vaga#1/4 routes
Vaga #1 Routes
Part IV
I WANT TO CLARIFY: that the symbols of Facebook, Twitter and the others could not be removed, but I do not have them, email and WhatsApp are the only way of contacting me.
I left on the 17th of September 2017 for Mexico, three days later a massive earthquake hit the country and I escaped to Costa Rica and then Guatemala, I stayed close by as I was returning to Chile at the end of November, for Peter's graduation. Then I coordinated with Sofia to spend Christmas together, she was then living in San Francisco. She took a 3-week vacation and we left for Japan, it was her dream since she was a girl, not mine, we had to cross the ocean to get to Tokyo. It was fascinating touring Japan and !!!!! thanks, Sofia !!!!! from there I went on my way by myself, I could have chosen any country at random and I did ……………………. Vietnam. My trip started in the North and went down to Saigon and then to Cambodia and Laos, all by land, then I would see how it would be to travel through the rest of South East Asia.
In my notebook, I had the plan and by the end of June, it would be, 6 months in the South East Asian area ........ 6 months ... ... more .......
hahaha and the hahaha written in the notebook I left at the end of March,only being in one country.
I had visited Vietnam and Myanmar and now I was in Nepal ........
And my only commitment was to meet Rafa at the end of June at the end of his exchange semester in Barcelona, to go together to Morocco and then he would return to Chile to continue his studies. It was our chance before his departure, to go to the end of the world. I mean, my route was planned according to my children’s plans. How did I choose my itinerary? Let's go back to September, I was "close to home" and I was in Costa Rica, all I wanted to see were its famous national parks and its animals. Things that I fully achieved. For a long time, I wanted to meet a "sloth". I saw one and much more, I enjoyed the parks and saw many animals that were new for me, and everything was so well cared for.
The Guatemala, here all I wanted to see were its colourful extraordinarily wonderful handicrafts, It turned out to be a trip far beyond seeing handicrafts, I got to share my time with Madga of the Mon ethnic group and her family, and with Catarina of the Tzutujil ethnic group ... ... both belong to the Mayan Altiplano and are weavers.
Magda, from the village of Ostuncalco and Catarina from San Juan de la Laguna. I maintained contact with both of them by frequent messages on WhatsApp. I shared photos of the weaving from everywhere that I had been and the clothing of the ethnic groups ...... it is impressive that they are on the other side of the globe and yet there is so much in common between them, clothing, embroidery, batik ........ It goes both ways, with all the ethnic weavers that I have met .......... the similarity is there despite them not giving any weight to the comparison. I do not know if they understand the depth or significance.
Back to my rhetoric about Asia, it took more than 6 months and I had only travelled to 2 countries… .hahaha. And so, I changed my plans, Rafa is coming here, because I want to stay around these parts for longer ... ........ how much longer? ...... .... no idea ... ... I suggested Nepal, and he loved the idea of it. As I am writing this he will be arriving next week, I am in Kathmandu, waiting for him with open arms.
I was learning along the way that you have to adapt to the climate, it is essential, as each place has its meteorological nightmares and you have to know how to find out beforehand, For me the Asian climate was unknown, I missed the cold, and the short days, I don't like humidity, and I'm here, I've been tolerating it better, maybe getting used to it. But the 90% humidity kills me. Let it rain, we hit 100%, but 90% all day, .......... it kills me ...
I just went to Jakarta for dental treatment, it was supposed to be the dry season, which is partly why I chose it. Dry... hahaha... it is not 90% humidity, but 75%. Hahaha ... I am getting to know the weather patterns and knowing what they mean about it being dry around here. Another lesson I had learned was to never travel anywhere in high season, I do not tolerate the massive tourist buses, dozens and dozens parked near monuments or national parks and they move like flocks. !! HORROR !! I start telling all the gringos, I say it generically, now the Chinese have joined in, ....... in their masses, they are so noisy, jokes are shouted, with their massive cameras around their necks, hundreds of them! I have always disliked Gringo tours, hahaha my 3 children are half Gringo, and all 3 look like Gringos,...., hahaha .....
I voluntarily decided to raise them in Chile. A decision not understood by everyone. The United States is supposed to be the best, the American dream ...... The best decision was to move back to raise them at home, children raised in a safe environment - no gunshots in schools - schoolmates forever etc ...... I lived there for 9 years and saw how it works for the family, the eternal change of places. It was the right decision and talking to them as adults, they are completely convinced that it was a good decision. Now, as grown-ups, they can choose where to live. Sofia is already taking advantage of the great opportunities offered to her. I sacrificed a large part of my development in art, the opportunities I had are not comparable to those in Chile, but it was a good decision, at first.
CHILDREN FIRST
Being in Fortuna, Costa Rica, in October, Gonzalo tells me “so, planning your trip to Asia to see the climates, monsoons etc?” My answers were that I don't know what I'm going to do the day after tomorrow …… ... hahaha Another anecdote and this at the beginning of the ‘80s, I was in Europe when my father, either by letter or perhaps by phone, asked me what my holiday plans were, I'm going to Italy, he exclaimed "I know where you are NOT going to be ......" ... he already knew the flexibility of my plans. He knew it long before I realised my extreme volatility.
Coming to Asia, I confess that I was a bit nervous, my stomach was in knots, I didn't mention it to anyone, it was so unknown to me, languages, so little known to me. Sofía sensed it and she suggested that I go to Australia or New Zealand from Japan…... I realised that those countries did not interest me at all, they were so similar to Chile and I understood what I wanted was to go to the most different places possible, I found the answer to what I was searching for. The most diverse places I was accustomed to.
I have ended with two photos of a singer "Jeremy Ginsburg" I could not download his music, but I took photos of what I think represents me