Chapter Four Recap: South & Central America
The last time I wrote a recap post we were 326 days into the Radical Sabbatical ™. As I write this post, we’re back in Denver, thrilled by every small convenience that comes with being in your own space, the luxury of having a car, and the peace of mind of being in a country where you know how to act without hesitation.
As we boarded our final plane, we hadn’t been home for exactly 400 days. Our last meal abroad was nacho’s at Guy Fieri’s restaurant in the Cancun airport. It was *not* delicious but *was* the second most expensive meal of our whole 400 day shebang.
As we zipped through customs at Denver International Airport, the guy stamped my passport and casually hit me with “welcome home, ma’am” which did, in fact, level me.
Over the course of the Radical Sabbatical ™ , we traveled 78,767 miles, visited 25 countries, dealt in 31 different languages, slept in 127 beds, and took 29 planes, 50 boats, 22 trains, and 60 buses. During Chapter Four (South & Central America), I came to understand the true meaning of wind blown, llamas clinched the top stop as my favorite animal to fawn over, and I can authoritatively state that nobody does tortillas & beans like Guatemalans.
In this chapter we visited Argentina (9 days), Chile (12 days), Bolivia (12 days) & Guatemala (24 days).
In keeping with the theme of these recap posts, I give you the rose, bud, and thorn of Chapter Four (South & Central America).
The undeniable rose was Quintin’s sheer enthusiasm. You have never seen a boy so animated. Specifically, you have never seen Quintin Bartholomew Sally so giggly.
In Patagonia he was all “OH, I would go back. I would FOR SURE go back there. Patagonia is so hyped up, I can’t believe it actually lived up to the hype but UH YEA, that place is sick. Can recommend.”
At Salar de Uyuni I saw Quintin choke up from the sheer audacity of our surroundings. He was quite literally taken aback. For four whole days he was buzzing around like a hummingbird, making sure I too, was seeing every mind boggling detail of the landscape (I was).
In Guatemala I saw him peer off the second floor balcony of a restaurant and state with authority “there’s no way I’m jumping off this, it’s not feasible” to literally not five minutes later see him running down the plank in his little pink swim trunks, with his new friends in tow, shouting“JEEERRRRRRONNNNAAAAAMOOOOO” as he did, in fact, jump off the balcony and crash into Lake Atitlan.
As you might remember from my first ever post “Why the Radical Sabbatical”, South America was the whole reason I wanted to do this trip in the first place. Q, being a baroque, European church boy, was less than enthused. After three months traveling up the America’s to hear him say “I think Guatemala would be the perfect place for the next Fuzzy Dice Retreat” was worth its weight in gold.
My bud was basically the entire country of Bolivia. Everyday was something new, surprising, and even more exquisite than the previous day. I can’t wait to go back to Bolivia and get to know the country better because we only just scratched the surface. This is perhaps my bud of the whole trip. The more places you see, the more places you want to go.
My thorn was realizing good gear is, in fact, essential. Quintin is aways ragging on me and Anna because, according to him, the one thing white people really have down is gear. As representatives, we can’t be out there raggedy, which we always are.
Despite my peoples proclivity towards overdoing it with gear and gadgets, I have always stood in strong opposition. Specialized shoes for running on dirt (better known as trail running shoes) are PREPOSTEROUS; if my SNEAKERS cannot perform in DIRT, your company needs to get out of here. My jacket does not need a stuff sack, and has any gadget you’ve ever put on your bike ever actually made you faster? Probably not.
In Patagonia, as the wind picked up, and I realized I was as close to the Antarctic ozone hole as I’d ever be, I was really, genuinely wishing for a UV protectant shirt, polarized sunglasses, and a proper windbreaker. GEAR, by another name. I have reevaluated my position and will not be caught raggedy (in a cotton t-shirt and fashion sunglasses from Nordstrom) again.
Before we officially wrap Chapter Four of the Radical Sabbatical ™ I wanted to share a few fun statistics from the road!
Otherwise, as mentioned in the Chapter One, Two & Three recaps, we read and listened to some content you might find interesting! Below for playlists, podcasts and books!
PLAYLISTS: In each country we visit, I download the Spotify Top 50 for that country and listen to it when we’re packing or in transit! I love comparing them across countries, and comparing them to the US Top 50 and Global Top 50!
I’ve continued to add to my playlist based on what we’re hearing out and about.
Looking FORWARD, we’re home! But there’s no rest for the wicked, y’all!
We have a packed rest of the summer with trips planned to Miami, Asheville, New York and San Diego. In January, I’m headed to Egypt with Anna and 5 of my closest friends. I have some other little ideas up my sleeve, but I don’t want to be served divorce papers by my one true love (Quintin) so I’ll leave it there for now.
UNTIL NEXT TIME! 🌍
