South America, except Guyana's and Paraguay.
Plus Curacao and Puerto Rico
During June 9 to Oct. 10 1981 I took a trip to South America.
Here are letters to Betsy and some pictures.
1) Postcard from Caracas, Ven 6/10/81 Hi, I made it! Meet a guy
from Milwaukee at the Caracas Airport and we are staying together
for a while. This city is really a melee! Talk about mass
confusion, whew! This is our 2nd day here but we will probably be
leaving soon. The pension (hotel) we are in is truly a roach motel
( I killed two last night). But we only booked for two nights. I
left my passport in my pack so I had a bit of a hassle when I got
to the airport here, since you go through immigration before you
get your baggage. Next I'll either be going to Angel Falls (East)
or Columbia (West). The weather is moderately hot but cool at
night. Bye, With all my love, Rick
Caracas
Caracas
Caracas
Caracas
Caracas
Caracas, home of Simon Bolivar
Caracas
2) Postcard from Ciudad Bolivar, VEN 6/12 Hi! Me amigo y me are
going to Angel Falls on 6/14 and from there he is going back
towards Columbia and I'm going to Brazil. Now we are in Ciudad
Bolivar (Bolivar City) 400 miles from Caracas, it seems like a
pretty nice town (pop 110,000). It has a huge river (Orinoco) going
through it, it's so big it only has one bridge on the whole river.
The city has a walkway all along the riverfront, it's nice but
littered. We will fly to Angel Falls as that's the only way to see
it, it's costing$130 but includes 3 meals and hotel room and air
fare and boat trip. Should be nice since it's one of the 7 wonders
of the world. See you next card. With all my love, Rick
Ciudad Bolivar, Ven, Orinoco River
Ciudad Bolivar
3) Postcard from Ciudad Bolivar, VEN 6/16 Hi, I'm back from Angel
Falls even though I never really saw them. The only way to see them
is from a plane and the weather was not good enough to pass by - oh
well. We had fun anyway. My Milwaukee friend went back north toward
Columbia and I will be going to Brazil in 2 days because the plane
only leaves twice a week and there is no public transport to there.
I meet a guy here in Ciudad Bolivar and he's showing me around. He
speaks very little English but we manage. Actually the plane will
take me to just inside Ven. near the Brazil boarder, from there
I'll use busses to Manaus and Rio. Adios y todo me amor. Rick
Ciudad Bolivar, Bill
From Plane en route to Canaima
5) Letter and postcard from Ciudad Bolivar, Ven Postcard 6/19 - Hi.
Ended up staying 4 days at Ciudad Bolivar because of travel
difficulties. First tried to fly out - the plane made first of it's
"milk run" stops and the left engine wouldn't start. After he tried
a few times it started but the pilot decided to return to C.B. I
meet this diamond broker on the plane who said he HAD to get to
Santa Elana so he commenced to hire a private plane and asked if I
wanted to pay $125, I hesitated and said no, so I got on a bus to
the closest(to Santa Elena) town with public transportation and
spent the night in a sleazy hotel (I slept with my clothes on).
Then this morning I caught a Toyota 4 wheel drive jeep 88km down
the 312km stretch to here. From there I sat in the back of a
flatbed truck of a Brazilian and his girl. What a ride! This whole
312km is gravel and parts of it make our "Oregon path" look like
highway 41 (near Appleton, WI)! The scenery was beautiful indeed.
Well, here I am settled in a rather nice hotel and going to go to
Boa Vista, Brazil tomorrow. Adios y see you card (tarjeta). Rick
Letter 6/23 Dear Betsy, I shouldn't be writing you now as I'm very
depressed, but I feel like writing. Here's my hard luck story (it's
not that bad): I wanted like hell to get out of this town so on
6/18 I got a flight to a border town (Santa Elena, VEN) to then go
on to Brazil. The flight took off 2 1/2 hours late then came to the
first stop at some remote military outpost and the left engine
wouldn't start. Well, when he finally got it started he decided to
go no further south but go back to C.B. The next plane is on 6/19
but it is full and the next plane is 6/22. Great! There is public
bus transport only 3/4 of the way, the remaining has to be done in
a Jeep or big truck. Well, I was determined to get out so I hopped
on the bus. Nine hours later (10pm) we arrived at the 3/4 point
where the dirt road starts. I stayed at a VERY sleazy motel (I
slept in my clothes). The next day I got a ride in a Jeep 88km of
the 312km stretch. From there I sat in the back of a flatbed truck
of a Brazilian and his girl. This road was something else! (see
card). Then on 6/20 I got on the bus to Boa Vista, BR. Everything
was going great until the shit hit the proverbial fan! We went
through the VEN post okay then the Brazilian post. The guy says
"you don't have a visa, USA needs a visa". I say "holly shit!! I
don't believe it!". Talk about mad, I was mad. The whole world
collapsed. The nearest consulate is in - - yep, you guessed it --
Cuidad Bolivar! And the next flight isn't until 6/22, so two more
days in Santa Elena. The next day (6/21) I ran into these
Californians who were on there way to Brazil, well I thought I'd
try it again so I went with them but the border people wouldn't
budge. Nice try! The Californians told me where they would be
staying in Manaus, BR. So I may run into them again. They were real
nice. The flight back went perfect and I had enough time to get my
visa and buy a return ticket for today. The aborted flight was 2
1/2 hours late and no airline personnel showed up until (7:30),
half an hour after the flight was supposed to leave (7am)! So I
figured if I got there at 6:30 that would be okay. You won't
believe what those fu**ers did. There were hoards of people wanting
to go and clambering at 6AM. They sold my SEAT! They sold it! I
don't believe it! Well, I did get my money back. So here I am back
at my hotel in disgust. Really, Betsy, things aren't that bad.
Maybe I'll get used to this town. I'll have been here at least 6
days (2 was plenty). I've meet a lot of people here at the library
who helped me with my Spanish. Overall I've really enjoyed this
trip. The only problems are transport and language, they're not
insurmountable. Betsy I miss you so much my heart tells me to come
back. You are such a beautiful person in all respects. I love you
with all of my heart and body. I think of you a lot, about what an
excellent person you are and what a fine family you come from. I
can't wait to see, touch, feel, and talk to you. I am learning to
appreciate you more than I ever thought I could. All of my clothes
are dirty so I have to get them washed and mail this. From what
I've heard it will take four weeks to reach you! I could tell you
stories about their postal department. Bye bye, my love, Rick
Airstrip at Canaima
Village near Canaima
Canaima
4) Postcard from Manaus 6/29 Hi, well I finally made it Brazil
after just one more delay - the plane on Thursday got to Santa
Elena and decided not to land because of cloud cover! I believe he
was lost and missed the town so I took another airline (Rutaca) on
Friday. It was a DC3, like being in WWII era. Met a German guy on
the plane who invited me to his house, he lives with a guy from
Namibia, Africa who (he's Dutch) was travelling in the jungle and
entered the restricted zone so they took all of his stuff. He's
trying to get it back now. Saturday I rode for 20.5 hours in a bus
to here (Manaus). Two rivers meet here to form the Amazon. Tomorrow
I'll be heading to Santerem then Belem on a boat down the Amazon.
It's a five day trip, should be great. I like Brazil better than
VEN already. It's people seem more expressive and open. My visa
screw-up ended up costing $200 with air tickets, hotel, etc. This
morning I got talking with this dude who said he knew two
Californians here, they are the two I met in Santa Elena! What a
coincidence! (here in the motel). Adios me mejor amiga, Rick
Santarem, BR
Santarem, BR, Andre
8) Postcard from Santerem 7/2 Hi, I'm in Santerem, BR. now after a
real nice cruise down the Amazon for two days from Manaus. Staying
with a French guy who works in Salvador and who's on vacation. Will
leave here on Sat. for Belem. Arriving Monday. This town seems real
nice, about 40,000 people, it's kind of a funky town. I'm siting in
a town square of sorts watching people walk around. The sun is
shinning and 200km south of the equator it's hot when the sun is
shinning, even at 8:45AM. The river was great when coming here, I
watched a town's lights faded for about two hours until the lights
sparkled like starts. I was imagining canoing upstream for day,
seeing the cities lights for nights before reaching them. Here
comes an oxen-drawn cart with roofing material on it. Bye bye for
now, Love Rick
Santarem
7)letter from Santerem 7/3 Betsy, Hi, I'm not depressed this time
so hopefully this letter will be somewhat more upbeat. Although at
the moment it's hard to think of things to tell you, other than the
usual "I went here and saw this, I went there and saw that" BS.
Actually I love telling you about it, it's just that I'd much
prefer vocal communication because my writing leaves something to
be desired. I just looked at the American Express book to see of
you could write a letter to me through their office but the only
one that accepts letters to clients is in Caracas! I don't think
I'll be flying out of there even though I bought a round trip from
Miami. Probably be flying from Bogota. I think I'll call you from
Rio. If you are still thinking of coming down here for a week or so
maybe you should get a visa for Brazil. In case you want to come
there, it's free in any case. Those guys from California mailed
their applications in with their passports. They sent them to the
consulate in San Francisco (you can get the address from "The Book
of Addresses" in the library). You can get the form by calling
Embratur (Brazilian Tourism Authority). Get their toll free number.
You need any small picture (I used one you took) and you'll have to
get a travel agent to write a letter saying your itinerary of air
travel. Just tell the travel agent if you decide to go you will guy
your ticket through him. Forget about shots (unless you're
medically worried), nobody has once asked to see my vaccination
certificate - they could care less. I've lost so much stuff I can't
believe it. Four rolls of film (undeveloped), my camera with 5
pictures taken, deck of cards, flashlight, the pencil your Dad gave
me, sunglasses and if you couldn't tell by now, my blue
flair!!(this letter written in red). My camera could have been
stolen because I left my pack at the Ciudad Bolivar airport twice,
once all night. I bought a new Instamatic today for US$30, a little
expensive. Most of the other items fell out of my pack because I'd
forgot to zip it up real well. I don't feel too bad, these two
girls from California whom Andrei' (the French guy I met on the
boat) and I met on the boat were at the beach in Manaus with their
Pentax cameras and a bunch of cash and it was ripped off while they
were swimming. They admitted it was really stupid of them. They're
staying at the local missionary's house for free, then they're
going on the same boat as us to Belem. As I look back on VEN, I
certainly had a good time there but as compared to Brazil it's much
more militaristic and allows less freedom of movement. Christ, in
VEN you couldn't go from one town to the next without passing
through a checkpoint complete with submachine gun toting guards
ashing for your passport. At every airport there are always armed
guards lurking about. I haven't been stopped once in Brazil yet.
They're having elections here next year, the first time in a while.
It seems a lot more free here and the people act more free. For
instance, nobody in VEN wears shorts, the temperature is 95 degrees
F, with the humidity at 75% and they're walking around with tight
jeans on! Insane! It's like they're afraid to let anyone see their
legs. But here quite a few people wear shorts. And in VEN the male
macho image is strictly adhered to. Whistling at girls is a must
for a "real" Venezuelan male. Those girls from California were
complaining about how bad it is here, I told them they don't know
what bad is! The backpack is working okay, even though crowds of
people stare when they see it - it's a little unusual down here.
But I do regret bringing my sleeping bag, I already tried to sell
it once but who needs a Holofil sleeping bag to 25 degrees F in the
hot jungle? I have used it twice though just to lay on. Also, I
brought too many clothes. People travel very light around here.
These river boats are somewhat of a zoo. There is first class -
upstairs cabin with two or four bunks per room (depending on the
boat), sometimes air conditioned. Second class you string your own
hammock upstairs,and third class string your own hammock downstairs
(with the cargo and engine). Fare for all three includes food,
although the food for third class is different. We all were second
class and there are so many hammocks your bumping into the hammocks
on either side all night long. I tried that for an hour and said
"fu** it", got out my sleeping bag and laid it on a table
underneath all the swinging hammocks then I slept fine. The 2nd
night I moved my hammock. Hammocks are terrible to sleep in but
they're not too bad, once you get the hang of it. Ha Ha! Andrei'
has a super job - he works for a touring club which organizes tours
for groups (like a travel agent). And every so often they pay him
to travel around on his own - why, I don't know, he doesn't seem to
be looking for any nice hotels for his members to stay at. He
learned English in school in France. You're probably wondering how
I managed to screw up my Brazil visa. With all of the advance
warning from the consulate. Well, originally I decided to go
counter clockwise through South America so I wouldn't need to get a
visa until Argentina or Uruguay, but then I met that guy from
Milwaukee and we started clockwise and I just plain forgot about
the visa VS - it was really stupid! Oh well, that's why I saved so
much money; to offset stupid mistakes!! I'm going to go mail this
letter, hope it gets there fast. All my love from Brazil, Rick
Santarem, market on Amazon
Town on Amazon between Santarem and Belem
Amazon
Nancy, Andre, & Corin
6) Postcard from Belem BR 7/6 Hello, just got here at noon and it's
a huge town but seems real nice. It sits on the Atlantic although I
haven't seen it yet, since we came down the Amazon. Belem is not
really at the mouth. The ride from Santerem was okay except for the
food. It didn't agree with my system so I didn't eat anything
except rice and fruit for one day. I might leave tomorrow for
Fortalaza, it's a 24 hour bus trip. Supposed to have excellent
beaches and be a nice town. I don't know if Andre' will go or not,
he's running out of money and needs enough to fly back to France.
He might be going right to Salvador. Our entire river trip covered
535 miles and took 81 hours of boat time. I saw a lot of little
villages with no roads and of course a lot of nature. Belem is the
cheapest town yet, for instance, this nice hotel is US$2.70 with
breakfast! I've been thinking of my family's getting together this
week. Wish I was there to see them. Love, Rick
Belem, BR
Corin, Andre, & Nancy
12) Letter from Fortelaza, BR 7/8 Dear Betsy, Hello again, how are
you? I hope everything is going fine for you and I hope you're not
having any trouble with your car or your roommate. I just arrived
here from Belem (via bus) after parting with Andre' and the two
girls from California. They want to go a little slower than I, so
here I am. I was thinking that I've not been alone that much on
this trip so far, you always run into other travellers looking for
company. But I'm alone now. It's a nice change. After I got in
Belem from that horrible boat food I treated myself to a GOOD meal
and went to a Japanese restaurant. I had steak, shrimp and chicken
and vegetables brought out on a sizzling hot plate. It was great! I
also had a salad made from the inner core (heart) of a palm tree,
that was real good. It's the most expensive meal I've bought - $7
Wow! Huh? The bus trip was long - 22 hours but not considering the
distance - 1576km or 980 miles. Brazil is on a gas conservation
campaign, the national speed limit is 80 km/hr or 50 miles/hr.
Pretty slow, but I think the bus driver was going a little faster
than 50, maybe 60 or so. The trip brought me out of the Amazon
Jungle and into a sort of savanna - semi arid - semi mountainous
(in parts) grassland to this town on the coast. It's supposed to
have excellent beaches. I'm going to see them tomorrow. There was
this museum in Belem which wasn't a museum, it was a zoo (really)
and it's got some of the neatest animals like beautiful birds from
the Amazon and a beetle that is 6 inches long and about 3 1/2
inches wide. It gave me the creeps to look at it. I don't know why
they call it a museum. I'm into the equivalent of EDT time zone
now. One hour ahead of you. It's great looking at the sky south of
the equator, you see all of those constalations you can't see in
the north. The Southern Cross which looks like (drawing) and the
bottom start (I think) is the equivalent to a southern (like north
star) star. Also parts of the milky way which are brighter than
hell!! I was downstairs in the lobby watching TV - boy if you think
the U.S. is bad in it's using sex to sell something. Holy sh**,
every ad here has a girl in a REAL skimpy bathing suit. It's pretty
bad and they have soap operas on at NIGHT, there were all these
guys in the lobby watching it. The were kind of laughing at it.
Enclosed are 2 cards of Belem and 3 of here, also a monetary
souvenir of Brazil - one Cruziero (brand new from the bank) worth -
you won't believe it - one penny! I don't know why they print one
penny notes - I heard they're going to discontinue them and use
coins. But that's nothing, I've got a one centavo coin with 1/100
cruziero or 1/100 of a U.S. penny! Talk about useless, people don't
even use them here! 7/9 AM Good morning! It looks like it's going
to be a nice sunny day but I'm getting a sore throat - oh oh, could
be a cold, I hope not. Bye bye for now. All my love to you. Rick 9)
Postcard from Fortaleza, BR 7/10 Hi, the beach was nice, very clean
with nice white sand. I wasn't to the one on this postcard. They
have lobsters here and their supposed to be the best in Brazil but
they're expensive $8 up. I may get one today however. Checked into
a train to Recife (the next big town down the coast, 800km) but
they don't have service to Recife. The handbook says they do so I
don't know if it's a temporary or permanent loss of service. So
it's 13 hours on the bus tonight at 8:30pm. Hopefully I'll sleep
most of it. Andre' should be arriving tonight, maybe I'll run into
him at the bus station. Bye bye. Love, Rick
Recife, Swedish couple
10) Postcard from Brazil 7/11 Hi, here's Recife (on the card) big
as ever. Parts are real nice. The 13 hour bus ride wasn't too bad,
since it was through the night. I slept most of the way. It's much
nicer arriving in the morning than in the night. Looking for a
hotel at night can be a problem. The motel I'm in now isn't too
good, think I'll change tomorrow to one a French guy is in whom I
met on the bus from Belem to Fortelaza and again on last nights bus
(Fortelaza-Recife). He has a terrible sun burn and he's
convalescing. Well, I finally got fed up with my 40 pounds of
baggage and stuffed a huge box with my sleeping bag, 3 pairs of
pants, 5 shirts, socks, etc and mailed it via slow boat to my Dad
and Mom. It cost $22 but it's worth it. The shipping weight was 17
pounds. Anything that I regret mailing I'll just buy. See you
later, Love, Rick.
