hakuna matata

The peruvian adventure continues after some wild nights out and sadly seeing off some peeps in our group. Next stop: Puerto Maldonado. Hello 30º Celsius and 100% humidity (+ every imaginable insect creature..)

Yep. From Cuscos miniature airport a ca. 1h flight took us into a completely different world. Instead of seeing mountain ranges out of our cabin windows, soon enough we were left speechless by the vast greenness and of course the Amazon river. It was absolutely stunning! When we stepped off the plane after our short ride we were immediately hit by the heatwave and sadly had to take off our statement aplaca jumpers. As after the jungle I wouldn't be flying back to Lima but stop off in Cusco again I had to leave all my luggage there and only travelled with a small duffle. So when that was picked up I was immediately hussled outside as the time has, once again, come to get my second to last rabies shot. Yay. Not sure if I mentioned the one in Puno (was a bit of a nightmare to get that one), but that was about a week back, and kindly our rainforest guide snatched up a taxi for me and together went on a hunt for a hospital willing to give me my really quite necessary shot. We were in a bit of a rush as we had to get back to the group in order to catch a boat taking us to our lodge in the middle of nowhere.
Stepping foot in to a jungle hospital is not something you get to see everyday. The term hygiene doesn't seem to exist over there, or at least has a different definition to how I interpret it. The nurse there was amazing and took me in to the childrens area where I got my lovely injection (it was pretty damn painful, even hours after).

In the end we managed to catch up with our group that in the meantime furiously rubbed themselves up with creams and deet, ready for some mosquitos. And of we went into the jungle. At first we had to drive in a little van for about 45min to reach the river and this was one of the worst roads I had ever experienced. We were jolted around and with every hole in the road (to be honest, can't even really call it a road) nearly fell out of our seats. However, when we finally did reach the river we were able to change into a more accommodation way of transport. The boat, which had to be kept in balance to prevent it from tipping over took us for another hour or so and we even got served delicious rice and veggies all wrapped up nicely in banana leaves.

Soon enough we made it to some stairs and a narrow, winded pathway that would eventually lead us to our lodge. And the lodge was freaking fantastic. It was pretty luxurious especially compared to where I slept at in Tena, Ecuador. Again, we had hammocks, but this time there was also a lounge, bar area (with wifi that worked, although they informed us it wouldnt (; ) and last but not least our amazing rooms with eco friendly soaps and shampoos. Oh yeah, and forgot to mention thefact that there were no windows, so right in front of our beds we basically saw monkeys swining from one tree to the other. Paradise.

After some delicious, fruity refreshments we were off to explore. Our rainforest guide was ever the pro and pointed out so many spiders, insects, plants and tarantulas our blind tourist eye wasn't really able to spot. We reached a lookout tower (can't remember how high it really was) that didn't seem too safe but still somehow managed to hold most of us. The sunset from up there was phenomenal and although I didn't really like how the tower started to sway, it was a lot safer up there due to the fact that the mosquitos prefered to eat up the ones closer to the ground.

Dinner was served and I have to say, in the jungle I ate some of the most amazing food. The same actually goes for the food in the jungle in Ecuador. I guess that's just the place to be to stuff your face with deliciousness. With full bellies we were off again to attempt to spot some nocturnal wildlife. We were pretty damn lucky. We took the boat again and saw some alligators but what I enjoyed the most were simply the stars. I couldn't get enough of how clear you were able to see the milky way, probably some planets, and all this was reflected in the amazon river. The night couldn't have gotten any better.

But it did. We stepped foot on the shore again and whilst I was busy trying not to trip over stones whilst looking up at the sky or the other way round looking at the ground  to keep myself from falling over and as a result hitting my head on lowhanging branches I nearly missed out on seeing spiders the size of my head (!!!), oppossuns and monkeys hiding away in the trees. And last but not least, the absolute highlight, we got to see a rare sight - a freaking sloth. Saying I was excited would be an understatement. I was simply over the moon.

