Home Is Here

After climbing Santa Maria and saying "hasta luego" to our friends in Xela, we started the 60 hour journey back to Ithaca.

Long trip:  
bus from Xela to Guate;
overnight in Guate;
attempt to fly out the next morning;
my flight is majorly delayed while Dave's was not;
consequently I miss my connecting flight in Ft. Lauderdale and spend the night in Florida while Dave continues on to NYC;
good thing I packed lots of food (Spirit gives you nothing) and my toothbrush (Dave had the rest of my carry-on);
realize once again that America is SO unfriendly to newcomers and visitors (so much for "give me your tired and poor");
fly to NYC the next morning (thankfully I didn't have to wait until the following evening);
Dave and I get horribly lost leaving LGA and end up in Staten Island (!);
arrive in Ithaca 60 hours after leaving Xela.

And now I'm home...

...it's been AWESOME.

We took a climbing road trip up to Rumney, NH over Memorial Day weekend and climbed until there was no skin left on our fingertips.  Dave had some impressive leads (I <3 my rope gun), as many of our other climber friends.  I redpointed a few routes I had flailed on last autumn.  Maybe I'm finally getting stronger.

this doesn't suck. top-roping the 5.11 at 5.8 crag

Random aside:  I've now surpassed the climbing goal I wanted to achieve when I first started.  Within another year, I think I will surpass my revised goals.  The funny thing about goals is that they're always a receding target.  I am thankful I have become wiser to this phenomenon.

this route kinda sucked.

What else, what else.

Ithaca Festival.  Yay, the students are gone, let those freak flags fly!

make art!

goats on cayuga street

We found a new apartment.  Not quite downtown, but a short uphill bike ride to South Hill.  Even though we don't move 'til August, the landlord is allowing us to garden all summer.  Score.

paste tomatoes plus six different open-pollinated/ heirloom tomato varieties, peppers, zukes, cukes, green beans, purple beans, radishes, lettuce, spinach, kale, strawberries (if i can keep the damn squirrels away), basil, thyme, oregano, stevia, chamomile, chives, mint.
wanted pea pods/ snow peas but couldn't find seeds.

I guess that's all:  here I am.  And for the first time in a long time, it seems right to be here.

I joke about the "Saturn Return" with my friends.  Every 27-30 years, Saturn returns to the position it was in the sky when you were born.  Supposedly, the late twenties are a period of significant change and upheaval in people's lives--getting married (or not, if the State doesn't allow you that right), having kids, major life transitions, career struggles, existential questions.  I put zero faith in astrology, but I surely don't doubt the concept of the Saturn Return.  For me, ages 25 to 30 was wild!

But after all of the upheaval, the here and there, the newness and change, I've found myself living about 2 miles from where I lived in August of 2000, when I first moved to Ithaca.  And for all of the changing that's happened in the past 12 years, I'm more myself now than ever before.

For the first time in a long time, it seems right to be here, on all levels.  In a town that I love, with a guy whom I love, with friends whom I love, doing things that I love to do.

gorges

I'll probably continue to update this blog periodically, especially for trip reports or travels.  I'm thinking about migrating over a few posts from the old Peru blog, just to have them all in one place.  Might write a little about the garden or share some recipes (how to make super easy, super delicious, super cheap yoghurt, for example).  I start my new job on June 18th, though, so who knows how much time I'll want to spend on the computer.

One final picture.  This one from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan on the drive out to Minnesota.

P.S.  Honeymoon in Patagonia?

Updates from Central America

Greetings from Nicaragua! And Happy Easter!

With everything closed for Easter yesterday, I had a chance to write about how things are going here in Central America. The posts are pretty long, so if you want the short story: it's SO HOT, the food is tangy, Spanish school was a good language review, I miss Dave, and holy SMOKES is it HOT here.

More details? Ok. Holy Week in Granada, Nicaragua. Nicaragua Mia (The Gringa Learns Spanish). Nico Lives Like a Nica. That should keep you busy for a while.