Recife, BR
Olinda, BR
Olinda, BR
Olinda, BR
11) my 1) Letter from Recife 7/12 Hello, I wish I could write like
I think because when I think of you nothing but good thoughts come
to my mind but they have difficulty finding their way to words. I
can see your face, as though I could touch it, your inquisitive
eyes, your curvy cheeks, your cute nose, your lips. Ah I wish I
could kiss you now, I love how you kiss, I love you. Oh Betsy, I
wish so much sometimes that you had come but other times I'm so
glad you didn't. I've seen a lot that you would love to see, to
experience, but I've seen a lot that's very depressing and
terrible. Not that you've never seen such things, just that I would
feel somewhat responsible for bringing you into such situations,
rightly or wrongly. But I do miss you so much. I wish you were
here. I am settled in the other hotel with the French guy
(Patrick). There are two other French people (frogs) visiting him
right now and they are babbling away in French or course. I'm used
to people talking and not knowing what in the hell they're talking
about. It does have it's advantages you know, like when a beggar
comes up and tries asking for money you just tell him "why don't
you get lost?" and he looks at you in amazement and walks away.
Aside from those frequent occurrences it's a detriment. I wish I
could speak EVERY language fluently. Not asking for much am I? Last
night these guys in the restaurant were talking about the U.S. and
I wanted to so much know what they were speaking about. Every so
often I'd here "Estados Unidos" and "Frances" this and that. Betsy,
if you think you have a sweet tooth, help sh**, these Brazilian
people are absolute sugar addicts! They sell candy, sweet pastries
(I'll have to admit some are very good), peanut candy mixtures and
many other things with great amounts of sugar. They sell them
everywhere, street vendors, shops and restaurants. My favorite are
the peanut/candy mixtures that the small-time street vendor sells.
That's all he sells too, just 2 or 3 different kinds of mixtures in
6 inch by 12 inch cake pans. He takes a scraper (putty knife) and
puts a little on a piece of paper. It's great! I got thinking of
sweet corn today and if it was knee high on the 4th then you still
don't have it yet, but soon. They sell it all over here, street
vendor style. Anyway I broke down and bought one today but I cooked
it myself at his stand because they burn the sh** out of them until
they are nearly black all over. Well I'm sad to say that it didn't
even taste like corn (butterlessness aside!), maybe it's popcorn
because it pops all the time when your walking by the cooks stands.
I went north to the beach today and walked for 2-3 hours along the
beach taking pictures and tanning. It's a nice beach since it has a
sort of dike (pile of stones) about 100 feet out blocking the
waves. I didn't swim today but I'm going back tomorrow to swim. The
racial harmony here is unreal, blacks, mulattoes and whites mix in
every respect, it's really great. There isn't even a hint of racism
here. But the S.A. Handbook talks of an economic disparity, it
could be. Patrick's feet are getting much better from his over
exposure. He spent 5 hours in direct (3 degree south latitude!) sun
with skin as white as a sheet. His ankles swelled to double normal
size. I couldn't believe it, it really looked bad. Red as a
lobster! This is my last sheet of paper I got from the Ciudad
Bolivar Library - you can tell because it's got this crazy
scribbling all over it. I was explaining to somebody about hangover
and he was explaining to me how you say it in Espanol - raton or
literally RAT! now you know how to speak Spanish!! Tonight I
ordered Anartica (brand) beer with dinner but they were out of it
so I got a whiskey. After the ice melted I pointed to it saying
"mas frio aqua" not knowing the word for ice. Guess what I got -
another whiskey! Au revoir mon grand amour. Rick
Recife, BR
13) my 2) Postcard from Salvador, BR 7/14 Hi, just "blew" into town
after another grueling 16 hours bus ride, I'm starting to get tired
of them but it seems the only other alternative is to fly which is
really expensive here. I'll try a train but already heard that it
doesn't go from here to Rio. This town is REALLY beautiful. It's
got an upper and lower level and is situated in a bay. There is a
youth hostel here but I'm in a hotel tonight, may check the Y.H.
out later. I'm in a restaurant now - had the "plato do dia". I
asked what it was today but he didn't understand, I ordered it
anyhow. It was chicken, rice, beans. Very good too. Bye bye for
now. Love from Salvador, Rick
Salvador, BR
Salvador, BR
14) my 3) Letter from Salvador Dear Betsy, Hi! It was so nice
talking with you today (both times). So good to hear your warm
voice, especially when you called - it sounded like you were 200
miles away maybe. But not 4000! Sorry about the spelling in my
letters, you know I used to be a real good speller, winning
spelling bee's and all in grade school but somehow I lost it.
Hanging around Jerry Pitner at TGI didn't help any either, he's the
worlds worst! Well, it's honest to say that I don't know where I'll
be either of the weeks August 23 or 30 but at present pace probably
Chile or Bolivia but it's hard to say (you know me). I think
Jamaica sounds better but I don't think I'll be there for 2 or 2
1/2 months. I will call you again when I get to Bolivia or Peru and
we can arrange something. It's nice of you to write me even though
there's no where to mail them. Please save them, I'd love to read
them. I wish there was somewhere you could mail them but I really
can't think of anyway to do it. Sorry. This one-way communication
is very difficult, more for the receiver (you) though. Your hearing
from me but haven't any way to respond. I miss it as much as you
do, believe me. Well, it is only temporary. The management making
your apartments into condo's gives you a real good excuse to move.
Better start looking now so you can find a nice place when they're
ready to kick you out. There are some pretty nice apartments out
toward the south side of Neenah but you have to be careful not to
pick one in the smog path of the foundry! It's good to hear that
you had fun visiting my crazy family. I miss playing bridge, I'll
probably be rusty when I return. These postcards are great eh?
Here's a little explanation- No. 39. Some of the very old
architecture in Salvador. This city is one of the oldest in all of
South America (1549) and was capital of Brazil until 1763. No. 79 -
The city has two levels, upper and lower and that thing on the left
is 4 elevators constantly taking hurrying crowds of people up and
down. It costs 2 cents each way. The hunks of concrete in the
center are weird. I don't know what the represent. No 115 - The
city is on a peninsula, the beaches are on the far side and left up
the Atlantic coast. No 1491 - Most cards showing people are grossly
in error, either oversimplification to prove a point or just plain
fake. But this card is exactly how they make and sell food on the
streets, Salvador style. Off to the side of this woman (not on this
card) will be a hibachi style cooker where she cooks the stuff in
the large kettles and relies on the sun to keep it hot for the noon
hour. The food here is very spicy, spicy hot that is. The lady here
is filling a doughy-potatoey mixture that was fried with cooked
vegetables and sauce. Bye bye for now, Love, Rick
Salvador, BR
15) my 4) Letter from Salvador 7/18 Dear Betsy, Hi, I'm sitting
around the Marcado Modelo in the lower city of Salvador. There's a
snoozing bum on a bench across from me. His mattress is cardboard,
people are just arriving from the upper city for another day and
nobody is paying any attention to him. He's well dressed with a
suit coat, slacks and an extremely common item here, sandals. He
probably just has no where to go. Went to an island yesterday about
15 miles off shore. It was real nice but the sun never came out.
The beaches were great though with all kinds of wild life -
scorpions, crayfish, jellyfish, starfish, etc, etc. The wine I
bought (that I spoke about with you on the phone) was okay - on a
1-10 scale it's a 6. Should be some good wines in Argentina and
Chile. Here are some more cards, they're nice he? Well I have to
run and get some food for my 28 hour bus "extravaganza" (ha ha!) to
Rio. The food at the "Oasis's" (bus stops) is very high priced and
lousy. It was great talking with you again and I look forward to
speaking with you in Bolivia or Peru. Till then I'll write. All my
love, Rick
Salvador, BR
Wania, Shirley, & Terezinha
15) my 5) Letter from a bus Salvador to Rio 7/18 Hello there Betsy
Boehm. I'm on a bus to Rio now. Getting not-so-excited about this
marathon bus ride and moderately optimistic - sort of excited about
Rio. Some told me it's much better than Salvador, S.A. On a
Shoestring says Salvador is better because it doesn't have Rio's
pollution, noise, filth and bigness. I tend to prematurely agree
but I'm trying to keep an open mind. This is not a letter by the
way, but just rambling notes during this ensuing voyage. No
paragraphs, no correct spelling, grammatically incorrect,
theme-less and ridiculous, not to mention unreadable as the bus is
rocking to and fro (not side to side). Not that badly though. It's
a very nice bus - a Mercedes Benz bus manufactured here in Brazil
of course. Practically everything is made here, they seem to try to
discourage imported goods because the tariffs are horrendous.
Japanese TV's like mine are US$700! Ridiculous. Oh yes the bus. 36
people plus the driver (motorista), his name is Edson in case you
were wondering. Now you want to know how I, of all people, know his
name? Well he has a dandy red plastic sign "Meu nome e' motorista
EDSON carro no 6023. I haven't spoken with him and more than likely
won't. He won't drive all the way naturally. Some busses have two
motoristas, one driving, one talking to the one driving or looking
out the window or talking to himself, etc. And then they switch
every 5-6 hours. But the bus from Recife to Salvador and this one
also has only one motorista. The former bus had a rotation scheme
where the driver would take you part way and stop at a sort of
oasis (my name for them -derived from oasis's on "interstate roads"
in Canada) where he would disappear and a different motorista would
take over. It may be the case here also. Oh, the bus. Nice
reclining seats (3 positions) made from what looks to be some
haugahide - type material. The back comes way up almost the same
height as the top of your head and is shaped to fit your head for
sleeping. Now the problem is the width is too wide for your head to
kind of "sit" into so it tends to flop from side to side. After I
sleep for 3-4 hours I have a terrible neck ache, maybe I'll get
used to it though. A number of people sleep with one arm up over
the top of the seat. It's very uncomfortable, I don't know why they
do it. Maybe to stop the flopping of the head. The large pieces of
luggage are put in big compartments accessible from both sides
outside the bus. Also, racks over head for smaller items.
Individual lights overhead (airplane style) for night reading.
Let's see what else about the bus - oh, a bathroom, very small but
infinitely better than none. Speaking of bathrooms, I had the
screaming sh**'s today (this morning) probably from all this hot
sauce I've been eating. Every restaurant has a small bowl with
onions in a reddish watery sauce and it is hotter than hell, I mean
this sh** is HOT! But it's great, especially on meat pies and fish
and beef and anything and everything. I think maybe I used too much
(glutton for punishment). We stopped for lunch. I brought along 4
bananas, 5 oranges, 3 tomatoes, I don't know exactly but probably
20 limes and a loaf of French-type bread. Well, the bananas aren't
bananas at all but plantains, they look almost identical from the
outside. First the skin is very tough, you don't really peel them
(unless you have a knife which a very nice woman nearby let me use)
but kind of break off the skin in chunks. And the eatable part is
tougher also - a little chewy - tasting somewhat like a banana but
dryer and just a very little bitter, leaving a sort of dryness in
ones mouth after eaten. Anybody here can probably tell the
difference in half a second. They're almost always bigger than
bananas but if you don't see the two side by side you can't judge.
Well, I can't anyway. By the way most people don't eat them raw but
cook them and serve them with a main meal. They're not that bad,
just a lot better cooked. Of the fruit I have 2, 4, 1, 19 left
respectively. I've packed myself with fruit to get my system back
in gear. 9:16pm Well, that was a long time, huh? So much has
happened I don't know where to start. The guy next to me seemed
real nice, he spoke to me once or twice and I nodded but wasn't
sure exactly what he said. Then it appeared he was with a group of
4-5 people and they would change around to different seats to talk
to each other and do puzzles, etc. He left and a girl sat down
beside me, she said nothing for a while. I got out my map of Brazil
and she said "I think we're here" (in English). Shocked, I said
"You speak English?" She's Brazilian and spent 1 1/2 years in
Chicago, now teaches English and Portuguese in Salvador. She's with
her cousins on a fun trip to Rio for 1-2 weeks. They're all real
nice people. We just played a cute game where you try to guess how
many match sticks (or whatever) are in everybody's right hand
total. I won't bother explaining the rules, maybe you know them. We
had fun. They're all sleeping now or at least trying to because we
have a new driver now, his name is DURVAL (he has a red name plate
too). He is a lousy driver though, either flooring the accelerator
or breaking. He also takes corners so the bus tilts way over. Great
for trying to sleep! You need a smooth mororista for the night
hours. While I was talking with this girl my stomach or actually my
intestinal area started to really hurt, so I tried to take a sh**,
but nothing. Well it kept hurting and hurting. Finally I tried
again and I think everything from my stomach down came out plus a
whole lot of gas! But I felt 150% better afterwards. My system
didn't like something. Marizha had a sore throat and I had bought
some Halls Menthelyptus (they're made here in Brazil) so I said if
she would ask Durval we could get them from my pack. Of course all
this time I was thinking about my bread down there (under the bus
in the storage area) all lonely. Next stop she got the Halls and I,
my bread. I just had some, it's good and should help my gastric
trouble. Marizha though I was writing a diary. Sort of, I guess.
There is a full moon out now and it's beautiful. It's lighting the
countryside very nicely. Durval is driving a little better now, I
think he had to go to the "can" badly because at the bus stop (see
last page) he headed straight for it. He's still taking corners
real fast though. Durval probably came from the ranks of the city
us driver, they are REALLY bad. No sense of smoothness at all. If
they're 10 feet from another vehicle (both vehicles stopped)
they'll floor it for 5 feet and slam on the breaks for the rest,
throwing people to and fro. It's crazy. Durval's never lost his bad
habits. Marizha went to the 1978 Oshkosk fly in, pretty weird huh?
That's the only time she's been in Wisconsin. The island I was
telling you about on the phone was nice. Ferry boat witch carries
cars and trucks go every 1/2 hour. On the island (Iliha Itapatrica)
at the ferry boat terminal restaurant (the source of my digestive
trouble, I think) I met an American, (7th one) he's working for an
oil drilling service company (Haliburton) based in Oklahoma. He
doesn't speak a word of Portuguese. It's very difficult because
he's working totally with people who only know Portuguese. We had a
nice talk. I don't know how he can work though. I bought an
English-Portuguese dictionary, it's okay but not as good as the one
you bought for me. I know it's going to be impossible but I'm going
to try to sleep now. Good night. See you tomorrow. Good morning, or
bom dia as said here (pronounced BON GEE-A) [the last A sounding
like u in under). We stopped and I had 2 cups of Yogurt, one
strawberry (morango) and one Pineapple (Abacaxi) [the x pronounced
SH). They were okay but too liquidy for yogurt. Mariza tells me
it's not a good brand that these oasis's sell. We also got a new
driver C. ALBERTO and he's doing just fine. He doesn't seem to
suffer from the dreaded disease "Bus Drivers Digital Syndrome". The
symptoms are that every motion the driver does is a stop-function
(you remember those from math class). In this syndrome the driver
has no sense of the analog world, it doesn't exist to him. Alberto
doesn't suffer from this plague. (I warned you about the spelling)
A couple of stops ago we were standing around at the counter and a
new song was beginning to play on a crummy speaker up above. After
the 1st three seconds I said "Holy sh**, Bob Marley!" I couldn't
believe it. I forget the name of the song but here is a verse
"we'll be forever loving Jah", it's on the Uprising album. First
time I've heard him in a public place. At the hotel in Salvador
some guy was playing a Bob Marley album that I haven't heard in his
room. I've heard quite a bit of Brazilian music now and it's not
too bad, a little too commercial (pop-like) for me. They listen to
a lot of jazz here though, not much on the radio but all the record
stores have jazz. Alberto told us it would be 12 more hours which
means about 4pm in Rio. Think I'll try and get a little more sleep.
The sun is up and not a cloud in the sky. Going to be a nice day
coming into Rio (I hope). 7-8 hours to go. Had a nice breakfast -
one huge orange, a red tomato, a banana, and guess what? I don't
have any limes, they're lemons. They look like limes but they're
really sour. A guy with Marinha felt sorry for me because I was
eating the cooking bananas so he have me a real one and I gave him
an orange. The country side has turned from the savanna type plains
by Salvador to quite hilly terrain with palm trees here and there
but generally just grass. They're obviously farming some kind of
fruit as there are groves of funny looking short trees here and
there. We just passed a small plot of corn. Lots of cattle
scattered here and there. The people here in the country side live
rather poorly but I saw a lot worse in VEN. Their houses are never
wood but mortar or brick. There's plenty of wood here, I don't know
why they don't make houses out of it. But the farming methods are
very crude indeed. The only place I've seen a tractor is in a sales
lot waiting to be bought. Three more hours. The road is torn up now
because of construction (resurfacing, etc) but there are no workers
since it's Sunday. Our 4th and most likely last motorista is DE
FREITAS, he's so-so. It's very cloudy now and looks like rain
possible. No news, just thought I'd say goodbye. Thanks for the
pleasure of telling you the intricacies of my 28 hours (29
actually) bus trip. I enjoyed writing to you. Love, Rick PS. You
won't believe what happened, the bus broke down 40 km from Rio! So
there we sat waiting for another bus. I'm thinking - should I
hitch-hike or wait, I waited. Another bus of the same company was
coming down the road and Alberto flagged him down. People with
little luggage from our bus started boarding the other bus. I
looked at Alberto and motioned "How about me?", sure he motions. So
I get my luggage out and he takes one look at my pack and says "No!
too big". "Oh sh**" I say. So I wait, should I hitch or wait. It's
3:15 pm and I don't want to look for a hotel in the dark. I wait.
