On the Value of Men
The men keep the machines running -it is a brotherhood. In some ways the male half of the species may seem lazy and unsupporting in Latin America when compared with the female half, but the men keep the machines running.
In Quest of What is Not There
There exists no idealized society, only ones different than your own. One's both equally great and equally screwed up. I slowly, almost reluctantly confront my romanticist views of the countries I travel through. Dismantling notions of countries somehow better than my own, when in fact they share the common threads of human nature, both good and bad.
Secrets
Oh, how uncomfortable it can be when people, especially strangers ask about your eating habits. In my case, my Ecuadorian host family noticed I was not eating my fruit or drinking the fruit juices they placed with my main meal. I could feel it coming, Don't you like fruit? Put into the unwelcome position to defend or explain my eating habits I went on in rough Spanish to explain the concept of Food Combining and how fruit inhibits digestion of non-fruit foods. So, you don't eat fruit?
My quiet world revealed to strangers. It felt like a drinking problem had been exposed.
A Question
Has anyone been shocked or knows someone who has been shocked by one of those electric fences used to keep cows inside the pasture fields? When I look at them in their old decrepit state I find it hard to believe they work. But I never touch one.
On Swimming in the Amazon Basin
It is a fine line between stupidity and bravery, I think to myself as I reflect that in the past three weeks of traveling the Amazon waterways including the Amazon River I have not seen a single local person swim. It feels more ominous considering I have traveled nearly 1,500 Km (930 miles) in a variety of boats and dugout canoes. When we fished for Piranha and I saw how fast they attacked (one to three seconds after casting with a chunk of fish meat wrapped on a simple hook) I decided to swim no more. When I asked, Why don't people swim?, of the locals they all responded the same, It's too dangerous.
Dreams
Billboards Promise Paradise
You'll never arrive.
Paul Theroux
Travel at it's most enlightening is not about having a good time.
-Paul Theroux
On Choosing Friends and Company
There are some people who pay their way. They bring their own energy their own light, but most of the others are useless both to you and to themselves. It is not being humane to tolerate the dead, it only increases their deadness and they always leave plenty of it with you after they are gone.
-Charles Bukowski
Words
It has been a while since I have written. I just don't seem to write much when traveling with someone. Perhaps the thoughts that usually go to paper are dissolved when spoken with another. In the company of others the juice of the word is lost.
When traveling alone you are the perpetual stranger, all is fresh and new. In Latin America the conversations tend to repeat themselves, however, your secrets remain yours. No one sees you pick your nose more than once.
Ecuador
Ecuador does not make for interesting writing, it is so tame and safe under the spell of good government and a shy reserved indigenous people. As a group and community it is a very peaceful place with mellow people and this makes Ecuador such a "sweet" place, safe and unassuming, they are poor but not angry. Peaceful to the core.
If I wrote about Ecuador it would be so sweet and honey like, pretty and comfortable; the good food, nice people, albeit shy, stunning roads crossing from the dramatic mountains of the Andes into the dense jungles of the Upper Amazon, handcrafts, merchantiles of sweaters and soft shawls.
Listen To Me
Deaf Ears.
-That's what most of us walk around with.
Iquitos
When do you turn on a place?
A city tires me. Too many days in a two-day city. Noisy dirty, over touristed this place Iquitos.
-Iquitos, Peru deep in the Amazon, a city of 500,000 people that has no road leading to it, planes and boats are the only way you can see it and how they get their food.
On Waiting
Everything worthwhile is NOT in the future.
David
Huaraz, Peru
6 comments:
Ecuador sounds kind of nice, I like sweet and peaceful, even though Chaos is fun too. But sweet to the core now that is strange and hard to find. Might be worth a trip, on the list but always seems to fall off.
Nice to hear your tips. I assume your one on people is that you only meet a few that you really like most are a waste of time. You are a picky one as I remember and less tolerable of most.
Do you feel you are more of a positive type person from your travels? Are you less judge mental and more accepting? Do you feel kinder or is it only to the less fortunate?
Tips on finding this out of the way places? Is it mainly through discussions with locals? I never used my lonely planet books much myself only when needed. I usually try and connect with locals.
Sounds nice Dave, glad you are living your dream...
Nice to see your romanticist reflections.
Dana and Tim,
Yeah, the guide book sometimes, however, more often I pick places and routes using an old fashioned paper map that shows all the lesser known, lesser used routes, or "secondary" roads. I see an interesting route then go town to town asking locals and bus drivers for local info. For me the map is the best, it stimulates ideas and creativity for travel, a great deal of it is off the gringo trail or guidebook path of people apprehensive to look beyond that book.
People and energy...That was a Bukowski quite that captured it very well. Positive person, I don't know, I think so. It has me more accepting than ever of the world around me, just the way it is instead of resisting a situation or becoming "morally" superior because I am from the West. I see some shitty things and do not react by saying, "Stop!" or "Do it this way" but accept the life and way of Latin America.
On people...they show a lot in the span of two weeks. I have met some very nice people on these travels, really special in fact. I enjoy more connection, in general while on the road than when I was in routine back in the States.
Timmer,
Yeah, the romaticist reflections. In my travels I can see in hindsight various phases I have gone through. While traveling I have learned or better understood myself than ever before. Rewarding. It goes on every day.
David
you´ve changed i can feel it by reading your blog..
I am glad that you are fine.
Katrina,
Change, yes. In fact it seems to happen every day even though I look to establish routines as I travel. Glad you observed this.
David
que cheveres comentarios que tienes para mi pais aunque la semana pasada tuvo una cris policial,pero que ahora esta casi solucionada este pais siempre ha sido y sera un pais de muchisima paz.
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