sociology experiment So interesting to be there during such a tough immigration debate. I am looking forward to our future family discussions of your studies- official and not-. I wonder what issues would ensue if BC was previously a US state or Washington was once Canadian... or the media didn't make us feel unhappy with ourselves or our possessions. PS climate is everything and most successful cities are on a river or ocean... I think
Hot Topic Hey Peanut,
Thanks for the Woody Guthrie quote in the title. I agree the Sonoran desert is a trifle warm this time of year. Maybe that is why the beer is cheap ? Anyway, so glad you are looking at your life and surroundings and trying to understand everything. Enjoy the opportunity, your new education challenges, and new friends. If you ride your bike tonight, wear white. Love your blogs. MP
Montreal, c'est magnifique I love that you get Quebec. We buy into the idea that travelling afar give us insight into different peoples and yet we have a huge alternative culture within our borders. Vive la difference! I always knew you'd love Montreal.
full immersion Congrats on both graduation and your new program. It is an enormous privilege to have this opportunity available. I can't imagine the US government sending students to live in Puerto Rico just so they could learn to speak Spanish, but how much richer would we be? I hope it is a fabulous time for you.
Salkantay with Liz's Tours Hey Mackenzie, I hope your travel planning is going well! I haven't been checking my blog lately as I'm not travelling but if you're still looking for advice I would highly recommend Liz's Tours for Salkantay. They gave me a good price and my guide (Juan Carlos) was excellent. I felt safe, was confident about the gear and had above-par food throughout the trip (even vegetarian for me without a fuss.) That having been said, most of the trips were similar. DON'T pay too much - you can always get a deal on the spot in Cusco and only need to book maybe two days in advance. Good luck on your trip!
Hi -
I'm going to be in Peru in May and want to do the Salkantay trail. Thanks for the great travel report. It sounds like you had a good experience and were with a good tour group. I'm wondering if you could tell me who you went with?? Thanks!
-Mackenzie
Absolutely, I'm coming down South this Christmas. I'm super excited to see family who I can't actually remember or maybe have never met (not you guys, of course!) The San Blas Islands made me tongue-tied too - they were just beautiful beyond words. Please do come to New Mexico! I'd so love to see you.
Thank you so much for all of your positive comments throughout this journey. The link for the Aquinian International section is http://www.theaquinian.net/category/international but unfortunately that only gets you to the article I wrote. My column doesn't seem to be up yet. I wasn't so pleased with the article when it went through the editing process (typos put in, rearranged to be just a bit off...) but I am very proud of the column so hopefully if you check back you can see that too! Sending lots of love Westward.
San Blas The islands sound out-of-this world. Glad to hear you are writing for the newspaper. Great experience and good for the ole' resume. Well done. I can't help thinking how much I sound like an old codger reading my own comments. Trying to think of something witty, but it isn't coming out. The islands really do sound phenomenal.
Will you be in San Miguel this Christmas? What about to NM for Aunt Pat and Uncle Kent's reunion? I'm planting small bugs in Lance's pillow to convince him while he is sleeping that it would be a good family trip this year. We'll see....
Thanks for taking us with you. Your travels have been a joy to read about. Your writing has painted great pictures in our minds. We are very impressed by your courage and sense of adventure. We think you are destined for great things.
Would you be willing to share the link to your school paper so we can read your travel column.
Lots of love,
Uncle John and Aunt Jean
how about those hats? I bet you're jealous that you did not don an authentic Panama Hat. Mine sits on my dresser to remind me of our trip and to start planning another anew.
Adios Chica and thanks for the blog!
Machu Picchu is one of those over-hyped sights that you expect to be a let-down because so many people tell you it is going to be amazing. Then, when you're there feeling the raw power of the place all of those thoughts disappear. It is amazing how striking this site remains. You will get there if you want to! You certainly don't have to be a whippersnapper like me to enjoy it! Besos y abrazos!
I'm home safely now, Auntie Josie! I need to update this blog and finish off my trip even though it's a bit artificial at this point. Uruguay was definitely one of my favourite places of this trip. Maybe my favourite place. People would ask me what the most amazing thing I had seen was and I would refer back to Cabo Polonio. If it had been spring instead of fall when I went I might never have left and just spent my whole four months there! Some other time. I hope all is well with you and yours! Lots of love.
A Wonder Dear Em, you've seen many things and I've sort of travelled with you but I must say that in spite of the 'few'discomforts you described, and the wonder of much we've seen,this is the place that I would so have loved to experience. I shivered a bit just reading what you descibed. 'This too is part of our wonderful world' I think it needs to be seen when your young enough to have the experience colour your life not to mention, have the energy to climb about(in spite of having taken the bus 'up') Co-incidentally, I just watched an hour of National Geographic's visit to Machu Pichu. Great descriptions and information. Just made me want to see it more. love you, Be well, Aj
memorable I feel as though I'm seing it all again, only with you. Uruguay was on of our favourite stops. maybe because it was most like home........Take care Em, we're all with you in one way or another. love and hugs, Aj
Cartagena heat One good thing about the oppresive heat of Columbia is that we are now acclimated to the searing heat the west coast is having now! However, the west coast is dry now and much more bearable.
Hey Carole Leah! The trek was definitely an amazing adventure - I put a few photos on Facebook if you got to see them there. At some point I will no doubt try to put them there too. My parents and I have been separating and then meeting up again following our own paths, which has been the best of both worlds. We weren't together on the trek but now we are again (I am so behind in this blog!) We're in Costa Rica on the Pacific Coast now in a little seaside surf town called Tamarindo. They begin their way home tomorrow, actually, but I will definitely tell them you are thinking of us all here together. I hope all is well with you and yours!
steps You describe the trek so well. It sounds like an amazing adventure. Are your parents there with you now? You didn't mention them in this post. Give them my best if they are with you.
Cheers,
Carole Leah
Huge tragedy of my trip - my zip away pants were left behind in Mendoza due to packing in the dark trying not to wake dorm mates and never retrieved due to bus delays that didn't give me a proper stop over there again. Very sad indeed but hopefully picked up and given a good home.
memories Your stargazing experience brought back some pleasurable 33 year old memories of a backpacking/mountaineering trip in the middle of the Olympics in Washington State. I was helping to lead a group of teenage boys and girls on a ten day cross country expedition. We spent one evening enthralled by the stories of the stars shared by a shy, geeky 14 year old boy who knew both the science and the mythology. It was fascinating. And it let us get to know this otherwise very quiet boy.
I am a Canadian student of Human Rights, Political Science, Spanish and a bit of Philosophy thrown in for good measure. I love to experience culture and find beauty in people and places on a backpacker's budget. I hold adventure over comfort but balance safety with adventure and usually head off on my own loving the independence of a nomadic lifestyle. This blog currently documents my four month trip to South and Central America in the summer of 2009 but will include future adventures as well. Although I am not currently travelling, I write a column on culture and travel in my university n... full info
Cassie
non-member comment
Your initial impressions parallel my assumptions of what Arizona is like, given that I've never been there. Looking forward to future reflections!