Sand Duning, Scuba Diving and the Colombian Drug Cartel

I would like to think that my lack of keeping up regularly with the writing is indicative of the fact that I have been too busy having crazy fun to sit down and write.  While there is some truth to that, the lack of posting must also be attributed to the fact that 2 weeks ago my phone died.  Its funny how initially I was reluctant to create posts from my phone but I soon became so reliant on the ease of writing whenever I wanted to that I stopped dedicating the time to sit down at a computer to put my thoughts and experiences into written words.  I've now taken a few technological steps backwards and am once again reliant on the antiquated benefits of a desktop computer that is not my own.  

I last left off in Lima, Peru.  Really not much to do there.  I was happy for the Hospitality of the Jewish community to be able to spend Shabbat and Chag Shavuot there.  It was in truth a little bit of a weird community but I was very happy to have the company of the few other travelers who were there as well for the same purpose that I was.  I was once again plagued by a stomach virus for about a day and a half - interesting that the last time it happened was Pesach so I capped off Sfirat Haomer on each end with a tummy bug.  Coincidence?  I hope so.

From Lima I took a 24 hour excursion to relatively nearby Ica/Huacacina.  There isn't anything to do there except brave the slopes of the very popular sand dunes.  It's one of those things that is pretty hyped up and I was nervous that it would be a bit of a disappointment, especially making the 4 hour schlepp there in each direction.  However, in truth it was a lot more fun than I expected it to be and I had a great time! There are these incredible humongous mounds of sand that just stretch on for ages and it is absolutely beautiful!  I signed up for an excursion where a buggy takes you out to the dunes along with a sand board and a piece of candle for waxing it up.  Normally the buggies are quite big seating around 10 people but I ended up in a smaller one with just two other passengers and the driver. Of course as chance would have it the other two people who randomly got assigned to my buggy were also Israeli.  They poignantly pointed out as we were walking in the sand that it was like the Jews wandering the desert for 40 years.  That was the closest experience that I could relate to that idea.  The sand just kept going and going and it was so fine to the touch and somewhat heated in the sun's rays.  The boarding was a lot of fun.  I tried it standing up like a snowboard but it didn't have the same smoothness that a snowboard has and the edge kept getting caught in the sand.  I also tried it sitting down on the board which was also pretty fun, requiring less balance and leg muscle control (none at all in fact) but that slide down left me with a blast of sand in the face.  Going down on your tummy on the other hand was the most fun!  Surprisingly it left me with no sand in the face and the speed at which you can slide down the steep slope was incredible and an absolute blast of fun!  However, what was maybe the most fun aspect was traversing the dunes on the buggy - we flew, sometimes going almost horizontal on the side of the steep dunes and just speeding along with the wind in your hair and face and feeling like you are doing something impossible.  Overall a great experience and one I am very happy that I did and didn't miss out on.

The broken phone business brought me to visit one of the local malls in Lima.  It was huge and easily could have been an upscale mall in New York.  All the fancy stores, clean and modern and the only difference was that everything was in Spanish and quoted in Peruvian Sole prices.  I wasn't in the market for anything except at the time a new battery for my phone, hoping that might fix it.  It was good that every single stand and store in the mall was out of batteries for the Samsung Galaxy SIII because in the end I made it to the Radio Shack where they tried a demo battery in my phone which didn't work and my battery in the demo phone which did work - leading us to the conclusion that it wasn't the battery that was the problem rather it was the phone.  For last semester I wrote one of my final papers on the challenges that travelers face when they rely on technology when they travel.  I now have a whole new perspective on what that means since I now realize exactly how reliant I was and the ease of communication and making plans that a phone provides ... and my technological footing has been ripped away.  When I check into a place and they proudly tell me they have free Wifi and I have to simply smile and tell them that unfortunately I have no device with which to connect to that Wifi.  In a previous time many places had complimentary computer use.  Nowadays with the prevalence of Wifi, that is no longer a luxury provided in most places and it has been leaving me with the need of the even more antiquated ritual of finding Internet cafes.  At least I can chalk this experience up to a kind of ethnographic research and a return to a simpler time (at least temporarily). Another good thing is that my sense of direction seems to be improving especially because I now walk around with a physical map instead of having the ability of accessing google maps on my phone when I am in a new location, or of taking a screenshot.  Sharpening the brain skills, I am. 

From Lima I flew to the north of Colombia to a place called Cartegena.  Colombia has a major budget airline called Viva Colombia (even they compared themselves to Spirit Airways) where you have to pay for everything extra - even if you want to check in at the airport instead of checking in online and printing your own boarding pass.  Of course that includes extra fees for checking baggage.  And since I had a "connecting" flight in Bogota, the country's capital - which isn't really a connecting flight, rather two separate bookings - I had to pay for that fee for both legs of my trip.  The first flight went well and I was meant to have about 2 hours from landing time to go through immigration (I was arriving in a new country so that was necessary), get my bag from baggage claim, go through customs, re-check in for the next flight and make it to the gate.  I knew it would be a tight squeeze but should have been doable.  As we touched down in Bogota I thought everything would be fine, but then for whatever reason we kind of just parked on the tarmac and waited.  They didn't tell us anything and as each second ticked on I realized I had less and less time to make it through all my necessary steps.  With about 45 minutes left until my "check in" time was meant to close we finally started to move.  As we pulled up to the gate I squeezed my way to the front of the plane (I'm sorry, can I get through?!?! I Have a connecting flight in like half an hour!!"- People were actually amazing and pushed me through to the front!) and as soon as they opened the door to that plane I rushed out and bolted along the corridors of the airport - from what seemed like the further possible gate ever - and made it to immigration.  There wasn't much of a line but I got even further delayed when the immigration officer for whatever reason found it weird that I was traveling alone and that I didn't know the exact name of a place where I would be staying in Cartegena.  Had he never heard of a backpacker before?  After he finally let me through, at which point most of the other passengers from my flight were caught up, I rushed to wait for the bags.  It took a few minutes for the carousel to start moving and once it did, I waited with baited breath and hook for my bag.  At this point I had about 20 minutes until check in would close and my heart was almost visibly jumping out of my body.  I also had to pee but wouldn't dare let myself step away lest my bag come out. Of course it had to be that my bag was likely the last bag to leave the plane and when it finally came out with 5 minutes to closure, I ran like a chicken without a head through the airport with other passengers generously letting me cut the line at customs so that I could make it to my gate.  When I finally got there, out of breath and sweating profusely, I inquired at the line if everyone was waiting for the same flight.  About half the people there were also checking in to the same destination which finally finally calmed me down.  There were two German young fellows also waiting in line who assured me that they were waiting for the same flight and that everything was OK.  Their reassurance allowed me to breathe properly again and stop freaking out.  I didn't realize at the time, but these guys would end up being by new best friends and hang out buddies both on the flight and in the new destination.  I literally consider it a miracle that I made that flight successfully - even though it was almost accompanied with a heart attack - and I majorly thanked Gd.  

Cartagena is a beautiful city with an incredible amount of charm.  Like many places in Colombia it has a huge history with the drug cartel (a fact that is still referenced by the prevalence of drugs that is still found there.... Weed, cocaine... you can see and smell it (at least the weed) basically everywhere) although without the danger that once came along with it.  The streets in the historical center are colorful and whimsical and of course lined with vendors trying to sell you local art or jewelry or food.  Its a lovely place to walk around and it is surrounded on the outskirts by the Caribbean Sea which creates a visually interesting balance and also brings along with it a tremendous heat and humidity.  But despite that it was a lovely place to visit.    

I headed further East to Barranquilla.  Its a residential area that actually reminds me a lot of Teaneck. There is not much to do there as a tourist but I went that way to spend Shabbat with the local Jewish community which was yet again another lovely experience.  From there I continued along the coast to the popular SCUBA diving site, Taganga.  Its a small sea side location with about 6,000 locals but hundreds of backpacker hostels and likely matched with its number of diving centers.  Many people come to Taganga to do their diving course certification as it is one of the cheaper places in the world to do it.  Seeing as I already had my certification, I just signed up for a fun dive excursion - and fun it was!  Beautiful diving locations by the nearby Tyrona National Park reefs.  I so missed diving as was really happy to get back to the magic of the underwater world. Colors, fish, plant life... all of it welcomed me back with the familiarity of an old friend and I was happy to reciprocate the pleasantries.  