Oh, and here are some photos:



From here on out: wow, I've actually got a bit of a plan!

On Tuesday (4/10) after morning classes, I'm heading to Estelí, a town in the highlands north of Managua toward the Honduran border where I hope it won't be so bleeping hot.




View Larger Map

From there, I have one week to make my way to Guatemala City via Honduras and/or El Salvador. I could either take the faster buses via Tegucigalpa (a week seems like too much time for this route) or the chicken buses via Honduras to El Salvador to Honduras again (a week doesn't seem like enough time for this route). Haven't quite figured out that part yet.

And on Wednesday, 4/18... drumroll please...

Dave will be joining me for three weeks in Guatemala together! We just finalized our tickets yesterday morning, and I am So Psyched. It's been a long week without him.

We are returning to the USA on 5/10.

Them's the updates. I'll blog more at some point... it's easier than writing lots of different emails, and if you're not interested, you don't have to read. :-)

Life Updates

Alright, let's jump right in and drop a few bombshells, shall we?

Davo and I are getting married!

At this point, no date, no plans, no problem.  Someone suggested that we get married on a mountain or hanging off a cliff, a la Lynn Hill.  Sorry, I can't put myself in the same league as Lynn-freaking-Hill.  Plus, my mother would kill me.

photo © bob d'antonio, 1989

This was decided almost a month ago, but I've been fairly inconsistent about writing here, which is going to have to change because...

...I just bought a one-way ticket to Managua, Nicaragua.  Leaving on Monday.  Three days from now.  Ok, well, I decided to go last week and bought the ticket on Saturday, which was a full 8 days before departure.  Good thing I already have a passport.



My current plan is to start in Nicaragua, where I'll work on my Spanish language skills at a school for foreigners in Estelí.  They're arranging a homestay for me, so starting Tuesday 4/3, I will not speak or hear English for the foreseeable future (way to throw myself into the deep end).  When it's time to leave Nicaragua, I'll go overland via Honduras, El Salvador, or both on my way to Guatemala.  Dave will meet me in mid-May for some outdoor adventuring in Guatemala and southern México.  Back to Ithaca, New York, together, in June, for the next chapter of our lives.

For the past three years, since leaving Peru in 2009, I have coped with the aching desire to go back to Latin America.  Through a combination of this-and-that, I ended up back in the States when I felt like I should have been south-of-the-border.  I finally have a chance to correct my course...

...because I have resigned from my job.  For the second and final time.  I've typed and erased sentences trying to explain the conclusions I've drawn, what I've experienced, where that puts me in life and my ability to serve my community, blah blah blah.  The bottom line:  I love the organization, I love my colleagues, but it's time to move on.  I'm ready...  onward and upward!

Three major life changes in the past three weeks.  Eh, so it goes.  :-)

Here, There, Everywhere

So what's new since I've been back?  The past six weeks have been a weird combination of being homeless yet staying in family homes, of staying put and moving around, and of thinking of the future without making any solid plans.

Started off in New York State with Dave's mother (and sister, sister's boyfriend, brother, brother's fiancee, brother's child-to-be, grammy, pitbull/ mushy spaghetti mix, and other assorted characters).

Took a side trip to Ithaca.  Went climbing.  It was exactly as painful as I thought it would be.  Awesome.

On the way back to downstate, we detoured through the Catskills and hiked Hunter Mountain.  Second time in my life that I've felt exposed skin start to freeze.  BRRR!!

Next up:  a week in Florida for Dave's father's wedding.  The primary reason I'm back in the U.S.A.  Somehow I didn't take any pictures all week, but I did read four books.

Back to New York.

Side trip to New Jersey to visit my family.  My cousins are far cooler than I will ever be.

Go south.

On the way, stop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to see a few of my high school buddies, in Baltimore, Maryland to see one of Dave's friends, and in Williamsburg, Virginia to see J-T-W (who had joined us in Nepal for trekking).

