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aoibaratraveler · 5 years ago

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A Look Back At My Time In Japan Part 1!

Time for some Japan nostalgia!

I was hoping to write this much sooner than now but between settling back after our road trip, finding a job and then finding time to organize my life during my days off has been difficult!

This will be part of a three semi-detailed/summarised blog looking back at what I can remember from living in Japan three years ago; since I was too much of a fool to document it back then but then again I was having the time of my life so that can be a good enough excuse I guess, right?

Part One will be my first month in Japan where I was living in Tokyo with a friend who graciously let me stay in her apartment. Part Two (and maybe three) will be my four months living, studying, and working in Nagasaki and Part Three (or 4) will be my hitch-hiking back-packing trip around Japan in what was my final month of my six months living there!

Pre-arrival/Arrival in Japan and First Impressions:

I was excited beyond belief that I was finally going to go live and explore Japan and be away from home for the first time. I was also super nervous, the preparation to study abroad was pretty intense for someone who had never done it before and for someone who had never gone through the paperwork of visa application, passport renewal and getting all the documents together for the study abroad application itself. Once that was settled though it was just the wait to be able to go (maybe I should write a simple how-to of my experience with the study abroad application and why I think every university student should do it?). I purchased my departure ticket to be on 29th February 2016 which I thought was pretty cool since it’s not every day you get to fly on a leap year. About six months prior to this I had met up with a close friend of mine who was about to leave for a year to participate in the JET programme and she, we’ll call her L, invited me to stay with her for the month of March in Tokyo to sightsee and hang out before my study program would start in April and of course I took her up on it!

In the days leading up to my departure, I really went all out and planned my own going away party with all my friends and had the best time with an escape game, archery tag and a poutine party. The bf, who at that time was just a friend, met up with me beforehand and helped me pick out a bunch of Canadian souvenir type things to bring with me to Japan so I could give to my homestay family. It was a fantastic day and very special so I had no idea that on the day I was set to leave that one of my other close friends, A and the bf planned to sing me a going away song at the airport (to be clear, the bf didn’t actually sing, A did and he provided the music on his laptop and speakers). This tidbit may a bit unnecessary in my nostalgic walk down memory lane but it is just part of what made those six months some of the best times in my life.

Anyway, enveloped in jitters and excitement I boarded my plane to Japan to start my journey, or as the Japanese say “tabi” (旅). I flew into Haneda airport which is quite central to Tokyo and I then found myself squeezed into a sea of evening commuters on the metro. Unfortunately, when I got off the metro and proceeded to take the escalator out of the station…I dropped my suitcase down it and one of the wheels broke which made walking around Tokyo a tad difficult. At that time I hadn’t realized that there was free wifi pretty much everywhere in Tokyo and while trying to find my friend’s apartment…I got lost for about an hour. It was pretty funny and I wasn’t too worried, to be honest, but I did feel bad to be keeping my friend waiting. I found a payphone to try and call her to tell her what was happening but I ran out of change while on the call (had a bit of leftover change with me from when I had first vacationed in Japan two years prior). After a while of walking around and trying to follow google map’s offline directions, I found a koban (a small police station) and gave the police officer the address that I was trying to find. The police officer was very kind and accommodating and pulled out a map to show me where I was and where I was trying to go (which actually wasn’t too far away…I was walking in circles). He then copied down the address on a big piece of paper with some instructions and hailed a taxi for me since he figured it was late and I should just take a taxi which I didn’t mind. I got to my friend’s place in no time at all and settled myself in.

First Two Weeks in Tokyo:

In my first few days, I took out my Japanese textbooks so I could prepare myself and brush up on things to be ready for classes at my university in Nagasaki and because I was planning to be staying with a homestay family that could speak no English…..well, being that I am pretty much the queen of procrastination, those collected dust pretty fast. Since it was a small apartment and I had a suitcase and big travel rook sack with me, L’s sister advised me to just send it to my homestay to be stored there in the meantime. The Japanese postal service is amazing and although my suitcase was pretty big and heavy they had no problems with shipping it to my homestay in Nagasaki the same day.

L’s neighborhood was quite cute and quiet and super pleasant to explore. It was pretty suburban and away from the hustle and bustle of central Tokyo which I greatly appreciated. Since L had work, I often explored on my own and was able to borrow her sister’s bike to further acquaint myself with the area. One of the days I borrowed her sister’s bike, I rode to Arakawa river which is a huge river just outside central Tokyo. I brought my textbooks along and thought I would spend a quiet afternoon just revising next to the river. I didn’t. Instead I rode the bike along the river and took everything in. There were other people there on runs, some guys practicing skateboarding and an old man playing the saxophone. When I finally got around to sitting down and opening up my textbook, a friendly old man walked up to me and with a big smile on his face asked me what I was doing there and why I was in Japan. I told him and we had a pleasant conversation at the end of which he handed me a bag of something from his garden–I think basil? And then told me to enjoy Japan. I didn’t exactly know what to do with this bag so I just gave it to L’s sister who had been doing most of the cooking in L’s place to include in whatever dish she was next going to make.

In the following days, I did all the typical touristy stuff in that I spent an entire day at one point just walking to and around central Tokyo and taking as many artsy photos as I could manage with my old phone. I explored around the Tokyo Sky Tree, perused Sunshine city—definitely made sure to check out all the Ghibli and Sailor Moon items I could find and get a spectacular view from the 59th floor (the place has 60 floors but you have to pay from the 60th and I ain’t about that life).

At the end of my first week in Japan, I made my way to an Airbnb hostel where I would be spending the next 4 days. This place was pretty interesting and my first real hostel experience. Everyone there was really friendly and I became quite close with my roomie who was the embodiment of a stereotypical German woman in that she was tall, pretty, had long blonde hair and sky blue eyes. She was in Tokyo for a mini-vacation from where she had been staying in Hokkaido and basically just wanted a change of pace. We exchanged stories, shared a few laughs and went sightseeing together. We are both fans of anime so we decided to check out Akihabara and since neither of us wanted to go to one alone, we decided to go to a maid cafe…and boy was that an experience. Firstly, it was super expensive so props to the girls who work there because they probably make a ton of money but it was also just very awkward. The maids put on a performance and called us “master” and refused to take any orders for food from us unless we put our hands up to our faces like cat paws and said “nyaa nyaa” first. Afterward, we did the very cliche anime couple thing and went to ride a pedal boat at Ueno park; it was a very silly but funny day. In the following days at the hostel, the roomie and I explored Shibuya crossing, the Hachiko statue, the National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno on a rainy day and went to a Pokemon center where I purchased a little Charmander souvenir for the bf (who was then just a friend). It was definitely a very cool little pocket of my time in Tokyo. I ended off my first two weeks in Tokyo by visiting the imperial palace and exploring the royal gardens and…..go to the Ghibli Museum! The Ghibli Museum was beyond impressive and I definitely teared up a bit to be there. It was so cool, we weren’t allowed to take any photos from inside but it was like being transported to another world. On top of the museum was a life-size statue of the robot from Castle in the Sky and inside the museum were all these cute little bits from the movie and a mini theatre where you could watch original Ghibli film shorts. There was also a lovely gift shop with so many beautiful items like illustrated postcards; I purchased a lovely illustrated postcard of the Ghibli museum during the day…which I inevitably misplaced (I’m terrible, I lose everything).

Second Two Weeks:

I met up with a Japanese friend who I had met in Vancouver and we went for a day trip to explore Kawagoe also known as “Little Edo”. I say day trip but really it wasn’t until I got there that I realized that Google had lied to me when I searched best day trips from Tokyo because as lovely as Kawagoe was, it wasn’t worth a “day trip” because it was so small that it could be done in an hour or two! It was really quite funny, to be honest. It was very pretty and had loads of old-style architecture from the Edo period, hence where it got its nickname but there wasn’t all that much to do and a bit expensive to get to so after a couple of hours of walking around and trying to make our money’s worth of the train ticket to get there we decided to head to the next biggest spot to explore; Yokohama. Yokohama was definitely very fun and vibrant and the Chinatown there was great. We snacked on a bunch of samples and enjoyed the pretty night lights of the area. It was certainly a day with a lot of contrast.

The next day was great because the next day L and I headed to Taiwan! L managed to get a week off and so we thought why not explore Taipei during that time and get a little break from Tokyo. I, unfortunately, did not know the geography of the city too well and when I booked the Airbnb it ended up being too far from the centre of Taipei city and hence too far from any convenient connections to explore outside of Taipei PLUS we went right in the middle of the rainy season so it was a bit difficult to do any fun outdoorsy things. We still made the most of our time there and had a lot of fun. We ate at a few night markets and tried a lot of food, explored the area near our Airbnb, visited a cafe that was owned by a family friend of L’s and went to the National Palace Museum which housed tons of historical artifacts from China, it was pretty grand. Even though we spent the last two days of our trip sick in bed I’d still go back to Taiwan again to explore more of what the country has to offer and try more of the food!

Last Week in Tokyo + Night in Fukuoka:

I spent the majority of my last week in Tokyo just chillin’ really and preparing for my departure to Nagasaki, although I did go with L and her sister to do some lesser-known sightseeing in parts of Ginza and did the obligatory visit to the Tsukiji fish market to taste a delicious array of food. As well as some egg on a stick. Good stuff. The last bit of sightseeing that I can remember for that week was in two really interesting parts of Tokyo that not many people think to visit when they explore the city (well this was back then, it seems to have gotten a lot more popular now) known as Yanaka and Nezu. These two neighborhoods make up what used to be Tokyo old downtown and have really kept their old-timey style. Walking through these neighborhoods felt like taking a trip back to the Show era of Japan and walking through the Yanaka cemetery felt very mysterious and cool. I gotta be honest though, as pretty as these places were, I mostly remember them because of the delicious beef korokke and taiyaki that I had there. 10/10. I’m only in part one of my nostalgia blogs but I’m telling you now that I basically ate my way through Japan.

So it was my final night before heading to Narita airport for my flight to Fukuoka and what did I decide to do? Laundry. Except L didn’t have a dryer and the weather wasn’t warm enough for my clothes to be dried fast enough to pack them up and I’m not sure what exactly happened but I think I broke the washer or something because for some reason the water didn’t drain so it wouldn’t have mattered if she had a dryer because my clothes were soaked. With only an hour to go before I had to be out of her apartment (L was asleep and I had decided to just not sleep that night since my flight was so early and I had to leave her apartment at 5 am), I wrung the clothes out as best I could, packed them in the new suitcase that I purchased in Taiwan to replace the one that I sent to Nagasaki with the wheel I had broken on my first day in Tokyo and was off. L’s place wasn’t far from the train station and I arrived 20 minutes before the first train of the day so I decided to go grab some breakfast and use the toilet at the nearby 7/11. Many convenience stores in Japan have two floors and a seating area so it’s a really nice place to just chill for a bit if you’re waiting for a train. A bit dramatic but I’ll never forget this day for the sheer amount that happened in a single morning. So I said before that I thought I’d use the toilet before heading off for the train and I guess for the first and only time in my life, I left the door unlocked…well a construction worker walked in on me on the toilet because of course. I screamed, he screamed and then he awkwardly and for some reason, slowly, closed the door while I died of humiliation. Anyway, I finally hopped on the train to Narita with tears of humiliation still in my eyes and also simultaneously laughing at myself. There weren’t many people on the train thankfully but I’m sure I was still dubbed a crazy foreigner in the minds of the people that were on the train. Oh, by the way, I may not have kept a journal at the time in a technical manner of speaking but I did have a daily journal in the form of me texting the bf every day (again, he was just a good friend at this point) and sending him long messages of what I did every day. Having him to confide in all the time definitely helped me to not go insane, especially that day and especially since Japan is ahead of Canada so he was still awake at that point. Once I arrived at the airport, I was to be greeted by the news that my suitcase was too heavy to be checked in without having to pay an extra exuberant amount, why you may ask? Because my clothes were still frigging wet. Well, partially owing to that and the fact that I accidentally purchased a heavyweight suitcase in Taipei…oops. After some reorganization of my suitcase and bag and *ahem* throwing out some things that I no longer deemed necessary to my life, I was finally able to be checked in..rather late (everyone was waiting for me, what can I say? I was a mess). Pretty sure I cried in my sleep when I finally arrived at my seat on the plane and passed out.

It was a relief to finally arrive in Fukuoka and the airport was so close to the main train station! It only took about 7 minutes to get there. I obviously got there really early in the day so I walked around Hakata station and explored the area before meeting up with the rest of the people who were part of my exchange program for the Nagasaki University of Foreign Studies at the hotel that they were to be staying at and signing in to show that I had arrived. Now I said they were staying at that hotel because of course, I wouldn’t be. But don’t worry, this was by choice, why spend the equivalent of $80 somewhere when the true shoestring traveler way is to rough it up somewhere for little to nothing? It took a bit of searching but I managed to find a family restaurant that was open 24/7 and not too far from the hotel (although sadly had no wifi), left my big ol’ suitcase outside (yay for safe Japan) and headed inside for the night where I did my best to study for the whole night, order some food every now and then and eventually pass out for a couple of hours. The next day I met back up with the exchange group, boarded the bus to Nagasaki and headed to the university to meet my homestay family who I would be staying with for the next four months! (spoiler alert: my homestay mother was about an hour or two late to pick me up and I was, in fact, the last person to be picked up at the university…so yea the first of many reasons why my homestay experience was certainly an interesting one).

#lifeinjapan #nostalgia #studyabroad #japantrip #firstsolotrip #japantravel #japan #Travelblog

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torontothoughts · 5 years ago

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I’m one of those people who keeps a bucket list. It changes, grows and adapts as I get older, as I cross some things out and yes, as I outgrow some. But there’s always a few “someday I want to…” things that I never seem to get around to doing. And this year, I decided to stop waiting for someday and just did one of them. I was going to hike, or rather walk, the West Highland Way (WHW), solo. Or at least about half of it.

