Mischief and Delusion Afoot

The plan for my Sunday morning walk was to visit the gardens of the Palácio de Cristal, or Crystal Palace. The original crystal palace that was modeled after the Crystal Palace in London is long gone, but attractive gardens and views of the river remain.

Having studied the location on my maps and downloaded directions from Google, I set off into the early morning streets with the stride of a confident tourist. I knew the first fifteen minutes well enough to navigate on my own, and then I brought up the Google directions. I normally prefer the animated map over the voice directions, but this time the voice sounded so pleasantly authoritative, I chose to follow her commands. “Turn left. Now go straight then turn right.” With every turn I thought to myself, “That’s odd, I would have thought the Palace was in the opposite direction.”

Keeping the faith, I wound onto ever narrowing streets that descended steeply downward toward the river. Eventually, it became undeniably clear that I had traveled quite a distance in the opposite direction of the Palacio de Cristal and was well into the old quarters of the city. Google Voice Nav had duped me. I retraced my steps, now with a steep climb up to get back to the right path. This was not the first time Google Voice pulled this prank. I have concluded her name is Atë, the Greek goddess of mischief, blind folly, and delusion. She is no longer invited on any excursions.

It was worth the long walk. There are spectacular views, large open spaces, and small, intimate nooks. I wished my late Uncle George, a renowned landscape architect, was with me. After a couple of hours, I was ready to retreat in search of lunch. This will be a place I visit regularly. Sans Atë.