I also made it by bus and foot to Tyrona National Park to spend the night and visit the beaches. On the way there, Even though I ventured out on my own (something else I am proud of - taking the local local transportation and somehow communicating my intentions and destination without really speaking Spanish) on the last leg of the bus ride I met another solo traveler from Mexico and we ended up spending the next two days together.  He used to be a flight attendant and his hysterical stories and spicy personality proved to be a fun travel companion.  The hike to get to the Sleeping locations was not particularly difficult but because of the heat and humidity, it was very tiring and very very sweaty.  You have to learn quickly to just submit yourself to the situation and not try to make it better.  Acceptance is the first step to a better situation.  We found a local lodge that rented a hammock to sleep in for the night.  Lots of mosquitoes and pretty hot, but it did the trick. Also, right away as we checked in we met another traveler who when he asked me where I'm from told me that his twin brother is studying at a yeshiva in Gush Etziyon... small world!  And we Jews are everywhere!  The 3 of us as well as two other girls who were there ended up spending the whole night and most of the next day together.  It was a lot of fun.  We sat out on the beach at night, playing games under the tremendous light from the shining moon!  It was so bright that we were able to take clear pictures without a flash! The beaches in Tyrona are stunning with white sand and crisp blue-green water.  A very good reward for the walking part in the heat.  

I went back from that area to Cartagena for the day as I had booked a cheap flight from there to further south, Cali.  I spent the day again with my German friends which was a lovely reunion.  I had one rather unpleasant experience.  As we walked back very late at night from one of the guys places to my hostel, we were stopped - twice actually in the span of 3 minutes - by the police.  They searched us for drugs and went through everything that we had on us.  It wasn't until the next day when I was heading to the airport that I realized that one of these "law-enforcing" men stole a 50,000 Peso note from my wallet.  Its not a tremendous amount of money - about the equivalent of $25 - but it was an incredible violation and left me crying and shaken.  I've chosen to let the positive experiences Ive had in Colombia - thankfully which I have had many - overshadow that little blip.  

This weekend I spent in Cali - another big city with not much to do as a tourist but there is a Jewish community here as well that opened up its arms to me.  Another little perk is that in this area where the community is there are no hostels and my parents very generously insisted on sponsoring my stay at a hotel.  I've felt like a queen these past 2 nights and like Ive been living in luxury,  Its not the fanciest of hotels but what an upgrade from hostels!  Last night I went to the gym and I remembered what it was like to be a regular person.  I ran 5K - something I haven't done in ages - and I did it with ease and a smile on my face! 

Something Ive learned about Colombia (which could be true of other places in South America but I have hard facts on this one) is that home help is super inexpensive.  I was told that here in Cali the going fee for 8 hours of home help per day is about $15 usd.  Its about the same for live-in help as well when you also provide room and board.  That is incredibly cheap! I spoke with a woman in Barranquilla who in a sense attributed her happy marriage to the cheap labor.  She and her husband don't ever have to discuss who does the chores and there is a tension avoided from the fact that her help can cook meat for her husband while she is opposed to doing so as a vegetarian.  There isn't a laziness there as she is an incredibly productive woman who doesn't watch TV and doesn't have a smart phone and is very mindful of how she uses her time, but appreciates the luxury and peacefulness of the home that is facilitated by the inexpensive home help.  I wonder if it is just the affluent Jewish community that takes advantage of these services or if anyone who isn't living in poverty in Colombia can use it to their advantage.

Now that this megillah is done, I am moving on to my next destination - the Coffee Zone - to try and squeeze what I can from what is left of this trip.  I fly back to New Jersey in a little over a week and one week after that Ill be back in Israel.  One more weekend in South America.  Three months isn't a crazy long amount of time but it sure feels significant as it comes to an end.  I want to make the most of what is left but I'll be ready to come home when the time comes.  Until then, I'm going to enjoy me some of the worlds best coffee :)

