Explorers 3.0

Special Joint Post: Happy New Year!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 07 Jan 2016 18:28:00 +0000

Happy New Year from Di & Will

From Di:
The last day of this amazing year was spent relaxing, talking, swimming, making some decisions and dealing with a migraine that haunted me last couple days.

I can't forget how thankful I have to be for 2015. I'm exploding gratitude. This is a year I don't want to forget. A year where I faced a freedom I've never experienced before. A year full of challenges that I want to tell my grandchildren. A year that I ticked many boxes in my bucket list. I know how privileged I am. Thank you.

The first day of 2016 started with a little party, wishes, phone calls, raspberry jam in crackers and it will be packed with changes, some unknown, loads of love, peace, happiness and gratitude. Wishes.

I wish you all an extraordinary 2016, full of adventures, health, happiness, love and peace. And if you can, loads of traveling. Because there is something about traveling that can range from the trivial to the transcendental or from the unpleasant to the wonderful. Whatever it is, traveling will qualify for lifetime memories that get in your skin and in your body, forever. May 2016 begin!

From Will:
As proper explorers, we set our selves in multiple journeys throughout the year. Some in search of love, of life, of fun, of adventure, of peace of mind, of body relaxation or even in search of nothing. Just to be on the move. Here's one of my favorites.

The Saint James Path /Caminho de São Tiago. Our first journey of the year and what an adventure it was! We walked 120km from Valença do Minho, Portugal to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. It was the hardest physical thing I ever done in my life and I'm extremely thankful to have done it with my girlfriend. We were always there for each other to carry the weight, to share our most intimate stories, to talk about the future and our expectations. To care for each other when health was an issue. It was a very symbolic journey because it represented the year ahead but also our life ahead as husband and wife. One week after we finished the journey, we got married. And for all that I'm grateful.

2015 was such an amazing year that I have no words to describe it. Actually, I would have too many words to do so, enough to write a small book. I'll continue writing my memories on this blog and maybe one day I'll print all posts and paste them together and call it a book. How could I ask for more than this year? I fell a bit ashamed to ask for such thing considering what we just lived. Am I worth the privilege and the blessing? I have done my part of the deal but the biggest was given to me by chance. But on this trip I learned to never be afraid to dream big and follow your heart. Old clichés, I know, but like so many others of the same kind, I can finally grasp the power of the true meaning that they carry. So, without any shame or fear, I wish that 2016 will be an even better year for us and for you than 2015 was! And for all that I'm grateful.

Hiking with friends in Bariloche!

Salve Salve El Salvador

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 20 Nov 2015 16:41:00 +0000

Many times in our travels we faced indecisions. Some big but mostly small. Who has never blocked with a menu in your hands facing fifty different choices for lunch while the waiter waits pen and paper in hand ready to take your order just to be sent away and come back in two more minutes? It's a trivial thing but too many choices and options can overwhelm us. Too many choices can even be a paradox! And this is actually one of most tiresome things about traveling long term. Well, we were facing another of those decision blockages and the topic was going to El Salvador. We wanted to go but were not sure. There were many options for us to get there, a long bus ride from Guatemala City, an expensive flight from Cancun. Where to stay so that the transport connections were easy. What to do once we were there. It usually takes us a couple of hours of research, looking for the details and trying out several scenarios to come up with a satisfying decision. Some times we have to set it aside and sleep over it, to let our subconscious think over it while we rest our conscious minds. We were in Cancun's Airport after coming back from Cuba and did a big price research for tickets to our possible destinations. In the end it was more economic to fly from Cancun to Guatemala City, spend a night there and take an early bus to San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador.

El Salvador is the home country of a couple very good friends of ours so they gave us great tips on what to do and some contacts of friends to meet there. The country has famous beaches for surfing and Di and I wanted really badly to try some surf lessons. But the central american country is also famous for its violence and insecurity. If you do a quick Google search online on the country a torrent of nasty news and statistics can flood and wash off anyone's enthusiasm. Things get real while traveling around Central America and in El Salvador it was going to get as real as it could get. Can you feel the adrenaline rising?

First stop, San Salvador! Big messy capital city like many others. Nothing special about the city itself. There were only a few scratched gems to be savored: the most chaotic and messy city center that I've seen in Central America, comparable to South-East Asian countries. It was so terrible that it deserves this special mention because it set the bar a little lower so that is that. I also bought a stolen BlackBerry Z10 from the street market so I could do some app development. Hey, I didn't know it was stolen! There are tons of stands selling old used phones, I was genuinely fooled. On the positive side, still on the hell-center, Iglesia El Rosario an exquisite church, disappointingly ugly from the outset but with one the coolest interpretations of the Passion of Christ I've ever seen and colorful windows. Also great was the hostel we stayed in with a great kitchen so we took advantage of it and cooked our own dinner most nights. Seriously … this was a big highlight! Nothing like cooking your own simple meal after months of just eating in restaurants and cafés. It was a quite relaxing stay. And to top it all, we met with the sister of our good friend! She and her boyfriend took us to see the big volcano close to the city and to some awesome restaurants. We finished the night with a nice dinner in a small typical neighborhood. Having local company is great for going to the sweet special spots in a city, what to eat, the local stories and their personal thoughts on their environment. They even took us to eat Pupusas, a typical dish from Central America, which was delicious. Thanks a lot Celina, Paulina and Eugenio. Next, we headed to the beach.

Doing my thing at the El Salvador Monument

Swarms of pigeons on old City Center Square!

At the crater of the Boquerón volcano crater with our local friends

The genuine church El Rosario

The city's coat of arms

Plaza Futura, a modern complex of offices, square and entertainment

After a three hour long trip on chicken buses full of people and other miscellaneous cargo we arrived at El Tunco, a beautiful beach and surfer's village, very touristic and specially popular with Israelis. Tiny and unapologetically quiet. I could feel time passing by lazily, the breeze gently blowing and the sun slowly warming up everything. Just the waves seemed out of sync with the vibe of the place since they were vigorous and frequent. The beach in El Tunco was unique to me because it had many many loose rocks, rounded and smooth by the constant grinding. You could hear the grumbling sound of hundreds of rocks rolling around whenever a wave hit the sand. Uber relaxing sound the harmony between rock, water and sand.

The big volcanic rock formation at El Tunco beach

The rocks and waves forming sound in perfect harmony

One really early morning we started our first surfing class. Our excitement fueled our motivation but we were not really prepared for the intensity of the sport. In theory basic surfing is really simple. It takes only 5 minutes on the sand to learn all the basics of it! Now just do it on the water at the right time. I think I've never felt so out of shape in my whole life. Just paddling to the good spot was exhausting. Finding your balance on the board, and mind you it was a huge board for beginners, requires a lot of energy and some leather skin on the knees is a good bonus. After 45 minutes of intense exercise, a few glasses of salt water drunken, some rock bumping and half a wave surfed we were done. Completely done! So yeah … mission accomplished! It was hard but a lot of fun too. We headed to Playa San Blas, an even smaller surfer town close by, to continue with our training and some hardcore chilling. All my muscles were aching after surfing.

Surf class about to start. Quite easy and simple... on the sand

Exhausted smiles after the surf class :)

Out of the few places to stay in San Blas one really struck a chord in our hearts: Surf Strong. A nonprofit full surf school and hostel. It provides with free surfing classes for local kids. A personal project of Sarah, an inspiring young woman from US, and Jerson, a local surfer and entrepreneur. We stayed there a couple of days, mingled with other travelers and helped the staff with some shores, we joined the local kids surfing class and even appeared on the local TV News as they were filming a short feature of the school. These days we learned so much with Sarah and the school. How simple things are so hard to accomplish even when you're trying to do good for free, not seeking any profit. How people with a dream and a strong will can overcome any barrier, personal one or bureaucratic. Most of all, how the most beautiful happiness are the few ones found in the middle of a battle to fulfill ones dreams. Specially when it's about giving other happiness.

But not everything were perfumed roses. The hostel was pretty basic, recommended for the hardened traveler. For instance, during the six months of the dry season all they have is brackish water. So taking a shower is salty also brushing your teeth. They do buy gallons of filtered water used exclusively for cooking and drinking. No private rooms yet and bathrooms were just usable. Like I said, for the hardened traveler. But I guarantee you, the experience you'll get is extremely rewarding. Make sure to make the most of it and volunteer for a few days or weeks. Sarah regularly needs an extra hand so don't be shy.

More surf practice. This time it was much easier!

Local community kids getting ready for class

Local TV crew filming the action

Sarah, the founder, loves what she does and she's awesome!

We only stayed a week in El Salvador and we got more than what we wanted. Definitely it had many more wonderful things to offer but we couldn't enjoy them. And all that danger that the news covered? Well, we definitely saw a lot of dodgy places and people. We took a lot of precaution and thankfully nothing bad happened to us. So if you want to visit the country just be careful and keep your eyes open, specially in the old city center of San Salvador, that most probably nothing will bad happen to you.

We gathered our memories, pictures and feelings – all the good and the bad – and waved good bye. Digesting all these intense experience reminded us of how worthy it is to be living our dream. To that I invite to you to raise your glass and cheers!

Where are you now? Where have you been?

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Tue, 06 Oct 2015 14:54:00 +0000

We had a lot of people asking us the same questions, over and over again.
Where are you? Where were you before Philippines? What's next?

I don't blame you at all - I would have done exactly the same. We had a sort of fixed route between February and July but we changed it many many but so many times that yes it's confusing, even for me. This post is supposed to help everyone.

In order to help and influence other travelers but mainly to keep track of our own trip, we have been using a travel planner tool called Goosit.

Goosit in Halong Bay

Focused in the backpackers niche but not restrict, in its essence Goosit will help you plan a trip by offering you suggestions on what to do and showing you how to get there, by estimating the total costs of your trip and my favorite part is the fact that Goosit allows you to invite friends to participate in the planning! Are you curious to know how Goosit works? Watch this helpful video!

If you enjoy stats as much as I do, I'm sure you will also have fun with the information that Goosit compiles for you such as your costs per country, how many cities you have visit and how many Km you have travelled so far.

Are you curious to know where we have been in Asia? Check out our 3.0 Asia plan.

Are you curious to know what we did when we moved to the Americas? Check the 3.0 North And Central Americas and the current the SurAmerican plan.

As I write this post we are preparing to move on and continue exploring South America so our plan is not a real plan, or at least in the real term of a plan. Our plan is more of an unfinished book, that is constantly changing and in the writings.

I follow a blogger, an ex-lawyer, that quit her job to travel 7 years ago. Yes, Jodi is currently traveling for astonishing 7 YEARS! I have no intentions of doing that, (relax mom!!!) but I recently found this post where she talks about her ride and how she feels about the "What's next?" question.
I couldn't relate more.

"When people ask me what’s next I usually say “I don’t know”. Because I don’t.

Because we rarely do anyhow, but when we choose a life that is so flexible, we know even less. All we have instead is the bag that is with us, the shoes on our feet, and the brainpower that pushes us to be what we want to be."

Legal Nomads, April 2015

Happy Goosit planning, everyone!

Venezuela was So Much

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Tue, 06 Oct 2015 14:49:00 +0000

Last month was my Dad's 64th anniversary. “Ah wait, What? 64?”, I asked myself - ten times. I mentally subtracted the years and the age difference of my parents – multiple times. When I spoke with him, he told me joking “I’m turning 46, what do you mean?”. Yes, I'm not confused he is really 64. Even though my Dad is not travelling with us, he has been an important piece of this puzzle, of my travels, of my adventurous blood. He is the reason of my appreciation for the ones who leave everything behind and go, hunting for more. He is the reason why we went to Venezuela during our round the world trip.

When he was 14, 1951+14, his Mother and 6 brothers left a tiny little place in Portugal and joined his patriarch in Venezuela. He left Portugal illegally and after 10 days on a boat journey they arrived in Caracas. Back in the times the main motivation for immigration was already economic, adding up, a deep and long dictatorship and an imminent military service for the portuguese colonial war.

Work was a priority. That's what he did when he arrived in Caracas. Surrounded by an environment of entrepreneurs, family businesses and hardworking he became his own boss at a young age. In one of his rare visits to Portugal he met my Mom, they collected a bag full of love-letters, exchanged across the ocean, and they got married in his late 20s, 1951+28, in Portugal. They decided they would live in Portugal and after wrapping up in Venezuela, my Dad returned. It was time to start all over again, 1951+32.

My dad used to tell us the stories, show us pictures of his favourite places, pictures of family but we never really understood what was it like to live and work in Venezuela all those years. My mom never went to Venezuela and until recently that was the case to me and my sister. Yes, my sister joined us this August in Caracas. We gladly can say we went, we saw it, we took pictures, we now understand it (him) a little better.

Few of the same-kind-blood, that first arrived in Venezuela even before my Grandfather, never came back to Portugal. When we arrived we were welcomed by a family-crew that made our time in Venezuela unforgettable. They were with us all the time, caring for us, protecting us, helping us making dreams come true. I can't even think how it would have been without them. Thank you, all of you! Thanks to the Miami-family, even far away, they did it again <3!

Caracas is located in a valley and it's hectic, noisy, polluted but fascinating. As it has always been to me. From the window of the 15th floor´s we could see Mount Avila, an imposing mountain that separates the city from the Caribbean Sea and shapes most of the city’s landscape. That same window presented us the packed streets, crowded highways and the uphill neighborhoods, one morning the echo of gun shots coming from those sides were clearly audible. From the same window, a little bit to the right, Chavez's banners were unwelcoming visible too. In our adventures in the city we walked through Quinta Crespo, my Dad´s old neighborhood. We hunted for the famous Ungria, the shop where his dry-cleaning business started. We gladly ate loads of arepas, typical corn-flour bread, and we poorly made them. The stories my sister and I heard all our life couldn't be more truthful.

