cartagena

the photos are a little old. bogota still, im having some problems with the camera, and also learning the art of self portraits. im just going to throw up hear the few pictures i have on my camera.

so i have to say, it is such an ackward feeling to be dropped off somewhere with no map, no address, and minimal spanish. but it is something im becoming somewhat familiar too, although it is still somewhat emotionally taxing. so i have made it to cartegena. but first i must say that the art museum i went to before i left bogota was amazing. it was a lot of art by a famous colombian painter, which you would probably recognize if you saw some of his work, fransais boteo, he paints sort of unproportionate fat people. anyhow, it also had his own personal collection of many other artists such as monet, renoir, dali, picasso, and chegall. i was in my glory. i couldnt believe i got to see the work of people that you've only read about in books.

so if i would have wrote this yesterday, i would've said that ive put myself in a seemingly hopeless situation. i have started two weeks of spanish school and a homestay. my classes are 3 hrs a day, solo spanish, the teacher barely knows english. tours of the city, cuidad, solo in espanol, homestay with a wonderfully crazy woman who only speaks spanish. it's probably better this way, but id have to say its definetly harder. i dont think that i realized before that a comitment to learning requires humility. its hard when i realize that most of what comes out of my mouth is giberish. i dont know if my spanish is improving or my sign language, i guess either could be considered a skill. but today was a better day. i dont know if i understood more, if i felt more understood, but somehow it wasnt as tiring. i have to admit there are times when i stop listening and just watch people talk. but i figure its alright.
so all in all, i am doing well. im planning on some beach time soon. here i am on the ocean, but its a port town, so its not the best for swimming, which is a bit of a teaser since i walk by everday on my way to and from esquela.
one thing that i have to say that i love about it out here, is that people actually kiss each other on the cheek and say chao.
austa luago.

Everything is Relative

its been 5 weeks with 2 a few shirts and pairs of pants and i havent yet been anywhere long enough to have laudry done. i've found that when i'm wearing my last semi-clean clothing, it'll get so dirty that it now becomes the dirty clothes, and the rest are now the clean clothes. at least this has been the cycle so far. perhaps i shouldn't be telling you all this.

and days, what are days? i have no concept of weeks, and sometimes during travel, i lose track of the days. it has become to me that a day is equivalent to time in between a good nights rest. and time is measured not by minuites or hours, but by events and happenings. and so it is because of things like this that i have come to realize, nothing out here is certain, but everything is relative.

and colombia bogata. it is so different from peru. this city is very beautiful, and much more developed compared to anything that i've seen in the last month or so. it has more of a european feel. i dont think these pictures are an acurate representation of the city, but i was taken by the grafity - or "street art," as my german friend calls it. it has been a great time to discover bogata. last night was a music festival, there were different outdoor stages set up around the city playing free shows. everything from typical colombian folk, salsa, rock, and other tropical styles. i loved it. after i had my first authentic salsa experience. and with my limited clothing i ended up in the club in my hiking shoes! hot - i know. but i met some wonderful colombians who showed us some great places to dance. and also i've meet some great company here at the hostal. tommorow i hope to visit the museo de modern arte before i head to the carribean coast of colombia. its about time for some sun, and spanish school. its strange to think that a 20 hr bus ride doesnt really phase me anymore. but we'll see if i still feel the same after the fact.
joel - thanks for the book eventhough i wont even have a chance to use it. denise - your sleeping bag kept me nice and warm in the andes. kelly - your sweater also helped in the andes and is one of my "last clean clothes" that is keeping me warm right now. tess- thanks for the notebook, i use it all the time. grandma and grandpa - the money belt has been great, although im really sick of wearing it.to everyone who told me to take the runners - they've been much appreciated. to those who helped stitch my clothes - their still holding out. to those who've commented - thanks its great, although my limited computer time doesnt permit me to reply (maybe i should try to make it a priority). to all who pray for me - thanks im still safe. to those who i'll come home to - it'll be a pleasure to see all your beautiful faces.
good night. buenos noches.

Columbia

so jordan and i have now parted ways. he will be going on to costa rica, and i have decided to stay in south america so i can see more of colombia and equador, and then i'll be returning from lima. this makes more sence timewise, and is more economical. people would refere to him as mi esposo. it was kinda nice being married;) and it did feel funny dividing up our mutual belongings. but now we are off on our seperate journeys. it is definetly different on my own, although, i could never truely be on my own.


and last time i was complaining about being seperated from everyone else, we'll this time i was with everyone and to tell you the truth, i felt a little uncomfortable at first, not to mention i was the only gringo on the boat. but after a while, i barely noticed my white skin, or the filth around me. the hammocks were packed in so tight that they were all touching. one lady beside me had her chicken in a bucket underneath her hammock, and another lady across from me had her monkey with her. i thought it was kinda cute until it pooed on her suitcase and she didnt clean it up. i kept on getting wafts of this aweful smell. i was a little aggitated until i realized that this was probably one of the few opportunities id have to complain about monkey poo.

