Traveling - a retrospect

Well, I have a lot more time on my hands now. Idaho is quite a far cry from central america or Bristol, entertainment revolves around the home, not the pub! So I thought I would use this time, whilst unemployed, to think about my traveling experience and what insight various countries provided me with.
For starters, traveling was not the constantly thrilling experience I was expecting. Don't get me wrong - you pack a whole hell of a lot into a lot less time, but there is still down time. And the down time feels more imposing as you don't have anywhere familiar to go to pass it. This is where I found a laptop was invaluable. Neither myself nor Rosie brought one along, but luckily Priscilla was a bit more prepared. There are days and nights where you just don't want to go out living it up, talking to random people and being generally gregarious. You welcome a screen to stare at in silence. Traveling can be quite demanding otherwise, and while I'm a sociable person, I can't be on form 24 hours a day.
I was also expecting to meet loads of amazing, cool fellow travelers. As it turns out, douche bags get everywhere, and finding those cool and amazing people is harder than finding the cool and amazing things to do. I was also hoping to learn things about myself, but more specifically, good things about myself. Unfortunately while learning good aspects of my personality, I also found that my hatred of the human race was merely reinforced. There is no where unique in the way that there are only good people. Everywhere you go you find arseholes, and I'm much less tolerant of it now than I was before I left. I may be better at masking it, but no less vitriolic in my belief of it. Some people see traveling as one giant piss up. And I'm not going to fool anyone (especially those who have seen the pictures) that I didn't partake. But it wasn't my main reason for going. Whereas some people seemed to be on permanent spring break - in some hostels there is a big push to get 'fucked up,' and I realised I don't drink well in those situations. I would much rather meet a good group of people and drink heavily only because you don't notice you're drinking due to great conversation. This seemed more of a 'let's drink until we like the people around us' kind of affair.
I wanted to come away feeling like we in the west have everything wrong, and the more impoverished countries, although a lack of money, had everything else nailed. Not so. I don't want to go and live in central america in the slums and make life better for people. Firstly, it's an arrogant assumption on my part to assume I have the answers to their problems because I have a comparatively privileged life. Rather, it has made me appreciate the luxuries I was took for granted - even things as simple as flushing toilet paper. One thing they do have right is the family unit. They have such a strong sense of family that it must be hard to feel lonely. But this graciousness doesn't extend much further than home and local community. People are very wary of outsiders, and probably have good historical reason to be. Tourists and travelers are walking wallets. For a long time I kept thinking 'if only they know how little money I actually have,' but then put it into perspective. I can afford to take 6 months off work, unpaid, and fly to another country and travel around and stay in a room with running water. Most people in the areas we were visiting live hand to mouth. A lot of the time they seem happy with their lot, but that is decreasing with the increase of western influence and TV. Despite the prevalence of TV (you can see even the poorest shack alight in the evenings with the glow of this beast) they are still interested by foreigners. And as I found out, blonde hair and blue eyes only serve to fascinate more.
Noise is something which is a part of everyday life. You get used to it to a certain degree, but at points it can still drive you insane. The northern countries loved their fireworks - day and night. Then, to accompany that, they have cars that drive up and down the street from 7 a.m. selling water, gas or politicians. On the buses children make a lot of noise and personal space is treasured though very rarely found. The locals on the bus think nothing of it and can fall asleep within seconds of their bum hitting the seat. I quite often had a groin or bum in my face, only thankful that I was sat down and not stood up! The young boys show no shame in looking down your top until asked to turn away. This is a mode of transport, although much more efficient than ours, is uncomfortable. But they make up for it by selling anything and everything. Honestly, this is the best idea ever. The bus stops, vendors get on selling medication, fruit & veg, burritos, fried chicken, water, fresh fruit juice in a bag, candy, stickers, and then get dropped off at another stop where they cross the road and get on another bus to take them back. I had lunch many a time like this, and it's not a futile endeavor for the vendors either - they walk off with fists full of money. At every opportunity people will try to sell you things. Homes are very rarely just homes, they usually have something to sell.
I was reading a book along the way which focused on Indian immigrants in England, and this helped me to understand what life must be like for someone coming from such crowded, loud countries, as much of central america is, and going into our world. The quiet is deafening and our society lacks a sense of community that it must be difficult to adjust. There is a certain level of comfort to be drawn from something going on around you all the time. Friends around all the time as well as family, and the murmur of life lulls you to sleep.
I feel like I've painted a rather one-sided view of this, but the traveling experience is amazing. Some people do it for their entire lives. I couldn't do that, but I'm going back, that's for sure. You need to find your stride and your way of traveling, and once you do that, you can settle into the adventure. When Rosie and I first arrived in Mexico it was raining and the hostel was almost empty. We sat on the bed in our room and wondered what the hell we had gotten ourselves in for. Within hours we had met a fascinating old guy and made friends with the owner who I still keep in contact with. It took me a little longer to settle in than the others, but you do suddenly realise one day that this is your life and you're no longer comparing it to life 'back home.' Overall it's one of the best experiences of my life, even when it was hard going, it all added to the experience.
One thing I do advise, if you want to get everything out of traveling, is to learn the local language. We missed out on so much, even just talking to locals, because we weren't conversational in the language. We also got ripped off quite a lot because of it. We realised how much we were missing when we got to Belize, where they speak English, and so many opportunities arose just from talking to the locals. If you don't talk to the locals, you don't earn their trust, and you will remain an obvious outsider. While you will always be an outsider, if you speak the language, they will be much more likely to take you into their home, feed you a meal and tell you the amazing things to do in the area that only a local would know.
I know what my brain is like and I know I will think of more things, so i intend to update the blog despite not quite being on the road at the moment. It may just be a critical view of the mid-western (oh wait, sorry, it's a high desert plain here, not the mid-west?!) way of life, and I do like judging people after all. And what a better place to do it!!