Another company bus stops and more people board, even this guy with
a backpack (much smaller though). I look at Alberto and motion
"Wait a minute now..." pointing at the guys pack. He motions
"okay". So I got on. The ride into town was beautiful, really
spectacular. This huge bridge enters across the bay with gigantic
ships and other crafts below. Huge mountains looming up behind the
mass of skyscrapers. I was besieged by taxi's at the bus station
but went for the local buses instead. Being Sunday there was no one
using them so no problems with my luggage. Mariza told me about
this hotel (Hotel Florida) so I same there only to find it full
(price $11) so I came across the street and got one for $4.80!
Great, huh? It's an okay place. Mariza told me it's an excellent
location (Flamingo Beach). So here I am in my hotel room. Bye bye
again. Love and kisses, Rick
Rio, BR
Rio, BR
16) my 6) Letter from Rio 7/21 Hi Betsy, Except for the moderately
high level of pollution, I can't find much wrong with Rio. It's
really a beautiful city. Today I went to the Uruguay Consulate but
no visa necessary. It was only 2 blocks from the hotel and I
thought it would be worth checking. Then I went to the top of Pao
de Acucar (Sugar Loaf) mountain via cable car. The view was
fantastic. Then to the botanical garden to relax a little. They had
some great species of trees, bamboo and other weird flora. I bought
an English newspaper (the Daily Post) printed in Rio. It's very
conservative but better than nothing. They had a couple blaming
Carter for the cooling in Brazil-US ties. But it does have
Stienwald on Bridge and comics, both of which I haven't seen in a
long time. Some stuff on Poland too, it sounds like they're doing
great! Democracy and all. The Mideast sounds the same. BAD. I went
out with Mariza and all her relatives last night, 15 people in all,
what a crowd, they were real nice to a gringo like me that couldn't
talk to them except 3rd grade words (more like nursery school). But
they went to real expensive places. One kind of a night club where
I went through $5 and another which was a disco where I went
through $6 and I didn't even get a little drunk. I sipped them
slowly. I bought 19 postcards so I'll send them in groups. Here's
the first installment. I'm going to mail this right away and go to
the beach, which is only about 5 minutes walk from the hotel. I
read it's too polluted to bathe but fine for sunning. See you next
installment. Bye bye. Your friend and lover, Rick
Rio, BR
Rio, BR
Flamengo Beach, Rio, BR
View of Copacabana from Sugarloaf, Rio
17) my 8) Letter from Rio 7/24 Dear Betsy, You won't believe what I
did last night - played bridge! For 3 hours! It was great. I got
this tourist guide to Rio and it's got all kinds of info in it. One
section labeled "games" had the address of the Rio Bridge Club and
said games 2pm to 9. So I went there to find it was closed except
for members, well my tourist guide didn't say that. I hung around
for a little while watching these old guys (70-80's) gamble at
bridge - the stakes were low I was told. Then this German guy
started talking to me and he thought I could get in on some games
tonight. Great! So I came back at 9pm and it was a duplicate
tournament. That's were every four-some plays the same hands as
every other four-some. It was the first time I've played duplicate
but I've heard all about it. When you play your card you place it
down beside you instead of in the middle - so every one ends up
with a pile of their hand at the end. These are then put into a
holder (of 4 hands) and passed to the next group who plays those
same hands. Then you can compare and see how they bid them. It was
fun but I made a lot of mistakes. My partner, a lady of about 40
was real nice amidst my stupid mistakes. I went to the Argentine
Consulate yesterday and asked whether I needed a visa to enter,
well he didn't say yes or no, but took my passport and told me to
come back tomorrow. I really hate giving my passport to anyone but
hopefully it will be of some good. This morning I'm going to the
Chilean, Colombian consulates and maybe Bolivian and Peruvian.
They're all pretty close. They have a brand new subway here, though
it doesn't go real far, it's fun to ride. Much better than the
busses. Been looking all over for a souvenir for Rio but haven't
found anything to my liking. I'm just too picky when it comes to
shopping. There's no markets here like all the other towns in
Brazil where they sell T-shirts and other souvenir junk. My cold
seems to be getting better. See you later love. You are the best
friend I have, Love, Rick
from Sugarloaf, Rio, BR
Rio, BR
Flamengo from Sugarloaf, Rio
18) my 9) Postcard from Rio 7/25 Hi, Getting ready for another
marathon bus trip to Porto Allegre in the south of Brazil. Should
be a bit colder down there. I bought a blue-jean jacket yesterday
to help keep me from freezing. Also, a couple of souvenir T-shirts.
This journey will pass through San Paulo, or maybe around the huge
megapolis of Brazil. Glad I'm not stopping. Went to a bunch of
consulates yesterday and got bunches of tourist info on those
countries, most of which I threw out. A few useful items though.
Also have a visa for Argentina (whether I need it or not!) and the
Colombians say I need a visa so I'll be checking into that later.
The guy here said I need a return ticket. I'll try giving the next
Columbia consulate my Caracas - Miami ticket and see if that works.
See you later, Love, Rick
Rio, BR
View from Corcovado
Rio, BR
20) my 10) Letter from bus trip Rio - Porto Allegre 7/25 Another
big trip again. The same company as the last, I hope there are no
breakdowns on this one, at least not so close to the destination.
This is the first bus in Brazil, of the long distance type, that is
not full. Only twenty out of thirty six seats filled. The seat next
to me is empty so I'm using it to store books and clothes. This is
seat NO 9 which is fairly close to the driver (Benjamin). He's very
good, we will get the sh**ty one on the graveyard shift naturally.
This is a different type of bus though, it has a sealed-off room
the driver sits in (drawing). This bus has an individual speaker
for every two seats though there's nothing coming out of it. We
departed Rio at 8:50 AM, 20 minutes behind schedule. There was some
very terrible problem someone was having. Three ladies were crying
their eyes out and pleading with the bus company people. I don't
know what the real problem was, my guess was that they were sold a
ticket to, say Salvador, and found out this bus was going to Porto
Allegre (wrong direction)! This was apparently not the case because
they're on board now. Coming out of Rio you could see how really
bad the pollution is, it was very blackish hazy for at least 17
miles. I think it's actually better downtown because of the ocean
breeze. Once out of Rio we were entered a very mountainous region
which were still in but to a lesser degree. It's a very nice day -
partly cloudy and 73 degrees approximately. The bus is shaking a
lot if you were wondering why my hand writing is illegible. This
time my groceries include 5 tomatoes, 2 apples, 4 oranges, 2
tangerines, 6 bananas (real bananas this time), 1 loaf of French
style bread and 1.5 liters of mineral water without gas. Sounds
good, huh? I wish you were here to try one of my red, ripe
TOMATOES!!! No, really, I wish you were here to try one of these
tangerines, they look weird. They're kind of puffy like the orange
isn't firmly against the skin; and peeling them will be sort of
like taking the pod "off" of the peas. They're big too. Not
grapefruit size but like a big orange. I with you were here for a
lot of other reasons too. Just have to wait I guess. Patience
teaches a lot doesn't it? It teaches me to love you more and more.
I'm wondering if we're going to stop in Sao Paulo to pick up more
passengers. We'll see. We stopped for lunch. I had a ton of fruit.
Everything was great. This guy sitting across and up one seat is
sipping from a little airline-type bottle of Chavas Regal. Scotch
is very popular here but like everything imported it is extremely
expensive. Just guessing but that little bitty bottle probably cost
about $6-8. Because one drink of cheap imported scotch (is there
such a thing?) goes for $3-4. By comparison a drink of Brazilian
whiskey is 70 cents to $1.10, and a 600 ml (usual size) of beer is
60 to 80 cents, in a bar for all the above. We are entering the
wine region of Brazil now so I'll have to check those out. These
oasis's we stop at are sometimes real zoo's and they're
surprisingly similar. Picture one huge roof of corrugated steel
with one wall in back. Under the roof is a stand-up counter
(sometimes very big) where all kinds of sh**ty food at ridiculous
prices is available - hamburgers, cheeseburgers, ham and cheese,
meat pies, sub sandwiches (of a fashion) and sometimes plate-full's
of various items always accompanied by 2 of the following - rice,
spaghetti, and "baked-bean" type beans. The various items would
include - fried beef or pork, baked chicken, liver, etc. Always and
I mean always a souvenir shop selling all kinds of knick-knacks,
cookies, candy, anything with the prime ingredient sugar, and oddly
enough yogurt (sometimes) which is the only reason I visit said
shops except for curiosity. Sometimes an enclosed restaurant where
you can sit down and (usually) eat the same lousy food but, you
guessed it, for more money. Gas pumps out front, lots of trucks and
busses which, of the latter, means lots of people. Very busy places
indeed. The closest thing in the U.S. is if you took a Stuckeys and
tore the front wall right off, doubled the size and raised the roof
up another 20 feet. Maybe I'm making it sound too American, Well
they have a flavor all their own. By the way, this bus is a Scania
which is a huge Swedish company (they own Saab) and they have
plants here in Brazil making trucks and busses. We're just 30 km
from San Paulo now. I'm surprised I don't see city already but
there's nothing here but trees. I'm back now after a 20 minute
stop. Man this place really had the sweets and I broke down and
bought a big hunk of peanut brittle, it's real good but my teeth
and dentist are going to hate me. I better get the hell out of this
sugar rich area quick or I'll be toothless when I return! Sao Paulo
22 km now a few buildings here and there, houses scattered around.
Some huge factories very new and clean in contrast to the somewhat
shabby surrounding houses (shacks). Some are really BAD. Still only
a 4 lane (2 each way) divided road. Some real tall buildings up
ahead but not enough to be the center of town - they look like
apartments. Pause. Very heavily populated now, I glanced at the map
and it appears the center will be to the left and I believe it
because it's very grey over there. We aren't passing through the
middle but about 6-9 km from the center. Lots of big buildings to
the left. Now we're just north of center - whole bunches of tall
buildings to the left - what a mess - it stretches for a long ways.
We went off the main road and are now at a sort of company
terminal, Benjimin took his sign and his brief case and said
"Tchau", I said "Bye-bye" but I don't know if he heard me. A new
guy just came in. Benjimin came back in and is collecting the
unused seat cushions, why, I don't know. He took them up front in
the drivers compartment. Ah, we have another fellow - no he's gone
now and were moving. This guy has no name plate, he's nameless. Oh
my god, my letter - diary will be incomplete! What will I do? Do
you really want to know his name? I'd ask him but it would take 15
minutes. Okay - back on the road. We have now an 8 lane with a
large canal in the middle, probably 100 feet wide. It looks real
soupy. Yum, yum! We're past the center of town now. They're doing
all kinds of dredging on this crazy canal. It appears to be all
full of crud and only about a foot or 2 deep. We're off the main
trunk and into the thick of a suburb street (6 lanes with lights).
Not a bad part of town, quite okay actually. People look rather
laid back - it is Saturday after all. Not many shops open. They
look quite European, some black. The south of Brazil is very
European. Now were out a ways on to a limited access 4 laner. Well,
so much for Sao Paulo. We've entered a very beautifully wooded area
now, very very hilly, no I guess mountainous is more correct. It's
really nice, too bad it's almost dark. Looks kind of like the
Smokey Mountains except different trees. Lots of evergreens. I have
to tell you this story, I've been thinking of a lot and want to
tell you. South America on a Shoestring talked of the excellent
food in Salvador and I tried a few things but it didn't seem too
much different than elsewhere so I re-read the restaurant part and
he mentioned a restaurant-bar hotel that had excellent local food
at the bottom of the big elevator connecting the upper and lower
cities. So I thought I'd try it out. I had been in this area during
the day and it looked so-so, not real bad. So I go there at about
8pm and there's quite a few beggars and derelicts hanging around
but I'm used to that. Inside the place looks alright - a dump in
American terms but alright by me. So down I sit and order the meal
(a fish stew) and a beer. Well this place is obviously a prostitute
hang out because these chicks are all the time in the bathroom
getting prettied up and giving the customers eyes and walking
around right outside (as with almost all restaurants in the warmer
part of Brazil [Rio and north] you don't have a "door" you walk
through to go into the place but the entire front wall of the place
rolls up into the ceiling - like a garage door - exposing the
inside and conversely exposing the street to those inside). Once I
have my meal these kids are all the time coming up and begging for
food. People are coming in off the street and parading around the
place trying to sell whatever junk they have. I'm thinking - man,
this place is a sin city and the drive of town all rolled into one.
Okay, now here comes the best part - here walks in this guy vending
with a rack of rosaries in one hand and a big picture of Pope Paul
in the other. Holy sh** I couldn't take it - I cracked up - it was
funnier than hell. The food was great, really. Oh, then the sleazy
waitress tries overcharging me but no such luck. Well, it's getting
dark now and our nameless motorista, who by the way is an excellent
motorista, hasn't turned on the master switch that supplies power
to the individual overhead lights so I can barely read what I'm
writing - You're probably having the same problem! We stopped for
supper. I had lots of fruit and bought a can of Skol beer. You
remember Skol beer don't you? I was real surprised to see it here
(it's brewed here but is priced higher than the other beers for
some reason). It's real good though. They had so much candy at the
last place I thought it was Halloween and I was standing in the
center isle in a Kmart store (as I sit here munching on my peanut
brittle)! We're more or less travelling with another bus of the
same company (Penha, pronounced PEENYA) and the same route (Rio
-> Porto Allegre). They left at 8AM, I know because they write
in chalk on the side window when they're supposed to leave. All the
busses of this type have a lighted sign in front saying where
they're coming from and going to. We bump into this other bus at
the oasis's. Twice I've boarded the wrong bus - I take one step
onto it and look and see a FULL bus with unfamiliar faces and say
"Oops!" I got some funny looks. It's a clear sky out and the
Southern Cross is visible. The Milky Way around it is really packed
with starts. We have a new driver, his name is Nannes, and he's
great. I can't believe this rash of good drivers. Brrrr, it's cold
down here, have to break out my down jacket. Sure glad I brought
this other jacket along because this bus obviously has no heater.
I've been snoozing on and off. This girl sitting across the isle
speaks English and went to high school in Sylvania, OH which is a
suburb of Toledo. She tells me one can't take a train from Porto
Allegre to Uruguay but I'll check the train station anyhow. I have
about $51 in Cruzeiros left and I'd like to walk into Uruguay with
$0 Cruzeiros so that will mean either staying awhile in Porto
Allegre or going shopping. Maybe I'll buy a blanket for these cold
trips. You're up there on the other side of the equator sunning
your buns and I'm down here freezing mine off! Crazy, huh? I wish
it was light out because we're going right along the coast. (peanut
brittle label) Bittencourt is our fourth and no doubt last
motorista. It's hard to believe but he is also a good driver.
Unpresidented, four in a row! The road surface is quite bad here
but we are getting very close (100 miles). All my fruit is
consumed, all that is left is water. The place we just stopped at
didn't have any coffee or running water, so Bittencourt said he
would stop at another spot along the way. A place with no coffee in
Brazil!! Unbelievable! This guy in front of me was making a joke -
he said since the election is getting close they turned off the
water and then will turn it back on again to say "I turned on the
water to supply the town with running water". The girl (Elisa) is
interpreting for me. There is a cute little girl running around on
the bus. She has cute white frame/green lens sunglasses on. Elisa
told me that the traumatic problem upon departure was because under
Brazilian law a minor (under 18) must have a document filled out by
his/her parents to travel without his/her parents. Apparently they
didn't have it filled out so they had to fill them out. The person
was travelling not by herself but with her grandmother. Some very
pretty lakes along the road now. There's kind of a string of lakes
in between the road and the ocean. (drawing). (9:18AM) Slowly but
surely still chugging along. Nice country - mountains (heavily
wooded) on one side and pasture leading to the sea on the other.
Porto Allegre is a city of about 1.6 million connected by the sea
through a large lagoon. I doubt there will be a whole lot to do.
The center of the wine region is just north of the city but one
would need a car to see it. The main crops here are bananas and
sugar cane. Two days should be plenty. END BUS TRIP. Hi there, 26
1/2 hours wasn't too bad. I'm at hotel Urugauai now, it's a nice
place, right down town. Just returned from the train station and
probably will be taking a train out Tuesday to Santana do
Livramento on the border with Uruguay, but I got confused because
the guy was talking about bed's and another town and I don't know
what all. I told him I'd return tomorrow to buy the ticket. I'm
going to call Elisa to see if she'll talk to them and see what the
story is. I went and had a nice thick steak - it was really good. I
had heard the meat down here was excellent. Well lover, it's been
nice writing another bus trip to you. Bye bye, see you next letter
or card. All of my love, Rick
Porto Alegre, BR
21) my 11) Postcard from Porto Allegre, BR 7/27 Hi - have a bus
ticket for Jaguarao, BR which is right on the border with Uruguay,
where hopefully one can walk across. The town only has 16,0000
people so it shouldn't be a long walk. It leaves at 24:00 tonight
and is a 6 1/2 hour ride (250 miles). Right across the border is
Rio Bronco, UR, where a train goes to Montevideo. Have a little BR
money left and will be dumping it today, also have US$20 in UR
money for when I arrive. Checked into a train from here to the
border but it was out of the way and took 17 hours so I thought I'd
wait until UR to take them. It got pretty cold last night, close to
freezing I think. It's hard to believe the main crop here is
bananas, of course this is the coldest time of the year. Lots of
Europeans here, it seems funny looking into the eyes of someone
with the same color as mine. Hey have potato salad and other
un-Brazilian things here. Also some street vendors who sell
brat-like things, they taste more like highly spiced Polish sausage
though. This hotel, like most all buildings here is unheated so my
shower was a real eye-opener. The water is "heated" from icy to
really cold and I mean really cold. The "water heater" is just a
device at the spigot that heats the water as it passes by. Better
than nothing, I guess. Talk to you in UR, Love, Rick
Elisa, Porto Alegre, BR
19) Postcard from BR/UR border Hello, I walked across the border
this morning after a short (6 1/2 hours) bus ride from Porto
Allegre. The border is a wide river (don't know the name). A little
poorer on this side - lots of horse drawn carts and really old cars
and trucks. It feels real cold but probably isn't because it's very
foggy now so the humidity is high. I passed some orange trees in
town. By the way, the picture on the front has nothing to do with
this town which is Rio Bronco, UR, right across the border from
Jagurio, BR. This town (village?) has maybe 1000 people and this
store I'm sitting out in front of only had postcards of Montevideo
and this one. I don't know where it is. Supposed to be a train
leaving here at 3:30 pm for Montevideo. There is no train station,
just tracks that go across the train/road bridge to BR. This guy at
the store told me you just get on and pay on the train. See you in
Montevideo. Love, Rick
Brazil Uruguay border
23) my 13) Postcard from Montevideo 7/29 Betsy, the train from Rio
Bronco to here (Montevideo) was great, I'll never take another bus!