Venezuela is a beautiful country. With a unique and diverse nature, 40% of its territory is protected area, from beach to mountain, from rainforest to a (mini)desert. It also hosts the world's highest waterfall, Salto Angel in its extraordinary 978m high. Deep in Canaima's National Park it took us 12h bus ride from Caracas to Puerto Ordaz, 1h airplane to Canaima, 4h ride in a curiara (motorized canoe) and finally 1h hike to arrive in the most accessible part of the falls. Swimming in the small pool that forms below it was rewarding and hard to get to.

Don't be fooled by the beauty, Venezuela is unfortunately dangerous. One lives concerned, worried most of the time: your phone, your wallet, your clothes, your shoes, your life. As my father tells, around 1951+26 what was supposed to be a family weekend outside of Caracas' outskirts became an experience of survival. My Dad, his brother, uncle and cousin were robbed, kidnapped and their car hijacked. After hours of driving with no clear direction, the bandits dropped them in the middle of a pitch dark Venezuelan jungle. They thought they were going to be "shot and left to the crows", but no violence was used and they were just left behind, unharmed. Their next challenge was to find their way back, and walked for hours reaching eventually the closest pueblo, safely. Economically, the explosive and powerful country that my Dad once lived and spoke about is nowadays in imminent collapse. The economy is weak, drained, exhausted. International companies are retracting investment, (hyper)inflation is pushing small business owners to shut the door, the supermarkets lack basic products, the tourists come visit less and less. The current exchange rate is a total joke - in the black market 100 BsF, the largest country's bill, was worth 14cents of a dollar at the time. The legislative elections upcoming December (if they occur) are, to many, the last opportunity they have to hope for a change. Many, though, are already hopeless.

Venezuela is the beauty and the beast. The incredible extraordinary nature. The potential. The family history. The endurance and fear in the future. The absence of political sovereignty. The terrible economic vision and strategy. All so hard to balance and accept. Venezuela's dualities makes my chest hurt.

Eventually I realized with this trip, 1985+30, a deeper and important side of myself. With no intentions of doing so, all these years I've been ignoring a crucial side of my father's life. I realize now how influenced he was by the many years of that south american way-of-life. That Venezuela inspired his entrepreneurship and his family-business mindset. His constant fight for more and better, the ambitious and risky decisions he takes in nowadays, have been urged by many years of daring. It took me long to know the Venezuela from nowadays, by myself. But this Venezuela ignited my consciousness and respect. Now, I know (a little) better. I know that my Dad is aging, I know I'm greatly proud of his story and I'm so thankful of all he teaches me. I´m so intensively grateful.

“Sooner or later , that moment should arrive for most adult children: the startling realization that the father or mother aged.” Lionel Shriver, So Much for That

Few words to Cuba

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Tue, 06 Oct 2015 14:48:00 +0000

I've been trying to write about Cuba for a long time now without success. I'm not quite sure if it's because of the duality I felt while moving around but it has been very hard for me to express my feelings about the Caribbean Island. Perhaps it's because it was just so...Everything was just so different! The decay of beautiful buildings, the amount of people lining up for milk or bread, the highly educated people we met, the lack of opportunities they have, the buzzing street nightlife, the music, the rum, the beautiful blue sea, the many happy people and their smiles, the heatwave that never went away or the mini-tiny supermarkets with empty shelves.

I was blown away by the country but when was time to leave I found myself happy, deeply relief, that I was able to do so.

I feel puzzled. While I'm trying not to forget all I experienced and at the same time expressing it somehow, I decided to say less about Cuba and instead let the photos do the talking for me.

Havana

My favorite moment of the day was when the sun was about to set and everyone was coming outside. The chit-chat between neighbors, the vendors calling for some additional pesos, the kids playing barefoot. The street life in Havana was truly unique and inspiring!

Paseo del Prado footballers

Classics in Havana

At the back, El Capitolio, currently under renovations.
Built 103 years after the Capitol in Washington, the Cuban building used to be the house of the Government until the 59´s Cuban revolution. As a fun fact, like our proud guide mentioned to us, El Capitolio´s dome is 3,7m (12feet) taller than the American version.

Due to decades without maintenance many buildings in Havana are decaying and deteriorating, as this one even though we found a city in reconstruction as a result of UNESCO´sponsored programs. Tourism and the increase of demanding tourists has been pointed as an important reason for the shift in mindset.

From the 12 days we were in Cuba, we only stayed in Casas Particulares - private houses licensed to host tourists. This is Centro Havana, the neighborhood we stayed. A very convenient location, easy to walk anywhere.

La Bodeguita Del Medio is a very famous restaurant-bar in Old Havana.
Back in the 40´s this was the only bar that was not located in a street-corner and therefore it was named the bar in the middle by one the its many famous personalities/customers.

Old Havana packed with tourists and young artists. The former seeking a shade from the flaming sun and the later a small extra coin.

The '59 Revolution's leader respected and adored by all.

With 72000 square meters the Plaza de la Revolución is surrounded by the National library and many government ministry buildings. This Che Guevara tribute is the Ministry of Interior building, where once he worked as a member of the United Party of the Cuban Socialist Revolution, PURSC.

In Havana is still all about Revolution. Always. Maybe it will be forever.

Sunset in the Malecón, a seaside walk connecting Centro Havana and Old Havana.

"Do you want to meet more Cubans? Just walk the Malecon in the evening, that's where we go for fun", told us our great guide Juan Carlos.

The view from our casa particular, a 17th floor apartment in Centro Havana.
A city representing the country - fighting to open the doors and at the same time keep its identity.

Cienfuegos, Trinidad, Santa Clara and Varadero

Cienfuegos main square. A peaceful seaport city with beautiful historical buildings but little to do and see.

Cuban Carnival in Trinidad.
The cobblestone streets, the colorful colonial buildings and the nature close by make Trinidad a charming city to stay for few days.

A steam engine train travels the distance between Trinidad and Valle dos Engenios almost everyday.
Havana looked like a paradise compared with the conditions some people lived in Trinidad´s countryside.

Los Ingenios Valley, the center of sugar production from the 18th century until late 19th.
We took the picture from the top of the Manaca Ignaza tower, after a 136 steps climb and a much needed rest.

The Manaca Ignaza tower was built to observe and control the slaves working in the sugarcane fields.

Santa Clara was an important base for the ´59 Revolution and there are many, many Revolution's points to visit across the city. This is Che Guevara's Monument and Mausoleum.

Varadero is the Cancún of Cuba. Resorts, all inclusive deals, catamarans and yachts, luxurious villas and a lot of tourists.
Do not expect to see the real Cuba in Varadero but it worth to see the deep blue sea of the Caribbean.

I know that I still did some talking about Cuba, but I guess that´s it. Go and see it by yourself, I'm sure we can talk about it after.

Explorers & Pirates Tales - Part I

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 27 Aug 2015 18:18:00 +0000

One of the things Di and I wanted for our trip was some degree of flexibility. To be able to just go wherever the wind blows and suddenly find an old pirate's map and stick to it until we find the “X” and get the treasure. If you allow me to entertain you, and myself, with some fantasy I'll tell you our unplanned adventure around Central America all the way to Cuba. All of course with the most emblematic theme of the Caribbean: Pirates! Are you ready? Let's go!

After 4 long days of walking through the jungle, the Missionaries of San Isabel reached the base of the mighty Pacaya volcano. They were a caravan of 30 people, mostly priests from the Spaniard convent of Madrid and some guards. A few adventurers and merchants came along in search of promising thrill and business opportunities. Among them there was a couple of explorers, William & Diana, traveling the new world in search of its wonders. The caravan had to stop for a day by the foot of the mountain to replenish its supplies and then continue their journey to Antigua, the colony's new capital.

Meanwhile, the explorers wanted to seek a little more adventure while the caravan didn't resume the journey in the very next morning. Will & Di had read about that place beforehand and knew exactly on what kind of quest they wanted to venture and its name is Pacaya, a magnificent mountain which regularly spits ash clouds into the sky. Recently, in a once-in-a-life-time event, blazing lava flowed through its crater making it one of the most dangerous places around. The flowing magma was the powerful heat source that the explorers needed to finally show to the world one of their most amazing discoveries: rock melted marshmallows. The climb up to the top was going to be hard and they could not afford to miss the Missionaries Caravan company to Antigua. They went looking for a local that could be hired to guide them into the crater, but their luck was changing as fast as the wheather around this parts of the world often does.

Big dark thick clouds gather around blocking the view of the top of the mountain. The indigenous tell them that this is a sign that Huracan, the storm God, is coming to the mountain and advise to stay out of the way. None of the indigenous would go up, and once the storm comes and goes, there would be no more magma rocks hot enough to melt their marshmallows. In the middle of the conversations and pleadings for help, two pirates that overheard the commotion approached the explorers with a proposal: they would take them to the crater no matter the weather as long as they got some of the so called unique delicacy and some gold.

The pirates looked promising: both young and strong women with odd features and sun tanned skin. Both spoke English and their accent was unmistakably from England even tough the pirate ways tainted their speech with the most egregious blasphemies. William was specially skeptical, as usual, considering that one of the pirates, Sal, had a wooden leg. The explorers didn't have any other options and the signs of a storm were getting clearer by the minute. Hastily they made an agreement, took only the essential gear for a fast hike and upwards they went.

The way up was steep and covered in fresh volcanic ashes. Some indigenous were preparing altars with offerings to the thunder god. The pirates started talking about their lives. Sal told them that her foot had rotten in one day after a sand stingray stung her while fishing on the beach. The sting ripped her leather boots and her skin like butter and the poison was so painful that she was glad when Shireen, the other pirate which happens to also be a self-taught practitioner, sawed it off. Plus, she drank all the Guatemalan run she could manage, for free. Shireen had the most treacherous eyes, a look that is mesmerizing and fierce at the same time. Her eyes were big and oak in color with black eyeliner around them. A trait typical of the dry hot mountainous parts of the middle east called Kurdistan that no longer exist. A war extinguished her home country so she fled her city, at a young age, and never stopped. She eventually ended up at the shore, where she came across and joined a pirate boat almost by accident, but quickly learned the ways of the sea and burglary. Sal was from the British Colony, India, son of rich merchants that lost it all due to the ruthless greed of the empire. Moved by rage and vengeance she swore to recover her family's riches by stealing from the British crown, so piracy was an easy decision. Both ended up hired by the Dutch pirate Laurens de Graaf and stormed the Caribean towns and waters for a few years until a hurricane destroyed the ship. The only survivors where the Captain and the two girls. Since there's very little honor code in this business, they just walked away from the ruined ex-captain. Now the duo is looking for a promising pirate captain to take them back to the sea.

They had no idea what time of the day it was, but a couple of hours had passed since they started walking when they reached the first viewpoint. They were at the lowest side of the crater. From there they couldn't see the peak as it was even more covered with dark stormy clouds but they could clearly see their way down to the mouth of the mountain. And there, lying peacefully, were thousands of fresh magma rocks still steaming. They could easily see the melted rocky formations from the last magma eruption a few days ago and knew that those were deadly grounds. Melted magma cools off in a matter of hours but just on the surface, creating a crust that's only a few centimeters thick that looks like solid rock. Many have stepped on these crust just to break trough it and fall in a pool of melted magma, but just a few survived to tell the story and show their scorched limbs. A huge thunder shook the skies and the first drops of rain started to fall over the crater. The four hikers started going down the hill as fast as they could, trying to reach the hot rocks on time.

When they reached the bottom, the rain was pouring and, as the water hit the warm rocks, it evaporated, filling the mouth of the mountain with a warm mist that condensed on William's glasses. They were walking around the rocky paths for almost half an hour looking for a really hot spot when Sal's wooden leg fell trough the crust of a magma deposit and almost fell in if it wasn't for Diana holding her on time. The hole on the crust was the perfect spot they needed. William took some marshmallows from his backpack while Diana gathered a few wooden sticks from the floor and sharpened them with a knife. William stuck a marshmallow piece into the stick and slowly lowered it inside the burning hole. In a few seconds, he took it back out and there it was, a perfectly melted marshmallow, with a light caramel color almost melting off the stick. He offered the first piece to Diana, who took a bite, and gave the other to him. It was scrumptious! An ordinary marshmallow tasted so much better when quickly melted by the fresh magma. Sal and Shireen started doing the same. All of them were soaked and laughing, eating one marshmallow after the other.

William was trying to write some notes on his notebook when he realized that the storm was only getting worse. The water was quickly rolling in to the crater threatening to trap them on the inside and making them miss the Missionary convoy. They had to get out promptly. They gathered their gear, stuffed a few more melted marshmallows in their pockets and mouths and started going up. It was a very hard, slow climb. When they were almost at the top a lighting struck an old tree just a few hundred meters away from them on the top of the crater's border. They were dazed for a few seconds by the explosion of sound and light. After a few more minutes of arduous walking they finally reached the burning remains of the tree but had no time to waste so they started running down back to the camp through the jungle. The pirates were leading, guiding them down the same path as they had just come up but the it had turned into a small white water river due to the storm. Going down was easier than going up so they ran most of the way. The storm was still fierce. Thunder and lighting constantly illuminated the dark skies and dazzled their senses. At some point they ran through some kind of indigenous ceremony and a few of them started running along with in the rain, smiling and shouting to their thunder God. The four of them noticed that they were also euphoric, smiling constantly. It was truly an unforgettable moment.