The next day we were off to an early start and this time I wasn't complaining as I slept like a baby AND the sky was doing things that lightened up my tired soul (look at the first picture again). Boarded the boat once again before we started a short hike on which our fantastic guide pointed out interesting creatures and plants before we reached a small lake. Now this lake was beautiful, especially with the sun, the mist and overall great things nature those at dawn. We used some sort of wooden katamaran to navigate around the lake, used plants to draw tattoos on ourselves that ended up staying for more than a week and wait for it: we got to see otters. Overall, the jungle here blew all my expectations out the window. It was incredible .

Caught some evil piranhas and had a leg of a dead tarantula on my hand. Goals.
We returned at about 8am, which was insane as we've been on the go for four hours already. Some of us did kayaking, others climbed some trees but I decided to just grab myself a hammock and chillout for a bit and enjoy the last hours in the jungle. I also have to say the mosquitos here were a bit more aggressive than in Ecuador but still, I never got eaten alive which was pretty surprising... Not complaining though.

Later that day we sadly left the jungle, could've definitely stayed there for a couple days more, and explored Puerto Maldonado, its markets and the great foods (talking 'bout roasted nuts, coconut balls and a looot more). Our hotel also happened to have a pool, so must of us jumped into that one whilst enjoying cheap and disgusting cocktails. I also think that was our last night all together so we went out for a delicious dinner and believe it or not found a karaoke bar where things kind of got out of hand.

The next day it was not only time to say goodbye to Puerto, but also to some dear friends. The plane stopped over in Cusco before continuing on to Lima so it was quite and emotional, even teary-eyed goodbye to some great travel buddies. Luckily two fellow friends from the UK would be staying in Cusco aswell (and I'd be meeting them at a later stage again), so not all by myself after all.

Excited though to spend some more time in Peru, meet up with Marlo and do some yoga :)

Check to another jungle adventure and hakuna matataaaaaa

J x

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Oh, Peru!

It has definitely been awhile, I just can't seem to keep track of time and I don't even know where to begin. But I guess I'll try to recap my adventures in Peru.

It all really began in Lima, where I met my new group. And let me tell you, this group loooved to party. But being the whimp I was, far too tired to actually function the first night there, I went straight to bed. Which in my defense was acceptable as for our plane to Arequipa the next morning we had to leave at the most ungodly hour. Of course some of us didn't manage to get up at said hour, but in the end we did catch our plane. Landing in Arequipa was quite something because of the altitude (Can't remember how high up it was though...) and as soon as we stepped off the plane the panorama was just amazing. Volcanoes and humongous mountains reaching into the sky everywhere, it was incredible.

Arequipa itself was a beautiful colonial city and if you stretchd your neck high enough you were able to see some volcanoes in the distance. Seeing a couple of artisanal shops on our tour through the city, I knew straight away what I'd be doing after, my wallet didn't thank me. We visited a beautiful monastery with an unbelievable interesting history and nearly got lost in the beauty and vastness of it. Had my little shopping time and believe it or not; I actually tried Alpaca meat. Still not a fan of meat so wasn't that special but the fancy restaurant we were eating at gave us bibs - that says it all.

Next stop was Colca Canyon and I guess this was the point where I must have fallen in love with Peru. Can't even put the beauty of what we've seen into words, it's incredible how the land just folds out in front of you changing every couple of kilometres with some Vicuñas here and there and once in a while a gigantic Lama gang in the middle of the street. You won't get so see that in Switzerland. That was also the point where I was introduced to Coca leaves for the first time (and they have been my fellow friends up until now!). Yes, coca leaves are from an amazing little plant that when paired with some specific chemicals turn into lovely cocaine. That's also why the US started raiding plantages all over Columbia, Peru and Bolivia trying to keep the cocaine production at bay. The leaves itself are however harmless, in fact, to the people living in the Andes or at any higher altitude it is a necessity as it helps them deal with the altitude. That is why you always see men and women with one of their cheeks as round as a ball, chewing on their coca leaves. I have to say though I wasn't a big fan of the leaves at first (there's lovely proof of that on video which might end up in the travel vlogs). We had an actual ritual where we thanked pacha mama (mother earth) and then stuck them bad boys in our mouths. The taste is something to get used to and you aren't actually supposed to chew on them as you'll just end up with green bits all over your mouth. Just stick the ball to the side and let it do its magic when in contact with your saliva. At first your whole mouth will probably go numb, but what the leaves should do is to still hunger and thirst, good for the indigenous people workong the fields all day long, and preventing altitude sickness. Not really sure what it did for me at that moment and was pretty glad when I was able to chuck the ball into the bin (tried them again in Bolivia and was actually quite glad to have them as the altitude was making me feel reaaally lousy!) I like the magic tea though, an infusion of the leaves and some other herbs. After our coca leaf consumption though our bus ride got pretty fun, might've had something to do with the leaves. Everybody was up on their feet and dancing to 'El Taxi' (greeeat song by Pitbull haha) Fun times.