Arrived at midnight last night. It's been raining all day today -
rather gloomy out. Everything is quite a bit more expensive here
than in Brazil. The hotel last night was $15, my most expensive so
far, so I moved to another that's $7.50. At midnight last night I
didn't feel like searching, but it had hot water! I had a 30 minute
shower this morning! I forgot what hot water feels like. This city
which by the way, is smaller than Porto Allegre, BR is very old and
very European. Even today's weather reminds me of London. Raining
and foggy. The train went through (240 miles) mostly flat cattle
country and stopped at every little bitty hamlet. The thing was
only 4 cars long and went about 45 MPH. This town looks very nice
for taking pictures if it clears up. Bye bye for now. P.S.
Everything is imported here, even this card! Love, Rick
Montevideo, UR
22) my 14) Letter from Montevideo 7/29 My dearest Betsy Boehm. I
ran out of paper from writing all those long winded nonsensical bus
diaries, so here is the cover to the pad of paper used for the
above. The weather cleared up from the time of my postcard this
morning (#13) so got a chance to take a few pictures and see some
more of the town. Went to the markets (two of them), ate at the
first one and bought a bottle of Uruguayan wine at the 2nd. It's
Sauturn wine which I don't care for that much. I didn't look
closely at the label when I bought it, it's okay though, pretty
tasty. It's about half gone now. I'm laying here in bed with socks,
underpants, T-shirt, regular shirt, and a sweater on, thinking
about you. If you were here I would make love to you. That would be
so nice, Betsy. I love thinking about you, it relaxes my mind and
warms my heart. Maybe I'm thinking these X-rated thoughts because
I'm in a double bed, the first one since the Ann Arbor Hilton and I
remember everything about that bed. You put me right into heaven,
lover. Boy, I start writing like that and it's hard to change the
subject. My mind is stuck on one channel - yours! But it's the best
channel! Listen Betsy, I was thinking about Jamaica, trying to get
some itinerary together and based on these facts - 1) I've been
gone for 51 days 2) 5 days were for a Brazilian visa (unplanned) 2)
In distance (miles) my trip is a little more than have through 3)
I'll probably be maintaining the same speed from here on. So this
means I'll be done with S.A. the week of Sept 6, 13, or 20.
Hopefully this info will be of some use to you even though it's
quite preliminary. I'll try to update you realizing the two week
time lag in postal delivery time. I was thinking of maybe staying
at the youth hostel tomorrow to save some money - it's only about
$3. Because I plan on taking a train from here to Colonia, UR
Friday and then a boat from there to Buenos Aires, AR. The train
leaves here bright and early - 6:35 Friday morning and should make
it in time for the boat which leaves at 1:30pm. The town is only
about 10,000 people so it won't be any problem to get from the
train to the boat (hopefully). Form B.A. plan on trains again over
to Chile (Santiago). Argentina was an extremely expensive country
but the recently devalued their money so ti will be much less
costly now. I ran into an Argentinian in Brazil and then today here
who confirmed the above. As a matter of fact, the one today said
everything here in Uruguay is about 1.5 times what he pays. That's
good news for me. Buenos Aires used to be one of the most expensive
capitals. You wouldn't believe how European everything and
everybody looks here -it's like being in Europe - I read Argentina
is the MOST European. Well, sorry for sexually teasing you earlier
- you know I'm just a big tease! Talk to you (or tease) you later.
All my love, Rick
Montevideo, UR
24) my 15) postcard from Montevideo, UR 7/31 AM Hello, The train to
Colonia didn't arrive until 2pm and the boat from there to Buenos
Aires leaves at 12 noon so I'm on the bus right now to a different
town on the Rio de la Plata which separates Uruguay from Argentina.
From there (Carmelo) a boat goes to Buenos Aires. We're stopping,
picking up school kids all the time, they're real cute - they all
have a white uniform on with a bow tie. Stayed at my 4th youth
hostel in South America last night in Montevideo. It was okay but
they are closed from 10am to 5pm so you have to find something to
keep you busy for those hours. I went to museums and markets. The
weather was terrible - raining on and off and foggy. There was a
Pakistani, 3 Swiss and an American at the Hostel. Quite an
assortment. Bye bye, see you in Argentina. Love, Rick
Montevideo, UR
25) my 16) 8/1 postcard in from Buenos Aires 8/1 Betsy, How are ya?
I hope you're fine. I can't wait to talk to you again - this one
way communication is for the birds. I want to hear your sweet
voice. Hope you're not getting tired of this one what sh**. You
know I've been getting into writing and I am a sh**ty writer. I
don't know whats come over me! Well, I'll just keep writing I
guess. A couple of letters ago I asked you to think about one of 3
weeks for Jamaica (9-6, 9-13, 9-20 I think). Well, just go ahead
and schedule a date - I will be there when you get there. Either
Montego Bay or Kingston, Montego Bay is probably better. Pick any
days - doesn't matter to me. Got here last night at 7pm and am on
in the youth hostel. It's real nice but it's closed from 12 noon to
6pm so you have to find something to do - like right now I'm in a
little park with kids playing soccer, sliding down slides or
swinging on swings. The best thing about it is that they have
cooking facilities for 10am - noon and 6pm - 9pm, which means I can
go to the market and get fresh fish, squid or cheap meat (this is
THE cattle country) and cook it up. Last night this English guy
(Tim) and I cooked some spaghetti - it was okay. There is 2 English
guys, one Irish guy, one Spanish (Madrid) guy and a French Canadian
girl at the hostel. They're all real nice. A family with 2 little
kids run the place - the kids are always running around playing.
This town is really big but seems spread out and not "compressed".
Lots of parks and squares. All the postcards are this size - weird
huh? See you later, Love, Rick
Buenos Aires, AR
26) my 17) postcard from Buenos Aires 8/3 pm Hi, Getting used to
this youth hostel life - both the advantages and disadvantages -
being able to cook is great. Tim, the English fellow and I are
making stew tonight. This morning I had ham and eggs. Before I
leave here I'll have to try some fresh fish. There are two English
libraries here, one is American and has the Times of London. That
is when ever the government doesn't censor it. There is also a cat
here, he was just on my lap. Tim and I went to see "Ordinary
People" last night - it was really good. You were right. One of the
best movies I've seen. I felt sorry for every one else in the
theater because all the slang and colloquial couldn't be translated
to subtitles correctly. Not sure when I'm leaving here or where I'm
going except west. Probably either Mendoza or Cordoba. The weather
turned nice finally so I've washed and dried my clothes on a line
up on the roof of the hostel. Washing my clothes by had is a real
pain in the ass, I can see why people have washing machines. Well,
we have to run back to start the stew since the kitchen is only
open for 2 hours to members. See you, Love, Rick 27) my 18)
postcard from Buenos Aires 8/5 am Betsy, I'm having second thoughts
about the dates I told you, maybe better push them ahead 2 weeks or
so. If I get there early I'll just relax, of course I'll be calling
you from Bolivia so I'll have a more definite time then hopefully
I've spent a week here unexpectedly and there is quite a bit to see
up the north side. I hope this doesn't screw you up. I will be
going to Cordoba, AR tomorrow night by train. From there to Mendoza
and to Santiago, Chile. I think I'll send some more stuff via mail
tomorrow - I still have too much stuff but this time only a small
package. Did you know I'm a millionare right now? If I changed all
my money into ARG pesos, I'd have $21,000,000 pesos. The stamps
here are 22/70 dollars (on this card). Sorry for the confusion,
Love, Rick 30) my 19) postcard from Buenos Aires 8/7 am Betsy,
After relaxing days at the youth hostel I'm on the train to
Cordoba. We left at 10pm last night and arrive 10am this morning, 3
hours from now. The sun is rising now and we should be entering a
mountainous area soon. The train (5-6 cars) is not crowded, maybe
half full. It's hard to sleep since the seats are bench type. A
nice train though. When we left there were tons of people standing
by waiting for the train. I though it was going to be packed. As it
turned out, most of them were "well-wishers" and luggage helpers.
Really didn't do much in Buenos Aires except eat a hell of a lot
and study some Spanish. Bought a book called "teach yourself
Spanish", it seemed read good. Tim (the English guy) decided to go
to the south, I decided it's too cold. Everyone tells me it
shouldn't be missed. Hasta Luego por ahora, Love, Rick
Cordoba, AR
Villa Carlow, AR
31) my 20) Postcard from Cosquin 8/8 1:30pm Hello Lover, Here is a
big kiss via a postcard (drawing of hearts) from Cosquin Argentina
- a small tourist town 80 km from Cordoba. I left Cordoba this
morning to check out all these "tourist trap towns" called "Sierras
de Cordoba". Cordoba is a provence whose capital is Cordoba, which
has 2 million people. A bus took me to Carlos Paz where I walked
around for awhile and decided to try hitch-hiking for the first
time - up the road through these small towns in the mountains.
After about 20 minutes a lawyer named Ougo picked me up and brought
me here, he's from Cordoba and drove up here (Cosquin) to visit his
Dad who lives here. He told me he would pick me up at 3pm after he
visits with his Dad. I don't know if he is really a lawyer because
he's only 27 and he said he has been working for 6 years. "Lawyer"
is one of the only English words he knows. He's real nice though.
Also not sure what we're doing at 3pm but it doesn't matter. I'm on
vacation after all (sometimes it's more like work but not very
often!). These little towns re very nice and also very dead since
this is winter. I'm in the park, a very small park in, I presume,
the center of town. There are only a few people in sight. I have
nothing with me by the way, save a bottle of wine and some fruit as
this is an "excursion" - hopefully I'll make it back tonight. I
could do it this way all along, the weather isn't too bad - the sun
popping out now and again. It must be about 45-50 degrees F, some
big clouds looming though. Just might rain. Hope not, your poncho
is at the hotel. Bye. I love you. Rick
Cosquin, AR
Roberto in Cosquin, AR
32) my 21) Letter from bus Cordoba to Mendoza 8/9 11:35am Dear
Betsy, Hi - another shaky bus trip. The road is paved but just
barely. It reminds me a little of Larson Road (near Neenah, WI) but
his road has been patched many times and therefore much more bumpy.
The terrain is like Southern Colorado - flat, treeless, scruffy,
dry land with large mountains off in the distance. This is
primarily beef country with some wine making. When we approach
Mendoza it's supposed to turn to heavy forests and the Andes,
unfortunately it will be dark by then. We left Cordoba at 10am and
will arrive Mendosa 9pm. It's a beautiful day - not a cloud in the
entire sky. Of course the weather has a tendency to change as
you're travelling. I'd much rather be on a train but there are none
to Mendoza, at least from Cordoba. Could have taken one from B.A.
to Mendoza but when in B.A. I assumed there would be a train from
Cordoba to Mendoza but no such luck. The S.A. Handbook says that
train service from Mendoza to Santiago has been discontinued but I
ran into an English speaking German man on the bus yesterday coming
back from Cosquin on my "excursion" who told me it definitely runs.
I sure hope so because it goes right over the Andes. After Uogo
(see #20 postcard) picked me up yesterday we drove up to this
mountain called "Pan de Azucar" (like the one in Rio). You can only
drive so far and then you have to take a "ski lift" (no snow) to
the top. It was a little scary because the lift is on a real steep
incline. Uogo wasn't scared though as he was born and raised in
Cosquin and has been on it many times. He is actually not a lawyer,
by the way, but a sort of notary public. He works for a lawyer. I
have no food this time, have to rely on the bus terminals. Got home
too late last night and left too early this morning to buy some
fruit. Cordoba is the 2nd largest city in Argentina with almost 2
million people. There isn't much to do there. Two days was plenty.
Actually, one was plenty as the other day was my excursion. I
should have gone up to one of those little towns for a couple of
days to get away from these large towns for a while. Maybe in Chile
I'll do that. I had no idea Cordoba was that big but it didn't seem
like a big town. (1:45pm) We just stopped at a small town called
Rio Cuarto. Cuarto means room or 1/4. Across the street from the
bus terminal was a tiny grocery store with a deli. They have
assorted foods in steam heated trays that they dish out into paper
"boats" that are intended to be taken home and eaten. Home is quite
far for me so I resorted to a small park. The only thing they had
that could be eaten without silverware was whole chickens and a
breaded steak with a slice of ham and cooled egg (omelette style)
covering the whole mess - plus onions and pimentos on top. I opted
for the later and ate it like a pizza. It was good. I sent another
package home from B.A., it had souvenir T-shirts,
Portuguese/English and visa versa dictionary, Brazil travel books,
tons of city maps, receipts, coins and film. It weighed 6.5 pounds
and cost about $13 to send. There are 2 cute little boys on the bus
singing and running around. The land is turning greener and trees
are popping up here and there. (4:10pm) You remember how I was
telling you about all the sweets, candies, and sugar related items
in Brazil? Well, it's just as bad here, everywhere you turn there
is sugar. I think all of South America is plagued by it. You'd love
it! I'm becoming hooked myself, God forbid. Still not a cloud in
the sky and it's really warm out. I'm down to a T-shirt, my tan is
going away from all this cold weather. Have to get it back soon. In
a way I'd like to stop at San Luis, the next town (100 km from new)
and wait for the train for Mendoza even though it would mean an
extra day. I would have to find someone that's going to Mendoza and
hasn't bought a ticket yet then I would sell them mine. I tried to
have it changed to San Luis in Cordoba but they have a heavy
penalty for changing tickets - I said "forget it". I'll see what
San Luis is like - should be there in an hour or so (5:50pm) We're
passing some really huge, completely bare mountains to the right
now. They just kind of stick up out from the otherwise very flat
land. Enclosed find a recipe for "Dulce de Leche" or "sweet milk".
The recipe isn't very clear. I can't tell if you should use vanilla
or not but a little probably wouldn't hurt. In the end it should
have the consistency of apple-butter and should look quite like
peanut butter but not as thick. It's generally put on bread as a
spread. You'll like it. Tim loved it. This is a new notebook - did
you notice? Brought it in B.A. We're entering San Luis now. (5:30)
That was fast huh? We just zipped in and zipped out in a record 5
minutes. Just had time to run to the restaurant and buy a "Teem"
(soda pop). That "pizza" made me thirsty. Well, I don't think I'm
going to miss too much because the terrain is the same. I was
expecting mountains after San Luis but the mountains are far ahead.
(7pm) We stopped at the "border" of 2 provinces, complete with
armed guards checking documents of trucks and cars but they don't
seem to bother with buses. The sun is just under the horizon how, a
little to our right but mostly head-on. It's very beautiful because
the western horizon is filled now with mountains with the sun
behind them. It's a very nice contrast. Still the same scruffy dry
flat land though. I heard that the terrain changes dramatically on
the other side of the Andes. We'll see. (7:48) Just been staring
out the window and admiring the sky. Also stared at a map of
Mendoza that I got in B.A. at the Mendoza Tourist Office. It's a
real good map. I've got the city memorized and cased out. I take
all the important information from the books and write them on the
map marking each place of interest. Then just plan a route to see
them all. When one does it that way it takes a real big town to
require more than a day to see. You can see a lot in one day. I
bought a paper today. It's called "La Nation". Needless to say, I
didn't get much out of it. There were a lot of articles about the
change in governments in Bolivia. Nothing new. I read a lot about
it in the "B.A. Herald", the English paper in B.A. Shouldn't be any
problem for me. This tablet has on the cover the original signers
of the constitution of AR. Well, they sh** canned that a long time
ago, but they still like to print it on things. Frank Sinatra is in
B.A. this week so he's getting a lot of air play. The bus driver
has the radio on and Frank is belting one out. I heard and find it
very hard to believe that tickets were US$1000!! Even if it were
true it's unbelievable! He is staying at the B.A. Sheraton, a huge
place right down town. I wanted to stay there but they don't allow
washing clothes and cooking your own meals so I took the youth
hostel - a much nicer place!! The sky is filled with stars - I'd
like to stop here in this "desert" and camp for a night to stare at
the sky. The Southern Cross is to my left as we head west. I
haven't seen the big or little dipper for quite a while - about
Salvador - from there south it can't be seen. (8:30pm) Should be
there soon. Talk to you at the hotel. (10:25pm) I'm in bed now
after walking around town for awhile. The 1st hotel was a dump but
cheap enough, $1.40 but I walked around for awhile and found this
place. It's $5.40 which is a bit hight but it includes use of a
kitchen! More good food to cook up! So I didn't bother to get
anything to eat tonight, I'll cook something tomorrow here. The
town looks nice - lots of kids out trying to pick up girls and just
hanging around. I did find a postcard, it's no doubt of a
surrounding place as it's flat as a board here. Also found a place
that had a B.A. Herald - think I'll read it. Bye for now, it was
great writing to you - thanks for listening. Your friend and lover,
Rick
Mendoza, AR to Santiago, CH
29) my 22) Postcard from Mendoza, ARG 8/11 Betsy, How would you
like to ski down those! Looks pretty treacherous to me. Going to be
leaving for Santiago, Chile tomorrow morning. By bus unfortunately.