The Inca Jungle Tour to Machu Picchu

Im pleased to say that I had an absolutely incredible Inca Jungle tour and it really exceeded my expectations!
On Sunday morning I waited for my pickup at 7am - after checking out I wanted to go to the bathroom so I left my bags next to someone who was sitting outside and asked if he could watch them for a minute.  When I came back he told me in Hebrew that I looked familiar and we realized that we met on my first week of my trip in the first hostel I stayed in two months ago in Buenos Aires.  Even though the company told me to be ready for the pickup at 7am, they didn't come until after 8 so I spent the time chatting with this guy and catching up on the past two months.  It was a really nice and friendly exchange!
After a few hour drive, the first leg of the excursion was a two and a half hour bike ride.  It was literally one of the most fun things I've done so far on this trip! We were driven up to the very top of a hill and outfitted with some major protective gear (shin and knee protectors, heavy-duty jacket, reflective jacket, helmet and gloves). Aside from providing protection, the extra layers also provided warmth which was necessary because it was quite cold - for the first hour of the ride we were basically in a cloud.  Firstly, the surroundings were gorgeous! A long open road surrounded by green mountains with low set clouds allowing peaks of rays of sun shine through.  For most of the ride we didn't even have to peddle because gravity just took us.  Speeding down the road was exhilarating!! It wasn't steep enough to be specifically dangerous but it was steep enough to be really exciting! We were a group of about 25 people (mas o menos) and yet there were times when I found myself with no one close in front of me and no one close behind me and I felt at one with nature and the open road!
Our next activity was rafting. Maybe because we were such a big group
we were a bit delayed staying on schedule so we only arrived at the rafting site at about 430pm.  Because it's getting to be winter in the southern hemisphere it gets dark quite early and frankly I thought the rafting would be quite a waste and pretty rushed... it ended up being a super fun experience and literally one of the funniest experiences I've had on this trip! Basically half of our trip's group turned out to be Israeli... just our van for the day was completely filled with Israelis (myself included! But how awkward would it have been for someone who didn't speak Hebrew...).  Not everyone chose to do the rafting but I was put in a raft with just Israelis and a local Peruvian guide.  He spoke to us almost only in Hebrew the whole time... "יאללה! קדימה! אחת, שתיים, אחת שתיים - תעצור!" ("Let's go! Forward! One, two, one, two - stop!).  It was such a funny reality!
My last rafting experience in Mendoza, Argentina was completely in Spanish - this time almost solely in Hebrew... I wonder if I'll ever raft in English? In addition to the company, the rapids were also a lot of fun and exciting! It was classified as level 3 and in truth the dim light and the sunset made for a beautiful setting! We also stopped at one point towards the end and played a game as a group with the oars while on a sandy bank.  It had us all running in circles and falling around like drunks. Anytime someone "got out" of the game they had to go jump in the river and if they needed any help making it in, the rafting guides were there to help ; )  I actually made it to the final three and despite not winning I still had a great time.  In truth, this day of the trip got us off to a fantastic start to  what proved to be an incredible trip and I have to say I think it was the most fun day I've had on this entire south American adventure.
The next day can be classified as a day of a ton of hiking. There is a comedian named Demitry Martin who says "hiking is just walking where it's OK to pee... sometimes old people hike by mistake..." I would say that proved true to us but I think because it was so hot and we sweat a lot from physical exertion, I actually didn't pee at all the whole day (sorry for the overshare but it's true!)  We left at 7am and were basically on the move until about 6:30pm.  We walked up along the side of a mountain, crossed the river by bridge,  learned more about the Inca culture, hiked part of the original Inca trail and saw some absolutely breathtaking views all while walking side by side and getting to know one another in the group.  The end of the day brought us to a natural hot-spring pool which was full of very white gringo (foreigners) bodies. I actually opted not to go in because I didn't feel like traveling while wet afterwards but it was nice to have a break after so much walking.  We had the option to take a local bus back from the hot-springs or to hike for another hour.  Only myself and one other guy wanted to walk so we had a private short excursion with one of the guides.  It was almost pitch black so there wasn't much to see but it was fun to walk into the local town. We got there a bit before the rest of the group since we left before them so when we checked into the next Hostel, we had some time to spare.  On our way walking to check out the local main square (keep in mind this is a tiny little place where the local square was about a 3 minute walking from the edge of the town) we were approached by these two young local children.  They were so excited to play with us and were even using the other guy as a jungle-gym because he was really tall.  It was a cute opportunity to connect with some locals even though they were very young children and it's amazing that we could connect despite our lack of a mutual language... I guess that's how it is with kids! That night we all went out to the one local "club" which didn't host any locals, rather tourists from all the different groups that were staying in the town.  It was actually a lot of fun and a further bonding experience for all of us!
Our next day started out with some serious adventure - zip-lining! I can now add that to my list of adventurous activities that scare me but I've faced anyway.  We had all together 5 lines to zip along and after the first one when my fear was palpable, it just got more and more fun! The scenery was incredible crossing from one side of the mountain to the other, sometimes at speeds of up to almost 100 kilometers an hour! The last line afforded us the opportunity to go Superman style - on our bellies..  and so I did that too! The harness was anything but comfortable (and flattering for that matter) but I was happy for the protection.  In truth one of the reasons that I was so scared - even moreso than regular - was because about a month ago there was an Israeli boy who died from the zip-lining on this same trip to Machupicchu (although not Necessarily this company - I don't know).  I can't say for certain what happened but word on the street was that it was not because of faulty equipment... the fact that there were many Israelis around and everyone was talking about it actually made me feel more comforted.  I'm really happy I did it because it was fun, exhilarating and just a gorgeous experience! There was a moment during  the Superman run when one guy ended up hanging almost upside down and couldn't right himself up and had to be "rescued" - some people were less than graceful,  often awkwardly swimming through the air in the Superman run, but this guy took the cake.  Other than the fact that it actually looked quite terrifying (which he later confirmed was how he felt), it provided some comic relief for those of us standing on the side.
After we all finished our zip-lining adventure, were had another few hour walk to get to Aguas Calientes - the landing point for heading up to Machu Picchu.   It's a small very touristy town that is rather expensive.  The only reason there are any locals there is to cash in on tourism.  I don't say that as a complaint rather it described the lack of local culture and the majorly inflated prices of everything.  We had a relatively early night because the next morning those of us that were climbing up the mountain (an over 1700 stairs climb - depending on pace taking about an hour) instead of taking the bus (a $12usd cost taking about 20 minutes) were already on the road at 4:35 am.  The climbing was one of the most physically challenging things I've ever done.  Aside from the fact that it was hard in and of itself, my muscles were tired from the previous 3 days of biking, Hiking, and general physical activity.  I was also still pretty congested from remnants of a cold from the week before making breathing that much more difficult.  And these steps - oh gosh these steps... there were very few non-step places meaning it was almost always a vertical climb and some of them required hand-on-knee arm assistance. Of course it was pitch black when we started the climb and slowly along the way the Sunday started to creep out giving at least an enjoyable view during the difficult exertion. At one point it even started to drizzle which was actually received with a smile because I was dripping sweat from every pore in my body.  By the end, the only thing that was keeping me going and not taking a million breaks was knowing I had to be by the top at a certain time for our group tour to begin.  When I first laid eyes on the very last step it was a joy felt throughout the body!  It was such a relief and despite the exhaustion and physical ache, I was very proud of myself.  There wasn't much resting time at the top because all the tours were getting started so I quickly shoved some sustenance in my mouth to try and replenish energy and we began learning about how Machu Picchu was rediscovered by an American in the early 1900's.  It's really quite a sight up there.  What the Incas were able to build with limited supplies and difficult conditions is applause-worthy.  They were very connected with the sun and the moon and created incredible systems for knowing what month it wasband when the solstices and equinoxes took place - all from the positions of the sun and the moon from different angles.  It was nice to walk around and relive the history.  There were also some llamas walking around which made for a cute picture and authentic feel.
I've said it before - I'm a cheesy tourist so checking off Machu Picchu from my list was exciting. After the tour we had the rest of the day to do as we pleased.  I walked around for a bit more, ate some lunch but I felt exhausted.  I didn't have the energy to really explore every nook and cranny nor did I feel it necessary.  So after a couple of hours I went back down the mountain - once again by foot.  Obviously the climb down was easier than the climb up, but it was still challenging and was a number on the knees. It only took about 35 minutes to descend but when I finally got to the bottom my legs were actually trembling.  Just alongside the river at that point there were a bunch of benches and so I lay down and actually took a restful nap, out in the sun, for about an hour and a half.  It was exactly what I needed to give my legs a break and put some more sleep in my body. One of the girls who I had met over the course of the trip saw me when she came down and said I looked like I was dead and completely worn out.  That nap was the best thing I could have done for myself because I really felt rejuvenated afterwards. 
We all had either train tickets or bus tickets back at different parts of the day which would bring our adventure to a close.  My train ticket was at 6:35pm along with a whole lot of other people and it took us to a station about an hour and a half outside of Cuzco.  When you get off the train you have to find your name among a sea of people holding up signs to collect all the travelers and bring them by van back to Cuzco.  It was A really funny scene and left a lot of room for confusion and mixup.  Thank God I found my ride and made it safely back to Cuzco at around 11pm and went to check back in to the same hostel for the 3rd time since I arrived.
It was hard coming back to the cold climate of Cuzco after having been out in the warm sun for the previous couple of days.  I had no energy to shower and knowing I had only one night to stay there I allowed myself to sleep in all my clothing and shower in the morning.  Today, after checking out I quickly went into town and enjoyed an hour long full body massage! The prices are unbeatable here (around $8usd) and it was actually quite good! My body had taken a beating and it welcomed a relaxing massage, or as the locals call it to attract tourists "masache."
I'm now a plane heading to Lima for the weekend where I will spend Shabbat and Shavuot.  I'm getting quite used to writing on my phone - something I initially thought was a nuisance but now I realize it let's me write when I have the time and in chunks so that I can compile it together when time allows and when I have Wi-Fi.
I'm looking forward to some good food (some dairy - yum!) And some much needed rest.  Peru is coming to an end for me and I have less than 4 weeks left in South America... crazy! Wishing everyone a Shabbat Shalom, chag sameach and a very happy weekend!

My first taste of Peru

Wow - I can't believe how fast this past week flew by... maybe because I didn't really sleep much (other than a few stray hours on my many overnight buses and here and there in the bus station) but in any case a whole other week has just come to an end!

On Sunday I finally made it to Cuzco, Peru. As we were descending and approaching the Cuzco airport (which was a beautiful flight, by the way) I looked out the windows and thought to myself "wow - we're mighty close to these mountains on the sides..." - it wasn't until a few days later that I found out that some say it's actually quite dangerous to fly into Cuzco because of the surrounding mountains - that there is very little room for error there and in the past there have been some accidents. Woops! Anyway - it is beautiful and mountainous and seriously green in this area. I got lucky once more when I was approached by a wonderful taxi driver at the airport who was friendly and honest and helpful - to the point that he agreed to accept Brazilian Real as payment because I didn't have a single Peruvian Sol on me - I was counting on exchanging at the airport but the tiny facility's exchange counter was closed... it is super comforting to a traveler to have someone genuinely want to help you and not try and take advantage of you in a potentially vulnerable situation. And he even spoke to me in Hebrew a bit when I told him I was from Israel! He already knew "todah rabah" so I taught him "bevakasha" even though he kept repeating it as "vebakasha"... anyway, I tried!

Cuzco is full of Israelis! Not just certain places but everywhere! This is definitely one of those places that Hebrew can help you when you don't know Spanish. I was nervous about getting altitude sickness here as many people do suffer from it upon arrival - especially by plane - but thank God I've been feeling great and haven't had to take any pills. The first night that I arrived I was a little disoriented from a major lack of sleep but the next day I woke up feeling much more clearheaded and competent.

I met a girl at the hostel that I checked into and we ended up going ATVing together - it was my first time doing something like that and also my first time trying to drive something that was manual! It was loads of fun, and I got better and better and more and more comfortable over the course of the 3-4 hour adventure. We visted these salt mines and they were amazing! There is this warm water stream that runs through the mines that carries incredibly salty water into pools to create a space where the water can evaporate and leave behind the salt. You can run your hands through the water and lick it - super salty!! Again, the mountainous surroundings were beautiful and overall a really cool experience.

That night I took a bus to Puno to lake Titicaca (hee hee!). We visted the famous floating islands, taking a boat out through the reeds to go meet the locals and learn about their lives and culture. The islands rotate the receiving of tourists so as to spread the income from tourism and as not disturb the flow of work for the locals regularly. It is a very touristy show that they put on which some say exploit the locals (some parts were uncomfortable - like simulating going to the market to trade resources - like settlers of cataan - a simple explanation would have sufficed instead of the faux show). But on the other hand it was still informative to learn about and see the culture and also they kept emphasizing how tourism is actually helping the quality of life of locals - they now have solar panels for energy and cell phones and other "upgrades" ... but do they really need that? They lived for ages without and did an incredible job. Anyway, not my call - just my observing question. We continued to a big island in the middle of the humongous lake called Tequile. On the way we learned about the lake - how huge it is, how super deep it is, and how it is the highest navigatable lake in the world. It also has magnetic properties and at night sometimes you can see incredible lightning. This big island was far more developed than the floating islands - makes sense since it has more resources and is not a disconnected floating island. The natives have really colorful clothing and their garb can often represent different statuses like single, married, leader of the community, etc... For some reason they sell a lot of American imported candy all over the island (m&ms, Twix, Mars, pringles ). It became clear that the Incas have incredibly strong genes - I guess because they keep their community closely knit and don't mix many other genes but there is such a strong and dominant look - many people look very similar to my stereotyping eye. I'm really happy that I got to experience it but a one day trip was definitely enough.