That day we also reached the highest point I thought I'd ever reach (nope, gonna get higher and didn't like it..) which was 4910 msmm which is pretty damn high. There was snow (!) and at first the altitude doesn't really get to you but after a couple of minutes up there during which I decided to run around a bit for whatever reason, you DEFINITELY start to feel something. Was pretty glad to go down a couple of hundred meters after that.

Visited a local market, stayed at a beautiful hotel in the middle of nowhere and did some ziplining again imitating spider man. Saw huuuge condors which were definitely worth getting up for early, shopped a bit and dressed up in peruvian traditional wear. Oh, and the hot springs were quite something aswell (;

Puno, Titicaca Lake was where we headed to next. A pretty strange city, in which I got lost in twice after some crazy nights out, but enchanting nevertheless. The lake though was definitely the highlight (also the fact that we got driven to it on tuktuks). Visiting the people living on the floating islands, islands actually made out of reef and no electricity, hearing them dance and sing was absolutely beautiful. We then drove a couple of hours across the lake, seeing the Bolivian mountain range in the distance and arrived at a beautiful island with only a couple of families living on it. We were warmly welcomed by each and eveyone and what still amazes me up to this point how the people in all the countries I've visited so far not only wore their traditional wear for the tourists sake but actually do so for themselves. Probably to be able to tell who's single, in a complicated relationship or definitely taken as they wear either hats, braids or other factors as indicators ;) The island along with the people were breathtaking and after a delicious meal we played soccer on the beach (sooo hard at 3800msmm, nearly died from lack of oxygen) and even went for a sneaky little swim in the lake which was freezing. One of the guys went skinny-dipping, he definitely froze his little butt off.

Nearly forgot what our next stop was, it's just really hard to keep track of it all... 

Cusco it was, a city I knew I'd be coming back to (which I did, and stayed longer than expected). Exploring the historic capital of the Inca Empire was quite something. Again, locals in their traditional wear on every corner. Here you noticed the effects of tourism more though. They tried to take pictures with you and their lamas or baby lambs whenever they could. Really you shouldn't support them as the lambs, which they carry around all day, mostly aren't able to walk, pretty damn sad. And to be honest, I really wouldn't enjoy getting spat in my face by a lama.

The capital of the inca empire was also a shopping paradise. And I guess as the cold was getting to me I had some excuses to buy pretty "alpaca" jumpers and other little useless things. Nightlife in Cusco is also pretty great, but again, you gotta get used to the altitude first. But I did get to dance salsa again, got free pisco sours prefer coca sours, yum!) and drink cheap mojitos, don't really need anything else.

On our way to our stop before the great inca trail we visited a lama/alpaca farm and saw how the locals handcraft beautiful textiles. If I had more space in my lovely mochilla, I would have bought a lot more! Passed by a couple more inca terasses and buildings, which is of course always interesting (think I've seen enough of them now though..) Ollantaytambo, the little village in the Sacred Valley, was enchanting. Little alleyways winding through it with lovely restaurants - the perfect place to prepare oneself for the Inca trail.

