woe is me.

on thursday i was picked up at the dock and we motored over to royal island.. about a year ago there were huge plans for an 'elite' development on the otherwise deserted island - very posh posh, with a golf course etc. the land was cleared.. building was under way.. and they ran out of funds. and that's it. millions of dollars lost in translation.. so david and i went and explored the bad investments. afterwards it was back to bette's dock for an afternoon of swimming and lazing with a book.

friday morning bette and i were off in the boat taxi to eleuthra where we caught our cramped, 10 passenger plane over to abaco.. flying over the islands, the swirls of blues and greens.. the clouds so fluffy they looked like frothed cottonballs suspended by invisible thread.. a wonderful relaxing weekend with diane and charlotte in sandy bay ensued.. there was some competitive "bananagrams" (scrabble lovers - if you don't know, now you know.) lots of wine and lots of laughs.. di and charlotte have an amazing assortment of whale bones.. a complete dolphin skeleton suspended from the ceiling.. and fabulous tales of expeditions and adventures.. they are quite the pair, and that is quite an understatement.

monday morning we were picked up by mike.. literally - he swooped in and we were flown back to eleuthra on his private plane.. it was so clear i could make out a few wrecks that looked like flattened toys, cardboard pieces dispersed among the reefs.. arriving, i hadn't even got out of the seat and our baggage was on a cart and half way into the airport.. then into the van and onto the boat taxi.. i didn't have to lift a finger! and have since decided that i will go nowhere without bette at my side. the lady knows how to travel.

the next day i got a call from david and off we went for another day of sailing.. the wind was much stronger than the first day and we really got speed.. stopping at a deserted island to swim and explore, then getting back on and out to open waters.. remembering once we were out that we had neglected to drain the floats while we were ashore.. and then noticing as the bow began slicing dangerously low in the water.. the wind still strong, we tacked several times trying to get into a sandy point when our saviour john appeared.. firstly telling us that the point we were attempting was not in fact sandy, it was quite rocky, and a friend of his had made the same mistake and almost holed his boat up on the rocks.. then guiding us to the harbor where we strategically banked and got the water out. the entire ordeal was more amusing than anything, i must assure you.. but only because the water we were in was relatively shallow..

yesterday david and i took the bohengy over to harbor island.. we met up with his friend rosie who gave us the use of her golf cart for the day to zip around the hilly island.. we found what was left of this old mansion that a man had built for his wife, who upon seeing the finished product, did not like.. and so it was abandoned. right then and there.. they didn't sell it, they didn't do anything with it.. it just sat. now the bare walls remain.. the paint faded by the sun.. the roof long gone.. stripped of it's dignity. [his wife was a brat.] we lunched on the patio of coral sands with a scenic view of the ocean and pink sand.. the sun was shining and it was a dark and stormy day.. (of course, i'm talking about the drink with rum and gingerbeer..) and so we intentionally missed our bohengy back to spanish wells and instead spent the afternoon hopping around to the different marinas and watering holes.. later taking the boat taxi to north eleuthra and hitching our way across the island and down to the dock where we somehow showed up exactly when a boat did.. turns out it was the last taxi of the night.. by perfect timing, and sheer luck, i slept in my bed instead of on the dock..

and today we are going out snorkelling.. it's a tad windy but i'm undetered. tomorrow is my last full day so i feel it my duty. i am taking full advantage of my opportunities moreso for my family and friends up in the snow than for myself.. it's a selfless sort of thing. i'm quite the martyr really..

island life.

after lunching with a lovely group of bette's friends at the snack shop, we recooped, walked the beach that afternoon, and then showered up for our second appointment down the island.. heading to john and candi's for wine and appys, we were joined by david beckman (not the soccer player) and proceeded to have a very pleasant evening on their deck filled with travel stories and great conversation.. john is a doctor and spent much of his life working for unicef.. he and candi lived in new dehli for 12 years, and they now reside in capetown for the majority of the year.. besides the 4 months they come here, and a month in india.. incredible life, incredible people. the wine flowed, the sun set, the snacks disappeared, and before we left i had a sailing lesson in the morning..

scheduled to meet down at the dock, we woke to no wind. so, instead john, david and i took the dingy out and spent the entire day exploring. pulling out of the harbor, we hadn't got far before we came across a group of dolphins splashing around.. i was ecstatic so john suggested i should get in and swim with them(!), so in a went.. with a snorkel mask and holding the tow line, they pulled me along behind the boat.. unbelievable. when i got back in the boat, we started off.. and looking behind me, there they all were.. following the boat, surfing our waves! they were jumping right out of the water and flipping around.. it was incredible.