I later went to the bus station for an overnight bus to Arequipa. I've noticed how forward I've become not being bashful about approaching new people. I saw another traveler sitting in the station, I approached him and spoke to him and we ended up waiting together for 4 hours to take the next bus. The next morning at the bus station at 4:30am we sat waiting not sure what to do as it would have been too early to check in anywhere when I saw another traveler, approached him and the 3 of us ended up taking a cab into town together. I thought I would have a quiet restful day in Arequipa to recover from my lack of sleep but I ended up meeting some nice people and we went to the local museum together. There is an ice princess named Juanita who was discovered in Peru in 1995. She was a child sacrifice (about 14 years old) to the Gods in the time of the Inca empire and what's special about her is that she was preserved really well in the ice for hundreds of years to the point that her skin and hair is still intact, as well as her internal organs. She is on display in an ice box of minus 20 degrees Celsius in this museum. It was cool and sad to learn about it but what an opportunity to see her! I also went on a free walking tour (you pay a tip at the end) - it was 3 hours long and fantastic! Super educational, entertaining from the wonderdul guide and a great way to meet other Travelers and see the city (especially because I only had one day there). At the end we were quizzed on information that we learned and I won a free beer! The history of the city and of the Inca and local people was fascinating.

I also signed up for a tour to Colca Canyon as a one day activity - pickup is normally at 3am but because there is a protest going on in Arequipa for 3 days having to do with the local mining situation, some roads were being closed and so they changed the pickup time to 2am - deadly. The tour starts so early because there is a condor viewpoint about 3.5 hours away and the time that they come out to show themselves is between 8-9am approximately. I'm very happy to have seen them here because I missed the condor viewing when I was in Argentina in Cordoba. The Condors are quite large and they glide so gracefully through the sky. Apparently they don't actually fly - they cruise and sometimes they came as close as 10 feet away! The rest of the Colca tour really just involved beautiful viewpoints and learning about the area and history - informative but at times a bit boring and dragged out because it was so far. I did learn that Peru is the Qinoa capital of the world. Before it became popular and trendy in other places in the world, it was considered a component of the typical Peruvian diet.

So I've mentioned that there were protests and it ultimately came to affect me as well. As our van was driving back to Arequipa, we got stuck on the road since the protesters were purposely blocking the roads by throwing big rocks into the middle of many roads in and surrounding Arequipa in order to disrupt normal life for locals and tourists alike. We tried to take side roads but those too were blocked off. We ultimately just pulled over to the side and our guide explained that we would just have to wait there -possibly hours upon hours - until the roads opened up... or we could choose to start walking into town which from that point would have taken about 3 hours. I freaked out a bit because it was Thursday and I was meant to take an overnight bus that night to get back to Cuzco for Shabbat and if we were going to be stuck there for much longer I would miss the bus and have to stay in Arequipa for the weekend. My head was racing, considering all my possibilities and trying not to cry knowing that that wouldn't help me and would probably just push me towards an unnecessary panic. There were only 3 other people who spoke English on the bus - a German man, a Belgian man and his Peruvian born wife. They all decided that it would be better to start walking because who knew how long the wait would be there doing nothing? I decided to go with with them thinking I didn't want to be the only English speaker left on the van and that if I wanted to get to Cuzco, I would need to take a chance because staying there would have meant definitely not making the bus. We started walking along the very dark street, where aggressive and angry protesters continued to throw rocks into the road and yell. After about 20 minutes, when we were already passing cars stuck in the other direction, we got picked up by a van of locals who drove us for about half an hour very close to the main part of town. Sitting in the back of that van, surrounded by locals, not understanding a word of what was being said, I almost laughed out loud just thinking about the ludicrousness of the situation. The guidebook I have certainly didn't recommend this experience... Simultaneously I kept praying to God that I would make it in time and that buses would actually be running out of Arequipa despite the protests and bevy of closed roads. After getting out of the van and walking another 25 minutes to the hostel (at one point realizing that we were actually walking with the protesters!!) I finally made it to safety! I met 3 other people who were heading to the bus station to catch a bus back to Cuzco as well so I quickly joined them and miracle of miracles I made it on time, there were buses running and I have to say that bus ride was the most comfortable bus ride I have had on this entire trip! Huge and luxurious seats and I actually slept most of the ride (I'll attribute part of that to the fact that I was also just dead tired from the week and my body just needed the sleep - no matter what the sleeping conditions were). I am very aware that God took really good care of me on this one.

So I made it back to Cuzco and had a lovely Shabbat meeting really nice people and eating delicious food! I think this Friday night meal was the biggest I've seen at a Chabad - even bigger than Bangkok, Thailand! I finally slept a night in a bed which was awesome although I was rudely awoken this morning by an aggressive bloody nose that caused me to rush to the bathroom leaving a trail of blood along the way -including on my pillow and sweatshirt and face! I think it's a combo of the cold and dry weather as well as the altitude. I even got another one later on during the day... hope it will pass!

I leave tomorrow morning (or really in 5 hours) for a 4 day excursion to the Inca Jungle trail ultimately leading us to the famous Machu Picchu. Looking forward to another exciting journey and to meeting some new people!!

Until next time, adios!

Survivor: The Mighty Amazon

About two years ago I saw my first ever episode of Survivor when my roommate was watching the finale of what I think was season 25.  That one episode initially peaked my interest and after watching the whole of the next season, I was hooked.  I went back to season 1 and started watching all the seasons in their entirety and consecutively. It was a bit of a marathon to say the least (it was sometimes difficult being interrupted by some pesky school work and going to my job...) but was made possible by persistence and the website TV Torrents for easy download.  However, the site ultimately went under and that halted my progression with watching the full history of the series since it was no longer easy or convenient.  But that really isn't the point.  The point is that the "Survivor" mentality caught me and I particularly enjoyed the nature components of the challenge of participating and in particular, the Amazon was a cool location.  Since I had been planning on going to travel through South America, I knew I would make going to the Amazon a priority since in my mind it was so iconic... and so I did and I went!

I chose to go through the high traffic location of Manaus, Brazil.  The Amazon is actually accessible from a few different countries but this access point is quite typical and authentic with the experience it offers.  Lonely Planet and guide books alike warn again scamming agencies which can be worrisome when you are booking a once in a lifetime experience.  I got in touch with a specifically recommenced agency through a hosteling international hostel (also known to be reliable) and despite It's slightly higher price, I booked it for ease of mind and the convenience of the airport pickup that came with it (which was also good because I arrived at 1:15am). The company originally told me that if there would be anyone else leaving Manaus on the same day that I was planning on leaving then I would receive a discount of approximately $50usd. When I inquired if there were other participants for my 3 days/2 nights trip leaving on the same day I was told the answer was no but to check on the next day (which was the day I was flying from Recife and the day before my departure). As I was packing up my bags to get ready to head to the airport the next evening, I received an email from the company saying that someone else signed up and I would be getting the discount! It turned out to be much more significant than just a financial savings because I later found out that until that point, I would have been the only one on my trip - just me and the guide - which would have meant a very quiet and likely lonely experience.  Two English buddies came to save the day and signed up for the same itinerary that I signed up for and ended up being my fantastic jungle companions!! 

So since I arrived at the hostel at only 1:45am and was being picked up at 7am for my jungle departure, it didn't leave me much time for sleep.  But who needs sleep when you take off on a crazy Amazon jungle adventure??? We had a 2.5 hour car ride to start us off heading about 200kms North of Manaus. The ride was quite nice until about an hour left to the drive the street became the most dangerously potholed landscape I had ever seen.  There were literally massive crater holes in the middle of the road that caused the drivers on both sides of the street to dance between the asphalt shortcomings, making it look like very drunk slash artisticly dance-y cars making their way down the road. We then got to a small shack/house by the river and transferred to a motorized boat for another hour's journey.  At this point it started to rain a bit (I mean it is the rainforest so It's kind of legitimate... ) so on the boat we were surrounded by water from all ends.  We were also accompanied by our lovely guide, Chris, who would be with us for the duration of our stay. 