Temporary final destination:  North Carolina.  My parents moved here while I was abroad.  This was the first time I'd visited their new home.

angie invades my snow cave

summit of hunter mountain

my family & cool cat cousins

davo and jtw, sittin' in a tree...

playing with fire in north carolina

So, what's next???

Well, I can say that there's some big stuff about to go down in the next few days.  At this point, not going to get more specific than that, because (1) my plans have been changing by the day, and (2)...

...I'm trying to decide whether I want to (a) continue writing for the public, or (b) drop off the radar (again) for a little bit.

If anyone is reading this, (I) do you keep a public journal/ blog (and why/why not), and (II) what have been your favorite posts on One Great Dewdrop?

Shiny New Things

Are you sick of reading words?  Yes, you are.  That's why you should subscribe to the photographs I post for this trip.  Come on, I went through aaaalll the trouble of setting the darn thing up...

So if you use an RSS reader, clicky the linky below!  And if you wouldn't mind, comment to let me know whether you can successfully add the feed, or whether I've got troubleshooting to do.  Thank you!

Subscribe to Best Photos via RSS
Subscribe to All Photos via RSS

(Links also in the left sidebar.)

Travel & Blog Updates

Blog Updates

Hi folks!  If you've subscribed to this blog via email or RSS, you've probably noticed the flurry of posts today.

A few months ago, I struggled with what to write, how to write, whether I wanted to write at all...  and not just that, but also where to travel, how I wanted to travel, and heck, whether I wanted to be traveling at all!  But lately, things have been groovy.  I've realized that I would like to have a souvenir from this experience.  Since I hate shopping, my best idea is a photo album and a blog to go with it.

Here are a few new posts about old topics:

Paradise!  (Koh Tao, Thailand)
Malaysia?  What's in Malaysia?  (Malaysia, in general)
Bali Highlights  (Bali, Indonesia)

And here are a few new posts about a new topic:

Khmer Kitchen
Finding Mind Happiness in Siem Reap
8 Things I Love About Cambodia

Enjoy!  Or not, that's ok too.  :-)  Over the next few months, I imagine the posts will come on a quasi-regular basis, so I hope not to jam up your inbox/ feedreader again.  Look forward to a Southeast Asia wrap-up post in the next few days.

Also, this is my 100th post on this blog.  Holy guacamole, I talk a lot!

Edited to add:  Wowza, this blog is about to have its 1st birthday!  One year ago, I was setting up One Great Dewdrop.  A few days later, on October 1, 2009, I published the first post.  Time flies.

Travel Updates

Today is our last day in Cambodia.  Tomorrow, we'll spend the day traveling back to Bangkok.  We've got one day in Bangkok to see a few people and to run a few errands.  Then, on September 27th, Davo and I fly to...

NEPAL

 

 photo credit

"I'm looking forward to this" is a gentle understatement.  Pardon me for a moment, while I freak the f*** out.

Southeast Asia was intended as a convenient way to waste some time between the tramping season in New Zealand and the trekking season in Nepal.  If I am so honored as to see Everest with my own eyes, I might need to be carried out of the mountains, because I might go blind immediately.

To add icing to this sweet, sweet cake made of 100% pure awesome, Davo and I might have a few buddies joining us.  J, M, and C:  I'm looking at you.  Get your asses over here.

We'll be in Nepal for about ten weeks, from the last week of September through the first week of December.  From there, we're looking to spend some time in the Middle East.  The current plan is to spend 10-14 days in Turkey (Istanbul, Capadoccia, and somewhere in the southeast toward Iran and Syria (gasp! Axis of EVIL! Don't worry, Pops/ Bernie/ Jill, I will not drag Davo to either of these countries)) and 10-14 days in Israel (visiting Dave's family, Jerusalem, Dead Sea, Massada, and yes, a day trip to Palestine/ Occupied Territories/ whatever you want to call it--anyone have recommendations for a group with whom we could do this?).

