From 188 to Zero..

Writers Note: I meant to publish this yesterday but the Internet connection wasn't great sorry!!


Today is Tuesday and currently I am waiting to eat breakfast in a relaxed Bogota cafe named "El Gato Gris" which is located along the upper boundaries of the bohemian neighborhood of La Candelaria. The restaurant is completely empty except for myself, the rustling of activity of various chefs in the eateries' kitchen, a soft hum of Latin rock music that is emanating from a hidden stereo system, and an ocean of thoughts that are racing through my mind like a violent race of chariots.

At this very moment a pulsing sensation of vertigo is screaming like a faded trombone through my body because I can sense a cavernous cliff that is about to be jumped towards a destination that for the previous 188 days has felt like a land of unrealistic imagination. In three hours I will pack my belongings, hail a taxi to the Bogota International Airport, and board a flight towards quite possibly the most exotically foreign location that I have witnessed since seven months ago: Home.

For the majority of the trip it was easy to keep emotions about leaving South America stored away in the dusty attic of my conscious but with the scheduled time of departure creeping steadily closer its hard not to think about all of the impending changes that are about to commence. Alterations in scenery, perspectives, and culture will become a very relevant face once my first plane lands in Florida later in the afternoon to officially mark a touch down on North American soil. Seven months ago there was fear of the "unknown" and the idea of sinking into an ocean of uncertainty mixed with danger. At this very moment there there is fear mixed with heavy curiosity about returning to what once was "the known" and to see how seven months of hiatus effects relationships with friends and family. Despite this particular riddle that life will unfold I'm sure things will be alright.

The weekend leading up to today's exodus consisted primarily of reunions with a handful of very close friends whom I had met during various beginning stages of the trip. Dancing, restaurants, wandering, reconnecting with wonderful people and the exchanging of stories made the climactic days in Bogota a fantastically satisfying means of finishing the trip down South. Being here reminded me how lucky I have been to meet everyone who has entered my life since the original arrival in Bogota on August 21st and how friendship is one of life's treasures that should never be taken for granted.

As each ticking instant in Bogota fades away into the whirlpool of time the moment to bid a final farewell is walking down the driveway of life and about to press it's finger on the doorbell. As I descend towards home this blog will follow a similar trajectory but unlike me it will be eagerly waiting at the airport for the next grand adventure. I can't say when the next blog entry will be but it's bags are already packed and ready to see another corner of this wonderfully mysterious world.

For everyone who has ever glanced over this blog I want to sincerely thank you for taking time out of your day to read it. You might have read every entry since the page's donning, a single paragraph, or possibly just this exact sentence. However much or little you have read it doesn't matter because having the opportunity to write to you has been an honor and knowing that I have been graced with such wonderful people to share this experience with has been more important to me than the journey itself. I've been extremely fortunate to have experienced South America but even more blessed to have great people like you who have shown support just by clicking on the page. Thank you for being who you are and I sincerely hope that this blog was something you enjoyed reading because it was something that I truly loved writing.

If anyone wants any information concerning various locations in South America or how to plan for such a trip I would love to help in any way possible so please feel free to contact me. This journey started out for me as a dream and merely a spark of an idea that kept igniting its way back into my life even after large quantities of doubt made it seem impossible to accomplish. I was very fortunate in achieving this personal quest and hopefully this blog will give you motivation to strive towards your personal odyssey or to provide some form of light towards something you are yearning for. One thing I've learned from this trip is that life is too short to not do what makes you happy and to not follow that fire that is burning bright inside your heart. Take good care of yourself and let's follow our next dreams together :)

Love,

Daniel Bond Catena

Ending Where It Started

Today is Saturday and currently I am slowly taking in the flavors of a warm coffee beverage in the Quito International Airport. The weather outside is charmingly sunny with scattered dots of white clouds freckling around the Ecuadorian horizon. In exactly one hour I will pick up my personal sized backpack, an item that has been my companion for many months now, stroll towards a brightly illuminated departure gate, and board a plane destined for Bogota, Colombia.

