Things I'm Getting Used To

At this point, this is officially the longest period of time I have been away from home.  My longest trip was back in 2004 when I spent a month in Europe.  Being away from home for so long is not always easy, and traveling can be as much work sometimes as it is fun, but so far I'm very happy with the experiences I've had.  Nevertheless, now that we're approaching six weeks away, I figured I would comment on a few of the things I'm getting used to, which inevitably includes some of the things I miss from home.  

 

Coffee:  Everyone who knows me knows I'm a huge coffee addict.  Back home, I typically drink three to four cups a day during the week and at least two cups a day on weekends.  I absolutely love good coffee (God, I miss my Peets Coffee) and since I drink so much, I have a really bad caffeine addiction... or at least I HAD an addiction.  After a month or so here in South America, I think I've actually broken the habit.  We may get half our coffee beans in the US from South America, but drinking coffee is just not as popular here as it is in other places.  It's not like Europe where espresso is the norm and finding brewed coffee is difficult; it's simply impossible to find good coffee, in any form, anywhere.  Chile was the worst because when you ordered coffee in a restaurant, they would give you a cup of hot water and a packet of Nescafe instant coffee.  What the fuck?  Anything that dissolves in water is not coffee... it's some scary type of freeze-dried, artificial, chemical substance with a taste vaguely similar to something resembling coffee.  At least Argentina has places with real espresso machines so I can occasionally find that, but a double espresso is just not the same as brewed coffee, especially without half-and-half, which is another thing that just doesn't exist here, anywhere, at all.  I would even go for a Starbucks at this point; even substandard Starbucks coffee is better than nothing... at least it's not served in a packet.  Nevertheless, I've grown accustomed to not drinking coffee.  Some days, I'll fulfill my caffeine needs by drinking Fanta, but most days, I just simply go without.

 

No TV:  Again, not that I was a huge TV watcher to being with, but I had my regular shows and TV habits.  I really miss watching the local news everyday when I get home and again before I go to bed.  I miss my 10News Team: Carol LeBeau, Hal Clement, Loren Nancarrow (my sexy weatherman), Michael Chen, and even Kimberly Hunt, although I didn't get to know her as well since she's still new.  I miss Jeopardy, the Discovery and History channels, Animal Planet, and even CNN.  Most of the hostels here have a TV room, but I never really use them since I would simply turn to the one English station, which is typically CNN, and most people aren't terribly excited to watch quasi-serious, but mostly sensational US news with our poor excuse for journalists.  I try to keep up with news and other happenings online, but I mostly just browse the headlines and try to enjoy my time away from everything.  From what I can see from here, things back home still suck and aren't getting better anytime soon, so I guess I'm not missing too much.  I still haven't quite figured out what to do about LOST, which starts in January.  I would just wait until I get home and just watch the entire season on DVD, but the DVD's don't usually come out until December... as in a year from now.  I really hope I'll be able to watch the episodes online. 

 

No Cell Phone:  It's amazing how well I've adjusted to not having a cell phone.  Not that I was ever a big phone person anyway, but I did like being able to text friends to keep in touch, plus having a cell phone was especially convenient when I was out with Sean and we got separated.  It would definitely be nice to have a phone here so I can contact Sean those times we go out separately or do different things, but we've managed to get by just fine.  Skype has been one of the best investments we made on this trip.  Even though the call quality isn't always good, mostly due to the shitty internet connections in some places, it's still useful to have a way to call home or take care of business matters, etc. 

 

Stares:  This is just part of traveling.  Having locals stare at you is something I've experienced before, but here in South America, the staring has been much more intense, and not just from kids, but from all ages.  And it's not like some places where, once people realize you notice them staring, they turn away.  People here just keep staring even if you look them in the face.  They just have this puzzled look on their faces as if to say, "Who are you and what the hell are you doing here?" It's almost funny at times but I'm getting used to it.  It really just reminds me of how little most people travel outside of their own city, state, or country, and that goes for the locals here as well as Americans.  Many of the cities we've been to thus far aren't necessarily big tourist destinations to begin with, and since Americans rarely travel to South America, I think both of us have been oddities to the locals and they don't hesitate to display their curiosity by staring.  I do appreciate the ones who actually talk to us and ask where we're from, but I think being Black, especially, is just so different from what many of the people here see on a regular basis, they often don't know what to think.  I've actually had people ask if I'm Peruvian or Brazilian, but most assume American.  I wonder if many of them have ever seen a Black American before in person.  The funniest question I've gotten repeatedly on this trip is, "Why did you come here"?  People first assume work or school because they really don't understand why someone would want to travel to their country for holiday/vacation.  They figure, if you have the choice, there are so many other places to go.  I say, well, I've been to many places and I'm sure there's something in your city worth seeing so that's why I'm here.  What good is a round-the-world trip to the well-documented, major, tourist cities that everyone else has already been to?  It's the difference between Mexico City or Zihuatanejo versus Cancun or Puerto Vallarta.