Marcela, the surgeon!

My first stop carrying my pack was to get a new passport and visit my sister Marcela in Tegucigalpa. My baby sister is now a third year surgical resident. She brought me to two of her all night shifts where I was a medical tourist. Regulations are not so strict in Honduras, I think if I had asked I might have helped! It mean, it was only an appendectomy...

During my visit, I got to know my brother in law, Jorge and his family much better. They are a family of liberals, artists and musicians within a very conservative Honduran society. They even regularly cook soy! They are my kind of people.

After the daily struggle of trying to get a passport, I would spend time with Marcela. For the first time in years, I was able to see how she lived. I reconnected with her in a way that can´t be done long distance. It reminded me that there is no replacement for time spent together. Yep, not even a blog site :-)

The bureaucracy involved in getting a new passport when you have not lived in Honduras for 15 years is mind-boggling. I waited in lines long enough to make a Buddhist monk bonkers... luckily, in the end, I have a new passport and am off to Nicaragua, the land of leftist insurgencies and volcanoes.

What to take?

The more experienced the traveler, the less they carry. Reducing my needs to what I could carry in a pack is an exercise in prioritizing and simplifying. 42 lbs later I will be getting a lot more exercise of the sweating sort but at least the damn stuff fit in the pack :-)

A. The Pack (with Honduran flag in name tag and essential toilet paper)
B. The Little Pack (which attaches to the big pack)
C. Little Pack contents (Swiss army knife, umbrella, camera, presents to give away, diary, playing cards, flash light) and security belt for passport, cards, cash, tickets and such
D. All of my clothes in mesh cubes
E. Sandals for beach and dancing shoes
F. Emergency veggie food and mug
G. Bags to organize pack, I like containers
H. Books (Chekhov, Borges, Peter Pan), Lonely Planet Guide, Portuguese course
I. Traveling day outfit with hiking boots over cold weather gear
J. Toiletries and the essential towel
K. First aid, medications (motion sickness, headaches, diarrhea) and repair kit

A lot of thought went into what I was going to take but I also put in a lot of thought into my preliminary itinerary and that already looks very different. I am curious to see what I later decide was not really a necessity.

Well, it finally happened. I am on the road! There was much planning, waiting, changing of plans, waiting again and then from one day to the other, there I go. If I thought it too much, I might not have left.

I am now in Tegucigalpa visiting my sister before going to Nicaragua. The adventure began when I decided to take the trip back in the US but now I am carrying a pack.