Reconstruction

My dear faithful reader,

So it is already Spring Break this semester at Cal, and I can hardly contain the excitement of FREEDOM I feel from not having any major obligations this week. Actually, my number one goal has been to re-construct my travels for this blog--partly for you, but now, it's mostly for myself.

I described this a bit when I first got back to the States: the moments of clarity, in remembering the feeling of emerging from the Los Leones metro station in Providencia, or walking home at 6am after a carrete, or waking up to the onion cart in the morning, or going to the feria for the first time with Marcelo, and on and on and on. The moments are eternal, and I savor them as much as they make me melancholy.

And I wonder: what is this sentimentality? Weren't there moments of misery in all that? Wasn't I sad much of the time in Santiago, heavy with regrets and loneliness? Yes, I was, but I also savor those moments because they transport me to a time that was so magical for me, so special, and I just feel honored to have been there.

At any rate, there are still lots of stories that I want to convey, to bring me back to good times while traveling. You can look forward to those stories soon: I will be writing them as though it were not months, but maybe days, since I experienced them, with this serving as my only prologue.

Meanwhile, I am practically graduating this May, and my parents and younger brother and step-sister are all coming out to see me, which makes me really proud and happy. Of course, it's a fake graduation, since I still have to take one class, which I'll do in the fall. It looks like I'll be working at the new Cody's store in SF starting this summer, which puts me in a bit of a conundrum, as far as wanting to travel. I know I need a stable job to earn some money before I head south again, but it makes me sad to be already caught in that kind of cycle that doesn't allow for much freedom. We'll see how it goes. I would ideally be in South America by next winter (their summer), for a lengthy period of some kind. Ecuador tops my list, but I do want to see more of Chile and Uruguay, too. I don't think I can do it on my own, so I also need a companion...any takers?