Arriving at the lodge was really great. It's literally at the riverbank and is super serene.  No electricity during the day (solar panels to allow for limited light usage in the evenings) and a splattering of wooden bungalows as well as an outdoor but covered dining room area and an outdoor but covered general hammock sleeping area (that was my lodging for the first night).  After getting settled (which meant putting my bag down and hanging up my hammock) we went for a quick dip in the river which is swimable right by the river's edge.  I did feel the occasional touch of something underneath the water which of course scared me as there is wildlife underneath the water but I stayed close to the edge and kept my legs kicking. After lunch we went out in a 4 person canoe to go fishing!! Our guide, Chris, brought with makeshift fishing rods which were long sticks and a metal hook attached with fishing line.  As bait he brought with a chicken leg and thigh which he cut up using his machete as a knife and his oar as a cutting board - very rustic.  We paddled around to a few different areas looking for piranhas - our targets. Over the course of an hour and a half Chris caught quite a few piranhas which became a dish at dinner that night for those who wanted. I caught one for about a second and a half but when I tugged on the line it jumped off the hook once out of the water.  For the rest of our time out there I continued my benevolent ways and just fed the fish with the bait on my hook. The paddling back to the lodge was just gorgeous as the sun was setting.  Being on that lake, surrounded by nature and this magnificent sky being reflected in the mirror-like water became my new peaceful space.

After dinner (for me without the piranhas which BTW didn't look any more appealing cooked and dead than they did alive!) we got back into the canoe - this time with an external motor - to go look for Caymans. Unfortunately, despite our keen searching we didn't find any.  Chris explained that it was likely because the sky was so clear and this great big moon was shedding quite a bit of light on the river which kept nature's hidden treasures hidden.  It was still a beautiful excursion and quite extraordinary to see the moon so bright out there from the water! At one point we did see a set of eyes from afar which could have been any kind of creature so to make things interesting we decided it was an anaconda :)

I slept that night in a hammock for the first time ever!  It was better than I expected but not the most 5 star experience.  It started to pour in the middle of the night (this was clearly going to be a trend) and it was pretty incredible to be sleeping outside but under the protection of a roof yet hearing the power of the downpour.  I made sure to lather up with mosquito repellent beforehand and it proved to be pretty effective thank God. In the morning were were initially going to take a nature hike but it was still pouring so we settled for some jewelry making with local natural resources (I now have a super cool bracelet made out of Amazon tree bark as the "thread" and indigenous colored seeds as the beads!) and played cards to the tune of the rain. Later in the afternoon the rain actually let up which was great because we packed up for an overnight stay in the jungle.  It was about an hour walk to our site and on the way we learned about the Flora around us and some natural remedies using the nature (malarial treatment, diarrhea storage, headache cures...).  The campsite itself was small yet sufficient.  There was a large blue tarp propped up by logs to protect us and our hammocks for when it rained (of course that came in handy when it rained if possible even harder that night).   We collected firewood, built a fire, cut up the veggies we brought with by machete and Swiss army knife and basically roughed it for the evening.  We had a few single candles around that provided a bit of light as well as the campfire, but for the most part it was pretty dark.  In the morning after getting the fire back up running and finally caving to go pee in the woods, we boiled some water for coffee, cut up some fruit (pineapple here is to die for!) And went out on another nature walk to keep seeing more of the jungle and learn about Its wonders.  It was a pretty gorgeous experience, unique and quite cool for me since it was the fricken Amazon!!

We hiked back to the main lodge, showered, had some lunch and finally started to head back to Manaus.  staying in a bed with air-conditioning in the room was a real luxury that night! Friday's adventure was heading out to Porto Ceasa - there is a place in the river where the black water meets the white water and because of their separate chemical properties, the waters don't mix.  You can actually see a divide in the water where one ends and the other begins! One of nature's true phenomenons...  (and Yes, I have some pictures).

I once again headed to a different hostel to be by Chabad for Shabbat.  A pretty cool experience spending Shabbat in the Amazon (not the jungle, but in the state Amazonas ) and a special treat for me to see another Jewish community.

I'm now officially out of Brazil.  Currently sitting next to an outlet, charging my phone at an airport in Panama waiting for my next connection to Peru! It's going to be weird to switch back to not understanding Spanish from having not understood Portuguese so I'll have to adjust my brain once more!

And on that note I would like to wish all the mother's out there (especially my own with an honorable mention to my sister who is also a mother) a very special Mother's Day! While It's true that ever day is mother's day, It's nice that we can make a public recognition on this day.  Thanks for birthing us and being mothers!!!

Beaches, beaches and more beaches in Brazil

Wow! So much to say! It's been weird because the further north I've traveled in Brazil, the cooler it has gotten (it's definitely not cool, just not as disgustingly humid as it had been in Rio) - Which is surprising because I'm getting closer to the equator - and what I'm guessing is totally unconnected to anything is the fact that I've had less and leas access to a computer! Wi-Fi has been as reliable as ever but constantly accessing the internet from your phone can get a little annoying. But c'est la vie... I'll blog from my phone.

So where did we last leave off? I think about two weeks ago I left Rio to a little town called Paraty (looks like party but is pronounced Parachee). It's a great little town with it's own special historical feel (cobblestone roads and old buildings and churches - once again cool architecture ) and an intimate climate. Since it's such a small place you kind of get the feeling that everyone knows each other.  I winged it to get to the hostel not thinking it would be a big deal, but on the way after surveying everyone in the van (by the way It was the first time that everyone there was a native English speaker - what are the chances??) I discovered that everyone had already booked their accommodation and many of them had trouble securing something because places were filled up. It worked out great in the end and I very luckily got the last bed in the whole hostel! The staff there was awesome and there was a really great group of people staying there, too.  There's just a fun vibe there and it's infectious! Turns out I'm named well for Brazil - there is a popular drink called cachaca and a popular type of it is called Gabriella.  When I met each staff member at the hostel and I introduced myself as Gavriela,  they said "Oh your name is Gabriella? You have to try our cachaca - it's the same name!" and they gave me a free drink.  One guy joked that if I go to Mexico I should tell them my name is Rum.

Nearby Paraty is a town called  Trinidade - nice area with beautiful beaches! It rained like mad on the way back and the bus experience was insane and sweaty - it was like a clown car on the bus - even when people were getting off it didn't seem any less crowded or less sweaty or like there was any more breathable air. Another day trip was to a place called Cachoeira Toboga where I accomplished a life goal that I had set out to sepcifically do on this trip. There is a cliff next to a small waterfall about 10/12 meters high (about 35 feet) and I jumped off of it into the water next to the waterfall! I was scared out of my mind and it was probably the most terrifying thing I have ever done (I think more than skydiving and bungy jumping). A friend jumped first and I was left up there alone just contemplating the jump, standing there with my terrifying thoughts and it took me about 8 minutes to jump. I finally just said to myself (I think outloud even) - YOLO..  and you want to do this!! So I did! It hurt a little because I think I hit a rock somewhere under the water - and Oh yeh,  I was jumping from over 30 feet - but I'm really excited that I did it and am very proud! (video on Facebook). In the same area there is also a natural water collection place with a massive rock that you slide down like an actual slide into a pool of water at the bottom.  Apparently the locals are daring enough to go down snowboard/skateboard style on their feet but we didn't see that.

Early Friday morning I took a flight from Rio to Salvador - once on the plane I thought now THIS is the way to travel! No more buses if I don't have to. The ticket I got was cheaper than the bus and obviously faster. When I arrived I went to beach in the afternoon and asked a girl to watch my bag while I went in the water for a quick dip (these are some of the issues when you travel alone - they say never leave your stuff alone on the beach but when you are by yourself what else can you do but ask a reliable-looking stranger to watch your stuff) and only after I came out of the water and thanked her and asked where she was from did I find out she was Israeli! We ended up spending the rest of the afternoon together and it was really nice! I once again spent Shabbat at Chabad and it was really lovely! At first it was so super hot and there were millions of mosquitos. The first night I barely slept because the room had only a fan and the window was open so there was no air and I got covered with mosquito bites. In the morning I talked to the hostel about airconditioned rooms and ended up asking 3 others in the dorm to move to a private room with me and it worked out to be cheaper with aircon and a TV and a private bathroom! One of the guys was actually from New York, and he was Jewish! The other two were Brazilian. We went out on Saturday night to the boardwalk and I finally had my first acai! Its a berry native to the amazon and is suppised to be very healthy and its a super common snack here in a smoothed out frozen form like sorbet.  I visited the Historical Center which is a popular attraction in Salvador.  In one of the areas there were some locals doing capoiera (of course to get some money from watching tourists) and I was happy to finally see this Brazilian art/dance form. Salvador is like the South-American Africa. There is a lot of African culture from when native Africans came to Brazil and its still very influential to the culture.  Reminded me a lot of my time in South Africa. I found a local gourmet supermarket in Salvador which sold some imported products including kosher Philadelphia cream cheese! I stocked up on some peanut butter M&Ms. It's funny because in real life one little 49gram packet would clearly be a one-sitting snack (maybe even two packets) and yet in this keeping kosher on the road lifestyle I have to ration out my food, maybe eating 4 or 5 individual chocolates a day.