did i mention that im in columbia now. its amazing how crossing a border changes things. the people are quite different, a little quieter than the peruvians, although it could just be this small town. i will find out soon enough. from letica i will go by air to bogota, and im looking at a language school in cartegena, so we will see.

i love you all. i'll keep you posted.

iquitos

so i am now in the largest jungle city with no road access. the only way to get out here is by boat or plane. its amazing to me that there would even be such a place so far away from all other civilization - and yet here we are with larger markets than i´ve seen in a while and tons of motor cars. our voyage abroad 'Tuky' was wonderful. by far more enjoyable than bus, or the back of a pick-up, but perhaps not the quickest, seeing it took us 4 dias. i loved sleeping in a hammock, and eating at a table with a bunch of other people. and we did have a monkey and a parrot for part of the journey. it was beautiful floating past the amazon jungle, and watching the river dolphinas.



jordan, however did not have such a good experience, seeing he was sick for most of it, and is still recovering. we dont know if it was food or what. whatever it is -its no good.

i feel like i have nothing much insightful or meaningful to say about this last week, perhaps because nothing straining happened. i guess i cant complain about that. it did feel funny because the ship had definite heirarchy within the pasangers. we were never given the option to pay less and sleep on the lower floor. instead we were on the second floor with other gringos and travelers, and im guessing the more well off locals. the lower level had more children and locals. i noticed that they never ate at the table with us, they just brought their meal to their hammocks. also the deckhands never ate with us and never came onto the second level. then there was the captain and his friends and others who paid more for cabins, they would eat with us, but were served better meals and given napkins and coffee afterwards. and maybe, if they liked you, they'd offer you some coffee also. its somewhat uncomfortable to be treated differently according to your money and social status, but sadly enough im getting used to it.

well. soon - possibly menyana, we will head off to laticia columbia, by boat once again. chao.

amazon basin

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its all so frustrating. i spent so long blogging, and then it didnt even save, i dont know why. but i should tell you that things are wonderful. there've been no nitches. unexpected things, of course, but nothing that has thrown us really off. our travels the other night were crazy - but we made it after cars being towed to gas stations, and pushing vehicles through the mud. nevertheless our hostel was the dingiest little hole ever. i cant even explain. it looked like a prison cell. but hey it was $1.50 a bed. so now we've slung our hammocks and are ready to take sail on a cargo ship along the amazon. i feel like a pirate, all i need is a pet monkey, and there are plenty around here.


its amazing to have something new to try everyday, i cant believe im so lucky. this is all i have left in me. thanks for all the comments, i feel more like writting when i know people read it.


ill try and give you more later

The Andes

i just returned from a four day trek through the andes. i dont even know where to begin it was just two days ago, but it already seems so far away. we were hiking through the andes on a trail built long ago by the incan people. along the way we saw ruins from their ancient cities and our final destination was machu picchu. it was so interesting to learn of a culture that was so mysterious and mystical. they had such mastery over the land, and yet were very consious of the environment. no one knows how they built these cities or why they were abandoned.



we definetly didnt know what we were signing up for when we payed the bill. i dont even know if im able to call it a trek, we were treated like kings. we had 16 porters for a group of 9. they ran ahead with our bag plus tents tables, chairs, food, tableclothes, and set everything up for us by the time we arrived at camp. they woke us up in the morning by serving us wake-up tea and bringing warm basins of water to wash our hands and face. i felt so spoiled, mind you, by the end i was pretty comfortable with it. now i have to make my own wake-up tea.

we actually did hike though. to a hight of 13,776 ft, and im not sure how far it was, but the altitude does weird things to you. it takes a lot of your energy and makes breathing a lot more work. also i found i had a hard time digesting food. to cope with this they gave us coca leaves which you can use in tea, or stick i your cheek and chew on. they are actually one of the ingredients of cocain, but this is still a natural form, so i guess its ok. thats what all the indeginous people take to help them with the altitude. actually everyone uses it.



right now im in lima, and waiting for a bus to get to la merced, which is in the amazon basin. the buses out here are crazy, something may look close on a map, but its actually 33 hrs by bus. we just spent 20 hr to get from cusco to lima, and then we'll take a 6 hr bus to get to la merced, and from there we´ll take a 4*4 into the jungle which could take between 5 - 8 hr depending on the roads. and once we´re there we'll be taking a 3 day trek through the jungle to the surrounding villages.

wow, there´s so much more i could say. we were staying in cusco with a family, margarita, and her son hoseas. they we're wonderful. i have to say that although im taken back by the aggressiveness of the city people and vendors, i have found that the local peruvian people are very sweet. many times when we're wandering in search of something they will stop to give directions and if we still dont get it they will sometimes leave where they are going to take us there. it makes me consious as to how at home i´ve often found myself much to busy to take care of others, especially strangers. i hope to learn from their generosity and care.



bethany has now left to discover bolivia and brazil. it has been great to have her company during our first few weeks and i know that she will have many stories to tell. http://andesandbeyond.blogspot.com/

i love you all. thanks for your prayers. i have been in many cities and areas where people have told me are very dangerous, but so far i have not had any problems. until next time.