And soon enough the time had come, to once again get up freaking early in the morning to finally mount Machu Picchu! Excited as ever in the dawn we trotted to the train which was going to transport us a bit further into the Sacred Valley where our 7h hike would begin. I was a bit apprehensive as I spontaneously decided to do the Inca trail a couple days back and wasn't sure how my knee'd do or I'd react to the altitude. But in the end, I'm so glad I did it. The feeling when you reach the sun gate (after climbing up literal monkey steps) and finally spot Machu Picchu below you is just so satisfying and I guess not the same as when you just get driven to it. Also the things you see and experience on the hike are just not comparable. You share your pain and agony with everyone on the trek, motivate each other, get to see beautiful wildlife and notice how it changes on the way - it was just amazing!

Machu Picchu, however, although it was pretty great and left me speechless, didn't really meet my expectations. It was impressive, I'm definitely not denying that, but the trail did more for me, to be honest. We went up a second time form Aguas Calientes next morning to see the sun rise over the lost city and simply because the day before, we were too tired to really explore it. The sunrise was beautiful, probably also due to the fact that Machu Picchu wasn't overrun by nosy tourists yet (: To be there the earliest though, my fellow roomie and to other girls stood in the queue for the bus up at about 4.30am, simply to be able to snag ourselves the best spots to enjoy the sunrise. It was definitely worth it.

After that pretty successful achievement, off we were back to Cusco and on our train everybody just knocked out, which is how we got some sneaky pictures. The next day there wasn't really any time for relaxing as I had signed up for water rafting (oh god) in a freezing cold river. It was amaaazing though and to treat my sore muscles from paddling and the hike two days before, we indulged ourselves in a welldeserved massage. 

(this wrapped-up,little lady always managed to fall asleep on top of me haha - miss you MJ!)

Peru, as pretty much every country I've visited so far has just blown my mind. It was beautiful and can't wait to show off my other adventures in the inca land. But that's for my next post (:

Besitos,

Joelle x

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crazy ecuador

After our jungle adventure in Tena things got a litle bit crazy. We made our way to Baños, another 6-7h bus ride and finally found ourselvws in a cute little valley surrounded by beautiful mountains. That same day, some of us decided to jump pff a bridge and swing around a bit - not something I was keen on doing especially after a nauseating bus drive. 

After a fun night out with some old school american chart songs, great food but too much alcohol it was time for bed as I stupidly decided to go for a spontaneous hike in the morning. Looking back I probably should have just slept in. Two friends and I decided to hike up a fairly steep hill (with altitude and all quite a struggle) with a view overlooking Baños. Huffing and puffing we finally arrived at the top and I have to say the view was pretty amazing. However on the way back down, whilst nearly slipping on each and every stone this white, fluffy dog appeared out of nowhere and started barking at us furiously. Usually the stray dogs I've seen so far bark and keep their distance. This one in particular though, wasn't having any of it. He kept coming closer, growling and barking and as I was walking in front instead of running I tried to shoo him away. It seemed as if I had succeeded, the other girls passed but as soom as I turned around that little bugger bit right into my calf destroying one of my only pair of jeans ü, but I guess that wasn't that relevant at the time (; Luckily one of the girls I was hiking with was a doctor and cleaned up my little wound. In fact it was her who insisted on gettimg a rabies shot. So we made our way back to the hostel, tried to wake up our guide (who was very hungover from the night before) and made our way to the hospital. Hospitals in Ecuador, and what I've seen so far in whole of South America are definitely not what you expect. Hardly any organization, corruption and crime, people crying and mourning over their lost ones and somewhere in the distance you can hear screams filled with pain. That public hospital simply looked at my wound and told me that for that small bite, no jab was needed. Luckily, a private clinic saw reason and finally gave me the jab - much to my mother's delight I guess.

