November 2017 - Michelle Hargrave

Falling in love in Lima

Michelle / November 30, 2017

I started off my year-long journey with one goal – to fall in love. Maybe to fall in love with a person or maybe to fall in love with a place, an activity, a lifestyle. I wasn’t sure what it would look like but I was open to the idea of love. Every month my travel mates ask me if I’ve fallen in love and sadly I say, “not yet, but I’ve found lots of things I really like!” But arriving in Lima, feeling the tropical air, smelling the salty ocean, seeing the pink and purple and red sunsets, I can officially say I’m in love! The last few months I’ve slept in and my energy felt low but now, each morning I bound out of bed at 6am, throw on my shoes and head to the beach! I simply can’t wait to get near the water, to hear the waves rushing in, to gaze out at the horizon and dream big dreams. When you’re too excited to sleep, when you wake up eager for each new day, when you can’t stop smiling – you’re in love! And if I needed further proof, my apartment is a five-minute walk from Parque del Amor – the Park of Love! I spend time every day strolling the boardwalk along the ocean, watching the sunset and taking pictures of palm trees. If I didn’t know better, I’d think we were in Maui. I was still exploring my new neighborhood when our group posted an event happening on Saturday – a visit to the sand dunes and Huacachina oasis, a four-hour drive south of Lima. Something felt familiar as I read the description and I remembered something I’d heard years ago. The famous Nazca Lines are four hours south of Lima! With a bit of research, I confirmed my thoughts and decided to combine both sights in one trip. We booked a tour that included a private driver from Lima to Ica, a 70-minute flight, lunch, one-hour sand dune buggy tour and return to Lima. It was going to be a long day but so much fun. As we headed outside Lima and along the southern coast, the landscape quickly changed from lush, green parks to endless miles of sand and rocks. Our driver told us that it never rains here so anything we saw that was green has been watered by hand! We pulled up to a tiny airport and headed through the gate, where we saw even smaller airplanes. Our plane held 12 people, six rows with one seat on each side. We chatted with the other passengers and nervously laughed at the size of the plane we were about to board. The co-pilot handed us a map, explaining the route we were going to fly and the images we would see. 13 images total including the famous astronaut, spider, hummingbird and more. We climbed in and set off for the 70-minute flight. It was blue sky and sunshine, which gave us stunning views over the valley. As we approached the Nazca Valley, the co-pilot reminded us that the plane would bank left first, so people on the left side of the plane could see the image, then the plane would bank right, so the right side could see. Sounded good, everyone gets a view, right?! I love flying and wasn’t nervous at all, until the plane banked hard left and my stomach flipped. We banked right and I knew I was in trouble. I was so nauseous I couldn’t even look out the window to see the image he was describing. Oh no, that was only one image?! How many are there? 13? Ackk, I’m not going to make it! I stared out the window, took some deep breaths and willed myself to be okay. The feeling subsided but I knew I was on the edge. I looked down, took photos, and reminded myself how much I had wanted to see these images. I chose this adventure! When we finally saw the last image and the captain announced we were heading back to the airport, I started to relax. Back on the ground, we piled out of the plane and breathed a sigh of relief. Turns out I wasn’t the only one on the verge of being sick! Our driver was waiting and whisked us away to lunch. We arrived at Huacachina Oasis and sat on a veranda overlooking the small lake. Our fellow passengers where there as well and we chatted about the flight, where we were from and upcoming travels. Then we were climbing into dune buggies and heading out to explore 55 kms of sand dunes. I’ve never been in a sand dune buggy and I imagined we’d be flying along but I didn’t realize how fast we’d really go…or that it would feel like you’re about to fall off the side of a mountain! I was sitting in the front and had the full view of roaring to the top of a dune, only to fly over the top and roar all the way down. My screams only made the driver go faster! I quickly learned a valuable lesson – keep your mouth shut or else you’ll be eating sand! Sand was going everywhere – in my hair, in my clothes, and in my mouth. I couldn’t stop laughing – it was just so much fun! We stopped for photos, admired the view and marveled that we were still in Peru. It was sand as far as you could see. It felt like we were in the Sahara Desert. All too soon our adventure was over and we were back in the car heading to Lima. It had been a fun day and I was so happy we got to explore this amazing country.

