Downsizing

I've been pulling lots of books of my shelves to go to 1/2 Priced Books. I've been combing through my closets and drawers and boxing up clothes to be garaged sold or donated. I'm finally sorting and throwing away all those papers I have accumulated. I'm starting to find temporary and permanent homes for most of my furniture. Soon I've got to start cooking through my pantry and freezer (there are sure to be some interesting meals coming from that!).

I already don't have very much stuff from an American point of view, but it's time to dump even more. I watched The Way (the Camino movie) the other day and it got me thinking about my Camino again (OK, not like I ever really stop). In my long sabbatical trip I just had a backpack--everything I was traveling with was inside. When it came time for me to walk 800 kilometers though, I had to downsize. I went to the Spanish postoffice, boxed up more than half my stuff, and mailed it to Santiago. I had quite literally one set of clothes, and not much more, for about six weeks--and I can tell you, it's the freest I have ever felt.

I'm in a similar place again. Instead of a Spanish post office, most of the remaining stuff (of which hopefully there won't be much) will be going to my parents' garage (a much more secure place to be sure!). Because, like last time, I'm about to be on the move.

I'm headed west again. (Imagine that.)

I'm moving!

This summer has been all kinds of crazy, but one of the things that transpired is that I got accepted for a position with a Lutheran organization in Denver called the Urban Servants Corps, which partners with Americorps. For the next year I'll be living in a house full of other people as we all work full time for aid organizations that work with the most marginalized in downtown Denver. The Urban Servants Corps aims its focus on "service, spirituality, simplicity and intentional community." All very good things in my book.

I'm not naive enough to think that it won't be a year without a lot of struggles, but honestly, I couldn't be happier. I'll get to spend the year using my days working for creative nonprofits, feeding people and, in however small a way, helping to ease suffering. Not to mention I'll get to be in the Rocky Mountains, in a great city, where it just so happens that my boyfriend lives.

All that to say, I'm packing my bags for a different kind of trip these days, but life is most definitely good!

{And also, if you want some of my crap, come and get it!} 

Week in Review Sabbatical Style: Week 9!

It's the end of another week. Last week I realized that I had lost count of how many weeks I have been on my "sabbatical journey" so I just counted it up--9 weeks! That's crazy! Some other tidbits from the week:

• That dinner I was telling you about yesterday? The one under the Acropolis? It was the best meal I've had in a long time. (And no doubt probably the best I will have for a long time to come!) I had a pork fillet stuffed with sundried tomatoes, peppers and gruyere cheese. De-licious. The meal was also started off with a round of the Greek version of homemade Raki (which increased the general splendor of the evening even more!). 
• Greeks win on yogurt making. 
• I love my new replacement computer. My one complaint is that they changed some of the buttons around. For 5 years I hit F12 for the dashboard, but now this is the volume key. I was working out the conversions on my budget and kept going back and forth between the dashboard and EVERY time would hit the wrong button. 
• Speaking of conversions...the Euro is brutal! 
• After 11 days in Greece I am headed off to Cyprus tomorrow. I don't really have many expectations (or plans!) but the general idea is to relax for a bit before heading off to walk the Camino. I have been excited to hear that the wildflowers in Cyprus at this time are said to be extraordinarily beautiful right about now. 
• I'm getting really excited (and...a bit apprehensive) about walking all 800 kilometers of the Camino De Santiago. I still haven't decided if I am going to start the walk in St Jean Pied de Port, France (the place generally viewed as the starting point) or in the much easier to get to (and leave my bag in) Pamplona, Spain. I have the time to start in France, but Pamplona would be so much more hassle-free (ok...and save me the trial-by-fire first few days trekking through the Pyrenees). Pamplona is also a common starting place, but I don't want to get to the end and feel like I cheated. (But seriously, after almost 800 km, will I care?) Thoughts? 
• I got to help out in English classes for Albanian immigrants 3 nights this week. I almost forgot how much I love working with English students. These students were especially awesome--one group took us out for gyros after class and another night a class brought some Albanian goodies for us to munch on during class.  
• After teaching me a few words in Albanian (po, po!) the students also gave me a few tips on places to visit in Albania (which I will be doing in June or so). 
• Nonprofit spotlight: This week we also had a chance to work with Nea Zoi (Greek for "new life") which works to counter human trafficking here in Athens. They operate out of a hospitality model which, to me, is fascinating (while they provide services such as alternate job searching assistance, help with medical and legal matters, etc. they also make weekly trips into the brothels or streets and offer tea and conversation to the girls). Check them out here. 
• I listened to a lot of Bon Iver this week. (Thanks again to my brother Casey!)
• Schedule for tonight: Pack (!) and then meet up with an Albanian student group who is teaching Albanian folk/wedding dances tonight (!!). 
• Advanced warning: The hotel I have booked for the first 3 nights in Cyprus does not have wifi. So, (parents) don't freak out if you don't hear from me. 