On Monday I had another flight continuing up the coast of Brazil.  Once again it rained that morning and the storm made the coastal drive to the airport pretty cool because the waves really grew and danced in the storm! The next stop was another beach location called Pipa. An adorably small town with I think 6000 locals but many more visitors flock that way for the beaches.  Also cobblestone roads - or really one main road running through the place with lots of little shops and guesthouses /hostels/pousadas along the way.  There are 4 beaches that line the coast in the area and many of the "dividers" between beaches are rocks that are only crossable at low tide. One beach is called Dolphin Beach where apparently from there you can spot dolphins swimming around.  I didn't see any from there when I walked along, but from the beach next to it not only did I see them, but swam right near them! I also took a surfing class and surfed right near them as well (picture proof exists!).  Both the surfing and dolphin spotting were pretty awesome. The one down of the day was a wicked sunburn I got on the back on my legs from the time I lay on the surfboard.  Despite my sunscreen appliance, the sun was too strong and I have this painful line running across the back of my legs.  Thank God they gave me a shirt to wear because otherwise my back would be totally burned as well! In Pipa I also stayed in this adorable hostel and for the first time on my trip I hung out with a group of Israelis - and it was actually fun! Good times all around.

After Pipa I went a bit further north to the states capital of Natal.  I really just had a day there as I used it as a place to get my bus heading to the next location but there was also a great beach there too! Ponta Negra is the safer downtown area to stay... it was a trip getting there trying to have conversations with people who don't speak English but I somehow pulled if off.  What's cool about the beach where I was is that because of it's situation lower down in comparison to the city road level and the trees along the side offer shade on the sand at a relatively early hour in the day.  It's getting to be winter in the southern hemisphere and it gets dark already at five-ish now. But starting from already about 230, the beach gets shady and you can sit out on the sand and not be exposed to the sun!  For someone like me who is recovering from a painful sunburn but loves being on the beach, this was perfect! And the waves there were super strong so sitting there and just listening to the sound of the waves crashing was pure heaven - in the shade. 

Recife (pronounced Hesifee) was my next Shabbat destination.  Due to luck and some good connections I got set up with a wonderful woman in the community who housed me for the weekend. She has been incredibly hospitable and warm and open and I'm sensing this is a Brazilian trend. Shabbat meals were spent at Chabad but during the rest of the time she showed me around, walking on the boardwalk Shabbat afternoon, taking a driving tour Saturday night and going for a long bike ride on Sunday.  There are a few notable things here in Recife.  First of all the first ever synagogue in all the Americas is here in the city (I saw it both on the driving tour and the like ride!).   There is a lovely beach here but unfortunately it is known for sharks! There is a reef a number of meters out and at low tide it is OK to swim in the shallow pool that is created in the water because sharks can't get over the rocks.  But at high-tide, it is illadvised to go swimming.  The last shark attack was about 3 years ago when a girl died, and there is another location on the beach in front of one particular building where there have been 9 attacks! Why anyone would continue swimming in that particular area is beyond me.  Along the beach you can often see lots of volleyball games going on which always makes my heart soar!

So that basically brings me up to date. I'll be out of reach for the next couple of days because tonight I fly to Manaus, Brazil which is in the Amazon and I leave tomorrow morning on a 3 day excursion  into the Amazon! I'm super excited and this is another one of those iconic things I feel like I'm doing.  I don't think it will be exactly like the experiences I've seen on Survivor but I'm hoping for a really cool experience.

Until next time, Ciao Ciao!

Magic in Rio!

Rio de Janeiro - the first big city that I have been to that I actually really enjoyed.  The city and I got off to a rough start - I had travelled many hours by bus (25 to be exact) just to get to Rio, and then it took another 2+ hours to get to my hostel because of the serious traffic going on in town.  I also felt sleep deprived, hungry and thirsty, and it is hot as hell here!  So I thought that would be a bad sign but it´s all been a major improvement since.  

So what makes Rio different from all other cities?  For me I think it is a mixture of the beautiful beaches, and the fact that the touristy cultural things to do are actually in the city itself, not a days excursion out of the city.  It is a massive city with many different areas, each of them having their own feel and even topographical quality.  So what is there to do other than the beach (which there are many of, and are also really awesome)?

One of the highlights for me was going to see Salaron´s steps - the set of stairs covered in tiles from over 120 countries from around the world.  It was so iconic and so colorful and beautiful to see that I felt like a kid in a candy shop seeing them in person, and I had this big goofy grin on my face the whole time!  

There is this massive Jesus statue that overlooks the city on a mountaintop called "Cristo Redentor" (It means Christ the Redeemer).  It was built by a French designer in conjunction with a Brazilian architect.  Recently it has been named one of the 7 wonders of the world (but there are many lists, and they change all the time).  He stands up tall with his arms very straight out to the sides, fingers together.  It is pretty huge and kinda cool to see from up close, but from far away, from around the city it just looks like a big cross up in the sky because of his body position. He is so popular and famous that it´s the cool thing to do so pose with him.  What that means is that you so people lying down on the floor to take pictures with the proper angle to include Jesus, too.  It´s actually quite funny to watch, and I took some pictures of people taking pictures.  To get my own picture with him I used my frontal camera on my phone and just took a good old Selfie.  Others also used the ever popular selfie-stick.  That the situation of the place is so high up really facilitates a great view of all of Rio from a number of different angles.  

Sugar Loaf is another popular attraction.  It is another big mountainous rock.  To get to it you first take a cable car up to Urca mountain (the name of the area where it is located is called Urca) and from there you take another cable car up to Sugar Loaf.  It also provides really beautiful views of the city and the beaches.  We went up while it was still light out and came down when it was dark, so if it hadn´t been so cloudy we would have actually been able to see the sunset (we did see some nice pinky-orange poke through the clouds at one point), but it was pleasant to watch all of the lights in the city slowly turn on - very pretty.  

Rio has incredible street art through the expression of graffiti.  It is super colorful and often playful.  Somehow it doesn´t seem like vandalism, but rather a decorative art form.  The prevalence of the graffiti adds a special pulse to the city and it just so visually interesting to look at!

There is a Hippie Market by Ipanema beach, one of the supposedly safer areas in the south of the city.  There is definately a hippie feel to it, and they sell lots of different types of things to tourists and locals alike.  In addition to the clothing, bags and knick-knack souvenirs, local artists also showcase and sell there work of either paintings or woodwork.  Its also beautiful and cultural and gives a taste of some of the local lifestyle.  

It is important for me to recount what a special Shabbat experience I had.  I had specifically planned to be sleeping near where I thought the Beit Chabad was and I got all the information form the Rabbi before Shabbat.  I must have a little bit misunderstood because I went to Shul on Fri night but didn´t realize that it was a local shul (one of many actually!) and not associated with Chabad - which meant that it didn´t have a meal to join - and I was relying on that for food and my Shabbat experience.  In short, a local man from the community invited me to join his family for dinner and it turns out that he lives about a 4 minutes walk from my Hostel and was also able to show me where the actual Beit Chabad was (just a minutes walk from his house) so that I could go there for Shabbat day.  The family was so warm, inviting and welcoming!  This surprising and lucky turn of events allowed me to meet local Jews and experience Kosher food (and lots of it) with authentic Brazilian style.  The meal experience was tri-lingual taking place with a mixture of Portuguese, Hebrew and English, taking into account everyones abilities and strengths, with lots of translations.  They were so patient and it was a true, incredible experience!  The next day at Chabad was also really lovely - I was the only "backpacker" there as the local branch caters to the community.  Once again the food was delicious (my belly wasn´t actually used to eating so much but it was worth it!) and I met some really nice people - one woman in particular who was so excited to speak to me in Hebrew as she has a tremendous love for Israel and Hebrew!  Overall, a really special Shabbat and it is really incredible how what initially seemed like a very disappointing and difficult situation turned out to be one of the best experiences for Shabbat that I have had yet! In addition to the many shuls, Rio also has two Kosher supermarkets and one kosher dairy and one kosher meat restaurant (I got a Pizza one night - perfection!).

