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Archive for November, 2008

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All Dreams Accomplished, Guys!

Friday, November 28th, 2008

Oh Yeah!  I’m doin’ the High Five Dance right now because I can finally tick off all three of my goals, set at the beginning of my Boots blogging days, back in June, 2008.  They were: to learn how to publish a book, to make a blog, and to plan my next major trip.  Here’s how each one has been accomplished…..with still plenty of room for continued improvement:

#1.   The Book about my first around the world trip was in my hands by early September.  It turned out very well and I’m happy with it, though it’s taking its own sweet time to show up on Amazon.com.  Most likely, it decided to wait until I, myself, actually hit the Amazon Valley before it makes its appearance on the internet.  I kept watching that “You-have-arrived-as-an-author” site for the four to six weeks that it takes to get listed, and when nothing happened, I asked Lightning Source what gives?  Uh oh, some papers still needed filling out!!!  So, now they tell me that all is set up and we will just meander our way to world scrutiny, arriving probably around the first of the year…just about the time I will be thinking of my own trips to the Amazon Basin and already launched on Goal #3.

#2.  The Blog – This summer, I lurched into bloggery with two of the things.  My own site, Hey Boomers.com, and this one.  Frankly, I thought I’d know way more about it all by this time, especially about running my own site, which was touted as a big way to make money.  Trouble is, I have the world’s slooooowwwwest, or busiest, blogmaster.  I signed on in early May and didn’t take delivery on the site until deep summer; things requested have never been posted; all the advertisment groups that I signed up for have melted away and there’s no room for ads on the front page, anyway.  She suddenly got busy on writing a how-to blogging book and I thought I’d, at least, order that and learn to do on my own all the things I’d expected from her.  So I paid for the book in September, when invited to by the publisher, and now have found out that I can expect delivery around January, when I’ll be working out of jungle internet cafes and will have no time for study!!!!!

But, I’ve been too busy with these other projects to spend my time trying to make that site what I had dreamed it might become.  It was supposed to be a crucial part of my book advertising, but I don’t think it is.  Anyway, I’ll keep on building it, content-wise, until I come home in May and can get serious about making something of it.  At least, blogging exists in my life now and I will post stories of my South American travels and so I can tick off that established goal, anyway.

#3.  My next Big Trip is now a true reality!  I have my air tickets paid for and in my pocket.  As I’ve already written about, several months ago I decided not to try for another RTW yet because the four months I have for travel this year would have been spent rushing around the water planet (Southern Hemisphere) without allowing much time for continent exploration.  So, I settled on South America this time, and finally narrowed things down to a flight into Bogota, Columbia on January 2, 2009 and exiting from Buenos Aires, Argentina, on May 13, 2009.  Just this morning, I booked my hostel in Bogota, so I have the first three days covered after arrival.  Since my plane lands at 4:55 a.m., I will be happy to have a cozy bed in a three-bunk dorm room awaiting me.

So, all of my unaccomplished goals of six months ago have now taken shape and have been realized and all three continue to bear fruit and to develop into the upcoming year.   All three are in the junior stages with a shining future before them.  That’s the magical thing about setting great goals.  They may be a stretch.  They may cost some money.  But, ohmigosh, when they become your own, then you know that The Work of the past year was not in vain and that you can set equally big goals for the next year.

Plus, just this morning, as I was shopping for my Bogota hostel on the Bootsnall hostel page, I was able to capture one realization (that I had totally forgotten about) as to why I love to travel this way.  Where else can you drum up so much Anticipation of Possibility then when you are peering at the various pictures of a smorgasbord of places to choose to stay?  I imagine how I will feel when I check in and try to duplicate the Ohhhh-Ahhhhh feeling I had when I walked into the Oasis Hostel in Granada, Nicaragua, which was such a pleasant surprise for $6 per night…. and it delivered on its promise in spades.  The ambiance, with its hammocks and its lush patio and little swimming pool was fantastic and I wound up making six good friends with whom I traveled on to another hostel on an island in Lake Ometepe.