After that small and unfortunate incident it was time for some ziplining. I had no idea what I got myself into. Instead of just flying over a canyon from one end to the other, we actually had to navigate over a hanging bridge without something to really hold on to and then worst of all climb up an overhanging cliff. There wasn't even a way back. In the end, we all managed the different tasks although a couple of tears were shed by some but in a way it was definitely worth it. I got a video on DVD of me 'mastering' those horrific tasks, but to be honest I don't even want to see it. I'll have to wait until I'm in Switzerland anyway (:

After that scary little episode we made our way up a mountain, I can't even recall the name of it, but it was a bit further up from the one I just hiked up the same morning. Casa del Arbol (= the Treehouse) was located on top of it, also known as the End of the World Swing. A must when you're in Baños just to get a pretty sick picture. But it was quite fun swinging from a tree house and seeing the beautiful landscape stretched out in front of you, I definitely can't complain.

Our next stop after Baños was Cuenca, a pretty little colonial town set at an easy peasy 2500 meters above sea level. We didn't do a lot except jump on the hop on hop off bus that basically just drove us around the whole city, which is why we ended up with sunburns (at this altitude quite dangerous!) and in a bar, craving un refresco.

And if you believe it or not, the next crazy thing was just about to happen. After getting soaked in the rain, we finally got to our accommodation and tried to dry off and get warm again. The organized girl that I am, started to pack my stuff together but suddenly I felt as if the earth was pulled out from under me. At first I blamed it on the altitude causing me to feel a little faint. But after the second and third time of actually feeling the house shake I looked at my roommate, wondering if I was the only one going crazy. I'm happy to say I'm still sane and actually lived through one of the strongest earthquakes Ecuador had in years. We were lucky that our area wasn't as badly affected as other places, which is why we joked about it afterwards (apparently one of the girls was sat on the toilet while all of this happened). However, only days after the incident we saw in the news what a big impact the earthquake really had. Quite scary!

Cuenca was one of our last stops in Ecuador and I was so sad to leave it so soon. Once again I wish I had more time here, but I'll definitely come back again (as soon as possible) to explore it and the people some more. 

We crossed the border to Peru (always a pain in the butt when lovely immigration officers feel like they need to rummage through your bags and then end up not being able to close them again...) and ended up in Mancora, a tourist beach place in the north of Peru where we stayed for a couple of days to simply relax and enjoy the sun. And that's exactly what we ended up doing. From laying in hammocks (again!) to morning yoga sessions at the beach and swimming, we did it all and enjoyed some great food. I even dared to take my first surf lessons that turned out to be a lot more successfull than anticipated.

This tour was coming to an end with a rather uninteresting stop at Trujillo and Huanchaco (they had some great ruins though) and exhausting night buses to Lima I was sad to say goodbye to everyone of them but nevertheless looking forward to my next adventures (part of which also entailed traveling in a group and visiting machu picchu!!!) 

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in the jungle the mighty jungle...

Hasta Luego Cuba and helloooo Ecuador. 5 weeks have gone by like nothing and soon enough, with spanish diploma in hand the time has come for me to leave one of the most enchanting islands. Leaving with mixed feelings, on which I'll come back to in a (hopefully!) round up of Cuba I was quite glad when I stopped off in Panama and was first of all able to understand their spanish with ease and secondly found shops that were actually filled with STUFF. Probably left too much money at the airport, to be honest..

Nevertheless, after another short flight in a half-empty plane, I landed in Quito, Ecuador with no real idea of what might await me. I'm currently writing all this whilst lying in a hammock, in the middle of nowhere jungle in Tena, no electricity, no service, animals and creatures everywhere but I absolutely love it! However, when I stepped outside of the airport in Quito, I was first of all amazed by the cars, which actually looked like they were built in the last 10 years and roads and buildings in a state in which you didn't have to worry they might fall apart at any minute. Soon enough I found myself a taxista, who drove me up to Quito and let me tell you, Ecuador is freaking hilly. Can't remember how many hills and curves we passed (thankfully, after more than a month I was finally secured with a seat belt again) and how green everything was aswell. Absolutely beautiful. 

