Location:Home
Saturday, 25 February 2012
Thursday, 23 February 2012
impossible
People keep asking me "what was the best thing?" which is impossible! It's been 4 months! 7 countries! 44 cities! But people still want an answer, so I'll try.
(I would ideally add photos to this, but my 8gigs of photos wont fit onto my computer now... time to buy an external hard drive....)
No one best, instead I present a short list:
-Arriving at Machu Picchu after 3 days of hiking. Just beautiful. Sunshine and mist, ancient ruins, incredibly Inca ingenuity.
-The Salar trip in Bolivia. Flamingos, volcanoes, cactus, salt flats... better than I could have imagined
-The lookout on our jungle adventure in Ecuador. Jungle as far as the eye could see.
-Being on a telenovella. It just was so random and hilarious and something I never would have expected to happen
-Iguazu falls. Breathtaking and exhillerating at the same time.
-The people we met. There was just incredible kindness and goodness. Gives you faith in humanity and is truly heart warming
so there you have it. the best things. But there was also Lost City, the floats and costumes of Carnival, exploring cities (La Paz, Cuenca, Sao Paulo, Medellin...), Kuelup ruins, the gold church of Quito, seeing monkeys in the wild, paragliding in Lima, the fresh fruit everywhere....
(I would ideally add photos to this, but my 8gigs of photos wont fit onto my computer now... time to buy an external hard drive....)
No one best, instead I present a short list:
-Arriving at Machu Picchu after 3 days of hiking. Just beautiful. Sunshine and mist, ancient ruins, incredibly Inca ingenuity.
-The Salar trip in Bolivia. Flamingos, volcanoes, cactus, salt flats... better than I could have imagined
-The lookout on our jungle adventure in Ecuador. Jungle as far as the eye could see.
-Being on a telenovella. It just was so random and hilarious and something I never would have expected to happen
-Iguazu falls. Breathtaking and exhillerating at the same time.
-The people we met. There was just incredible kindness and goodness. Gives you faith in humanity and is truly heart warming
so there you have it. the best things. But there was also Lost City, the floats and costumes of Carnival, exploring cities (La Paz, Cuenca, Sao Paulo, Medellin...), Kuelup ruins, the gold church of Quito, seeing monkeys in the wild, paragliding in Lima, the fresh fruit everywhere....
Wednesday, 22 February 2012
Is it safe?
One of the most common responses we got after telling people about our adventures was "is that safe?" Many places we have visited can be dangerous, they are places where you don't feel safe to walk around without keeping a careful eye on your surroundings. We heard countless tales of tourists in serious danger. Drunk bus drivers overturning buses. Jeep drivers in the Salaar being reckless. Militants in Colombia burning buses (after everyone was off). Being held up at gunpoint in Rio. Apartments being raided in Quito leaving the tourists with nothing. South America has no shortage of scary stories.
Here are ours-- nothing as scary as what we heard, but nothing that was as safe as we feel in Canada.
Imminent Danger:
We only really came across this a few times on our trip. While in Quito there was a drunken fight outside our hostel-- cops came running, bottles were broken. Not good. A few times in Rio while walking we were suddenly very aware that there were a lot of police and a lot of drunken/shady looking characters. In these cases being smart (ie: not going back to the hostel till things had calmed down and making sure to stay in well lit and safer looking areas) was the best option.
Catcalls:
There hasn't been one country on our trip where we didn't receive catcalls from the street. There was of course a range: from harmless (whistles and a hissing that I found to be pretty gross) to crude (touching, leering, rude comments). It didn't matter how we were dressed or who we were with. It happened everywhere. Unfortunately the best response to this is to ignore it. (Which 99% of the time I managed to do.) It was tiring to feel objectified and, because the guy doing the objectifying is bigger than you, which makes you vulnerable. Argh. Feels good to be back in Canada. One of the biggest culprits of all this is terrible hollywood movies where white girls are happy to take off their clothes off 3 scenes into being introduced, and then these movies are shown on public buses to the masses. Argh.
Purse Clutching:
One of the hardest things to adjust to while traveling is not to trust people and to actively be worried about how to keep all of your things safe. It's actually emotionally tiring to live like this, but time and time again you realize that you want to, but you just shouldn't. This means that while your walking on the street you are clutching your purse. When sharing a dorm you lock up your bags. It means sleeping with your passport and wallet under your pillow. While traveling we met a girl who had her ipod stolen from beside her while she slept and countless people who had been pick pocketed. So while it wears away at your state of mind, that bit of paranoia and worry is important to hold onto.
