Seattle! The big city (revisited)

I've been home for over two weeks now. I have my old job again, a place to live, a bed. The foundation for a home. I've been homeless since I left Bellingham, over a year and a half ago. Since then I have had the internal struggle between absolute freedom to do as I please (move, leave) whenever I please and the desire for a home, a place to belong, a life, a routine. This whole situation is what sent me to Central America in the first place. Now, so many people ask me what my next travel plans are. I tell them not to encourage me. It's a plausible life, something that I know: work travel work travel. I graduated nearly two years ago. What do I have to show for it? I'm a barista, like when I graduated. But I've also spent over half of the time in different countries. Learning, living, loving, leaving.

I've been told by a friend that my travel blog posts are good but my "home" blog posts are much better. The original goal of the blog (oh-so-many months ago now) was to let kith and kin know what was happening in my travels in Spain so I wouldn't have to mass e-mail. Maybe make them work a little for an update. When I mention some major instance from my travels and my audience doesn't know to what I am referring, I generally respond, "Didn't you read my blog?!" It's a bad assumption to make, as most don't read the blog and many whom I don't see often do (i.e., friends of the parents). To know that anyone reads it is utterly flattering. I do appreciate any and all comments that come my way.

I know that making Seattle my home will take time. Patience. I felt alienated in Bellingham when I first moved there at the beginning of college but after 4 years I didn't want to leave. I just moved to Ballard, which seems like a city-within-a-city (I'm all about things-within-things that may or may not be microcosms) so I'm hoping I can make it my own Bellingham. I want a home. I think I have satiated that wanderlust for the time being and want to feel comfortable somewhere. I want somewhere to call home. I want a reason to stay.

As usual, this entry is simply a jumble of random thoughts that probably shouldn't be read by anyone. Thanks for reading.

Solo cabras comen la ropa

Here I am, back in San José. I fly out the day after tomorrow, back to home (wherever that may be), back to reality, back to my future. It's all there waiting for me, more or less as I left it. I'm not sure if I'm actually any closer to any conclusions, any plans, but I've had an amazing trip so that must count for something. Although everything is nearly the same as I left it, this return (homecoming?) is entirely different from last time. I feel a sense of... I'm not quite sure. It certainly isn't panic and dread, what I felt about 7 months ago when I returned from Spain. That recently? That long ago? I feel optimistic about my future and the plans I've sewn together while I've been here (near the top of Chirripó, precisely) and I'm excited to continue my life in Seattle. I miss my family and friends and dog a lot. I'm looking forward to sleeping in the same bed for more than 3 nights in a row, having hot water more than once every few weeks, being free of insect bites, having more than 4 shirts, privacy! But I'm going to miss so many things, specific to Central American and more generally about travel. Trying new food (weird meat), seeing amazing new things each day, learning, sharing a common bond with everyone at every hostal, challenging myself, living quite simply, riding chicken buses, having only three valuables (camera, wallet, passport), having all my possessions in a backpack.

Two days ago the inevitable happened. Something that Emily and I have been joking about for the past several weeks. My money and credit card were stolen from my locked bag (Emily's too). We had been saying that if our money/credit cards were stolen at this point it wouldn't be so bad because we had so little time left and getting wired money one time wouldn't be too bad. And it happened. Although the guy--who I even had a conversation with in the hostal room--did see fit to leave my debit card and several smaller colones bills. Nor did he steal the passports in the same pocket of my bag. I can't be sure if he was being somewhat kind in this regard or really had no need for my debit card (although he took Emily's), passport or colones of small denominations. It's also a huge mystery as to how: the bag was locked and everything looked normal. At any rate. I had to the cancel the card in the middle of an internet cafe with a terrible connection and two children running around me, yelling. Afterwards, our friend Chris who we met on Ometepe bought us dinner and all was fine.

Besides the petty theft, I enjoyed San Juan del Sur. In fact, in spite of the theft, and that the water was turned off for the entire city for over 24 hours. No showers, no toilet, nothing. Apparently it's common to lose water for several hours at a time. I spent an amazing day at a beach north of the city, Playa Maderas with Emily and three people we met on Ometepe. It was basically deserted, white sand, blue water, no trash. The best beach day to end a trip filled with awesome beach days. A beautiful sunset, with only the neon pink sun in the sky, slowly descending past the horizon. (No green flash, unfortunately.) It was eerie, the flaming sun alone in the sky; I've never seen a sunset like the ones in San Juan del Sur.

I've already begun planning my next trip: 3 months (or more) in Mexico and Guatemala, with a one-way ticket to Guatemala and then heading north. I'm fairly certain no one reading this is very thrilled to hear this. Clearly, it's just a fantasy. But how incredible would that be? I'm finding that I need to have a future trip in mind (even as I'm not quite finished with my current one). It helps me feel free. It's helping me go home because I know I can do this again in the future. Traveling in Latin America is so cheap and not frightening (as I had previously thought). Everyone I've met here who went to Mexico absolutely loved it. Anyway. This thought, this fantasy, may help me go through with my plans for the immediate future. I will have time for more travel. I will be able to afford it. I will never be trapped in a life that I hate, so trapped that I can't get away and go to Mexico. I am excited to come home and move on in my life knowing that this will not be my last adventure.

Nicaragua (Nic-ar-ag-oo-a)

This country is incredible. I've been here for a week and a half so far and I absolutely love it. It's so different from both Costa Rica and Panama. A bit dirtier, a bit louder, hotter. I love the street food, the chicken buses, the currency. I spent several days in Leon: the most beautiful city I've seen this entire trip. It's not very touristed yet so it was easy to walk through the streets (sticking to the shady side of course) without being hassled or hustled--no more than the locals are hustled by the regular vendors with baskets of various food and drink on their heads. I went to the central market there several times and each time I found something amazing. Refrescos naturales (fresh juices) in all sorts of strange flavors for 10 cordobas (50 cents). Dulce de cacao, a type of sweet with cocoa. The largest papayas I have ever seen in my life. Delicious home baked pastries of all kinds. You're allowed to walk all over the roof of the cathedral (unsupervised) for great views of the city and all the neighboring volcanoes, provided you don't ring the bells or run around on the domes. I would have spent more time there but it was just too hot. And I'm near the end of my trip so each day must be carefully planned (yikes!).

I then spent several days in Granada which is also beautiful but entirely filled with tourists. It became overwhelming with everyone offering taxis, buses, hammocks, vases everywhere, even in restaurants. I was dying slowly from the heat--seriously, I've never been this hot before for an extended amount of time--and suffocating from all the attention so it was a relief to go to Isla de Ometepe. It's a huge island in the middle of the Lago de Nicaragua, a huge lake with sharks. The island is in the shape of a figure eight with a volcano on each side, one larger and one smaller. The natural beauty there is incredible. It is not highly developed or overly touristed yet so my entire stay was very relaxing. I stayed at Finca Magdalena, a coffee farm at the base of the smaller volcano, Maderas. One day Emily and I climbed the volcano with a group from the Finca. The hardest 6 mile hike I've ever done (not to mention the terrible shape in which I find myself cardiovascularly). The trail passes through several kinds of forests with great views of the larger volcano, Concepcion, and there's a muddy lake at the top in a crater. The second day I took a bus to Ojo de Agua, a natural spring that was turned in to a swimming area. I tried to swim in the lake on the way back but it was pretty dirty and too shallow for hundreds of feet from the shore.

I'm now in San Juan del Sur on the southern Pacific coast. I've been hearing opposing opinions about this place for several months now so here I am to judge for myself. The beach looks nice? It's hot.