This time I have reservations at Alegria’s Hostel in the Candalaria section of Bogota for $11.51 for a three-bed dorm room.  I could have taken a 10-bed dorm for half that, but decided I’d need the sleep after an overnight flight.  There was also a darling hotel in which I could have had a single for $35 a night, but why splurge when I can sleep for three nights at Alegria’s for the price of one there?  So, the groundwork is done on this new trip.  Everything else is just getting me ready for take-off the day after New Year’s Day.  Great Possibilities ahead!

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Shall I Perform Chiropractic On The South American Continent?

Sunday, November 23rd, 2008

I’ve had a glimmer of an idea about my approach to this exploration of the Continent of South America!  Why didn’t I see this before?  If ever there was a true spinal column among the landmasses of the world, this one continent stands out from all the rest.  Take a look at any Physical/Topographical page in an Atlas and you will see long mountainous spines here and there.  Many are small and run almost horizontally to the globe; some rise up from other elevated portions in a not-so-clear spinal statement.  The North American spine is hugely thick: beginning in Alaska, culminating in the Rocky Mountains, and ending in a small squiggle at the Panama Canal.

But, oh my goodness, the Cordillera de Los Andes is the most human-looking spine you will find on this planet.  Well now…..how tempting is that?  I shall start at the top in the soul box, (that little bump at the bottom of your neck and the top of your backbone,) which I figure is either Cartegena, Columbia, or Caracas, Venezuela, and I shall wander on down the Andes to the tip end of the spine, maybe as far down as Ushuaia, if I can get that far.   Then, I will fly home from either Santiago, Chile, or Buenos Aires, Argentina, depending upon the advice of a ticketing agent I’m now working with.

When I reviewed my previous travels, with this cronky thought in mind, I learned that, again and again, I have unconsciously done this on so many world spinal columns, albeit the smaller, less obvious ones.  I have started at the top and worked my way down.   For instance, on my recent RTW, I started in Ljubljana, Slovenia, which marks the top of the Dinaric Alps, flowing down the Dalmation Coastline of Croatia to Athens, Greece; and I’ve gone from  Mumbai, India, to Mysore along a spinal-looking ridge I hadn’t even noticed till just now.  And why did I decide to go and live for two months in Fairbanks, Alaska, of all places, and later in Aspen, Colorado for nine years?  They are the soul box and waistline of North America, which I later finished by traveling to the tip end at the Panama Canal.  See what I mean?  Studying my Atlas today, I see that there are many other hidden spines, some of which  I’ve also made my way along; never even thinking of the potential for critical adjustment that my feet might be missing the opportunity to make.

So now, when faced with the Mother Planetary Spine of Them All, how can I not tread those Spanish-speaking vertebrae in a deliberate fashion.  In fact, in preparation, I shall obtain a chiropractic map of the spine and carefully grid my enormous new map, so that I know exactly which continental nerves run where and mean what.  Then when I’m in the various cities, I shall stomp hard and deliberately on the sidewalks and roadways and dance barefoot on the shower stall floors, and maybe, even on the dance floors in high heels, all with the plan of making healing adjustments to a really big chunk of the world.

This sort of thinking is what adds an element of off-the-wall fun to an ordinary day of traveling…and which makes sobersided people look at me strangely.  “Fiddlesticks!” is my reply to them!  It sure can’t hurt and it helps me decide where to go on a collection of countries too large to see them all in a mere four months.

So now, let’s see if I can get air tickets that allow me to become the chiropractor to the world.  This must be why I’ve been getting back alignments all year in order to prepare for this trip.  Little did I know that it all had a deeper meaning.   Little did I know that I was learning the Chiropractic Arts from the ground-side up!

Posted in 1, Cosmic Engineering & You | 1 Comment »

Back In The Air Ticketing Traffic Jam

Thursday, November 20th, 2008

I’m not quite sure how that whole Spirit Air situation will shake down.  I did cancel the reservation that apparently hung up on going through my bank for the second time, so I’m out of the ticket, but an email showed up that seemed to be saying I would be charged anyway for the insurance I had bought to protect the flight investment???  It was apparently non-refundable upon purchase and they must not care that there is now no ticket to protect.  I had said yes to a $25 insurance coverage charge (the first time); and when that ticket wasn’t available, and the cost went up, I agreed to an increase of $5 to cover the more expensive ticket.  So, that was a $30 insurance charge.  What is going to show up on my bank statement?  This is a very strange ride.  My online statement doesn’t show it, so maybe, contrary to their email warning, they have taken pity on me.