A couple of things happened to force the “you only live once” epiphany on me and one was a random article I read online at lunch about hiking solo in Scotland. It lead me to a bit of research and reading, and by the end of the day, I had decided not to wait any longer on finding someone who wanted to walk it with me. You see, one of the major things that was holding me back from doing the West Highland Way – pretty much the only thing – was I didn’t have anyone to walk it with me.

And walking the West Highland Way was on my bucket list. The West Highland Way, a 154 km (96 mile) trail from Milngavie (a suburb of Glasgow) to Fort William is one of the most popular and iconic hikes/walks in Scotland. Most people complete it in 5-8 days, but others do it in sections or only a part of it as I did. You’ll pass beautiful natural scenery including Loch Lomond, Rannoch Moor, Glencoe, Devil’s Staircase, and Ben Nevis. While you can wild camp (or camp at many of the accommodations along the way), if you want to stay at a hostel, B&B or hotel, book in advance (depending on the time of year, you may need to book months in advance) as it’s quite a popular route, especially from May to September. I booked mine in late February (for early May) and many places were already full.

So how did I prepare?

Two ways. First, as I knew I’d be walking 15-25 km each day, I wanted to up my walking game. I regularly walk 5-10 most days so I wasn’t overly worried but it was a long, icy winter here in Toronto so I hadn’t been walking as much as normal. Once the spring thaw got rid of most of the snow and ice, I used my old marathon training plan to increase my walking distance gradually over about 8 weeks. I also used it as an excuse to explore Toronto’s trails more and found a couple of new favourites (we do have some great outdoor spaces for a major city). But as someone who loves walking and who walks everywhere, I wasn’t overly worried about the distances, especially after getting in some trail time here.

The other way I got ready was to read and research. I’m a big believer in researching my travels, especially when going solo as I often do, and as this would be my first long distance solo hike/walk, I wanted to be prepared. I bought Walking The West Highland Way by Terry Marsh, read dozens of blog posts, visited different tour websites and of course, read everything on the official West Highland Way website.

This allowed me to understand where I wanted to start (Tyndrum), where I’d be walking each day and where I should stop each night. The research also let me know that I needed to book my accommodation in advance and gave some great recommendations on where to stay. I booked everything about two months in advance (late February/early March for early May) and while I ended up with my first choice in three of the five places, I had to go with my second choice in the other two stops (still great hostels though).

It also helped me refine my normal travel packing list (I have one I simply adjust based on the destination and time of year) to include the needs of a multi-day walk/hike. You can see what I packed here.

How was the West Highland Way?

Amazing! I am so very glad that I went. I’m also very glad that I went solo. Sure, I would have loved to have gone with friends, in which case I would have done the entire walk not just basically the latter half, but doing it solo gave me such a sense of accomplishment and allowed me to connect with the environment around me in a way I wouldn’t have been able to if I had others with me. I enjoy spending time alone and I enjoy traveling alone so there was no issue with loneliness. Walking it solo meant I could walk at my own pace, stop where I wanted (I took so many photos), and enjoy the solitude.

For those worried about safety, I was never truly alone and Scotland is safe for women traveling alone (just take the same precautions you would at home). Walking the West Highland Way in May meant there were lots of others walking it as well. While there were times, especially when I was on Rannoch Moor, that I couldn’t see another person, I knew that all I had to do was wait for 5 minutes, 10 tops, and another walker would appear. And most of the time, there were others in sight, if not right around me. I met some lovely fellow walkers, both on the trail and at the hostels I stayed at. One day, a group of walkers and I played leap frog (unintentionally) and we ended up meeting again at the Kingshouse Hotel.

The West Highland Way is also well marked and the trail is easy to follow. That being said, you should still have a map (and know how to read it), as well as a basic first aid kit, just in case. Tell others where you’ll be, where you’re staying, check in – the same things you’d do traveling solo anywhere.

Keep reading for a day by day accounting of my fabulous time walking the West Highland Way…

May 6 – Travel day to Tyndrum

I hopped on a train from Glasgow to Tydrum and it was a beautiful ride. The stop before mine, the train split in two trains, with one half heading to Oban and the other to Mallaig. Because of an out-of-order washroom, they had the people from the front two cars switch with those in the back two. One of the train staff told me I could stay where I was (I was in one of the cars switching) which meant I ended up at Tyndrum Upper rather than Lower, but that just meant I walked about 1/2 km further so no big deal. Plus, the view of the valley made up for it. I checked into my hobbit house (so cute but it would be tight with more than two people, great for one person) and went into the village to get some food – fish & chips (yummy) for dinner, a sandwich for tomorrow’s lunch and a small bottle of whisky so I can have a dram each night. Off to bed early so I’m rested for my first day of walking. Okay, that didn’t work as the temp plummeted and there was a bit of a storm overnight but thankfully there was heating as it was needed.

May 7 (day 1) – Tyndrum to Bridge of Orchy

(6 ½ miles/10.5 km)

A simple, fairly easy hike, that even with my many, many stops for photos took under 3 hours. It was a beautiful start to my West Highland Way experience, especially with the new snow on the tops of the mountains from last night, if a bit wet for the first hour. Mostly flat, with gorgeous views. The snow from the storm the night before was lovely, and a reminder that the weather in Scotland is all over the place as I was in a t-shirt the day before.

I stayed at the West Highland Sleeper, a small hostel on the Bridge of Orchy train station (the station is still a stop but isn’t manned anymore so someone converted the building into a 10 bed hostel). After checking in and grabbing my bag, I had a lovely risotto at the Bridge of Orchy Hotel (just down the street) for dinner with another girl staying in the hostel before getting an early night’s sleep.

May 8 – Bridge of Orchy to Kingshouse

(12 miles/19.5 km) – my phone said I walked 20 km

I got an early start, well, early for me, as everyone in the hostel, all 10 of us, left early. I started out with five others but three quickly outpaced me and two fell behind. The view at the top of the hilltop outside Bridge of Orchy of Loch Tulla was amazing (northern hillside of Ben Inverveigh). After a brief pitstop at Inveronan Hotel, I continued on past a mossy forest (it looked creepy, like it would be a good place to film a horror film but it was all fenced off) up to Rannoch Moor.

Luckily the weather was mostly good, just a bit windy (okay, it was pretty much always windy), the sun even came out! Briefly but I have photos. Rannoch Moor is haunting. Beautiful but haunting. My only bitch were the large stones/rocks on the path (which turned out to be my only problem with the WHW) – they varied in size from gravel (fine to walk on) to the size of my fist to almost the size of my head. Which meant not only did you have to pay attention to your feet but it did make for slightly sore feet and very un-even walking. But if that’s the worst, I can’t really complain. I played leap frog with a group walking together pretty much all the way across Rannoch Moor which was cute – I’d pass them when they took a break, they’d pass me when I took a break…

I arrived at the Kingshouse Hotel a little before 2:00 pm (I made good time across the Moor, even with my breaks) so I ordered a pot of tea, which was becoming my ritual each day, to enjoy while I killed time until check-in at 3:00 pm. It’s a super friendly and helpful place, the front desk staff person actually walked me to the luggage room. Other than not being able to access wifi in the Kingshouse bunkhouse, I’d totally recommend it. Actually, I’d totally recommend the place anyways.

After checking in and showering, I went and had an early dinner (5:00 pm, almost unheard of for me) of a delicious venison pie (flaky crust, meat filled, one of my best meals of the trip) and a pint before heading back to the bunkhouse to chill. It was going to be an early night. On the way back to the bunkhouse, I saw the resident buck which was a bit disconcerting given what I just ate for dinner.

May 9 – Kingshouse to Kinlochleven

8 ¾ miles/14 km (my phone said I walked 15 km)

I started the day about 8:30 am and it was a lovely, sunny morning. Still a bit chilly from the wind but I was coming to expect that. It was an up & down day that started with a small climb and descent before a short trek alongside the road for a bit. Then the real climb started, which meant more breaks to catch my breath as I’m not really used to ascents. But the views! The views more than made up for it – absolutely stunning! In every direction, mountains, hills, valleys, lakes… just gorgeous. A bit of up and down as the WHW followed along the side (most of the way up but not along the ridge) of a hillside for quite a way before a rather steep descent into Kinlochleven. The descent was a bit hard on the knees and required attention as the road was rocks, not gravel. Overall, once I was down though, I felt fine.

I was glad to have a private, if pricy (it would have been a normal price if split three ways as there were three beds but one of the only downsides of traveling solo is there’s no one to split the costs with), room for the night at Blackwater Hostel, as tomorrow was my long day. Good place to stay though. After checking in, I headed into the village to explore, eat (mac & cheese and the obligatory pot of tea) and grab some food supplies at the store (fruit, milk, chocolate, and juice). The pub had a lovely view of the river so I chilled there for a while drinking my pot of tea.

May 10 – Kinlochleven to Fort William

16 miles/24 km – my phone said I walked 24.7 km

Warning: girl problems mentioned in this segment…

Wow! 24.7 km. Other than my two marathons, that’s a record for me. The weather was a bit challenging at the end – there was even hail for about a minute and rain for about 4 km (45 minutes to an hour) – but the real challenge was it was unexpectedly the first day of my period (3 days early, wtf) which meant I was crampy and the Advil wore off about halfway in the 7 hour hike. Otherwise, it was good. Well, except for the last 3-4 km when my feet were screaming at me (pavement after a long hike isn’t your friend). But no blisters! So glad I splurged on good Merino wool blend hiking socks.

Okay, let’s backtrack. The day started off lovely, sunny and warm, with a short if steep climb out of Kinlochleven to lovely views of the town/village and Loch Leven. A bit more of a climb and then I entered the “lost valley” (sorry, that’s how I thought of it after reading the descriptions) came into view. Absolutely stunning! Some of my favourite photos of my trip are from this segment. And it was sunny at the start but the rains were coming by the end (although I didn’t actually get hit by rain until later). Despite the now hated rocks in the path, it was a gorgeous walk. The weather started to turn as I entered Nevis forest but only briefly as there was more sun – it was one of those days when at different times I was in a t-shirt; a t-shirt and fleece; a t-shirt and rain jacket; and a t-shirt, fleece and rain jacket… in no particular order. I think I would have lingered more if I wasn’t in a race to a toilet at the end (knowing the walk would take about 7 hours and it would be close). Sure, I was prepared (if necessary) but I really, really didn’t want to change my tampon in the wild as it’s not like Canadian wilderness, there weren’t a lot of trees to duck behind to grab a chance for privacy.

As Ben Nevis came into view (briefly because of the weather) what would have been a lovely walk along a ridge (the views) if not for the weather that had been threatening for the past hour, finally arriving. First by obscuring Ben Nevis, and then with hail. Hail! Luckily it didn’t last long and I was wearing a baseball hat. The hail turned into rain for the next 40 minutes or so of walking in pretty hard, although not pouring, rain. My hiking shoes held up beautifully.

But it meant I didn’t go off the trail to the fort as I was planning – well, because of both the rain and the need for a bathroom sooner rather than later.

As the WHW merged with a logging road, the rain slowly let up and by the bottom, the sun had come out again (and I was back to a t-shirt). The descent was much more gradual than the one into Kinlochleven, and the road smoother, which both my feet and knees appreciated. And once I hit the road, there was public bathrooms at the Ben Nevis Visitor’s Center which meant I could stop stressing about washrooms. So for the last portion of the WHW, on pavement, the only issue was the increasing soreness in my feet (which went away after a couple of hours of rest).

I cheated a bit as I stopped at my hostel (Fort William Backpackers, a friendly hostel), checked in and showered before hitting the “new” end of the WHW before dinner. I’d already passed the original end though. Dinner was a fish & chips and a pint of beer, appropriately called “West Highland Way”.

Final Thoughts

I’m so glad I solo walked a part of the West Highland Way. It was an amazing, beautiful experience. My whole Scotland trip (more on that in a later article) was fabulous but the walk was something else, something rewarding. For those worried about doing it solo, with proper preparation, it’s completely doable. And of course, there’s no reason you can’t walk it with friends or family. I highly recommend it and can’t wait for my next walk in Scotland… maybe the Malt Whisky Trail or I’ll just explore Orkney on foot.

Have you walked the West Highland Way? What was your experience like?

Walking the West Highland Way, Another Bucket List Checkmark I’m one of those people who keeps a bucket list. It changes, grows and adapts as I get older, as I cross some things out and yes, as I outgrow some.

#Hiking #Scotland #solo travel #walking #West Highland Way

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dentonindenmark · 5 years ago

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Update!! 6 months!

So this update is very late and needed! I have been very busy seeing my exchange friends as over the past month my oldies have been going home. A lot has happened recently but the biggest would be Eurotour.

Eurotour was 18 of the best days of my life. I’m not going to cover every aspect of it because this post would be very long, however, you can have some of my favorite memories. We began the trip on the 18th of May and we drove to Berlin. After a few stops picking up the last few exchange students and getting lunch, we finally made it to Berlin. Everyone was very excited and ready to get to the hostel. By the time we had got our rooms sorted, we were taken to dinner in a restaurant that was decorated in a very old typical German way with wooden ceilings and wooden furniture and animal heads hung on the walls. For dinner, we had chicken and some potatoes and a strange salad. After dinner, we were given free time to walk around and explore the city. A group of us headed to visit a park that some of the boys wanted to go to. By the time we had been there had a look around, gotten a few photos it was time to walk back to the hostel. We spent the next day seeing the Berlin wall, which was absolutely beautiful and a memorial to the Jews. We then had free time to go explore the city for ourselves. Later our councilors surprised us with a trip up the Berlin T.V tower. The tower is 250m tall and we went to the top. At the top, you have a 360º view of Berlin. Afterward, we had more free time which we spent exploring the city again.