No trains from here to Santiago. It should be beautiful going over
the Andes. I'm trying to spend all of my Arg. money so when I
arrive in Chile I'll have none. Nobody wants Argentina money
because of the inflation here. It was ONLY 12% this month! Since
I've been here everything has going up - even the price to send a
postcard. When you see the price on a menu it's often wrong because
it goes up so often there isn't time to change all the menu's.
Actually it's not that expensive here but not that cheap either.
Chile is supposed to be higher. It's pretty cold today - must be
about 35 -40 because there's no sun. When it does come out it warms
up nice. Bye bye, see you in Chile, Love, Rick
Mendoza, AR to Santiago, CH
32) my 23) Letter from Santiago, Chile 8/13 Betsy, Arrived via bus
from Mendoza, ARG yesterday, coming over the Andes. The bus driver
stopped for me to take a picture of the highest mountain in South
America, over 6000 meters. We passed many ski hills that I'm sure
you would love. The mountains were fantastic! I hope I see more of
them. Just visited my first U.S. embassy here in Santiago. I spoke
with a guy about Bolivia. He didn't say too much, just that there
is no problem now but it may change at any time. He was as vague as
a diplomat can e, but somewhat helpful. I'm going to the American
Cultural Institute here, they apparently have English newspapers so
I can read about world events. This city is really pretty nice -
one can see the snow covered peaks of the Andes even though they
are 150 km away. You can't see the rest of the mountain however, as
there is some amount of air pollution here. For it's size it's not
too bad. However, there are many machine gun toting guards walking
around, a true sign of a military government. Probably stay here
for 4 days and head north. I'll have to take a bus though, no
trains to the north. Well at least the bus station is close to my
hotel. Went to the market today and saw the weirdest, oddest,
strangest and sometimes ugliest assortment of sea food I've ever
seen and this town isn't even on the sea (but it's close enough)!
It was fresh though! Half of the things were still moving. Some of
it looked good, like the crabs and shrimp. I'd try to describe
these mutant ones but it just wouldn't do them justice. I'm sitting
in a park which is just a hill with a museum on top, the view is
nice. There is a bigger hill here in town with a cable car to the
top but the higher isn't necessarily the better in a polluted city
like this. There are many school kids walking around - all with
light blue shirt, navy blue coat and navy blue tie, gray pants and
black shinny shoes. Very regimented - the whole bloody continent.
The sun hangs quite low in the northern sky but it feels real good.
It's up there floating directly on you northerners! According to
the national tourist people the youth hostel here are only open
during the summer. There are some strange vehicles here - miniature
vans made by Suzuki, Mitsubishi, Honda, Subaru, and (get this name)
Diahatsu. Also little bitty cars by Suzuki and Diahatsu that make
Bob Caron's Honda look like my car. They're really cute, they look
like toys. Maybe Tonka should go into the mini-car business! I miss
you so much lover. I've been dreaming of Jamaica a lot and am
looking forward to it. I hope it all works out. I'm dying to see
you! Well, I'm going to walk around a little more as it's very nice
out. See you later, lover. Your lover, Rick P.S. I bought a
Santiago postcard but it won't fit in this size envelope so you get
an old Mendoza one!
Santiago, CH
Santiago, CH
33) my 24) from Santiago 8/15 Dear Betsy, Sitting in a park again
along with the scruffy bums that always wear dark clothes (but
always a suit coat) and are either reading a newspaper or sipping
from a bottle. Well at least they're literate more or less. I'm
joining them here as I am sipping from a bottle of excellent
Chilean wine. Definitely the best so far on my trip. Really tasty
and smooth. Wrapped around the bottle is my Salvador bag which I'm
using all the time. My real reason coming here is to dry a shirt
that I washed. It hung all last night but didn't quite dry so it's
i a sort of thorn bush directly behind me drying away in the sun.
This weather has been great - sunny every day here. I have a
T-shirt on (Guinness!) now and it's just perfect though I'll need a
sweater by 5 pm plus a coat by 8pm as it cools fast. This is my
last full day here because tomorrow at 10am I should be heading for
La Serena (via bus), about 8 hours north along the coast. I'll be
there only a day or so because the once-a-week train from Calama to
La Paz, Bolivia leaves on Wednesday and Calama to La Serena is
about 17 hours (get ready for another marathon letter!) which means
Bolivia by Thursday - time to get my shorts out. Gonna start
screaming north! Look out here I come! There is a big church across
the park and as the sun is setting the steeple's shadow is
encroaching on my "sun", not to mention my shirts. You really can't
call this a park, it's just a square in front of a church that has
been "paved" (wrong word) with bricks and with a little one
"stream" fountain in the middle plus little patches of grass on the
perimeter. The whole thing is 1/4 city blocks at best. Busses go my
constantly spewing diesel smoke everywhere. Parks in general here
are terrible. Here is my theory - Years ago some good minded
sinfully rich person wants to show the community he is an okay guy,
so he donates a tiny fraction of his land as a park. Time goes by
ad 125 military governments later the generals decide they need
some land to put some government building but there is no land -
it's all used up by the capitalists. "Well, what about this stupid
park with nothing but trees and grass?" "Well sh**, nobody is going
to miss a couple of trees and a few blades of grass, we'll put our
lovely 'Bureau of Missing Persons' there as an information service
for OUR people." Enough slander. So every "park" has all these
government offices and oh yes, these offices need streets so cars
and busses parade through the park making it seem more like the
city. These guys were playing soccer in the "park" here and this
older lady just came up and started screaming and telling to these
guys - no more than 7 feet from me here. Well, I just looked at the
guys and smiled. I almost told her to cool it but she didn't look
like she would appreciate English so I refrained. Here she comes
again screaming and yelling. She just grabbed my shirt and told me
to take it down. Well, needless to say, I gave her a mouthful of
sh**. Here she comes again screaming and yelling. I told her to
leave this young kid alone (next to me), she grabbed him by the
shirt. Well, she asked me where I was from. I told her it was none
of her f***ing business. She's gone now and these guys are sitting
right next to me, I talked to them a little but they are so excited
that they are talking 90 miles an hour so I understand very little.
I just finished talking to a young guy who was playing soccer and
he is studying English so we had a good chat (all in Spanish by the
way). Meanwhile the mad lady came by and apologized for her rude
behavior and shook hands with us both and then left. Bless her
soul. My shirt is dry and I think I'll go back to the motel This
has been a weird time here in this "park". I LOVE YOU BABY! Rick
P.S. Hi, it's me again, I'm back at the hotel, I forgot one thing.
These newspaper clippings enclosed. I thought you might like to
read them. His paper is known as one of the most, if not the most,
radical (outspoken maybe is a better word) newspapers in Argentina.
Here is an example of what they get away with. I believe because
it's in English they can be much more liberal as only 1/100 of the
people can understand them. The non-editorial is just an added
attraction I bought the postcard more for the people than the
statue - I was getting tired of "scenic views", Bye bye.
Santiago, CH
34) my 25) Letter from bus trip La Serena to Calama 6:20pm Betsy,
THE BUS TRIP Another marathon bus trip, the one you've been waiting
for! You've been dreaming of this one for a long time. The thought
of the bus floating down the pillow soft carpeted highway soothes
your mind. The pleasant voices muffled by the air hissing past and
Bob Marley on the drivers stereo make you feel very relaxed. The
bus glides down the road like a ship through still waters. The
landscape out of the life-size picture windows is enchanting.
Mountains, some snow covered, mixed in with the rolling plain where
little grows. The Pacific appears now and again to your left with
it's deep color. How long have you waited for this? Too long but at
last you're there and it feels so good. It feels so good to be
free. Free from all responsibilities, all cares. Your mind is
completely relaxed now, relieved from the daily tension you once
knew. The morning alarm is not more. The ebbing tension from daily
contact with the same few people is gone. You feel at ease with
yourself and others, able to express yourself freely with no
self-made shell to protect yourself. The sun has set now over the
vast blue Pacific and the sky is ablaze with stars. Here in the
desert the stars shine like no where else for the air is pure.
Staring out the window you fantasize that your not a bus but a
space ship bound for a new planet. You're mind wanders, looking but
not searching, wondering but not caring. This trip will last a long
time but it will end. There will be more trips though so you sit
back and gaze sleepily at the southern stars. THE END. 8:05pm Well,
so much for my short story. Pretty sh**ty huh? Now you can see why
I almost flunked out of high school and college English. I didn't
decide to write it until the middle of the 1st sentence, you could
probably tell. We left La Serena at 4:30 and are due to arrive in
Calama about 7am tomorrow. The trip from Santiago to La Serana went
fine, the guy next to me spoke a little English so we talked a lot.
It was the best bus I've ever been in too. Individual air vents and
lights and two doors, one in front and one in the middle. A
bathroom in the middle. In La Serena I asked the employee of the
bus company where I could find some "locos" (crazies) - they're one
kind of those weird fish I was telling you about. She invited me
over to her parents house and cooked some. They were good but
nothing out of this world, somewhat like squid in taste and
texture. This bus is an older one but just fine. The guy next to me
speaks no English so we talked a little in Spanish but not much. I
bought another pater which I'm reading very slowly but I think it
helps to weed through it. I should study my book more but have been
on the run lately so haven't had a chance. Chile is turning out to
be very nice - the people are so friendly and nice. It seems like
everyone wants to help you. I guess I wasn't expecting it to be a
lot different than Argentina, but it is. I had a ride in one of
those Suzuki mini-vans last night. They are really neat, I want to
bring one back with me - I'll just claim it as luggage, it should
fit on a 747. There so little. The terrain here is like the "BUS
TRIP" story (above) but not really desert. When we get to Calama it
should look more like desert. Hardly anything growing here though.
I have 4 ham and cheese sandwiches, 4 bananas, 4 oranges, and 2
apples. More than enough until 7am tomorrow. (midnight) Just got
through stopping at a little town (30,000). Only 2 more to go to
Calame. I sucked down 2 Oscudo's, that's the "premium" beer in
Chile. Usually drink Cristal (spelled correctly) but time for a
change. You know almost every place i Chile I've been in -
restaurants, grocery stores, bread shops, and even bars have a
person behind a small counter called "Caxa" (cash?). You get
whatever you want from another person behind another counter then
he/she fills out a little form with the amount on it and gives it
to the caxa person. You then walk over and pay them. They stamp
this piece of paper (usually with the date) and you take it back to
the 1st person and you get your goods. Seems inefficient but guess
it's just their way of keeping records and only one person handles
the money. Probably the owner, but sometimes obviously the owners
wife. We have a sort of "stewardess" (except it's a guy) on the
bus. We can't call him a "flight attendant", how about a "bus trip
attendant". He handed out free small sandwiches at about 5-6 pm and
sells pop all the time. He just came around and closed all the
curtains on the windows. Why, I'm not sure, maybe people feel more
secure when the curtains are closed, it does make you feel like
you're in a long room. I was looking at the starts, oh well. He has
the overhead lights on now when he turns them off I'll peek out and
see the stars. The lights went off and I've opened the curtain and
am using only moonlight to write - how romantic!! Actually, you
probably can't read a thing - because I can't - even thought it's
one day past a full moon. Well, I think I'll "turn in" for the
night - good night lover. 5:30 We've stopped at and left the last
town before Calama. Seem to be on a very bumpy road. We were on the
Pan American Highway, now were on the "Chile pot hole highway"! We
lost a good deal of the bus so I've moved to 2 vacant seats. We're
going to be in Calama awfully early (1.5 hours). Don't know what
I'll do - it's a pretty small town. The sun is just starting to
rise. Looks a little like desert out there, don't see any camels
though! They're hibernating for the winter. It is pretty cold out
now. Freezing at night and hot in the day, that's a desert. Sure
hope I can make this train tomorrow. Gonna be a long ass journey -
26 hours. Have to bring a ton of food with me. The handbook says
there is no heat so I'll have to dress real warm. We just crossed
the Tropic of Capricorn, I'm only as north as San Paulo! A long
ways to go. 7:15am The sun is up and the closest thing to any
growing vegetation within sight are telephone poles. You know I've
never been i a desert before, it's one of the few places I've
missed in the states. It's just about as barren as the moon. Still
a few hills here and there. Good frisbee country when it's now
windy! No obstacles. Need any sand? You can see a long ways but
there isn't much to look at. The vastness is enchanting. 8am Here
we are in Calama, they have trees and lots of taxis but I'm just
standing here in the sun waiting for about 9am to roll around so I
can check into a hotel, maybe I should go to the rail station first
though to see about the train out, it won't be open until 9am
anyway. 9am Found out one can buy a rail ticket at 5-6pm today and
checked into a sleazy hotel but cheap $3. Now right across the
street from the Bolivian Consulate waiting for signs of life. Going
to ask them if I need a visa. Shouldn't. Some dignitary just walked
through the door. I'm going to mail this so we'll see you on the
train. All my love to you Betsy, Rick
Train from Calama, CH to La Paz, BO
35) my 26) Letter from the train to La Paz 8/19 10:30pm Dear Betsy,
Met an English guy (Bill) and 2 french guys yesterday in Calama
when I bought my ticket for La Paz. Bill and I went through a
couple of bottles of wine last night and had some good talks. We
are all not on the train. Bill across the isle and the 2 french
guys up a ways, all on this car though. This trip has so far been a
real experience. When Bill and I got on our seats were all filled
up with baggage so we had to tell the Indian looking ladies, who
make up the majority of the riders to take them off so we could
sit. Well, they bought so much stuff withe them there wasn't
anywhere to put all of it. They had taken all the luggage racks so
my pack is straddling between 2 seats. They seem real nice though,
we've been chatting now and then. It seems they make this trip
every week transporting goods back and forth illegally. The have
stuff like hand cream, eggs, china and all kinds of assorted junk.
When we started this one group of ladies had a ton of sh** - I
thought they were moving their whole f***ing house! As we
progressed to the border it kind of disappeared. I told Bill they
were putting it on the roof but Bill thinks they are putting it on
the adjacent car to kind of spread it around. Right before the
border there was a big scurry of people with bags running around
plus ladies stuffing things in their bras! Bill and I were really
cracking up. I don't think they're running drugs. A) We're going
into Bolivia not out and B) they don't look sophisticated enough.
When the Bolivian customs people came on they obviously knew these
ladies and checked their contraband and happily took a bribe, but
it's not really a bribe. It's very open everybody sees the money
changing hands and every week it happens. After the customs we had
2 machine gun toting guys check passports. Guys is the wrong word,
these were kids, maybe 17. They also took all the newspapers
including mine from Santiago. It appears they don't like foreign
newspapers in Bolivia. Not surprising. So no I have no Spanish
newspaper to read on this 26 hours trek. Then a guy came around and
collected all the passports and said we could pick them up at 1am
in car #48. Great! Bill felt the same way as I. We left right on
time at 12:55 but it's pretty slow - I figured out about 26 kph
which is 15 mph from maps and km-markers on the telephone poles.
The landscape was excellent - made you feel like you were on the
moon. We climbed steadily until the border at 3900 meters (12500
feet) and went by some really huge snow capped mountains and
dormant volcanoes. One had the whole side blown off like Mt. St.
Helens. Nothing grows here except little clumps of yellow grass. We
went through some vast salt flats with lakes in the. One had what
looked like pink flamingos in it. The temperature change here is
unreal. Up to 80 degrees F at about 2-3 in the afternoon and down
to 15 degrees F at early morning. I had a T-shirt on today and
sweated just a little. Now I have 2 pairs of pants, T-shirt, shirt,
sweater, blue jean jacket and down jacket draped over my lets.
These ladies really come prepared - tons of blankets, coats, hats,
scarves, you name it. I took a picture (without a flash) of the
inside of the car. Sure hope it turns out because it's such a
carnival in here. Here is a diagram of the car. It's British built
much to Bill's delight and we guess circa 1930. 38 people and a
quite narrow car, much narrower than the others in ARG and URG.
(diagram) Bill started at A but shuffled around with the ladies and
ended up at B, then moved to C where he is now. Lots of windows
which slide up (sometimes). All seats are numbered and everyone has
a number on their ticket. The border town was called Llague and we
have Uyuni, Rio Mulato, Oruro, Viacha and then La Paz. A total of
934 km (580 miles). Bill is going to Rio Mulato, one French guy is
going to Oruro and the other to La Paz. The La Paz French guy
speaks some English, the other none but both speak good Spanish.
Maybe e staying with the one in La Paz. Everybody is sleeping or
attempting to sleep as the backs of the seats are pretty short,
coming to about 4 inches below my shoulders so you either sleep
with your head drooped down or try to lean it against the window,
top of the seat, or whatever. It's 12:30 now and a guy just came in
and yelled something. He wants to see our tickets and says we can
pick up our passports. Got my passport back but it's stamped "debe
presentarse en Las Oficinas de Migration" which means before you
can leave the country you have to visit the office of immigration
24 hours prior and get it stamped. Otherwise you can't leave.