Quito itself is just as hilly. It seems like there's no even road at all and when seeing a house or cathedral across from you, to actually get to it you might have to descend to the bottom and then start climbing up the other side. The houses looked pretty old and run down and although seeming a bit wealthier than the Cubans on first sight, Ecuador is really poor. Having forgotten the asian features the Ecuadorians have, I was amazed by some of their traditional wear, long black hair and almond shaped eyes. They seemed a lot more open, even content with their lives but still, homeless, drunk off their asses and crawling people in the streets were to be found at every corner. And I definitely got the feeling, everyone was warning me from - Ecuador being dangerous. But I guess that's just how it is and the country itself is beautiful nevertheless (from what I've gathered so far)

After getting set in the hotel for the night and meeting my roommate, we made our way over to her old hostel, and let me tell you, backpacker life in Quito is pretty amazing. The hostels were incredible, great buildings, staff, activities and apparently food and of course you get to meet a lot of like minded travellers. So after our travel group met up, we went to said hostel that had a roof top party and barbecue. A perfect start to a new adventure accompanied with a beautiful nightime view of Quito. I so wish I had more time in Quito, as there would have been so many things to discover. However,  I have to say, I was struggling with the altitude (really bad headache, feeling of sickness) which I hope would have faded over time. But I'm still quite scared what might await me in Peru..

The next morning we made our way into the jungle in Tena. Driving more or less 7h in a public bus, with a scenery as stunning as I've never seen, I had no idea what I set myself up to. I was speechless by the beauty of the hilly terrain, scary roads, waterfalls and ever changing weather, but arriving in the jungle was something else. We're staying with a guy called Delphin (he's a shaman and showed us fascinating plants in the jungle - found some natural nail polish and mosquito repellent) and his family. You're actually in the middle of nowhere, only hearing the sounds of water and insects and other lovely creatures. We slept in some sort of bungalow, everything all out in the open except the mosquito net over the bed, and as I've mentioned before, no electricity. Although a bit scared by the mosquitos at first, I was freaking excited. 

That same day, Rolando, Delphin's son took us on a little hike around the jungle and for the first time in years I wore wellies again! They were necessary due to all the little streams and muddy passages, Inwas just glad not having to get my feet wet. We even got a natural face treatment by Rolando himself with mud he dug out of a stream. Next to that facial and the air here, I have to say my face has never been this soft before (; The day was perfectly rounded off with a delicious dinner and games and marshmallows around the 'campfire'.

The next morning, after a terrifying, middle-of-the-night-toilet-run-in-the-dark, wellies were once again mounted/put on, along with swimsuits and shorts - we were off to find cascades and basically just get ourselves wet. I definitely wasn't ready for what would await me. I think we climbed up rivers and actual waterfalls without harnesses far too dangerous to actually be allowed, but I'm not complaining. Again, I saw some of the most beautiful places nature alone can provide you with and cleansed myself under a body cleasing waterfall. Goals all the way. A fantastic day filled with quite exhausting activities, learning about healing plants, seeing bugs the size of my hand, probably had creatures crawling all over me without being actually aware of it, but who caaares? Definitely not me anymore. I've come to love the jungle.

All these experiences aren't by far all that left a mark, but for me there's just no possible way to put all of this into words, but at least I got some of it jotted down, still laying in the hammock with the sun light slowly fading, attracting more and more mosquitos, yay. Soon it'll be time for another bonfire and marshmallows night accompanied by the werewolfs and villagers game and after two more nights here, we're off to baños and hopefully the end of the world swing. I can't wait!

(... and no, the lion doesn't sleep here tonight)

Edit: Last day in the jungle and today we visited a local school, supported by Delphin's family as a good education system (due to the lack of money) especially in the jungle doesn't really exist. Children from 5-15 visit the same class and were taught by Delphins wife Stella. Our guide told us to bring pens and papers and the excitement on the kids faces when they got them can't even be put into words. We then had the chance to play with them, football outside but that's not something I'd do to myself of course, so I stayed inside with the younger kids and whipped out my cameras. They were loving it, taking their first selfies and just smiling the whole time. A beautiful experience. (:

We left the kids and made our way over to some sort of laguna by the river and it was great and as soon as my video is finished you'll be able to see the greatness too! That's it for now, just arrived in Baños and the adventure continues!

