One Giant Step…Is All It Takes

Inti Raymi is celebrated near the winter solstice on June 24th every year. It is an Incan ceremony that is performed in the native Quechuan language rather than Spanish.

We arrived in Cusco 2 days prior to the actual ceremony and the city square was already abuzz with people and bands and general merriment being made. Apparently the festival has expanded over the years to include the weeks leading up to June 24th also.

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The plan was to take our time getting to Cusco from Lima. We were going to spend a few days, stopping along the way at Nasca and Arequipa to split up the journey.

Then we learned that the Inti Raymi festival was happening in Cusco on June 24th so we thought we would head straight to Cusco instead and visit Nasca and Arequipa after that.

We checked into flights and buses and decided that, at 1/3 the cost, the bus it would be. Sure it was going to be a 22 hour bus ride but I had heard that South American buses were ‘da bomb’ and so thought that 22 hours wouldn’t be so bad. Read the rest of this entry »

We had heard plenty about Lima before arriving, most of it negative. People told us that it was dirty, and big, and dangerous and menacing – that we should spend as little time as possible there.

We ended up staying 5 and a half days…and we quite liked it.

Sure it’s big (>10 million!) and somewhat dirty, but there are plenty of parks and squares to explore and with the current ‘recuperacion’ of the city occurring, there is renewal everywhere. It is much cleaner than I expected. In both Miraflores (the tourist district) and Barranco (it’s more bohemian neighbor) there are roving bands of cleaners, street sweepers and gardeners, all in uniform, generally spiffing the place up.

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I have a confession to make. I hate flying. Yep…I, know…around the world…gonna have to fly.

The idea of this trip was to do something unusual. To experience new cultures, hear new languages, see new things…step out out of our comfort zone. ‘One Giant Step’ refers to that leap of faith required to step out and make ourselves uncomfortable. Flying makes me uncomfortable so mark one check mark in that box.

I have thought a lot about how I am going to handle it. I know it’s all in my head. I know all about the statistics and how ‘safe’ flying is. I know about the physics and how planes stay in the air. Intellectually, I have it all covered. Emotionally, I’m usually a mess.

I tried hypnosis. Nope…didn’t work. I had high hopes for it and still think that it could work – the subconscious is a powerful place, but apparently my conscious being is more powerful and would not let it happen.

I had a back up plan…pharmaceuticals.

We were flying from Toronto to New York then onward to Lima on an overnight flight. Having some time to kill at the airport, we did what comes naturally and headed to the bar for a drink – that always helps smooth things out.  We boarded the flight in Toronto and I popped an ativan to relieve the anxiety. We then proceeded to wait on the tarmac for 4 hours (damn, wasted an ativan!). It wasn’t too bad though – the plane was new, they turned on the entertainment system and the very nice staff served us free beer. I’m in a plane, but it’s not in the air, so I’m happy. The residual effects of the ativan and the beer easily get me through the barely one hour flight to New York.

The late take off meant that we no longer had any significant layover in New York so we had to scrap our plans for the fastest NYC tour and instead headed to the bar to have another beer. You’re not surprised…are you?

The New York/Lima flight was an overnight flight. My plan was to pop a sleeping pill and wake up as we landed in Lima. No such luck – although I’m exhausted I just can’t drop off to sleep as any little bump in the air has me waking up.

And so the final plan evolves…

Put my favorite song on eternal repeat on the iPod (currently ‘The Mission’ by Puscifer), get as comfy as I can, tap my foot and move my head in time with the music (this masks the movement of the plane) and imagine myself on my bike riding down CBC on the North Shore. It doesn’t get any better than this.

And that’s how I find myself riding my way through it all the way to Lima.

Victoria may be the ‘City of Gardens’, but I think that Brockville’s tagline should be the ‘City of Lawns’.

Seriously, the lawns here are amazing! I can’t imagine the time that people must put into them, but I surely can imagine the pride that they take because every single lawn is beautifully cut and manicured with an equally beautiful garden to accompany it.

I haven’t seen any un-mown, weedy, gone-to-seed yards…I think they even mow the vacant lots! It certainly makes for a beautiful little town.

Here I am trying to do my part to keep up the standards. Although I have   to admit that the very last thing Don did before we left for the hospital was mow the lawn himself. He kindly explained that it was so that I wouldn’t have to do it again before the weekend but, really, I think he was trying to fix up the job I did. I’ll show him though as I am the designated-lawn-cutter while he is away….I’m definitely getting better.

We  have been traveling a lot between Ottawa and Brockville. It’s a scenic drive even from the 4 lane highway – even more so when we take the back route. I love the country-side with the fields and barns and farm houses. The crops are just starting to push up and show themselves in neat little rows of that fresh green that only spring can bring.

The drive also shows the marshland that is prevalent in the area. Grasses and reeds dominate as the greenery, providing roosts and feeding area for birds, many of which I have never seen before. The birds here are certainly more colorful and melodic than the ones I’m used to back home. My favorite place in the house is the sunroom downstairs where I can look out to the backyard feeders and see all the birds.

We also managed to get some boating activity in while here. There was one last sail on the boat in blustery, but manageable, conditions – and J and I caught a bit of the hydroplane races this past weekend.

Soon, our time here will be finished. Although we hadn’t planned to come here, it has all turned out okay – we’ve had a chance to see family and friends we wouldn’t have and we feel good setting out knowing that J’s dad is on the mend.

We have a flight booked for Monday to Lima. Time to get that Spanish book out and start getting excited again!

Meet Roland.

He heard that we were about to embark on a journey around the world and contacted us to ask if he could join us.

He comes with great credentials, having traveled much of the world already. Iceland, India, Malaysia, Norway, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Brazil, Japan, and Jordan just to name a few.

In fact he has already traveled to more countries than we plan on visiting on this trip. And, because he has already been to some of the countries we’ll be visiting, he’ll make an excellent tour guide.

It’s true, it can be difficult traveling with a third wheel but, even having met Roland only briefly, I think he will fit in just fine. He’s quiet, likes to read, doesn’t complain much and enjoys a good beer. All the things required of a good travel partner.

We hope he likes us too. He has traveled with many people so we definitely have to measure up. Luckily we’re quiet, like to read, don’t complain too much and we love a good beer.

I think we’re going to get along just fine.