The next adventure begins in late December/ early January:  we're coming back to The States (!).  The agenda:

• a wedding (congratulations to Bernie (Dave's father) and Karen!);
• a road trip to North Carolina (hi Mummers!  hi Pops!  hi Sisser!);
• some quality time in Dave's hometown (hi Jill!  hi Grammy!  hi Rachel!  hi Eric!  Whoa, is that Maise?);
• a long weekend in Ithaca (COE staff:  score us free wall pass, pretty please!  Ithaca friends:  where are we drinking/ crashing?!)

After January, am I headed abroad again?  Scheming and dreaming...  you'll just have to stay tuned to find out.  :-)

Clarifying

I got more response from my last post than I expected.  In retrospect, that post is the type of crazy, exploratory, off-the-cuff, stream of consciousness writing that I usually reserve for my personal journal.  If I had realized how many people read One Great Dewdrop, I would have put more effort toward clarity in my writing.

That's what follow-up posts are for.  :-)

Perhaps most importantly, I'm not depressed, nor am I discouraged.  Everything is exactly as it should be.  Which means I'm doing great!

I left the United States with a vague intention to chase the freedom that I felt while I was in Peru, "to have cultural experiences," and "to see the world."  Once I was out in this crazy, contradictory world, I learned that those reasons just aren't enough for me.  I am hoping to have experiences that are more meaningful and purposeful than 1.5 years worth of vacation snapshots.

As a result of our lack of planning and purpose, Dave and I found ourselves in Jakarta without a clue why we were there or what we wanted to experience in Indonesia.  So...  we bought a Lonely Planet guidebook to give us an idea of what was out there and how to access it.  *Gasp!*  We ended up spending most of our time on Java firmly entrenched in the tourist trail:  running from one photo opportunity to the next, visiting sites only because they were there and not because we had any real interest in exploring them, doing too much with not enough depth.  Let me tell you:  for me, this method of travel is misery!

Dave and I discussed points 2 and 3 around the time that I posted my last entry.  We reiterated that we wanted to focus on activities that we were really excited to do and to seek out experiences that we can only have outside the United States.  We reiterated that we are happier when we stay in one place for a while.  We reiterated that we are comfortable with the fact that we're going to "miss" sites and activities.  I don't want to do it all.  I want to do well whatever I do.

And now we have a general idea of where we will be and what we will be doing for the next few months!
...August:  peninsular Malaysia for hiking and trekking in highlands and jungles
...Early September:  southern Thailand for a 10-day meditation retreat and a week rock climbing
...Late September:  Cambodia to exploring Angkor Wat (it's crawling with tourists, but it's on my bucket list!)
...October and November and maybe part of December:  Nepal for more hiking and trekking

Regarding the fate of this blog, yes, most likely I will write again at some point (hey, I'm writing right now!).  Instead of reporting the useless, boring details of my days, I hope I will have something interesting, meaningful, or insightful to say.

In the meantime, I've got pictures to keep you entertained!  You should become a "fan" of my picasaweb site or subscribe to its RSS feed, so you'll know when I add new photographs.  I only post ~20% of the photos I take, but if that's still too many, I've started a "Greatest Hits" album of my favorites.  Here's the RSS feed.

Whoever and wherever you are, may you be well and happy.

That's All, Folks!

Davo and I left New Zealand three weeks ago.  Three weeks.  Twenty-one days.  I've been in four countries in less than a month.  Crazy.  Indonesia has been great, but lately I have done a lot of thinking about where I'm going, when I'm going there, and what I'm going to do once I'm there.

These questions raise others...  why I'm wandering, how I want to wander, and what I hope to give and get from this experience (oh, and how the hell to negotiate all of this with a partner).

Getting to the point...

ONE:  I don't like traveling.  You read that right:  I dislike suffering through bus rides, buying place tickets, figuring out where I'm going to sleep every night, and all of the other crap that goes with being on-the-move and gets in the way of being fully present in a place.