As 2 white, female tourists in their 20s, we made an obvious target. An yet, here we are, 4 months later, with yes, a lot catcalling frustrations but also a lot of stories of kindness of strangers, all of our possessions. (Except for a few things I lost along the way... that was my fault). Here are my quick tips for general safety while traveling.
-Be careful, smart, a little paranoid, and ready for the worst
- I would often wonder what "evil Joy" would do. Am I a broke backpacker who steals to get by? What looks easy?
-If an area seems sketchy, (painfully obvious poverty, being the only tourist) get out
-purse goes on your lap. Not in the ground, not the back of your chair. On your lap where you can see it.
- Trust your instinct. If you get a strange feel from a person or place-- find somewhere new. One crappy hostel we went to (Hostel Sweet Hostel in Iguzau Argentina: DO NOT GO) someone had snuck into our dorms, unlocked our bags, rifled through them, and then locked them again so we didn't notice. One girl had $40 stolen and another her ipod. Hostel staff seemed indifferent and were overall jerks. We left as soon as we could).
The best anecdote I have is that my Dad (a big guy, not easy to mess with) has said, he's been everywhere and the only places he has been held up are Chicago and Toronto. South America: not super safe, but nothing that a little caution and paranoia with a healthy sense of adventure can't cure.
Here are ours-- nothing as scary as what we heard, but nothing that was as safe as we feel in Canada.
Imminent Danger:
We only really came across this a few times on our trip. While in Quito there was a drunken fight outside our hostel-- cops came running, bottles were broken. Not good. A few times in Rio while walking we were suddenly very aware that there were a lot of police and a lot of drunken/shady looking characters. In these cases being smart (ie: not going back to the hostel till things had calmed down and making sure to stay in well lit and safer looking areas) was the best option.
Catcalls:
There hasn't been one country on our trip where we didn't receive catcalls from the street. There was of course a range: from harmless (whistles and a hissing that I found to be pretty gross) to crude (touching, leering, rude comments). It didn't matter how we were dressed or who we were with. It happened everywhere. Unfortunately the best response to this is to ignore it. (Which 99% of the time I managed to do.) It was tiring to feel objectified and, because the guy doing the objectifying is bigger than you, which makes you vulnerable. Argh. Feels good to be back in Canada. One of the biggest culprits of all this is terrible hollywood movies where white girls are happy to take off their clothes off 3 scenes into being introduced, and then these movies are shown on public buses to the masses. Argh.
Purse Clutching:
One of the hardest things to adjust to while traveling is not to trust people and to actively be worried about how to keep all of your things safe. It's actually emotionally tiring to live like this, but time and time again you realize that you want to, but you just shouldn't. This means that while your walking on the street you are clutching your purse. When sharing a dorm you lock up your bags. It means sleeping with your passport and wallet under your pillow. While traveling we met a girl who had her ipod stolen from beside her while she slept and countless people who had been pick pocketed. So while it wears away at your state of mind, that bit of paranoia and worry is important to hold onto.
As 2 white, female tourists in their 20s, we made an obvious target. An yet, here we are, 4 months later, with yes, a lot catcalling frustrations but also a lot of stories of kindness of strangers, all of our possessions. (Except for a few things I lost along the way... that was my fault). Here are my quick tips for general safety while traveling.
-Be careful, smart, a little paranoid, and ready for the worst
- I would often wonder what "evil Joy" would do. Am I a broke backpacker who steals to get by? What looks easy?
-If an area seems sketchy, (painfully obvious poverty, being the only tourist) get out
-purse goes on your lap. Not in the ground, not the back of your chair. On your lap where you can see it.
- Trust your instinct. If you get a strange feel from a person or place-- find somewhere new. One crappy hostel we went to (Hostel Sweet Hostel in Iguzau Argentina: DO NOT GO) someone had snuck into our dorms, unlocked our bags, rifled through them, and then locked them again so we didn't notice. One girl had $40 stolen and another her ipod. Hostel staff seemed indifferent and were overall jerks. We left as soon as we could).
The best anecdote I have is that my Dad (a big guy, not easy to mess with) has said, he's been everywhere and the only places he has been held up are Chicago and Toronto. South America: not super safe, but nothing that a little caution and paranoia with a healthy sense of adventure can't cure.
home again home again
I am back in my apartment, typing on a computer (no offense iphone, you were nice, but typing with all my fingers wins over just my thumbs), listening to music I haven't heard in 4 months and I am enjoying the good things in life.
Such as:
-leaving my shampoo and conditoner in the shower
-not wearing flip flops in the shower
-a nice, clean, cozy bed
-delicious food
and of course seeing my family. So good to see them again--even if its around 0 outside and Southern Ontario in February is somewhat less scenic than Rio. It feels good to be home.
