How a quiet morning in South Dakota brought back a memory from Europe
Travel has a funny way of folding time.
You can be standing in one place… in one moment… and suddenly a memory from decades ago walks right up beside you.
That happened to me one morning in Deadwood, South Dakota.
A Quiet Morning in Deadwood
I was out early with my camera, wandering the streets of Deadwood before the town had fully woken up.
The streets were mostly empty. The cool morning air hung between the historic buildings, and the only real activity was the sound of street cleaners working their way down the road. Water sprayed across the sidewalks. Brooms moved across the pavement. The hum of machines echoed softly through town.
It was quiet… peaceful… and strangely familiar.
And for some reason, standing there in the early morning light, my mind drifted thousands of miles away.
To Paris.
A Backpacker’s Morning in Paris
Many years ago, when I was in my early twenties, I spent some time traveling through Europe.
Like most young travelers, I was staying in youth hostels. Cheap beds, shared rooms, interesting people, and just enough comfort to get a little sleep before the next day’s adventure.
One morning in Paris, I woke up early before the rest of the hostel had even stirred. Outside my window I could hear the city beginning its day.
Street cleaners were washing the sidewalks. Water ran down the gutters. Somewhere nearby there was the smell of fresh bread drifting out of a bakery.
That smell alone was enough to convince me that breakfast should happen somewhere outside.
So I stepped into the cool morning air and wandered the streets until I found a small café. I ordered a cup of coffee and a piece of bread and sat there for nearly an hour, doing absolutely nothing except watching the city wake up.
Delivery trucks rolled past. Bakery doors opened. People began their daily routines.
It was such a simple moment… but it stuck with me.
Deadwood and the Power of Small Moments
Standing there in Deadwood all these years later, hearing those same morning sounds of water and street cleaners, that memory from Paris came rushing back. Two completely different places.
Different continents.
Different stages of life.
Different versions of me.
But the same quiet rhythm of a town waking up.
Travel is often about the big things… the famous landmarks, the scenic drives, the historic locations. But sometimes the moments that stay with you the longest are the small ones.
A quiet street.
A cup of coffee.
A cool morning.
And the feeling that you are witnessing a place before the rest of the world shows up.
Will I Remember This One?
It made me wonder something as I stood there with my camera.
Twenty years from now… when I’m eighty years old… will I remember this morning in Deadwood the same way I remember that morning in Paris? I honestly don’t know.
But moments like that are part of the reason I travel… and part of the reason I carry a camera along the way. Just in case.
Watch the Episode
This story comes from Episode 34 of my 50 at 60 journey, where I explore the historic town of Deadwood, South Dakota.
In this episode I wander through town with my camera, capture some of the early morning atmosphere, and reflect on how travel memories from different times in life can unexpectedly connect with each other.
It is a quiet moment in the middle of a much bigger journey… and sometimes those are the best ones.
You can watch the full episode below.