However, it’s becoming obvious to me that I need to do a lot more research even to make a final decision on my entry and exit airports.  Do I really want to saddle myself with getting all the way back to Lima to fly home, or should I arrange to fly home from Brazil?  Can I possibly go in on a one-way ticket…even taking my chances on the ethereal Spirit Air…and then, in the Spring, buy a one-way ticket home from wherever I might be at the time?  That might be the smartest route, now that I think of the contortions and the $700 that I went through to get myself to Athens for a pre-arranged flight to Cairo, Egypt, when a flight from Istanbul would have made so much more sense.   It’s one thing to look serenely at a map of the world from the comfort of home while ordering up your future flights…and it’s entirely another to be standing on the ground over there, wondering how you’re ever going to cross those mountains in time for your nonrefundable flight’s departure.  The possibilities present a confusing smorgasbord, not all of which are appetizing or affordable.

I had fun at my public talk at the Dunedin Library last night.  As usual, there were so many questions that we went overtime and hardly had a chance to sell and autograph my books.  I’m not accustomed to having that marketing possibility and I sometimes waste it in the fun of talking about the travel itself.  I went “in costume,” wearing my Macabi skirt (macabiskirt.com) so that I could show how it converted to pants and skirt.  Always a popular fashion show & tell.

Well, hopefully, I’ll have the ticketing arranged in the smartest budget way and can tick that off my list.  I have my new Typhoid shot in my arm now and the soreness (not much to speak of) has disappeared, so there is progress going on towards a takeoff anyway.

Posted in My Flight Smorgasbord Days | 1 Comment »

Was That A Bait & Switch That Almost Bit Me?

Tuesday, November 18th, 2008

I THINK I have been through a bait & switch gambit in trying to buy my air ticket to Peru, but in today’s airfare scene, I’m not sure.  Maybe, it simply represents the sonic speed with which fares either change or get snapped up.  I’ll give Spirit Air the benefit of the doubt, but here are the details of my experience:

Last week, while in Denver, I received one of the BootsnAll Cheap Ticket Watch newsletters and decided to price round-trip tickets between Tampa, Florida and Lima, Peru.  Ooooo!  Here’s one for $450!  Wow!  And it was more direct than most, flying in a logical manner south to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and on to South America instead of taking me all the way up to Newark, New Jersey and back down the length of the country to finally head way south to Peru.  Unbelievably, that’s the most common routing.

Anyway, I tried to buy it, only to get the information after I had entered all my credit card data, that those seats were sold out.  Did I want a much more expensive one?  NO!  So, I backed out of that transaction. 

Two days ago, through the same Boots newsletter, I tried again and Wow, oh Wow!  Here’s one for Spirit Air for only $307 on both the Cheapo and the One Travel Booking site.  I went with One Travel.  Gee, lucky the last one didn’t work out, maybe I can snag this one.  Everything was good, including a sane departure hour in the morning – 8:45 a.m.  This time, it looked as if the ticket went through as my credit card data was accepted and I had my ticket information to print out…though I noticed later that the base charge was $370, not $307 as had been shown on the original information page.  With airport fees added, it all came to $515, which was still a good buy.

That night, I was awakened from a sound sleep at 11:30 p.m., by a One Travel employee, telling me that there were no seats at that price.  Were my dates and flight times flexible?  Well, yes.  So, I sleepily stayed on the phone for a very long time while he surfed Spirit Air’s schedule trying to find a seat at that price.  I heard him mumble “2 a.m. departure” and also, $700, both of which I quickly vetoed.  He concluded the call saying he had to talk to his superior and could he call me tomorrow?  Okay.  I returned to bed but had great trouble slipping back into that nice deep sleep.  Thanks Buddy!

