Travel

Street art is a great love of mine. When we think of street art, we think of Melbourne, London, Valparaiso, Berlin, New York, Buenos Aires. I hadn’t given much thought to what would be on the walls of Colombia, but I was overjoyed to find an entire alley in Cartagena’s district of Getsemeni devoted to beautiful, powerful, politically-driven art. I took dozens of photos, including a couple which were signed, seemingly absent-mindedly, by one name: Guillermo.

One of the things I really love about these semi-regular Around the World posts is that, while I’m travelling, I’m not consciously thinking, “I must take photos of Volkswagens.” I just end up taking pictures of things that I like, and lo and behold, I end up with a lot of the same shots, like puppies or seafood or random drunk backpackers (yes, those are three of my favourite things). These posts have helped me discover themes in my photography, and it has been very fun to search for the accompanying photos.

In this case, it’s Volkswagen vehicles. I’ve never owned a Volkswagen, but I love that I’ve seen them all over the world, in all different colours.

“I don’t know,” he mused one night over Skype. “I mean, I want to travel, but I’m so comfortable here. It’s so easy. Maybe I like this routine.”

I was talking to a friend of mine who has been planning a backpacking trip to South America, apparently setting out later on this year. All of a sudden, he came up with a barrage of excuses for why he shouldn’t, couldn’t, simply can’t travel.

And you know what I said to him?

“Bullshit.”

I don’t have one of those, “I quit my job and left my cubicle life behind to go and explore the world!” type stories. I’ve worked in offices, yes, and worked for companies I hated and companies I knew wouldn’t advance my career – hell, I’m working at an office right now, for six weeks. I’ve always known this work is temporary, though, and that the money earned would allow me to travel (or in this case, allow me to save money while I wait for my UK visa). I’ve been offered full-time positions and turned them down. I’ve never worked a day in my life that didn’t contribute, either directly or indirectly, to the life I’ve always known I would live, a life of travel.

I’ve said it many times on this blog – a huge part of why I love to travel is because I love to try new food. When it comes to seafood, I’ve eaten my fair share, especially in countries on the water (or by the world’s oldest/deepest lake). Whether it’s conch in Honduras or mussels in Malta, I always find it fun to sample the popular dishes in a country.

Santa Catalina Monastery Arequipa, Peru “I’m just reviewing our travel photos,” Kerri texted me yesterday. “I’m looking at Arequipa now. We are so lucky for that trip.” I’m often overwhelmed at just…