Lead Up to the End

Well, we finally tore ourselves away from the luxury of an air-conditioned room in Bocas for the cloud forests of the Chiriqui mountains. If only we had done this sooner. The surroundings were beautiful, with plenty of hikes and activities to do. The mountains were a bit chillier which makes hiking much easier. The hostel had a pantry full of food to buy, as well as a group meal you could participate in. Here we met a guy called JC who is planning to hike through the Darien straight. If you are unfamiliar with this territory, it is arguably one of the harshest terrains and most dangerous areas in central America. This is due to the guerillas who frequent the area as well as drug traffickers. You need a guide to take you through as there are no paths as such, and the Panamanian government are cutting down on the amount of people allowed to hike through the area. JC is the only person they are even considering this year. It's one of those things that would be an amazing story, but you are literally risking your life for the sake of a good story. But this guy is an avid hiker, and if anyone can do it, this charismatic man can.
While we were at the Lost and Found Hostel we did a coffee and wine tour of a local organic farm with a crazy/genius farmer as host. It was fascinating, and good fun to boot. We roasted our own coffee and sampled some of his homemade wine. Being the only English on the tour, they saw why it is dangerous to say 'all you can drink' when it comes to the Brits. The wine was quite vinegary, but for the simple methods he employed, it was quite palatable. We made pure cane juice and had a farm to table breakfast and lunch, followed by a hike back to the car. If you ever get the chance, do this tour! The hostel had a resident honey bear which took a shine to Dave after quite obviously giving me the cold shoulder. You can't win them all I guess!
After Lost and Found we moved on to David where we were assured we would appreciate an air conditioned room. They weren't wrong. We bumped into a couple of ladies in their 50s/60s who we had met at Lost and Found and spent an evening with them talking about the antics they used to get up to. They had been friends since they were 14 and their stories put me to shame! They were lovely and interesting, still very much with a zest for life and traveling. We stayed at an amazing hostel -  a good crowd of people. As this was our last stop before the epic journey home, we organized a BBQ for the hostel which everyone got involved in. We had amazing burgers made by a proper Floridian BBQer, deviled eggs, kebabs, the lot. It was a nice way to go out. After visiting these places we were sorely disappointed that we hadn't explored more of Panama - there was a lot to do but we just didn't have the time to do it. When we go back down, we hope to do Panama again before sailing over to Columbia.
We made our way to San Jose in preparation for the flight. When we arrived, a taxi driver very kindly informed us that the president of Costa Rica was going to be visiting the next day therefore we should stay closer to the airport instead of going back to a hostel we liked when we visited last. The taxi journey cost us $30 only to find out after he left that there was no presidential visit - he just wanted to take us further out for a costlier taxi journey. Frustrating, but it reminds you that people prey on trusting people the world over.
We set out for the airport the next evening as our flight was at 1 a.m. We got to the airport at 9 as we had nowhere else to go. Everything was closed so we bought some beer and set up tent until check-in time. Something like 26 hours later we arrived in Boise, Idaho at midnight. We had spent more time in the airports than in the air and took 4 separate flights. San Jose to Fort Lauderdale, For Lauderdale to Memphis, Memphis to Minneapolis, Minneapolis to Boise. Truly exhausting. But when we got to our hotel room in Boise we reveled in the 'economy' luxury we were surrounded by. Hot water showers, TV in English, a big, comfy, unstained bed.
We are now in Idaho and nearly full-fledged Americans again. We have a bank account, searching for a car and Dave is now employed as a satellite TV salesman going door to door. I have an interview for some cafe work today and have spent the rest of the time driving around the local area getting a feel for the place. It is spartan countryside, which is quite impressive when you're used to the cramped British landscape. Snow-capped mountains line the horizon and Mormons wander around unteased. It's a friendly place, but I can see why crystal meth is a big problem in the area. Lacking stimulating things to do and fast food on every corner, it's a haven of poverty in the surrounding areas. There are lots of hikes to do which I'm looking forward to once it warms up, but I guess when you're a local, hiking doesn't have the same appeal.
Well, fingers crossed for the future, but so far England still very much feels like my home, Bristol especially. I don't think the American way of life is one that is appealing in the long term, but who knows, it's still early doors.