Life, REMOTE YEAR

Exploring new ways to live

Michelle / November 16, 2017

Spending one month in twelve cities is a great way to try on different lifestyles. You get a better sense if you’re a city person or a small town person, if you like to be on the water or surrounded by nature, if you value space or amenities. Wrapping up my time in Argentina, I had the chance to observe two different lifestyles – one in the wide open foothills of the Sierra Mountains and the other tucked away along a river with 4×4 access only. We had a track event that involved a two hour bus ride and a full day of horseback riding so it was the perfect fit to explore outside the city and spend time with horses. When we arrived at the ranch, the horses were already saddled up outside. It was the skinniest bunch of horses I’d ever seen! The gauchos matched us up and I trusted I’d have the perfect horse for me but when he led over a tall white horse, I hesitated. I’ve never trusted white horses and find them high-spirited. But I hopped on and had a little chat with my horse. I talked about the great day we were going to have together and how excited I was to see his home. We started off as a group but slowly found myself at the back of the pack. As we walked by a farm, a dog ran out and staring barking furiously at us. My horse stopped. He was frozen (this was not good – a trail horse afraid of a dog?) The other horses continued on and my horse got nervous. He threw his head and whinnied but refused to move. I calmly told him it was okay and urged him along – but no luck. A few minutes later, a couple horses came up behind us and we joined them (maybe my horse just didn’t want to be alone?) As we continued along, my horse veered into the bushes, causing me to duck under branches, and scratch my arm on the prickles. Then we passed through a gate and he moved over at the last second, pinning my leg against the fence post! Hmmm…what’s going on? I was getting the feeling he didn’t want to hang out with me. Eventually we caught up to the rest of the group and got back in line…until some of the other horses decided they wanted to gallop. I held my horse back, preferring to walk, but he had other ideas. He started throwing his head and bucking, determined to get me off his back and go for a run! I managed to stay on, as the gaucho came galloping over to help me. Still my horse wouldn’t calm down and continued to jump and twist. Then I saw him eye up the fence and knew we were in trouble. If he decided to jump, one of us was going to get seriously hurt. I had tried to bond with this horse, I had talked nicely but we just weren’t meant to be. I jumped off and decided I would rather walk than continue to ride this crazy horse. The gaucho explained it was a long way to go so I would have to ride something. Thankfully my friend Brandon offered to switch horses. I gladly handed over the reins and mounted his quiet horse. The rest of the ride was smooth as my new horse calmly walked along, carefully choosing his footing as we went through streams and down rocky trails. More than once I glanced around and saw Brandon off the trail and trying to get the crazy white horse back in line. After a 2.5 hours ride, we stopped for lunch and then had the option to ride back in the blazing sun or take the van. 2.5 hours was enough for me. Half the group stayed to nap under the trees and the other half got back on the horses for the return ride. I noticed the gaucho hopped on the crazy white horse, determined to keep him in line on the way home. Even though I didn’t ride all day and I had to switch horses, I still enjoyed seeing the lifestyle of an Argentinian gaucho. They are brave and hardy – charging down hills and over rocks without a second thought. The wide-open space and fresh air appealed to me, but I know I need to be near water to feel happiest. The next day, we headed two hours in a different direction to visit an eco-village called Umepay. It was a gravel/dirt road so bumpy even our driver was concerned about where we were going. We stopped every oncoming vehicle and asked if we were on the right road. As we approached several gates, I jumped out to open and close the gate behind our van (something any kid raised on a farm instinctively knows to do), and eventually we pulled into a quiet oasis. We were warmly greeted by two women and a cute little boy named Tandoori. We followed them to benches around a campfire pit, under the shade of a tree and listened to the story of how they created Umepay. A group of 11 friends were fed up with housing costs and the rat race of working just to pay the bills. They decided to sell everything, pool their money and buy a piece of land. They agreed to only develop 30 per cent of the land, leaving the remaining 70 per cent to nature. Slowly they built homes and eventually a community hall for workshops and retreats. They shared sustainable values and worked together to create a lifestyle they loved. It’s a peaceful place with hammocks, a meditation labyrinth, and daily yoga classes on the

Life, REMOTE YEAR

Finding rhythm when everything around you changes

Michelle / November 7, 2017

I was born and raised in British Columbia, and other than a brief stint in Alberta, I’ve always lived in B.C. One of the things I love about the West Coast is experiencing all four seasons. I know that after the heat of an Okanagan summer, we move into the cool crispness of fall. I know the snow will come but it won’t last long and we’ll shift into the early signs of spring. I’ve experienced this cycle over and over and my body relaxes with the certainty of this knowledge. Living in one province also means you start to know the rhythms of nature during each season. I know when the garter snakes arrive on the Mission Creek Greenway (and don’t walk there then!); I know what time the sun blazes down on Paul’s Tomb and makes the trail too hot to hike; I know you can usually find blue sky on the mountains, even when it’s foggy in town. We take these natural cycles for granted. You don’t even know they are happening – until they change and throw everything out of alignment! I left Kelowna in March, the start of spring, so it felt normal for me to land in Croatia when they were starting spring as well. I flowed along throughout Europe as we moved from spring into summer and gladly embraced the heat of Spain in August. After a month of 40 degree days, my body was ready for the gentle ease into fall. After all, this was the cycle I’ve experienced by whole life, this was all I knew. But our itinerary was to leave Europe and head to South America in September. South America – that’s warm, right? Oh no – South America is just finishing winter and moving into spring in September! The cold weather was a shock to my system. There was no easing into a cool autumn – we were thrown back in time to do spring all over again. Back to wearing layers, as the weather changes every hour. Back to dark nights, as the sun sets earlier. Back to trees with no leaves. Walking to the post office early one morning (to mail my monthly postcards, which is always an adventure in itself), I noticed kids heading to school and adults off to work. I saw a woman wearing a black cardigan with her dress pants and I got emotional – I was suddenly back home, getting dressed for work and longing for winter to be over. I remember the feeling well – you’re so ready for spring, you pack away coats and pull out dresses, willing spring to arrive. There’s still a chill in the air but you refuse to wear a coat so the little cardigan gets worn every morning (often left at the office as the day warms up). It’s funny – it’s like seeing that cardigan was a signal to my body that it was spring. Things started to click into place and I let go of longing for fall and it’s changing leaves and pumpkin spice. I slowly started to embrace the idea of spring after summer, of buds appearing on trees, of flowers blooming. Although I miss fall (my favourite season), and I know it will be strange to skip winter (I won’t miss driving in snow), it’s a fun, new experience to have two springs and two summers in one year. I don’t know if there is a snake season (I hope not!), I don’t know when the sun gets too hot, I don’t know the signs of a coming storm. But I do know I’m having an adventure and my brain and body are working overtime to adapt. Everything is unexpected, everything is new, everything is unfamiliar. And I find the best thing to do is let go, be curious and find your own rhythm as it unfolds.