Day 26 (part 3): To sleep, perchance to dream
I've just floated back to the apartment after what must be the most incredible sensory experience of my life. Last night was the sleep concert. It began at midnight and continued through until 8:00 this morning. It was held in the main reception room of the Hotel Forum, an unused communist era hotel. We arrived in the dead of night with our sleeping bags, blankets, pillows and supplies. The room was softly lit. It was a large space and there would be 150 of us. We shuffled in and found our preferred spaces. I was there quite early so I found a great spot along one of the large windows. I could see the castle lit across the river. It would be a great scene to wake up to.
The music began on the stroke of midnight after a brief introduction and explanation by the artist, Robert Rich. I'm not sure to what extent he was playing or mixing but essentially he would be creating a unique performance for that night ... for 8 hours! I guess you'd call the music new agey. On its own you might even call it cheesy, at least to start with, but the sound system was great and there was depth to the music. It wasn't loud but it wasn't soft either. Through the night the music morphed and changed, melody turned to drone and back, subtle sounds came and went. Sometimes identifiable like dripping water or waves, sometimes indistinguishable.
I drifted in and out of light sleep. The sleeping bag was perfect and I was warm and so comfortable. We had been warned that we probably wouldn't fall into deep sleep. The music was too present and constant to allow for that. So we were kept in a half sleep state all night long.
At some point I put on my eye mask to help focus on the music. That was a great move because, to my surprise, when I removed it after what felt like a short doze the morning had arrived and I could just see the castle through the mist outside and heavy condensation on the windows. The last half an hour of the concert I lay awake. I may not have slept deeply but I felt more relaxed and refreshed than I can remember feeling in the morning for ages. I even felt a little joyously teary for a moment as I reflected on the amazing experience this room of strangers had shared.
As for dreaming, I can't say to what extent the experience affected my consciousness, but here's what I do remember:
I am a set of keys and I'm running away from my owner. At first it's more like a game of cat and mouse. I'm good at it. Every time he nearly catches me I dart away and escape. It starts getting more serious. He is chasing me more intently and I have to work harder to get away. And I do. I manage to escape and get far ahead of him.
I hide in some bushes and watch him. He's getting upset now, even distraught. He staggers into a nearby police station. I laugh to myself. "He's going to tell them that his keys have run away but keys can't run. They'll think he's been drinking and turn him away". But they don't turn him away. They listen intently and console him. They lead him inside and I think they believe him. I start to feel worried.