Brazil, and Rio in particular, is very expensive.  People here are also covered in tattoos - for that works just fine becasue I love looking at it!  It is hot as anything here!  What that means is that the temperature lends itself to less clothing-wearing and a scantily dressed lifestyle.  It is one of the reasons that Brazil is known for being so sexy - especially by the beach where people wear even less.  It is almost like a competition to see who can get away with wearing less clothing or fabric without actually being naked.  Because of this culture and lifestyle, the locals tend to keep in shape.  Even older woman can be seen jogging on the beach, of course in a skimpy bikini top and what I think it meant to be a thong bikini bottom.  Many people ride their bikes along the coastline and sweat it out with a jog along the beach.  At night you can find people playing volleyball - at Ipanema beach I saw a bunch of different clubs and closed groups having practices!  There is also another volleyball variation that seems to be popular which is hitting the ball with anything but your hands - namely your feet and your head... interesting, but seems pretty difficult.  For me, I was just happy to see some volleyball - finally!

I´ve moved on from Rio for now, and the rest of my week´s adventures will be to come shortly!  I´m thank God in great spirits, meeting wonderful people and experiencing awesome experiences.  Very grateful but still missing friends and family back at home... So I´m sending my love!!!

The Majesty that is The Iguazu Falls

I’ve official been reminded of what it means to be emotionally moved by nature. 

The first experience I had that I can remember off the top of my head (and lets take into consideration that I feel like I haven't slept properly in almost 3 weeks so I’m just kinda tired) was the first time I went SCUBA diving with an introductory dive in Eilat about 10 years ago.  The colors, the fish, the experience – it was just magical and felt almost religious! So this week I had the great fortune of being able to visit the Iguazu Falls both from the Argentine and Brazillian sides.  As per the recommendation, I crossed the border from Puerto Iguazu and went to the Brazilian side first.  It’s a relatively short visit and provides a beautiful panoramic view of the falls.  You first get exposed to a part of it and think it’s beautiful, but you continue along the path, going lower and lower and more and more of the falls expose themselves to your viewpoint.  It continues to just get more and more magnificent!  By the end of the trail, you take a foot path bridge out to the middle of the water and you are right below one of the waterfalls.  When I got up close and got my first real shpritz from the water’s mist (which was much appreciated by the way as it was a hot day), my breath was literally taken away.  I felt the power of the falls and for some weird reason I was actually moved to tears for a brief moment.  I felt the energy of the water surrounding me and it was incredibly moving.  I didn’t realize at the time that the part that I was near was really just a small part of the falls because from the perspective there is seem ginormous.  The whole experience reinforced for me the sheer power of the water.  I guess I’m drawn to water…

The next day I went to get the other perspective from the Argentine side.  If the Brazilian side provided a Macro view of the falls, then the Argentine side gives you the Micro.  You can take a 15 minute very slow train ride out to the real meat and potatoes of the thing – the Devils Throat, which is the biggest and most powerful  area of the falls and is a must see for the visit – or you can walk along the path and get there is about 25 minutes.  Then you walk along another path across the water out to the falls which takes about another 15/20 minutes and the end places you right above the Devils Throat.  You can stand there for ages (of course among all the other millions of visitors – a super touristy place – and justifyingly so) just taking in the power of what is going on below you.  It’s an experience for all the senses – you can see the falls, hear the power, smell the nature and feel the rising shpritz (I guess you can taste it if you open your mouth when the shpritz comes…).  Whats also amazing to see is the water before it gets to the drop – its so calm and seemingly unaware of the death drop it is about to take so the juxtaposition of the calm flowing water and the intense drop of the falls is really interesting.  To explore the rest of the falls there are two other trails to hike – the upper and lower – that bring you to different viewpoints of the various falls.  Another beautiful perspective provided. 

What made the visit to the Argentine side a little different than usual was the fact that from the morning onwards, it absolutely poured the entire day! And I don’t just mean a little drizzle – I’m talking about torrential downpour with the occasional thunder and lightning.  By the end of the day I actually forgot what it felt like to be dry.  It wasn’t particularly cold outside so it wasn’t dreadful – it just gave a different aspect to the experience of it all.  It made me feel like I was one with the nature.  And I guess its appropriate to feel so wet when you are visiting Waterfalls – I just assumed the wetness would come from the falls themselves.  Overall, the falls were definitely a highlight of my trip thus far and I really feel privileged to have seen and experienced them. 

Puerto Igazu is also a cute little city and I enjoyed being there.  I actually went for my first run since having started this trip.  There is one point in the city next to the Rio Iguazu (Iguazu River) where you can see 3 countries in one place.  You stand on the Argentine side, across and to the right is Brazil and across and to the left is Paraguay.  It was a little anti-climactic to see, but I'm happy the journey got me to go for a jog and it also let me see other parts of the city which I otherwise would not have seen.  Also, down by the viewpoint, right next to the river there was a local ZUMBA class going on which was kinda cool to see!

Iguazu was my last stop in Argentina.  Don’t cry for me Argentina even though the truth is that I’ve just left you.  As Ive already said, I think Argentina is a beautiful country and Ive had some really lovely experiences.  It also marks the end of the first 3^rd of my trip and so I would like to reflect a little. Ive been super lucky, meeting great people along the way and many of them in strategic places where their language skills that I have lacked have come to be of beneficial use to me as well!  It seems that in hostels, almost half of the conversations that happen among travelers are about language – what languages people speak in different countries, what peoples experiences have been either with a language or the experiences of not having a language. 

That also leads me to my take on the Israelis traveling situation.  Its known that many Israelis travel through South America.  And Its also become quite clear that they travel in packs, and even if there are some small groups, they will hook up with other small groups – but just with other Israelis.  Why is that? Ive asked a bunch of people that Ive met why it is like that and also how they decide to get these big groups together - how they think or know that it will work out (group dynamic, budgets, intentions and plans regarding where to go and at what speed to travel… things like that).  Many have said that it has to do with culture and language.  Many Israelis don’t think that they would be well suited with travelers from other places and that there would be a culture clash if they were to actually travel together.  Also, Hebrew plays a big part.  Many of the Israelis here are not super confident with their English language skills.  They do just fine here because at least one person in each group speaks Spanish quite well.  There is also a wealth of information from Israelis who have already traveled here and have left it for the next set (available online and through travel blogs, facebook groups, word of mouth…) They don’t have to take themselves too far out of their comfort zone because everything is readily available.  I think they are missing out. Because they travel together, they are missing the opportunity to meet amazing people from other parts of the world and get to know these cultures.  And I think that many aren’t giving themselves the opportunity to fair on their own.  Some of them don’t trust themselves or their abilities to travel on their own or go to a place and have to figure it all out on their own when they get there.  I mean there is a benefit to having the advice and information available as it can make for more efficient traveling.  I am still on the fence about whether or not I want to access that well – I dip in sometimes but I think for the most part I’m trying to make it work as I go along.  I also don’t like being in the places where half the hostel is Israeli.  These tight-knit groups are hard to break into, so I don’t even want to try.  (By the way, I don’t say any of this in trying to put anyone down – the beauty of traveling like this is that you get to decide to travel however you want to so to each their own – I’ve just noticed some things). 

Usually when I walk around I don’t listen to my headphones.  I want to be open to taking in the sounds and music of where I am located as I walk the local streets (not in the prostitutey way).  They play a lot of English music here!  And when I do hear a song I know, or when I'm listening to my own music on long bus rides or whatever, the familiar songs often come with a pleasant association from back home and it brings a smile to my face.  My work friends will be very happy to hear that on occasion, when I come across a particular song, I still decide to listen to it on repeat 20 plus times J Hard to break old habits!  But I have heard some other local music and Ive actually made a list of stuff I want to look into upon arriving back at home.  Music to download.  Or even books to read.  Ive even started a short list of things I want to get involved with or try .. like maybe actually learning Spanish?  Possibly try my hand at bouldering?  Who knows!?

So as of today, I am officially in Brazil to travel around.  Its been a long day of 30+ hours of travel so the rest will have to wait until I´m not falling on my face from exhaustion.  At least now Spanish won’t be giving me any trouble but now I’ll have to start worrying about Portuguese – HELP!!

Yo No Hablo Español

Spanish would have been a useful language to have in my tool-belt for my time in South America.

I know that sounds obvious but I’ve travelled before to other places where I didn’t speak the language and I managed just fine.  And I am managing just fine.  But it would have made things SOOOOO much easier and probably a bit more fun, as well if I could speak Spanish.  Unlike in Israel, where even when I speak Hebrew to people and they hear my accent so they speak back to me in English (yes, that still happens to me, even after 3 years of living there), here in Argentina, even when I tell people I don’t speak Spanish (in English sometimes even, mind you) they say “Ah, Okay…” And yet continue to then speak to me in Spanish.  As a result of that, as well as just being surrounded by it, my Spanish understanding has certainly improved.  Most of what I am understanding is just English with an “ito” at the end, or some other suffix, so it’s kind of cheating.  But I’m getting my numbers down pat.  And the other day when I went to buy my next bus ticket in super broken Spanglish, the teller even asked me how to say “mil” in English and I was able to answer him (it means a thousand).