They reached their camp at the bottom of the mountain in one piece but completely soaked. In a small pouch Diana was carrying some of the melted marshmallows that remained dry and delicious. She ate one and gave the others to the little native kids that were always around them. After a few minutes of uncertainty and hesitation the kids finally bit their marshmallows, quickly they changed their minds and devoured them. In the meantime, William was talking with Shireen and Sal, asking for directions to a lake close by named Atitlan. From a trunk full of rolled parchments, Sal took one out and handed it to William. It was a hand-drawn map of the region. She drew a route to the lake on the map and wrote down a few important tips. William & Diana thanked both pirates, bought the map and said good bye. The party of four disbanded in good terms, but Diana had a feeling that they would see each other again. The explorers left the next day with the missionary Spaniard caravan to Antigua. The rain only stopped two days later.

At the crater of Pacaya Volcano with rain pouring down

Enjoying the "beautiful" view of the volcano =P

That's it! More pirate adventures await for us, the explorers, so stay tuned. Next stop: Lake Atitlan.

Cheers!

A day volunteering in Antigua, Guatemala

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 14 Jul 2015 18:58:00 +0000

I wake up at 06:20, early enough to skip the bathroom line and smell the coffee boiling in the kitchen. Quickly I dress my new rough denim jeans and synthetic t-shirt that I got by participating on the beneficial run on a Sunday. They are still dirty and smelly from the work days before. I leave my boots for last to avoid messing up Thelma's ceramic floor. She's our host mom, our “Guatemama”, and it's busy in the kitchen, like usual, preparing breakfast. It has everything I love for eating in the morning: fresh tropical fruits, granola, fruit yogurt, filtered black coffee and some omelet. Thelma's short and large lady, she's always caring for her big family and it's usually smiling. She's the matriarch, everybody loves and respects her, including me.

Beautiful old colonials houses everywhere

My last day of work

Me and the guys from Niños Con Bendicion

When I'm done eating my breakfast Diana and the other roommates start coming and sitting on the table. I saw a few people coming and going, from all kind of backgrounds. There were two girls fresh into University. A family of six – yes, six. Mom, dad, two daughters, a youngest boy and even a friend-nanny, I'll tell more about them soon. The only girl not from the US, from Amsterdam, and briefly her dutch friend. A medical researcher guy. A student of some kind of medical subject that I never quite understood. From Hawaii, a couple and their young boy. A blond women with stylish haircut and glasses looking like an artist with some amazing life stories. A group of five young girls still at high school. Some of them met each other in the house, others left before having the change. I had the privilege of living with all of them for some time. We all came to Antigua to improve our Spanish and fulfill the need for travel. For some it was the first time on an airplane and other had already traveled around the world.

At 07:10 boots laced and gear in my back I leave the house headed to Maximo Nível office in the heart of the historical city, an UNESCO Heritage site. Maximo Nível is a for profit organization that we hired to help facilitate our volunteering work and Spanish classes. They did a great job for a reasonable price so it's definitely recommended. The people that work in Antigua's office were truly caring and did their best to help with whatever we needed.

It takes approximately 12 minute fast paced walk from my house to the office. I avoid a bunch of noisy and smoky chicken-buses and many other people on the streets. Local students in uniforms headed to school, foreign students to their Spanish classes, other volunteer workers to their projects. I say “Buenos dias!” to a few familiar faces. I can take a different route every day and I do it so that I can enjoy the views of the many cool cafes, hostels, handcraft shops, grocery stores and so on. Mostly all unique, almost no global chain shop around. Just before getting into the office I take a quick look behind my back to check the volcanoes on the horizon. No fire today, unfortunately. On good days I hear thunder on a cloudless sky and see some smoke above the volcano. It's active and roaring.

At 07:25 I meet my fellow workmates and usually there's someone new. I had the privilege and the pleasure to work with a bunch of different people. There was a recently graduated tall guy from Iowa that speaks on a very lazy pace, our best worker is a blond girl from New Jersey, a vietnamese-danish girl that wore only black, a short and funny Italian girl living in Oregon, a young diabetic girl from Toronto, an ex-hairdresser from Chicago on his 50s, a retired sir reaching 80. The last new one I met was a med-school girl from Canada. My boss, Freddy Antonio or Tony how I call him, shows up and cracks some salsa moves and says “Vamos muchachos!” and off we go. Tony's amazing person! He's always cheered up and makes sure everyone around is smiling. Joking and teasing all the time but also teaching and advising. He really cares that we're having a good time and being productive. Since I was the only one speaking reasonable Spanish, we got close quite quickly, translating instructions from Spanish to English – even tough he speaks it – and telling stories to each other. I learned from him the tricks of mixing concrete, the latest corruption scandals, how Guatemalans see the world and tips for a happy marriage.

We head to San Felipe de Jesus, a little town to the north of Antigua. Two dogs usually walk with us, somehow they like us even tough we never gave them anything. There's a local market in front of the church's square. Besides a closed middle-class condo and a five star country hotel, there's not much, only ordinary people getting by. Next to the local primary school is an elderly home, Casa Maria, where we're building a new kitchen for them. The place used to be a private for profit business but due to the financial difficulties of its guests, the business changed to a charity organization. They housed around 60 grandpas and grandmas of which 20 paid a monthly fee for some better conditions and the workers salary. The other 40 or so where there completely free and the organization survives – barely – thanks to donations and other charity work.

There were all sorts of elderly people there, some perfect lucid and talkative, others schizophrenic, with advanced Alzheimers and other mental diseases, in wheel chairs or tied to poles, all frail. Most had a name and a family, others were just left there and they had no idea who they were, where they came from. The facilities where barely acceptable. It was very humbling place and it definitely needed all the help it could get. I was extremely happy to be able to help them anyway I could, but truthfully, I couldn't handle working directly with the elderly in those conditions.

One day, there's was something unusual in the entrance, bellow the shrine to Holy Mary: a white bed sheet covering a small solemn mount. It was Dona Maria, “Choula” as we called her because she would scream it almost every day, the whole morning and annoy us and anyone around her. It was sad and disturbing thought to always be calling for someone that will never come and never be able to realize it. This was a sad event for us, so sudden. We started working even harder to make sure the kitchen was ready as soon as possible. We start getting busy at 08:00.

Learning how to whisper

I got really strong working with construction!

Hiking Pacaya Volcano on the rain. Can you see the vapor?

Night out in Antigua with our Spanish teacher Eric and dutch Tess

Oh yeah, construction is hard work. It takes time, there are many details to pay attention and you can get hurt badly if you are not careful – thankfully we only got a few scratches. Nothing was too complicated and working with your body is very gratifying. It's instant feedback for your efforts. We would dig big holes with shovels, bend and cut rebar to make steel columns, mix sand with rocks and cement to make concrete. We carried building materials, like cinder blocks and rebar, to the construction zone. With levels, plomos and a fishing lines we would slowly raise the walls and concrete columns. Some days the supervisor would show up and help us out. At 09:30 we would have a break, eat some snacks, tell stories and jokes to each other and then we would continue until 11:30. It was a very relaxed working environment very different from the real thing as Tony would tell me.

Running to our goals

Beautiful ruins everywhere

The cliché

I almost fell into the water...

Our friend Cambray at San Pedro, Lake Atitlan

We all walked back to Maximo's office, some would take shortcuts to their houses. I would walk back home through the most shadowy path to avoid the heat. If I needed some apples, medicines or if there was anything interesting happening around I would take a detour. Surely I didn't want to miss lunch because it was always wonderful. Thelma would always impress us with a dish even better than the previous. We were very lucky because I heard that local food, for the locals, is usually not so good. So, around 12:00 I was back at the house and would run straight to the shower but there still one hour to relax until lunch was served. Diana would arrive usually a few minutes after me so we could chill in our room and tell the day's stories.

Lunch time was always family time for me in Brasil and at Thelma's, I felt the same vibe. All the chatter, passing plates around, people telling good and bad stories was there. It was so nice! One of my favorite stories is of the Doese Family – it's pronounced like “daisy”. They are a young family of five from US. Mom and Dad met in college, got married and started having kids. The whole family is very religious – Catholics maybe? – they sing and play at their church, they were involved with volunteering other times and baptized all their children. Oh, the children! So sweet, innocent, clever, fragile, pure, loving. Actually, it's been a long time since I saw so many demonstrations of true love. The love that a stressed mom after a long day that took too long to end pour at her baby boy when he hugs her when she's finally back. The love that dad shows to his older daughter that just won't behave at the dinner table and has to be corrected - going to bed earlier. I've never once saw the parents being violent with their kids. My mom would slap me for much less than what I saw the kids doing. The parents would talk and explain things. They would make propositions and kids would take compromises. They explained why they were being punished all the time specially when the kids made a bad decision. Cheating and lying were the worst crimes. It was very tiring but also amazing thing to see. It tickled my fatherhood instincts.

The Doese's, Tess and we at Monterrico Beach

Last goodbye to our friends

The Doese's are a great family and in many ways they are perfectly normal but what sets them apart is what they are doing now and why: they quit everything and moved to Puebla, México, to help out in an orphanage as missionaries. I make this sounds so boring and silly but I can't help it, my words are not capable enough to fully communicate someone's calling. For that what it was. Something that makes you put your family under a lot of stress and risk must be something God send, must be a total commitment to faith and purpose. It was awe inspiring. They made us feel sane and normal again, specially in a world full of selfish people and its actions, yours truly included. The cherry of the cake was their "nanny":Lis. She was always quiet because she was "working" but we talked and I was so impressed with her. An entrepreneur - she helped co-found a brilliant company called Trades of Hope - a writer, a student, a learner, a bright young girl. These six were great company and I wish them all the best, with all my heart.

Around 13:40 all the guests are done with lunch and Thelma's family would come and eat. They had their own meal but would also eat whatever we hadn't finished. Seldom we would sit and chit-chat with them for a few minutes before coming back to our room where I would take a heavenly ciesta for half hour. From 14:30 to 15:30 it was free time. Usually I would just be wasting time on social networks, watching videos or reading articles. Some times we would do Spanish homework or plan the next moves of our trip.

At 16:00 our Spanish class started, at Maximo's Nivel school also in the city center. It's a red building with 5 classrooms, an open terrace for studying and social events and a computer room for Facebooking – you could do more of course but what do youngster like more than socializing? In the first two weeks we had a cool young men as a teacher. As Diana likes to put it, he is a character. He grew up in Antigua, attended to Arts school – dancing, drawing, theater -, he has a technical degree in electronics and computers, he founded a charity school for teaching informatics to kids, he taught Spanish for foreigners for many years, he is a professional DJ and audio engineer and now he's graduating in Law School. After that he wants to continue his dream of coaching football to young kids. The guy was basically everything and he was a good teacher and even took us out one night in his convertible old Mustang to some really cool bars in town. The last two weeks we had a different teacher, this time a local lady and housewife. She was an incredible Spanish teacher and as kind as a grandma. We learned a lot with them in just one month and hopefully we'll stop speaking Portuñol – mix of Portuguese and Spanish – soon.

My favorite day of the week: beerness

I shrunk!!!

Lucky shot from a horse that was passing by

I never learned why masks are so popular in Guate...

After school, which ended at 18:00, we had one hour until dinner so we usually just went straight back home. Rarely we would meet a friend for ice-cream or coffee after class. So at 19:00 the same routine of lunch was repeated but with simpler dishes. Everyone would retire to their bedrooms around 20:00, Di and I would spend more time online and by 22:00 would be calling it a day. We lived in the far southeast corner of the city, outside of the historic center, and had a tight schedule for meals, volunteering and school. We almost didn't go out at night at all but I heard from my co-workers that Antigua's a fun place to party and the gringos go crazy. But my first teacher and my boss told me it's even better for local guys because there are tons of blond foreign girls around wanting to experience a different culture! On the weekends we would explore Antigua and its wonderful ruins, cafes and shops. We went to Monterrico beach, to the Pacaya volcano and to Lake Atitlan. We were also sick for a weekend so we just stayed in bed (and close to the toilet).

Happy hard workers. You should also try some volunteering

Boloney day = happy day

Noisy, pollutant, old and stylish: chicken buses!

The builders also know how to have fun - Amazing photobomb!

I'll miss you Tony. Cheers!

Our last day working. So many emotions.

The Hawaiian lady introduced us to the concept of Mini Life, which is exactly what we had in Antigua, that she and her husband have been doing for a few years now. Instead of locking up their house and doing tourism for ten days, like many other people would, they rented their house via AirBnb for a month and moved to an interesting city to work and live there. We loved the idea and for sure we'll try it more.

Living for a month in Antigua was a marvelous experience. Since the beginning we saw it as one of the most important period of our travels and we're glad to say that we made it. We got what we wanted! We said many goodbyes to our new friends, we shared contacts and tears of happiness and sadness with them. But now the journey goes on, heading north to unplanned countries: Mexico and Cuba!

Have you been to Guatemala too? If not, what are you waiting for? Tell us more on the comments!

Cheers!

Antigua: Kitchen Tables, Volunteering and Coffee

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 18:36:00 +0000

La Antigua (the one in Guatemala!) received us, with its arms wide open, and there we had our life for 4 weeks: we were staying with a Guatemalan family, working as volunteers and studying Spanish.

Integration was easy. We unpacked our bags in the first evening and started meeting people and our projects next morning. Antigua is packed with the same of our kind but also cafes, restaurants and beautiful scenery. Oh what a beautiful small city!

The beautiful Arch of Santa Catalina

Chocola la la la anyone?

After some research, and like always, some compromise, we agreed on doing our volunteering and studying via Maximo Nivel. Originally a language school Maximo is also a bridge between many parties - among them us - volunteers/students and the organizations, that need hands to do some work. They are also the link between the local families, that accommodate the volunteers, cook and integrate us as one of the family.