Yesterday, I noticed through online banking that the original amount was now On Hold in my bank account.  Still good to go!  But, later, I found an email waiting for me saying that there was a mistake and my ticketing had not gone through, as the fellow said.  I never heard from him again, but called and talked to somebody else, who confirmed that Spirit Air did NOT have any seats at that price, but for an additional $100, I could buy that ticket with them. 

After the similar experience of the previous week, the words Bait & Switch were resounding in my mind.  However, I liked the route, time and date and authorized the increase just to get the thing settled, so that I would have my tickets at $633, which included trip insurance.  It was still a good price but all day I regretted having rewarded that practice by going ahead with it.

Ha!  Today, I found an email from One Travel saying that my debit card didn’t go through for that second ticket.  Well, there was money in my bank, but I think the problem was their own Hold on the previous funds of more than five hundred dollars for the first ticket.    A second dip-in would have clanked.  I was actually relieved and, right away, called the number given and happily cancelled the whole transaction.   Now, I am ticketless again, or still, but next I plan to call the airlines that Donovan suggested in the first place – Multi-stop South America at 1-877-768-1311 and see what they have to offer.  I’d forgotten that suggestion but have now found it scratched on the cover of my South America on a Shoestring Lonely Planet book.  Hopefully, I’m still far enough out to get a good price.

Please understand that BootsnAll had nothing to do with this pricing tactic and I’m sure that One Travel is innocent too.  It must be Spirit Air’s way of getting themselves on the top listing to come up, and even their added-onto price is not that expensive.  But I feel very baited after this has happened twice.   Maybe, I’ll wind up cooperating with the game if everybody else insists on sending me through Newark or Houston at a higher price for the privilege but I hope I can avoid encouraging that practice.

Today, I put in the hours at the Health Department to get my innoculations up to date.  I only needed a typhoid shot as those only last for two years.  Next, I must get my malaria prescription.  Last night, I had a delightful meeting with a local book club that had studied my new book over the past month.  Tomorrow night, I will give a speech at the Dunedin Public Library, so things are very active around here, travelwise.

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Eight Weeks Till Departure Time

Sunday, November 16th, 2008

The long, slow windup begins: around January 7th, I plan to be flying to Lima, Peru, and the beginning of my next travel adventure – this time, backpacking alone around the South American continent  I haven’t bought my ticket yet, but have pretty much decided on a round-trip in and out of Lima, separated by around four months, returning in mid-May, 2009.  This seems to make more sense than trying to schedule a string of air tickets to the various South American countries in advance.  I’ll work it out for myself, once I get there.

I believe I explained in an earlier post that, for now, I’ve curtailed the idea of doing another around-the-worlder because the topography of the Southern Hemisphere doesn’t allow as much overland hopping from spot to spot.  The cost in both time and money to make a circle of the lower half of the globe wouldn’t allow for extensive exploration along the way… at least, not with my present timeframe.  So, gambling on the belief that I will live long and prosper for enough years ahead, I’m going to take my time and devote several future trips to wandering each continent rather thoroughly. 

I now have a new REI, 65-litre women’s, professionally-fitted backpack and a few good pieces of clothing to go in it.  While I visited my daughter and her family in Denver, we visited the flagship REI store, where they surprised me with an early Christmas present – my new backpack.  I also took advantage of some great sales to pick up stuff sacks containing a rain jacket and pants, and other goodies such as silk longjohns, hats, shirts, a neck gaitor and gloves.  Though it will be summer, the Andes and the public, long-distance buses will still be cold.  I’m pretty much good to go in the packing department.

If any of you have been watching Amazon.com for the appearance of my new book, Hey Boomers, Dust Off Your Backpacks, (I wish!) I have recently learned that it could be around the end of the year before it shows up there.  Seems as if I failed to fill out a vital form or two and only discovered that when my book didn’t show up online.  So now, I must wait another four to six weeks and that’s almost when I leave the country.  Anyway…someday, I’ll have a bunch of my books show up there, so what does it matter in the overall scheme of things? 

I just bought a little teeny-tiny video camera to take along, so if it works….or more to the point, if I can figure it out…then I’ll be able to litter these posts with some moving photography of this future adventure.

Posted in Slow Windup, The Long | No Comments »