Huaraz, Peru

I sat patiently in the waiting room, my fingers purposefully sifting through the pages of my passport. As they turned a familiar smell wafted through the air. I smiled slightly as my mind and spirit found momentary refuge in far away lands. It was that distinct musty smell of old leather, foreign ports, and weeks on end of traveling. I love that smell. Got it! Tucked in the very last page was my shot record. "Walters" I heard the nurse calling. I was up. Now having been poked and proded more than any human being should ever have to be throughout the course of my life, shots never phase me. Well, at least not the initial prick. I do have immense issues about being injected with foreign substances, but you have to do what you have to do. The needle penetrated deep into my tissue and instantaneously a stream of crimson blood flowed gracefully down my bicep. "You're done for life" the nurse cheerfully announced. I had just finished the last installment of my Hep A/B immunization and was on my way. Not even two weeks had passed from returning from South America and I was already planning my next sabbatical. Now I am not quite sure if it was the mystique, exquisite beauty, or the sense of absolute freedom that kept attracting me to the continent, or perhaps it was a certain Latin man....

Earlier in the year I had traveled to Peru with both of my sisters and unexpectedly met someone. Those of you who know me, know that this occurrence was a complete miracle in itself. I am probably one of the most anti-social people living on this planet. I do not trust people, I do not like 99% of all people, and I sure as hell was not looking for anyone special. I had a horrific track record with men and would not even let anyone get close enough to get to know me at all. To say I had walls up would have been the understatement of the century. If I was ever approached my first reaction was to tell the unsuspecting admirer to "Fuck Off." As my oldest sister puts it - I wasn't over my last disaster to start a new one! However, for some reason I was attracted to him. His name is Daniel and he had been our Amazon guide on our previous trip. I still haven't figured it out; maybe it was because he knew the name of every bird in the Amazon, wanted to save the rainforest, carried me across the river when my boot had a hole in it, showed me my very first wild scarlet macaw, or the fact that he liked me after I hadn't had a hot shower or shaved my legs in weeks. Clearly, there is mass confusion when trying to analyze the turn of events, and then just maybe it was a higher power that connected us together. After four days of knowing each other we knew that we had to see one another again.

2009 was just an awful year in general, in fact, the most negative year I have ever experienced in all of my 26 years of living. My personal and professional lives were both in shambles and as soon as I had returned from vacation, I was already plotting my next escape from reality. When things are bad everyone's first reaction is to go home....and so I did. I absolutely love living in Hawai'i, however, sometimes you just need your family. Off to D.C. I went. I needed to be around my parents to become reenergized in order to overcome the obstacles that had been thrown at me in regards to my career. Coincidentally, I just happened to stumble upon an extremely good deal on a plane ticket from D.C. to Lima...fate perhaps?!

Before I knew it my parents were wishing me a bon voyage from Dulles International Airport. I was about to board a plane bound for El Salvador en route to Peru. What the fuck was I doing? Until the very moment that my Taca Airlines flight was airborne it had never occurred to me once that what I was doing was verifiably insane. I had met a man for four days and three and half months later I was on a plane by MYSELF bound for South America. At least on my flight I had ample time for some serious personal introspection.



Daniel and I met in Lima and roadtripped to the mountain town of Huaraz, which is located high in the Andes of the Ancash region. Snow capped peaks kissed the blue skies above and the town blanketed the surrounding Andean Highlands. The air was clean and crisp. From the roof of our bed & breakfast we could see Huascaran, Peru's tallest peak, standing at 22,205 feet. I had read that travelers who had been to this area often compared it to the Himalayas and now I could see why. The mountains dwarfed all human activity that was taking place below their watchful presence.

Less than 24 hours after being at extremely high altitudes we decided to hike to Lago 69 within the Huascaran National Park. The drive there was absolutely amazing. Peak after peak towered over the rental car as it made its way along the dirt road. Shear cliff faces were on either side of us and as I bent down to take in the full view, the scenery made me marvel at my own insignficance. It was such a humbling experience. The mountains were truly giants. Eventually there was an opening and before us lied the most beautiful glacier lakes I had ever seen. The water was a deep greenish-blue that actually reminded me of the tropical waters off of Kailua. Prior to finding the trailhead we drove past several of these lakes as well as a one lane road that directly sliced one of the lakes in two. How on earth it was not submerged still remains a mystery! Oh, and we also had to wait for a cow that was randomly blocking our way. I was so shocked to see cows at that elevation! I should mention that driving in Peru is NOT like driving anywhere else. Often times there are massive quantities of animals just hanging out in the middle of the road for no particular reason, cows, llamas, donkeys, pigs, you have to be extremely careful where you drive in order to avoid unsuspecting livestock.