For volunteering we both wanted to do something outside out of our field, out of comfort zone kind of thing. William knew from the beginning that he wanted to do construction, I knew I didn't want that. With the research I found an Eco-farming project where I would be helping coffee farmers from a close by village, located in the slopes of the inactive volcano Agua, from 8AM to 12PM, 5 days a week. And that was it! De La Gente it's the cooperative that brings the coffee farmers together, about 30 farmers after 11years of existence. Every morning I was going to San Miguel Escobar, a 10min bus ride, and met with the farmer at the "From the People" office. A Maximo Nivel's partner, De La Gente supports these farmers with loans, legal matters, the best techniques of coffee farming and, among many other things, with a massive marketing strategy that gives them a lot of visibility (mainly in the US). Check their website and Facebook page, it's worth the time!

Mostly I worked with different farmers every day. In my first day, out of the coffee harvesting season that goes from November to March more or less, I picked coffee berries - red, green and some black ones, all had to go out of the trees. These berries were not the best quality anymore but they had to be picked as they fall they can germinate a fungus to the tree itself. And along with the damage that they could do to the cycle, these beans are still source of income - the farmers sell these type of beans to produce instant coffee, as its of such low quality. And this was how I learned what was I drinking almost every morning back home... I did all sort of different things during the volunteering with De La Gente - some related to coffee some not, but all with on thing in mind: they would be done to help the farmers somehow. I roasted and packaged coffee to sell in coffee shops in Antigua, I picked peaches (duraznos) at about 1500m above sea level, made firewood with a machete and carried it up hill few days later, I pealed peanuts to be used in natural peanut butter, I cleaned the weeds from the coffee trees and dig holes to protect the baby coffee trees from the heavy winter rain. I distributed flyers in the city to promote the tours that De La Gente does almost every day (if you are in Antigua check them out!!).

The complete coffee process is long and needs time. For example, after picking berries the pulp has to be removed and the coffee beans have to dry. Only after it's time to sort - first, second and third quality beans - some to export, some to sell locally. Sorting can be tedious, and for doing it you need a good pair of eyes but it was by far one of my favorite tasks. The farmers open their houses to us, seat with us, and are eager to share their knowledge, experience and dreams. It was in this intimate environment that Florian thought me all about the signs that nature sends when the rain is about to arrive; I got to know Manuel's dreams of taking his 4 kids to Florida (yes, to Disney world!); I got to know Julio, a 18years old helping his dad in the fields early mornings and learning English in the afternoons. At a kitchen table, in their backyard, you can even learn how shy, happy, humble and thankful a farmer is, with no words, just by the smile he gives you when it's time to say "adios" - that's how I met Mercedes.

Red coffee berries

After the pulp is removed and they dry in the sun for some time

we roast the bean

And grind it

After packaged we all know the next steps

It may sound that I was doing this all by myself, which would be totally impossible. We were always 2-3 volunteers every week but there was a lot of rotation which made it hard to connect with everyone but still I met great people and we had great talks. I'm sure that without them, I would have been a lot more useless picking duraznos or digging holes - it's was always a great team work! Important is to mention that my experience got in a whole other level because of the little things, or better say, because of people. People like Jane - our helpful De La Gente point of contact, always starting the days with an important ritual of a coffee co-op: turning on the coffee machine. And like Phomolo - our Maximo Nivel field manager, that at least once a week, became one of us and worked as hard, always with a joke ready to make us crack.

Manuel and the helping crew

Even 3 and 5 years old can help and have fun!

Happy sorting morning

This post is getting way too long, but I still need to mention Thelma dos Reyes, our lovely host mother. The house was located in the boarders of Antigua, simple, warm, full. The family was basically formed by 5 women and one grandson but she had a lot more people coming in and out throughout the day. Food was never an issue while we stayed there and I always had the feeling that she spent her entire day, cooking. Not only cooking but also laughing! The whole family would have food after us and thats where they would laugh even harder, together, at a kitchen table.

I got sick the last weekend there and I'm pretty sure it was something I ate at home, but I will always remember her food as amazingly tasty. The people we met in Thelma's will also be part of our memories and our hearts - William wrote all I wanted to say about them in his blogpost!

My fav. Guatemalan family selfie

Our Guatemalan mom

I talked about the volunteering so many times now that I wonder if I still add something new to it...
I feel though that I need to share it as much as possible to inspire people to try it too. But it doesn't have to be abroad, it doesn't have to be a month, it doesn't have to be on the other side of the world. We can be volunteers in our neighborhood, in our city, in our own country - just look around and try to see if there is someone in need of help. I'm sure there is someone in need of a smile as there is always room for it.
But to be totally fair and honest, I guess I will never be able to explain in words how good is the feeling of giving, of helping, with simple acts of kindness, sweat, strength, effort. I will never be able to truly explain the power of a kitchen table.
Give it a try!

From El Cerro de la Cruz, my fav. view from Antigua and Agua

That Radio-Magic

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 18:35:00 +0000

Originally posted in February, "Radio-Magic" will be used to gather all the aired radio moments of this trip - hopefully we will have a bunch more: ) if you are not a Portuguese speaker you wont be able to follow the conversations but if you are curious ask me or Will what 's up :0

#1 (31/01/2015)
Last month while chatting with a friend - friend from a glorious time in a glorious house called Ru( (sim tu, Sandra Henriques!!) - about our round the world trip, she mentioned this radio show and the broadcaster, José Candeias.
Of course I know him, I mean, I know his name... I remember my grandmother mentioning it and his various programs in the radio. :) Do you mean that he follows people while they travel? If I would like to participate in his show? And tell him our story in the radio?! You mean our trip?! Yeah, why not?!?
So things kind of happened super quickly after I finally had the time for it - A.K.A. - after we got married. So on a Monday I wrote a long email to the program' s director and on Friday we were live at 6: 30 in the morning - yes, the show is super early from 5 am to 7 am, local time.
At 6: 30 am, we were storytelling on the national Portuguese radio( Antena 1 rocks!) about our World Trip... How funny is that?! It was super funny, I have to say. I recall being super sleepy, nervous but feeling again the radio-magic or, like I prefer to call it, the exciting feeling of speaking on the radio. Oh I missed that!
I 'm not quite sure how many of you know that I used to be a radio host, during my university years. For about 4 years I mainly wrote the news, interviewed people, wrote more news, helped out newbies to the radio and to the news department. I was also the co-author of a weekly program and at some point I was part of the board too. Oh Radio Universidade de Coimbra, I owe big time!
But back to the topic, the plan is to speak to José Candeias on his show once in a while, so he will be part of our trip as well as all his enormous audience. This is so cool, thanks for the opportunity! There are no plans yet for the next talk, but if you are a Portuguese speaker, give a try to our first take on this (other) adventure here (starting from 31') - enjoy our sleepy heads talking.

#2 (13/ 05 / 2015)
The second talk with Jose Candeias happened in May, more than 2 months after we initially talked, and it was in the middle of the night in the US. & nbsp;
We had a blast remembering our Asian adventures with him - the whale sharks in the Philippines, the 9 h hike we did in Jeju, South Korea, the massive reclined Budha in Thailand, Angkor Wat in Cambodia and the other world experience of no electricity home - stay in Laos.
Do you want to listen to it ? After the Minute 6, check this link : http: //www.rtp.pt/play/p661/e194802/jose-candeias

Portugueses Pelo Mundo(12 / 06 / 2015)
This time was only me talking, as the program as the name states, focus is the stories of Portuguese people living abroad - so no William fun, snif.
I talked with Alexandra about 20 min about my mini - life experience in Antigua, Guatemala - this time recorded and focusing on the volunteering, the life in Central America and the crazy idea of doing such a trip.They aired only 6 min but the full talk is here: http: //www.rtp.pt/play/p518/e198042/portugueses-no-mundo

A surpresa chamada Miami

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 17:05:00 +0000

Quando as portas se começaram a abrir para esta viagem, faz agora mais ou menos um ano, pensámos visitar 30 países para celebrar os nossos 30 anos. Um simbolismo que rapidamente desapareceu porque ficar mais ou menos 12 dias em cada país pareceu-nos impossível.

Vamos fazer uma viagem para ver as maiores cascatas do mundo, dizia o Will, ou os maiores prédios! Vamos ver as 7 maravilhas do mundo! Vamos aos cinco continentes! As ideias continuavam a surgir. Vamos! Vamos!

A decisão não chegou até Outubro, mais ou menos, quando finalmente depois de horas e horas de conversa, depois de horas de pesquisa, depois de várias sessões de mapa e computador nas mãos, depois de mil perguntas sem resposta, Quando vão? Onde começam? A que países vão?, depois de umas outras mil decisões...chegamos a um roteiro.

Este roteiro foi feito com base em várias, várias coisas, mas nem foi temático nem simbólico, foi o que achamos mais realista e aquele que melhor se encaixava nas nossas preferências: ser a primeira vez a visitar o país, estarmos no país na melhor estação do ano, haver facilidade em obter o visto (ou nem ser preciso um), a facilidade de viajar para esse país posteriormente, os custos de vida, etc.

Os Estados Unidos da América não se encaixavam nos parâmetros daquele nosso Plano-Perfeito, e como tal, não faziam parte da lista. Duas conversas com o Daniel bastaram para alterarmos, outra vez, o roteiro. Um viva à flexibilidade!!! Quem é o Daniel?! Ele é o representante da AirTreks, uma agência especializada em viagens, e ajudou-nos bastante a decidir. Agora, com a distância, faz todo o sentido - estaríamos a atravessar o Pacífico, vindos da Coreia do Sul, e queríamos chegar à Guatemala - com preços super competitivos e com a geografia a ajudar os EUA só tinham vantagens. Foi com o Daniel que comprámos os voos para os primeiros 6 meses da viagem. Ele deu-nos dicas, encontrou-nos os melhores preços, contou-nos as suas histórias e sonhos. É a ele que contactamos sempre que temos uma dúvida ou precisamos de um conselho sobre voos. Provavelmente sem a AirTreks tínhamos pago muito mais pelas viagens e não teríamos optimizado tanto a viagem.

Okay, EUA, vamos ficar uma semana. E eu nem imaginava como ia ser marcante esta semana. Entrámos por LA e depois seguimos para Miami.

O meu historial familiar de emigração não é imenso, mas existe e é particularmente marcante para mim. Geração após geração, alguns foram saindo para o Brasil, França ou Venezuela, outros foram regressando a Portugal anos e anos depois. Alguns no entanto ainda continuam a luta fora do porto-seguro. E foi na quente, húmida e latina Miami que fui encontrar uma parte dessa família, a prima Betinha e a sua maravilhosa família - o Carlos, o Manuel e a Valentina.

Prima em segundo grau pelo lado paterno (e como aprendi também há sangue comum pelo lado materno) a prima Betinha já é da geração que nasceu fora de Portugal, porque os pais emigraram para a Venezuela ainda jovens e aventureiros. A seguir as raízes em 2010 também eles decidiram sair, vencer o medo do desconhecido e trabalhar duro para encontrar novas oportunidades.

Ao chegarmos, depois de 24h de viagem, umas 4h de descanso e um jetlag mais gigante que a nossa viagem total, os sorrisos e a energia não enganavam - estávamos em boas mãos. Os dias que se seguiram foram de incomparável conforto, relaxamento e de muito, muito amor. Beijos de boa noite, abraços de olá, telefonemas de o que levamos para o jantar, bilhetes de obrigada. À mesa conversámos sobre tudo um pouco, família, trabalho, sonhos, vistos, desafios, loucuras. No carro a caminho de Key West (a nossa viagem de 6 num carro) mais conserva, gargalhadas e carinho. Foi para eles que cozinhamos pela primeira vez depois de 4 meses de viagem (que alívio que aparentemente não desaprendemos!). Aqueles dias foram como se tivéssemos em casa, a viver em família. E foi tão bom! E foi tão especial!

Miami foi importante para pararmos e descansarmos, apesar da adaptação necessária ao clima tropical e às temperaturas elevadas. Tivemos tempo para espreitar o Parque Everglades e a praia, a cidade, e claro, a ponta mais Sul dos EUA, Key West: Tudo o que procurávamos quando definimos os nossos parâmetros para esta viagem.

Mas o que eu nem imaginava, planeava ou sequer esperava era que Miami me tivesse permitido criar laços com uma parte da família que nunca tinha conseguido conhecer bem. Mas foi assim que aquela cidade, se tornou para mim, quase sem querer, um ponto muito querido do nosso roteiro e da nossa viagem.

Não duvides do Universo, Diana. Como podes tu duvidar? Os Estados Unidos tinham de fazer parte desta viagem - ouvi-me dizer enquanto dava mais um abraço de obrigado e me despedia daqueles fantásticos 4. Até um dia!

If you don't understand Portuguese, you can use the translate option on the right, or just check these pictures out. Enjoy!!!

Key West = US 0 mile

Downtown Miami

Miami bay

Everglades National Park (ugly) turtle

Will's favs

Yes, that's an alligator

Key West = 90 miles away from Cuba

Key West fishermen :)

Find Willy

#Venezuela

Sunny Betinha

Sunny brothers

jantar luso-brasileiro em Miami <3

Shocking Korea: When The System Works

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 02:02:00 +0000

It's been long overdue but finally it's time to tell my impressions of the far East, of the Korean Peninsula. It started from a flight on the 27^th of April from Manila to Incheon that felt more like a travel through time, from the past to the future. And I'm not talking about time zones but rather, human and social development. The cultural shock I got from Korea was as big as the one I felt when I moved to the Netherlands in 2009. Allow me to explain how the shock felt on my first time.

