Story Index:

Ao final
07/13/2014

Son in the sky
07/12/2014

Recife
06/27/2014

Impressions of Brazil
06/25/2014

Vida Dura
06/23/2014

Hawaii Fishing News - May 2013
05/01/2013

Un lugar para mi
09/09/2011

Crossed the border
08/18/2011

Quiero mas tiempo!
07/31/2011

Perched above Medellin
07/23/2011

Yay for a shower!
07/19/2011

New coast for me!
07/15/2011

The ocean calls
07/09/2011

Thick rain, freight train
06/26/2011

Tierra Dura
06/26/2011

Time to dry
06/24/2011

The next quarter century - on we go!
06/18/2011

Rolling with it
06/09/2011

Viviendo la vida
04/27/2011

You live and you learn: Adventures in Bureaucracy
04/12/2011

Snippets of Life - Part 4: La vida hermosa
04/08/2011

Snippets of Life: Part 3 - Las flores y los pájaros de Mindo
04/07/2011

Snippets of Life: Part 2 - An afternoon in Colonial Quito
03/30/2011

Snippets of Life: Part 1 - Fútbol en Argentina
03/27/2011

La diferencia principal entre Ecuador y Thailand
02/12/2011

Mi misíon por cada día
02/05/2011

Me gusta mi linea de trabajo!
01/28/2011

Mi primer fin de semana en Ecuador
01/18/2011

First off, let's catch up: Where's Whitney?
01/13/2011

Day BA
02/24/2009

What a year! 2008 in Review...
12/29/2008

Southeast Asia Superlatives (and not-so-Superlatives)
12/12/2008

One week in Cambodia
12/03/2008

Waterfalls, cliffs, and caves of beautiful Laos
11/09/2008

Beautiful, happy northern Thailand
10/31/2008

One amazing month on Koh Tao
10/24/2008

Daily mission on the islands: Enjoy life!
09/14/2008

Bangkok, Thailand
09/13/2008

Last week in France
09/05/2008

August 08 in Europe
08/24/2008

Failed Cape Melville
07/13/2008

Day trip to Bowen
06/25/2008

Part 3: Volleyball playoffs
06/15/2008

Part 2: Ultimate camping
06/15/2008

Part 1 of... many: FOLK FESTIVAL!
06/15/2008

My weekend of great vistas
06/02/2008

A glorious weekend on Magnetic Island
05/27/2008

Ugh. I'm exhausted.
05/02/2008

New Zealand... ROCKS!!!
04/30/2008

It's been awhile...
04/23/2008

Sushi night at the house
04/07/2008

Thanks for all the letters and mail!
04/01/2008

I finally got to dive the Great Barrier Reef!
03/31/2008

Blues Fest - Byron Bay
03/26/2008

The little things I realize I miss
03/18/2008

Bouldering trip
03/17/2008

Beach volleyball!
03/14/2008

I'M GOING TO THE BLUES FEST!!
03/11/2008

So many new animals!
03/08/2008

time for school
03/06/2008

Whitney saw a wallaby!!
03/02/2008

Pictures for my stories
03/02/2008

Just some observations
02/28/2008

Mailing address
02/27/2008

Rain in the tropics
02/25/2008

Townsville!
02/25/2008

We're finally in Australia!
02/23/2008

The Last Supper
02/16/2008
Un lugar para mi

"Why do you travel? What do you personally get out of it?"

For me, there is an endless, ever-growing list of answers to this question. One of them is, "To see what's out there. To learn what I want out of my life." If I'm fortunate enough, I may find along my travels a place that feels like "a place for me." This may not mean that it is a place in which I imagine living for the rest of my life. It may not even be a place that I will ever see again. But it is a place where, upon arriving, or after spending a bit of time there, I feel comfortable. I feel happy with life, I feel I am where I should be at that moment in time, and I feel that my trust in the universe has once again fortified itself.

I have only been in Huaraz, Peru for about 4 hours, but I feel that I have arrived at such a place as I have just described. Huaraz is a moderate-sized town of a little less than 50,000 and a healthy lot of outdoor enthusiast extranjeros, located at 3090 meters (about 10,200 ft) of elevation in the Peruvian Andes. The streets feel safe and friendly, and people smile openly when I wish them buenos dias. While there is a fair amount of adventure-seeking tourism, the town does not feel jaded and over-run by it. Maybe this is simply in contrast to the overwhelmingly touristed city of Cuzco, jump-off point for Machu Picchu visitors, where I just came from. However, I truly feel that Huaraz still has a genuine, gentle charm.

In any case, in my half-day thus far, I have found a number of little things that make this place great:

  • a very nice family-run hostel for a very nice price (equivalent of about $5), complete with a delightful breakfast
  • an excellent cappuccino, roasted en casa
  • a very comfortable, funky, well-managed cafe that is probably my favorite I have found in all of South America
  • legitimately spicy aji (hot sauce) packed with flavor (not just in one location, but as a general characteristic of Huaraz)
  • delicious food at delicious prices ($1-3 for lunch)
  • friendly strangers to have a good chat with
  • and... I hear there are a couple good artisan beers in the area!
And I haven't even made it out to the numerous mountain hikes yet!

So let's see... good prices, good food, good coffee, good accommodation, good people, and good naturaleza. Perfecto!


Brekky included with my $5 accommodation in Huaraz


Posted by Whitney 09/09/2011
FreeStyle Journal 19.03.21
©2003-2011 by Dan Goodell

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