The next day we drove to Czech where we stopped and looked in a concentration camp. It was a very strange experience but it was very good to hear about what happened there and the type of prisoners they had. this camp held a lot of political prisoners of war as well as Jewish. from the camp tour we continued our drive to our hotel which was just outside of Prague. The hotel was huge and consisted of two main areas, one where the rooms were and another which held activities and the dining area. We stayed for two nights in this hotel and spent a day exploring Prague. We visited the Old Castle which was a beautiful huge Gothic-style building. After spending an hour there to walk around, see the view and take some photos (unfortunately the line was way too long to get into the castle so we didn’t go inside) we headed down to the see more of the city. It was so beautiful and full of life and many small streets and gorgeous buildings. We spent a few hours exploring different sections of the city and then spent some time relaxing before meeting with the group again.

Over the next day, we drove to Vienna. We didn’t do anything else that day apart from having a small look around and eating dinner. The next day we spent driving around Vienna seeing the beautiful buildings and making a few stops to see the Schönbrunn Palace and the Hundertwasserhus. The Hundertwasserhus was a unique building that looked like it had been patchworked together because it was so miss-matched however it was absolutely gorgeous. The Schönbrunn Palace was still as magnificent as I had thought when we visited in 2016 and we explored some parts of the garden that I hadn’t seen at the last visit. From here we went and ate lunch. Alanna, Zara, Emily and I had some pasta and afterwards, I met up with Agnes. We went and had a coffee and talked and caught each other up about what we were doing and how our families were. It was really great to see her again. We were together for a few hours before she helped me find Alanna and Zara. Once I had said goodbye to Agnes we had more free time to just look around the section of the city near our hostel and shop.

Next, it was onto Lido di Jesolo. We drove over the border of Austria and Italy and the view was just amazing. The mountains were stunning and very picturesque. The drive was long and we got to Lido di Jesolo in the evening. We found our rooms (we were very lucky getting a room on the top floor) and then decided to go to the beach. It was really nice to go to a beach again that wasn’t super muddy or super rocky. We spent a few hours there before heading back to the hotel and turning in for the night. The next day we went to Venice! We drove over to where we would catch the ferry to Venice. Once we had arrived in Venice we had a small tour and then our guides and councilors surprised us with Gondal rides. The rides lasted about half an hour but they were beautiful. Venice was so amazing and being able to see part of it from the small trip on the canals was truly special. Once our Gondola ride was over we had free time to explore the city. First, we went and bought huge ice-creams in waffle which were really delicious. We also bought some fresh fruit and found a small street with steps at the end that we sat on and were able to enjoy the sun, not have tourists crowding it and just enjoy the canals. From there we went and had a look at some souvenir shops and more of the small streets and buildings. Eventually, we found our way back to our meeting place and met up with the others and then we headed back to the hostel. Once we were back at the hotel and had had dinner we went down to the beach for the rest of the evening. That night Alanna, Zara, Emily and I decided to sleep on our balcony because it was a beautiful night and we had the top floor and a huge balcony. Surprisingly our sleep wasn’t that bad however we were awoken by church bells that rang for about 20 minutes. That day was reserved for us all to spend it at the beach. So after breakfast, we headed down and set up for the day. We spent the day lying in the sun and swimming. For lunch we had pizza and it was delicious! I think we ate about one pizza each. That evening we went and did karaoke at a restaurant near the hotel. It was a lot of fun.

Day 10 we drove through Italy stopping in Verona, which is famously known for Romeo and Juliet. We saw the Arena in Verona which was great although it was under construction so there was a lot of fences and building supplies sitting near. We were also taken to Juliet's balcony which was in a small courtyard and was very sweet. We then had two hours free time in which we went and had lunch, (pasta that was so delicious), and saw a little more of the town. Then it was time to continue driving to our hotel for the night.

The next day we continued driving to reach Avignon. We drove through the Alps which were magnificent and truly mesmerizing. Our day stop was in Nice which is such a beautiful city. Here we were given free time to see the city and possibly go swimming if we wanted. First, we headed up to the Castle Hill to see the view from the top. It was so beautiful seeing how vibrant blue the ocean was and how full of life it made the city seem. From here we headed down to get lunch and sit on the beach. We lost track of how long we were lying on the beach because we all fell asleep slightly because the sun was so warm and the ocean sound was very calming. When we all decided it would be best for us to get up we went for a small walk around and found some macarons to try. They were very delicious. I bought an ice-cream macaron and a normal one. The ice-cream macaron was a giant macaron with ice-cream as the filling. By the time we had finished here and had seen a little more of the city, it was time to continue our drive to Avignon.

Day 12 we were taken to Pont Du Gard which is an old Roman aqua bridge. We walked down across the bridge and down to the river which runs underneath it. We went swimming down part of the river and, although the water was very cold, it was very refreshing and nice. We only had half an hour before we had to head to the bus for a picnic lunch. From there we headed back to the town of Avignon to see the city. Inside the city is the Palace of the popes which was huge and sat just higher than the rest of the city. Here we were given free time so I went into the Cathedral next to the Palace with Sofia, Regina, and Marianna. Sofia and I then went together to see some of the city and found a very cute merry-go-round which we went on. Soon we meet up with a few of the others and walked back to our hostel where a few of us went in the pool.

Now it was time to go to Paris! We spent the day driving, only stopping for lunch. Once we had made it to our hotel and had our rooms sorted we went to go on a river tour around Paris. The boat tour took us around to see a few of the attractions such as what was left of the Notre Dame, and of course the Eiffel tower. The tour was really nice and due to the time of day (evening), it was very beautiful. Once the tour was over it was time to head back to the hostel. The next day we went to the Louvre Museum. We spent two hours there walking around. Firstly, of course, we went and saw the Mona Lisa. Us exchange students took over and pushed our way to the front to get some good photos. From there we went to another part of the museum and Alanna, Owen and I got separated from the other group so we just went off looking at other parts. Zara was unfortunately very sick so she stayed at the hotel. Alanna, Owen and I walked around looking at the paintings. We spent two hours there and then went to meet up with the rest of the exchange students. From here we went to the Eiffel tower and were given free time. We went to get lunch, first, we had Chipotle and then we got a savory crepe (I had ham and cheese) and it was delicious! Next, we went back to the group and were given the opportunity to go see the Square Nadar. It was quite warm so we went and got some cold drinks and then begun our walk to the top. Once we got there we had a look down some of the streets and got ice cream. Soon it was time to go back to the Eiffel tower. There we waited to go up but we had problems with the tickets so unfortunately, we didn’t get to go up the tower. However, we went and found a nice patch on the grass and watched the light show. We then walked back to the hotel, so that we could get enough sleep for the next day. The next day it was time for Disney Land! Whilst we waited for our councilors to get our tickets we went and had lunch at a sandwich place inside the Disney park. fro there we went and got our tickets and went inside. Alanna, Emily, Jom and I went on Space Mountain as soon as we got it. We had to leave Zara out in some shade because she was very sick, she ended up going back to the hotel. After Space Mountain and deciding what we were going to do (Emily went back with Zara) Alanna and I went on to the next rides. We spent a while in lines and going on rides whilst also seeing the park. Eventually, we found some others and walked around with them. After a while, in Disneyland Park, we went over to look at the Studio park. Alanna and I went on two rides, the Aerosmith rollercoaster and the Tower of Terror. Both were really great although I think the tower of terror would’ve been better if we could understand what it was saying. By this time we were pretty exhausted and headed back to Disneyland park and met with the others. By this time everyone was super tired and we went back to the hotel.

From Paris, it was onto Holland. To get there we went through Belgium, stopping in Brussels for a few hours. In Brussels, our main sight to see was Manneken Pis. This is a tiny little statue of a naked little boy peeing. One story behind the legend of it is that a fathers son went missing and the father found him peeing on the street corner and so in gratefulness of finding his son decided to build a statue on the corner he was found. Of course, there are several other stories behind it but this was the one we were told. After a few hours of free time, we then had to continue our trip to the Nederlands and get to our hotel in Doorwerth.

Our 17th day of the trip was spent in Amsterdam. To start our day we went on a canal tour through Amsterdam, passing several sights such as parts of Jordaan, and Anne Franks house. Once the tour was over our councilors and guides surprised us with tickets to Madame Tussauds. We were given free time to go in there and then see what we wanted in Amsterdam. Madame Tussauds was really cool, my favorite was probably the Avengers. Once we had seen all of Madame Tussauds we went to get lunch and then had a look around at some of the canals and went and did some shopping. After doing some more walking around we had to head back to the guides so we could go back to the hotel. Once we got back to the hotel we had some free time and then we had a final night party and flag signing. It was really great and a lot of fun.

The final day was spent driving back to Denmark. It was a sad trip because over 18 days we had all become very close and considering a lot of them were leaving shortly after. Once we had said our goodbyes it was time to head home.

After Eurotour I spent a lot of time seeing my oldies and spending as much time with them as I could before they left. I also moved host families to the Schwartzs during this time. My new family is very welcoming and I have adjusted great. Due to some host family complications, I moved to what was supposed to be my third family so they had planned their summer holidays and couldn’t fit me in their plans last minute so right now I am back with Birgitte, Lars, and Zofie, no longer Victor who left to Mexico yesterday for his exchange. Tomorrow we will go to Møn for a few days, which will be nice.

Tusind tak for reading it all 😁

- Lexie xx

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seekingfika · 6 years ago

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Spring Break

Pictured here: Yours truly in Wicklow, Ireland

Hey there! It’s been a hot second since I last wrote a blog post, but with good reason...I was on spring break! At DIS, March is a major travel month, and there are two weeks in March that you will spend traveling if you are considering being a DIS student. One of these weeks will be spent with your corse course on a long study tour (which for me is the last week of March in Athens Greece...stay tuned!) and the other is an opportunity for independent travel. The way my schedule worked out meant that my spring break came first, and so i had the opportunity to what ever travel I wanted. I decided to split my time between Berlin, Amsterdam, and Dublin and now I’m here to tell you all about it!

Berlin, Germany

My journey started bright and early on Saturday morning with a flight to Berlin. My friends and I stayed at a hostel called Three Little Pigs, and while the hostel itself was pretty and cool, the crowd wasn’t very young and so i’m not sure i’d recommend this hostel as a first choice, but it made for a good place to stay, especially since my friends and I booked our room in this hostel quite late. While in Berlin we did quite a bit of walking, saw the Berlin wall, and visited the spy museum. While we were only there for two full days, we still got to see many of the popular sites and try some of the token foods (currywurst...kind of just like a hotdog with some sauce on it). We also visited a very aesthetically pleasing brunch spot called House of Small Wonders. While this location was adorable and served delicious food, the wait for Sunday brunch was outrageous, and so I would recommend only visiting on a weekday.

Pictured here: House of Small Wonders, brunch location

While Berlin was certainly an experience, I have to say that it wasn’t really my vibe and is a rather harsh feeling place in general. While I think it can be worth seeing, it was probably my least favorite of the three locations that I went to, but it is an interesting place to go to learn about it’s history, and it is certainly an experience nonetheless. If you are planning on visiting Berlin, here are some tips I can offer you: It’s important to note that in Berlin many places are cash only, so you should get euros as soon as possible when you arrive if you plan to travel there. Also, in many of the restaurants and cafes there’s smoking indoors to the point that it can be hard to breath and you will smell like cigarettes when you leave. The one thing I didn’t get to try while in Germany was some authentic schnitzel, but I later found out that schnitzel is technically Austrian, so I suppose that means i’ll have to pay a visit to Austria!

Pictured here: My friend and me in front of the Brandenburg Gate

Amsterdam, Netherlands

After our stay in Berlin, arriving in Amsterdam was like a breath of fresh air! While it was fairly windy when we landed, eventually the sun came out and we were able to enjoy some time outside. The hostel we stayed at was called The Generator, and is part of a larger hostel chain. This hostel was a fantastic option, and I would highly recommend it. It was located in a park which made for a lovely atmosphere, was very clean, and had a cafe on-site. Like with Berlin, we did a great deal of walking in Amsterdam, but walking in Amsterdam is fairly simple and as a result we didn’t buy any transportation passes for our stay. There are all sorts of interesting and cute shops along the canal, making Amsterdam a beautiful city to explore in the daytime. We went into all sorts of shops, including the Tulip museum, and also went for an incredibly pleasant canal ride in one of the boats.

Pictured here: On the canal cruise

We also enjoyed the Heineken experience, which is aptly named because it is less a tour of a brewery and more an in-depth look into how Heineken has progressed and is trying to market itself. We of course also paid a visit to the Red light district, which while certainly odd and different, was interesting and i think important to see from as a visitor to Amsterdam and from an outsider/observer’s perspective. One of the coolest places we visited in Amsterdam though was an incredibly tiny dutch pancake shop called Upstairs Pannenkoeken. This adorable little spot is known as Europe’s smallest pancake shop, and I believe it because this place was tiny! They are open from 12-6 and only take cash, but you can make reservations by phone and they are very accommodating. One thing to note, however, is that the shop is up a set of extremely step stairs (more like a carpeted ladder, honestly) and so if you have a disability or difficulty walking you may not be able to access this spot. Nonetheless, they had delicious pancakes and I think it’s worth checking out!

Pictured here: The outside of Upstairs Pannenkoekenhuis

Dublin, Ireland

The last leg of my week-long travel journey was in Dublin! This was the city that I was looking forward to the most, and the one that most lived up to my expectations! Firstly, the Irish people are just something else. My friend who I was visiting there is studying abroad at Trinity and he told me the most amazing quote from William Butler Yeats that just about sums up my impression of Dublin: “There are no strangers here, Only friends you haven’t met yet.” As with the other cities on this trip there was a ton of walking involved! I got to experience a full Irish visit, and of course payed a visit to the Guinness Storehouse. We went to a number of different pubs throughout the visit, many of which had live Irish music playing, others with a hilarious and catchy selection of early late 90s and 2000s hits. Aside from the traditional Irish food we ate, we also visited a killer burrito shop, Mama’s Revenge, a super nice healthy breakfast at The Fumbally, and a really delicious ramen restaurant, Ramen Bar.

