These musings are the memories I've created along my travels through the world. I caught the travel bug later in my life, after moving to Ecuador for a job opportunity. Since then, I've done travel through ten countries (from north to south: Canada, USA, Honduras, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Chile) with many more to come. Happy reading, and feel free to leave comments and questions on posts.
Máncora, Perú... 37 Meters Under the Sea
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Well, the same thing happened that did last year. I literally did not go anywhere outside of Quito between Guayaquil Day (Oct. 10) and Christmas Break. This year is definitely easier than last but I feel like I am working Harder. Better. Faster. Stronger. The maximum level of burn-outage has been reached... so this vacation was more than deserved. Seriously, there have only been five-and-a-half days off all year so far (four full-days and three half-days). Plus, now that I live in the best apartment ever, I never really see people anymore because I just crash each night and weekend. This break-- I earned this. When I returned to school, I did a mental inventory for my to-do list, and I could not even remember what I did in my classes for the three weeks leading up to break.
Whenever the topic of Christmas break came up, "people's" (students, colleagues, etc) initial reaction was to ask if I was heading back to Wisconsin. Since Thanksgiving, I have been feeling quite homesick. I miss the special moments with loved ones "back home" but nothing will make me want to return to piss-cold snow, ice, and clothes-damaging salt everywhere. Maybe at some point I will return for Christmas but I am not ready to deal with that kind of weather yet.
Porcupine Fish
Having said that, after moving to Ecuador, I made a promise to myself that I would do something special and different each Christmas and New Years. It all started when I went to Europe to travel with Michelle, continued last year on my first solo trip, and was going to continue yet again with another solo trip to Honduras. Originally, I had this highfalutin plan to go through Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador and Honduras over the short, ten-or-so day break eleven day break. I realized quickly that this would be undoable and reduced my plans to El Salvador and Honduras. And when I found out that I would need at least eight days for gaining my SCUBA certification up-to 30 meters (~100 feet), I reduced it to just Honduras. I was going to be on a beach, in the Caribbean swimming, and eating fresh sea food. Could it get better?
Trumpet Fish
Well, it definitely got worse for a while. In each of my travel experiences, something less-favorable has happened. Until I got to the airport, nothing like that happened. This left a sinking feeling in my stomach that the worst was yet to come. And it did. My flight was booked to leave Quito a few hours after our release from work. I pull up to the ticketing counter to check-in and the lady asks me for my documents, and I hand her my passport.
"Your certificate, sir?" "Um, you have my passport." "No, your certificate." "Excuse me?" "Yes, for yellow fever."
At this point, I literally face palm. The conversation continues, but I don't see any light in the situation, and she recommends me to go to a clinic in Tumbaco. However, I wouldn't make it back to the airport in time because the flight was loading in 45 minutes from that point. She tries "reassuring" me at this point for alternatives, but I know its all just her saving face. I will avoid flying that airline at any cost. Especially, since she wouldn't even let me board for Bogotá, a place in which I do not even need a yellow fever vaccination for. I'm still mad that this didn't pop-up as an alert while I bought the ticket. Not at a single point.
Moray Eel
I wasn't going to let this bring down my hope for a successful vacation. All that I needed to do was escape Ecuador for a beach, and get away from any reminder of work so I could recharge my batteries. I quickly gathered myself and figured out emergency plan B. I search in google "Peru scuba diving" and it immediately brought up Máncora, Perú. I started doing my research on flights, bus companies, hostels, dive schools, everything.
Sea Squirts
I ended up flying to Guayaquil to catch a bus through Cruz del Sur, which was driving directly to Máncora. Trust me, I did my research and this was not only reviewed as the safest but most comfortable international bus company to Perú. An 8-hour bus ride later, I arrived. A mototaxi, the only "normal" one that I would see the entire week, took me to my habitación at Casa Mancora. It was a nice little hostal-hotel just to the outside-western section of town. Best part is it was so close to the dive center, Spondylus Escuela de Buceo.
Sea Lion Swimming in the Distance
My basic day consisted of waking up around 6:20 A.M. to get packed and ready for diving. Around 7:10, I would make on my way to a five minute walk to the dive school. We'd leave and return to Máncora around 12:30 PM. I'd head to my hostal room, shower, and nap for a couple hours before finding food. By 9:00 PM, I would be asleep and dreaming of my dives. And they weren't just dreams.
This was the happiest I have ever been. Diving, being underwater, brought me new life and vigor. Although I didn't make it to Honduras, I managed to have the most wonderful time of my life.
Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. A.A. Milne Today is the day I am officially thirty years old. 30. When I originally signed my contract in Ecuador, I knew this major life event would occur. The combination of different factors-- aging, living abroad, traveling, among others-- started me reflecting on a lot in my life. "When I was younger," I dread the day I turned 30. It's old. It's an age more likely closer to death than it is to birth. Other people think it is old. You're tied down to a job and you don't have as much freedom to travel and enjoy life. Retirement is about twice the amount of time you've lived at that point. There was a point in time where I was positive I would spend my 30th birthday in bed all day, feeling sorry for myself. My god, I thought some radically incorrect things. Life is just starting. Age = Experience. Age = Self-E...
Machu Picchu... Tourist Trap Hell of my Life This was, by far, my least favorite part of my entire trip. Again, I felt obliged to do this since I was going to be in Perú and was passing it on the way to Copacabana, Bolivia. This was the single-most arduous day of my travels. After getting a few short hours of sleep, I woke and gathered my prepacked gear and waited for an eternity for my morning pickup. After calling my tour agent a couple of times, because his instructions stated I would be picked up at 2:30 A.M. whereas I was picked up after 3 A.M., I was relieved that I hadn't been scammed out of a couple hundred dollars for something of which I was less than enthused already. The van delivered us to the train station, which is the only form of transportation aside from walking to reach Aguas Calientes. And the only way to visit Machu Picchu is to end up in Aguas Calientes. For those of you planning this adventure, do your research ahead of time. It is possible to do a ful...
"I mean how do you know what you're going to do until you do it? The answer is, you don't." Holden Caulfield, "Catcher in the Rye" By the time I was done with my week in Paraguay, I left super early for Chile. Paraguay was nice and all but I was very much looking forward to the final leg of my trip. On the agenda was to visit Easter Island, go skiing in the Andes, visit Valparaiso, and make the most out of being in a major city. I accomplished one of those things. Mural honoring the history of the Mapuche, in a subway station Honestly , I am not even really excited about writing this post because I was in a dark place at this point in the trip. I spent too much time hopping from one place to the next, and not enough time staying in one place long enough to develop relationships with others. I was also incredibly over eating meals alone and being stared at by waiters, passerby-ers, and other patrons. I downloaded a couple of apps to my phone that w...
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