I'm sipping my drink as slowly as possible because it is the last item I will purchase during my duration in Ecuador. Once this miniature paper cup filled with refreshingly smooth espresso and water is entirely consumed I will have completed the very final cycle of experiences that have taken place in this wonderful country. Glaring into the soul of this drink I notice that the beverage's tint shares the appearance of how it feels to leave Quito and all of the fantastic people who I have been fortunate enough to encounter here: Dark. However at the same time the taste that remains in my mouth after every gradual sip reminds me of how it felt to have lived, gotten lost, and been rediscovered here: Simply fantastic. I want this drink to stay in my hand forever but like all things there has to be an end where there once was a beginning.

Between sharing beers, shopping for pants, watching movies, dancing, and a lot of laughing the short yet sweet second duration of stay here in Quito was a very satisfying close to a special chapter in my trip. Limitless memories and scattered remnants of a wide variety of experiences will forever be engrained within the concrete foundations of this Ecuadorian city but more importantly they will remain something that keeps me smiling for the rest of my life. Some of the most interesting, hilarious, and sincere people whom I have ever met were encountered during my time here and to have an opportunity to see some of them again was truly a blessing. It's hard to bid farewell to such great people but inside I know that we will meet again somewhere else in the world and that our friendships will continue in one form or another.

Once in Bogota I will try to meet a handful of other close friends who were met during the infant stages of this seven month journey and to be with them again will be amazing yet deeply surreal. The concept of returning is like a heavy case of Deja-Vu because the Colombian capital city was the very first destination visited in what feels like generations ago however at the same time revisiting the original set now faded footprints of this lengthy tale of wanderings will feel like proper closure to a relationship that is nearing its timely climax. In seventy-two hours a final kiss to South America will send me packing on one last flight to the United States and soon afterwards the echoes of "goodbye" will be replaced with "hello" because there will be highly anticipated and needed reunions between loved ones back home.

As I type the final words of this blog post I realize that the cup once filled with coffee is now completely empty and that it's original contents are now a facet of my recollections. Having finished this warm serving of brew I take one final glance at the relic that remains in the palm of my hand to question whether buying it was a good decision. Was the flavor what I had hoped for? Should I have ordered a Cappuccino instead? Should I have added some milk and sugar? Placing it with love inside a nearby waste disposal bin I realize I'm kidding myself. It was the best damn cup of coffee I've ever tasted.

Quelcome Back Quito

Today is Wednesday and currently I am back in Quito, Ecuador enjoying a warm coffee near Plaza Fauch which is nestled within the tourist friendly neighborhoods of Miraflores. I spent three weeks in Quito nearly six months ago when enrolled in a Spanish Language School named Simon Bolivar and during this second stint of time I am staying in the same hostel as before, Vibes Backpackers, to see some close friends who are still working/living there.

This particular city is known for providing its citizens with an unpredictably diverse menu of daily changes in climate and at the moment there is an inviting taste of familiarity. Early phases of the morning were greeted with light rain showers followed by refreshing bursts of piercing sunlight, and currently a horde of dark grey clouds are beginning to consume the Ecuadorian capital's skyline like an invading act of nature.

I arrived in Quito yesterday afternoon to conclude a series of lengthy bus rides that originated in Chiclayo, Peru. After spending a little over a week visiting a very close friend in the northern Peruvian coastal city I hopped a bus to Tumbes on Monday afternoon then proceeded to cross the border into Ecuador at about three in the morning. The journey into Ecuador was extremely smooth despite the fact that it was extremely early and everyone was half-asleep. The gateway towards Quito was accomplished with a second bus from the massive port city of Guayaquil. Within minutes of exiting one bus I hastily boarded a second and finally 24 hours after departing Chiclayo my final destination was reached. This length of time might seem pretty harsh but in South America any bus trip that sits at less than 10 hours between locations feels like a warm Sunday morning brunch.