At this point in my story I would love to write what a wonderful experience I had hiking up to one of the most aesthetically beautiful places I have ever been, but it was horrific! Having not been properly acclimatized the altitude had finally hit me. We were at nearly 15,000 feet and climbing higher by the step. The trail began in a cow pasture with a slight incline. I couldn't do it. I would take a few steps and literally be gasping for breath. At first I tried to play it off. I was taking a lot of pictures and looking at the glaciers that were peering down upon us, but I had to show my weakness or there was no way in hell we were ever going to make it. Daniel handled the situation extremely well and was overly concerned with my condition. He tried his hardest to convince me to turn around, but I am as stubborn as an ox and simply would not hear it. I had been planning this hike for months and I had to see the lake. The sensation of not having enough oxygen in your lungs is nearly indescribable. First, it felt as if invisible hands were tightly bound around both of my lungs enabling the inhaling and exhaling process to occur. For awhile I thought I had a terrible stomach ache, but later realized that my lungs were actually aching. It was nothing like I had ever felt - lung cramp?! Seriously?! We would walk a few steps and I would have to stop and catch my breath, but then I would be fine. Stop and go, stop and go. This was our routine the entire way up. Waterfalls streamed carelessly down the slopes on either side of us. As we climbed even higher the air became thinner and thinner.

Time was not on our side and Daniel kept saying that we had to turn around or we would be stuck in the dark, but if you think I let him you would be very WRONG! I have been marched around mountain ranges all over the world since I was a small child. My whole life I was practically preparing for this moment and I was not going to just blow it on the slight oxygen problem! Towards the end I was even beginning to get skeptical we were not going to make it. After much persuasion I convinced Daniel to run ahead and see if we were almost there. Off he went - running - unfuckingbelievable! I mean he IS from Cusco, but still?! Awhile had past and I did not see or hear him returning and was starting to become a little bit concerned. I kept trudging along until I came to a familiar gatorade bottle meticulously placed on a rock next to the trail. He wasn't dead! I knew at this point that he must have made it and I tried to pick up the pace without exacerbating my lung situation. Suddenly I heard familiar footsteps and of course it was him. He was smiling from ear to ear. Together we climbed up the last incline and at first glance our eyes feasted upon a glacier waterfall careening into the turquoise lake below. The vivid colors bursted with life. The green foliage on the few trees that were surrounding the lake and the richness of the blue water against the grayish background created an incredible contrast of colors. Euphoria. That is the only word that would appropriately describe the feeling of being at such an incredibly amazing place. There we were, just the two of us, not a soul for miles, gazing into this natural creation of beauty.

Still high from our Lago 69 trek, we decided to venture to yet another glacier lake - Lago Churup. From our ascent we could clearly see the Cordillera Negro on one side and the Cordillera Blanca on the other. Our elevation was almost exactly the same as the previous day and I was still having trouble breathing. During one of the frequent stops an Andean condor soared over the highlands before us. This hike was by far one of the funnest I have ever been on. At one point we scurried along the side of a waterfall for about a quarter mile and had to partake in some pretty sketchy rock climbing. A hail storm struck and we sought refuge behind an outcropping of rocks. I had not seen hail in well over a decade and it was quite an experience!

The cold air consumed me, even through my SIX layers and TWO pairs of pants. I was well prepared, but my tropically spoiled body will never be used to the cold. Even though I was clearly out of my element the mountains gave me a spiritual energy that urged me to keep going. Up, up, up we climbed and then she revealed herself. The water was an emerald green and the peaks above it were splotched with snow. And yet again, it was just the two of us with our mother earth.