Alright, mirupafshim! And a random smattering of photos below: 

Hadrian's bust in the Agora

Ancient temple in the Agora

Springtime in Athens

There are SO many stray animals, but they all get fed! We saw a lady going around feeding them in this neighborhood. 

A shot of the sea out at Sounio

One of our students made the mistake of ordering "small fried fish" expecting to find a fillet of Long John Silver's-esque fish. Instead he found a fish grave yard. We all got a kick out of it...but he was not amused. 

A blurry shot of some of my new Albanian friends/English students

More Albanian friends

We stopped in Syntagma Square to watch the changing of the guard. We passed group after group of police in riot gear. As we waited they all started to line up behind us. After waiting a bit I went to ask one of the guards on patrol if we should leave. His answer? Yes. Moving on!

My amazing dinner 

The amazing view

Good Vibes In Boquete, Panama

Where do I even begin on Boquete? I only planned on going for a couple of nights and ended up staying for almost a week. Boquete is a small town, and even though it is a well established stop on the backpacker trail and has its fair share of expats and NGO workers, it also boasts some beautiful scenery, lovely gardens and the best coconut flan I have ever tasted (why, oh why didn't I take a picture of that?!). 

I hiked, strolled through beautiful gardens, visited a coffee farm, saw live "gypsy music," observed a centennial parade, almost sold our soul and/or a passport to rent and watch Volver again (love that movie!) and also got a brief chance to volunteer: I got to spend a morning doing puzzles with mentally handicapped indigenous children, and then got to participate in what my host for the day Jenni deemed PX90 real life--turning a slab of concrete into gravel with a pickax inside a green house. I learned about smokeless stoves and aquaponics and offered up the only piece of useful information I could muster--that plant there is okra and it is best eaten fried. (I couldn't believe with all the collective knowledge they had there that no one had eaten okra. Southern girl to the rescue!) The entire time I was with their family I was amazed by the smart way they went about trying to assist the bottom tier of the economic structure. (Check them out at here.)

Boquete was also the first place I have ever been kicked out of a hostel. The people in charge told me I could only stay for one night because the place was full from then on. This was fine, but also perplexing because there was hardly anyone there. The next day I double checked and she told me again that it was full, so I moved across town. My friends in that hostel assured me that the hostel has not been full. I still have no idea what that was all about, but it made for some nice jokes. 

Speaking of friends, I met a ton of amazing people in Boquete--in the hostels, in the gardens and volunteering. I generally say the best and worst parts of traveling alone are all the people you meet. In Boquete they were definitely of the good variety. 

Some pictures below:   

The beautiful gardens in Boquete came with the reminder that I am allergic to seemingly any kind of plant these days. I got to make a fun trip to the pharmacy after this one for some allergy meds. 

Colorful buildings

I stopped in for mass one day and heard a sermon on the creation story. The priest used a metaphor of God going about creating like a pregnant mother preparing a nursery for her unborn baby. It was a surprising place to find a metaphor that was both feminine and compatible with an evolutionary take on creation. After spending a solid month this summer doing nothing but writing papers on the first 12 chapters of Genesis, I loved it.

Check out all those SPAM varieties!

In a photographic failure I somehow neglected to take a picture of the tricked out Diablos Rojos (repurposed  yellow school buses) in Panama City, but I did capture one in Boquete (and actually rode this one all the way back to David). But just so you get an idea of  how much more awesome the ones in the city were, if this one passed me on the street in Panama City, even with the fins on top and dual exhaust, I would have just let it pass and waited for a cooler one to come by. 

Machetes for sale in the corner store

A typical meal for me in Boquete. I ate in this cafeteria at least once a day, every day. All that goodness for about $2.50. 

So many gardens! So many pretty flowers!

My grandmother used to grow these. 

I trekked out to the hotsprings, which turned out to be a whole ordeal. It took me forever to find this sign. (And then forever still to get there from this sign.)

Oh yeah, did I mention I rode a bull? For more than 8 seconds too. 

(It's true. I don't always make brilliant decisions.)

The pharmacy where I got my allergy meds had all kinds of stuff in it. I suggested it as a possible place for a friend to find a copy of the new Girl Who Kicked the Something or Nother book. When we got in there I remembered, oh yeah--all those books I remembered seeing in there were all copies of the Santa Biblia (Bibles). Oops. They did have an EXACT replica of the scarf I was wearing though. Which was especially strange because I bought it at a Moroccan market in Brussels. 

OK, so that is a glimpse at Boquete! Next up, a few pictures from the parade/centennial celebration and my coffee tour.