Pictured here: Breakfast at The Fumbally

On the second day we took a bus out to the Irish countryside and went for a walk around Wicklow. We got to see SO MANY sheep, the greenest grass in the world, and some neat stone church ruins. My friend of course also took us for a tour of the old part of Trinity College, where we go to the see The Long Room and The Book of Kells (free of charge with a trinity student!). All in all, my visit with Dublin was the perfect way to wrap up an insanely long and action packed week.

Pictured here: The stacks in The Long Room

That’s all for now! Feel free to ask me any question about my travels specifically or DIS in general and check out more pictures from my trips on my instagram page, @mugsnshrugs.

-Ruthie

#disabroad #abroad #studyabroad #travel #springbreak #ireland #dublin #netherlands #amsterdam #berlin #germany #review #travelreview

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sunflowerstrays · 6 years ago

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strangers // bang chan // part 2

anon requested this: Omg strangers part 2 pls!! I love it so much

enjoy <3

bang chan x reader.

words: 1.4k.

genre: fluff.

part 1

---

so you had been in south korea with chan and the boys for almost three weeks now

in that time you had befriended all of the boys pretty well

and your korean had come on leaps and bounds meaning that you were actually able to communicate with your new friends

in that time you and chan had spent every free moment together

but obviously he had debuted about a week ago and was crazy busy attending a million and one different events

so whenever he came home he was usually exhausted

but still found time in his day to take you to his favourite restaurants, or music stores, or places in the city

like the cute park hidden behind two big buildings that he had found by accident one morning

and the small cafe above a little bookstore in the heart of the city that barely anyone visited but you two would hang out in for as long as possible

and basically spending all of your time together because you knew that your month was coming to an end rapidly and that you probably wouldn’t see your best friend for another solid year at least

during this time though you knew that your childhood crush had blown up into a wild, hopeless admiration for your best friend

which was awful

because you knew that a) there was no way chan liked you that way

b) being an idol meant he wasn’t allowed to date for at least two years post debut

c) it would never happen between you two because of the time different and land masses between you

little did you know though that this crushed chan as well

because everything he said about you being his rock was hopelessly true

you kept him grounded in his wildest moments

and lifted him up in his happiest

and honestly,,, you was the best person for him

because you two fit together like peas in a pod

or ice cream and waffles

or just two best friends hopelessly in love with each other without the others knowing

like the most cliched teen romance novel ever

but alas it wasn’t going to happen between you two

much to both of yours dismays

but until your month in korea ended chan would spend every last second he could with you

this meant that you attended every showcase performance they did

supporting them from in the crowd and watching them grow into the successful talented boys that they really are

and seeing chan become the leader that everyone expected him to be

the last week had been particularly busy with a new performance or interview almost every day, but you just patiently killed time in the city doing the things you loved whilst you waited for that text from chan or the boys to say they were finished

seeing as it was one week until you left though chan was determined to take you out somewhere fancy for dinner

and all he had said was wear a nice outfit and make sure your hair wasn’t in it’s usual messy bun

so you had been shopping and bought a simple navy dress, white blazer and a pretty clip to do something with your hair because face it who can actually style their own hair

and was back at the hostel getting ready when chan had surprised you early by showing up in dress pants but also a huge coat to cover the majority of his face

and instead of rushing you he sat there like the perfect human being he is

watching you do your hair and makeup and just chatting with you about life

which reminded you of the joke that changbin had said last week

which was that eventually you and chan were going to run out of things to say to each other because all you did was sit around and chat

but anyway

you guys would chat

and chan would not give you any idea of where you were going tonight because he wanted it to be the best surprise

which was super annoying because you just wanted to know what was going on

but also made your love for him increase ten fold because only chan would ever be this dead set on not spoiling a surprise for you

so when you finally finished all your makeup and stuff chan was so hyped to go he basically pulled you through the city, running on adrenaline and excitement

you both ended up outside this small restaurant outside the main city that was simple in facade, but you could tell it meant a lot to chan

“it was in this restaurant that we first called each other when i arrived in korea”

and that made you start tearing up already

because chan was the most thoughtful person ever aasdgasfgs

so basically

the restaurant was fairly quiet and you was expecting a seat in the back corner or something which is where chan usually asked for because of privacy and identity issues

but instead the waitress at the front of the restaurant lead you up the small circular black staircase and opened the door to what looked like the roof of the restaurant

only the entirity of the room was surrounded with beautiful hedges and flowers and so many fairy lights

and basically all of your favourite things

and a single table sat in the middle with no candles because chan remembered how anxious they made you asdgsfgsfh

and he even went to all the effort of pulling your chair out and sitting you down

and taking your blazer

which just made you freak out

and go all soft and gooey inside

and surprisingly he wasn’t being overly cheesy all night

maybe the odd little bit of flirting here and there but you were convinced you were just imagining things

and then when the waiters brought up your favourite meal you literally started crying

because bang chan was the most precious human being alive that remembered every tiny detail about all of his friends and loved them will all his heart

all night he was really nervous about things though

because on one hand he wanted to be entirely honest with you and how you felt

but on the other hand he knew you were leaving him in a week and for all the aforementioned reasons, it would never work out

so instead of being honest with both you and himself he kept it strictly friends only

much to both of your disappointments

but he knew that no matter what he would love his best friend for the rest of his days

and it was his time to start crying when you gave him a best friend bracelet that was really low-key

like a simple leather braided band that had his initials on one ball and yours on another

and as you helped him put it on his wrist over the table, yours already hanging against your skin, he was tearing up and trying his best not to cry because emotional chan made you emotional and he wouldn’t want to actually make you cry right now

so instead he said how much he loved you in what you assumed was a platonic way

because neither of you could be honest with the other

and as the night ended and the last week of korea dawned on you, chan and you were both drunk on hopeless crushes and being in love with your best friend

but one thing you knew for certain is that you would never let chan become a stranger to you again

---

eek this was written in some very soft hours for you guys and honestly i’ve never been more whipped for chan in my life. hes so cute and deserves the world. this may have been a little bit too fluffy for even me and i am so whipped for stray kids and fluff that its such an issue

yet here this is and i think this might be even too sweet for me asdgasfg

requests are still open <3

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kyloswarstars · 7 years ago

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Mamma Mia!

Star Wars, Request AU

Request: can I request a modern!kylo ren x reader based on mamma mia!(Sophie’s plot) thankkk youuu

Pairing: Kylo Ren Organa x Reader

Warning: none (but swearing as always)

Words: 6.2K

A/N: First I was like „okay, who could be reader’s parents“, but then I was like „nah, I should do Sophie’s plot with Kylo of course…“ (idk if the request was meant that way in the first place anyways 🙈) Honestly, this was the hardest request yet (or story in general), but it was also super fun to write. I hope you can enjoy it! 😊 @buried-in-books thanks a lot for the amazing beta work 🤩💐 Any similarities to other writers’ work are not intended. All ideas used in a fanfiction I post are made up in my brain (as long as it is not a request).

∞ Tag: @lokey-bucky-stevey

/////

No matter how exhausting the last days of college for this semester had been, it couldn’t kill your positive vibes. It felt like your body was constantly producing a high amount of endorphins. It felt like this for nearly over a year now, ever since you had met Kylo on that rainy day where your dad’s jeep broke down on your drive around the island.

The jeep got repaired, though. Since you moved to O’ahu, your dad gave up on getting it back ever again and left it to you. It had been to his benefit: he could finally buy that new truck he always wanted and didn’t have to feel too guilty about it.

The drive from the city, directly to Kylo’s place, was too long today – even with your good mood; or was it because of your good mood? You had just finished the last exam, which meant it was officially summer break for you. It also meant there were only two days left until your wedding. Then the dork of a surfer dude would be your husband. You couldn’t wait for it anymore.

May was nearly over, still, there came in some good waves if you were patient enough to wait for them. Kylo was. He wasn’t a patient guy at all – the best example was the proposal at Christmas after roughly five months of knowing each other – but when it came to surfing, he was the personified patience. You pulled into the hostel parking lot, parked the jeep and walked around the building. Nine out of ten times he would be in the water when you arrived, whether it was surfing for fun or teaching it to some backpackers.

You couldn’t stand sand in your shoes, so you took them off and carried them along the beach. It was warm enough to wear shorts and a top, it was actually pretty warm – the summer started early this year. Wind blew over the beach, and it ruffled up your hair but that was okay. The wind brought a wave that revealed Kylo on his surfboard. He surfed it right to the beachside – that could only mean he had spotted you on the beach once again. Kylo had eyes like a hawk: he always noticed you approaching the water.

When your bare feet met the wet sand Kylo grabbed the surfboard under his arm and took the last few steps out of the water – with a huge, bright grin on his lips. The water must have a decent temperature for him to surf without a wetsuit. He dropped the board to the sand and slammed his arms around you. You’re clothes got soaked by his wet body. Kylo loved to do this every time you appeared on the beach when he was in the water. He swayed with you, tightly in his arms, from one to the other side.

„I missed you,“ Kylo whispered into your ear. The water in his hair dripped into yours.

„It’s only been like six hours.“

He broke the hug to look down at you. Kylo was so madly in love with you that even six hours were too long. He couldn’t remember anymore how he survived the three and a half months after your summer break until you finally moved to O’ahu. To be honest: he didn’t even want to think about it because he planned on never being so long apart from you ever again.

Kylo placed a kiss on your lips and another one on your forehead, then returned to staring at your face. Before you, he never knew that he could admire cheekbones and a jawline so much, or dark circles from weeklong studying for exams and simultaneously working at the gas station.

Your face was the only thing he wanted to look at for the rest of his life. Kylo would be alright if he couldn’t see the ocean anymore, or the sunset and the sunrise, as long as he was able to look at you. He didn’t want to miss a day where he could see your soul shine through your eyes right at him. You never did that with someone else, only with him, and that made it even more mesmerizing.

„Oi, Y/N!“ Behind Kylo appeared two guys you hadn't noticed before because your eyes had only been on him.

Poe and Finn stepped out of the water, in wetsuits. You knew them from several wedding preparation Skype calls. Kylo had told you he would get them from the airport while you were writing the last exam today.

„You’re here.“ Your clothes were wet already so you hugged them both at the same time, without even asking. „So nice to meet you in person.“ They agreed simultaneously with a ‚same‘ and instantly gave you an update on their flight. Poe mostly mentioned airplane stuff because he was currently studying to become a pilot himself one day; Finn talked about the toddler in front of them and how he made grimaces for her because she had cried a lot.

The three boys had a lot to catch up on, and it was cute to see Kylo with his two best friends. He missed them since they left the island for college, you knew that. He always talked about when they were kids and learned how to surf. When you didn’t study for college, didn’t work at the gas station, or didn’t spend time out on the water or with Kylo in general, you helped out at the hostel.

Leia, Kylo’s mother, has ran it for over fifteen years now. She founded it to create a welcoming and familiar space for backpackers and travellers with a low budget. Technically, it was a big family house where everyone integrated pretty fast to the community. Leia’s plan had been resistance. She didn’t agree with the huge hotels that demanded horrifying prices for one night. She believed that traveling was about an adventurous experience that took your breath away when you remembered it, not about worrying over a budget.

Most of the visitors stayed longer than they originally had planned because this hostel wasn’t only a hostel – it was home. When new travellers came in and there was barely space for them, Leia always figured something out. She had a talent for improvisation.

There were two young backpackers from Sweden, Vera and Sven, twins that explored the world together. You loved the fact that they, as siblings, went out into the world together. They had lived in the hostel for nearly four weeks now.

You headed over to the kitchen, leaving Kylo alone with his mates, to check and see if you could do something. Vera and her brother were washing some dishes, you helped them, and made sure they wouldn’t go out on a hike on Saturday. They assured you, again, they wouldn’t. You loved being at the hostel because you had made so many friends from all over the world. You loved even more that everyone that had checked in at the moment would be attending the wedding. One big family to celebrate with – it couldn’t get any better.

/////

Kylo lit the fireplace at the beach every night. It belonged to the hostel and was the evening hot spot for all the visitors, and for some neighbours too. Benches were made out of old palm trees – they weren’t as uncomfortable as you first imagined they would be.

„I need to tell you something.“ Kylo first looked at you. He felt guilty because he didn’t mention it to you before. Usually, it would’ve been something he would have discussed with you at the very beginning, but he had hesitated. And then the ‚right time‘ had passed and he felt like he couldn’t bring it up anymore. He looked to Poe and Finn. „I invited my father to the wedding.“

„You what?“ You looked at him in surprise, but it was probably more like shock.

Poe placed his beer in the sand so he wouldn’t drop it. „Dude, I thought you don’t know who your dad is.“

„Well, I still don’t know it.“

„Who did you invite then?“ Finn wore the most confused face.

Kylo got up and grabbed some new wood to put on the bonfire. „Three possible fathers?“

„What the fuck?“ He looked at you. Kylo loved your cursing, it was part of your humour, and he loved even more how you broke into laughter. Suddenly he didn’t know why he didn’t tell you right away, seeing your reaction. „How?“

„When I was clearing out the one room for renovation, I found an old box with photos. Mom used to do a lot of photography before I was born; she labeled every photo.“

„Let me guess,“ Poe stood up, „you found three photos of men that were labeled with the time she must have gotten pregnant with you?“

„Yo.“ He fished the photos out of his pocket, he carried them since he posted off the letters. They looked at the men and read the labels.

„And you decided to just invite all three of them?“ Finn’s voice was really high, he didn’t try to hide his confusion.