Huahine, Society Islands, French Polynesia

Bump, bump, bump...my knuckles clenched the armrests of my airline seat and I tried to hold on to ward off the whiplash, which was surely coming. Air Tahiti Nui is NOT my favorite airline. The small aircraft had just landed safely (and by safely I mean from my vantage point no one appeared to be dead) on a short flight from Bora Bora to Huahine. As Ana, my traveling companion from California, and I disembarked the aircraft it was as we had stepped into another time and place. By the time our travels had led us to Huahine we had been in French Polynesia for quite sometime and had visited many of the islands, however, Huahine was by far the most wild and underdeveloped. Coconut groves and thick rainforests adorned the surrounding scenery.

Iaorana! The airport agents greeted us as we made our way through the airport. We were off to pick-up our rental car and get a few recommendations on what to do on such a majestic isle. The man behind the rental counter leapt up abrubtly when we came through the door. It looked as if he hadn't had any customers in days and shocked that someone would wake him from his nap. He was European and quite nice. Ana asked him what we should do with all of our time and we soon found out that the number one attraction on Huahine is visiting the "Sacred Eels". I am not making this up! Eels are very important to Tahitian culture, but really, we had traveled to one of the most beautiful island chains in the world to visit eels? Keep in mind that these are not the maginificent moray eels that live in the caves and crevices of the reef, these are nasty, slimy, freshwater eels that slither around just like snakes! The man was literally ecstatic we were going, he immediately pulled out a map and frantically drew our driving route, although it wouldn't have been hard to find on the one road on the island! And we were off to see the eels....

As we pulled up to the one-lane bridge we knew we had arrived in the right place. A group of other tourists had beaten us to it. I can assure you that they were the only other tourists on this deserted island. Ana and I stood on the bank of the shallow stream and waited. A few moments later a small boy, no older than 4, appeared with a can full of mackerel. Before he had even opened it, the eels recognized him and collectively swam over and surrounded him. It was one of the most repulsive things I have ever seen in my life! They slithered and contorted their bodies, some even coming out of the water and exposing their black bodies on the rocks. I was literally horrified. These monstrous eels looked as if they were going to eat that poor boy alive! The size of these creatures was incredible. He just looked up and smiled at us as if on que. Everything was going to be okay. He had probably done this a hundred times! The boy dispersed his can of mackerel and as quickly as he came he disappeared. The eels were even fatter and happier than ever. Together they swam back to the middle of the stream and waited patiently for their next meal. Wow - I thought to myself, utterly disgusting, but a memory that I will truly never ever forget. It was not until years later when I was on a plane bound for Lima that this memory came back to haunt me. The couple next to me, cultural anthropologists and fellow world travelers, found out that I had been to Huahine and the first words out of their mouths were "Did you see the sacred eels"? I chuckled to myself and answered "I wouldn't have missed it for the world"!

Huahine is home to an abundance of archaeological sites and holds high significance in Tahiti's ancient past. The island has the oldest recorded date of human occupation among the Society Islands. The most famous of the sites is located near the village of Maeva. It boasts the largest concentration of pre-European marae in Polynesia. Almost fully restored, approximately 200 archaeological stone structures have survived centuries of natural destruction. These structures lie along the shores of Lake Fauna Nui and on the sacred Matairea Hill and include marae of island chieftains, dwellings, horticultural & aquacultural developments, religious, and ceremonial monuments. Overlooking the ancient stone fish traps we followed a footpath that meandered among the marae. It was absolutely fascinating and reminded me very much of the heiau found in the Hawaiian Islands. As it should due to the fact that the last settlement of Polynesians that migrated to the pre-contact Hawaiian Islands originated from Tahiti. Whenever I explore ancient archaeological sites I literally get chills that run up the back of my spine. Being surrounded by ancient structures and the mana that is exuded from the land it is as if you have leapt back into the past and feel the presence of a society and culture that was so similiar, yet so different from your own. I always feel as if the land itself is communicating with me, being unbound by the constraints of time and space.