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Hasta que se seque el malecon

Ay ay ay, and the trouble in Cuba continues. Week 4 has begun and Joelle, who's always awfully prepared and informed came to realise that she was in desperate need of extending her visa. And of course, I always end up doing stuff like that at the last minute. So in school, off I trott to Sergio, the man in charge, where I first of all finallly finalized my trip to Trinidad and Cienfuegos for the coming weekend (YES!) and arranged my first Salsa lessons, don't really know what I set myself up for... And at last I asked him about the visa. He gave me a list of things that had to be done and so I made my way over to the immigration office, luckily closeby to where I'm staying. However, the first thing I saw when I arrived were people sitting and standing everywhere in some sort of waiting area. By then I haven't really gotten the cuban system down yet. But apparently whenever you approach a queue, that to me, never actually looks like one, your supposed to ask who the last person in the queue is - ¿la ultima persona?

Didn't really get that part but at last, some Italian guy who'd been living in Cuba for the last 15 years had mercy on me and explained what I had to do and where to wait. I soon learned that some of the people there had been waiting for more than 6 hours to receive their visum. Don't they have anything better to do then sit around waiting? It doesn't seem so.

After doing exactly that for more than an hour the Italian guy started asking if I'm sure I brought all the necessary papers. The Joelle that I am of course oversaw the last paragraph on the paper Sergio handed me, which stated that BEFORE going to the office, I'd have to stop off at the bank to get some sort of stamp and that's where I trotted to next. 

Having learned from my mistakes, this time I was able to ask, ¿quién es ultima? and even got a response! So here I am, sitting and waiting, again, having no clue when I'll actually get my visa. I guess I'll be waiting, 'hasta que se seque el malecon' - quote from a song you here eeeverywhere in Cuba!

(I did finally get it, but in total I probably waited for 10h. Oh, and the salsa lesson couldn't really be described as a 'lesson'. It was basically me, being spun around in circles, not really knowing what I was doing with my feet. But I most definitely enjoyed it.)

Seeing as I don't have much to do, I'll simply write what else I've been up to. My roommate and fellow swiss traveler left last week so the weekend I was to spend all by myself. It was the first time since arriving three weeks ago that I was actually completely by myself. I have to say, it was a bit sad and frightening but in the end I very much enjoyed some time for myself. I was able to do whatever I wanted, so I headed into Havana, explored some unknown districts, tried to find food (as you do here in Cuba) and of course captured day to day life of cubans. It was quite strange, since, as I said before, the people here mainly view me as a cuban. I get to pay less in taxi collectivos, but in return, when I walk around the streets by myself with a camera, the looks I get are something else. I guess, they just can't seem to place me in a specific category, which just leaves them staring.

Cubans in general are a culture for themselves. They walk around with pride and arrogance and something, that almost makes them appear bored, whatever they're doing. Especially the women, walking their butt swining walks and heads held high give off completely different vibes than what I'm used to from the Caribbean. As an outsider it might of course seem different than if you'd live here. I did notice that when you get to know them, they open up and take you in with open arms, but to get to that point takes a lot more time than anywhere else in the caribbean. That is just Havana for all I know, apparently towards the south, Santiago de Cuba, Baracoa, the mentality, the people are completely different to the capitol. I definitely wonder what Trinidad and Cienfuegos will be like!

Next to taking the obligatory portraits of old men, dogs and children playing in the streets, I soon found myself at the Malecon, gazing over the 'skyline' of Havana, sunbathing and relaxing, away from the stress and hassle of the big city.

The following day I discovered that I wasn't alone anymore and got to meet Lysiane, my new roommate for the next couple of weeks. I showed her around Havana and we even food, can you imagine (; It was absolutely lovely, but I have to say, I'm looking forward to getting out of the city. Whether it being solely to visit other villages in Cuba or finally leaving for Ecuador. 

Can't wait to see what my next adventure will look like.

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