„Yeah. I didn’t know which of them would be my father… with all three of them I’m not doing anything wrong, right?“

Poe looked at Finn, Finn looked at you, the three of you looked at Kylo. He shrugged and sat down next to you again.

You turned him to you. „Why did you keep it a secret from me?“ It bugged you, but not too much.

„I don’t know. It won’t happen again.“

„Yeah, it won’t because we’re over if you’re doing this again, Organa.“

„Y/N!“ Kylo snapped hysterically.

„Only a joke, babe.“ You placed a hand on his thigh. Whenever you touched him or he touched you, all the people around you got unimportant. „You can keep as many secrets as you want. You’ll tell me when it’s time.“ His face lit up again in the bonfire’s shine. „But what did you think? What is supposed to happen?“

Kylo shrugged again – he liked to do that – and offered some thoughts on how he wanted this thing with the father to go. He didn’t have a real plan. He just sent them the invitation to the wedding and didn’t think about anything else. That was a typical Kylo move.

/////

On the days you didn’t have college, you always tried to eat lunch with your dad. Kylo joined the two of you sometimes, but today you drove off alone. He helped out in the hostel because his mother already made preparations for tomorrow. She wouldn’t let him do it as she insisted on doing it herself. Kylo couldn’t do anything about it; his mom was even more stubborn than he was.

„Excuse me?“ Kylo had done some paper work at the reception and looked up to see three men with luggage standing in the small entrance of the hostel.

„Hello there! Nice to see you, how can I help you?“ He stood up and walked around the reception. It was always a pleasure for him to welcome some business men, still in their suits. They would come to the hostel from time to time to relive some good old times. When he eyed them with full attention something felt odd. Those faces looked familiar. Kylo had seen them before. He had seen younger versions of them…

Fuck. The photo men.

Kylo stared at them for a solid minute. He tried to remember the photographs and compare them to the men in front of him. The one in the middle, who had ‚excused himself‘, must be Lando. Seeing him now, he wondered if he, being Kylo’s father, was even a real possibility. Lando’s photograph had been a black and white one, without much lightness; it didn’t show clearly how he had looked twenty-five years ago.

The man to Lando’s right was dressed in a suit as well. He wore a lot of pomade to keep the wild hair under control – this must be Wedge. He didn’t care about his hair back in the photograph, it had been a mess; just like Kylo’s was, he realised.

The third man stood in the doorframe, finishing his cigar and wearing the most funky Hawaiian shirt Kylo had ever seen. He instantly recognised this man: Han Solo.

„We are invited to a wedding tomorrow. Are we at the right place? Is this Leia Organa’s hostel?“ Wedge unbuttoned his jacket and took it off. It was pretty hot for the end of May. Kylo wondered how he had managed to wear it that long without melting. „It’s actually funny, we met at the airport and shared a taxi because we randomly found out we all have been invited to the same wedding.“

„Are you choking on your own spit, kid?“ Han flicked the remains of his cigar away and came closer. Kylo didn’t speak for three minutes now. He hadn’t thought about what would happen when the men would stand in front of him. Again he hadn’t thought. He always just did things, never thinking about the consequences.

„Sorry.“ He cleared his throat to win some more seconds, in which he could think about what he would do with them now. „You’re absolutely at the right place! Please follow me.“

„Shouldn’t we check in first?“ Lando called after Kylo, but he had already went down the hallway.

„Oh no, wedding guests don’t pay.“ The three followed him to the end of the hallway to the one big room that was still under construction. Later it would be a ten-bed room, but for now Kylo needed to find some old folding beds he could offer them. „By the way, I am Kylo and it’s my wedding you’re invited to.“

„Yes, right! You’re Leia’s son, right? It’s a nice gesture to invite us to her son’s wedding.“

Oh right. Kylo sent the invitations in Leia’s name because he feared they wouldn’t come if it wasn’t for her.

„Yes, I’m Leia’s son.“ Maybe yours too, Lando.

It took him a few seconds to nod his head at Kylo’s confirmation. They followed him to the room, but hesitated to really enter. It was a construction area, Kylo understood why they didn’t want to get in completely. „I’m sorry, we’re a little short on space.“

„That’s alright, kid. It looks cozy.“ The Hawaiian shirt walked past him and dropped his bag to the floor. Lando and Wedge didn’t look as comfortable with the situation like Han, but they didn’t say anything against it.

Shoving them into a room was enough, right? „Yo, see you then.“

„Wait!“ Wedge stopped Kylo from disappearing to a corner, where he could hide and curse over his own stupidity and the non-existing plan of how to handle the situation. He should’ve told you from the beginning; you were good with plans. Or common sense. „What are we supposed to do?“

„Stay in there?“

„No way, kid.“ Han grinned mischievously and, again, walked passed Kylo, but this time out of the room, instead of in. Lando didn’t wait long and followed him, just like Wedge. When Kylo realised, they were in the hostel, in his mother’s hostel, he rushed after them. He only told you and his best mates yesterday. His mother for sure didn’t know a single thing about those three man that were here.

Kylo caught up on them when they reached the beach behind the building. „Do you want to go out on the water?“ Please do. Far out, Leia wouldn’t notice them too quick. In the meantime Kylo could call you for help.

„That’s why we’re here, kid.“ Hawaiian-shirt-Han took off his sunglasses for the first time and used them to point at Kylo. „Do you have some boards?“

„Yeah.“ Kylo gestured to his left side. „I’m running a small surf school that belongs to the hostel.“ To his luck, they followed him to the shed where all the surf stuff was stored. They spoke about some summer on O’ahu: how the water had been their best friend, how life had turned out since then. They probably spoke about the summer Leia got pregnant with him, still they didn’t figure out that all of them were talking about nearly the same thing. They all mentioned a woman, but not even then did they get it.

When they treaded off to the water, Kylo pulled out his phone and dialled you. He gave you a rap about what had happened. You laughed at him, but assured you would come over right after lunch.

Kylo returned to the reception, but also kept an eye on the ocean. He should be out there, it was irresponsible to let them surf without him observing them. But he couldn’t tell his mother she needed to take over the reception, Leia would get suspicious.

Somehow he was able to get them back into the room after their surf session. Kylo promised them some lunch if they stayed in the room. They agreed.

He used all the cooking knowledge he had, which resulted into pasta with tomato sauce. You were a far better cook than him; you always worked some magic and cooked the most delicious meals. Kylo was only good with cutting the veggies and preparing all the stuff – onions were his speciality because nothing could make him cry besides you.

/////

Her knucklehead had vandalised the hostel kitchen. Leia hadn’t thought about searching for him there because when Kylo was hungry, he went to the family apartment’s kitchen. This mess could only be made by her son, and it was typical for him to leave a chaos behind when he cooked. She couldn’t truly understand why you had agreed to marry him because he had so much of Leia in him, but she was happy you did. Maybe he would finally move out after getting married to you and give her peace when she wanted to watch ‚Friends‘.

„Mom?“ Kylo returned with three empty plates to the kitchen. He was surprised to find his mother there, even though he shouldn’t have been because it already had been a wonder that she didn’t cross his path since the three possible dads had arrived.

„Son?“ She looked at him with her unapologetic stare. When she noticed the three plates, her eyes squeezed and she came closer. „What is going on?“

„Nothing.“ He walked around her and put the plates in the dishwasher.

„Kid? Could we get some water?“ No. NO. Kylo couldn’t react as fast as he wanted to to prevent the catastrophe. Han appeared in the doorframe. „Mamma Mia!“

„Han?“

„Leia!“

Both of them stared at each other. Leia in shock, maybe with an escape plan to leave the island, even if she needed to swim; Han in complete fascination.

„Fuck.“ Kylo didn’t know what he should do. Why didn’t you arrive yet? You were far better with delicate stuff like this.

„What’s going on here?“ Leia put her hands on her hips and stared at her son. The last time she gave him that look, he had lit up the old shed in his uncle’s backyard by accident.

As if the situation wasn’t bad enough, two low voices got closer to the kitchen. Soon, Lando and Wedge arrived behind Han.

„Leia!“

„Why are you here?“

The three men, hit by realisation, got into a discussion until Lando cut it. „We’re here because you obviously invited all three of us. To Kylo’s wedding.“

Leia scoffed. „Why should I invite someone to my son’s wedding? We’re living in the twenty-first century, the boy can invite people himself.“ She covered her face with her hands for a moment; she did that to regain control over her thoughts. „And if I invited someone, it for sure wouldn’t have been you.“ Leia turned to her son. „What did you do? You’ll be the cause for my heart attack one day!“

Kylo somehow managed to overcome his shock and asked the possible dads to return to their room. He would come and explain everything, but he first needed to talk to his mother. They unexpectedly followed his request and left.

„Son, what did you do?“

„Trying to get everyone together. The family.“

Kylo could see how the anger left her face instantly. The wrinkles around her eyes got deeper, the sorrow on her forehead made clear that she had aged in the past years. „You know what we think about this.“ Leia took his hands in hers and looked into his eyes. She felt a little guilty.

„Yes.“ She had raised him with the knowledge that she didn’t know who his father was, and that the two of them were ‚enough‘. They had been their own little family. „But I also want to find out who is responsible for the other part of me.“ She didn’t respond so Kylo went on. „I found those old photos and I just invited them. This wedding will be a huge one, with a lot of people that are not related by blood, but by heart with – I just want my father to be there, too.“

„Was it wrong, that I never showed you the photos?“ Kylo had never seen his mother so emotional about that topic. She was a tough woman that always proved herself. When it came to her son, she could get really sensitive.

„No, mom. It’s alright.“

„I’m sorry, Kylo.“ She kissed one of his hands.

„I didn’t know how I should tell you, but I want you to understand it, so you don’t feel like I don’t appreciate our family.“ He kissed one of her hands. That was a thing they did since he had been little. „The wedding, the marriage, Y/N – it will be a new step in my life. I want to evolve and become the man that is worthy of her. I want to know where my roots are. Especially since I know her, because one day I’ll hopefully be the father to her children, and I want to know how it feels to have a dad.“

She nodded her head. Leia was aware that the ideals she had been raising him after, couldn’t automatically be his. It was natural for a child to want to know where it came from.

„So you don’t know who my father is…“

„No.“ She released his hands and started to clean up his mess. „It could be anyone of them, actually.“

„Really?“ It had only been Kylo’s assumption until now. Though at the same time he didn’t think she was lying to him. He didn’t think she only told him that she didn’t know when, in fact, she knew. She wasn’t one for lying.

„Don’t look at me like that! Your mom had a lot of fun when she was young.“ She chuckled.

„We don’t doubt that.“ Kylo turned around and nearly dropped the pot with the pasta. Finally. He wasn’t one for love declarations in public, but after all the trouble this morning, he couldn’t resist. He bowed down to you, still the pot in his hands, and kissed you. Long and intensely.

Leia and Kylo alternated with each other to give the different views of what had happened. You managed to talk Leia into leaving for the reception and finished cleaning up the mess with Kylo.

In the meantime, the three possible dads had found out they all had a thing going on with Leia that summer. Still, they didn’t come to the final conclusion when Kylo and you arrived in their room. In fact, they all fumbled at their luggage and mumbled something about the airport.

„What are you doing?“ You could hear in Kylo’s voice that he didn’t want them to leave. Before you had interrupted him and his mom, you had heard what he had told her. You didn’t really want to listen in on them, but it had been too tempting.

„We came to the conclusion that Leia probably doesn’t want us here. We’re leaving.“ They would actually make a good boy band, you thought. Lando as the frontman, because he seemed to speak for all three of them, Wedge on the drums, and Han would be the crazy guitarist that shreds his guitar on stage every now and then, or all the time. He seemed like the type of guy that did only crazy stuff. Or at least that’s what his funky Hawaiian shirt said.

„But I want you there.“

„Kid, we thought we were here because Leia wanted us here. Sorry.“

„My name is Kylo, not kid, and I’m your son. Yours too, Lando. Wedge, same applies to you. As far as I know one of you is my father, so I want you all to attend our wedding as part of my family.“

The three possible dads, now aware of it, sat back on their folding beds. They needed a few minutes to overcome the shock. It surprised you that this fact seemed to bring them closer together. They discussed about it like they had been friends for more than half of a day.

„You know, I want the whole experience. I never had a father, so I’m okay with all three of you. If you’re okay too?“

Again, they talked about it like Kylo and you wouldn’t stand right in front of them.

„Alright.“

It took them a hour to adjust to the news. They didn’t flip, they were just highly confused about becoming fathers so suddenly. But becoming a parent was obviously funnier when the child was allowed to drink alcohol with you. Over some beers, they shared a lot of theories about how Kylo had Wedge’s hair and Lando’s eyes.

You excused yourself after some time to get out on the waves. Kylo wanted you to stay but he also didn’t want you to miss out on your daily surf dose.

He enjoyed talking to the men. They were actually the coolest dudes and he loved that they were here and were staying for his wedding.

Finn and Poe joined the boys in the afternoon. The evening quickly turned into Kylo’s stag night. A lot of beer, a lot of jokes, a lot of getting to know each other better.

You had spent hours out on the water, when you came back, you didn’t want to interrupt the stag night thing they had going on, so you stole a kiss from Kylo and said goodbye until tomorrow. He didn’t want to let you go so easily. It was the last day were you would be his girlfriend – technically his fiancée. Kylo stole some more kisses until he released you, so you could head to your car.

It felt wrong to open the car door and leave and not sleep over at Kylo’s place. Fuck the ritual of not sleeping in the same bed the night before the wedding; nothing or no one could hold you back from tugging yourself into Kylo’s sheets.

/////

Han opted out at some point. He had a mission. No plan, but he wanted to talk to Leia. He snuck around the hostel, searching for her. She crouched over a lot of papers at the reception.

„You raised a good man.“

Leia looked up. His voice could still give her shivers. „Did you expect something else?,“ she pursed her lips.

„I didn’t expect you to have a child at all.“

She crossed her arms as an answer and got up to stand in front of him.