once the dolphins dispersed we shot off into turquoise and emerald water.. the water was crystal clear, as always, you could see the bottom from the boat. stopping at several different spots for snorkelling.. (john knows all the secrets..) dove an old train wreck.. saw some huge spotted eagle rays.. big fish.. puffer fish.. starfish.. coral.. went to preacher's cave.. went all the way down to current cut where we got out of the boat and drifted down the current to the other side, then got back in and went out the way we came.. (it was really deep water.. found out afterwards that there are often sharks hanging out there, waiting to snatch up food coming through the channel.. eep!) on the way home we stopped at the 'octopuses garden' a shallow area john knew of.. so we snorkelled that and saw a few octopuses (octopi?), that tucked up into their holes when we came along.. pretty shy. got squirted by a sea slug.. saw a little reef shark.. held a sea turtle.. almost ran out of gas.. and got dropped off at bette's dock, v.i.p..

the next morning i got a phone call from david saying the wind was perfect for a beginner sail.. so off we went in john's bodie cat 16.. when out for a few hours, 'tacking' and such.. getting stranded when the wind disappeared, then jutting off again when the sails filled.. john caught up with us after in his laser, and we raced around the reefs and over to a beach on eleuthra where we took a break to swim.. dropped off at bette's just in time to wash up and help with last minute preparations before all the ladies showed up for cocktails and appy's on the deck..

yesterday john, david, and i stacked the dingy with bicycles and boated over to eleuthra in search of a 'blue hole'.. we biked a few kilometers down the island and then went off the road to find it.. and there it was.. about 50 feet across and 40 feet down to deep blue water.. ensuring that the rope hanging in was sturdy, in we went.. it was an intimidating jump.. swimming around with our snorkel gear we found nothing but bright red, blind shrimp and crabs scuttling along the cave walls.. apparently there are blind fish, but they hang out in the bottom far below..

back in spanish wells, i dined on david's 58-foot sail boat which is what he now calls home.. he is waiting for his grandmother who will arrive next week and they are off on a two month adventure south..

and today was chill. it's been an action packed few days that it has been nice to stay out of the sun and just relax. bette and i had a late stroll along the beach and i'm going to bed with a book.

lima/spanish wells.

after spending a few wonderful days in lima, my friends started dropping like flies.. first it was danelle, followed by mike, and then colleen and ricardo.. suddenly i was surrounded by people, but quite alone. (sob). i spent a day power walking through the streets, soaking in my last few days of s. american culture.. picking up last minute items.. eating mangoes for almost every meal..

back to the hostel that evening, i had to change rooms because the bed i stayed in the first night was reserved.. so i moved to a dorm room where there were two canadian guys staying.. turns out they were from swift current(!).. so completely random.. we started chatting, and then of course the question comes up 'where are you from'.. the questions got smaller.. so funny. so we had a few beers that night and i met another guy from calgary.. we had a little canadian party going on. but then shook it up by inviting a californian to join us.. because we're so friendly..

the next morning rachel (californian) and i spent the day walking beyond mira flores in search of a food market which apparently didn't exist.. so we went out for lunch and walked back along the boardwalk discussing literature and having a fabulous day in the sun. she was meeting up with her father that afternoon and they were travelling together for a couple weeks, so we separated ways and i was rolling solo once again. my last afternoon in south america. i started wondering why i would ever want to leave, but then remembered that my next ticket was to the bahamas! and well, lima's great but..

packing up my bag and getting ready for an early commute to the airport, it turned out that the swift boys were on the same flight to fort lauderdale, so i cancelled my cab and we all made the trek together. we quickly said goodbye upon landing when i realised that i had 20 minutes to get my bag and get through security before boarding call.. talking my way to the front of the first line.. running between passport stamps and questionnaires.. stripping down while waiting in line, tossing my things in the grey bucket, and getting x-rayed, i grabbed my shoes and things and ran barefoot through the terminals.. the only reason i made my connection was because when i arrived, there was no plane. i have never been so thankful for a delay!

an hour and a half later i was in the bahamas. taxied to cousin don's in nassau.. and after talking his ear off, i put my exhausted body to bed. the next morning i caught the bohengy to spanish wells, and was met at the dock by bette and lynda. remnants of the weekends festivities lingered.. everyone looked like they had a great time (-exhausted).. it seems i missed the party of the half-century! four days of posh fun, hopping between beach houses and islands.. everything planned down to the most minute detail! this crew has a stamina that i'm not sure i could keep up with, so perhaps i showed up at the appropriate time after all.. i got a kick out of the invitations, with the first night having 'island chic' dress, then 'island glam'.. 'island casual'.. 'baithing suit'.. and on the last day, 'whatever is still clean'.. my backpack apparel would not have sufficed!

things have quieted down around here as the last of the partiers have dispersed.. lynda was going to go, and then figured she should probably stay another night.. (beyond her control, delayed flight.. although i'd like to think it had everything to do with bette and i's impeccable company..) spanish wells is back in the regular swing of things. bette and sophia and i have been walking the beach every afternoon, and i've had a few swims off the dock.. our social agenda is getting penciled up for the weekend to come, and next weekend we are jetting off to abaco..

