていたらあっという間に飛行機乗り込み20分前になってました
I got so absorbed in watching Evangelion that before I knew it, it was just 20 minutes before boarding.

まさか...

（これは帰りの時の写真）

夢中になりすぎて搭乗口に列になっているのに気づかなくて慌てて並びました
I was so focused that I didn't even notice the line at the gate, so I hurriedly got in line.

エヴァンゲリオンを見ながら並んでいると係の人にチケットを見せてと言われました
While I was standing in line watching Evangelion, a staff member asked me to show my ticket.

チケットを見せたところ
When I showed my ticket, the staff said,

「ここの搭乗口じゃない」
"This is not the right gate."

「？？？？」
"?????"

「ここ福岡行きだよね？」
"Isn't this the flight to Fukuoka?"

「そうだけど、搭乗口が違うよ」
"Yes, but the gate is different."

そんなことはない、いくらエヴァに夢中だったとしても搭乗口の番号は間違えてるわけない
That can't be right, even though I was absorbed in Evangelion, there's no way I could have made a mistake with the gate number.

僕の乗る機体の便名が確かに書いてあります
The flight number for the plane I was taking was definitely written there.

搭乗口の変更と書かれてありました
It said the gate had changed.

血の気が引きました
I went pale.

気づかないうちに搭乗口が変更になっていたのです
Without realizing it, the gate had been changed.

まあまあ落ち着くんだと
I told myself to calm down.

なんのために20分前から並んでると思ってるんだと
I thought, "This is exactly why I was in line 20 minutes early."

このときのためなんです
This is what I prepared for.

そして係の人に場所を聞いたら地下鉄に乗らないと行けないと言われました
When I asked the staff where the new gate was, they told me I had to take the subway.

んん？？地下鉄？？そんな遠いの？？
Huh?? The subway?? Is it really that far??

ここでちょっと立ちくらみ
I felt a little dizzy at this point.

とりあえず走ります
I decided to run.

とにかく人目も気にせず
I didn't care about being seen by others.

ターミナルの中で1番走ってました
I was running faster than anyone else in the terminal.

めちゃくちゃ見られるけどそんなの気にせず(日本よりかは見られないのが救い)
I was being stared at a lot, but I didn't care (at least it's better than in Japan where you'd be noticed even more).

なんとか地下鉄に到着
I finally arrived at the subway.

シンジ君

地下鉄では係のおばちゃんが1人ポツンと
There was one staff member, an older woman, all alone at the subway station.

「次はいつ来るの？」
"When's the next one coming?"

「すぐくるよ
"It'll be here soon."

そこで待っときな」
"Just wait here."

その言葉で安心
Her words reassured me.

確かにすぐ来て出発しました
It did indeed come soon and we departed.

着いてからも走りました
Even after I arrived, I kept running.

もうどんだけ広いのこの空港
How big is this airport?

全然目的の番号まで辿りつかない
I couldn't reach my destination gate number at all.

搭乗口は33番なのにこんだけ走ってまだ10番台？？
My gate was 33, but after running this much, I was still in the 10s??

体はとっくに悲鳴をあげてました
My body was already screaming in pain.

毎日10km以上は歩いたヨーロッパ旅行
I had been walking more than 10 kilometers a day during my Europe trip.

クタクタになっても歩くのが楽しくて楽しくて仕方がなかった
Even though I was exhausted, walking was so enjoyable that I couldn't stop.

その最後に待ち受ける走り込み
But then came the final sprint.

余りのキツさで全てを投げ出したい気持ちでいっぱいになりました
It was so tough that I felt like giving up on everything.

ですがさっきまで見ていたシンジ君が「逃げちゃだめだ逃げちゃだめだ」と語り掛けてきたのでなんとか耐えれました
But the Shinji I was just watching kept telling me, "I mustn’t run away, I mustn’t run away," so I somehow managed to endure it.

やっと見えた33番！！
I finally saw gate 33!!

そして係の人にぜえぜえ言いながらチケットを見せました
Breathless, I showed my ticket to the staff.

帰っきた返事はNO
The reply I got was "No."

「さっきこの受付は終わった」
"The check-in for this gate had already closed."

時計を見たら1分過ぎてました
I looked at my watch—it was one minute past the cutoff.

「どうにかならないの？」
"Can't you do something about it?"

「ダメ」
"No."

絶望

その場に立ち尽くしました
I stood there, frozen.

色々なことが頭によぎりました
Various thoughts raced through my mind.

飛行機代はどうなるんだ...
What happens to the flight ticket...

代わりの飛行機をネットがなくてどうやって予約するんだ...
How can I book another flight without the internet...

僕の荷物だけ先に帰ってしまったのだろうか...
Did my luggage go ahead without me...

空港の広さとエヴァの面白さと自分の足の遅さを恨みました
I cursed the vastness of the airport, the allure of Evangelion, and my slow pace.

次回、無事に帰国できるのか
Will I be able to return home safely next time?

乞うご期待
Stay tuned!

Powered by Synscribe