3 sleeps until my next I head off on my next great adventure. It turns out that blogging about all my travels is harder then I thought it would be. I guess I just want to experience it while it happens. Since my last post I said my goodbyes to Australia, experienced the F1 Grand Prix in Singapore, spent some quality time with friends in Vancouver, had an unforgettable 5 days in Las Vegas and returned to London for an emotional 3 week visit.
I do need to say a few words about Las Vegas. It was my first trip and it won't be my last. Up until now I have resisted the bombardment of advertising and recommendations from friends to head there. An adult's disneyland held very little interest for me. However, a friend asked me to join her for the National Finals Rodeo and having just lost my Dad, who was the biggest rodeo fan, I felt the desire to be there for him. I was not disappointed. Vegas was everything it promised to be. It was a major release for me. I was intoxicated for 5 days, and for someone who doesn't drink that much, it wasn't surprising that recovery took 2 full days once I returned to Canada! My friend had to return home after 3 days for a funeral so I had 2 on my own. I wasn't worried, nor did I need to be. People are so friendly in Vegas, but even more so when they discover you're on your own. I didn't have to buy myself a single drink for those 2 nights, nor was there a fear I'd sober up! The rodeo was brilliant and having cowboy eye candy everywhere you looked was an added bonus. I'm not sure I can go back to Vegas without the cowboys! I even got to attend the American Country Music Awards and see some of my favorite acts live. It was bliss, pure and not so honest. I'm already looking forward to heading back and now completely understand why all my Canadian friends have been heading there regularly for years. I might skip the beer and shots at 430am in the airport on the way down though, or maybe not. I will definitely be wary of dancing with drunken cowboys after I lose one shoe. I wonder if my toe nail will have grown back by the time I rock up the strip this December?
So, that said, I've recovered and am ready to head out traveling again. A long two day journey will see me arrive in Ushuaia, Argentina, the end of the world, as it's considered. Then I will board an ice breaker for the epic journey across the Drake Passage, prescription anti nausea medication in hand, and onto my last continent, Antarctica. For most of my life I have had a dream of visiting the penguins at the bottom of the earth and very soon that will be a reality for me. I might very well be at the pinching myself stage of my life. Obviously I would love to be blogging and emailing and facebooking while I'm there, but satellite Internet doesn't seem to be in my price range so I'm thinking the 10 days at sea will have to be summed up once I return to Argentina and find a little wifi somewhere.
After Disembarking from the ice breaker, I'll be off to Buenos Aires for a bit of steak and Tango. After a few days on my own, I'll head to Peru for a tour of that amazing country. Once I've experienced Machu Picchu and all Peru has to offer, I'll make my way to Ecuador and join a tour that will take me to the Galapagos Islands and another of my life long goals will be achieved. Then it'll be back to Canada to attempt to take it all in.
As one can imagine the logistics of these 6 weeks are a bit of a challenge. 2 days left to get organised and I still haven't figured out how the clothing required to survive the Antarctic cold, the heat of a Buenos Aires summer, the warmth of Peru and the humidity of the Islands will fit into my one little suitcase and weigh under 23kg! With each trip I do learn more about what I need to survive on the road, so I know it will happen by Friday morning. I just like to stress about everything before heading out. It's just my way.
My hope is that with this trip I will continue to learn a little more about myself as I see the world and cross so many experiences off my bucket list. Hopefully I'll even blog along the way!
I do need to say a few words about Las Vegas. It was my first trip and it won't be my last. Up until now I have resisted the bombardment of advertising and recommendations from friends to head there. An adult's disneyland held very little interest for me. However, a friend asked me to join her for the National Finals Rodeo and having just lost my Dad, who was the biggest rodeo fan, I felt the desire to be there for him. I was not disappointed. Vegas was everything it promised to be. It was a major release for me. I was intoxicated for 5 days, and for someone who doesn't drink that much, it wasn't surprising that recovery took 2 full days once I returned to Canada! My friend had to return home after 3 days for a funeral so I had 2 on my own. I wasn't worried, nor did I need to be. People are so friendly in Vegas, but even more so when they discover you're on your own. I didn't have to buy myself a single drink for those 2 nights, nor was there a fear I'd sober up! The rodeo was brilliant and having cowboy eye candy everywhere you looked was an added bonus. I'm not sure I can go back to Vegas without the cowboys! I even got to attend the American Country Music Awards and see some of my favorite acts live. It was bliss, pure and not so honest. I'm already looking forward to heading back and now completely understand why all my Canadian friends have been heading there regularly for years. I might skip the beer and shots at 430am in the airport on the way down though, or maybe not. I will definitely be wary of dancing with drunken cowboys after I lose one shoe. I wonder if my toe nail will have grown back by the time I rock up the strip this December?
So, that said, I've recovered and am ready to head out traveling again. A long two day journey will see me arrive in Ushuaia, Argentina, the end of the world, as it's considered. Then I will board an ice breaker for the epic journey across the Drake Passage, prescription anti nausea medication in hand, and onto my last continent, Antarctica. For most of my life I have had a dream of visiting the penguins at the bottom of the earth and very soon that will be a reality for me. I might very well be at the pinching myself stage of my life. Obviously I would love to be blogging and emailing and facebooking while I'm there, but satellite Internet doesn't seem to be in my price range so I'm thinking the 10 days at sea will have to be summed up once I return to Argentina and find a little wifi somewhere.
After Disembarking from the ice breaker, I'll be off to Buenos Aires for a bit of steak and Tango. After a few days on my own, I'll head to Peru for a tour of that amazing country. Once I've experienced Machu Picchu and all Peru has to offer, I'll make my way to Ecuador and join a tour that will take me to the Galapagos Islands and another of my life long goals will be achieved. Then it'll be back to Canada to attempt to take it all in.
As one can imagine the logistics of these 6 weeks are a bit of a challenge. 2 days left to get organised and I still haven't figured out how the clothing required to survive the Antarctic cold, the heat of a Buenos Aires summer, the warmth of Peru and the humidity of the Islands will fit into my one little suitcase and weigh under 23kg! With each trip I do learn more about what I need to survive on the road, so I know it will happen by Friday morning. I just like to stress about everything before heading out. It's just my way.
My hope is that with this trip I will continue to learn a little more about myself as I see the world and cross so many experiences off my bucket list. Hopefully I'll even blog along the way!
