Tuesday, March 10, 2020

An Epilogue: Seven Years Later

After seven years, I returned to Rotary District 4240. I wrote in this post that with all my being I hoped we would meet again and it did not disappoint. I returned to a Rotary Conference in Guatemala this past week to see my old friends.

I am still living on the high of visiting my Central American friends. I felt it before and just can't believe the love they share. I have maybe spent a collective 12 hours with some of them and they welcomed me back like family. Giving me warm hugs and shedding a few tears at the surprise of seeing each other again. I wish I had words to describe the love.



I met a few new friends while I was at the conference. In the few days since I returned, I have received emails letting me know how welcome back I am. Emails that say, 'If you ever find yourself back in Central America, feel free to give me a call for a ride from the airport, a place to stay, or a meal to share.' At one point, a person I met once seven years ago for a brief moment, and had just another brief chat while waiting for a Gallo said, 'If you ever come back, you have a place to stay.' What is absolutely insane to me is that it is 100% genuine. I have no doubt I could call on any of them for a fun evening of friendship anytime I'm back in their respective cities. I don't know if you could ever find such a consistent sentiment from an entire group of people.



To be absolutely honest, it took me a beat to even be able to be receptive to the warmth. The first day I arrived in Guatemala City, after a long day of travel, we were going to dinner with some of my friend Paul's coworkers who lived in Guatemala City. Hangry and tired, I just wanted them to pick a place for dinner. They offered many suggestions. I was happy with anything that would be quick, forgetting that to love Central America is to be patient with Central America. Nothing happens on my United States time. Nothing is urgent. Nothing is quick. Nothing is efficient. It takes a minute to get used to. I am not used to being patient. After a bit of time, we decided on, of all places, a Peruvian restaurant. After a bit of food, I remembered time was not in my control. To appreciate Central America is to slow down for Central America. Take it easy. Don't be in a rush. Everything will happen in the time it happens.

Once I had a bit of food in me, I was able to just appreciate my dinner companions. One who lived in Southwest Missouri for five years in the late 80s/early 90s, which turned him into a lifelong Chiefs fan. We bonded over reliving every heartbreaking season since 1992. Who finds themselves in Guatemala talking about Lin Elliot to Mariota's self pass to Dee Ford lining up offsides, and then winning the Super Bowl? Well, somehow I did. And it was incredible.

After dinner, my new companion reminded me of the Central American culture and said, 'We just want to make you happy.' And it's true. Sometimes to a fault. The culture is to please. Being a hardened midwesterner, sometimes that is hard to receive. But it is something I need to remember more.

I could tell more stories about how I got back there, how amazing it was to spend time with my friends, how amazing the town of Antigua is, or how impeccably awesome the conference was planned. However, for now, I will just bask in the joy of spending time with pure friends, real love, and a renewed sense of slowing down. I leave this blog with another wish: I hope with all my being I remember the calm I feel in Central America.

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." - Mark Twain



Friday, May 24, 2013

The End

As much as I hate to do it, I'm closing the chapter on this blog so other future GSE teams have an unconvoluted space to research future trips. However, my journey is far from over. I had a goal when I started this blog to get my passport stamped a few more times before I turned 30. Mission accomplished. Now that my birthday is imminent, I have a bucket list for my 30th year, and a lifetime of journeys ahead of me.

The hardest part of starting any blog is the name. When I started May The Road Rise I thought of it as a beautiful toast to the start of a small section of my life: the GSE experience, I had no idea how much the name of the blog would actually impact my month of travel and how it alone would create some of the most beautiful memories of the journey. As with anything in life, sometimes you put the smallest piece of energy out there and the world cooperates.

I am super sad to leave the name behind, but the mantra continues. I am no way holding the next name up to those standards.

If you wish to continue following the life of Kim, from my travels to my ordinary, often mundane life follow me here at: amindfuldetour.blogspot.com.





Monday, April 29, 2013

The Final Day

With the district conference over we had one free day before heading home. Panama City Metro Club was nice enough to take us to the beach. We will say that we felt so bad for the club. They tried to take us out on Friday and then again today and both days we were just exhausted. However, it was so nice to have a chill day in such a relaxed setting.

Just around this corner is the most beautiful, secluded beach you can imagine. Jimmy, Christi and I went to it early in the day, but forgot sunblock and our cameras, so we headed back to the house. A couple of hours later we went back to show Paul and take pictures... and the tide had completely blocked our path. Super sad face. I think it is the most perfect metaphor for our final day, enjoy every moment, you might not see it again. 
Beautiful black sand

Christi and I ended our final night at of all places TGI Friday's.

My feelings are pretty conflicted on heading home. On one hand I'm excited to rest, to not have to be somewhere at a certain time, and to not live out of a suitcase. On the other, I have no idea how it will be when no one wants to take my picture, no one picks me up in the morning, no one gives me a schedule of my days. I'm going to have to decide on my own what I want to eat and when I eat. So bizarre :) All joking aside, we have been taken care of so well this past month and another huge thanks to everyone. I think it will take a bit of time to process everything and really comprehend what we experienced this past month.

And now, a look back at some of our finest moments:

Lost items by the numbers:

  • 8 pairs of sunglasses (including broken ones). Paul is the only one left with his original shades.
  • One debit card and one credit card. Lost twice. Found once.
  • One camera (recovered)
  • One pair of shoes
  • Two blue blazers (recovered)
  • One pair of shorts
  • One shirt
  • One water bottle
  • Two bottles of shampoo
  • And a toucan in a fig tree

Not bad for five people gone for a month. I've lost more in my house in that amount of time.

It was an amazing journey. Six flights, two tica busses, two boats, numerous rides in backs of trucks, one rick shaw, and countless car rides, next stop: home.

 

Day 27: Final Presentation

On Friday we arrived early at the hotel to work on our final presentation. This presentation was a bit different than the others and we scrambled with time to put it together. It was nice to formally thank everyone who helped us along the way.
Of course, the presentation did not go off perfectly.We were scheduled to give our presentation around 11:20a... 11:45, noon, 12:20p... and they finally broke for lunch. But we were not able to eat until after our presentation, so our energy might have been lacking a tiny here. C'est la vie in Central America.
We were able to have lunch with the GSE who came to Missouri in October and spend our afternoon with Julieta shopping. It was nice to hear about their experience in Missouri, as well as the GSE as a whole.
Following our shopping trip, we went to meet with Rotary Club Metro for dinner and drinks at a local pub that happens to be owned by the boxer Roberto Duran. Apparently he makes appearances quite often.

The last few days of the trip have been a struggle energy wise and we headed home around 10:30p to get to some rest before heading to the canal on Saturday morning.

 

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Pictures from Costa Rica

As promised, here are the pictures from our time in Costa Rica. I received a lot of slack from the ticos for not having many pictures from Costa Rica on the blog (due to me losing my camera). It was beautiful!

That ball in the center is a sloth. I about died.
The biggest ant I ever want to see. Gross.
Repping Missouri State and Springfield MO
Pineapple fields
Castillo Country Club with Rotary Club Heredia
Sorry Christi... It's too funny not to post
If one picture portrays this whole trip, I think it is this one. We laughed. A lot.