Such as:
-leaving my shampoo and conditoner in the shower
-not wearing flip flops in the shower
-a nice, clean, cozy bed
-delicious food
and of course seeing my family. So good to see them again--even if its around 0 outside and Southern Ontario in February is somewhat less scenic than Rio. It feels good to be home.
Tuesday, 21 February 2012
I love traveling, not airlines.
What to do when the people who checked you in for the Rio-Houston flight, did not also check you in to your Houston-Toronto flight, meaning you miss it by 10 minutes-- because you assume you'd make it and they'd page you, right? but they don't page you, because you aren't on any of their information- so you suddenly have 6 hours to fill before you can get on a plane?
You eat a very delicious eggs Benedict after wandering through the 5 terminals at the airport and play online scrabble using the wifi from the united lounge across from your waiting area.
One more hour yet.
You eat a very delicious eggs Benedict after wandering through the 5 terminals at the airport and play online scrabble using the wifi from the united lounge across from your waiting area.
One more hour yet.
Location:Houston, Texas
How sweet it is
South America has shown itself to be a lover of sugar. Our driver on the Salaar tour being the best example; the ratio for his cup of coffee was 1 part instant coffee, 6 parts sugar, 2 parts instant milk. delicious? Brazil is no exception and sweet things are easy to find. Case in point, the sweet views of Rio from Pao de Azucar (sugar loaf mtn).
...google image search it.... And apply the same additional people math as Christ the Redeemer, well, maybe a little less.
It was my last day on vacation and it was worth the line ups. The view was stunning. The harbor, the beaches, the city amidst sheer rock faces, bits of green in undeveloped places... It's one of the top 5 views for sure.
...google image search it.... And apply the same additional people math as Christ the Redeemer, well, maybe a little less.
It was my last day on vacation and it was worth the line ups. The view was stunning. The harbor, the beaches, the city amidst sheer rock faces, bits of green in undeveloped places... It's one of the top 5 views for sure.
Location:Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Samba!
no expensive seats for us at the sambadrome (scalpers were selling for 100$ or so); instead we had a great time walking around, checking out floats before they entered the 'drome. Then at the guesthouse I took photos of the tv.
Each float was usually led by a scantily and sparkly clad lady, followed by a hoard (the opposite of scantily clad) dancers surrounding a mind boggling float. The float often had a few more ladies on it, along with other dancers. Everyone sambas though the drome, which takes around 90 minutes. The samba-ing is smooth and it (from tv at least) almost looks like they are on a conveyor belt.
(The samadrome-- the glitter can be seen from space.)
We saw a few ladies like this (what a big... smile she has!)
but 90% of the dancers were clad in piles of polyester, sequins, faux fur, and random accessories.
Accessories include but are not limited to: camel heads, tennis balls, sheep, mesh, turbans, spears, giant fake flowers, frills, top hats, and ruffles. And usually at least 3 of these elements at the same time.
Maybe it's because I can't speak Portuguese, but some of the themes escaped my grasp of the word "theme"
(sheep + giant wheels of cheese + doughnuts?)
But all of the floats, while perhaps stretching the limits of the theme, were impressive.
(a dude walks next to the blue circle and spins it while everyone sambas around it-- trippy)
While walking around the next day we saw people assembling the floats. It is really quite impressive.
As was the whole spectacle.
(that giant tiger head moves!)
It was the carnival that you think of-- but with more polyester than you thought possible.
Each float was usually led by a scantily and sparkly clad lady, followed by a hoard (the opposite of scantily clad) dancers surrounding a mind boggling float. The float often had a few more ladies on it, along with other dancers. Everyone sambas though the drome, which takes around 90 minutes. The samba-ing is smooth and it (from tv at least) almost looks like they are on a conveyor belt.
(The samadrome-- the glitter can be seen from space.)
We saw a few ladies like this (what a big... smile she has!)
but 90% of the dancers were clad in piles of polyester, sequins, faux fur, and random accessories.
Accessories include but are not limited to: camel heads, tennis balls, sheep, mesh, turbans, spears, giant fake flowers, frills, top hats, and ruffles. And usually at least 3 of these elements at the same time.
Maybe it's because I can't speak Portuguese, but some of the themes escaped my grasp of the word "theme"
(sheep + giant wheels of cheese + doughnuts?)
But all of the floats, while perhaps stretching the limits of the theme, were impressive.
(a dude walks next to the blue circle and spins it while everyone sambas around it-- trippy)
While walking around the next day we saw people assembling the floats. It is really quite impressive.
As was the whole spectacle.
(that giant tiger head moves!)
It was the carnival that you think of-- but with more polyester than you thought possible.
Location:Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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