Utah and Fam!

So I finally made it home to see the family.  The first couple days weren't that great for me cause it consisted of some pretty heavy guilt tripping / counseling from the padres about my life choices.  But after we made it through that everything seems to be going pretty well.















I played tennis with a friend kurt, fixed my dads car replacing the battery with him ( might sound easy... but on a chevy lumina.... its not!), played cribbage with mom and brother (she said she remembered it from when she was a kid but it had been ages since she played), saw some old mission companions, hung out with my 2 sisters (2 of 4) and extended fam, and went to the movies with my brother.  Nothing too exciting... just a lot of relaxing.  Its nice to go back home and eat home cooked meals and just be around your family..... for awhile :D

I went to cabellas for the first time ever... that was really cool... I got some cool stuff there too in the discount cave.  Most the clothes I am taking on this trip are the kind that dry quick.  I bought an extra pair of colombia pants cause I only had one pair.  I also got some hiking books and some new sandals since I lost my first pair in Guatemala and left another pair in seattle.  So... I found this hunters underwear... cause hunters don't shower for days and they STANKY!  so... these underwear have silver fibers in them... which are antibacterial.... normally $20 a piece... I got em for $5 a piece... which still seems expensive... but hey.... If I have to choose between bathing in a cold river... or wearing silver lined underwear......  haha... some days I might just be "the smelly bearded traveler"  is that gross?

So tonight I fly to new york and in the morning I fly to aruba.  This is officially the last flight of my jet blue pass.  I have a 1 way ticket to Aruba and I'll be back when I'm back!  Haha... this feels kind of crazy.  I will update my blog whenever I find a computer and have something to write about... but I am trying to pack light... Right now the plan is to go to Aruba for awhile (till I get sick of it I guess) then boat to Venezuela, over to Colombia, down to ecuador, peru, bolivia, Argentina and probably chile.... heck.. maybe I'll even see brazil, paraguay and uruguay while I'm there.... why not right?  but those last 4 aren't musts.... the first countries are....  Right now the plan is to do everything on foot... car... bus... train... u know?  Even getting back home... I am hoping to take a boat around panama... stay awhile in costa rica.... and then all the way up through central america Mexico and end up in san diego.....   but there is a possibility that the border patrol will contact me in 6 weeks and I'll have to find a way to fly home.... we'll see!

Wish me luck!  And for all of you who think I'm gonna die... I hope you're wrong!

Seattle and NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO

Seattle was great!!!!  Well I only spent a day in seattle and the rest of my time was spent in a place called Oak Harbor on Whidbey (would be) island.  I could live there forever.... by far the most beautiful place I have ever been.  It felt like Minnesota + Utah - Harsh Winters = Perfection.  Really I was disappointed that I only stayed 3 days.  Maybe I'll retire there :)

So I cleaned my house through the night and at 2 am I went over to Gary's house and he took me down to Longbeach for my 7 AM flight.  Corrie was at the airport in seattle to pick me up and we drove straight to pike place market.  We drove past a couple of professional sports stadiums and they were huuuge!  Everything was just so green and clean there.  So the main thing that I wanted to see at the pike place market was the guys throwing and catching the fish.  It wasn't as cool as on TV... but.... still really really cool!  There was a guy pulling on a fish tail and making the fish move while he barked and it scared the kids! Really funny!  We walked through the rest of the market which was really cool cause it was still nick knacks but they weren't the made in china stuff from every ramate.... this was like good handcrafted stuff!!!  

So the market ran right into a park where we took a picture by a totem pole... well this guy who was stoned out of his mind took our picture.... and was kinda mad that we ruined his buzz..... 

So after the market we went to the space needle!  Awesome!  Ok... I went to the empire state building this summer... and I think the ESB is taller... but I liked the space needle better... it has the most beautiful view!  So it's $18 to go to the observation deck.... or a $25 minimum in the restaurant and then you get to go to the observation deck free.... so that's a no brainer.... the food was expensive but if you think about it in that way..... it's not bad!  And the whole restaurant was revolving.... showing a panoramic view of the place..... wow... it was great!

