After our special stay with the Children of Camarones we regained our emotional balance and as a group of five continued the journey into the desert. We left the sea side town Manaure to head up coast to Cabo de la Vela along sandy hard to follow dirt roads without signs of any kind; it made for continuous confusion and doubt in the truck. I was reduced to following roads that felt right. The Sage's tales of difficult navigation in the region were coming true on the first day.
Like a game show, I ask at every intersection left or right? We fumble most the afternoon this way through desert scrub brush and plant less hard pan; the hard pan is like the sea, flat and never changing. The drive is further spiced up with intermittent sandstorms that reduce visibility to almost nothing. The girls were sitting on the doors hanging out of the truck as wave after wave of sand filled the sky.
It was in one of these sandstorms when I could barely follow the tire tracks that Kathrine asked, Can I get on the roof?
Yes, I replied and slowed the truck.The question was music to my ears, she was an adventurer, not someone being overly careful. It was certainly one of the reasons why I liked her company so much.
Windows down. Sand swirled everywhere and thick dust covered everything inside the truck. I discovered owning an old truck is complete freedom; windows down in sand storms, rainstorms, nasty mud roads and river crossings where water comes in the doors. Or in this case, people on the roof. Three of them were on top riding the sandstorm; Juan-Pablo and I smiled inside as I drove in lazy circles trying to throw them off. They all screamed and my smile widened.
I didn't stop until I heard Kathrine tell the others, I almost fell off!
Both attractive women, Katherine and Sandra looked sexy and free in the bright sun and blowing sand wearing big black Jackie-O sunglasses, fucking sexy. They looked liberated and free covered in desert dust. I was not traveling with the dry sock crowd. These were the kind of fantasies I had when I dreamed about this driving journey into The Americas.
On this coastal dirt track where land met sea we saw a family of goats among tall cactus. We ran into the desert like lost neo-hippies chasing them to get pictures. Everyone had a digital camera and they put everything they saw into frame.
David
Cartagena, Colombia
6 comments:
so you are driving the whole group? You have a guide right or did you just organize this? I got lost.
I hope you hooked up with Katharine I was going to mention that in your last story.
Yeah, I invite and form travel groups with people I would like to travel with as well as creting group chemistry. No guide, although most people who make the effort to go out to Guijira do hire a guide. Manufactured drama; without the guide you are forced to rely on the people and land more than if someone tells the ways and names the place you will sleep before you arrive. I prefer to make my own way.
Kathrine...I did my best, meaning I was myself and told her beautiful things...in the end she was not in to me and she exlained her heart was with another man. I made it clear how I felt and that is all I can do -be honest.
David
at least you tried, and maybe have a cool friend. You never know who you might meet up with again in the future. You would probably do well with a free spirited gal, who knows how to put you in your place. Which I recall you need from time to time :).
Traveling in the open road is cool, trip sounds great. Keep the stories coming...
how about posting some photos of these places and the people?
Good idea Dana, comon Dave post some photos, your writing is good but a photo tells a 1,000 word someone once told me
Dana and Matthew,
I will work on the photos, it has been a while since I sat down to sort and edit them.
d.
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