Quito is my second to last stop during this journey in South America and in three days I will return to the city where the foundations of the adventure took place:Bogota, Colombia. Returning to these locations feels very surreal because the person I was when I first arrived is definitely not who I am today. For one I now have a lot more experience in dealing with the various nuances of South American travel and additionally I have learned a great about myself plus about aspects of life in general. Living once again in Vibes feels like an episode of the Twilight Zone because the hostel is filled with entirely different faces and nearly every traveller in the facility is at the start of their Latin American adventure whereas I am on the cusp of returning home. Listening to people ask questions about various locations and express sensations of uncertainty towards future planning makes me feel like a weathered veteran waiting to finish a tour of duty while living in the barracks of freshly enlisted recruits.

It's exciting to see these people because it brings back memories of how life was only a short while ago and also because entirely new worlds are about to be opened for them and they don't even know it yet. It's also refreshing because I know in my heart it's time to come home, to see loved ones, to matriculate into the lifestyle that now feels like speedy flashes of once forgotten memories. Cheers to you newly arrived wanderers and treasure seekers, I've had my fun in this wonderfully enriching continent and now it's rightly time to pass you the torch :) Good night and good luck!

An Open Letter

Dear Peru,

You probably don't remember me but for the previous handful of months we have shared a very intimate relationship in a game of wanderer meets host country. I'm writing you this letter to say farewell and thank you for all of the memories that we have created together because within three days a bus will be boarded and our friendship will soon bare the harsh realities of long distances.

I came into your life on a pitch-black and brisk November evening after a strenuous border crossing through the desert tundras of southern Ecuador. A crowded collectivo van shuttled me from Tumbes to Mancora and within minutes of setting foot on your soil the vehicle sped off into the invisible abyss while still carrying my sleeping bag and a pair of hiking shoes still attached to its roof. These weren't the only items that your country has taken from me: Sandals got taken from boardwalk salsa bar in Mancora, a favorite shirt got ripped to shreds during an accident in Puno, a night of dancing led to a stolen hoodie then a sweater on two separate occasions in Cusco, and additionally a bank card got clumsily forgotten in a Lima ATM. Books ranging from Lonely Planets to children's literature in Spanish were left behind as tributes within your hostels, your busses, and your park benches with hopes that another wandering traveler would find a new use for them. Everything that was lost, stolen, or forgotten during the course o our friendship is all worth the experiences that we have shared together. They are my homage to your wonderful lands and your beautiful culture and for every item that has changed ownership there now sits in its place a memory that I will proudly remember for the rest of my life.

You have made me happy, sad, terrified, furious, curious, excited, shameful, shameless, and thankful over the past series of months, sometimes all in the span of minutes. Together we have seen sunsets along coastal paradises, stumbled home at sunrise after a night of dancing, fallen asleep when others were waking up. tasted the best and worst food of our lives, been crammed in a Cumbia blaring bus like fish ready for sale, wandered endless street corners in search of Internet cafes, trusted strangers with more than should be admitted, purchased delicious food from vibrantly colored markets, tasted dishes with confusing names, got introduced to future life-long friends, had a deep conversation that lasted only sixty seconds, had conversations about nothing that lasted for hours, played games of chicken with speeding taxis, pretended to understand lengthy conversations with fast-talking locals, been offered candy, offered drugs, offered rides, cut in lines, gotten completely lost, laughed with newly made friends, yelled at newly made opponents, cried in happiness, cried in sadness, but most of all we LIVED.

Thank you Peru for sharing your culture, people, and world with me it was a whirlwind ride and a complete honor getting to know you. I wouldn't trade a single instant of our relationship for anything and hopefully we are both better people from our time spent together. This farewell is not permanent, I will return maybe as a traveler but hopefully as a resident because no matter where we both are in the future you will always have a special place in my heart. Take really good care of yourself and please remember to brush your teeth after dinner :)

Love,

Danny Catena

P.S. Please import Goldfish crackers for the next time I visit your killing me...