I’ve just spent the last week in Argentina’s 2nd largest city called Cordoba.  It’s a nice city.  In truth I had terribly high expectations coming from recommendations from home and I didn’t quite get to the top.  I stayed here so that I could be with Chabad both for the first and last days of Pesach.  I wasn’t drawn towards spending either of those alone or back in Buenos Aires so Cordoba it was for the week.  I had a nice time.  Nice.  Not amazing and parts were actually pretty enjoyable.  If it hadn’t been Pesach, I wouldn’t have stayed here more than maybe a couple of days. Being at Chabad was a new kind of experience for me.  Firstly, the family isn’t Israeli.  The couple is American but have been living here for the last 26 years so for all intents and purposes, they are Argentine and speak English – as do their 10 kids (9 of whom were here).  Other than them, people in the community didn’t really speak English.  Some spoke some Hebrew which was nice.  But even the kids spoke Spanish amongst themselves.  This left me with a lot of time to sit back and observe and listen.  I’ve actually refined my creepy observing skills.  I usually have a pretty astute attention to detail, but all this time of being unable to converse in the local language has really sharpened that skill.  I feel like I invaded some personal emotional space by taking in the details that I did – but what else was I supposed to do while everyone else was speaking a language that I couldn’t speak? Normally I’m pretty good about starting conversation with strangers – but you can’t do that when the language is not something you have in common.  But by the end of the second days, even the non-English speaking people warmed up to me and kissed me goodbye on the cheek even though they never really said hello to begin with.  The quiet time allowed me to rest up, recover from a weird and annoying stomach virus (also not so fun) and read a whole book – an unexpectedly interesting find from a Hostel shelf.

I feel like I’ve seen most of what Cordoba as a city has to offer.  I spent A LOT of time walking around, seeing the different parks, the landmarks, the river, the architecture.  When you go to a Hostel, they give you a map of the main part of the city and it often highlights what there is to see.  I took a tour of one of the local Universities (highly recommended by lonely planet – and that did actually live up to its expectation! All for the grandiose price of about 90 US cents! In ENGLISH to boot!) and that was not only enjoyable but it allowed me to meet some other travelers who I spent the rest of the evening with.  As it is off season, there are far fewer travelers around.  Even for the Seder Night, Chabad used to get numbers in the hundreds signing up!  This year I think they topped off at about 60.  The Israeli table consisted of about 10 people – the rest were all locals. The family here explained to me that hundreds of Israelis used to come to Cordoba because it used to be the only place in Argentina to go skydiving.  However, so many other places have opened up around the country that there is no other special reason for them to make it over to this city so they stopped coming by the bus-load.   It’s interesting how one thing can influence another like that.  On this off season there were few people staying in the hostels as well.  Once again, I had an 8 person dorm room to myself for two nights.  I did meet a few interesting people, though.  I had a really great long conversation with someone that re-opened my eyes to what happens when you travel.  It was thought provoking to get a look into the perception of someone who was new to this way of life, was also from the United States, and was older – around my age – yes, I’m in the older category of people I am finding traveling in this part of the world.  We spent hours discussing the influences from our regular lives and our traveling lives, and the routines of “home” and how breaking free from them can be eye opening.  These are the moments I cherish when I travel.  This guy is essentially a stranger and in all likelihood I will never see him again and yet the exchange of words we had was quite a bit more impactful then most of the conversations I’ve had with people who I have known for longer and generally see on a more regular basis.  Of course I have meaningful conversations with friends for sure, but a stranger in comparison to usual acquaintances…. Interesting.  I also met these two German girls with who I shared a room for an evening.  We spent one day walking around together and at one of the many moments when we marked ourselves as tourists by pulling out a map (I think my neon yellow day pack also usually gives me away… as do my shoresh sandals… and probably a few other traits/characteristics) an older gentleman approached us in English and asked us where we are from.  I said I was from Israel and the girls said they were from Germany.  He immediately identified himself as Jewish and preceded, un-instigated to declare that it was amazing that in this day and age a Jewish girl and a German girl could interact socially, free of religious divides - I fully agreed with that and it would have been nice if he stopped there.  But he didn’t. He then went on to explain the atrocities of Hitler and his lack of understanding of how so many Germans went along with the nonsense and so on and so on.  It was a pretty awkward encounter.  After he walked away I tried to smooth it out by saying that some old people just feel like they need to share their opinions and be heard and the girls took it pretty well in stride (well, one of them did – the other was kind of taken aback).  And just as I thought we were moving past it, the guy came back and started talking again! This time when he was done, we decided to walk away.  Just another interesting encounter on the streets of Argentina. 

I’ve come to realize that in general I prefer the smaller cities and the “suburbs” to these cities when I travel.  Argentina has many beautiful mountains and lakes and combinations of the two.  There is something about clouds sitting low on mountain tops that really gets me.  I think it reminds me of New Zealand which was the first place to which I traveled and wanted to return to because of its physical beauty.  I think Argentina also has a beautiful landscape.  In my attempt to break away a bit from the city and go on an adventure, one day during the week I decided to head out to a nearby National Park to see a natural breeding ground for Condor Vultures.  I took the two hour bus ride out there by myself (mind you I found my way around the bus terminal by myself, talking to people by myself, very awkwardly and almost unsuccessfully buying a bus ticket by myself) after waking up very early in the morning – everyone recommended to get a good and early start to the day – and on the way I started to really appreciate the view.  The mountains were gorgeous.  And there were these low sitting clouds that added to the picturesque scene.  We made a pit stop on the way and I realized there was quite a drastic temperature change… thank God I had brought my little rain jacket as another layer.  The clouds and the weather change should have given me a hint that something was off, but they didn’t.  Not even when we turned a bend on the road and seemed to be in an actual cloud did I realize this wasn’t great.  I did have the thought that it might be difficult to see the birds but at least I would enjoy the few hour hike on the way.  However, when I got off the bus, I could barely see 20 feet in front of me.  I walked over to the entrance to the park and the gate was actually closed.  There was a park ranger who was in his car nearby (thank God he spoke English!) and he explained that due to the weather the trails were closed and there was no entering the park today… gotta go home.  So basically about 15 minutes after I had gotten off the bus that drove me there in 2 hours, I was back in the opposite direction on another bus heading right back to where I came from.  So that was a bust.  At least I enjoyed the view on the way there and back, right?  Man plans – God laughs.  When I got back to the bus station I actually walked a different way home which shed some light on the city for me.  It seems to be that there are different districts.  I walked through a number of consecutive blocks that has stores that only sold shoes.  Another set of blocks that only sold clothing.  Another set that only sold electronics.  Another with Motorcycles.  Jewelry.  It was interesting to see this divide and it gave me a different perspective of the city that I hadent yet seen.  ‘

What else does Cordoba have to offer?  Other than the many different green parks (or make actually because of them!) my allergies have come to life here.  For the first few days I had to wear my glasses because my eyes were soooo itchy.  Additionally, I feel like the entire city is infested with mosquitos!  I hadn’t been touched by one until I came here and now my body has been eaten up!  I finally bought some OFF but reapplication is brutally necessary… I’m practicing bug-safety, right Andrew?  In truth these are minor disturbances and Cordoba really is a nice city.  

Two other things to note which are not specific just to Cordoba but to Argentina in general.  One is that people from Argentina travel around Argentina.  I like it and I think it is refreshing.  This is a beautiful country that has a lot to offer and the locals are taking advantage if it.  Secondly, I had this thought and I didn't specifically share it with anyone, but then a girl I was walking around town with voiced it outloud: all the women wear major platform shoes!  I've seen it since having arrived in Argentina and I wasn't sure if this is the style in the world these days (I've never been accused of being totally up on popular fashion trends) or if it was just here, but its all you see on the feet of the women and on the shelves of local stores.  And we're not just talking about a little heel - we're talking major 4-5 inch platforms - old school Steve Madden style - on everything from fancy shoes, to sneakers to flip flops. Unbelievable...

I’ve enjoyed my time here in Cordoba and will be happy to move on once again.Tomorrow I take what will be my longest bus ride yet – a whopping 22 hours from Cordoba to the Iguazu Falls.  This will be my last stop in Argentina before heading into BRAZIL!!!  Peace out for now – Pesach is over and I just broke my chametz-fast on a delicious slice of Pizza… yum!