Riding the submarine, 40m deep, in Seogwipo, Jeju

During the first months of living in Netherlands it felt strange to have such nice public services, well educated people everywhere, almost no misery, a vast offer of well preserved historical buildings and monuments, a genuine care for the environment, a lot of cultural exhibitions but most importantly, the safety feeling. For sure there were many other different things that caused an impression on me but the ones I mentioned were the most shocking. For the first time I lived in a world that felt right, that seemed that it was somehow doing the right thing. Remember that I come from a country with millions of miserable people living without dignity. Forced to pay expensive taxes and get terrible services in return. Trapped by a badly managed System. Apparently The System, which is basically the same from Brazil, when operated by competent people that actually care can lead to great results. It gave me hope and a new questioning started brewing: what lies ahead on this road? How good The System can get and how it feels like? I guess the answers lies on some of the Eastern Countries and the experience shocked me.

First of all, I have no idea about Korea. I have zero knowledge about the history of the peninsula, what they believe in, what was their struggle and how they overcame it. No idea about their geography, climate, modernization, participation on world events nor anything. I only knew that they spoke Korean, are very good at Taekwondo, it's the home country of Samsung and Psy. Oh, and are at war with border nation North Korea. It's fair to say that my full ignorance magnified the shocking effect.

Our trip started in Seoul, the capital city. The most amazing city that I have ever been in my life. One weekday we were walking around the neighborhood's city center during lunch time, surrounded by tall modern buildings, ancient palaces, wide roads full of cars, residential condos, local markets and super markets, people going by everywhere. You know this scenario right? Pretty normal if it wasn't for some details that changed the whole experience. The streets were super clean, no trash laying around, not a single cigaret butt tossed on the floor. Most of the buildings were beautiful and designed so that people could easily walk around them and have a pleasant experience. The ancient palaces were meticulously preserved and restored. Wide modern roads full of new cars that are quiet and spill almost no smoke. Honking? None. People going by everywhere relaxed like it's Sunday, apparently calm, doing groceries, having a coffee on the sun. I had the same experience in many other parts of the city. There was even a little street in Bukchon that it was so cool, so original, it took my breath away. It was amazing!

Their technological advancement was apparently matched by their ethical and social advancements. I say this based on what I saw. The public services and cities are more than good, they are designed to prevent frustration and misuse. It also seemed that South Korea is undoing parts of environmental damage done in the past. For instance, in Seoul used to have a stream of water called Cheonggyecheon that ran all the way to the Han River. In the past it was useful for transporting goods and dumping sewage. Later it got on the way of cars and modern sewage systems so they covered it and built a “nice” highway on top. That part of the city turned into an ugly grey polluted part of town. Years later they finally understood that it was a bad decision and reverted their “progress”. So they demolished the highway, rebuilt the water stream and keep it well maintained and pleasant. Now this is one of the most valuable areas of the city, people love to walk along the stream. I noticed the same care while enjoying the natural parks, like on Jeju Island. The ultimate proof that they are doing an amazing job with it is the beautiful flush nature full of happy people that were also enjoying their surroundings.

This attitude – of genuine care and action towards improving human interactions with the environment, the cities, public services and historical heritage – is not exclusive from South Korea, I saw it in many places in Europe, specially in the Netherlands. What was so amazing about SK was its massive scale and apparent long term commitment and its effects. What I'm trying to say is that based on what I saw and experience I've never seen a country operating The System with such decency. I also saw it's effect on people and it was quite puzzling.

Walking around Seoul I noticed that many women, young and old, would carry in their hands small mirrors that they constantly check themselves and make minor adjustments to how they look. They also do it with their mobile phones and snap many many selfies. Most of them use a lot of makeup, are very well dressed, even if their taste for fashion is very weird to my tastes, the shopping malls and streets were always full of people carrying bags and boxes of new stuff. There are so many coffee shops where people just sit around apparently doing nothing besides spending their money that I wondered if they ever worked. And in many places I felt an overwhelming pressure for buying stuff, over advertisement and consumption. How come this society, apparently so advanced, was so vain? Was this the end game of The System? Masses of empty and superficial middle-class people? “Well” – I told my self – “they got their shit together: there's no poverty, no corruption, no illiterate people, no abuse of nature, no bad health care, no bad public services … they can afford to be this vain. Maybe that girl fanatic by her image is also intelligent, kind, respectful, has a decent job, loves animals and is a good citizen! She's done her part, she can do whatever she wants to her self without guilty.” That eased my mind… but just a while. Later I found two crucial missing pieces of this society that changed everything.

One of the pieces I found in one of the biggest metro stations of Seoul, The System's tool: dozens of homeless people. Begging for money, trying to sleep on the floor, drinking the lasts drops of alcohol from a bottle, eating the food remains from trash cans. It was as sad as it could be and in this moment I was back at the real world. I felt a mix of relief and revolt to be back. So South Korea is just like any other place where The System runs, and it runs on top of people. Were these homeless people a victim of their own selves or they had no chance against The System? Both probably.

The Korean Peninsula's relationship is complicated and I can't explain it but I was there, at the edge of a complicated matter called the DMZ, a border which legitimacy's neither side accepts. Both states claim to be the legitimate government of the entire peninsula. I was briefly on enemy territory and what I saw was a stuck wheel, one that is still for too long and wont move unless it breaks.

The narcissist girls could not afford all that I thought they could after all. South Korea was definitely shocking, like the Netherlands, it got me thinking real hard on society, how much Brazil has still to grow and how good it can get. We must try our best as hard as possible and aim for the starts but even the best examples are not perfect, nothing is, really. I had such great time just enjoying the country and all it has to offer that it definitely made a good impression on me. I can't recommend it enough but I hope these pictures help it.

Happy green buses in Seoul

Really close to the water and the waterfall on the background

A reconstructed creek in the middle of the city

A huge Cathedral in Gangnan, Seoul

We always make new cool friends on the road

The beautiful Secret Garden in Changdeokgung, Seoul.

A scene from the Masks Theater in Andong Hahoe Historic Village. It was so hot!

The Spirit Tree in Andong Hahoe Historic Village

A section of Busan from the top of mountain close by

Having fun in one of the old fortress gates of Geumgang, Busan

Panoramic view of some royal tombs at Gyeongju

Panoramic view of Jeongbang Waterfall into the sea, Seogwipo, Jeju.

Cheonjiyeon Waterfall by night in Seogwipo, Jeju

At the crater of Seongsan Ilchulbong, Jeju

Seongsan Ilchulbong rises from the sea, Jeju

On the way to the top of the highest mountain of SK, Hallasan, Jeju

The crater at the top of Mount Hallasan, Jeju

A Buddha statue + drawing on a rocky side of the hill

Typical South Korean lunch. Very spicy kimchi!

Having fun with 3D Wall Paintings at the Jeju Airport

Maybe one day we can go from Lisbon to Seoul by train

The heart of the DMZ with North Korea on the background

17.455,29 km from my hometown! A new record.

A pic from a pic from a typical day on the DMZ

He's risking his life to protect ours. No kidding around please.

That's it for now! I hope you enjoyed this post. Have you been to South Korea too? How did you feel? Do you disagree with parts of what I said? Please let us know on the comments bellow.

Cheers!

a Three and a Zero

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Fri, 29 May 2015 03:51:00 +0000

I didn't make it easy to anyone to wish me happy birthday this year. I ran away from the familiar faces and places. I turned off the normal button. I bought a new sim card to my phone.

No matter what, I got to celebrate my 30s with people that I met a week and a day ago. The Guatemalan family we're staying. With Will by my side, as always. And many more via the amazing technology. And because of the time difference, I had the longest birthday ever.

How does it feel to be away in your birthday? How does it feel to be thirty?

Happy. I feel extremely happy. And in peace.

I'm not happy to be apart from the ones I love and care. No, not at all. I'm happy though to know that they (you!) are all saved in very special pockets of my heart. I feel happy to be in peace with my body and happy to embrace all it's coming with the three-zero.

Even though I'm far from everyone, from everything I knew and called mine, I've never felt so close, so whole. I couldn't feel more loved right now and I'm so thankful.

Thanks everyone for the calls, messages, emails, videos, pictures and voice messages from afar. Thank you strangers for las felicitaciones, smiles, hugs, personalized cake (I had two cakes!), drawing and birthday cards.

Thank you mum Alicia to made my day start with jumps of happiness. The first message I saw this morning was that I will be sharing my day with another sweet cute baby called Julia. Could this day get more special?!

Obrigada Will pelo teu postal brega e pelas flores lindas. <3

I often say that the trick to solve a problem is just a matter of taking two steps backwards to be able to see the full picture and fully appreciate all we have. Not only appreciate but also understand it better. I guess I had to travel this far to be able to fully feel and experience this peace and simple joy. Is either that or I'm truly getting old. Or both.

We're now both, officially, 3.o

Philippino Adventures

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 18 May 2015 04:56:00 +0000

Continental south east Asia was a big exciting journey. We've been traveling around for 60 days in packed planes, second class old trains, crazy tuk-tuks, tiny rusty tricycles, zippy scooters, wall-less illegal bamboo train, modern sky trains, rowing boats, suicidal tour vans, fast speedboats, slow home-boats, murderous buses and even a lovely lady elephant. Plus uncountable kilometers of walking. So when we say we've been on the road for a long time, it's easily an understatement. But still, this was just the beginning. I was looking forward to our next destination and waved a happy goodbye to Bangkok.

Oh, lovely Philippines! How much I longed to be here. The country has a vastly different culture, religion, language, people and history compared to the continental Asia. It felt quite nostalgic to see familiar Catholic faces around. The country has so many incredible things to see and do that it becomes a burden to choose just a few. Our 3 weeks schedule would be rushed. And to top it all, there aren't many connections so we ended up traveling via some ineffective routes. But, with some extra flexibility, it all worked out.

Riding the trycicle around Banaue

A black & red Cathedral in China Town, Manila

Frog pouches, it can fit an iPhone 5S easily. Puka Beach, Boracay

I got much more than expected during our stay. We planned and made it to wonderful destinations like the thousands of years old rice terraces of Batad. Hiking those artificial valleys and swimming on its rivers and waterfalls was tough and wonderful. We were dazzled by the turmoil of graduates and shops on the beaches of Boracay. It's literally a shopping mall on the sand! We did fulfill another of my dreams: swimming with whale-sharks in Oslob. One of the best 30 minutes of my life! They're so big, so beautiful, so gentle. Now I'm ready to swim with a proper whale and a proper shark.

Gigantic animals and crowded waters, Oslob, Cebu

Riding the giant, Oslob, Cebu

We had to walk the last 2km to Batad on the rain. FUN! Batad.

Spectacular views of the rice terraces, Batad

High-five on the lake of Tappiya Falls, Batad

Jumping around the rice terraces. We climbed that mountain, Awa, on the background. Batad.

By scooter we got lost and found a deserted paradise, Duli Beach, Palawan.

The list gets better! What about a sunset over the sea that makes you pinch yourself to make sure you're not dreaming or hallucinating?! Only in San Juan beach, Siquijor Island. In El Nido we swam with beautiful tropical fish, lush corals and a sea turtle on the deep blue sea. We had delicious lunch on boats with fresh fish overlooking a limestone forming a lagoon. So many paradisiac white sand beaches that I can't count! Going by rowing boat with lamp hooked into a car battery to illuminate the darkness of the underground river. We listened to a our lady tour guide sing and perform her own song about the sacred mangrove of Sabang. Philippines, you're too much!

The setting sun and the crescent moon, El Nido, Palawan

Is this a dream or reality? Breath taking sunsets at San Juan, Siquijor.

Philippine kids learning how to fly, Tingko Beach, Cebu

Big blue explorations, El Nido, Palawan

Fernanda & Paolo were great company! El Nido, Palawan.

Mangrove lady singing us her own song, Sabang, Palawan.

Entering the incredible Underground River, Sabang, Palawan.

But there's always the other side of the coin. Philippines demanded a lot of me because of comfort, actually, the lack of it. After you hike on a paradisiac rice terrace trail, nature calls you and you have to squat over a nasty latrine, flush with a bucket and ask someone to rescue you with some toilet paper. You walk on the streets of Manila surrounded by street kids, beggars, all giving you menacing looks. You walk outside at 7 AM and the sun already burns your skin and when you go inside any place you wish you had your winter jacket because the airco is set to 'snow'. The food was very bland, fat and greasy most of the time. Internet was always slow and scarce. Philippines is a classical underdeveloped country with a terrible wealth distribution. You may call me soft but I really like comfort, not much, but some. The fact is that if you don't have a big budget, Philippines is not a comfortable country.

Street kids everywhere, begging. Manila.

We didn't spend enough time in Bohol so we only had time to get into a tour for the top touristic destinations which was almost a total flop. Two words to describe the chocolate hills end the tarsiers: over hyped. After 3 weeks, I was feeling run down, a negativity was building up and I didn't like it at all. I need a break, I needed some comfort.

The over-hyped Chocolate Hills, Bohol.

The awesome gang from out Bohol Tour!

Perfect additions to our bodies, butterfly wings, Bohol

To tell you the truth, I'm glad we finally left, before those negative feelings could spoil anything. Even tough there's still so many cool things to see and do in this incredible country, 3 weeks was enough. I want to come back one day.

When I look back on our time on the Philippines, I'm easily reminded of how great it was. So many awesome moments. And I'm pretty sure I feel this way exactly because it was rough around the edges, with minimal comfort. Don't they say that the more effort you put into something the more gratifying it feels when we accomplish it? So let me challenge you, step outside your comfort zone and go explore this beautiful country. It's totally worth it!

Free fish spa under an old enchanted Balete tree, Siquijor

Wonderful Tumalog falls, Cebu

Oh, before I forget, Philippines added more remarkable transportation methods: jeepney, which are old American military jeeps turned into 'buses', and zip lining over valleys.

Cheers!