Coastal Getaways with Colca Cola and Lima Slices

Today is Monday and at the moment I have just arrived in Chiclayo to see a very good friend and stay with her family for a few days. There has yet again been a heavy gap of time between now and the prior blog post and for that please accept my sincerest apologies. I have been really fortunate in finding free accommodation over the past few weeks but this doesn't guarantee that Internet will be easily accessible.

The family of my friend was kind enough to welcome me into their home for a second stint of time (I first visited Chiclayo in mid January) as I make my way North which is great because they provide fantastic company and even better home-cooked meals :) More farewells and hellos await me which has become increasingly bittersweet especially since the final resting place for the trip in creeping closer with each passing day. After receiving my second dosage of Chiclayo for a few days I will bid a sad farewell to Peru and trek further north into Ecuador to enjoy the final few legs of this journey which is within short distance of reaching a duration of seven months.

The weather today is nice and overcast which is a comfortable transition from the uncomfortably hot temperatures that accompanied my stay in Trujillo. Before Chiclayo I spent 5 days between Trujillo and Huanchaco to see another great friend whom I met through Couchsurfing last January. The majority of the time there was spent watching cheesy bridal movies dubbed in Spanish but overall it was nice to be back but even harder to say goodbye because Trujillo has become one of my favorite cities in this journey. Reality of life after vacationing used to feel like a gush of gentle breeze but now winds are roaring and preparations for storms of responsibility are taking inventory.

I found myself back in Trujillo last Wednesday morning after boarding a night bus that originated in the capital city of Lima. This is a very condensed city that fills pedestrians ears with the sounds of speeding comvi busses while still offering the leisures of breathtaking ocean sunsets. With a population hovering at about nine million inhabitants Lima is surprisingly a very pleasant place to stay and can provide travelers with a wide range of activities. I spent two weekends ago in the bustling metropolis primarily to visit a handful of very close friends that I had met during prior moments of the trip. On Friday some very cool people named Melody and Lizeth joined me at a bar called "Botika" located in the beautiful Miraflores district in order to meet a large group of other Couchsurfers for drinks and fun conversations. The following Saturday consisted of reconnecting with a great buddy named John whom I met four months ago in Quito and two other former co-workers from Cusco, Nayla and Stefan, for some dancing at a club called "El Dragon". It was a fun coincidence to see so many familiar faces and combining this with Lima a meeting place made for a weekend that I feel very lucky to have experienced. Parting ways for maybe but hopefully not the last time with these extraordinary people was very difficult but in my heart I know that we are all meant to be friends forever. If anyone is looking for a chilled out backpackers hostel that has a cosy atmosphere then "Ekekos" is a recommendation and Juan Miguel who works there is hilarious.

Before Lima I was fortunate to have taken a two day tour of Colca Canyon which is a massive mountainous valley that is peppered with a series of tiny villages winding a few hours away from Arequipa. This time of year is quite rainy within the Peruvian mountainous regions and this provided a vividly green series of landscapes for our group who embarked on the tour. The trip was unfortunately filled with scarce amounts walking but nevertheless very worthwhile because it was enjoyed with some interesting people from various parts of the world such as Poland and Brazil. Colca offers travelers an endless assortment of stunning sights at a very reasonable price compared to Machu Pichu or other natural wonders of Peru. The final days in Arequipa once the tour of Colca had been completed consisted of hanging out with Barbara, the Couchsurfing friend who hosted me, and her family plus going out to a bar called Deja Vu with people who were visiting the city during the same stretch of time. Arequipa is a beautiful place to see in Peru and sorely will be missed.

Writing this blog post I realize that the number of remaining entries for this story are becoming severely limited because the trail towards home is shorter with each passing day. March 27 is the official day when I touch back down into San Francisco and its shocking how quickly moments in time have passed by. On March 26th a plane will send me from Bogota, Colombia to Fort Lauderdale, Florida then over to Los Angeles and finally to the City by the Bay. From the moment of final landing I frankly have no idea what life will bring or what kind of new experiences and tests are waiting but this is why life is do damn beautiful. Thank you for reading this blog it's been my pleasure writing you.