Pretty weird, huh? Nothing to worry about according to Bill. Just a
pain in the ass. 8/20 1:30pm We just left Oruro, dropping Bill and
the other French guy off. We bid them the best of luck and hoped we
would see them again, perhaps in La Paz or Lima. So now George and
I are on our way to La Paz. We've been 24 1/2 hours so far and my
by reckoning we have another 6-7. The uniqueness of this trip makes
up for it's longevity. The scenery from here to La Paz is supposed
to be good. Right this minute we are going as fast as we ever have
and the train is shaking like a bitch (that's why you can't read
this). We had another customs check and we helped our lady friends
with their contraband by putting some of the hand cream boxes in
our backpacks. They don't bother with gringos luggage - they didn't
touch one of our bags both times. They are pretty thorough with the
locals. The ladies still had to pay off this customs guy. Bill and
I couldn't figure out how they can make any money with all these
pay offs. They got off in Oruro also, I passed their goods out the
window to them. Many very Indian looking women come on the train at
these little bitty stations selling all kinds of stuff - cooked
fish mixed with rice and potatoes, a mixture of beef noodles and I
don't know what all - that looked terrible, candy, roasted beans
that you shell like a peanut and are very hard, pop, beer, fruit
drinks, etc, etc. I bought the fish item for 60 cents, it was
great, tasted like perch but a lot bigger. The clientele is really
great on this train! Didn't get much sleep last night because A)
the seat as described yesterday B) my back hurts from sleeping in
these sh**ty beds in hotels C) it got really cold last night, must
have been 15-20 degrees and D) just didn't feel like sleeping. It's
catching up with me now, I'm feeling a little drowsy. We just keep
chugging along though. It's a nice sunny day and has warmed up to
maybe 60-65 degrees in the shade, in the sun you feel hot.
Mountains on both sides of us but the immediate terrain is desert,
looking somewhat salty. 4pm It clouded up and it's getting cold
already. The train has really been moving along, I think this is
some new track because were not rocking all over the place. 8/21
8am Here we are in our fairly nice hotel for $5 for a double.
Arriving last night at 7:30 to make our trip 30.5 hours. Whew! The
city is 1000 meters down in a huge "hole" and the scenery was
spectacular from the train. The city seems relatively small, it's
not all that big. They have a 11pm curfew throughout Bolivia so one
has to be off the street by then. It's VERY quite after 11! Pretty
crazy huh? Well, we're going to look at the city and I'm going to
mail this. Bye bye, Love, Rick
Train station in Bolivia
36) my 27) Letter from La Paz 8/23 Dear Betsy, George's name isn't
George at all but Paul - how do you like that? I was calling him
George for 2 days until we went to the American Express office and
he picked up some mail addressed "Paul ...". Speaking of that, I
found out much to my disgust that one CAN send mail to American
Express offices throughout South America. You're going to love me
for that one! Sorry. This letter is weird because I'm going to call
you tomorrow but I felt like writing anyway. Paul had some French
friends here in town and he is staying with them tonight so I
thought I would have to pay for a double (only $4) but alas, when I
arrived back here from helping Paul take his luggage to his friends
house there were 2 girls and a guy sitting on the steps. They are
from Belgium and were waiting for the hotel guy to come back. I
told them if they could only get a double the guy could stay in my
room. So a little later he came by and he will be staying here.
This has to be one of the smallest capital cities in the world, 1
million people. It's a real nice town. The stories I've heard about
the government would freak anyone out. It's crazy or maybe insane
would be more fitting. Paul's friends are real nice. I hung around
at their house today and we played cassettes and bullsh**ted about
everything. It's a married couple - he's Bolivian and she is French
plus a French girl living there. Many people wandered by today to
chat. Some spoke a little English but mostly I tried to understand
the Spanish and ignored the French. The wife gave me some recipes
of Bolivian food. It will be fun to try them. There are so many
Europeans here it's unreal. Everyone I met is French, Swiss,
German, etc. Not many Americans. Paul's Bolivian friend said it was
good to meet an American as he was getting tired of meeting French
people all the time. I bought a bottle of Bolivian wine but it's
not too good, plus it's expensive $2.40. Doesn't seem like much but
it is for Bolivia. All the books claim that Bolivian beer is the
best in South America but Paul and I think Antartica (Brazilian) is
better plus I think that Polar (VEN) is better too. Maybe with the
recent change in governments, the beer quality slipped! Who knows.
With this high altitude (3500 meters) you have to watch how much
exertion you do. You get real tired just walking up a hill of which
there are many here. Some people get sick when they arrive here but
I didn't notice anything. If I think about it I notice I'm
breathing faster than usual from some simple exorcise like walking
fast but I have to think about it. We saw some real nice views of
the city today walking around the city. It's neat the way the city
sits in a huge "hole" surrounded by mountains. On one is the worlds
highest ski hill. The food here is very spicy, reminds me of
Salvador. At every table in a restaurant is a little bowl of hot
spicy sauce. It's real good. The typical food here is empanadas
which are kind of like pasties except they have a saucy mixture
inside and could have have chicken, beef, pork, cheese, who knows
what inside. Here in Bolivia the empanadas are called saltinas.
Meals are pretty cheap - $0.80 - $2.00 for a 2 or 3 course meal
with a drink. I can't think of anything else that I won't repeat
tomorrow so "chow y hasta luego". Love, Rick
La Paz, BO
37) my 28 Letter from La Paz 8/26 Dear Betsy, It was so nice
talking with you last night, been thinking about it all day. Sorry
about the American Express screw up. I feel bad about it. I didn't
find out about it until here in La Paz when Paul said he had been
getting mail all throughout South America. Well, I'm looking
forward to your letters in Bogota. Bill (the English guy who I met
on the train form Chile to here and who popped up at my hotel
yesterday) and I will be leaving tomorrow morning for Peru.
Specifically Puno, Peru. Form there he will be going to Arequipa
and I to Cuzco. We had to go to the Office of Immigration here to
get a stamp on our passport to be able to leave the country. It's
such a joke but without it either A) can't leave the country or B)
you have to pay to leave. I'm not sure which, I heard two stories.
I'm sitting in the central square in more or less the middle of
town. To my left are the presidential palace and the cathedral.
Behind me is the congressional palace where the congress meets. In
the newspaper today on the front page was a "worlds first"
news-breaking story. It seems Bolivia has 3 presidents! They might
as well have 20! The military is running things not the presidents.
It's cute though - 3 presidents in the building to my left. I don't
know what they do in the congress with this government, probably
very little. There are a lot of people here in the square today and
lots of vendors selling ice cream, orange juice, jello (in cups),
corn (for the pigeons), and guy's that will take your picture with
instant cameras - about 1/4 of the people here are Indian, the rest
a mixture. Not much happening here today, just people sitting
around gawking. Of course there are always foreigners if you look
around. It's so different from Brazil or all the countries I've
been to so far to see lots of tourists. Guess I better get used to
it going to Peru and Columbia. Well, I have to run back to the
hotel to take a shower since I have to use my towel and have it dry
for tomorrow. So I'll mail this letter now as the post office is 2
blocks from here and the hotel 7. See you later love, Your best
friend and lover, Rick
La Paz, BO
38) my 29 Letter from La Paz 8/27 Hi there Betsy Boehm, Here is the
original signers of the Argentine Constitution I was telling you
about some time ago. Cute huh? Finally finished this pad and have
another which I bought in La Paz. Bill and I are in Puno, Peru now
after crossing from Bolivia to here. First we took a mini-school
bus packed like a sardine can from La Paz to Copacabana, Bolivia (4
hours) then another bigger school bus packet 6 km across the border
to Yungue, Peru and finally a taxi from there to here (2 hours).
These taxi's sit in the town square and wait for 5 people that want
to go to Puno. This guy was having a hard time getting people so he
lowered his price from $6 to $2.50 so we took it. It took the whole
day to get here, we left at 7:30am and got here at 6:30 but we
changed time zones so were now the same time as you. This town is
just clock-full of tourists, it's really bad. You can't go anywhere
without seeing Europeans walking around. I guess I'd better get
used to it, all of Peru is like this. The Peru busses are all of
the school bus type where your leg room is non-existent and the
seats are the bench type where your ass gets really sore after the
first half hour. The luggage is stored on top in a rack then
covered with a canvas tarp. 8/28 AM Today we are going to some
ruins if we can change some money. It seems it's very difficult
here. The Bank of the Nation has a monopoly on changing money and
it takes 1 1/2 hours per person for a change plus (supposedly) you
need to have a photo-copy of your passport. What a bunch of sh**.
This is the only city in Peru where isn't bad. These ruins are 38
km up the road. We're going to the bank now and "queue up" for
"cambio". Bye bye, Love, Rick P.S. Here is the article about the 3
presidents.
Market in La Paz, BO
39) my 30) Letter from train to Cuzco 8/29 Dear Betsy, I'm on the
train to Cuzco now, Bill is somewhere on this train but I don't
know where. This train goes for about 50 km and splits up, Bill's
train is going to Arequipa and this part to Cuzco. Getting this
train was a real treat. First I had to wait in line for tickets
from 6-7am then wait in line for the train so you can get on to
have luggage space from 7-8am. Bill tells me the train to Machu
Picchu is worse. Peru is turning out to be a pain in the ass for
travelling. I bid Bill farewell and hope I see him in Lima. He's
really a nice guy. He will be flying from Lima on Sept 11 for
London so we might meet at a hotel in Lima. This train is a lot
wider than the Bolivian one. It has 2 rows of people and each car
seats 84 people. About 1/4 of the train is gringos, mostly German
and Swiss. I've met up with a German guy who lives in Munich but is
working in Bogota for an Insurance Co., he speaks good English.
2:27pm There is also a guy from San Francisco we've been talking
to, he's only down here for 4 weeks. He's a radiologist and works
at the hospital in S.F. We're climbing quite a bit now with huge
snow covered mountains to our right. The immediate terrain is
grassy plains. Our train split a while back so Bill is on his way
to Arequipa. I'd like to hike the Inca Trail which takes 3-4 days
but I'd have to rent a sleeping bag and a tent. Maybe I can find
someone with a tent who needs another person to go. Now I wish I
had my sleeping bag but only for 4 days. No pleasin' me huh? To get
to Machu Picchu you have to take a train from Cuzco and then come
back since Machu Picchu is a "dead end". There is a tourist train
and one for the locals. The former is a rip-off costing 4 times the
local and it only stays at Machu Picchu for 2 hours. Another
possibility is to take the afternoon train to Aqua Calientes and
stay overnight there and then early in the morning hike to Machu
Picchu arriving before the tourist train, then hike back in the
afternoon. I may do that. Have to play it by ear. We're going down
hill now, pretty fast. This train should arrive at 6pm but I'll be
happy with 7-7:30. I'm getting used to delays. Lots of sheep and
llamas out the window grazing. There is a guy across the aisle who
bought some meat (looks like the tail bone with organs attached -
testicles included!) and has it hanging up by the window. He got it
at the last stop. It must have been a good town for meat because
there was a lot of hunks floating around. You're probably thinking
it smells good in comparison to the Indians. Some of them are
really ripe. Sometimes I go for 2 1/2 weeks without changing
clothes and I smell like a rose next to them! We're going by a
rather fertile area with lots of small farms and people working out
in the fields. Little irrigation canals all throughout. Looking
greener and greener. 11pm Hi - I'm at a hotel now. We went by some
real nice scenery - the train followed a river through the
mountains to Cuzco. The last part was in the dark and Cuzco was a
mass of lights. It was a nice trip. 12 1/2 hours though. The
American was travelling first class so he had reservations at an
expensive hotel. When the train arrived he was talking to the
German so I let them walk way ahead of me and lost them in the
crowd. The German was weird - I didn't like him too much, and
didn't want to share the same room with him. So after trying 3
hotels, I found this one for $2 which isn't bad. I'm laying in bed,
it's pretty cold now and I've spread my down jacket and other
clothes on top of the bed to help insulate. Wish you were here!
Since I won't e able to mail this to Monday it will be continued
tomorrow. Good night lover. 9:30 Sun I've walked around a little
and the town is very beautiful. Lots of Inca architecture. Stone
blocks fitted together with amazing precision. Right now I'm in the
Plaza de Armas which is the main square in almost all South
American cities. Appropriately enough there having a military
parade. I'm half looking for a shop that rents sleeping bags and
tents but it being Sunday, everyone is closed. I have some
addresses so I'm finding them so I can hit them all tomorrow. Just
talking to an old man (70) beside me who has lived here all his
life. He says this military parade is every Sunday. We have a
marching band now quit out of tune and competing with the numerous
church bells around the square. I can see 5 churches from here.
Several people carrying a huge flag of Peru and lots of boy and
girl scout types with green berets. It's starting to rain a little
now but the band plays on, way off key and the church bells clang
loudly. 4pm Sun I went to change hotels because I didn't care for
the one last night and the guy at the hotel said he didn't have any
singles but had a double with a gringo in it. So I meet him and
he's from New Mexico of all places. I was expecting French or
German. We're getting along great and plan on doing the Inca train
together. All the books say it takes 4-5 days to do it and 3 if you
push it. Both he (Henry) and I aren't that interested in
archaeology or Inca culture but more interested in doing some
hiking and camping so we should have a good time. One of those
shops that rent camping equipment was open tonight and the rent
both sleeping bags and tents so it will be no problem. Now we just
have to get tickets for the train tomorrow afternoon. This
afternoon Henry and I went walking around town and started up this
big hill. When we reached the top and looked over to the other side
there was a huge outdoor stadium built by the Incas and there were
people playing "Inca games" plus about 3000 spectators. It was so
strange to just happen upon it. Unfortunately I didn't have my
camera. It hasn't been working too good lately. The mechanism is
screwed up. Bought a Miami Herald today, it's nice to read what's
happening in the States. Not to mention bridge column and a
crossword puzzle. Well, I'm going to read up on the Inca Trail.
Hopefully tomorrow we'll be on it. Bye for now. Love, Rick 9/1 3pm
Hi, it's me again. Henry and I rented a tent and sleeping bag and
right now I'm sitting at 13766 feet at a pass on the trail to Machu
Picchu. Henry is ahead of me right now on the tail of some French
or Swiss guys. From here to camp it's all down hill so thought I'd
take a break. Speaking of break, my camera no longer works, the
shutter is stuck open. Oh well. The views up here are great - snow
covered mountains, some forest and lots of clean streams. We will
make it almost half way today or about 15 miles. We brought 4
apples, 30 oranges, 40 bananas, 1 pound ham, 2.2 pounds cheese, and
1/2 pound of sandwich meat - should be plenty. I'm trying to eat
all the fruit I can because their the heaviest. It really feels
good to be up here "on top of the world" alone. We were so busy
getting stuff together for this trip that I couldn't make the post
office to mail the 1st letter. So you get 2. I'm looking right down
the ravine we just climbed and it's hard to believe. It's really a
long way down. It's beautiful. To my back is another ravine going
way down. On both sides are huge snow covered peaks with clouds
wisping through them. The sun is shining at my back and it's a good
thing because it's cold up here. Although I have on only a T-shirt
and sweater. We left at 5:30am this morning. The French guys at 9am
and they passed us. They must climb the Alps every year! I'm really
tired but Henry is feeling fine, he's worked in the mountains in
Argentina as a ski instructor for 3 months. It's only 1-2 hours to
a camp and all down hill so no problem. We'll think I'll have a
banana and start down. Bye bye. 9/2 3:45pm Well, we made it. What
is said to be a 4-5 day trip we did in 2 days. We weren't pushing
ourselves too much. I slept great last night despite the frigid
temperatures by putting all my clothes on and wrapping my legs in
my down coat. This morning we set out and went over pass #2, #3,
and #4. Pass #1 was by far the hardest. So today was mostly
downhill. Right now I'm at pass #4 and to my left are the HUGE
ruins of Machu Picchu. I never imagined them to be this big. They
are built in a very odd place - on top of a mountain surrounded by
other higher mountains. Thus it can't be seen very well and not at
all from the river below. The whole ruins have a greenish tint to
them, moss I suppose. These 2 days have been full of beautiful
views and interesting sights. This trail goes by many Inca ruins,
the best of course being Maccu Picchu. It has also been a lot of
hard work - 40 km in two days isn't much but a lot of it is up and
down which makes the going slow. While walking down the path's I've
been thinking about you. My heart gets warm at the thought of you.
Thanks for being the way you are. Well, I'm going down to the
campground where Henry is to help set up camp. Then tomorrow we
will walk to Maccu Picchu - about 45 minutes. Bye bye. Hi again.
We're back in Cuzco in the hotel trying to get out of town but it
seems very hard. All of the busses and planes are full or
cancelled. What a pain. I'm finally going to mail this letter,
right now. So we'll see you later. Love, Rick P.S. My camera
started working when we were finished with Machu Picchu! Oh well.
Market in Ayacucho, PR
41) my 31) Letter from the road Cuzco to Ayacucho 9/6 Dear Betsy,
We had a hard time getting out of Cuzco, it being the weekend and
everything booked up. So Friday at about noon we headed for the
road out of town and got a ride with a trucker. This method is very
well established here in Peru. People flock to markets or roads out
of town where trucks line up with (sometimes) their destinations
chalked on the windshield. The type of truck is almost always the
flat bed farm-type truck. Everybody piles in back with mounds of
blankets and other assorted clothes and snuggles in for a usually
very slow long ride. The roads are so primitive the truck may only
average 8-10 mph! So a 100 mile trip is quite long. You always
bargain with them for a lower price. Our 1st ride wasn't bad, we
went 200 km in 8 hours. Toward the end it got quite cold as we
climbed very high into the mountains. That night we stayed in a
little town - Abancay, Peru. Saturday (yesterday) we waited for 6
hours before we got a truck that was going to Andahuaylas, half way
to our destination - Ayacucho. The ride didn't start until 4pm and
was to take 8 hours because the truck was loaded with 55 gallon
barrels full of gas, diesel, etc. We all (8 people) sat on top of
them getting greasy. Half way through the trip we got a flat and it
was colder than hell. So we waited around for about 40 minutes and
along came a small Japanese pickup so we got a ride with him which
worked out good because he was going much faster. As we approached
Andahuaylas we could see a bus coming from behind so we flagged him
down and lucky for us we was going to Ayacucho and would arrive 12
hours later at noon Sunday. So we slept the night on the bus and
saw some great scenery this morning. Next I'm going to one of tree
towns to catch the train to Lima. Henry is thinking of flying -
he's a little sick of the roads here, but he hasn't decided yet.