People on the way

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Wed, 13 May 2015 18:35:00 +0000

This post will be all about them, the great people we met in the Philippines. From day 1 until our last. I will write about their stories crossing ours. Some of them told us their experiences, some influenced our route, some just inspired us. Some have name some don't but every single one had a touch in my Philipino experience and I definitely don't want to let it fade away.

In my last post I mentioned already the lovely French couple and how important was to meet them in Banaue. In our way back to Manila we met another couple in the bus. They helped us save some money on the taxi to the airport. The station wasn't the last one yet so we could chat for 10min. I won't talk a lot about them yet but a funny coincidence touched me: they are also a mixed-country-couple, she is Brazilian and he is Italian. The fast talk goes in portuguese because he has been living in Brazil for more than 20 years. Memorize their names, Fernanda and Paolo.

April is the peak of the summer in the Philippines, a busy month from beginning to end, someone told us. The schools are closed, kids are home and families that can afford it tend to travel. That's how the airport looks like when we arrived to catch our flight to Boracay, packed! There are no seats available in the waiting room, the queues are long, flights get delayed several hours, but no one seems to bother. They simply embraced it.

Our flight is delayed too but we got impatient and worried we wouldn't make it on time to the last boat. We convinced the checkin manager to get us in an earlier flight. Damn westerns she may have thought but she helped us without questioning. The funny thing is our new flight got delayed too!!! (Ahahaha!!) We did manage to get to the island on time.

That weekend was apparently a long weekend in the Philippines, so how Boracay looked like? Exactly, extremely busy! Specially with newly graduates eager to celebrate the college's freedom, and also packed with wealthy Filipinos. We learned a lot about it with Marco, a kind Filipino in his early twenties, that was the perfect fit for the stereotype. Even though was so busy, what we did more in Boracay was enjoying the views and jumping around. Beautiful sunsets!

After flying to Cebu, the second biggest city in the Philippines, we ran away from it by catching a direct bus to Oslob, the village where you can snorkel with whale sharks. We had an amazing morning with these sweet hungry creatures and in the Tamalog falls.

Even before that morning started we coincidently had breakfast with a German couple that told us that they camped on the beach in Siquijor, that it was perfect, peaceful, beautiful and less touristic. That's exactly where we went. We didn't even think about it twice, and off we go.

We couldn't camp as they did in San Jose beach but we stayed at a little cosy resort in the nicest and most comfortable bunk beds ever. The island was indeed lovely, and the sunsets?! No words.

In the resort's beach side we met another couple, from Switzerland, that was busy working. Valleria was totally right when she told us, "we couldn't have a better office, could we?!". Both bloggers, now long-traveling, had to edit pictures to entertain their thousands of Instagram followers and update their adventures in the web. Too bad (for me) that they only write in German, but here is the link to their blog.

In one of the evenings I was reading in the restaurant's sofas and I suddenly hear "Tired?". Yes, I was but I was also too curious to deny a talk so I had a long long chat with the resort's owner. We talked about business, family finances, love, traveling, marriage. Thanks to Jeziel I learned a little bit more about the art of being a host, starting a business from scratch and a lot about the Filipino society's rules. It was impressive to meet her because she is an extremely strong, positive, full of hope and joyful woman. The magic portion for success! Fingers crossed for her UK visa :)

Bohol, our next stop, and it's attractions - chocolate hills and what else? - gets saved by the cool people we met in our little private hostel tour, and no, there were no couples!

Besides being a little disappointed by the green rock formations and the tarsiers, the van talks, the zip line, the spontaneous swimming pool party and our hostel pizza delivery made our quick stay so worthy! Thank you Annette, Lizette, Liz, Cath, Joshua and Joan. I won't forget the Desigual talks with the Tarragona man, the "almost spoilers" Game of Thrones talks with Josh, the sisters' laughs (making me miss mine a lot! Snif) and the travel adventures of the girls. I owe you all big time and I feel terrible that I forgot to take a group picture:(

These poor little things are so ugly....

Palawan, our last island from our Philippines' tour, gets in my opinion the top #1 for the nicest people. In our way to El Nido from Puerto Princesa (PP) we got a lift to the bus terminal, offered by the guesthouse's owner. I don't know his name but I know that if I ever stay again in PP I will stay in the Royal Sunflower Guesthouse, the breakfast was amazing and the kindness incomparable.

After 7h in a bus eating unhealthy snacks and drinking sweet bottled cold tea we arrived in El Nido, hydrated but starving. We drop our bags in our faraway hotel and we came back to the civilization to eat. In the El Nido Corner, around Happy Hour time, we met Fernanda and Paolo again - it looked like we planned it when we said goodbye in Manila. For the next 3days we were pretty much always together! Meals, tours, snorkeling, motorbike ride, sunsets, happy hours.

Super bumpy roads...road, right...

Orange watermelon anyone?!

Paolo and Fernanda are the owners of a very famous restaurant and guest house in Lagoa do Paraiso in Jericoacoara. Literally translating, the paradise lagoon, located in the northeast of Brazil, Ceara. Together they have been building up their own space, bringing new visitors, showing the lagoon to the world, using the best of it to live the dream of paradise. Partners in many crazy adventures, they have been traveling a little bit everywhere in Brazil, and in the world, for over 20 years. Same years of marriage and as happy as in the beginning, Fernanda revealed the secret for success: "Wanting it". That simple, that beautiful and that inspiring. We exchanged so many laughs, ideas and stories, that I can hardly remember all - Brazil's political and social situations were, by far, the hottest topics discussed. Meeting them was not only another set of stories though. Meeting them made me question - what's our lagoon, what if our lagoon dries up, what about our future?!? - and made me be sure that time is key. The answers will come when it's time. Thanks for your wise talks and advises. We said goodbye to the traveling gurus, promising a visit to their paradise, soon.

Already in Sabang, the village of one of the New 7 wonders of Nature, the Underground River, we met a friendly Dutch called Jeroen looking for "a less boring hotel". In that village things move slowly, as we were about to confirm, so chilling with a cold beer made it exciting. William had the time to discuss all the geek topics I'm unable to follow but we also talked about love, crazy travel adventures and some business. I miss the Netherlands so it's always good to meet Dutch people on the road.

Here it comes the longest story of this post...
Traveling in the Philippines was no easy task and we always had to pack with us huge doses of willingness, good books, a lot of time and Pesos. Time and Money, that's exactly what we did not have in our last days around.

There are no international ATMs in small cities like Sabang and after using all our dollars, and because we did some incorrect planning of our expenses, we were too short in Pesos. Mission on - we can handle it until the next ATM!! But it's in the middle of an unexpected fasting we also do some incorrect time planning - it's summer, it's Sunday, we want to visit the Underground River and have a plane to catch. We thought that we had more than enough time and we had, honestly, no clue that it would be so complicated. You get your permit, you wait, you get in a boat, you get out of the boat, you wait more, you get into a smaller boat, then you get in the cave.

Why was a bad planning? We had to move from Sabang to Puerto Princesa to catch the flight to Manila, in order to get out of the country the next day. Ufff. The time was passing by and we at the same spot. We got really worried. Despite the stress - to me it was the most stressful day in this trip so far - we were blessed to have amazing Filipinos around us. They not only tried to squeeze us in the multiple lines, they also counted the hours that we had left until the flight, they eventually discussed among them solutions to OUR problem. Our fault.

And then boom! Alexander, a tour guide serving other tourists from the Corazon Tours, offered the solution that finally calmed me down - we could join their private van that was going back to PP after the sightseeing. But this wasn't just a lift, the driver waited for us to grab our bags, the other van's refund, he stopped at an ATM (that did not accept our card!) and going totally the extra mile, he dropped us in the airport. In the AIRPORT! We gave him all the money we had left, totally sure that that it was nothing compared to what he did to us.

Mistake after mistake we were relieved and thankful that all went alright. That day taught us some lessons! All those acts of kindness towards us, strangers, were so incredible human that they undoubtedly connected me to them. How easy it is to change someone's life by a simple act, no matter how banal it might be to us?!?

I promise, I'm almost done. But I can't finish this post without mentioning (again) the 3 Filipinos we met in the first days in the country. 2 cousins, a common friend. One calls me Mama, the other post embarrassing videoke videos and the shyest one writes me just to ask "how are you doing?". They truly represent everyone I met in the country - happy, smiley, shy, introspective, locos, easy going, patient, caring.

I guess I was lucky because somewhere there must be not-this-nice and kind people. But either way, Philippines I <3 you for so many reasons. The wonderful people I met while traveling add a huge plus to the experience and will never forget it.

City Love: Chiang Mai

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 27 Apr 2015 04:05:00 +0000

One day Di and I were walking around one of my favorite cities, Lisbon. I was full of joy and excited to be exploring such a cool place. I got the same feeling over and over again in other cities too. And when I realized it, I was struck. It was kind of o special moment. I really like cities. In fact, I love'm!

I don't know many people that share this feeling, the opposite is far more popular. Way too often we listen others expressing their anger and frustration towards their urban surroundings. But I know I'm not alone.

I guess it's because I'm a puzzle solver. Could also be my addiction to SimCity games or the other may around. In any case, I really like to figure out how stuff works, how systems are designed and how to tweak and modify them. That's why I choose to and love to be a software engineer. Cities are exactly that, a wonderfully complex puzzle. The way I see it, cities tries to be the best place as possible for people to live close to each other in community and fulfill some kind of national goal. What sets it apart is that we live in it. We, people, are part of the puzzle. We build them to ourselves after all.

We've spent a few days in Chiang Mai, the biggest and most important city on the north of Thailand. It left a strong positive impression on me. I was constantly observing how they solved the city puzzle. Their solution was ancient and fascinating. This is the start of my personal series of posts dedicated to the coolest cities we visit called "City Love".

The city was planned and constructed on the fertile banks of the river Ping. This made sure that the needs of mobility, sanitation, clean water and food were readily available.

Ancient city planning

It is on a valley surrounded by mountains on the border of Burma, Laos and China. It was naturally a popular commercial route, were merchants and commerce flourished, different cultures mixed, technology and knowledge spread. People gathered.

Back in the day, war and conflict were common so a wall and moat were built to protect the royals, bureaucrats, temples and the rich. Clearly a lot of thought and effort was put into the city and it flourished. So much so it became an irresistible target for other conquerors. You can check Chiang Mai's complicated history online, or even better, on its cool museums.

Nowadays Chiang Mai has been largely modernized and expanded organically, without planning. The protective wall is no more, just a replica of the ancient gates are standing. The moat is still preserved. It's when we walked inside the old town that we felt somewhere special. It's full of incredible Buddhist temples, inviting spa resorts, hippy cafes, crazy tattoo parlors, music studios, arts and cooking schools, handcraft markets, diverse museums, international guest houses and hostels packed with people from all the corners of the world. Day and night the city's full of life. For me that's the legacy of a well planned city.

Inevitably it also has lots of problems too, like noise, air and water pollution, illegal drugs and prostitution, homeless and misery. It's far from perfect but I think it's as good as it gets in Thailand. It's a well balanced city.

There are many other reasons to like cities but I'll stop here. Our time in Chiang Mai was memorable, not only for the city itself, so I definitely recommend a visit. And maybe when you're there, you'll also notice how they solved their puzzle and enjoy a different city experience.

Cheers!

Crazy street art everywhere

The remains of one of the city gates

Beautiful and stylish paintings on a male-only temple

Gorgeous temple facades

Green jade floor. Only for men.

The temple's supporters

Madame Toussot style monk statues. Quite freaky.

Enjoying the blues

The new monks in white storming the city

Delicious western food with extra olive oil

The ugly and polluted Ping river

Local flag

Unbelievable temples

Eeer, what?!

Buddha in white style

Mythological painting exhibition

Gentlemen, start your engines!

Black Camenrider!!!

Do You feel special?

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Fri, 17 Apr 2015 03:28:00 +0000

"Do you feel special?!" Will asks our guide when we are able to breathe again...

"Because you know...you are from an amazing, special and unique place".

Our guide, with a way better English than I had when first arrived in the Netherlands, simply responds, "It's okay".

I silently giggle and looked at Will. No it's not just okay dude. It's amazing! It is a breathtaking view. Many say and I agree - it's the best and most stunning amphitheater rice terraces!

It's one of the most beautiful thing I've seen in this trip! How can he say it's just okay?!?!!?

Camouflaged?!

We arrived in the Philippines when April started and we stayed some days in Manila, it was Easter weekend and the city was, they said, deserted. I won't recommend it because of the things to see or the traffic, baggers, pollution or lots of signs of poverty. I would just say that our stay there, 3 too long days, was "saved" by the people we meet there, including 3 great Filipinos and loads of internationals passing by or staying for undefined time.

We did videoke, we had cheap okay food, walked the old city, soaked an afternoon in a swimming pool, saw the many churches packed, followed the crowds in the streets, said thousands "no" to street kids eventually, we couldn't get more of it. We left overwhelmed to Banaue, and what awaited us in Batad was just heaven.

Our days there wouldn't have been so amazing if we perhaps had not met the super duper cool French couple - Luïc and Lucile. Why? Because we literally highjacked their plans and join them for their whole time in Banaue. And it was sooo much fun!

So what was expecting us in Batad?!? Yes, rice terraces. No internet. Many hours hiking and stunning view points. Rain and beautiful sun. An unforgettable peace. I also can't forget that in the evenings we played "truco".

Just going back to where I started, I wonder...

How much beauty we miss sometimes just around the corner? How much do we miss a place, a person, when we are not there or we can't hug that person? How little importance do we give to someone that sits everyday just across us? How much do we take for granted?

We must, more often, stop and look around us, be thankful and never stopped to be amazed by the small things. We all will be so much happier and feel, more often, special.

From Laos to Thailand

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Mon, 13 Apr 2015 11:45:00 +0000

We cruised through Laos as we decided to stay longer in the Philippines - decisions decisions decisions.

