Well, after equal parts subterfuge, sweet talk, and dosh, I finally have my visa to go to Brazil. My (very rough) plan is to leave BsAs (alas) next week, head to Uruguay for a few days, then on to Brazil. My cousin Josh is going to meet me in São Paulo on the 16th and we will go to Rio from there, and I don’t want to retrace my steps more than necessary so I will probably head north to Salvador, stopping in some places along the way. But who really knows? Like most times, I will just play it by ear. Anyone in the know out there have any suggestions of things not to miss in Brazil?
One of the things a good Buddhist tries to accomplish is a sense of equanimity no matter the situation. Juliette and I have decided not to go to the island of Taquile for some trekking after all, since we are having quite a difficult time acclimatizing at 3900 M (12,800 ft). We don’t actually have bad headaches or muscle aches, but even the slightest activity leaves us gasping horribly for air. We will therefore take it easy today and try to see the floating islands tomorrow, and then head down to a more manageable altitude. I think it would be fine if we had a week or so to get used to the altitude, but pushing ourselves in such a short period is a no go. Yet peaceful we are in the moment, gulping the precious little oxygen there is.
Juliette and I were quite proud of how we handled ourselves getting off the train. With no hotel pre-booked, we step out of the station only to be accosted by numerous tour operators. One of them asked if we needed a hotel or taxi, so we told her we needed a taxi to our hotel (that we quickly picked from our guide book). She said it would be one dollar, and then flagged down a taxi and hopped into it with us. At this point we were a bit confused. She seemed to have no relation to the taxi guy, but assured us the ride would only be a dollar. Being the seasoned travelers that Juliette and I are, we reasoned that she was probably going to try (as they often do in India) to secure a commission from the hotel for bringing us there, even though we had already picked it ourselves. Moving at great speed as we approached the hotel, I took my bags and left Juliette to handle the operator while I bolted into the hotel to negotiate a room. I managed to get us a 20 percent cash discount on the room, Juliette was able to dispose of the tour operator, and no one got hurt.
Tomorrow we will head off to explore the island of Taquile on Lake Titicaca.
Satori, travel — Stephen on 3 September 2008 @ 8:40 AM — 2 comments
It was a bit of a long trip, but we finally got in late last night. I have yet to meet our host Ricardo, who seems very nice by telephone, but was unable to meet us here at our arrival due to a compromiso. He left the key with the security guard though, and we let ourselves into his fabulous apartment overlooking the sea in the Barranco neighborhood of Lima. I tried to wait up for his return, but having been awake for more than 20 hours, I gave up at about 2am and went to bed. I am hoping to catch a glimpse of him this morning. Today we will head into town and check out the historic center I believe, as well as take care of a few things that we forgot to do before leaving. The most egregious of which is that I somehow stupidly didn’t think (after the 8 I had for India) that I would need any special vaccinations for this part of the world. I was wrong, I will be needing a Yellow Fever vax (especially if I want to go anywhere near the jungle areas) and so we will get one in the city today. After that, we should be able to settle in nicely for ceviche, pisco and coca.
Juliette and I are in final preparation for our trip to Peru later today. We leave in a few short hours, and it is hard to believe that later tonight we will be in Lima. What an amazing visit I have had to New York. I have been energized by the city and its culture. I have been productive in both my writing and consulting endeavors. I have reconnected with old friends and made some new ones. And I have been surprised by a sweet and growing romance with Roland (who may meet me in Brazil in a few months). Although all such things are subject to unforeseen changes in my life, at this point I plan to move here after my travels at the end of the year. (If McCain should somehow win the presidency, however, I will be moving to Madrid.)
That is how long it took me door to door. It was a bit of an experiment, flying into White Plains. It was the cheapest way to get here from Indianapolis though. So let’s see Indianapolis to Atlanta for a 2.5 hour layover, Atlanta to White Plains, about an hour wait for the bus from the airport to the railway station (they only run once an hour and I just missed the previous one), express train to Grand Central, S and then A train to Penn Station, and a three (long) block walk here. Total cost: about 139 dollars and a splitting headache.
Me at the White Plains airport, waiting on the once hourly bus to the train to the city to the subway to the apartment on 34th.
At least I can blog from my phone. :)
Satori, travel — Stephen on 4 August 2008 @ 11:01 PM — 1 comment
I’m leaving today…well tomorrow actually. I will be in NYC for the next month or so, and am I ever psyched! My uber wonderful cousin Josh is outta town and gave me his apartment for a few weeks. My goals while there are to finish the book (and proposal) I am working on, do meditation and yoga more frequently, take a look at the NYC job market, and have a *#%$^@ good time.
Then in September, it is off to Peru. But that is a story for another time…
I am really of two minds about my weekend in Guadalajara. I had a wonderful weekend, mainly because my host Chris was such a great guy and such fun to hang out with. We had a ball going out to various bars, restaurants and clubs, as well as wandering around the streets of Guadalajara. Chris is a fascinating guy with wide ranging interests, and we never lacked for subjects to explore.
As for the city of Guadalajara itself, I remain somewhat unimpressed. This is probably partially due to the universal adulation this city receives from everyone I talked to before coming here. It couldn’t help but be a little bit of a let down. But it is definitely more than that. The architecture, both colonial and new, fails to impress in any significant way. This is quite in contrast to so many other amazing cities in the country that I have seen. I will say that GDL is an easy city to walk around in, and the scale is rather pleasant. The food has been great, but I attribute that to Chris being a bit of a food snob like me, and really knowing the places where the best food is to be found. There are a few outlying areas of the city I didn’t get to that are supposed to be interesting, such as Zapopan and Mexico’s largest lake, Chapala. Perhaps I will see those some other day. For now, it is back to DF.