So we drove to Oak Harbor and I fell asleep almost the whole way.   I woke up when we drove the car onto a ferry and it took us onto the island.  It is a huuuuge island... 45 miles long.... and the only place that has an island in the middle of the island... pretty cool huh?  So we stayed with Corries Aunt Carol's house that she had been visiting for the past  couple of months.  She had been there helping take care of her uncle Roy who passed away two weeks before I got there and then was there helping with the funeral and keeping her aunt company.  I also met Corrie's Cousin Robyn and her kids.  We played a lot of cribbage, had great dinners, and I even taught them a little ballroom dancing ( we learned the waltz).  Robyn's house is right by a cliff that has an amazing view of an outlet that cruise ships take out to the ocean.... beautiful sunsets!!!!  I loved playing with the dogs Annie and Jackie.... it's been a long time since I've played with a dog that actually knew how to fetch!!!  Anyway... I am so appreciative that they took me in for a couple days and made me feel like a part of the family.  They were an amazing family!  They don't know that if you're too nice to me I stick around or come back... kindof like a stray cat you feed.... ;D  I slept on a trundle bed that folded down out of what looked like an entertainment center... it was great!

One of Corries favorite thing to do with her uncle Roy was make expresso art.  She made some great ones for friends who stopped by and we tried to make hot chocolate art for me.... it didn't turn out so well..... expresso machines are really cool!!! but expensive... I want like.... a milk steamer to make hot chocolate with...  We went to this rocky beach and stacked and skipped rocks... tons of fun... even though I look bored in the pic :)   got into the water and it was freeeeeeezing!

So the title of this blog... pretty weird huh?  NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO .... let me tell you about it... because I think it applies.  When we decide not to follow the commandments of a higher power of course we are trusting more in the power of ourselves.  While I think that is the wrong thing to do... I still do it... and it's funny how life... or the universe... or the devil... or whoever you want to say is responsible sends things to re-enforce this and try to get us to only rely on ourselves.  While I was near seattle at a bridge over a place called "deception pass" ( :D great name huh?) anyway I was taking a picture with Corrie when we met a guy named Ivko.  We asked him to take a picture of us and then he got talking with us and asked if he could give us something.  Well he gave us both a bookmark with the words NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO on it.  From what I read about it it is the chant that people do to focus and center their thoughts and eventually attain "buddha hood"but when Ivko was explaining it to us he didn't mention buddha at all..... the way he was explaining it it sounded more like "the secret"  for anyone who has read that book....

Nam ="to devote oneself."

MYOHO=  the Mystic Law  myo.. being the essence of life and ho being a tangible form of it?

RENGE=  Talking about the lotus flower... cause and effect.... Karma

KYO=  the voice of a buddha?

Anyway.... I won't pretend to be an expert about something I know very little about but I know that meditation is a true principle that can help people focus themselves to attain those things which they most desire.  To what extreme I would take that is a whole other subject.  For me all religions contain at least some truth if there were a religion with no truth I find it hard to believe that anyone would want to be a part of it.  But I think the secret is not being scared of other organizations or religions because of what you have heard... but rather listen.... take the things which are true... and throw out the rest.  I think of prayer as a form of meditation.  It is also a form of communication.  It is a time when we align our will with the will of God.  That is the most effective way I know how to meditate.  And whether Ivko is right or wrong, the bottom line is he does those things he believes and there's something to be said about that.  I don't pray... I don't meditate.... not deeply at least... a lot of thinking but I'm usually doing something else while I think or reflect.  So if it's chanting NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO, or sitting in silence working out thoughts, or on my knees praying... I think a lesson I have learned from this last leg of the trip is that I need to put serious time and thought into my days.... so that they may have purpose and meaning.

Home Again Home Again Jiggity Jig.

So... I had to return home a little early from the Dominican Republic for a couple reasons.  One... I got sick.... and two I had to finish cleaning out my house.  It took me until the last day to sell my bedroom set and get everything cleaned out.

While I was home I saw some old friends and even went on a date.... it was good times!  Lucky for me I had some friends come and help me move all my stuff to storage or I never would have got everything done.  Then at 2 AM Gary drove me all the way down to long beach to catch my flight to Seattle!!! What a good friend....



Anyway... it was a short visit home and I'm out on the road again.

Back on the Move!

So I came home from the Dominican Republic to finish cleaning out my house and found out I was sick... very sick.  The good news is that I was sick at home and not sick while in another country.  I guess I need to be a little more careful about what I eat and drink?  This dish is what I think was the culprit.  It was delicious but I don't know what I was thinking eating ham!!!  But fried ham and tostones are gooood!