TWO:  I'm not doing too well with being a tourist.  I can't handle rolling into a town, well-thumbed Lonely Planet in hand, to "do" a place, checking off each of LP's "must see/ do/ eat/ sleep" locations.  I really can't handle being herded onto a shuttle bus with 20 other white people to drive to a national park, step outside, take two pictures, and drive on.

THREE:  I think I need to find a new way to travel.  Right now I'm in Ubud, the second most tourist-friendly place on Bali.  In the city, the only people who talk to me are the guys who want me to buy a taxi ride.  Shifting gears (literally), Davo and I took a bike ride into the countryside this afternoon.  EVERYONE said hello.  EVERYONE smiled.  Little kids chased my bike down a hill.  I don't want to be anonymous in a tourist city.  I want to stay in one place for a while, get to know someone and someplace.

And a few thoughts about travel blogging:

FOUR:  I don't find blogging to be useful.  Just because every other traveler out there has a travel blog doesn't mean I need one, too.  I'm not kidding myself--a 200-word post on wayang kulit or some place that I visit isn't going to broaden anyone's horizons.  If you want to broaden your horizons, get up off your ass and go to Indonesia, or wherever it is that you've always wanted to go.  The only thing holding you back is that you haven't bought your plane ticket yet.

FIVE:  I don't find blogging to be a rewarding form of introspection.  I'm very conscious that these words I write can be seen by everyone, everywhere.  I write very differently, and about different subjects, when I'm writing for an audience.  Sadly, my personal writing has suffered quite a bit on this trip.  I simply won't make the time to write both a public journal and a personal journal.  I'd have to sit in an internet cafe for hours per day.  I left Ithaca so I wouldn't have to sit in front of a computer for hours on end.  And what's the point of a new experience if it's viewed through the lens of "how will I blog about this?"

SIX:  In a weird way, I'm sick of having even the slightest feeling that I'm doing something for the viewing and/or approval of others.  I don't want to write this to show off what I'm doing.  I'm not cooler than you are, and I don't think that I am.  I don't write to rub it in that my life is more interesting and exciting than yours.  It's probably not.  Maybe I'm just sick of being part of the Facebook generation.

SEVEN:  This blog does not provide an accurate representation of what it's like to travel for an extended period of time.  Really, you don't get it (unless, dear reader, you are on a journey of your own).  I don't write about the awful public transport experiences, or the times that I've had to walk around the same woman begging on the street for a third time, or seeing tooth decay in a young child, or the times that Dave and I can't seem to communicate clearly to each other, or the times that I'm just sick of it all, homesick, feeling like all my friends have forgotten about me and moved on with their lives.  I write about the good stuff because that's the easiest to process and to share.  I take pretty pictures so I can remember the good parts, because dealing with the bad parts is pretty tough.  Besides, I hate the feeling of voyeurism, that the rich white woman with the digital camera is taking a picture of the filth, the poor, the worst of a developing country to show her friends at home, "Yes, I survived this."  I know exactly how I would feel if I were begging on the street and a rich white woman stopped to take a picture of me.

Maybe I'm reading too much into my experiences.  Maybe I'm looking for lessons and generalizations where there are none to be had.  Maybe I'm just cynical.  But I think I'm done with the tourist thing.  And I'm especially done with writing into the void of the internet for armchair spectators at best and no one at worst (or should it be the other way around?).  Writing about myself feels like a form of vanity at this point.  Most importantly, I think narcissistic writing for no one and everyone is incompatible with the type of wandering I hope to have the privilege to experience over the coming months.  If you want to know where I am or how I'm doing, please ask.  I miss you.  Otherwise, this will be the last post about our One Great Dewdrop for a while.

P.S.  I will continue to post photography at picasaweb.google.com/nicotedesco.  Even though I have a crappy camera, photography is one of my two favorite forms of self-expression.