Even though it was a small sample from the country I had a blast in Luang Prabang and in its many cute little streets and in the best night market so far (I would have bought a lot of things there if I could:)). It was also in Luang Prabang that I saw the most volunteering offers since we start traveling - my favorite was The Big Brother Mouse. It was clear: there is still so much to be done in the country, not only with children but also with nature and wildlife.

We had the opportunity to see part of the work done with elephants in the Elephant Village. The portion we contributed (1h elephant riding) was quite small compared with all possibilities there: from a full day training to become an official elephant rider (aka mahout), to staying over in the village or buying all sort of elephant-type souvenirs. You can always help. The cause is quite noble and riding that 40 years old elephant, I must confess, was something completely unexpected. I never imagined that rough skin, those funny moves and that thick fur. I was quite amazed by the obedience (and cleverness) of our elephant - when the mahout told her to refresh herself, while crossing the river, she did it promptly whole over her and me. It was sort of weird great experience.

Having movie nights with popcorn or pizza at home it was all we wanted in some evenings these past months. Resting our feet while doing something we enjoy so much. The fact that we have no laptop with us makes it quite hard, but we managed in Luang Prabang, in one of the many cute cafes and restaurants. No pizza, no popcorn just movie and Laos' food, comfortable in the middle of some pillows. Sweet. Almost home. Some extra points to the city.

We slowly moved west into the border with Thailand - literately slow. It took us 3 days and 2 nights to get to Chiang Mai by boat (and 5h van). The Mekong river is beautiful, the landscape is great, it's one hell of a river...but it was so tiring that we don't wish to repeat it any time soon.

We get to northern Thailand safe and sound, tired, restless in a hard mattress room but Chiang Mai was keeping a little nice surprise for us. We got to know that there were friends around the corner - how energizing is that?! A lot! We had dinner dates with Michele and Patricia every night after doing loads of stuff with the daylight (temples, museums, massage course, hunting for postcards, sending packages home, eating good food, etc.).

Crazy Blues Singer. Great night!

Our last evening together in town was spent cooking, or learning how to do so in Thai style - it was so yummy!

Sweet cooking partners German couple.

Little warning about mosquito bites in Thailand, I never saw my body reacting that bad - note to self use plenty of repellent day/night/everywhere or pick a good skin/bad blood like Will's :):)

And girls, thanks, it was awesome to be around you! The live music, the crazy tuk-tuk driver, the great restaurant host, the long talks & walks looking for food, the many beers, the street food and the night markets...the happy smiles! Our stay in Chiang Mai was 100% improved because we met you!

The mainland Southeast Asia circle was about to be closed, but there was still a unforgettable train trip to happen. Check out this post.

Simply Laos

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 12 Apr 2015 02:33:00 +0000

The overlooked gem of Southeast Asia. We always knew we wanted to go to Laos but for no specific reason. There are Khmer temples but not as wonderful as in Cambodia. There are a few scars left by war but not like in Vietnam. There are no beaches at all so I won't even compare it to Thailand. As far as I could see there was nothing special about it. How come everybody I knew highly recommended it?! Well, like I was told so many times, you have to go there and experience it for yourself. So that's what we did and it was wonderful.

It all started with a pleasant quick flight from Hanoi, Vietnam, to Luang Prabang. We arrived in our guest house at night and went hunting for dinner at the night market. We choose the first Lao restaurant and ordered some typical food and veggies. What a great surprise!

Clockwise from the top: chicken salad, steamed veggie & spring rolls.

The food was delicious, different but not weird. Easy to savour, full of original flavours and surprising combinations. To top it all, the Lao Beer is light and refreshing, just like back home. Even when its served with ice. Great start!

On the second day we did our own walking tour around town which is an UNESCO Heritage member. We visited many Buddhist temples and absorbed the city. It's quiet, gentle and inviting. The mighty Mekong on one side and the Nam Khan river running in a sharp angle at the other. Both meet at the base of a hill where you can climb to visit another temple complex - hilariously pronounced "Pussy Hill" - and gaze at the breath taking surroundings. And if it's dry season, pay a little fee to cross the artesanal Bamboo Bridge and walk in Nam Khan's bank.

Tipical scene over the bamboo bridge

We survived the Popular Street Alley Food Buffet

Walking is probably our favourite thing to do. We usually walk 6 to 7 km every day. Even when its noon and 40 degrees, which was the case. Sadly, March is the month to burn the fields to make way for the new crops.

Smokey and beautiful views

This means smoke, a lot of it.
Covering the whole sky, burning your eyes and that bad smell. All that smoke really bothered me, like that jerk puffing his nasty cigar at you while you have lunch. It didn't ruin it but it was not cool.

Luang Prabang is too nice to be ruined by smoke. There are a lot of interesting cafés and restaurants to try, like the super popular Utopia. Hard to find but absolutely original. Overlooking the Nam Khan river, you can eat on low tables, chilling on the cushions, listening to rock and pop classics. Or you can have drinks and play beach volleyball. Or just sit on the totally open deck on the hill side contemplating the night sky and the river. A truly great experience.

Staying in town is cool but its even cooler to explore its surroundings. We went for a 2 days 1 night combo expedition: truck, speed boat, jungle trekking, hut lodging, elephant riding and kayaking. What an incredible experience! We went together with a young American couple and a local guide. We got friends really fast and talked at length about life on the road. There's always a new amazing story to hear from travellers. The expedition was exhausting but we enjoyed every minute.

Baby monkey pet of a village

How many Water Buffalos can you spot?

First time cooking since our trip started!

Double date dinner without electricity

The trekkers and the smoke

Lumber-kids

They don't have alternatives so they start early

There was only one uncool thing. My phone got soaked with water inside a waterproof bag while we were kayaking. How ironic isn't it?! All due to a bottle with a crappy cap. I let my phone rest in rice for 3 days and it finally turned on but it's not the same as before. The front camera, compass, SIM card all stopped working. And the battery barely lasts a day now. So basically I have an old small tablet. I'm still figuring out what to do with it.

We did a few more things in Laos but I'm going to let Di talk about them. It was a short stay in Laos, in only one city. Does Laos has more to offer? Absolutely! Was it enough? Definitely. We had our blast and incredible memories were made. Everything worked out as planned. What else could we ask for?

I even "drove" an elephant!

Our timing in Laos was perfect specially considering our next destination but I'll tell more about it on my next post.

Cheers!

A circle

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 00:22:00 +0000

The voice outside announces the beginning of our next journey. I just jump on the window! Head out, wind blowing slowly in my face, it's almost sunset and the train's noise tele-transports me to an old movie. Behind us, in between some waving hands and smiles from the people waiting to cross the train rails, is Chiang Mai. Even further, the slow boat from Luang Prabang.

The scenery is quite inspiring - almost clear sky, small rice fields, people returning back home after another working day, some backyard gardens full of nice herbs, teak tree's plantation, some odd smells once in a while (hmmmm maybe not that inspiring, blah!), the sun behind the mountain. I feel like a little kid, as old as the one that is hysterical waving at every single person outside, on the window next to mine.

How happy and grateful I feel, we have been traveling nearly 2 months and I can't stop thinking how lucky we are. I can't say everything is easy, chill or even natural to the 2 of us - we do mistakes all the time, we learn each time; we get to silly arguments often, we say sorry each time; we get ripped off, we pray for nice people to get closer and the bad to go away.

Day light is over for us and I keep on smiling.

With the dark the train seats become the lower beds, the partial train's selling becomes the upper beds. The train becomes a long corridor shaped by curtains, protecting each bed that are just small bedbunks.

Mine smells like rain. I can see the lightning through the same window I was earlier smiling. The heavy rain got in my bed through the open window so my sheets are slightly wet. The fresh feels right even though is still so humid.

We are about to close the circle that started our adventure - Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and then again Thailand. We move soon to Philippines and then to South Korea.

The train gets to Bangkok with the sunrise but from the city's ring to the center takes us more than 2h. The sun is strong, it feels as humid and sweaty as I remembered. Busy, noisy, full of beautiful people. We both desperately need a shower, an ACed room and a soft bed to rest.

Bangkok threats us well and we continue our journey, backpack on, into the next stop.

Sick Memories from Vietnam

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 29 Mar 2015 05:34:00 +0000

Being sick sucks. It literally stinks, specially in my case. Before we continue, my dear reader, a word of caution. This post might take your mind to some nasty places. I promise not to be vulgar but I'll keep sincere. So let's move on.

I'm specially grateful for a few details in this story that were actually surprising. One of them was the power of body language. I walked in to the emergency room and a few nurses looked at me. I just hold my belly and made a painful expression and mimicked throwing up. I also looked pretty bad since I couldn't eat properly for more than 2 days and was shivering due to 39° fever. Pronto! One of them lead me to o a bed and started with the standard procedures for "another tourist got got by street food".
In hindsight, it's not surprising at all that without any questions asked, not even saying a word, they knew exactly what was going on. Probably they treat dozens of similar patients weekly. Just the shift's doctor could speak basic English, enough to set into stone my diagnosis, treatment and prescription.

Some of you, the keen ones, might have noticed an obvious omission on the last paragraph. Trust me, I didn't omit it because it never existed on the first place. Bureaucracy. Forms, document validations, liability discharges, insurance coverage checking, god damn copies to sign. None of it in between my treatment. Now that impressed me! I've never seen it in Brazil nor in the Netherlands, no matter if in public or private hospital. I remember sitting on the taxi to the hospital emotionally preparing myself to this utterly stupidity of modern life, wishing for quick waiting lines and English forms. If you never waited in line with high fever, bad diarrhea, broken arm or whatever, you don't know how great it felt. I only got a bill to pay in the end. Much like in a restaurant where you had a good service but without the tip - which I would gladly give.

So there I was, laying on the E.R.'s bed, medicine intravenously administered, my caring wife next to me ... And suddenly I burst into tears. I was briefly stuck in a very negative wave of thought, fearing a worse disease, ruining my wife's trip, having to go back to Europe and so on... It really scared me. I wouldn't call it a nervous breakdown neither a panic attack but I can't name it either. Well, it passed quickly thanks again to my "fofinha". Soon she was helping me take my medicine and we realised that some other ladies were observing us and laughing. They were all locals so all that scene must seen quite odd. I didn't bother and I joked with them.

After 4 hours or so we were back at our guesthouse with a bag full of medicines that I would have to take well past my birthday. We were in Nha Trang, a Russian's Touristic Paradise city with beautiful beaches. I was happy and sad on my day. I was feeling less than 80% recovered, no alcohol, not full of energy and no friends. For so many reasons, good and bad, I'll never forget my 30th birthday and I'll tell its tale with a very humorous tone. Not melodramatic like this post. I call it "Birthday Blues".

So that's one of my most memorable experience in Vietnam. Quite a personal journey, not the best but thankfully overcame. Diana's posts highlight other more pleasurable moments.

Have you ever been hospitalized while traveling too? Let us know.

Cheers!

Wait a second Vietnam

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Wed, 25 Mar 2015 13:25:00 +0000

I know now that Vietnam was not exactly what I was expecting. I liked it, and then, then the "but" comes...but it did not inspire me, but I did not connect with the people or them with me, but but but.

But Phong Nha was different! The Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park hosts one of the best things I saw in Vietnam: huge and unexplored caves. But also the greenest rice paddies among with sweet people and many happy children. We had a lot of fun there and made me rethink the Vietnam experience.

Planning to go to Vietnam?

Don't miss it!

How to get there?

We got a direct bus from Hué but we started by emailing the Phong Nha Farmstay to get more details - a super cool place run by an Australian and Vietnamese couple known as the engines of tourism in the region. Even though the Farmstay was fully booked the days we wanted to stay the helpful staff gave us further info - other options, description of the places, prices and also the available tours around the national park.

Where to stay?

We decided to stay in a Homestay recently opened called "Farm 2 Home". This is a super unique place: the rooms are in a small common space (with a little too hard mattress), there is a kitchen and toilet all in a concrete building just recently built. Map (you should read it Mop), the owner, her parents and her niece live side by side in a 40 years old wooden house. Around the houses you have chickens, roosters, dogs (also puppets when we were there), pigs, a pepper plantation, pumpkins, coriander, basil and loads of other herbs and veggies. Map is a former Farmstay employee that is starting her own business, even though highly supported by Ben (her previous boss) she is a happy talker, simple and with a vision - make the business grow to be able to help out her parents. Living apart from her husband for over a year, while waiting for the Canadian visa, she is one of the few women's entrepreneur I met in Vietnam...Okay I can say the only one I met...note to self: there is that gender's issue around here, don't forget, Diana.

I'm super happy we stayed over and were able to meet and help her. If you want to stay there - way cheaper than the Farmstay and better than staying in another hostel - check her on Facebook, or email the Farmstay as we did and jump on a homestay adventure - you will not regret it!

What to do in Phong Nha?

There is plenty to do, it's beautiful and it's a UNESCO World Heritage Site and caves are the thing, in both scale and length. We decided to get one of the tours that the Farmstay offers around the National Park. It included three different caves:

- the 8 women, super small cave it is dedicated to the Vietnamese that died while building the Ho Chi Minh trail during the war in Vietnam;

- the Paradise cave, said to be the longest cave in the world because it extends for 31km (you can only visit the first km);

- and the Dark cave, that I won't tell anything more about it rather than the obvious: it's quite dark inside because of the black limestone that is made from, but don't worry you get torch lights. Another piece of information, non-water proof cameras are not advised to go inside, so no pictures for us:( And please,please, please don't read reviews spoiling all the magic, it should be a surprise, and again, you won't regret it.

The day passed by quickly and amazingly fun!