„So I wasn’t the only one that summer, huh?“ His eyes beamed at her. He wasn’t mad, he was just fascinated to see her again. Over all those years, she had lingered in the back of his mind.

„Han, you still think you’re the only star in the sky?“ Leia had loved his stubborn head, and even his ridiculous self-confidence.

„I for sure know you are mine,“ he smirked. How could that man still work his magic the way he did twenty-five years ago?

Kylo turned away when he saw his mother kiss Han. He hadn’t expected to become a witness of such a scene on the way to the family apartment. In hope they wouldn’t notice that he had heard their conversation, he sneaked passed them and hurried to his bedroom. He found the sweetest surprise when he entered it: you, curled up in his blanket.

Kylo had hoped you would change your mind and stay over. It made him incredibly happy to be able to wrap his arms around you now.

You recognised his presence and pulled him closer, pressing against his chest. God, he couldn’t wait for tomorrow when you said ‚I do‘ and this here would be available for him the rest of his life.

/////

When he slept, Kylo’s facial mimic was completely relaxed. It was the most beautiful view you had ever seen. Most times you tried to count his freckles the Hawaiian sun had given him. You had stared at him for a long time already. You woke up when it was still dark outside; now the sun started to shine through the curtains.

„We’re gonna get married today,“ you smiled when he opened his eyes. Kylo wasn’t a morning person at all. Usually it took him a hour to process information with a tired brain, but today it worked faster. He nodded and managed the most sleepy, but happiest grin. You scooted closer to him, so you could kiss his adorable face.

A billion kisses and a coffee later, you drove back to your place. Your dad was already running in circles when you arrived. He was definitely more nervous than you.

„Do you want me to do your hair?“

You were a bad bride for not even thinking about your wedding hair until this very moment. „Sure.“

Your dad had obviously thought about it. He seated you in front of the bathroom mirror and rushed out to come back with a small bowl of freshly picked flowers. „I thought about putting them into your hair.“ You could only smile at how cute he was.

When your parents still had been together, your father always used to do your hair. He thought a dad should be able to do it – the ‚it isn’t manly excuse‘ never worked for him. You didn’t only move over to Hawaii for Kylo, but also for your dad. Living together with your mom had been alright, but living with your dad was far more funnier.

He was actually better at braiding than you were. He transformed two strands of hair, one from each side, into a crown. With the flowers, he placed in the crown, you felt like a fairy.

You’d been left alone to change into your wedding dress. Never had you dreamt about to marrying at twenty-two, but Kylo and you, that was far more than you ever thought could be possible. It’s not that you didn’t believe in true love, you just never expected it to be possible to fall so hard for someone.

The wedding dress felt odd. It fluttered around your ankles when you walked out of your room. You had expected to find your father right in front of your door, but he wasn’t waiting for you. Instead the front door was opened. When you went outside, you were greeted by cheers.

Your mom was here. And she had brought Rey and Rose with her, your two best friends from Florida. Those traitors had told you they couldn’t make it!

„Did you really think we would miss this day?,“ they screamed and rushed up the steps to engulf you in a group hug. Your dad recorded the scene with his phone.

„That’s not cool,“ you laughed. Actually, it was awesome.

Your mom had placed her hand over her heart and looked at you with that motherly pride in her eyes. She kissed you and then laid a white lei around your neck. „Are you ready?“

/////

You weren’t ready. Not even the slightest. The drive over to the hostel took ages, but at the same time it had been over too fast. Your heart nearly jumped out of your chest when you got out of your jeep. Your dad wanted to drive you in his truck, but that way you would have had even more time to think about what you were going to do. Driving yourself, you had at least had control over that, when you didn’t have it over your heart.

Three hours ago you hadn’t been nervous at all, and now you were about to vomit because of what was ahead. You couldn’t understand it. Since his proposal on Christmas you had been excited for this day. Now, that it was here, it scared you.

„Take a deep breath.“ Your dad, who was by your side, took your arm and linked it with his. „That’s normal.“

„Are you sure?“

„Yes.“ He kissed your forehead and dragged you through the hostel to the beachside.

They had rolled over the old palm trees as benches and left space in the middle for an aisle. On each side of that aisle, a lot of people stood up to turn around and look at you, as your dad led you down the aisle.

There he was, at the end of the aisle. He looked so good in his shorts and the short-sleeved shirt. You didn’t know he would wear white too. The sight of him, and his smile, calmed you again. It was Kylo, get your shit together.

Your dad handed you over to Kylo when you arrived in front of him.

Holy shit, you looked so mesmerizing. Beautiful was an understatement. He tried to ignore the knot in his stomach. He tried so hard to enjoy this moment, to just see how fascinating you, and everything around, was. Still it didn’t feel right.

Kylo noticed you were shaking when he grabbed your hands in his. He had expected you to smile but you didn’t. Your eyes gave away that something wasn’t right for you either.

„Kylo,“ you leaned over to him and whispered into his ear, „I really want to marry you. Just not today.“

„Yes!“ He shouldn’t, for the sake of you, be so happy about your words. „Oh yes, thank you for saying this! It feels strange, right babe?“ Kylo wrapped his arms around you. He couldn’t believe, that what he wanted for so long wasn’t the thing he still wanted. Not now.

„Can we just wait a little? Like a year? Or ten?“

„Absolutely.“ He peppered you with kisses. Over and over again his lips crushed into yours. Until the crowd got too loud with shouts that demanded an explanation on what was going on.

Kylo looked into your eyes to make sure of your agreement before he turned to them. „No wedding today, folks.“

The guests, your parents and Leia, your friends, even the three dads erupted into loud questions. After the initial shock, some started to laugh and gave remarks about how it should have been obvious something like that would happen with the two of you.

Kylo and you walked down the aisle, together, but not married like you thought you would do it when you woke up today. You felt relieved. You loved that dork so much, but for a marriage, it was a little too early.

„Maybe you’re wrong, kid.“ Kylo stopped in his tracks, you too. Han took the place where Kylo had stood just moments ago. Everyone got quiet. „Come on, Leia.“ He called it over the whole beach.

Kylo could make out his mother in the first row. She gasped and hid her face in her hands again.

„The only reason I came to this island is you.“ Han’s grin was so bright, it actually outdid the sun. He looked at Kylo. „Sorry, kid.“

Everyone noticed the tension. Everyone knew this wasn’t a joke or completely absurd because otherwise Leia would have already protested.

/////

„I can’t believe we didn’t marry.“ Kylo drove your jeep. You had planned to go on a little honey moon with your tent around the island. Not saying ‚I do‘ wasn’t a reason on why you shouldn’t make a little trip anyways.

„I can’t believe your mother did.“

It had been the strangest day ever. Kylo got three new dads, Leia got a husband, and you the reassurance that Kylo loved you even without a wedding certificate.

„Kylo?“

„Yeah?“ Even with his sunglasses on, you could see him smiling with his whole face.

„Pull over.“ You unbuckled your seatbelt before the car came to a complete stop. „I need to kiss you.“ It went on like this for the next few days. You couldn’t get enough of him and never would. There would come the day when it would be right to marry him. Until then, you would gladly be ‚only‘ his girlfriend.

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thehikingnerd · 3 years ago

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Traveling back to Ashland for my last leg (10/10 - 10/12)

It was a rushed haze through which we woke up, gathered our things, and loaded onto the bus, I honestly barely remember it, lol. But we made the bus and were one our way. It was about a 2 hour ride into Vancouver and we were dropped off at a huge bus station. We booked a bus to take us to Seattle and despite desperately wanting to explore Vancouver a bit, we were exhausted with very little sleep and didn't have enough time before our bus left to actually do anything anyway. We just came to terms with the idea that we wouldn't be able to see any of Vancouver and just sat in a fast food restaurant that was built in to where we booked out tickets and tried to see if I was able to contact any friends that were living in Seattle and if not start looking at affordable hostel/hotel options in the area. Before long we were loading onto another bus and heading for the US border. We had to get off of our bus to go through customs at the border. It was a pretty relaxed border crossing and despite being told that it was vital I had a form that authorized me to legally cross the boarder (without using a regular port), the guy at the border didn't even ask for it and to not be concerned that there was no stamp indicating that I had even left the US. After that we shuffled back onto the bus and were dropped off in Seattle about 2 hours later. All in All, we had only spent something like 10 hours in Canada, LOL, not even half a day. We walked out of the station and needed to find some food. We were in Chinatown and went to a place with good reviews for some pho. It was good but quite small portions by thru-hiker standards. With no success in finding a friend to stay with, Butt'rs had found us a very cheap hotel/hostel kind of place to stay the night near the Public Market Center. It was fairly affordable and nice to have our own room. We took showers and rested some before heading out to dinner. It was a weird feeling being in such a large city, we hadn't been anywhere this big and full of people in quite a while. We did love taking advantage of all the food choices and decided to have dinner at a Mexican restaurant. All the while we both were somewhat distracted making our plans. I wasn't exactly sure what Butt'rs plans were, he might even stay another day or two in Seattle. But I was in a mad dash to get this last section done before I lost my motivation and was ready to damn near run this last make-up section. It was roughly 300 miles that I had skipped and I had hoped that I would be able to do it in 10 days. I know that might sound crazy, even to me when i first started this trail, but I was pretty sure I could pull it off and be home with a few days to spare before Halloween with Angie and friends. I might be able to hike crazy distances but I am worn out and beginning to feel down right frail at this point. Laying down in a soft bed and not getting up for like a week is literally my fantasy. After dinner, we went back to the hotel and I booked my Amtrak ticket for the next day to Klamath Falls, OR. For nearly half a year we had being doing this simple life at a 2 mile per hour pace and it was completely over for Butt'rs now and I was eager to get back for my last 300 miles. We were in different places for sure, but it is hard to explain how lost you feel when your routine of eat walk sleep is over, you almost don't know how to pass time or what to do next. We just talked and hung out and then went to sleep. The next morning ate some free breakfast included with the stay, said our good-byes, and I was off. I had arranged to have my very first Couchsrufing stay for when I arrived at Klamath Falls. I have hosted tons of people over the course of like 10 years but its kind of funny that this was the first time I successfully found someone willing to host me and I was pretty thankful. I boarded the train and had a really beautiful and scenic trip south, I like Amtrak and wished we had more train travel in the US. It was dark when I arrive at around 10:30pm and worried that I was getting in too late for the family that hosted me, but to my surprise they were up and after making a call to confirm a guy named Patrick was on his way to pick me up from the train station. He brought me to the house where they had a pullout cough ready for me in the living room. I met Michelle and in no time at all we were all bedding down for the night. It had all worked out so well and I was so grateful for them helping me out. The next morning I woke up to a family getting ready for school and their children were very cute and nice, and i loved that they weren't even shy and seemed accustomed to travelers crashing in their living room. It was nice talking to them and getting to know them and most of all, petting their dogs :) They had given me directions to a local donut shop kind of place within walking distance and I grabbed a breakfast sandwich there before walking to a bus weird bus station. I had to wait for a while there for the next bus to take me back to Ashland, where I had previously met back up with Dixie, Butt'rs and the crew. The bus was at least cheap and didn't take very long before I was back in Ashland. The smoke from wild fires was back though and that was again a concern. Throughout the day I walked around town, did yet another Darn Tough sock exchange, ate food and worked out a stay with a trail angel. It was a little frustrating working out timing and location to meet up, after lunch I grabbed some Starbucks and waited for her to meet me there. I got in her SUV and she was super nice. She drove me to her house that was pretty far out of town actually, but also really nice. She had pots and plants and fruit trees and horses and a nice house. We just talked and I help bring in groceries. She said her husband was a firefighter and expressed some concern to me that the trail might be closed in some sections. I didn't like the sound of that but she said I'd be able to talk to her husband and he could double check for me later. Last i Heard it was open, and unless it was for sure closed, I was going to go and really didn't want to immediately have to touch my old spot and road walk around from the get -go. Anyway, it was nice talking to her and it was funny, since its legal now, she said they had grown a bunch a weed on her property this year even though they didn't smoke and there was a huge gallon jar on the mantle full of nugs, lol. She offered me some and I said thank you but I'm good. LOL. Eventually her husband came home and the trail angel (forgot name, sadly) had made us dinner. After dinner and talking to the firefighter husband, who was very skeptical that the trail would be open, actually helped me confirm that it was indeed still open much to his dismay. With that confirmed, he told me that early in the morning he would take me to the place on the trail where I had rejoined my group two months back. I couldn't believe how quickly and perfectly all the logistics had worked out, and how cheaply thanks to so many nice people. They gave me a bedroom and I went to sleep early.

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goodlawdmaude · 4 years ago

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Colombia and Peru 2019

3/7 SAN FRANCISCO --> BOGOTA

3/7-3/8

J and I ubered from ASF to airport, got through security, grabbed a drink at the terminal, then waited at our gate to board. Alarmingly, we heard our names over the intercom, but we just had to show our passports at the desk - no problem. A flight attendant on our flight got sick, so the flight needed 9 volunteers to get off the plane. This delayed us, but we eventually got off the ground. Slept some on the flight, had to go through customs in Mexico City, then through security to our gate. It was around 6am and light outside. Jarod resolved to start the day, but I wanted to sleep more. I slept for 30 great minutes on the flight, then watched Bohemian Rhapsody. The third person in our aisle was sketchy: late, on the phone (free WhatsApp), and importing a lot (per his customs form). We got through customs pretty quickly, then grabbed a taxi and made it to our hostel around 3pm. We rested briefly, then went out for lunch—arepas, chaufa arroz con pollo, and a special combo with seafood and rice in a divine yellow sauce. Jarod was starting to feel the full effect of his cold, but we went for a brief walk anyway through the center of town and the Museo de Botero. Lots of street vendors with various crafts and snacks, some alpacas, police with dogs with muzzles, cobblestone roads, sanitation workers in blue jumpsuits, green mountains in the background. While driving, we saw stark constrasts between shoddy roadside structures and the grand skyscrapers just behind them. Roads were paved and nice. We walked back, buying water at a nearby market, then took naps, showered, and went to sleep very early (8pm). On two instances, we were awoken by rowdiness in the hostel. Overall, slept 11(!!) hours.

