Perhaps it is strange to write reflections of a
previous trip while in the middle of a different one but whilst on
this current journey (in Turkey) my mind kept wandering back to and
making comparisons with south America. So maybe now is not such a bad
time.
When I think back, I am conscious of how it is
all too easy to white-wash memories of travelling. Honestly, although
my blog probably doesn't reflect it, I remember the times I felt like
crap and had no idea why I was seemingly purposelessly travelling in
a foreign continent so far away from home, as much as I remember the
times I felt inspired by the people I met, ecstatic about the things
I saw and exhilarated by the experiences I had. But I think the point
is, I remember them all. More so than any other period of my
life, I can recount those 6 months with strikingly clarity. The solo
wanderings through Quito which left me haplessly out of breath, the
small snippets of conversation about existential angst I had with
Mexican Victoria in Siete Angelitos bar in Cuzco, the taste of the
ice-cold beer that our guide fetched me and Vova as we waited in the
pouring rain after the Roraima trek. It's all so vivid. Is that what
travelling is all about? Memories that are branded onto your mind
so that even a slight reminder produces a detailed picture of a time and
place. And that feeling of “I was there, I did that” is
absolutely delicious.
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