It is a culture by the sea, of the sea. The tides tell the day, and late afternoon is a time of play, to throw shells from the sand bars left by the going or coming tide, to look for creatures and treasures as the sun sizzles on the corrugated surface of the sea. This is how I remember late afternoon on North Sulawesi. For us travelers it was a time between… after the last dive of the day and before happy hour… moments to read, to write, to nap, to look at photos from our undersea adventures, or just to be, to watch the silhouettes on the sea and linger in the sultry quietness between.
Month: December 2015
Lessons in Trekking
“Listen Spider Legs, I know you want to take giant steps because you can, but you’re using much more energy than you need to and it’s going to wear you out.”
Adventure guide and master trekker C. demonstrated by three-stepping to the top of a tall rock that I would have overtaken in one stride.
“Sometimes you have to take a step back or sideways to find the best route forward.”
“Okay, got it.” I said as a silly ‘I’ve-got-a-crush-on-you-grin’ spread across my rain-spattered face.
It was the last trek on a two-week adventure trip across the South Island of New Zealand with a group of 10 accompanied by two guides.
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Twilight Walk
On the Road Journal Excerpt
Date: November 6, 2014
Location: San Sebastian Beach, Spain
Peaceful walk through twilight along the beach. I’m trying slowly to let go of the stress and self-expectation that was a way of life in NYC. I can hardly believe that I’m here—already five days. But I am so, so glad I decided to go on this journey. I need space and time and new scenery to let go of the things I’ve been holding tight and close—those bits and pieces of expectation or frustration that linger, the ones that we empower by doing nothing more than giving them space in our minds and hearts. I want to live in the present, to be with the beauty of the world, to take the time to see it all around me—from the gorgeous clouds and colors on the beach at twilight to the man walking his dogs… a walk he’s probably done hundreds, maybe thousands, of times before this particular twilight. But for us, in that moment, it is new. Continue reading
SaylorAway 