Every island fantasy comes to an end with the appearance of a cruise ship. Sunburned, snooty, obnoxious, and irritating tourists surely follow - and in mass quantities I might add. Ana and I stood on the pier and watched the Wind Star pull in and tie off in the small harbor. We had ventured into the village to buy some apple bananas and had been met with a not so pleasant surprise by its arrival. Just as we were about to leave we noticed a group of children who had gathered on the pier. They paid no attention to the Europeans who were furiuosly trying to snap pictures of them, they just stared intently at the large rope that had been used to tie off the vessel with ear-to-ear, mischevious smiles on their faces. It was like clock work. As soon as the last passenger had disembarked the first child had already made his way up the rope. He walked it as graceful as a tight rope. SPLASH!! I watched him cannon ball right off the side of the ship into the shallow water below. The boy surfaced and the joy on his face was simply priceless. Before I knew it he was in line for his next turn! By now there was a line all the way up the rope and the sounds of laughing and screaming filled the air. Suddenly, the captain of the ship came on deck and started yelling at the top of his lungs to get off of his --- --- ship. Now these children did not speak a word of English, but I on the other hand speak it fluently. At this I ripped off my clothes (being from Hawai'i it is second nature to wear a bathing suit under my clothes at all times) and proceeded to the edge of the pier. As I made my way to the rope I stared right into the whites of the captain's eyes and smiled. I am sure he was baffled that this blonde haired girl was about to join in on the havoc, but instead he threw his hands up in the air, muttered some more profanities and walked back to the bridge. The walk up the rope was scarier than I had imagined, but mostly because the water below was so shallow. Fall flat, fall flat, I kept repeating to myself. On the way up I had to reach out and balance my hand on the side of the ship in order to keep myself from falling in prematurely. When I finally got to the top it was a good twenty feet up, which does not sound like a lot, but again THE WATER BELOW WAS VERY SHALLOW! SPLASH!!! I made it and as I surfaced all I could hear was the sound of children cheering. Before I knew it I was in the line again, and again, and again......

Our accommodations on the island were typically Tahitian. We stayed in a studio-type shack with two beds draped with mosquito netting. A table and chairs sat right out front and directly faced the tranquil lagoon. The first night Ana and I stayed there we had done so much sightseeing that by the time we made our way back to our room it was quite late. Nothing was open - seriously it was worse than Kauai! We were starving!!! The two of us completely ransacked our rental car and came up with a partially eaten loaf of bread and a bottle of wine. DINNER! The gentle lapping of the water against the shoreline and the sound of the palm trees swaying in the breeze added to the calming ambiance of the evening. That soon came to an end when Ana realized she had locked the key to our room INSIDE OF THE ROOM. Exhausted, tipsy, and laughing hysterically as we tried to climb through the window, we attracted the attention of some local children. Ana spoke with them in French and then even more laughing insued. Before I knew it the smallest one was up and over the windowsill and our door swung open. We could finally go to bed! We crawled under our mosquito netting, drank another glass of wine, and went to sleep. In the morning we would be off to visit the Pearl Farms.......

The Amazon

For as long as I can remember I have always had an unprecedented fascination with the Amazon. Growing up I had rainforest pictures plastered all over my walls and dreamt of becoming a wildlife biologist who conducted research deep within the jungles of South America. It was not until college that I realized that I would much rather go to the beach than study biochemistry, thanks University of Hawai'i, for instilling such values into my lifestyle! Needless to say that dream never came into fruition, but the connection with the Amazon never waned. I knew I would venture to this destination as I have an undeniable spiritual connection there, very much like my connection to Hawai'i. I just never thought I would be so young when the opportunity arose.

The van came to pick up my sisters (Amy and Missy) and I bright and early from our bed & breakfast in Cusco, Peru. Our gear had been meticulously tarped and tied to the top of the van and I thought to myself, wow, are we really about to do this? We eagerly jumped into the waiting vehicle and off we went into the Manu Biosphere Reserve. Through the Sacred Valley, over the Andean Highlands, and finally a descent through the Amazon Cloud Forest, the three of us, plus our driver, guide, and private chef (okay we weren't exactly "roughing" it) survived the nearly 10 hour ride to Tambo Paititi. The views driving down into the cloud forest were almost indescribable. Emerald green mountains, layer after layer, were as far as the eye could see. Waterfalls careened down the steep slopes and flowed deep into the valleys below.