You have plenty of more caves to visit though, the Phong Nha cave that also only has the first km open to visitors and only accessible by boat, the same boat that drops you at the Tien Son cave, beautiful views from the bay make the hike worthy.

"Farm2Table" also offers free bicycle rental and cooking courses. We didn't do the cooking but we rented a bike for one day and biked around the village - no words are needed for these, isn't it?!

Oh and one more thing to mention, the homestay is in the middle of nowhere, street lights do not exist as well as pavement roads...this is what you get if you get home after sunset.

Don't worry Map will take care of you and you will totally enjoy it.

Go now if you can :)

Where are you from?!

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Thu, 19 Mar 2015 08:05:00 +0000

I don't think I ever answered this question so many times as I did since we arrived in Vietnam.

Our arrival in Hoi Chi Min City, or as it's still called by the locals Saigon, was smooth - no major problems crossing the boarder by land, no scams, better roads (wait for it, as it was false alarm), massively populated city, thousands of motorbikes, a lot of war memories and glimpses of old European cities.

Our overall plan at that time was to spend Will's anniversary in a party city - easy to meet people, have some fun and celebrate the arrival of a new decade. We decided to do it in Nha Trang. We thought that we could even rent an apartment for few days where we could finally cook our own food, wash out the dirt of our sneakers and rest. It happened almost that way... We had to adjust it a little because Will got really ill on our way there - feeling like vomiting, vomiting, diarrhea, vomiting a little more, more diarrhea and fever. Gladly we stopped in a city called MuiNé where just wind and sand could stop us, so we did a lot of healing and -resting and yeah we paid a visit to the closest hospital to completely kill the bad-ass bug that attacked him.

MuiNé and Nha Trang are touristic cities. They have loads of restaurants, bars, Russians tourists and also loads of people ready to sell you their soul- books, fruits, drinks, sunglasses, ice cream, cigarettes, motorbike's tour, drugs. They approach you in all different kind of ways, the most common by honking or saying hello. You can ignore them, sometimes, but most of the time you can't because they move around in groups...if you say no to the first one, the next one asks you the same thing, hoping that your decision changed after 1second.

Being polite while saying no, can generate other questions too - the most common: "where are you from?!". When answered the reply is so happy - futebol, Cristiano - that even if I want to get mad, I simply can't.

We moved to Hué skipping the very touristic, shopping orientated and known for the remarkable tailors, Hoi An. Hué gave us a little more "where are you from?!" questions, with less Russians around...

And that's about it...the English level in the streets of Vietnam doesn't allow them to have a chit-chat or build up a connection. You may ask "are you from around?", and the answer is "cigarettes?! buy one from me!". Maybe they don't answer because they don't care, instead of not understanding...but that's exactly where I lose the contact and the connection with that person. And that's exactly what I'm missing in Vietnam, the connection with the people.

I wouldn't be far if I say that all Vietnamese I met are like this...not true. The further North we get, the more differences I notice (or maybe it's just me not caring much anymore). I will write a separate post about the best decision we made so far: visit the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park.

Vietnam is beautiful and worth the visit. Beautiful people, funky almost-roads, a lot of growth specially in the cities, some poverty specially in the villages, loads of history to soak and shock you, loads of cheap clothes, stylish air cuts, nice very nice food, beautiful sand beaches and coast lines, and also nice people, just not as nice as in Cambodia, I warn you.

Lassi, Diana and Will, the professional travellers in Halong Bay

A new country in my heart

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 13 Mar 2015 11:01:00 +0000

As our trip continues East we reach the Kingdom of Cambodia. At the border with Thailand one can already tell that change is coming. Cambodia is exceptional. On our way to Siem Riep I started noticing a few things, the most obvious is poverty. Infrastructure is precarious and Sorry Villages are everywhere. The locals are skinny, short, sun scorched skin and usually boasting a big friendly smile. Laughter is rather common. And that surprised me.

The real Cambodia.

Butcher. No ice or soap anywhere near.

Lotus farm. You can eat the seeds as snacks. They are supposed to be sweet.

Alligator farm. These bad boys are worth a lot of money.

The base of the continent: rice!

Biking trough the county side.

More than just a warning, a life philosophy around here.

Siem Riep is an aberration. The good kind, mind you. A Westerner can find almost anything it misses. The temples of Ankor Wat, Ankor Thon and etc are as magnificent as expected. I struggled to imagine how the temples would look like on their glorious days. There's simply no frame of reference in my mind. When I went to Rome a few years ago, I could imagine myself fighting with Russell Crow on the arena of the Colosseum while thousands of people cheer for blood as a vicious tiger is about to join the show. Hollywood creates a lot of good content for a few selected civilizations, even fantasy (Thank you Peter Jackson), some times over and over again ( Hercules again?!) instead of trying new things. I'm pretty sure the ancient Khmer empire is full of amazing material for movies, series, games, books and what have you. I hope somebody make it happen and we have something fresh.

Marvelous temples

Protectors of sacred temples: Lion & Naga

Angkor Wat sunrise

Honeymooning?

This tree need stones to grow big

Apsaras everywhere. Symbols of party!

The coldest Strangling Ficus of the forest

Selfie with the stoner face!

The Chinese Tourist Horde was there, celebrating their New Year. They have money, are hungry, are thirsty, armed with selfie sticks, taking pictures with their tablets, swarming over everything, their buses crowd parking lots and clog small streets. They are unstoppable and I'm afraid they'll take over the world before I'm ready.

Happy Chinese New Year! Goat!

They kind of become the attraction

Where do all these picture go?

Goats decoration on a Christmas-like tree

Thankfully the Horde was not in Battambang, a quite little town in the west but with two truly unique experiences: the bamboo train and the bat cave. The former is an one hour tourist trap. But it's loud, shaky and fast: one of my definitions of fun! The latter is a nature show off, millions of bats flying out of their nest in search of food. It takes more than one hour for all the bats to fly out and as they cluster in the sky you start to wonder if you're seeing the Black Smoke of Lost. Pro tip: climb up to the giant Buddha face on the rock for a perfect view and no bat pee.

Riding the baboo train is awesome!

Fast, shaky and loud: fun!

Huge Naga sculpture

Made out of recovered guns and firearms

Bats, millions of hungry bats

Buddha statue overlooking the valley

For our last stop we went for the big city, the Pearl of Asia, Phnom Penhn. I heard only bad stories about it even tough the guides told a different thing. Luckily, I enjoyed it, a lot. The city was beautifully planned by the French and the locals added their typical touch resulting in an authentic ordered chaos. The city has everything, from thousands of street food cars to chic shopping malls with even "mansions next to slums", a classic arrangement back in Brazil. The city can also tell a dark chapter in the country's history: the Khmer Rouge (Red). A terrible sad story that is also neglected by Hollywood and the entertainment industry. Genocide, communism, war, mass murder, crazy leaders, brainwash, fear and violence. The horrors are still vivid for a few "lucky" victims. I met one of the survivors, I was in his cell at S21, I saw him crying in a video trying to cope with the past, I almost bought his book. As I walked through the killing fields, between dozens of mass graves and avoiding human remains that frequently unearth, a torrent of feelings rushed through me. I wiped my shy tears and shook away the dread. How come these atrocities are still possible?! How can people be so insane?! It boggles me deeply.

Skyscrapers of the big city

Scooters are the blood of Asia!

Cambodia museum

Lying Vishnu?

The end of another day in the growing city

I love you. Okay!

After all the hell that the Khmer Rouge brought upon the nation, I can understand why and how the county is in the current state and why so many people want to help (Thanks Angie and Brad). Now I know why Cambodians are so happy: they are free and can have a future. They are thankful for what they have now.

Paying respect to the victims

9 floors of human remains

Corridors of terror

A dark purpose

VIP cells

We stayed only 10 days but Cambodia will forever be in my heart. It's really special.

Cheers!

P.S.: We also met a some really cool people in Cambodia: Jade, Coach, Tiago and Hak! Big hugs to all of you.

Birthday Blues

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 18:43:00 +0000

30. That's me. Not flashing the usual huge smile. But that's still me, 100% sincere. My smile is there, shy, smirking from the corner. The not smiley part of me comes from the realisation that being alone on your birthday really sucks. I do have my one-and-only by my side and we are making our craziest dreams come true. But I do miss my dear friends and family. So I'm happy. And sad. The result? Gratitude.

That is the fine print of life, right? Double edged blade, complicated to handle. But cheers to that! And to another unforgettable birthday!

Eer, lemonade for me please, or else I'll screw with the antibiotics.
Peace.
P.S.: Thanks to all the loving cheerful messages. You guys really make a difference.

Já ganhou!

noreply@blogger.com (d) — Fri, 27 Feb 2015 10:28:00 +0000

Sorry, today the post is in Portuguese. Started the notes in Portuguese and couldn't translate it anymore. Good luck using Google translator...

Para mim, o Camboja já ganhou. Pela comida, pelas pessoas, pela simplicidade, pela ruralidade, pela(s) beleza(S) natural(ais). Acho que principalmente pela simplicidade.

Chegamos a Siem Riep depois de 30h de viagem (barco, autocarro, mini-van, carro), que correu bem, não tivessem uns tailandeses tentado nos "roubar" uns trocados na fronteira - drible de eu faço o visto por vocês e vocês não perdem o próximo autocarro para Siem Riep. Acabamos por ser driblados um pouco mais à frente, conscientemente. Pagar um extra para chegarmos mais cedo ao destino era tudo o que queríamos depois de tanta hora na estrada...

À medida que nos embrenhávamos mais e mais no país o ritmo ia claramente mudando: os carros já não andavam como loucos, as bicicletas igualavam em número as motas, as pessoas sorriam um pouco menos mas continuavam de sorriso fácil. O sol escaldava ainda mais e a pobreza era escandalosamente maior. A simplicidade aumentava.

Chegamos à nossa guesthouse sem água quente, com muitos mosquitos mas com um staff sorridente e super amigável. Localizados bem no centro da cidade, rápido percebemos que estávamos numa outra fase da nossa viagem - o Camboja é diferente e nós teríamos que nos adaptar a esta nova realidade. Será que ia ser simples?!

Fizemos as partes turísticas, templos de tuk-tuk, Angkor Wat ao amanhecer, show de dança de apsara (dança tradicional), comemos amok (cozinhado feito em folhas de bananeira) e caril de galinha (o meu favorito até agora foi o da nossa guesthouse, de longe!!! Tão bom que me queimou o céu da boca :)). Fizemos ainda uma visita aos campos de arroz, quintas de lotus e crocodilos e espreitamos o mercado local. Fora do turístico normal, alugamos bicicletas e deixamo-nos levar pela confusão do trânsito da cidade, perdemo-nos pelas estradas de areia, encontramos crianças sorridentes e faladoras.

Turístico ou não, tudo é simples, bonito, autêntico e pobre.

Coincidência ou não, foi em Siem Riep que passámos mais tempo até agora. Era engraçado ver a cara do staff quando perguntávamos pela manhã: "podemos ficar mais uma noite?!".

Depois deixámo-nos levar por um fim-de-semana em Battambang, a 4h de distância de Siem Riep, é uma antiga cidade colonial francesa, com a sua influência clara - o francês é mais frequente que o inglês, há baguetes em quase todos os carrinhos de comida e nas ementas dos restaurantes.

Simples (olha a novidade!), cheia de crianças, menos turistas, Battambang também tem coisas únicas: Uma caverna de morcegos que ao final do dia saem da sua casa e dão ao céu um misto de pintura e absurdo. Há também um comboio de bambu, que de comboio só tem as linhas e pessoas maravilhosas! O Xim é um exemplo disso, contou-nos que pouco recebe ao trabalhar como professor inglês e física mas que não desiste dos seus alunos. "Nunca!", diz ele. Passa a semana longe de casa, em outra cidade, e o que lhe dá mais satisfação é saber que está a ter impacto positivo nos seus alunos e principalmente por lhes estar a proporcionar o mesmo que um dia ele teve também - acesso ao conhecimento. Muito inspirador, mesmo!

Mergulhamos em Phnom Pehn, depois de uma semana no Camboja. Como capital de um país, é cheia de tudo. Prédios altos, lixo muito lixo, pessoas com pressa, muitas marcas da guerra que arrasou o país até à bem pouco tempo...e um caos organizado à sua própria medida.

Na primeira noite fugimos disto tudo e entramos num shopping - a sensação que tive foi que tinha sido ejectada do Camboja. Parecia que estava no Colombo em Lisboa, mas a praça de alimentação tinha caracteres japoneses (havia ali alguma ligação com o Japão que não tentei entender), mas de resto tudo era igual. Acabamos por matar a vontade de ir ao cinema e experimentamos uma sessão 4D - filme terrível, experiência engraçada!

Nos dias seguintes deixamo-nos levar pelas tristes marcas da guerra civil, com o seu ápice na era dos Khmer Rouge (1974-1979) onde quase 2 milhões de Cambodianos foram assassinados. Fomos visitar a intensa e dolorosa prisão onde os presos eram detidos e torturados, assim como o descampado onde eram enterrados depois de sentenciados à morte por crimes que não tinham cometido.

Vale a pena ler e descobrir um pouco mais desta história que teima em não ser diferente de país para país, de década para década - e infelizmente se repetir sem pudor nem perdão.

Estávamos preparados para Phnom Pehn ser mau, muito pior do que foi na realidade. Mas três dias e estávamos prontos para seguir viagem - já com o visto do Vietnam no bolso. Se passarem por estas bandas, vão ao mercado russo, caminhem pelo rio e deixem-se levar pelas cores das coisas - vale a pena!

É o Vietnam que nos espera agora e eu nem sei bem o que esperar...vou ser certamente surpreendida tal como fui com o Camboja, que já tem um lugar especial no meu coração, simplesmente pela sua simplicidade.