Post-travel musings

So. It's been almost 3 years since I wrote a blog post. I have utterly failed in converting my thoughts into letters that sprawl across a relatively flat surface.

In a whimsical way, the last three years have been adventurous. The adventure, as exhilarating as it was, has paved the way to an all-encompassing, ever-expanding horizon.

Nothing seems out of reach when you are ascending the Andes Mountains on a horse, eyeing the condors flying above and talking to a native about the oasis below – all while slowly transcending into dusk.

Each diverse location greeted me with an effortless welcome. In Arequipa, two giant dormant volcanoes (El Misti and Chachani) juxtapose themselves with the empty backdrop that is the sky, just as you land in the airport rightly placed in the middle of nowhere. And the charming snow-covered tip of El Misti is sure to accentuate the already-hard-to-forget scenery.

I could go on. But that would take a few hundred pages and a couple of months are likely to disappear.

On the road - In Brasil.

Let’s get down to it then.

(Cynics beware)  

Is travel designed to be a fleeting break from the chaotic routine that we refer to in conversation as Life? Hardly. The path of travel seems to involuntarily open up a can of innate, yet new-found, perceptions. This contagious sentiment can easily alter a life’s course. Or better yet, it can shape it. It is oddly pleasing though – that a diversion from life’s monotony can get us back on track.  

Phone Pictures

December 15th

The food looked so much better in the pictures. I wish i ate the pictures instead.

The world was barely dimensional. I think it was 3 or 4. I´m not sure. But the colours were beautiful, especially during the sunset.

There was a guy sitting next to me, he was studying somewhere near Los Angeles, Marketing and something to do with Spanish. We talked quite a bit. We never asked each other our names. We were, as Chuck Palahniuk calls it in his book, "Single-Serving" friends.

To say the least, the flight was very long.

Backwards

This stuff has happened before.

For the first time, i celebrated a traditional Christmas. Thrice. haha. One small gift giving thing at the house i live in, this was 4 days after i came here. and then 2 days from then, a Turkey for dinner and a party.

Then, christmas at a house next to the beach. Colombians, Germans, French and 1 Indian. One of the Colombian girls said, "aaw only 1 indian", and i replied with, "i have a billion more back at home, i could call some" it felt good to be the minority.

the only thing missing from all this was snow and the big fat red man. i tried to be him by wearing a Santa hat, but my body gave me away.

Although my favourite part of Christmas is to put on the Christmas Songs CD i have that i used to listen to back at home. Its beautiful. And your smiling the whole time.

So, how was your Christmas?

Not the beginning

Hello you reader,

The people of Peru are quite easily likeable. I wish to pounce into the soul of the city i live in, if not the whole country. I don´t want to be an alien or a tourist. So if you continue reading this, you will get a view of the soul, are you a voyeur? take a peak why don´t you.

I have had some interesting conversations with people here. A peruvian man in a restaurant was speaking to me about Gandhi and the status of women in India. And he asked me about Gandhi´s son dying because of drinking too much.

And the general store guy in my building keeps calling me by different names, he´s quite an animated and cute man, he has a very genuine smile, like a Young boy after pulling a prank. He says to me, “aaahhh bommmbaiii bombaiii” or “induu indu”. He asked about why the women in India wear the bindhi on the forehead, i actually do know why, but i couldn´t even begin to explain it in spanish. I think i will find a website that explains it in spanish so i can tell him, or if you know how to explain it in spanish, then please tell me, i dont want to let the old man down.So the Peruvians know a fair bit about India, but the Indians barely know of the existance of Peru. I wonder how much the Chinese know about Peru, after all, there are more than 3 million Peruvian-Chinese here, not to mention the famous Chifa food.

I feel bad about not writing the names of these people, quite ashamed. I should know the names of the people who have been real and shared something human with me, so i will ask try to remember this and ask them the next time.

i am sleepy now. the way of saying this is in spanish is quite weird, Tengo sueño (ñ = nyuh). literally translated, it means, i have dreams.