The come down: while traveling can bring the highest highs, it can also send you to the lowest lows.
I just got back from a backpacking trip to Central America. It was quick, about 10-days, all I could get off with PTO. In that time I discovered the most vibrant backpacking scene I've ever experienced. My time was mostly spent in Guatemala, hitting the popular destinations, such as Antigua, El Paredon, Acetenango and towns around Atitlan.
Maybe the stars were in the right alignment and the vapor clouds coming off the volcanoes had everyone a bit lifted - who knows? But to click so quickly with people and have crews form within minutes of meeting each other was undoubtedly special. So many characters. So many laughs. So many truly amazing experiences in a beautiful country, with incredible people from around the world.
This is a rant. This is a bit of a rave too - apologies. It's just that the whiplash you feel when you realize that it's time to go home, can be astounding. It's like a relentless tide, pulling you away. While it's a normal part of the backpacking scene to be constantly saying 'hello' and then almost as quickly saying 'see you later,' this one was particularly difficult.
So here I sit, back at work, digesting the trip and sipping my tea in contemplation. 'Was last week even real?' I've been asking myself. Yes - of course it was real. There are pictures! But still, when I close my eyes I can see Volcan de Fuego erupting over my head. I can see the sunrise over the ocean and freshly chopped pineapples on my plate. I can see that beautiful girl who I kissed next to the lake, sitting and holding hands while the stars came out.
Traveling is amazing. It's wonderful. It's transformative. And yet - it's a bit damaging, because you leave bits and pieces of yourself behind in places that you love, and with people whose souls you become intertwined with. Even if just for a little while.
That's it for now. Hasta luego.
Submitted April 17, 2018 at 05:47PM by Flash_Fiction https://ift.tt/2JSuSi9
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