3/9 BOGOTA-->MEDELLIN

3/9 Bogota-->Medellin

After our long sleep, we ate breakfast (eggs, fruit, bread, homemade jam, pancakes, lots of fruit) at the hostel, then asked reception to call a taxi for us. We made it to the airport and ultimately made it to the gate smoothly (despite one snafu: struggling to follow arrows to find el bano). Flight was super quick, it was hot when we landed, and we grabbed a taxi from a line outside. The ride to El Poblado was pretty green and undeveloped. It reminded me of driving in Costa Rica (narrow, windy roads), but the roads were paved and in better shape. We tried to drop our bags at the airbnb but couldn’t. We grabbed lunch at El Florez a couple doors down—very yummy healthy food. We tried the airbnb again to no avail. We walked around to take in the town. It was very green, hot and trendy - peppered with new-looking bars, restaurants, and shops. Dying of heat, we stopped for lemonades at a restaurant by the airbnb then went to get our key. We got in and hung for a bit--the airbnb was plenty spacious but nothing super fancy. We grabbed a drink at El Jenun(??)--J built his own gin and tonic while i had a fancy cocktail. We walked for a while--through some slightly seedier roads--to a gypsy/fox-themed pizza place for dinner. Grabbed a beer at Medellin beer company and J accidentally ordered a pitcher. Waitresses were scantily clad and hot; there was an old weird white dude who knew them all far too well. We came home, showered, and went to bed around 11pm.

3/10

After sleeping in until 9am, I straightened my hair (big deal) and then we went to El Pergamino for coffee and breakfast. I had a milky delicious chai latte and eggs with tomato and pesto roasted in a little crepe brûlée pan. The coffee shop was super trendy and cute. From there we walked to the Poblado Metro station and found our way onto the metro. It was very hot and pretty crowded but a really nice system. We got off to transfer to a gondola which took us over a poorer area--tin roofs, lots of graffiti, kids and dogs running everywhere. Then we got on a second gondola which took us over a final stretch of town and over a few miles of forest. The view was unbelievable. We were squished in with a Spanish family of 6 who were talking about how hot it was here and elsewhere. We got off and started exploring El Parque Arvi. It took us a while to realize we couldn’t hike the trails without a guide, and we couldn’t get a guide without booking online. We walked around and down the road where there were lots of street vendors and a couple restaurants. We got overpriced mangos. We headed back and went to grab lunch before seeing the botanical garden. There was mostly fast food. We got two empanadas to go and sat by the main area of vendors and performers in front of the garden. We went in, admires the flora, saw some iguanas, then headed out. We intended to walk to Cerro el Volador, but then the area we were walking through got a little sketchy and we turned around. We went to Explora Park--walked through the aquarium, reptile exhibits, and a room dedicated to the mind. By the time we were ready to leave, it was pouring. We ran to a taxi, had some confusion with the address, but made it back. We rebounded out for dinner (kebab house - mediocre) nearby, then got dessert across the street and wine and waters at exxito

3/11

Woke up *early* 720 to get ready for our free walking tour through Real City Tours. Jarod made breakfast (scrambled eggs and an arepa) while I got dressed. We left a few minutes later than hoped, but hustled down Calle 10 to the poblado metro station and made it with time to spare to meet our guide. He wore a hat and a red shirt and directed our flock of 23 gringo ducklings onto the metro (which Jarod and I had already mastered the previous day), and we took it three stops north to Alpujarra. We got off, regrouped, and headed off to start the tour. It began with a roughly 20min history of Medellin. Julio told us how a big alcohol tax led the entrepreneurial locals to find smuggling routes to bring it into Colombia and how coffee grew well in its fertile soil and was a major export that bolstered the economy. He talked about the rise of cocaine and Pablo Escobar--how he and those over 30 remembered the terror and the violence and danger, but that younger people thought he was good because he “gave houses to poor people.” He talked about how the metro system showed the people that things could be better, and Medellin started its resurrection. We saw the old train station, the main government offices, the plaza of light (which used to be a crime hotspot but is now beautiful, adjacent to a library and the center of education). We walked through El Hueco, taking in the vendors and street scene to a church, empanada (with orange juice), and the Botero museum and plaza. We learned of the Belgian architect who had left his project because of all the shit-talking of the local people; the Paisas said they would finish it themselves... and did so very abruptly without following his complex blueprints. At this point, 4 members of our tour got lost. We walked to the metro stop from whose stairway a grenade had been tossed into a crowd; Julio explained Colombians’ short term memory as a necessity of resilience--and that one grenade wasn’t so bad compared to the volcano that killed 20k the next day. We walked down Junin street (a popular date night spot) and to a plaza where Botero has two bird statues- one that was partially destroyed by dynamite detonated during a concert; the other new to represent triumphing over that evil. There were cool murals of African American faces--allegedly the first freed slave in Colombia who ran away and beat up everyone that came to catch him. This plaza--especially the birds--was really powerful. A strong symbol of all that Medellin went through and rose above. After the tour, we grabbed lunch in the palace in El Hueco (creamed corn soup, salad, pork, rice and juice for roughly $5). We took the metro home and did a Nike workout and I thought I would die. We showered, hung out, then went to El Chagra for a 6-course tasting menu (we actually went for a drink, but were surprised by and obligated to do the tasting). All the dishes were focused on Amazon themes and resources- specifically the giant fish, Arapaima. The first course was a smoking drink that tasted spicy and cinnamony--a bit like fireball. The second was a delicious soup that was creamy and cheesy with yucca crumbs. The third was a potato/fish ball eaten with our hands and dipped in a spicy fruit sauce. The fourth was fish and chaufa rice. The fifth was sausage with fruit preserves and cherry tomato. The sixth was dessert--a brownie-like thing and a fruity ice cream. The whole meal ran 300COP (with cocktails which had a dazzling presentation of liquid smoke and a sandbox.. and tip). Before the final course, a man dressed as an indigenous Amazonian came to our table chanting and we didn’t know what to do. He spoke some dialect and then Spanish and offered us to use his pastes to paint on ourselves. We respectfully declined and he moved on. We went to a restaurant down the street for a drink. Jarod got a shot of gin *sin huelo* loll. The restaurant was upscale with several birthdays happening. They gave us hand towels which they made expand amazingly by pouring hot water on them. We went home to bed.

3/12 MEDELLIN-->LIMA

3/12

We woke up around 730 and did a Nike work out at home. Jarod made breakfast of eggs and arepas, then our taxi came and took us to the airport. When we got there, we couldn’t check in at the kiosk--it said we were on standby. We waited in line and the woman seemed to have some issues, but eventually gave us our boarding passes. We got through security, grabbed El Pergamino coffee/chai, and waited at the gate. Jarod got us sandwiches, fruit, and a chocolate donut thing to eat. We were sitting apart during the 3h flight :(. I read the whole time. We were fed on the airplane and I ate the meal despite being full. We got through customs easily and got a taxi to our airbnb in Miraflores (45min away... And during rush hr). We got keys from our concierge and went out for dinner. We had to wait a bit, but the food was delicious. Jarod are a risotto in squids ink with seafood. I had a pumpkin soup with shrimp, corn, and yucca. I was so full afterward and felt kinda sick but not too bad. Being in Miraflores felt like being in Santa Monica--it was an upscale beachside community with a nice mall. We went to bed HOT and I woke up once with an upset stomach, though it wasn’t too bad.

3/13

7 YEARS!! We set alarms around 730am but didn’t get out of bed until 830 or so. We headed out for a work out- running through several beautiful green parks on the coastline, then plopping in the shade for a circuit. After the workout, we went to a beachside cafe and ordered a coffee and a nutella/banana crepe to share. We stopped at home, rinsed my sunscreeny body, then headed to the mall, Larcomar. We popped into a cafe for parfaits and quiche, then went to the bike rental stand upstairs and got two bikes for one hour. After we paid but before we left, the bike attendant crashed/fell off his bike nearby. The irony was overwhelming. We biked along the beautiful coast, to the Bridge of Sighs, then back up a city street of Barranco. The Barranco main square was beautiful, with statues and beautiful plants peppered throughout the plaza. We rode back, returned our bikes to the attendant who was squirting Purell on his scraped knee, and went home. We did laundry, showered, and got ready for our walking food tour. (Snacked on plaintain chips and beers from the market downstairs while we waited.) A driver with an unexplained passenger picked us up around 520pm. He was very kind and gave us two (hot) bottles of water. We drove through traffic into the historical center, where we met our guide Ximena. We walked to a churro place that had a long line, Ximena scurried to the front, then returned with two churros--one with caramel (apparently an ancient sweet in Lima) or a sweet cream. They were scalding hot. We took them to a nearby monastery, with a gated plaza full of pigeons. Ximena told us that the plaza used to be a common place to sell goods that the pigeons and vultures were brought by the Spanish, and that it was still an important place of worship although only 20ish ppl were a part of the monastery (friars?). We went inside and saw into catacombs full of skulls and big bones. There were no cemeteries, so if one had the money, one would pay to be buried in that sacred space. From there, we went to the center of literature (which used to be a big train station, but now only one train goes and it runs maybe 2x/month). Across the street was the oldest bar in Lima. We went in and ate ham sandwiches with onion (pan con chicharron con sarza) and purple juice (chicha morrada - corn juice with cloves and cinnamon). From there we walked to the main plaza. Xime told us about the history of the buildings--the bell towers of the old church had been destroyed by earthquakes and rebuilt... the (some politician’s) mansion had been burned down (by ppl who wanted to scare him, but accidentally destroyed it) and rebuilt. It was a beautiful square full of light and life. From there, we walked to a nearby coffee shop where we talked with the brewer of Peru Uno, Oliver. He let us taste two of his beers--a Belgian trippel and an homage to Peru with chamomile and other local herbs/spices. With the beer we had fried bites called tequenos. Oliver was half Peruvian and have Belgian and very focused on sustainable business practices. He was super friendly and cool. From there, we walked a way to find a stop full of people--vendors with their carts as well as big mats on the ground for gambling and big circles around storytellers or dancers. We are mazamorra morada with rice pudding and another sweet rice that was brown from the sweetener. We then had the healing herbal drink emoliente and anticuchos. At each vendor, xime explained the prep in depth, asking the vendor details in Spanish then relaying the answers to us in English. From there we walked to an old bar for “supte artists” where we had papas a la huancaina, yucca rellena (my fave), and chilcano de pisco. People around us were getting TURNT--an old asian man could barely walk, a guy and girl had 8 beers (large) between them, 3 men had 14, and a table of three had a whole fifth of pisco (45% alcohol). Quite full, we struggled through our food. I finished my share, but J did not finish his! We then met our ride (after Xima first approached the wrong car), dropped Xime off, and made it home. During the tour, Xime said the most protested issue in Peru was gender ideology. We went to bed around 11.

3/14

We woke up around 730. I was feeling sicker than I had, but we set off for a workout anyway. We ran for 20min and did a 30min Nike training. We were dripping with sweat. We then headed down our street for breakfast. Jarod’s came with papaya juice and coffee and he got a water--so much liquid to go with his double decker grilled cheese (basically lol). We walked to Kennedy Park which was beautiful with lots of flowers and cats. We went to a supermarket nearby and bought waters, nuts, plaintain chips, and yogurt. We walked back to our place and chilled for a while. We snacked on yogurt and plantain chips during the afternoon, showered, took a nap, and enjoyed the beautiful patio of our airbnb. We watched a little bit of Coach Carter hehe. Then around 6 we set off for dinner at the ancient ruins Huelca Pucllana. It was a long walk during rush hour, but we made it (slightly sweaty) and were seated immediately (in the room not immediately adjacent to the ruins). We got Topeka? Appetizer—4 from the menu for two people--some delicious bread, and our meals (salmon and risotto for me; tuna and veggies and rice for J). We had pisco sours which were strong and delicious. We admired the ruins for a few minutes before walking back down a central strip of park-like walkway. We made it to park Kennedy and stopped for picarones-fried pumpkin and sweet potato dough. I thought we would get one donut, but we got 6, drizzled in syrup. We carried these home, smacked on a few, and packed up. We went to bed by 10pm in prep for our early travel day the next morning.