So the Dominican Republic is the first place that the website “couch surfing” actually worked for me.  And I shared a bunk bed instead of a couch. Couch surfing is a website that you have to make a donation to be a part of and  “get verified” but essentially what it is, is a free place to stay and a new friend to hang out with wherever you end up.  So people in all countries host travelers and when they themselves go traveling they can also get hosted by other people from couch surfing.   Well I had submitted a lot of requests from different places throughout my vacation but the DR is the first place where someone said yes.  I have found it’s kind of a hard thing to get started on because you need people on there to vouch for you that you are a decent person and not a serial killer…. :D  so I now have 2 couch surfing friends who “vouch” for me…. And hopefully more to come!

So my "host" in the DR was Onice Lopez.  She was super cool and tons of fun to hang out with.  She lives with her family of 2 brothers and a mom.  Vanderley (17), Mijarex (16) and Nelly.  Onice plays the guitar and violin.  She is in a rock band.... pretty cool!  The brothers also play guitar and are really really good!  So free place to stay, free food, and free entertainment!  If only every stop was like this!

The first thing we did my first day there was visit a friend of my Brothers named Bolivar Compres (sp.?) He and my brother served their missions in Santiago Dominican Republic.  Great guy, spoke really good english and had a great sarcastic sense of humor.  That's something you don't always find in hispanics (from my experience)  I just caught him on his lunch break.  He had no idea I was coming or else I probably could have spent the whole time with him.  But I did have a great time with the Lopez family.  I'm sure I'll stay with Bolivar if I ever make it back there with my brother.  While we were there at the mall Onice broke her sandal so I bought her some new ones.

The next thing we did was hit the beach!  We went to Boca Chicka, it was great!  Onice left me alone for 5 minutes while she changed and when she came back a local vendor had conned me into some fresh seafood.  Well… by the time he was done with us he asked me for like 40$  and I was like… no way!  Well Onice threw a fit and we got away for about 15 dollars.  So we decided to store our wallets and other things at a local scuba shop but Onice forgot to leave her sandals there so she just left them on the beach.  Well we played in the water for awhile but when we got back her sandals had been stolen!  We went looking for them and she was sad cause she was convineced they were gone forever.  We kept looking and while she talked with the police I wandered into a painting store.  Well after looking around awhile I told the store owner that I had to “go be with that girl out front by the police”  So the shop keeper went outside with me and called over this really pretty girl (who was sitting at a table by the police) and she came over and introduced herself to me.  Then she asked what I was “looking for”  haha!  I said… no no no no no…. I meant I need to go help my friend who was talking to the police find her sandals.  I left kinda chuckling.  The owner told me that next time I come to the beach to come alone!  Well eventually we found the little kid that stole the sandals and all was well!

The beach took us about 1.5 hours to get to from down town by public busses and about another hour to our next destination.  We went and saw chapels and museums all about the early DR and Columbus ETC.   Very very cool to be around stuff from that time period.  We saw some street performers, walked into a street boxing match (this thing was official!) , and even found like the most romantic little place to eat… well.. I thought it looked romantic… you be the judge by the pictures.

That night we went back to the house changed and went out o the discoteca.  It was tons of fun and different than any other places I have been dancing.  The pictures didn’t turn out well… it was dark there…. But great experience to go dancing in another country
:D.

Sex, Drugs, and Castles?

Puerto Rico day 2 ...  Edgardo knocked on my door early this morning and woke me up.  He took me to Ponce early, we had breakfast and then he left me there cause he had to go to work.  So I found my way to San Juan in the back of a car.  In the car there was a girl I met named Zoe.  She was going to go back to school after the weekend in Ponce.  Well she started talking and asking questions.... and well we became friends and it was all her fault.    The driver turned up the radio, it was playing something about a kid from spain died trying to smuggle drugs in the DR while his parents thought he was going to medical school.  I dozed off and woke up in Rio Piedras, it's a zone near san juan.  So Zoe decided that she wanted to hang out with me, she I helped her carry her bags to her apartment.  On the way there she asked me if I was a serial killer to which I laughed and said no.  "what a way to break the ice :)"  I said smiling.  Anyways she took me to the post office to mail off some postcards and then showed me around the subway and bus system.