Peru is playing Uruguay in soccer right now so about 35 people are
glued to the TV here in the hotel lobby. 9/7 Peru won, so they will
be playing Spain next year. The newspapers are full of sports
today. We've bought bus tickets for Huancayo and will be leaving
Ayacucho 3pm arriving 4am. Then we'll try to buy train tickets for
Lima that supposedly leaves at 7am. We're in the square now and
they're having a march of maybe 150-200 people. It's hard to tell
what they're saying but they appear to be communists. This town has
a strong contingent of communists. I was just talking to a guy and
he says they're on strike. This is a nice little town, the people
are very friendly unlike Cuzco which has way too many tourists
(because of Machu Picchu) to be friendly. I'm going to run and mail
this before it's too late. Bye bye lover, Rick
Market in Ayacucho, PR
40) my 32) Letter from Huancayo 9/9 11am Dear Lover, Hello there
you adorable, beautiful, intelligent woman! How are you? I can't
wait to hear from you in Bogota. Wow! This first letter I'll to
receive from you! I'll be you're a good writer. Of course from my
terrible writing, anything is better. I should enroll in some
grammar school. On second though, I'll pass. Henry and I took the
bus from Ayacucho to Huancayo as per the last letter. The bus left
at 3pm and was supposed to arrive at 4am, enough time to catch the
train at 7am - ALMOST! The bus was ONLY 4 hours late, putting us in
at 8am, just in time to miss the train. Well, Henry decided he was
going to Lima so he headed for the trucks to hitch a ride but I
decided to stay the day and night in town and get the train in the
morning. Now that I look back on it I'm very glad the bus was late
because Huancayo (pronounced Waun-KI-O) turned out to be a nice
town - nicer than Ayacucho. Yesterday, when in Huancayo, I took a
"day trip" to a little town called Haulhaus. This little town
specializes in Alpaca goods - blankets, sweaters, bags, etc. I
wandered around from shop to shop and found everything too
expensive but then this lady, whom I had asked earlier to tell me
where a cheap shop might be, asked me to her house where she made
some Alpaca things. So I bought 3 items at a good price. Huancayo
is completely surrounded by mountains so it's very pretty. The
people were somewhat friendly also. Too many gringos though. Right
now I'm on the train to Lima which left right on time (7am) and is
making very good time. The scenery is spectacular - I'm glad waited
for the train. For the first time I'm going first class since the
price was negligible. The difference in class being A) an assigned
seat (2nd class is a free for all) B) A table in the "booths". A
booth bring 4 people, 2 facing the other, 2 with a table in
between. The 3 people in my both are all from Belgium and are
students in medicine. We played some wisp which is similar (a
little) to bridge. It was fun. In this car there are about 25%
gringos. Right this minute we're doing a "switch back" which is
like this (diagram). The train starts at (A) and goes all the way
to the end (B), then a guy changes the direction of track at (Z),
the train reverses and goes all the way to (C) then a guy changes
direction at (X), the train goes forward and proceeds. These
switchbacks are for climbing to higher altitudes in a short
distance. We've been climbing for some time now and must be very
high because there is snow all over the place, with tons of snow on
the peaks of the mountains which aren't much higher than we are.
We're going to have a long way to go down since Lima is at sea
level. These mountains are the same as mentioned in previous
letters - south Colorado style. I think we just reached our peak -
we went through a really long tunnel and are now on the other side
going down hill. Lots of snow still - it's really beautiful. I
wrote a postcard to your family but I lost the address so it just
has Stevens St. on it, shouldn't be a problem. I've bought all
kinds of food for this train trek - oranges, apples, bananas, fresh
peas, bread, pineapple marmalade, and a big hunk of fresh coconut.
I had 2 sandwiches made of bread (or course), slices of banana,
marmalade and slices of coconut. They're great! I will be calling
you 3 weeks before Oct 21 or about Sept 30-Oct 1. Feel free to plan
as much or as little as you like. If you plan, plan it like it is
YOUR vacation alone, I've had my vacation. It matters not what we
do, it will be so nice to be with you. Many people have told me
that Lima isn't a very nice town - too big, noisy, polluted, etc.
So don't know how long I'll be here, probably long enough to wash
my clothes - all my clothes are dirty - real dirty. Hopefully Bill
will be at the Hotel Richmond since his flight leaves on Friday
9/11, but chances are it will be full with gringos. 4:30pm We've
done something weird, the train stopped at a station and the engine
scooted from one end of the train to the other, so now were going
the other direction. I was watching things go away, now they're
coming at me. Looks like we'll be in Lima around 6pm or so, not a
bad time. 8pm Couldn't find Bill at the hotel and they were full so
I went to one other "gringo" hotel and they were full, so I found
this place for $5.70 - not so bad but double the others. Tomorrow
I'll find a cheaper place. This town doesn't seem very bad, the
pollution isn't real bad and it doesn't have a "huge" town look -
most of the buildings are not tall - probably because of
earthquakes. Bye bye lover, Rick
Hualhaus, PR
Lima, PR
On the way to Chavin de Huantar, Huaraz, PR
42) my 33) Letter from a trip to Guayaquil 9/15 AM Dear Betsy, Hi!
I've been so busy lately trying to get the hell out of this crazy
country that there is no time to do anything but run around cities
for a day touring and arrange the next bus out. I guess the last
letter was from Lima. Stayed there 3 nights (2 days). Went to the
archaeology museum, walked the whole center and walked a suburb
that could have been West Palm Beach. There are a few people here
that have a lot of money. According to the handbook there was
bridge games in this suburb but the church where they were supposed
to be said they haven't had bridge games there in at least 5 years,
so I walked around. Overall Lima was nice - good restaurants and
not polluted. Not a real pretty place though. Left Lima on Saturday
for Huaraz which is in the mountains northeast of Lima. Henry took
a different bus but we met in Huaraz plus I met an Irish guy on my
bus and the 3 of us stayed in a "residential familiar" which is
just a house that rents out rooms (one or 2) like a hotel. That was
nice. Then the 3 of us decided to take a "package tour" to these
ruins 120 km away. None of us have ever taken one of these so we
thought it would be a nice change. We paid $11 each which included
transport and a tour of the site. The tour owner that sold us the
thing said A) there's lots of room on the "micro bus" B) we would
be back by 4pm and C) lunch would only cost 400 Soles. Guess what?
He should have added D) none of the above. The micro bus, which is
a Dodge pick-up-size van with a continuous cab (back), was packet
with 16 people 4 across and 4 seats, so we were crunched shoulders
4 hours up and back on a dirt road. When we arrived there was an
admission free per person AND for cameras. Lunch was 550 Soles and
was terrible. We got back at 6pm. I've been in Peru long enough so
that I wasn't the least surprised by all this - I wasn't even
upset. One grows accustomed to it. So that night after returning
from our "package tour", I took a night bus to Trujullo on the
coast further north which unbelievably arrived AHEAD of time! I was
shocked. A first for me in Peru. So we got in at 5:30am Mon. I met
a German on the bus so we toured the city during the day. We went
to the archaeology museum and 2 archaeological sites. They were
nice. We were always getting something to eat - it was a nice day.
During the day I bought another bus ticket to leave at 7:30pm
Monday (yesterday) for Tumbes on the border with Ecuador. Well, our
bus broke down about 11:30pm last night so we sat for 3 hours
waiting for the water pump to be replaced. It didn't bother me in
the least - it's much easier to sleep when the bus isn't moving and
the time difference doesn't matter. Still should be ample time to
get to wherever I decide to go in Ecuador (haven't decided yet). In
case you couldn't tell from my terrible handwriting, I'm on the bus
now and the road took a turn for the worse. This is the Pan
American Highway. Larson Road (near Neenah, WI) is wining the
quality race though. Although it's the best road in Peru! We're in
an area of pretty much pure desert. Sand everywhere dotted with oil
wells. I heard that when you cross the equator is instantly turns
to tropics. 9/16 AM Well, we (now with an Israel guy who once lived
in N.J.) crossed the border and took a crazy contraband bus to
Guayaquil which is barely the largest city with 1 million (Quito
has 980,000). So far it seems nicer than Peru but we arrived at 5pm
and just took a walk around. Definitely more expensive than Peru
but not too much. Today I'm going to check on the train to Quito,
go to the tourist office and walk the town some more. The terrain
didn't instantly turn to tropics but by the time we got here it
had. It was hot and muggy when we arrived but cooled down nice
later. Boy, it hasn't been hot for me since Salvador, that's a long
time. Have to start getting used to it. Last night while walking
around down by the river which connects the Pacific, Ami (Israeli)
asked a couple of boats where they were going and one was going to
Galapagos but not leaving for 2 weeks. It will go for 15 days. This
boat is a cargo boat but they take passengers. We're going to talk
to them but I'm sure I won't go unless it leaves in 2-3 days. The
whole thing would cost $500 so it doesn't bother me to miss it.
Maybe stay here for 3 days (3 days/2 nights as the train leaves
6am) and 3-4 days in Quito and spend some time on the coast in
north Ecuador. Then to Bogota for some mail that I'm anxious to
read! Bye bye for now lover, see you later. Your best friend, Rick
Guayaquil, EQ
On the way to Quito. Ambato, EQ
Train, Guayaquil to Quito, EQ
Quito, EQ
Quito, EQ
43) my 34) Letter from Quito, EC 9/18 pm Dear Betsy Hi lover, how
are you? I hope you're doing fine. Guayaquil was nice but Quito
should be nicer. That's where I am right now. Just arrived and got
a hotel room. Left Guayaquil this morning at 6 am via a one-car
train that looked like a bus. As a matter of fact the company that
made the body makes all the bus body's here. There are only a few
differences - no steering wheel and a bathroom, and of course, no
tires! Other than that it's the same. It was different but I like
the regular ones better. The scenery was excellent. Lost my pen on
the train, that's why the red. The enclosed article is just for the
hell of it. They were having big demonstration although I never saw
any because the university is out of town a ways. Finally got a
chance to wash my clothes (by hand) in Guayaquil - feels good to
have clean clothes. Washed them at the hotel they had a basin and
brush plus lines to hang them up. Thinking about going to
Esmereldas after 2 days here in Quito. It's on the short and is
supposed to be an excellent beach. It's a real little place and
would be a nice place to relax. The trouble with it is it's on a
dead end road and one has to come back through Quito to get out.
I'll probably go anyway. Quito is the 2nd highest capital in the
world (La Paz is 1st) so it won't get real got here like Guayaquil
which gets hot and humid. Quito sits at 9400 feet, not real high
but high enough to be cool at night. Quito is also only 17 miles
south of the equator. That means I'm between Manaus and Boa Vista,
BR - wow I've really come a long way north! I'm going to study the
books and go to bed, I'll write some more tomorrow before going to
the post office to mail this. Good night, sleep tight, don't let
the bed bugs bite. 9/19 am I'm back. After walking around in the
light, the town is very old and rich in Spanish architecture. The
bus to Esmareldas is $4.33, it's a 7 hour trip. Probably go Monday
morning. The weather this morning is clear skies but very cool. It
will warm up if no clouds come around. I'm going to change hotels
as the one I'm in is $3.33 and many are only $2. Need to change
some money too, hope there will be a "casa de cambio" open today as
it's Saturday. Well, I'm going to mail this now because I'm
standing in the post office. Bye bye for now. Your admirer, Rick
Quito, EQ
Quito, EQ
Quito, EQ
44) my 36) Letter from Cali. Columbia 9/24 Dear Betsy, Hi, I'm
getting closer to Columbia. Kinda like I got close to Brazil. First
I went to the border without an exit stamp for Ecuador so I had to
come back to this town (Tulcan), which is only 3 km from the
boarder, to go to the Office of Immigration to get a stamp. Then I
went back and crossed over into Columbia to get an entrance stamp
only to be told I need a visa. Ah, but then the good news - there
is a consulate in Tulcan. By this time it's after 12 noon so right
now I'm sitting right across the street from the consulate waiting
for 2 pm to roll around so I can attempt a visa (lunch is 12-2pm).
Stayed at Atacames on the beach in Ecuador for 2 days. It was real
nice even though the sun never came out the whole time. I met 2
Americans working for the Peace Corps and a Swiss guy who lived in
the States for 4 years. We had a good time goofing around. Went
swimming once. The water was great. Instead of going to San Lorenzo
I came back to Quito and then went to Ibarra where I stayed last
night. Went looking around town this morning and then left for here
7:45 am, thinking it would be early enough to do everything here
about the immigration bullsh** - wrong. Well, if I knew exactly
where to go and what to do - no problem. You remember those 2
Californian guys I met in Brazil (actually Santa Elana, VEN) they
got into Columbia without a visa. I've learned a lot about South
America and the most important thing is that ANYTHING can happen. I
pleaded with this guy at the border, told him about the
Californians and everything but didn't get anywhere. Well, it is
only 3 km and only costs $0.30 for a ride back. No big deal IF I
get a visa. Because I don't have a return ticket out of Columbia
which I think you have to have. I'll just show them my Caracas -
Miami ticket if they ask. Going to try to go to Poypan, COL today -
shouldn't be too hard to make, if I can get into the country. It's
rather cool here - very overcast and gray. The surrounding land is
very pretty. 4:42 pm Everything went smooth, the visa (actually
just a 20 day tourist stamp) was a breeze, must have taken all of
10 minutes. Checked with some bus companies and if I went to Popyan
I would arrive at midnight or later. That didn't appeal to me too
much. Cali is 12 hours away so I bought a ticket for 6 pm tonight
which means I'll be arriving at 6 am. That isn't the greatest time
but it beats midnight. So guess I'll miss Popyan - oh well - it's
only Columbia. Actually if I can be so biased to give you my first
impression - it's good after 2 hours and 30 minutes. It's very hard
to be unbiased when you've heard all I've heard about Columbia.
Travelers stories tend to amplify the very bad and also tend to
become rumors. The south is supposed to be better than the north
though. I'm in a restaurant sipping a Poker Beer, my first one, 2
guys playing chess in the corner and some other mostly young people
just sitting around drinking coffee or pop. the town square is
right out the window. In the center is a statue of a woman tied up
with ropes and her arm pointed straight ahead. Not sure what it's
all about but maybe I'll pass by on my way out. It's not much of a
square, it needs move trees. There were some real nice squares in
Ibarra this morning. They have a record (or tape?) player going and
pretty sure it's Columbian music. Heard quite a bit in Ecuador.
Well, better go over to the bus company and see what's shakin'.
Talk to ya later lover. 9/25 8 am Sitting in my newly-found hotel
room (Residencial Bolivar) in Cali. On the bus I re-read the
sections on Cali and on Popyan in both books and Popyan was by far
the more recommended city so I tried to sell my ticket when we got
to Popyan but no luck. So I came here. I thought of just
sacrificing the $3 or so but came here instead. May buy a ticket
for Bogota tomorrow morning or maybe I should stay 2 days. We are
at only 1000 meters so it's very warm here, even this early in the
morning. I just took a REAL cold shower - my first since Quito,
except for my dip in the Pacific which was far from a shower - it
make my hair like steel wool. I fee great now. You know the longer
you wait the better a shower feels. Try waiting a month or two
(when I'm not around) and you'll see! I'll go mail this letter
uptown - see you later. I love you so much. Rick 
Columbia
45) my 37) Letter from Bogota 9/26 pm Dear Betsy, It's Saturday
night and your letters are sitting at the American Express office
and won't be opened until Monday. It makes me sad. I'm dying to
read them but another day won't kill me. Hopped on a bus at 3:15
this morning from Cali since it's a 12 hour trip and I wanted to
arrive during daylight. Went right away to the youth hostel but it
was closed due to financial troubles. The girl there gave me an
address with a guys name on it, she spoke only Spanish and I
couldn't figure out who he was. So I went to the address and this
guy (Edgar) is the head of the Columbia Youth Hostel Org. (with
only one youth hostel - the one that's closed) and he, his wife and
their 4 year old boy live here in this apartment. Well, for now
this apartment is the youth hostel until their financial problems
get worked out. It's a 2 story apartment. Downstairs is a huge
living room, a kitchen, a bathroom, an outside clothes washing room
and a small bedroom with only 2 beds. This last room is actually
the youth hostel, so only 2 people can stay - I'm the only one
right now. Then upstairs, which I've never seen, is their living
quarters. I can hear a TV up there. I'm sitting in the big living
room now at a long diner table. This is great - much better than a
hotel. Edgar is really a nice guy, he speaks less English than I
speak Spanish (ie. none!) so we speak Spanish. He's a teacher of
Spanish and French in which he is fluent. His wife is gone to Sao
Paulo, Brazil to visit her parents so I won't get to meet her. I
asked if I could use the kitchen, he said it isn't the custom but,
yes, I could. I don't know if I will, maybe just for non-cook
foods. You'll never guess where I ate tonight - Wimpys, yep Wimpys
of England has many restaurants here. It was way overpriced and the
meat wasn't very good but the ketchup was great. The first good
ketchup I've had in a long time. Most ketchup I've had in South
America is one step better than water with red dye #2. What's the
one step? I don't know - maybe artificial tomato flavoring! Just
had time to walk around a little before it got dark. It seems like
it's either brand new building with skyscrapers or old very messy
areas with plenty of devious looking people. I haven't even walked
in the "bad" parts (and won't). I know where they are because Edgar
was kind enough to mark them on my map. When I go out I leave my
wallet, checks, passport and even watch here in the apartment where
(I believe) it's safe. The only thing I take is about $US5-7 worth
of Pesos. If I do get robbed they're not going to get rich. You
know this city has a reputation (very bad) that you wouldn't
believe. You can't imagine the stories (some probably rumors) I've
heard. All I can think is that I sure am glad I didn't start my
trip here because I'm much better prepared now. I cut the "Is
Bogota unsafe?" article from the tourist bureau's monthly guide of
which Edgar had an old one of. They're trying to dispel their
in-famousness. I'm not too worried. This apartment is in an okay
part of town and centrally located. Going museum gawking tomorrow -
nothing else open on a Sunday. Also going to Monserrate - a hill
that overlooks the city which is reached by a funicular. Lucky for
me only runs on Sunday. I can't figure this country out - from all
I heard Columbia was supposed to be very poor (like Peru) except
for a very few rich. It was also supposed to be cheap like Peru.