3/15 LIMA-->CUSCO

3/15

We woke up around 430 and started getting ready. We snacked on leftover picarone and banana, then went to head downstairs at 515. We were stopped by the man next door (Gerard?) who said he owned the building and worked at Cheesecake Factory in gheridelli square in SF and owned a house in Oakland. We talked for a few minutes and gave him the key (a relief to me; I was worried the doorman might not be there for a hand off). The doorman was there and called a taxi for us--though it took a while, our driver spoke some English and warned us (in spanish) about being robbed at gunpoint in Cusco. I slept during some of the ride and was very groggy when we arrived. We got through security and onto our plane smoothly. I slept against the window the entire flight, but felt super weird--and anxious about altitude sickness--when we arrived. We got off and found our way to a crowd of desperate taxi drivers, all in our face asking if we wanted to ride with them. We said no gracias to them all, then realized we did need one. Jarod was haggling with one guy for a 15s ride but he wouldn’t budge; another driver jumped in and said he would take us for 15s. We rode through more modern Cusco into the more ancient part where we were staying. We arrived at our hostel around 10 and sipped coca tea in the lobby while they prepared our room for us. (Very early but convenient!) our room was beautiful and spacious Jarod lay on the alpaca blanket at the foot of our king bed so as not to get it dirty. We hung for a bit, then went down the street for lunch, back home for the bathroom, then out again to the main plaza. A very friendly man outside a different restaurant said “ah hello guys, we have been waiting for you come on in.” We told him we had already eaten and pressed onward, making our way through people pushing massages, trinkets, and art prints at us. The main plaza was beautiful. Green and surrounded by old churches and hills. We went around the shops at the edge--with lots of aggressive vendors and high end alpaca clothing shops. We stopped to buy sunglasses, then went to the Inka museum. We learned about the pre-inkan people who used basic tools and made basic ceramics and relied heavily on llamas and alpacas. The Incas themselves didn’t develop until ~1100 AD (news to me). They too made lots of ceramics and basic tools as well as little sculptures of animals and foods to sacrifice to the gods. The section on Spanish conquest was unclear because all the signs were in Spanish. It seems they put into power lots of Incan leaders who were pro-Spain and then screwed them over. When we were finishing up, it started pouring rain. We waited briefly for it to let up, then hurried home in the rain. We were struggling to breathe pretty often (>11k feet). At home, we got snuggly and took a nap. We found a dinner spot and went there around 5pm lol. Jarod ate alpaca for the first time. The place was empty and the chef was very sweet and cute and fed us aguaymanto which were delicious. The food was really excellent. We did have some comedy with the light above us--she turned it off to set the mood, then a young girl Came in later and turned it on above us without saying anything... we turned it back off, then the chef asked if we wanted it or not. On the way out, she asked for a tripadvisor review which i will happily write. We went to scope out prices of (fake) alpaca products and desserts. We went to a few stores and saw small “alpaca” blankets ranging from 40s--35s. We will go back to buy one or two before we leave. We bought a brownie and slice of chocolate cake nearby, then took it back to our room to feast on in our king bed. We watched some Simpsons in spanish, then read for a while. We went to go to sleep around 10, but I couldn’t sleep. Felt like I didn’t sleep all night--was up thinking. Maybe too much coca tea (inulin is stimulatory).

3/16

We woke to our alarms around 630, but didn’t get out of bed cuz I felt like I hadn’t slept. Finally got up around 9 and got breakfast at our hotel, which was delicious-especially the cornbread. We chilled in our room and prepped for the day, then ventured out. First, we went to San Pedro market. The streets outside were overflowing with vendors selling hard boiled quail eggs and slices of various fruits. Inside the main market place was literally everything. There was a hot food area, a line of juice vendors, butchers bakers, herb-sellers, woven goods vendors, and more. On the far side, we walked down a street lined with shops selling whole chickens (their naked bodies and weird feet displayed prominently). We then found a second, less touristy market place with more hot food, some dye stands, and even a haircut shop. We walked back and stopped for tamales, but didn’t have small enough bills so the woman sent us away. We found our way back to the plaza des armes and sat down for lunch--Jarod got pizza and I got chicken. From there, we started walking (steeply up) to Sacsayhuaman. We found a nice church with a fabulous viewpoint, then continued along the road to the main gate. There was a guard who said the ticket office was closed and we had to buy tickets in the plaza des armes. We were not motivated enough to walk there and back (still constantly out of breath from the altitude), and it was starting to sprinkle, so we headed home. We hung around home until we had to go to our pre-trek meeting. There were two people missing at the start--who came in 20minutes late absolutely breathless. The guide went over the plan for the next couple days. Everyone was young and seemed outdoorsy and ready. This trio of Australians had bought a lot of the recommended items on the packing list. I felt anxious and a little intimidated. We went to inkazuela for dinner, where we are delicious stews and fresh baked bread. A group of maybe 20 annoying Americans came and sat down and were so loud as we were paying. Embarrassing. We went home and packed and tried to go to bed early because we were waking up at 330 for a 4am pick up to start the drive to start the hike for Salkantay!!

3/17 BEGIN SALKANTAY

3/17 - Day 1 Salkantay

We woke up at 330, finalized our packing, and waited in the lobby briefly before our guide, Erick, arrived to pick us up on foot. He lived nearby our hotel in San Blas. We waited with him for the van, which didn’t seem to be where it was supposed to be. We got everyone picked up (including 3 bonus ppl who were doing a separate one-day trip. They were Thai but our guide Erick had told us they were Chinese lol.) We drove for about 2h on a windy bumpy road, I tried to sleep, but it was fitfull. When we stopped for breakfast I felt like actual shit and was worried I was getting altitude sickness. Jarod didn’t feel well either. I looked at the trekking route and realized we wouldn’t be much higher than Cusco, and this relieved me. We had a big breakfast (eggs, bread, fruit and yogurt, juice, coca tea), and sat by ourselves while the rest of the group bonded. We both started to feel better with the food and fresh air. We got back in the vans and drove another hour before getting off, sunscreening up, officially doing intros with our hiking group, and hitting the trail. Jarod and I were at the front with the other Americans, Chris and Alex from Buffalo, New York. The Australians, Emma, Ben, and Nick, were in the middle, with the Austrians, Anna and Patrick at the end. The start of the hike required some elevation climb, but then it evened out and we walked along an aqueduct in the mountainside for the majority of the trek. I accidentally called Emma Anna when asking her to take a photo. We made it to camp around 12? We were assigned Sky camps, which were tiny but beautiful glass comes with little twin beds in them after a 3-4ft doorway. I read and fell asleep for 7min before it was time for lunch). Lunch was a huge feast--the food was good but a bit cold. We then rested for half an hour and then hiked up to the lake. It was a relatively short hike, but quite steep. I was very out of breath, but led the charge alongside Chris. Anna and Patrick were lagging so far behind, Erick told us to go ahead and then wait at the half way point. Chris and Jarod and I led, waited for the group, then went on some more. The field we were walking through was full of cows and horses grazing, flanked by giant hills on either side. We walked up and over the top and found ourselves at a stunning blue lake. It was breathtaking, with streams from a snowy mountain running into an aquamarine reservoir. We took some photos, then climbed up a ridge along the side, from which we could see the lake as well as the grassy valley we came up through. It started to rain and we saw a beautiful rainbow in the valley but also needed to hurry back down. Everyone put on our ponchos and took a picture. I got my walking sticks for the way down, and they helped on the muddy parts but made me very slow. Jarod and I lagged behind the group as we all charged down the hill. We made it back, met as a team for tea time at 530, then dinner at 630. They had given us snacks, but we didn’t really need them because we were fed so often and so well. (I still ate my cookies earlier.. because they were delicious hehe). We got ready for bed after dinner around 8. I had a swig if Nick’s pisco before bed, then crawled into my sleeping bag and tried (but struggled) to sleep. I got up at 1am because Jarod was getting up. I hissed after him that I wanted to come to the bathroom, but he didn’t hear me. When I stepped outside, he was standing there. (He has walked toward the bathroom and been startled by a cow and come back loll). After that, I had a very hard time sleeping.

3/18 - Day 2 Salkantay

Started to climb, through some grassy fields, up the “Gringo killer” and to Salkantay summit, where it started raining. Emma had to breathe from an oxygen tank at the top (she had had severe altitude sickness in previous visits), and the Austrian couple took horses to the top to save their legs. On the far side of the summit, our trek got truly miserable. Steep decline. Soaked head to toe. I remember thinking, “Wow, we paid to do this.” We got to our midway lunch spot, where I tried to dry my socks, and we commiserated with our group. Thankfully, the rain let up, and the rest of the hike descended into warmer, more tropical forests. For tea time, they made us a freaking cake. We paid to use a shower and went into our little thatched-roof huts, a tiny space with one large bed. I had a dream that I had no feet (likely brought on by the extreme pain I felt in all of my joints!).

3/19 - Day 3 Salkantay

Started the trek with Erick painting our faces with berries. By this time, felt VERY bonded with the group. The hiking this day was much tamer, flatter roads, less extreme climbs/drops, and a fun little cart that we rode across a river. We stopped by a coffee plantation and had lunch there. We took a van some stretch of the drive to end up at the trailhead to Machu Picchu. We went out with our group for dinner, and I felt excited but also sad to be so close to the end of our time with them.

3/20 - Day 4 Salkantay (Machu Picchu!!)

Got up to start the trek to Machu Picchu around 5am(?). It was pitch black, and we CHARGED up the mountain, often annoyed that the people in front of us were not immediately letting us pass them. By the time we arrived at the gate, there were maybe 20 people in line, and we were drenched in sweat but also STOKED to be there. It was pretty chilly and very misty, so we had a few minutes of great visibility, but lots of fog other than that. Erick gave us a tour and some history, then (VERY SADLY) left us. Our group was a little devastated. We explored on our own a little, then headed back down as droves and droves of tourists poured in. We took a bus back and ate lunch (and many beers/pisco sours) at a small cafe while waiting for our train back. We eventually got on a train, which took us to a bus, which took us back to Cusco. We had booked a nicer room so that we could soak up the luxury after some very tough days on the trail. We met the Australians and the Austrians for drinks, and ended up staying up pretty late playing games and chatting with them in a Cusco bar.

3/21 CUSCO-->BOGOTA

3/21

We were awoken at 8 by a mysterious knock. I had some stomach trouble, then came back to bed. We got up at 845 to get breakfast. We ate the hotel breakfast, then went to our room to pack. I was feeling very sad to be leaving, nostalgic for our time on the trail. We packed, left our bags at the front, and went to go buy some “alpaca” blankets. We got two bracelets for J, three small paintings, and two alpaca blankets. The lady told us they were 50s even though we had been to the store before and been told 40, and had seen them elsewhere for 35. Jarod got her down to 40 and we left with them. By now I was hungry and emotional and tired, so I started to tear up over indecision with where to eat. We sat at a cafe and had 11s sandwiches. We went back to the hotel and had them call a cab. We arrived at the airport and checked in, then strangely waited in a room before being allowed through security (not many intl flights out of cusco... seems to require its own protocol). We made it to our gate and onto the plane. I was happy to be sitting next to Jarod (he was K and I was E... but for whatever reason those two are adjacent...) we had steak and vino tinto on the flight ;). We took a taxi home - a man lifted our bags into the trunk then asked for a tip. When we got there, our hosts were nowhere to be found and it was pouring rain. A property manager came out and started talking at us in Spanish very quickly--I think saying that our hosts hadn’t told her anything. She somewhat angrily escorted us outside, and I thought we were going to have to wait there. She then showed us how to work all the locks on the door, then let us inside. We got wine and cheese at the grocery store and snacked on those for dinner

3/22

We woke up around 8 with plans to eat breakfast at home then head to la candelaria for a bike tour at 1030. All appliances rebelled against us. The eggs stuck to the bottom of the pan, and the eggs that didn’t stick barely cooked. I tried to put laundry in but the timer never went down; it just perpetually washed. The toaster oven was a mystery of its own. Regardless, we eventually dined on eggs and arepas, and Jarod got the washer to switch to rinse then dry. We called an uber and got dropped off by the bike shop. We waited in a plaza and chatted with some other travelers. We embarked as a large group and found our way to a plaza with a statue of Simon Bolivar... talked about journalism... then split into two groups and departed. We biked to “the time square of Bogota” and talked about Germans convincing Colombians to drink beer instead of chicha... saw street art and discussed the battle between more/less formal forms... we biked through a neighborhood of mixed architecture and talked about the identity crisis in bogota... we rode to a park and snacked on fruits, then admired a giant map of bogota before riding past more street art (Jarod got a flat as usual), and to a big memorial for those killed in the civil war- tears streaming down the side of a building into a pool of water. We went to a coffee shop and talked some with our guide, Mateo. He talked about working in social services in London and suggested those services weren’t helpful. He showed impatience with others’ inability to learn english. We talked about the education system a bit then started our coffee tour. We biked down a more colorful street--with gov-commissioned art on all the walls. We rode through the red light district to a market for fruit tasting. We then ran across the street and learned how to play Tejo. It was really absurd and fun even though I was bad at it. Then we went back to the bike shop and paid. We got what was supposed to be a light lunch of ajiaco and a tamale to share - it was heavy. We walked to the main plaza and Gabriel Garcia Marques cultural center. We tried to stand outside our lunch spot to get WiFi to order an uber. Instead we went to a cafe and bought banana bread to get their code. We went home, hung out, then headed to el chato for dinner. The host asked if we had a reservation, which we had a hard time understanding. Eventually we were sat at the bar. We got cocktails, the best order of chips and guacamole ever, lamb (Jarod), and fish with mushrooms (me). When we finished dinner, we went to the grocery store to buy more coconut cookies and then we headed home. We went to bed around 11.

3/23

We were slow to start in the morning. We made breakfast and did some research on Monserrate before calling an uber to go there. The uber got lost in a nearby national park and asked several ppl for directions but apparently few of them were helpful. We finally made it to the trail head and hiked the (very tough) ascent of 2000m. It took us about 50min; we arrived around 12. The view was beautiful but there were lots of ppl- even a mass going on. There were lots of stands for foods and trinkets. On the way down we got queso fresco con fruta. We then walked all the way home, zagging through la candelaria, stopping for bunuelos and empanadas, and then by the park for fruit and carrot cake. There were countless street vendors with hot dogs, coconuts, fruits, cell phone minutes, dried food, etc. We got home, napped and snacked, then showered. We went to Bogota Brewing Company around the corner. The waitress talked to us a lot very quickly and we were totally lost. She then brought us four drinks to try -- we were worried we needed to say something about them but didn’t even really know what they were. We ordered beers and a pizza and reflected on the trip and plans for going home. We went to the store for more coconut cookies, then home. We sat and ate for a little, then packed up and went to bed around 10.

3/24 BOGOTA-->SAN FRANCISCO

3/24

345am wake up - was awoken a little early by drunks in the street. Got ready and Jarod called an uber. Rode to the airport, got through immigration and security, wanted crepes and waffles but couldn’t find them. Had to go to the desk to check in (after hearing our names over the speaker). Alarms were going off while we waited... no one seemed to care.

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