Tambo Paititi is located about a mile from the road. As soon as the vehicle came to a halt, we grabbed our bags and hiked through the dense forest to our jungle bungalows. It was exactly how I pictured - all were open air and connected by a wooden boardwalk. Mosquito netting draped the small beds and you could hear the calming sound of the river flowing below. Hummingbirds were everywhere. All different species came together to feed on the flowers that grew ravenously alongside the outskirts of the grounds.

The following morning the three of us awoke to the most gorgeous sunrise. It was a rich pink that faded into orange and yellow. That morning we geared up, grabbed our "Indiana Jones" boots, and embarked on a hike to the top of the mountain behind our lodging. Part of the way up our guide yelled at us to get down. We immediately hunkered down into the dirt and looked up. A monkey was making his way - not even 30 feet from where we were standing - swinging peacefully from branch to branch. The foliage was absolutely amazing. The trees and plants were growing so close together it was almost as if they were one entity. Our trail stopped abruptly where there was a tree with actual spectacled bear scratch marks on its trunk. According to our guide the man who was responsible for blazing the trail got not so coincidentally spooked and never returned to finish. Well, you definitely can't blame him!

From there our expedition ventured farther into the jungle. We drove about another four hours to the town of Atalaya where we were to board a boat that would take us to Tambo Eori. However, we nearly never made it. Just above the village they were doing road maintenance and literally dumping I don't even know how many pounds of gravel right in front of us. There was a lot of Spanish yelling going on and before you knew it we were all out of the vehicle trying to compact the loose gravel in order to make it dense enough for us to pass without becoming trapped. It was a bit stressful, but eventually and with some amazing driving I might add we made it safely to the small river harbor.

Local children escorted us onto the boat where we would spend the next 45 minutes floating down the Madre de Dios. The water was brown and murky and looked as if at any moment an anaconda would surface. I was a bit weary to say the least. Birds of all kinds flocked to the river banks and you could hear the screeching of parrots in the distance. That night I did not sleep well as you could clearly depict the sounds of the rustling of trees, night monkeys playing in the canopy, and nocturnal animals scurrying about. I also forgot to mention that I will never live down the fact that I brought my very OWN mosquito tent that was given to me by my dear friend Maureen, who would not let me leave home without it! That tent had proved worthy as it saved her okole in the jungles of Madagascar, Thailand, and god knows what other exotic locations. As much as I love nature I must admit that I am a little bit of a chicken and I DO NOT under any circumstances do mosquitoes! The following nights were much better as the night sounds actually put me to sleep.

Our most memorable day was when we were escorted on a hike by Julio, an actual native Amazonian and of course our guide, to translate because Julio spoke absoutely no English! He was an older man who knew the forest like the back of his hand. He knew all the plants and their uses and was excited that we were interested in all of his inherant knowledge. Julio hiked so fast we were literally running behind him to catch up fearing that we may be left for the jaguars! He took us to a swimming hole that was absolutey stunning. Green, crystal-clear water layed before us. It was perfect for taking a cooling dip and was a brief escape from the humidity. There were caiman tracks coming right out where we were getting in, but we were promised they were at least a day old, so we hopped right in! Julio left us there so he could go skinny dipping farther down. The small river was like grand central station. We saw so many animal tracks from jaguars, tapirs, river otters, caiman, you name it, we probably saw it!

My absolute favorite were the birds. They were everywhere - macaws, parakeets, lorikeets, and toucans. Their vibrant plumage easily stood out against the green foliage. Being immersed into this environment was an extremely spiritual experience. Upon my departure from Hawai'i, a very wise kahuna had instructed me to give an offering to honor the 4 main Hawaiian dieties. If you know your history well enough the connection between South America and the Pacific in ancient times is simply undeniable. As I walked back to Tambo Eori from where I left the offerings a beautiful bright red bird flew directly in front of me as if acknowledging the acceptance of the gifts. That very same night as I was sitting at the dinner table I glanced up and saw the moon, as big as I have ever seen it, rise directly above the sillouhette of the canopy. It was one of the most truly spectacular things I have ever seen. In that very moment I felt so incredibly connected to the earth and truly understood just how important the relationship between her and mankind really is. My soul felt renewed and cleansed. As we departed the Amazon I felt a deep sadness, but knew that one day I would return.