We went to a stop called corazon sagrada and then took a bus into old san juan where we saw the first casino on the island which is now closed and then we wandered into a national park!.  Or national something.... anyway its this giant fort/castle built by the spaniards to defend Puerto Rico.  So Puerto rico was pretty much a great place for ships to sail to from Europe, get fresh water etc, take things from the americas and then go back to Europe.  There were many battles fought over it and it was even an outpost during WWII.  I took tons of great pictures of the place so I'll let them do the talking.  Well at 2 PM Zoe had to go to class so I rode the bus with her to her college and then I was on my own.

I went back to the castle which is divided into two parts.  Well I saw part one and to get to part two you have to walk along the main road.  Well of course I didn't walk along the main road I took a little diversion.... worst thing I could have ever done!  So I walk down this cobblestone road into a place I now know as "el ollo" or "the hole"  as I crossed through an archway I was approached by 4 black guys all holding fishing tackle containers filled with drugs.  Pills, weed, and coke.  They surrounded me asking what I wanted and didn't seem like they were gonna let me go unless I bought something.... haha.... scary stuff.... and random car to my rescue!  A car drove down the same street and the guys scattered.  I started walking away slowly and when they saw it wasn't a police officer they surrounded the car and sold drugs to the people in the car.  At that point I was gone.... walking further down the road.  I ran into a plaza filled with people lighting up so I just kept walking.  Finally I  found a staircase to get me out of "el ollo" and luckily I'm safe!  Not even a scratch ;)

After that experience in el ollo I decided to just get on a bus to get out of the rain.  Trouble finds me I swear!  So I am sitting on the back of the bus freezing cold because I am wet and the AC is on.  I was checking my facebook on my iphone when I felt someone sit next to me.  I looked to the side and there was a girl 2 inches from my face.  She asked me who I was, where I was from, etc.  I told her I was Roble and that I lived in California.  "California Estados Unidos?  Siempre he querido novio de los estados unidos"  She said that so fast that I could not understand though.  I seriously had to have her repeat herself 5 or 6 times every time she spoke so I could understand.  Let me give you a jist of the things she said.  I would even repeat them back to her to make sure I was hearing her right.  Oh her name was Yahaira.  :)

Topics of the day with Yahaira:
1.  You're American?  I have always wanted a boyfriend from the United States.
2.  Do you want to have kids ever?  Because I want to have your kids.  "Excuse me?"  Yes, kind of scary for me but I have always wanted a United States baby.  (haha  this was crazy!  You see my brother  lived in the Dominican Republic for 2 years serving a mission and he always told me that girls from the DR were pretty... but that they picked their nose right in front of you and they just wanted to make babies and move to the US.  Ok... so I know this is just a stereotype.... but he also talked about dental hygiene... and she was definitely lacking.)

3.  I love you,  I miss you, I want to be with you, I want you to take me with you to california.  (This came because I sent her a pic of us via text and she called my number about 20 times tonight.  So I started thinking to myself... maybe I'm hearing her wrong.  So I called my friend Lucas on the phone and conference called because he learned in venezuela where they talk similarly and he also learned maracucho... so I knew if anyone could understand her it would be him or my brother.)  When she hung up the phone he burst out laughing saying "do you know what she was saying to you?"  and then he verified everything I previously told you.

So Zoe offered to let me stay the night at her house and I almost did, but she has two cats and I'm allergic to Cats.  I figured that the 14$  I paid for a hostel was worth not getting sick.  Usually with allergies my nose will run the whole night, inflame my throat and get worse and worse and worse.  So I am happy to be where I am now, but we are going to hang out tomorrow morning.

Today all in all was just weird.  Weird experiences plus rain.  It was a good day but could have been better. :)   Ooooh but my breakfast was like an egg mcmuffin in a scone it was pretty delish!   I thought of one other thing when I was looking at pictures.  Just like the red and black fire house yesterday... when firefighters would retire the city would build them a red and black house.  Cool eh?

Puerto Rico Day 1

What a day...  So my flight for puerto Rico left last night at 11:30 PM and got into puerto rico at 2:30 A.M.  I met a guy at the airport who said he was returning home to PR and that he hadn't been home in 20 years.  He told me I could stay with him and his family on their ranch... ride horses.. etc..... and that they were throwing a big party for him.... sounded great... but didn't feel right.... then his story changed to that he hadn't been there in 10 years... anyway... he seemed a little sketchy... and then he disappeared...  When I got off the plane I took out my laptop to try to find some things to do and places to go.  It seems everything is in San Juan which is 100 km away!  So.. I ask the Taxi driver how much to San Juan.... $125 US  ... haha! yeah right!!!!  So then I go see how much to rent a car and drop it off in san juan... and it's between 70-90$ US.  at this point I have no idea what to do. I sat at the airport for about an hour deciding what to do... I almost rented a car, that way I could sleep in the car and get to where I'm going.  But you know what?  That would have been the easy way out.... this is an adventure right?  So I told the lady at the car rental place that I was gonna walk to San Juan.  She told me that I would never make it by tuesday on foot... I laughed and said... I know.... but someone will pick me up.

