All Roads Lead to Roam

It has been a while since I've written about my travels. Since the beginning of the pandemic, my approach to or classification of travel has changed. I earned my Colombian drivers licence and purchased a car; this enabled me to explore more local destinations and ease my way back into being away from home. I have been to páramos and cloud forests, hiked up and kayaked in the mountains, been to resort-style fincas and farm-style fincas. I am pretty sure I have seen more of Cundinamarca than the average Colombian or person, in general. A sample of what I was up to during 2021 Finding the inner peace to be okay with leaving home for periods of time is made difficult from the monthslong isolation during the earlier months of the pandemic in addition to the two cats I adopted whom bring me so much joy. The travel bug has existed all this time, though. After three summers of less-than-ideal travel [ 2019 marked a quick move from Ecuador to the USA to Colombia over a three-week span; 2020...

     This is my end-of-the-school-year reflection, even though I just finished the first week of a new school year. Because measuring time has essentially ceased to matter in the version of the Matrix that I live in, it makes more sense to do that reflection at this point in time. Oh, Corona. You have played out two extreme scenarios I've played through my mind over the years. First, how would I respond or react  if  international travel permanently shutdown, and I were geographically separated from my friends and family from "back home"? Second, how would I spend my time if I were to ever take a year off of work?      The answer to the first question is simple-- stay in place. I've been living in South America for six years, already. Although I've only been in Colombia for a year, I am home. Leaving here for the US would be more inconvenient between nearly all my possessions being in Bogota as well as the catastrophic chaos that's been exped...

Santander, Colombia Well, I made it out of Bogotá elsewhere into Colombia twice since last July. The next time is yet to be determined; when that's possible, however, I have a start to plans about where I'd like to go and do. While there's a possibility of a chance for this in July and August, I'll likely save these trips for after the next school year begins. As with my former blog, I'll record something more retrospective of my past year soon enough. To make the explanation short, I intend to use this Summer in achieving short- and long-term goals, as well as professional development, so I can make-off with huge dividends later. I suppose this means I've matured into the ant. My first escape from Bogotá was in October, with a great group of lively and lovely Midwestern ladies [ and a couple from the coasts, too   😜 ], to a finca at a much lower altitude and surrounded by lush green. It was divine to absorb the sunlight and warmth; the only times I actually ex...

Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador Otavalo, Imbabura, Ecuador Three months later, and I am finally getting around to my Christmastime adventure back to Ecuador. With all this coronavirus mess and the mandatory quarantine in effect in Bogotá, what's my excuse to not finish this post. I've got my reasons for the delay, and too late is just on time for my life at this point. This current school year has been continually challenging me out of my comfort zone, temporally and creatively. There were stark contrasts in the nature of my teaching position from things like programs ( IB to AP ), daily bell schedule ( traditional to block ), daily class rotation ( from a six-day rotation to every-other-day ), and department organization ( the only person teaching my courses to sharing courses with other teachers ). It has been a steep learning curve, and I feel like I have gained control over things finally. The Saturday Market (Otavalo) After regaining my mental prowess after my oft...

Bogotá, Colombia My favorite one I made in Quito (30-gallons) for my classroom I've hardly left Bogotá in the four months I've been here. Once was to a finca outside of the city. The only other time was to visit in Quito, Ecuador. That's not to say I haven't been doing anything exciting. Quite the contrary, I have been occupied with continuing to nest in my apartment (I'll share more about that in a different post) and getting to know more of my new home city. The 20-gallon aquarium I created for my Bogotá apartment Those of you who have known me over the last couple of years know that there is one topic that will get me talking 'til I turn blue in the gills: AQUARIUMS . I love talking about the science behind them, the purposes for having one, the different species to keep, and my own personal aquariums. Growing up, the only pet my brother and I were allowed to keep were fish. My brother usually went for either tetras or zebrafish whereas I opted...

Firstly, my heart breaks for what is happening in Ecuador, right now. It truly is devastating to see the violence, vandalism, disruption and instability occurring now. I pray for resolution that can restore peace to that beautiful country. Bogotá, Colombia Apulo, Cundinamarca, Colombia Now that I passed the first long vacation for my new job, I can stop saying that I had an incredibly short  summer... or few weeks break to move countries before starting my new position. While I am appreciative of my decision to stay busy and make the most of the time I had with family and friends, it didn't leave me much downtime to breathe or hit the reset button.  At the Foo Fighters, Tenacious D and Weezer concert before vacation Walking around our resort View from the finca This break was so necessary for my own mental well-being. I'd experienced a lot of changes in my life since the start of the year, and these are just the major ones to start with: purging my belon...