It's not cheap at all, about the same as Brazil and quite a bit
more than Peru. As far as I can tell it has a sizable middle class
- many private cars, nice single dwelling houses. Sure, I've seen
desperately poor and bloody rich but with a lot in the middle. It
has the appearance of bing very safe to me, much safer than Peru. I
can forget what I've heard. For instance the bus on the way here
today passed miles and miles of farms almost all which I would
describe as moderate to above moderate living standards (they
weren't growing pot - didn't see any). The small towns we went
through have a good sized middle income area. I don't understand
why all the lawlessness. I do in Peru and it should be the worst in
Bolivia but there it's not bad at all! Culture definitely plays an
important part. That's the part thats not easily seen from a bus
window. I have a real good impression of the country so far. I'm
going to bed now, like to join me? Wish you were here! I'll write
some more tomorrow since this can't be mailed until Monday. Good
night. 9/27 10 pm Had a great day - went to 2 museums and to the
top of a mountain overlooking Bogota for a nice view of town. I've
been dreaming of various plans of where to go after Colombia - my
latest one is to go to Puerto Rico and then to Dominican Republic
then Haiti then Jamaica. If I do this I'll call from Puerto Rico as
it will be very cheap and about 3 weeks before Oct 25. I was
thinking of going to Curacao but it's too out of the way. Tomorrow
I'll see about flights from northern Columbian towns to San Juan,
Puerto Rick. There may not be any but I know there is one to
Dominican Republic. In either case it's going to be expensive. I'm
going to bed now and will get this in the mail tomorrow. The air
mail here is all handled by Avianca (the Columbian airline) and is
supposed to be very good. So maybe it will get to you before next
weekend. I hope so. Your lover, Rick P.S. I get your letters
tomorrow!
Bogota, CO
47) my 38) Letter from Barranquilla 9/29 6:30pm Hi from a bus, the
best bus I've been in, in Columbia. It reminds me of Brazil, as a
matter of fact the bus line is Expresso Brazilia. Almost very seat
has a light and an air vent - almost - guess who's doesn't? You
guessed it. So I'm writing by city street lights - not for long
though, we'll be out of Bogota soon. They even have locks on the
side panel doors below where they store the luggage! Revolutionary!
I don't have to look out the window when ever the bus stops to see
if some derelict is running off with it, but I will anyway. There
are 8 seats in the middle without light or vents and I happen to be
in the middle. Right now I'm writing by the lights inside the bus,
not much light but enough. This trip will take me to the Caribbean
coast to a city called Barranquilla. 6 am They turned all the
lights off on me last night. From Barranquilla I may fly to San
Juan, Puerto Rico but will check into boats first because the
flight costs $288! What a rip-off (airway robbery). This trip takes
20 hours so it should arrive at 2:30 pm, possibly giving me enough
time to check boats. This will more than likely be my last long bus
trip in South America! Wow, what an occasion. 12 oranges, 12
bananas, 6 tomatoes, 6 buns and a carton of yogurt accompany me for
this festive finale. I received your letters yesterday, no actually
the day before yesterday. They were beautiful. Thanks so much for
sending them, they really made my day. Wish you could write more.
Actually you could have because I had no idea I would spend that
much time in Peru. Oh well, I'll be talking to you soon, probably
before you get this letter. Met a Swiss guy at my "youth hostel",
he spoke good English and will be coming to the U.S. He's really a
nice guy and he may stop my when he comes to states. He spent a
year in Columbia on a student exchange program. We went out Monday
night and listened to some live Columbian folk music and sipped
some suds. We are winding through the plush green topical mountains
of Columbia now. I really enjoyed Bogota, it was a nice town. Don't
think I'd want to live there but visiting was a pleasure. 1 pm A
lady got on the bus and asked where I was going. "To Barranquilla"
I said, she then said "you should get there about 6:30 pm". After
looking at the map I realized that we would never make it in 20
hours and that her estimate was probably close. Only 4 hours off.
Am I in Peru? We came out of the altitude a long while ago and into
a very hot, humid, and partly cloudy climate. The clouds are very
big cumulus scattered around. When the bus isn't moving, you sweat,
when it is moving you almost sweat even with large amounts of air
moving around form all the windows open. We stop for anybody and
everybody with his or her arm out and we stop very often for the
driver to eat, drink and piss all 3 of which he does very often.
There seems to be 4 guys working (more or less, more less) on the
bus. 2 drivers, one that takes care of the luggage and the other
collects money. Then there seems to be the drivers' wives along
too, probably just for the ride. It's a family affair. I think I'm
one of the only ones going the whole distance, Bogota to
Barranquilla. The bulk of the riders are from one little town to
the next. The roads have all been real good and when we move we
make real good time. When we move. I can't wait to see you Betsy
Boehm where ever it happens to be. I miss you so much, I think
about seeing you all the time. 9 pm Arrived right at 6:30 pm, the
lady was right. 24 hours, whew! $5 for this hotel (Hotel Bariloche)
with private bathroom and they even give toilet paper, soap, and a
towel! Oh yes, and a 5 speed overhead (mounted in the ceiling like
the tavern type) fan. It's on 5 now, it's hot. Thought this place
was right in the center because that's where the "shoestring" has
the bus terminals and this hotel is next to the terminal. They must
have moved this bus companies terminal because it's out a little.
10/1 12 noon This is getting to be a dragged out letter I realize
but I fell asleep last night while writing. I feel really excited
now because I just spent $300 on a plane ticket to Curacao and then
to San Juan, Puerto Rico and it leaves tomorrow. Tomorrow is my
last day in South America, how sad. There isn't much to do or see
in this town and it's real hot here, you sweat all the time and I
can't think good in the heat - my brain down-shifts. The reason I'm
going to Curacao instead of direct to San Juan is that they are the
same price so I get to see Curacao fro "nothing" (sort of). It was
exactly the same price to the dollar - $288. I looked into a boat
but there are none. Seems weird to spend that much money, it's been
a long time since I've done it. It certainly is a rep-off price
compared to some fares. It's also been awhile since I've been in a
plane - should be fun. From there to Curacao the airline is Avianca
which is Columbian and from Curacao is ALM which is Antillian
something. I think ALM is much cheaper and that's why it works out
to be the same price. Well, I'm going to mail this now so I'll see
you later (from Curacao). Love, Rick Bye bye South America
Market in Barranquilla, CO
Curacao
46) my 39) Letter from Curacao 9/3 Hello there you lovely wonderful
girl, how are you? It's getting closer to the 25th and I'm getting
more anxious. Had kinda of a hectic time on my journey here. During
customs in Barranquilla I was pulled aside (because I'm American)
and taken into a bathroom. The customs man kept asking all kinds of
stupid questions, most of which I answered "no intiendo" (I don't
understand), blaming it on my bad Spanish. He was mostly asking
questions like "Why did you come to Columbia?", "why don't you have
any Dollars?" (in bills). Plus the usual drug and arms questions.
Well, what he was after wasn't really drugs (although finding some
would provide him with a big fat bribe) but money. In the end,
after deciding I hadn't any dollars or Columbian Peso's (actually I
had US$15 which didn't seem enough for him) he asked me to sign one
of my travellers checks! I just shook my head and said I didn't
have enough money asked if I could go (to the airplane gate). He
said okay. The South American handbook talks about how bad
Barranquilla immigration is - they're right! I really upset me (but
not now!) because Barranquilla is a place where the officials
"plant" drugs on people and then extort bribes. Then when I get to
Curacao my backpack didn't show up! Oh sh** I thought. I thought a
lot of other things too. For instance, did those bloody customs
people rip it off? Will I ever see my pack again? The plane left at
8pm but I came at 1 pm with my pack to drop it off at the airport
since I had to check out of the hotel at 12 noon. So when I came
back at 6 pm I had them check to see if it was okay. Well, the
Baggage man disappeared for a while and came back saying everything
was okay. I never actually saw my pack before taking off from the
airport. So when finding out that my pack didn't make it to
Curacao, I guessed it was never put on the plane at Barranquilla.
The next flight Barranquilla -> Curacao wasn't till Sunday, 2
days later. So they had me fill out a baggage claim form and told
me my bag might have got taken off the plane in Aruba (another
Island that we stopped at on the way to Curacao, part of the
Netherlands Antilles just like Curacao) and there will be a flight
Saturday and I might get it then. Well, I was convinced it never
left Barranquilla. So I left the airport with only $15 and no local
currency which turned out not to matter because everyone takes
dollars. Though it's better to buy everything in Guilders (just
like Holland) but the $15 mattered. The airport is 12 km from town
and a taxi is $7 which meant if I took a taxi there's no way I'd
have enough money for a hotel because after reading the Handbook
this place is really expensive (comparatively). Busses aren't an
option here. So I thought I'd try hitching - at 12:30 (midnight!).
Well, sh**, it wasn't but 4 cars and I had a ride - 2 Dutch guys
joyriding, so they took me into town. My apparel was terrible - a
T-shirt I had sweated in for 3 days and jeans which endured all of
Columbia (God forbid) that I could smell myself. That means
everyone else could smell me much worse! The first hotel which I
checked, and was told was the cheapest, was $27 - whoa! I looked
some more $24, $35, etc. "Am I going to have to pay this much for a
hotel while I wait days in these disgusting clothes?" I asked
myself. "I'll just sleep in the damn street!" Nobody would answer
at the next hotel (now 3 am) after 4 rings so I sat down in their
nice patio-like porch with small couches and many chairs scattered
around. Any more, sleeping in chairs (eg. busses) is second nature
so that's just what I did - until 6 am when the sun woke me up.
More checking of hotels turned up on $9 and one $10 after much
haggling and arm twisting and one $16.40. So I went back to the $9
which was for a double room (ie. $9 per person based on double
occupancy) but being it's not the tourist season he'd only charge
it for one person ie. $9. His singles were all filled. Then he says
(as if remembering from a forgotten fact) he has a room upstairs
with a sink in it. "Fine" I say, so up we go to look at it. I play
like it was a bit seedy (there is NOTHING seedy on this island!)
and that may have helped bring the price to $6. "$5" I kept saying.
"No $6" he'd say. Okay, fine. So I think I may have the cheapest
room on this whole island. The Handbook says the Hilton is $70 but
I didn't check. SO then after paying for a day, I went to the
airport (buses run in the day) to check for some action on my
luggage. After, of coarse, a shower with left over soap in the
bathroom and combing my hair with my fingers, but it was a relief!
I asked the girl about my luggage and she says "did you see it when
you came in?" "No" I say looking around to my left immediately
seeing my pack on the floor!!! "Holy sh**, I don't believe it!!"
Sure enough it was dropped in Aruba. Boy was I happy! All smiles.
Upon reflection, it was a good thing (well, sort of) they misplaced
it because I could look for a hotel without having to carry the
pack around town which usually makes me accept a higher price.
Anyway, enough story telling. This place is GREAT! After Columbia
anyplace is! The people are really nice and friendly. They are 95%
black which is a change for me. It made me feel a little weird last
night walking around until 3 am and seeing ONLY blacks and lots of
them. I felt then and I feel now (even more) 100 times safer here
than lovely Colombia. It's like being in a black Europe, the
standard of living is very high here - so naturally everything is
real expensive. They have some of the clearest water in the world
(ocean water) here and I believe it. When I went swimming today I
couldn't believe how clear it was. You can stand in water up to
your neck and see your feet as clear as a bell, once you stop the
little waves you make while standing in the water. While at the
airport I met another Dutch guy who told me about this guy who
rents cars for only $17 per day. I checked and may rent one for
Monday but have to call to see if they have one available. Hitching
home from swimming, the ex-president of the congress of Curacao
picket me up - that was really interesting. Talk to you on the
phone before you get this. A crystal clear blue sea of love from
"Fantasy Island". Getting closer and closer to you. Rick
Curacao
Curacao
47) Letter from Curacao 9/5 Dear Betsy, This is really paradise
island! The weather is always perfect, the beaches are the best in
the world and the people are great. The owner of this hotel is 84
years old and looks about 50. He fixes everything in sight, is up
at 7 every day and has been know to climb up on the roof! He let me
use the kitchen so I cooked (actually another lady here whom I had
asked about where to buy fish cooked it) a red snapper and some
potatoes. It was delicious. I bought it from the "floating market"
which comes mostly from Venezuela selling everything from their
boats. The official language here is Dutch but everyone talks
Papaimento, a mixture of Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch and English
plus just about everyone speaks Spanish and a great deal of people
speak English. So many people speak 4 languages. Papaimento sounds
much like Portuguese, it kind of sings. I'm going to respond/answer
your letters - Your trip down the Wolf River (in Wisconsin) sounds
great. You're right, I wish I was there to see Spiro Gyra (I tried
once). What you say about part of you being with me on this trip
doesn't sound corny at all. On the contrary, it's just the way I
fee. I love the way you expressed your feelings. I want to see your
"lunatic pictures". What became of Pat's trip to Texas? I'm ready
to go to the Wolf right now. It will probably be too cold by the
time I get back! You had to mention sweet corn - you know I'm going
to miss it this year - unless some beautiful sweet darling sexy
friend of mine freezes some in her freezer (hint hint). I'm glad
your Mom liked the postcards. I can't wait to see my pictures. It's
going to be a treat trying to figure out where I took them. Thanks
for your comments on my letters and short story. Your classes are
great. Kind of weird playing school again, huh? It was for me. I'll
have to move my computer over to your house - you will know Basic
better than I. That's not saying much. Tell Jeanne (and everyone) I
say "Hi" back. I can see why you didn't go to Isle Royale, that's
too little time. It's enough fun to go to a Packers game but to
have the rare pleasure of going to one they win is outstanding.
That's too bad about Nancy not being able to find a job. Wish her
better luck from me (2000 miles of luck!). The passing of Labor Day
for me meant 2 years of the best, most meaningful relationship of
my life. I love you from hair to toe-nails inside and out. Oh, I
can't wait to see you Betsy. I know what you mean about talking on
the phone and not being able to express yourself. It's something
that Alexander Graham Bell hadn't thought of. Phones are nice but
limited. For some communication you just need to be there. That's
all for your letters - thanks again for sending them, they were
great. Right now I'm downstairs in a sort of lobby - it's a real
big room with 16 chairs, 4 sofa's and 2 dinner-type tables, and one
coffee table. The owner and the lady that cooked my fish are
watching (but they are talking more) a soap opera from Caracas.
They can receive TV from Caracas. Another guy was watching but
right now he's watching with his eyes closed. He looks very
relaxed. They're speaking i Papaimento as everyone does in casual
conversation. The lady has two sons that live with her - one very
black and the other white with a small trace of black. You would
never guess they are brothers. I've talked to them both, they're
nice. One works at the Hilton, the other is a carpenter in the
construction business. This house was probably once a mansion for a
rich person. A chandelier hangs in the middle - rather dusty, 4
large mirrors, 2 on one wall, the other 2 on the opposite wall.
Each mirror is 6 by 4 feet, the glass dusty above arms reach. A
sign reads "No se permite mujeres en dormitorio" (women are not
permitted in the dormitories) but Stewert (one of the sons) has his
girlfriend in his room with no problems. All windows are side open
with not one screen in the entire house. Carved wood statues are
scattered around the room - one is about 4.5 feet high. A picture
of the last supper hangs above the doorway to the kitchen. The
never ending soap opera rambles on. They're not confined to 10am to
4pm like the U.S, they're on at any time. I was telling you about
this island. Things are so much different here than South America
which is only a few hours by boat and 15 minutes by plane. The
organization is unreal - the busses run on time, the bus driver
isn't a neurotic mess, there are bus stops, some businesses have a
"Take a number" scheme (unheard of!) for waiting to be helped, etc,
etc. It's just not the Latin way! I sleep with my door open (as
does everyone), leave my wallet in my room, don't every worry about
getting ripped off. Tony, the owner, doesn't even lock the door at
night. You can just feel the freedom here - it's great. Some people
(me too, in time) hate the place because there's nothing to do. It
is small - I went to the extreme west end (we are on the east end
here) today by bus and it was only an hour trip - you could
probably make it in 1/2 hour by car. So somebody used to a big city
coming here would probably tire quickly but to a militarily
governed South American, it's paradise. Tomorrow I'm going to,
supposedly the best beach on the island. I just wish I had a mask
because the water is so clear you feel like exploring it. Talking
with the people, they tell me the best beaches are on Aruba -
beautiful white sand. There is practically no sand here, just small
pebbles on the beach - something I attributed the clear water to,
but with this news of Aruba, I don't know. Well, I'll close now.
Talk to you on Thursday. Your lover, Rick P.S. I love the picture
of you waving hello - I can't wait for it to come true.
Curacao
San Juan, PR
San Juan, PR