So I set out on foot towards a place called Ponce.  It was 5.8 km away... a little over 3 miles.  My iphone GPS said to "proceed with caution" haha.... i think it said that because there were no sidewalks but it was good advice no matter how you look at it right?  I got to a hotel that told me they were booked because that weekend Ponce, Puerto Rico was having a giant basketball tournament 8-10k youth!  That discouraged me... everywhere I tried was full and things did not look good.  I felt like if I could only make it to San Juan I would be fine.  I kept walking down the dark highways and I started thinking about home... a lot!  I almost wanted to go back to the airport and buy a ticket home cause i just felt lost and I wanted to be back somewhere that I felt secure and knew I would have a place to sleep.  Sure being on vacation is great.... but sometimes when you don't know where you're going or what you're doing it can be scary.  I think that's how life is for people sometimes.  I found a quote later on that really summed up the way I felt it said: "It's not where you go or what you do, but who is beside you that counts."  I think a lot of my worry came from having no sleep.  I made my way towards the city and found a guest house that was closed.  I called and there was no answer.... how discouraging right?  So I crossed the street and stuck my thumb out.

Cars passed me for awhile, even police cars with lights on.  I was getting desperate enough that I kinda wanted the cops to pick me up LOL.  My pack was getting heavy so I took it off and sat on it and stuck my thumb out.  That reminded me of when I was in High School I used to pick up hitchhikers all the time which really scared my mom.... and me sometimes... lol.  But I usually only picked up the ones that were walking.  I though... hey look at them... at least they are putting forth some effort and walking to where they need to go.  Today I understood why so many of the hitchhikers are sitting down.  So then a green truck pulls over and picks me up! Hallelujah!  I throw my bag in the back and we're off!

The guy that picked me up is named Edgardo.  I told him about the full hotels and he said he just performed at the basketball even so he knew what I was talking about.  That was a little hard to believe because Edgardo weighs easily over 400 lbs.... but hey... I guess the guy can dance :)  He told me he couldn't take me to San Juan because he lived in just the next town over and he needed to go home and go to bed.  I told him any distance was fine that progress is progress.... and that I would just wait for someone else to pick me up....So then he tells me I can stay at his place until it gets later in the morning and I can find public transportation.  So I go to his house and we look up the public transportation and find out that they don't run on sundays.  So I tell him I'm gonna fall asleep but I don't know when I'll wake up.  He said that was fine...

I didn't wake up till after 1 PM.  It was weird... I did the whole jolt awake where am I thing :)  I went to talk to Edgardo and he asked if I had any plans.  I told him no, that i didn't see many interesting things online and I didn't know what to do.  He said he would drive me around to all the good spots.  Awesome!  So we went to the beach... it was sunny and nice for awhile but in about a matter of 10 minutes the sky went dark and it started raining.  We went and had shaved ice, went to a catholic church, a fire station, fountain, market with music, a giant cross on a hill that was used as a lookout for ships, a mansion, a big catholic university.  We really saw a lot.

Driving home I asked Edgardo  (in spanish of course)  "Hey, did you pass me by and then flip around a few minutes later and pick me up?"  he blushed... laughed and said "Si"  then I said "why did you pick me up?"  more blushing.... haha then he said "bad intentions of course.... I thought u were bery hangsome, bery bery good luuking"  haha...  then he repeated himself a couple times.... I laughed then he said but he was still happy that he picked me up even though we were just hanging out and being friends.    Translation:  Even though you like women and I like men I still had fun hanging out with you.  haha.... so now I have a friend in puerto rico... just one... but that's more than I had yesterday.

So we went back to his house... he made dinner, then we watched a latin version of dancing with the stars, I tried on some masks made for carnival (ill show those in another update) I did my wash updating my blog and now it's time for bed.  This is actually my second time typing the blog.... I lost the first one on accident... made me mad... I almost didn't want to re write it... but that would be pretty bogus to give up now right? anyway... goodnight!