the amazon.

landing in iquitos we were met at the airport and shuttled over to the tour company's office where we met with the rest of the group.. brought down to the water, we boarded the long, narrow boat, and started past floating villages, soon getting out into the middle of the river which looked more like a lake with the land growing more distant each second..

within minutes of being out in the open water, we saw the dorsel fins of two dolphins.. one grey and one pink.. they surfaced a few times and then were seen no more.. arriving an hour later at our camp, we walked down a long, covered boardwalk before our lodgings came into view.. a gazebo filled with hammocks quickly caught our eye, and it was there we spent the majority of our down time. lunching on rice, beans, a spicy stirfry of spinach and mushrooms, yuca root, and mango.. (every meal we ate there was absolutely incredible.. they always had a meat option, but they would bring danelle and i a vegetarian plate they prepared especially for us..) we were stuffed to the brim, and made use of said hammocks before boating over to 'monkey island'..

we were greeted by the friendly staff and almost immediately weighed down by curious monkeys of all different sizes and species.. we were their play-things.. there was no agenda, we were simply allowed to wander the area and interact with the animals at our own want and will.. my absolute favorite thing ever was holding the sloth! oh my gosh. if you have never held a sloth you have never lived. straw-haired et's with bowl cuts. so fabulous. other things i got to hold and hang with: a boa constrictor, an anaconda, a baby alligator, a tucan, and some koatis..

after monkey island we went to a swimming spot and anyone interested could go for a dip. then it was back to the lodge.. another fabulous meal.. and a night walk through the jungle where we saw several interesting creatures.. turantulas.. scorpion spiders larger than my outstretched hand.. antennaed beetles.. a toad the size of a chihuahua.. a millipede.. poisonous ants.. now, at first i thought we were seeing a single poisonous ant climbing a tree. we stopped to have a look, shining the flashlight on it.. our guide got him to climb on his walking stick so we could get a better look.. but after studying it for a moment, the flashlight was shone on the ground, and we discovered that we were actually standing right beside the large anthill. brilliant. we quickly continued, (although not all cases are fatal.. uh..) oh, and one turantula that i was somehow coerced into picking up quickly scurried all the way up my arm and nestled itself behind my ear.. i felt it there for hours after it was gone..

the next morning we walked over to a nearby tribe. we were welcomed by their adorable children and participated in ceremonial dancing with the men and women. the chief spoke a few words to us and confessed to having three wives, admitting that some have as many as five. everyone was adorned in face paint.. they painted our faces as well, with a red dye extracted from a fruit that grows in the forest. everyone was adorned in traditional clothing, (except the children who neglected clothing entirely).. the men wearing grass skirts and head pieces, the women wearing red skirts and a straw necklace which covers their chest and back.

we boated back to the lodge for lunch, afterwards walking the other direction to a nearby village about the size of foxwarren. i could totally relate. (just kidding). before dinner that evening, but after the sun had set, we piled into a canoe (that i wasn't entirely sure could hold our weight) and paddled off into the dark to see what we could see.. which was nothing beyond a single flashlight beam that ricardo (our guide) would sometimes switch on when he amazingly discovered something worthy of sharing in the darkness.. unfortunately no crocs. i was so disappointed. the stars and fireflies speckled around us and an hour later we were back at camp and enjoying another candlelit gourmet delight.

the next morning we woke to rain and therefore had to boycott our plans to get back out on the canoe and go bird watching.. which also meant we could sleep another hour before breakfast.. then we went out fishing for pirahna.. but all we caught were baby catfish.. (bunk). wrong time of year unfortunately, the water was too high.. went for a swim.. was in the water about 5 feet from the ladder when someone shouted from the boat something along the lines, "what the -- was that?!" i almost sprinted on water. from the boat a moment later, i discovered that it was another rose dolphin. pretty.. but after that i was done swimming. put a turantula behind my ear, no biggie.. but.. a girl has limits.

before we knew it it was time to pack up, lunch, and hit the dusty trail. it was still raining on the boat ride back to town, and the river was surprisingly choppy.. i was amazed at it's monstrosity. what a marvelous experience. i had three tasks set out for myself before heading down here.. i absolutely had to see iguazu falls, machu picchu, and the amazon.. if i accomplished nothing else in my time on the road, i would leave satisfied. fortunately, all three tasks are now complete.. my trip is not yet over.. and i have accomplished so much more that i could not have imagined before embarking over two months ago..

"the physical domain of the country had its counterpart in me. the trails i made led outward into the hills and swamps, but they led inward also. and from the study of things underfoot, and from reading and thinking, came a kind of exploration, myself and the land. in time the two became one in my mind." - john haines: the stars, the snow, the fire: twenty-five years in the northern wilderness.